Friday, December 25, 2009

Merry Christmas to All!

Santa has already made his stop here in New England. Even brought us the White Christmas that I've been hoping for! Our Blogger's Challenge theme for today is Christmas, so I thought that I'd share some of the crafty things that we've been up to at home. First up is the gingerbread house that my little one and I decorated at one of the local Historic Inns. They bake the gingerbread for you and put it all together and then they give you a heaping bag of frosting and an array of candy to decorate it with while you enjoy their homemade treats and hot cocoa. It's a fun, family event! I especially love the Santa chocolate that we added coming out of the chimney.

I've been stamping too! I made a lot of cards for gifts, but didn't take pictures of any (yes, I know...very smart of me...lol!) I also made a lot of these treats for DH to take to work. When he managed to bring one back home, I quickly took a photograph before anyone ate it! The idea came from Becky Roberts' blog. I used Stampin' Up's Deer Friends set with my punches, a few York Peppermint Patties, some festive ribbon from Michaels, and a pretzel bag to contain it all.The last thing that I wanted to share with you is something that my DH and I create each year for the Christmas season. Our honeymoon was spent in Colonial Williamsburg and we've been lucky enough to go back on a few other occasions. One of those times was during the Christmas season and we immediately fell in love with all of the colonial Christmas decorations that they make there. One of our favorites is the traditional Williamsburg Apple Cone. It is made with fresh fruit, boxwood, and magnolia leaves. Even though the apples are attached to a nail-studded wooden cone, they last through the holiday season and their fragrance makes the house feel so cozy. This year, it looks wonderful on top of my Grandmother's old Singer sewing machine.

Hope you enjoyed some of our Christmas traditions and treats. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and many blessings for the New Year! Thanks so much for visiting today...Toodles! :D

Friday, December 11, 2009

Happy Bird-day!

Happy Friday to you! This week's Blogger's Challenge theme is called "Happy Birthday" or as I like to call it..."Happy Bird-day!" My main image is a digi stamp from Pink Cat Studio. I colored the birds with my Prismas and the cupcake with my markers, and then I used my Nesties to cut it out. The left corner needed a little something, so I added an Old Olive ribbon knot. I think that this image works perfectly with this sentiment from A Muse Artstamps, so I paired them up together. I dressed up the sentiment with a polka dotted Doodlebug Designs button. The faux stitched piece is a strip of Cool Caribbean and that is layered onto some retired Stampin' Up Designer Paper.

If you're looking for some beautiful ideas for birthday cards, you can see what the other Ladies in the Blogger's Challenge group have come up with here.

I hope that all of your Christmas and holiday preparations are going well and that you are staying warm. Winter has hit New England already! We got about six inches of the fluffy stuff this week! Yippee! Thank you so much for stopping by today...Toodles! :D