2014 Christmas gift round-up

"It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air."
-W.T. Ellis

This year wasn't a super crafty Christmas, but I did put together a few gifts that I was really excited about giving. Here's a round-up of my favorite creative gifts that I gave this year:

For my good friend who was dreading her first divorced Christmas
A "Christmas Afternoon" box filled with fun goodies to create new Christmas traditions, including a jigsaw puzzle, a dvd movie, a hot cocoa and tea gift set, Handmade Charlotte ornament craft kits, a candle, a cute ornament, and a chocolate lollipop.

For my sister-in-law's family
Knowing that my nephews (age 5 and 11) would receive gobs of toys for Christmas, I opted for a "Strikes and 'Staches adventure" package that included a gift card to the local bowling alley, fake mustaches, and a pair of fun socks for each person.

For my Sunday School friends
Last year I surprised my friends by leaving a roll of wrapping paper at each of their doors, and I was then surprised by how much it meant to some of them. I found this cute idea from Kristen Duke on Pinterest and thought it would be great for this year. I wrapped up a set of paper plates and napkins from IKEA, stuck my own tags on, and gave them out as combination Christmas/baby shower hostess gifts.

Christmas wrapping for everyone
Even in a year when I tried to scale back my Christmas planning, I was still eager to coordinate my wrapping. It's a tradition that I enjoy so much that it really doesn't feel like work to me. I was inspired by this One Fine Dae packaging that I ran across on Pinterest, but I jazzed up my zigzag-stitched kraft paper envelopes a bit by including red and lime green masking tape and my own graphic tags. Download the printable tags here.

Here's hoping that the recipients enjoyed the gifts as much as I enjoyed giving them!

December Daily 2014

The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear!"
-Buddy the Elf, in the movie Elf

I've always been inspired by Ali Edwards' December Daily project, but for the last couple of years I just couldn't imagine taking on another "project" during the month of December. This year, however, motivated by a 6"x6" pad of Christmas paper that I picked up at the dollar store, I was determined to record the memories of this December.

The Reason Why
Advent and the month of December are times for waiting and expecting... usually counting down until Christmas celebrations. However, this year Rob and I are also eagerly anticipating a baby of our own in early 2015. So, in addition to the dreams of red and green, we're also knee deep in the world of birth classes, car seats, diapers, and onesies. Which means the holidays will probably look a bit different this year. While we have never been ones to go overboard for Christmas, we're hoping to streamline our decorations, commitments, and to-do lists. Hopefully while still keeping the magic and spirit of Christmas alive.

I embraced a simple layout with one 4"x4" photo per page with a sentence or two of journaling and an added embellishment just for fun. If you follow me on Instagram, you've probably seen some of these pictures, but here they are all together telling the story of our December.

Thanks, Ali, once again for your inspiration. I am sure that once our family grows, future Decembers will have a much different rhythm. How special this album will be to remember the quieter December days!

--

Supplies used:

American Crafts 6x6 album in Red, American Crafts 6x6 page protectors, "Hello December" 6x6 paper pack from Glitz, "Hello December" giant rhinestones from Glitz, "Make it Merry" tidbits from October Afternoon, "25 Days" chipboard number stickers from Thickers, "The Reason Why" graphic from Ali Edwards.

Merry Christmas... from us to you!

"I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year."
-Charles Dickens

Even scaling back on our Christmas demands this year couldn't keep me from sending Christmas cards. Any excuse to design something fun to send out!!

Holiday Storyteller... Christmas project to-do list

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas 
Toys in ev'ry store 
But the prettiest sight to see is the holly that will be 
On your own front door."

[This year I'm participating in Holiday Storyteller, a free e-course from Simple Scrapper. I thought it would be a wonderful way to get in the mood and reflect on the season. Maybe these journaling prompts will inspire a few blog posts as well.]

Dec. 2 - Holiday projects... Do you have everything you need? How often will you work on it? Can you simplify further?

Besides shopping for Christmas gifts (which I hope to complete this week!), I have very few must-do crafty projects on my agenda this holiday.

Link to my Holidays Pinterest board

1. After putting up my decorations yesterday, I have a hankering to make my fireplace mantel sparkle a bit more. I searched on Pinterest for inspiration, but haven't yet found a picture of exactly what I want... something bold and graphic, colored with red, white, and green. I think I'll try to squeeze in a trip to the craft store this week for a bit more greenery and maybe a decoration or two.

2. One of my favorite parts of the holiday season is sending and receiving Christmas cards. I always love a good excuse to design pretty paper goods. This year I found invitations/envelopes at Hobby Lobby that I'm going to use as the main part of our card. I still need to pick up printed photos from Sam's to attach to each card, as well as to decide on what message to write or print on the other side of the card. And, then of course there's addressing, stamping, and licking envelopes, but that can always be tackled late one night by the light of the Christmas tree.

3. The one handmade gift on my list this year will accompany my nephew's Lego sets. I saw a great tutorial online for a toy bag to keep all of the small pieces together. I need to run by the fabric store to purchase both some clear vinyl and some coordinating fabric, and then most importantly need to find a chunk of time to lock myself away with the sewing machine. Of course my grand vision includes adding a pocket to the front of the bag... I hope my sewing skills are up for a challenge.

Holiday Storyteller... kicking off Christmas

Each year, you bring to me delight
Gleaming in the christmas night.
O christmas tree, o christmas tree,
Of all the trees most lovely

This year I'm participating in Holiday Storyteller, a free e-course from Simple Scrapper. I thought it would be a wonderful way to get in the mood and reflect on the season. Maybe these prompts will inspire a few blog posts as well.

Dec. 1 - What is one food or tradition that kicks off your holiday season or that really makes it feel like the holidays?

For me, Christmas arrives when the Christmas tree is up and the lights are lit. This year (and last year as well) our tree is standing in the corner of the living room near the fireplace. We set the tree up before we left for Thanksgiving but saved the ornaments and other decorating until after we returned.

As I look at our little tree from a distance, I'm thinking it might not make it another year. It's really too short for the space, and after seven Christmases, most of the pre-lit branches are dark and bent in odd directions. There are also some gaping holes that an ornament can't simply fill.

However, when we turn off the overhead lights, the Christmas tree lights cast this awesome glow on the wall behind, and I know that the magic of Christmas has arrived.

#christmascheer

“Christmas doesn't come from a store, maybe Christmas perhaps means a little bit more....”
-Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas 

2012 Crafty Gift Guide

Every time we love, every time we give, it's Christmas.
-Dale Evans

Knowing who my most faithful blog readers are, I can't share many of my craftiest Christmas gift ideas yet. They just might be wrapped up with one of their names scrawled across the tag, waiting patiently to be opened Christmas morning.

But, here are a few of the "handmade" gifts that are sitting under my tree this year:

Totebag for science books | For my nephew, the third grader
He is a good reader but needs all the motivation he can to actually read in his spare time. I filled it with Franny K. Stein's Crate of Danger and a science experiment book which hopefully will inspire him. Wanna make a cute tote of your own? I used this great tutorial from Dana Made It.

Monogrammed cookie jar | For my sister-in-law who recently renovated her kitchen. 
As I've mentioned previously, I love a good glass etching project. Take a $6 glass cookie jar, and poof, it becomes a trendy, custom kitchen accessory. I cut the stencil with a Silhouette machine (at the local scrapbook store for only $1.50!!) and then went at it with the Armor Etch.

Racing bib holder | For my husband, the cycling enthusiast
Along with a several of other cycling-related paraphernalia, I made Rob a display plaque for his bib numbers from races. I was inspired by these from Running On The Wall's Etsy shop.

If you don't have the wall space for hanging, my mom is also working a scrapbook-like binder for her significant others' race bibs---hopefully she'll post on her blog once it's done!.

Math clock | For my brother-in-law, the algebra teacher
When I was teaching math, I kept a similar math clock on my wishlist. Now that I'm out of the classroom, I knew exactly what I would make my brother-in-law who is a first-year teacher. (This, plus plenty of worksheets, resources, and manipulatives that I haven't been able to part with.)

However, this process was so easy, you could personalize a clock with any idea you please. I found the clock at Big Lots and had the design printed as a photo poster from Sam's. A quick turn of the screwdriver, and I was able to remove the back of the clock and replace the original numbers with my poster.

Holiday recap...

"I shall make of this day–each moment of this day–a heaven on earth. This is my day of opportunity."

-Dan Custer

The good thing about freelancing is that I can take my work on the road. I just returned Monday night from three weeks away. Although it has taken a couple of days to get back to the grindstone, I have such wonderful memories from the time spent in Louisiana with my mom and sister.

Here are a few highlights:

Practicing the manual setting on our cameras. We may have had a tiny breakthrough... although it doesn't always seem to work. See more.

Lots of cooking and baking: sugar cookies, pork roast, pecan pie, bread, etc. And, then of course, we ate it ALL!

Celebrating on Christmas Eve after the Candlelight Service. Yummy feast, thoughtful gifts, and wonderful family.

Freezing our tushies off as we sat through the rainy and foggy Independence Bowl. We stayed until the middle of the fourth quarter, when we were able to convince Callie that there was no hope left for UNC, her alma mater. See more.

Putting Mama's sewing room back together after it was remodeled. It even spurred a couple of sewing projects. See more.

One of which was a camera bag insert for our DSLRs. Now we can be stylish and functional!! See more.

Digging through the piles of junk at the First Monday Trade Days in Canton, TX. I had been wanting to join my mom on this adventure for years. And, now I can't wait to go back! See more.

Lots of exercising and aerobics at Mosley's Movements... Good thing, since I ate half of a batch of cookies all by myself.

Eating at some of my favorite places and seeing some of my favorite people. Sometimes at the same time!!

Driving down to Baton Rouge for Camp-Crop-A-Lot, a weekend scrapbook retreat sponsored by Memory Mania. Another place I've wanted to go with my mom for several years. I worked on a scrapbook journal of our wedding planning activities. I hope to put the final touches on it in the next couple of weeks so that I can post it here. See more.

And, most importantly, lots of quality time with my mom and sister! I love and miss you girls!! See more.

What's in that Package?

"The nice thing about doing a crossword puzzle is, you know there is a solution."

-Stephen Sondheim

Let's play guess what's in that package... 

[BTW... if you happen to know the recipient in person, you're sworn to secrecy!!]

Inspired by this awesome Box of Teacher Goodies from the super creative eighteen25 blog, I couldn't wait to adapt the idea for my own Christmas gifts.

After watching my sister and brother-in-law huddle around a crossword puzzle book while on vacation this summer, I decided to whip up a "Crossword Kit" for Jordan, full of lots of goodies that would come in handy while working puzzles.

 Here is what's inside:

• Pages of a crossword puzzle book rolled up and tied with string
• Needs no explanation : golf pencils
• Keep it sharp : pencil sharpener
• For those occasional mistakes : pink pearl eraser
• When you're feeling confident : pocket pens
• Mark your page : decoupaged magnetic bookmarks
• Relieve the stress : brain-shaped stress ball
• Nourish your mind : black and white M&Ms
• Boost your brainpower : mini Rubik's cube
• Finished the puzzle... give yourself a hand : plastic clapper toy

You could also pair this with a great puzzle book, an electronic crossword game, a daily crossword calender, a crossword puzzle dictionary, the movie Wordplay, a set of mystery novels about crosswords, or the World's Largest Crossword puzzle. You'll just have to guess which one I chose...

Signed, sealed, and delivered...

"Christmas is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it's Christmas."

-Dale Evans

Well, maybe not delivered yet... but they're on their way.

I took advantage of a freebie deal from VistaPrint and printed our photo and Christmas message as a small postcard with envelopes. I'm pretty tickled with them.

Not our Christmas card...

"Anyone can be passionate, but it takes real lovers to be silly."

-Rose Franken

In honor of our Christmas cards being dropped in the mailbox today, here are some of the photos we rejected for this year's card...

Can't imagine why!

What's under my tree...

"You can give without loving, but you can never love without giving."

-Author Unknown

Take a guess... what do you think is inside? 

Only one of my favorite gifts that I'm giving this year. One that I've been working on for a couple of months.

Remember when my nephews came to stay with me for a week this summer? Here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Needless to say, I took a lot of photos of all the fun things we did... with hopes of turning it into a photobook for them.

And, then a couple of weeks ago, I took advantage of a free 8x8" photobook offer from Smilebooks--you can get one for yourself here!-- and all I had to pay for was shipping!

I hope the boys will always look back on our week together with fond memories!

Holiday (in)sanity...

"Christmas is for children. But it is for grown-ups too. Even if it is a headache, a chore, and nightmare, it is a period of necessary defrosting of chill and hide-bound hearts."

-Lenora Mattingly Weber

The #1 thing that keeps me sane throughout the Christmas season... the Better Christmas List app on my iPhone. 

I've used it for three years straight, and I love it. I'm a total believer in picking up gifts throughout the year. (Come December, I'm always thrilled to discover that I can avoid the crowds at the mall and still stick to my budget.) But once a gift is hidden away in my secret gift stash, it's easy to forget that it's there. However, with a quick tap of my fingers, this app keeps track of my ever-growing gift list.

While I'm pretty sure that this app has some functions that I still haven't utilized the fullest, I love the fact that I can

• Archive the data from each year, so that I can see what gifts I gave last year and prevent any repeats.
• Attach a photo of the gift after I buy it, so that I can match something else to it later, and I don't have to dig in the secret stash to remember exactly what it is.
• Organize the list both by recipient and by what step I'm on (need to purchase, bought, wrapped, or delivered)-- the latter comes in handy especially during the month of December when I'm trying to pull it all together.
• Add notes about each gift, so that I can compare prices and/or continue brainstorming.
• Keep track of my budget, although I have to admit, I'm not very good at setting initial budget limits, so I always set them so that I'm way under-budget!
• Match each recipient with their address and other contact info through my phonebook, so that I don't get stuck at the post office without my address book.
• Be confident that I always have the list with me, so I don't have to keep up with a physical notebook (I'm always leaving those at home or even in the car anyway)!

The gift wrapping awards...

"Love came down at Christmas, Love all lovely, Love Divine; Love was born at Christmas; Star and angels gave the sign." 

-Christina Rossetti

I package up each gift with wrapping paper, ribbon, and a whole bunch of love. I hope the people on my Christmas list feel that love as they untie the bow and pull off the paper. 

I have to admit though, some gifts are easier to wrap than others. Here are the winners of the 2011 Gift Wrapping Superlatives:

Tied up with bows...

"A joy that is shared is a joy made double."

-John Roy

I also have picked up a great ribbon-tying strategy that lets the gift box sit evenly on the table, although I can't seem to remember where I first saw it. (Previously I used a criss-cross ribbon method that left a twist on the bottom of the package that just didn't look as crisp as I desired.) I've since converted 100%.

Here's how:

1. Cross. Run ribbon under the back of the package. Bring the two ends up, so that one end is be significantly longer than the other-- in my example, the length of ribbon on the right side is about three longer than the left. Cross the ribbon end over the front of the package, so they run parallel to one another... the longer end should be on above the shorted end.
2. Twist. Twist the ends of ribbon around each other, so that the longer ribbon (from the top) is now pointing down, the shorter ribbon (from the bottom) is now pointing up, and the intersection point is in the middle of the package.
3. Wrap. Bring the longer ribbon around the back of the package and around to the front.
4. Knot. Back at the original intersection point, tie a double knot between the two ends.
5. Bow. Tie a pretty bow at the intersection point. Trim the ends so that they are equal in length.

It takes a little practice, but your presents will look so polished!!

All wrapped up...

"As long as we know in our hearts what Christmas ought to be, Christmas is."

-Eric Sevareid

With the exception of a few handmade gifts that I need to finish, I have all of our Christmas presents bought and wrapped. I'm no expert gift wrapper by all means, but I have picked up a few tips over the last couple of years that make all of the difference for me.

First off, wrapping paper quality is key. There is nothing more frustrating than that cheap drugstore giftwrap that tears in a million and one directions except for the way you want it to. I've tried many alternatives over the years, including brown kraft paper and matte paper, but I think I landed on my favorite.

Last year during a half-off sale, I purchased two rolls of glossy-finish paper from Hobby Lobby (Brother Sister Design Studios). Not only are they fun coordinating patterns, but they even have a grid pattern printed on the reverse to help you cut in straight lines. They're surprisingly thick, allowing my scissors to glide right through. And, you can't even see through the white paper! I think I'm in love.

Next, tags. I always like to find a clever way to address the presents for the recipients. Sometimes that means making my own tags, sometimes that means finding cute printables online, and once in awhile, it means printing customized tags for each person!  

Some quick tag inspiration for you: Printable Gift Tag Roundup from Creature Comforts, Circle Snowflake Tags from Winnie0917, Printable Gift Tags from Skip To My Lou, and Fun with Fonts from Bugs and Fishes

Last, ribbons. On a tip from Jordan Ferney on Oh Happy Day years ago, I purchased several rolls of 7/8" single face satin ribbon from PaperMart. She raves about this ribbon, and I agree. It's gorgeous! Unfortunately after several years with the same stash, I need to remember to order more before next year's holiday season.

Tutorial on my awesome ribbon tying method coming up next!!

A few Christmas scenes...

"It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air."

-W.T. Ellis

This week I've put up a couple of holiday decorations and started wrapping some presents. There's no room in our little apartment to set out (or store) all of our decorations, but I couldn't resist a little bit of red and green.

Love the little holiday tree that I printed from HP (found via Design Crush!). In typical Jana fashion, this simple project turned into quite the labor of love. I had to visit three stores to get printer ink (as soon as I had installed the new yellow ink, it informed me that I was also out of black!), and then I didn't read the instructions and went crazy with the paper cutter to remove the margins before I realized that the puzzle pieces wouldn't match up. Thankfully I had a fabric garland on hand, and as I trimmed the tree, I was able to disguise the mismatching.

The perfect corner for our presents to sit. That is, until I finally get around the post office to send many of them on their way.

Picture Fall: Day 12

"For fast-acting relief, try slowing down."

-Lily Tomlin

I know it's not Christmas season yet. But, yesterday my moment of relaxation was a spontaneous craft project. Inspired by thoughts about this year's Christmas cards, I pulled my paper craft stash from the closet and whipped this right up, while Rob and Thomas played video games in the background. Of course, only after hanging it up on our mantel and stepping back to admire my handiwork did I realize that we used a pennant banner in our card last year. Maybe I should try to think of something else... Any ideas?

Christmas Wrap-up...

"Probably the reason we all go so haywire at Christmas time with the endless unrestrained and often silly buying of gifts is that we don't quite know how to put our love into words."
-Harlan Miller

A little bit of drama, a little bit of love. Mix it up and you get the average holiday celebration at my in-laws. Here are some of the highlights:

Christmas Joy...

"I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month." -Harlan Miller

'Tis the season of peace. 'Tis the season of hope. 'Tis the season of love.
Merry Christmas to all of you from the two of us!
Wish we were celebrating with you!!