craft

Quick Christmas Candle Lantern

November 30, 2015 by Cynthia Leave a Comment

Leftover wrapping paper from last year, a simple ribbon and some live mistletoe.

I love burning candles. Especially at Christmas. I needed a quick way to make a plain looking candle fit in with the festive décor. I just grabbed what I had at hand to make a simple paper sleeve for candles around the home. I was partly inspired by the live mistletoe that I bought from some very resourceful boy scouts outside of the local Lowe’s. They picked it from a local park and were selling small bunches to support their troop. Smart thinking and well done.

I hope you find some inspiration.

Always,

Cindy

Paper, ribbon, a way to create a decorative edge and some live or artificial embellishments. Simple as that. My one tip would be to make sure the paper you use has some transparency to it in order to diffuse the light and create a warm glow.

A simple lunch sack worked for this sleeve. The seaming inadvertently became part of the design, highlighting the scalloped edges.

Filed Under: Holiday and Seasonal, Projects, Uncategorized Tagged With: candle, christmas, craft, decorations, festive, holiday, kraft, paper, ribbon, velvet

Great Tidings of Joy

November 12, 2012 by Cynthia Leave a Comment

What is the holiday without going off into the twinkly lit night bundled up for a visit with family and friends, or having holiday guests for a short stay?

Here is a sweet, thoughtful idea that has an element of easy handmade to it. Easy enough of a craft to fit in amongst all the other hustle and bustle of the Holidays, but involved enough so that your gift recipients appreciate the effort.

Hand made holiday match boxes gifted with a candle for hostess gifts to say thank you or left on a bedside table for an overnite visitor to say welcome. Use your favorite scented candle; something that will remind them of you. My personal favorite is Trapp Candle Scent No. 04, Orange Vanilla. It is a fragrance that oddly works in the breezy days of summer or the cozy, cold nights of winter. If you order one online, or pick one up…I think you will be glad you did.

Orange Vanilla Trapp Candle.

The matchbox steps:

Simple designs using clip art printed on copy paper.

Use your sticker machine or use traditional glue.

The finished product:

Different designs limited only by your imagination.

Craft store embelishments to add a little Holiday sparkle.

Packaged for gifting:

The home made match box paired with a favorite candle, in festive packaging.

Welcome your Holiday Guest with something to fall asleep by.

Coupled with Holiday treats as a Hostess gift.

Filed Under: Holiday and Seasonal, Projects, Uncategorized Tagged With: box, candle, christmas, cottage, country, cozy, craft, gift, guest, holiday, home made, hostess, match, merry, night, orange, over, overnight, overnite, trapp, vanilla, warmth, winter

Shooting Rubber Bands at the Paper Christmas Stars.

November 6, 2012 by Cynthia Leave a Comment

Christmas is on it’s way!

Several years ago, I was particularly industrious and decided I wanted mostly a paper, handmade Christmas. I had some really pretty Christmas paper and my brand new Sizzix machine with a star shaped die cut.

I had a fleeting thought that it would be interesting to sew paper with my sewing machine and as the idea evolved in my head, I decided to sew two like shaped pieces together, add a ribbon for hanging and stuff a little cotton between the two sheets of paper to give it some dimension.

A fairly quick and easy idea that can translate to many ideas and projects. If I do them this year, I will probably use simple Kraft paper and use a more decorative stitch. The idea is only limited by your imagination!

I hope you find some inspiration.

Always,

Cindy

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Tinsel and Paper

Damask Paper Pattern

Pretty Pastels

Florals at Christmas

Christmas Inspiration

Filed Under: Holiday and Seasonal, Projects Tagged With: christmas, cottage, country, craft, evergreen, ornaments, paper, sewing, stars, tree

Boo!

August 23, 2012 by Cynthia Leave a Comment

Vintage Mirror from GOOD LOOK, Inc. reminiscent of a tombstone.

Call me naive or hopeful, but I really long for the old kind of Halloween that was innocent and fun and full of simple, sweet frolic. During the holidays, paper crafting was common in the Victorian era. Taking my cues from them, I used lovely Victorian Halloween clip art that has a wonderful graphic quality and design that endures today, over 100 years later.

For my Halloween mantle, I challenged myself to use paper to make crafts and stay away from store bought, ready-made pieces. I tend to be more creative when there are greater limitations place on me. To that end, here are some of the projects from the mantle:

Paper lanterns
Paper flag banner
Accordion pleated Holiday medallions
Paper Flags
German Glass Glitter Star “scepter”
Black & White bean jack-o-lantern face in a vintage vase (vintage vase used previously in this post)
Antique pie crust mirror (from GOOD LOOK, Inc.)
End of season hydrangeas (with pretty raspberry and green variegated buds) in a lab beaker
Hurricane candle holders with black and white bean stripes, reminiscent of vintage ticking strips topped with vintage french ribbon

I hope that you find something that inspires you!

Until next time,

xoxo

Cindy