So, I do try and make my Christmas cards every year and I have done for over 10 years now (Sayyyyy whatt, madnesss)
This year, with all the craziness I almost didn’t… but then I thought, let’s just scale it back a little, keep them simple and I just do it for my fambizzle.
So thats what I did… if you are family and are reading this, maybe don’t or your card might be on here ๐คฃ๐คฃ
I still had loads of festive paper left over so I used that as the main design as they are pretty ones.
My calligraphy leaves much to be desired but, be won’t worry about that.
I really liked the simple effect of using the gift tags as part of the design.
I actually really enjoyed making these again. I have utilised Moonapig this year, in order to send cards all over the place, so it was actually really nice to be making them again!
Prehaps I’ll get ahead for next year whilst I’m enjoying it and have more time. It’s nice to do things when you have the time to enjoy it and it doesn’t become a chore.
Right, I’m off to organise our round for the Festive Boxing Day Quiz (2020 stylyyyy obv)
Me and my friend went to a wreath making workshop this year. We did it in November in order to get the most out of our wreaths.
These were made with real fresh foliage and they were really fun to make.
The workshop was only with three others so five of us in total which gave it a nice relaxed atmosphere.
The lady who tan the workshop was lovely and very helpful and attentive.
We even got chocolate cake and cups of tea whilst we were creating our wreaths, always a winner when cakes involved.
You started by preparing your wreaths ring, then you added your large foliage as you desired. We had lots of different ones to choose from (I would love to tell you what they were but I’m no gardener haha) I did recognize the holly of course!
As extras we had pine cones, holly berries, cinnamon sticks, white berries, dried orange and lime slices as well as little Robin’s.
There was also a choice of ribbon to finish off your wreath. I chose the red and gold to match my theme. I love the more traditional Christmas colours.
I thought it was going to be really hard and fiddly, some bits were fiddly but over all I really enjoyed giving it a go and it was nice to get creative and just chill out.
I can be quite creative sometimes and I love making things, it’s one of those hobbies I don’t do enough!! So it was great to make time for it and have a lovely evening with my friend.
I love getting a bit creative at Christmas and adding that personal touch to my gifts.
Hampers are a great way of doing that.
You can select things that are super festive as well as things that you know someone will love, thereby adding your personal touch.
My festive faves to add to a hamper are:
โขMince Pies โขChocolate โขSavoury bits
โขStollen โขNuts โขBiscuits โขSweets
To add a personal touch I like to add:
โขTheir favourite chocolate โขVouchers
โขBath bombs โขShower gel โขBooks
If you are making a family hamper I like to add:
โขChocolate Santa’s โขChocolate coins
โขMini games โขCard games โขPuzzles
โขTheir fave toy โขCraft packs โขSweets
Food is one of the best parts of Christmas and making someone something they can enjoy and share is great if they are harder to buy for or if it is a shared, family present.
This is also a great present for older relatives such as grandparents, aunties & uncles etc.
You can pick up hampers from loads of shops:
โขThe Range โขB&M โขHome bargains โขThe Works โขTK Maxx
They come with the shredded paper in the bottom, cellophane and a ribbon which adds that finishing touch to your hamper.
I always put my hamper into the cellophane diagonally, in the centre and then gather up the edges of the cellophane above the basket and tie with the ribbon. You can then neaten it out and rearrange the cellophane as necessary.
Getting the cellophane part right can take a few goes, YouTube videos are great if you havn’t done it before.
I love making cards. I’ve been doing it for probably 8 or 9 years now and it’s a hobby that I really enjoy.
Its definatly something I need to make more time for.
I think that it is always lovely to receive something homemade and I love coming up with my own designs and ideas too.
I usually stick to a traditional colour scheme of red, gold and green and I use this as my starting base.
I then like to get some papers that are in this colour scheme.
I then look at the designs on these papers to see what embellishments I need.
My fave places for supplies are:
Hobbycraft
The Range
The Works
I also love Pinterest for ideas and inspo.
Choose your papers wisely and carefully as these will be the base of your cards.
This is the paper I chose…
You can get some great selection pads of paper, for card making. These are great as they have different themed ones and you get lots of variety within that theme that you have chosen.
They are also better value for money than buying lots of single sheets.
Lets take a look at a few that I have made so far.
I like to keep it simple and just accentuate the paper designs with a few nice embellishments.
I always think ‘less is more’ but of course that’s personal preference.
I hope you have found this helpful and it inspires you to give card making a go.
Let me know if you want any more tips or if you make any cards, I’d love to see them!!
Children love Christmas and they certainly make it even more magical.
I work with children and I have two nephew’s and a niece as well.
I love getting creative and having a bit of fun with them and these ideas are so simple and easy.
These don’t require lots of expensive resources, you might even already have some of the stuff. Plus, you can use some things for more than one of the activities.
Just have a bit of fun ๐
Lollipop Christmas trees
We stuck our lollipop sticks onto green paper to save having to use a glue gun. If you wanted to make them without the backing a glue gun would be best to stick the lollipop sticks together.
Then you just need to add a stalk, a star on top and decorations.
DIY Christmas cards
These are a super simple and easy idea and are perfect for getting the kiddies involved in the festivities. This is not only fun but saves you a job! Who doesn’t love receiving a homemade card!?! Plus, you can do whatever you like so it’s open to you and your childrebs interpretation.
Cotton wool snowmen
This one requires a little bit of cutting out but after that it is just an assembly job so you could always try and cut out a few bits before hand or, depending on their age, get the kiddies to help you.
Paper chains
This one only needs strips of your chosen colour paper and some cellotape to complete. They look really effective and they make a great decoration once you are done. The kids love seeing their paper chains hanging up.
Cotton wool painting Christmas trees
This one is a little bit messy but good fun and they can get as creative as they like.
You can just use paint or add mini pom poms and glitter to the mix if you want some really jazzy Christmas trees.
These are all lovely, quick and easy ideas for a fun and festive arty session.
Easter has got to be one of my favourite celebrations. Now I’m not a Christian so I don’t celebrate it in the traditional sense, however I do enjoy the way that we ‘celebrate’ this annual occasion.
I love the giving (& recieivng of, because your lieing if you don’t enjoy receiving chocolate!!) chocolatey treats! Picking ones out you’ll know that your nearest and dearest will enjoy (FYI my fam, it’s all about Terrys choc oranges, Cadbury Mini eggs & Maltester bunnies ๐คฃ)
I thought that since my nephews are a bit older it would be nice to get a bit creative with their Easter Gifts this year. I’ve also done a smaller scale one for my niece as she’s only 9 months old but I didn’t want to leave her out!
So let’s take a look at the goodies…
I picked up these super cute buckets from Home bargains and some ‘straw’ to fill them with.
I picked up a yellow one each for the boys and a purple one for Evie.
Now to add the treats…
In each basket the boys have got:
โ A large chocolate character, one is a pig, ones a lamb.
โ Mini assorted Easter chocolates
โ A wind up toy, bunny & chick
โ A large bubble wand
โ A decorate your own chocolate egg kit
โ For Noah I’ve popped in a Easter arts & crafts pack
โ For Casey (as he is a bit smaller) I popped in a soft cuddly lamb teddy, super cute.
For Evie’s little basket I just filled it with some of her favourite snack bits & sweet treats, baby-tastic. I had to include her favourite banana wafers!
I’ve decided that 2018 is the year I’m going to get back in touch with my crafty/creative side. I really havn’t make enough time for it in the last few years, and although I had the excuse of a wedding to plan in 2016, there really is no reason for my lack of craft in 2017.
I REALLY enjoy being creative, from making cards for birthdays and different occasions, handmade gifts, adult colouring and so on, it’s just really relaxing, one of my favourite hobbies and the perfect excuse for a bit of ‘me time’ (something I definatly need to make more time for!!)
In this post I thought I would share with you the cards that I have made so far! They are all different birthday cards as another occasion hasn’t arisen yet.
I’ve also really enjoyed creating DIY hampers for birthday presents so I will be doing a post on these soon too (keep your eyes peeled)
Roseanne Byford 