January Ideas

I can't believe it's New Year's Eve already! Tomorrow starts the new year, and with that comes a sense of starting over, starting fresh and setting lots of goals for the upcoming year!

Here are some title ideas for you to use in January:
*Auld Lang Syne
*New Year's Eve
*New Year's Day
*Out With the Old, In With the New!
*Happy New Year!
*Let's Celebrate
*Winter Wonderland
*Let it Snow!
*New Year's Resolutions
*Winter Fun

Christmas is over already????

So all the family is gone, the presents have been opened, and the food has been eaten...can it really be over so quickly???

Well...at least all those scrappers out there get to relive all the memories by creating those beautiful layouts! I had the privilege of working with Scraptacular's January kit and it is so chock-full of scrappy goodies that I LOVED creating my layouts. Here's some sneak peeks of what you'll find in the kit...

Some of my favorite Quotes and Sayings for the Holiday Season..

Season's Greetings!!!

I would like to take a moment to share with you a sampling of my favorite Holiday quotes, sayings, and what have you. I wanted to share these with you as they have rung true to me many a time and seem quite fitting for this Christmas Eve!

~~~

Every piece of the universe, even the tiniest little snow crystal, matters somehow. I have a place in the pattern, and so do you…Thinking of you this holiday season!-- T.A. Barron

Love the giver more than the gift.-- Brigham Young

Christmas Eve was a night of song that wrapped itself about you like a shawl. But it warmed more than your body. It warmed your heart... filled it, too, with a melody that would lastforever. - Bess Streeter Aldrich

If there is no joyous way to give a festive gift, give love away. - Unknown

Perhaps the best Yuletide decoration is being wreathed in smiles. - Unknown

“Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, make every day a holiday and celebrate just living!” Amanda Bradley

A snowflake is Winter's butterfly. ~unknown

"Holiday magic starts from within.~ Dove Milk Chocolate wrapper"

"Miracles aren't limited to the Holidays~ Dove Milk Chocolate wrapper"

"Your presence is often the best present.~ Dove Milk Chocolate wrapper"

"The most vivid memories of Christmases past are usually not of gifts given or received, but of the spirit of love, the special warmth of Christmas worship, the cherished little habits of the home." ~Lois Rand

~~~

To finish, I thought that I would share with you this Layout that I did of my sister-in-law and nephew.

May peace, love, joy, and the wonder of the Holiday fill your soul!

~Amy

Last minute gift card holders

Gift cards are a popular gift for Teachers, Hair Dressers, Postal Carriers and all those "hard to buy for" friends. Instead of giving a plain gift card, why not create a custom holder to present it in? Its a great way of showing that you went the extra mile to personalize your gift. Gift cards come in all different shapes and sizes, and don't forget about Gift Certificates!

So dig out those scraps of paper, ribbon remnants and embellishments and let your imagination run wild. The recipient of your gift card will thank you.

Here are just a few examples of how you can make your gift cards extra special this year ;)



Have a safe and happy holiday ;)

Make your own gift bags!

It's that time of year!! Gift bags are in huge demand!!

I always have packs of plain kraft bags on hand for presents throughout the year. I very rarely buy gift bags anymore!

I spritzed some Maya Mist through a piece of plastic canvas on this bag. The tree is cut out of a piece of Webster's Pages paper. It's hard to tell in the picture, but I added some Stickles to the tree too.

Layouts!

I know we are into December now, but I wanted to share some layouts with you using the November kit of the month. I did not design for this month but bought the kit because I LOVED the look of it! And let me tell you, I was not disappointed! Here are a few layouts I made using the kit. I did add some of my own embellishments, but Beth carries several of them also in her store. If you didn't purchase this kit yet, and still have fall photos to scrapbook, get it! It's jam packed for the price.

A Little Treat....

Are you ready to count down to Christmas with a sweet treat??? i made this simple advent countdown calendar in about an hour and it will make a wonderful gift to give with some of our favorite muffin recipes. i will be back with the recipe holder next week, so check back for that! this is made with a very inexpensive muffin tin and the Collage Press Joyride collection papers and delight thickers (which are my new favorite- go grab some in the Scraptacular store today!!!)

here is what it looks like sitting on my craft table....




i cut 24- 2 inch squares, rounded the corners, added 2 pieces of magnetic strips and put the numbers on the front....




add a sweet treat in each mini muffin cup and you are ready to countdown.....


hope you are having a wonderful holiday season and this post finds you celebrating the season with the ones you love (and maybe with some chocolate, too...heehee)....

Welcome Our December Guest Designer...

Heather Garl!

Here's what the super-talented Heather said when we asked her a little bit about herself:

My family and I live in Temple, PA and I don't want to ever leave good old Berks County if I can help it. My husband, Joe, and I have been together for 8 years and we have four growing girls {ranging from 12 to 3} who keep us very busy!I started scrapping when I was in high school (early '90s). I was racing go-karts very competitively at the time and collected the weekly racing newspaper. When the stack became too large to store, I cut out the articles that were important to me, added some racing photos, a couple wrist bands, tickets, and my first scrap books were born. I still remember the days of printing graphics from the computer and cutting them out!I love to try new techniques all the time, but I come back to the basics most of the time. I love creating paper pieced embellishments and any type of flower. I'm addicting to following creative blogs and participating in challenges and contests.If I'm not scrapbooking I'm usually reading, cheering or coaching the kids at soccer games, helping at a church function, or hosting a game night at the house.

You can check out Heather's work in her gallery on our website as well as on her blog, http://scrapbookingsmiles.blogspot.com/

Here's a few of her awesome layouts from our December kit:

Please stop over on the forum to chat with Heather and our other DT members!

Eye Candy!!!

Just to make sure everyone gets into the holiday spirit...let's check out some EYE CANDY from Scraptacular's gallery and see what projects and layouts everyone's been working on. If you need some inspiration, then this will definitely get you in the mood to SCRAP!!!