Mini Gingerbread House Christmas Decor!

Merry almost Christmas! I still have lots of ideas for Christmas projects I want to make but we'll see how many of them get completed. That always seems to be the pattern lol. I think I need to start in July. At any rate, here is a fun one. I built this little scene inside of a vintage nut dish I found thrifting somewhere. I've been staring at it sitting there for a few months now and this idea popped into my head. I wanted to try a more limited color palette so I went with kraft, white, red and green.

The gingerbread house lifts off the base and you can fit a battery powered tea light underneath for a nice flicker effect. The house is made with the retired Tim Holtz Village Dwelling and Village Gingerbread dies. I also used two other retired die sets to create the cookie tree and mini gingerbread man for the landscape.

I got the lollypop and other Christmas picks from Hobby Lobby I think. I used the balls to decorate the gold bottle brush trees. It pays to have a stash! It makes it easy when doing projects like this - I didn't even have to leave my house.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a great rest of the week and have a chance to squeeze some creativity in. 

I am also entering this into the Funkie Junkie Boutique Blog's current challenge, "Deck the Halls". It runs until Tuesday night so you have a chance to enter too.

Supplies used:

Dies:

Tim Holtz Sizzix
Mini Christmas Things 662418 - retired
Fresh Baked 2, 663116 - retired
Village Dwelling 660992 - retired
Village Gingerbread 661608 - retired

Ranger Rock Candy glitter
Glitter Duster tool
Ranger Texture Paste
Ranger Glossy Accents
DecoArt Snow Tex
bottle brush trees - craft store
Christmas 'candy' picks - craft store

Some links in this post are affiliate links which do not affect the price you pay but allow me to earn a small percentage of a sale. Thanks! (My husband also thanks you!) If you shop at Topflight Stamps, use my coupon code LISAHOEL for 12% off your order.

Darkroom Door Christmas Card with Topflight Stamps!

Merry Christmas everyone! It's almost here! I'm still crafting away on Christmas projects, even cards to mail (although I don't think they will arrive at their destinations until after Christmas, oops. Better late than never!) Here is a card I made using the Darkroom Door Pine Cones Stamp Set.

I really love the Pine Cones set. It has a great selection of realistic pine cones and needles. Perfect for woodsy projects and of course Christmas cards! I used Distress Inks because I wanted to utilize their reactivity to water. Using a stamping platform, I first stamped the pinecone in the lighter brown (Brushed Corduroy) and spritzed it lightly with water so it would wick out. After drying it, I stamped over the top with the darker brown for detail. I like the watercolor effect of the wicking. Next I masked off the pine cones and stamped the pine needles. It's a quick and easy card! This design wouldn't be too hard to mass produce if you wanted to make many of them for mailing out.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you are finding some holiday joy and have a chance to get some creative time in the midst of the hustle and bustle.

Supplies used:

Topflight Stamps Products:
Darkroom Door - Pine Cones Stamp Set

Other:

Ranger Distress Ink - Ground Espresso, Brushed Corduroy, Rustic Wilderness

Ranger Distress Oxide Ink - Evergreen Bough

Perfect Pearls mist

Tim Holtz Christmas Trim tape

Some links in this post are affiliate links which do not affect the price you pay but allow me to earn a small percentage of a sale. Thanks! (My husband also thanks you!) If you shop at Topflight Stamps, use my coupon code LISAHOEL for 12% off your order.

Favorite Eileen Hull Projects of 2020!

Howdy folks! Is 2020 really almost done? Hurray! It is nice to look back on the year and remember the art that I've created over the past months. I had a hard time only picking my favorite four projects I made with Eileen's dies – I was pleased with so many of them lol. Here we go though… my top four:

The space themed Gift Box Die project is one I made for Creativation in January. I really enjoyed making this one and sewing up the little spool album that stashes inside. You can see the tutorial and all the details in this blog post.

Next is an 'April showers bring May flowers' project I made last spring using Eileen's new Tiny Book and Tiny Book Case Dies. I was pleased at how the contrast between the April 'outside' contrasted with the May 'inside' mini album. It was just what I was going for! You can see all the details in the original post.

In June, we did a collaboration with Belagio, makers of cork fabric. This fabric is so much fun to work with! I made a little journal for my cousin's new baby. All the details about the fabric and how I made the Passport Book journal can be found on the post.

Lastly, just this past October I made a fall Teacup that I just love! Fall is my favorite. ;-) I love fall colors, fall leaves and warm woodsy tones so this project ticks all the boxes. All the details are in its post!

Thanks for stopping by! Check out Eileen's blog and if you are not already a member, join the Facebook Eileen Hull Fan Club group. If you want to participate in the currently running Comfort & Joy Event you will need to join as that is where all the action will be! It is a warm, supportive group with lots of inspiration and sharing going on. You'll just have to answer a few simple questions when asking to join (to keep out spammers) and then you'll be added. ;-)

Some links in this post are affiliate links which do not affect the price you pay but allow me to earn a small percentage of a sale. Thanks! (My husband also thanks you!) If you shop at Topflight Stamps, use my coupon code LISAHOEL for 12% off your order.

Funkie Junkie Challenge 'A Time to be Grateful!' Guest Post

Hello, I am honored to be a guest designer today on the Funkie Junkie Boutique blog! The current challenge is 'A Time to Be Grateful' which is a very worthy one! To help me focus on gratefulness, I created a little keeper using Eileen Hull's Post Box Die. Each day for the month of December I will write something I am grateful for on a slip of paper and pop it into the box. I think it will help me to be mindful of things and not just let the month blur by in a whirl.

I cut the slips of paper using Eileen Hull's retired Credit
Card Sleeve die but you can cut them by hand with a trimmer etc.

Back side of box

I added a magnetic closure to the flap.

After I finished my box, I realized that I didn't have any step by step photos! oops! I used the same techniques to make a card (below) so I could take pictures. So, imagine doing these steps on the Post Box Die cut out. ;-)

Step 1 - I spritzed my craft mat with Speckled Egg Distress Stain in both regular and Oxide stains. I dipped my background into it a few times, drying it with my heat tool each time. The far background trees I stamped in Distress Oxide Ink, Iced Spruce using the watercoloring stamping technique. (super easy!) Ink up your stamp, lightly mist with water and then stamp as usual. It gives a great watercolor effect.

I filled in the area under the stamped image with more Iced Spruce, using a blending tool.

Step 2 - A few weeks ago, one of Tim Holtz's Saturday Facebook Lives focused on making a stash of backgrounds that you could cut up into greens for your holiday projects. I used one of them (made with new the Rustic Wilderness color) to cut my foreground trees out of. It's handy to have a stash!

Step 3 - Assembling the background: For my original Post Box project, I glued the die cut trees around my stamped, then assembled box. Then I added the strip of Christmas Fabric tape around the bottom and topped it with a strip of the washi Trim Tape. For the card below, I mounted all the layers on a dark red mat layer.

Step 4 - I die cut the deer out of brown card stock and then embossed them with Vintage Photo Distress Glaze. I gives them a nice shine. On the card, I left the little fawn plain so it would contrast with the doe.

Final card:

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my post! I hope you join in the 'A Time to Be Grateful' challenge over on the Funkie Junkie blog. It is really important to remember all the things we do have to be thankful for, especially when times are tough. I am grateful that I can use my art to show what I'm thankful for! =)

Supplies used:

Dies:

Eileen Hull Sizzix 

Post Box Die  ( Sizzix / SB ) 

Credit Card Sleeve & Tags Dies - retired

Tim Holtz Sizzix

Tree Line ( Sizzix / SB )

Darling Deer ( Sizzix / SB )

Sizzix Mat Board

Tim Holtz Stamp sets - Tree Line, Snarky Cat Christmas, Stamptember 2018

Distress Spray Stains, Oxide Ink, original Distress Ink

Distress Glaze - Vintage Photo

Tim Holtz Christmas Idea-ology: Trim Tape, Fabric Tape

Some links in this post are affiliate links which do not affect the price you pay but allow me to earn a small percentage of a sale. Thanks! (My husband also thanks you!) If you shop at Topflight Stamps, use my coupon code LISAHOEL for 12% off your order.

Feeling Grateful Post Box
by MonalisaH -Lisa Hoel
Scrapbook.com

Day 2 of Eileen Hull's Christmas Journaling Event!

 

We need some fun in our lives so all of us at Eileen Hull Designs put our heads together and came up with an event that you can participate in as much or as little as you'd like. It's a challenge of sorts and we'd like to see you to make a Holiday Journal for this season using any of Eileen Hull Design's book dies. Your journal could include activities, photos, recipes, shopping lists, daily thoughts, etc. Really, it can include anything you want; after all, it's your journal!

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday between November 27th and December 23rd there will be a post in the Eileen Hull Fan Club from one of Eileen's team members with a prompt for a journal page. These prompts are meant to get your creative thoughts flowing and give you page ideas for your Holiday Journal. It might be in the form of a blog post, Facebook Live, recorded quick video, or a Facebook post in the group. It's up to you to take it from there and we can't wait to see what you come up with, so please share your covers and pages with us in the Eileen Hull Fan Club.

Today it's Day 2 and it's my turn to share today's prompt which is… Christmas baking! If you misssed my post about my cover, check here. I used Eileen's XL Journal Die so I created pages to fit inside. For this journal, I'm going to work on the pages separately and then bind them into signatures after the event is concluded. I find that easier if I'm stamping, stenciling etc as I go along.

Today's tutorial will show you how to make these pockets to hold favorite recipes!

I also included some throw back photos of my eldest son doing some baking when he was a little guy (so long ago LOL). He is now 17!! I will have to see if I can get some new photos of him participating (probably by tasting) for this years baking and add it to the journal. I also added a little journaling note. Back before the boys came along, I would bake several different kinds of cookies, make up cookie plates, and then anonymously drop them off at various friends' residences in the wee hours of the morning. How did I have the energy for that?? Then I had babies and got tired ha ha. I still love baking and sharing cookies but I've toned it down a bit in the years since. So, let's get on with the how-to! Also, at the end of the post I have a downloadable PDF file of recipe cards with some of my family's favorite cookie recipes. Some of these were my great-grandmother's recipes! So don't miss those. ;-)

Pocket Tutorial:

Step 1 - I first cut out a pile of pages to use throughout the whole Comfort & Joy event. Since I used the XL Journal Die, I cut my pages to 8.5" wide by 8.25" tall and then folded them in half. This gives you a folded page that is 4.25" x 8.25" which fits perfectly in the cover. I used a variety of patterned paper and plain paper so I can mix it up as I go.

Step 2 - Pockets! I made the pocket sizes to fit 3 x 5" recipe cards. I arranged it so I can cut four pockets out of one 8.5 x 11" piece of cardstock. For maximum efficiency, I scored my fold tabs before I cut them all apart (ah ha! Saving time, oh yes.) See the diagram below. Dashed lines are score lines and solid lines are cut lines. 

Oops! Forgot to add the pocket height to the diagram. 
The finished height is 4.5" (so add 3/8" to the bottom of that for the tab).

Here is a sheet all scored:

I then cut out the pockets. Trim the lower corners as shown:

Fold in the tabs. It helps to use a bone folder to get a nice sharp crease. 

Step 3 - Glue the pockets to your pages. If you are layering pockets like I did, glue the top one on first! If you are using a different sized journal die you will have to adjust as you see fit. Maybe you will only fit one pocket on a page, that's okay. Use your favorite adhesive but make sure it's strong enough to hold the pocket on tight.

Step 4 - Decorating the pages! I used Eileen's Journaling Cards Die (sadly retired) to cut some decorative covers for the bottom pockets. I added some additional die cuts and pieces of ready to go ephemera. I tried not to overthink it. Use your stash to decorate your pages! =)

Last but not least, here are some cookie recipe cards for you to download. Click on the chicken below to download a pdf of recipe cards. 

Thanks for stopping by! Check out Eileen's blog and if you are not already a member, join the Facebook Eileen Hull Fan Club group. If you want to participate in the Comfort & Joy Event with us you will need to join as that is where all the action will be! It is a warm, supportive group with lots of inspiration and sharing going on. You'll just have to answer a few simple questions when asking to join (to keep out spammers) and then you'll be added. ;-)

Supplies used:

Dies:

Eileen Hull Sizzix 

(For cover) Journal XL Die  ( Sizzix / SB ) 

Journaling Cards, Flowers & Leaves #662811 - retired

Tim Holtz Sizzix

Holiday Greens ( Sizzix / SB )

Fresh Baked #2 ( Sizzix / SB )

Tim Holtz Layering Stencil, Shifter - Peppermint

Tim Holtz stamp set - Christmas Blueprint #3

Distress Spray Stains, Oxide Ink, original Ink

Tim Holtz Christmas Idea-ology: Fabric Tape, Snippets

Some links in this post are affiliate links which do not affect the price you pay but allow me to earn a small percentage of a sale. Thanks! (My husband also thanks you!) If you shop at Topflight Stamps, use my coupon code LISAHOEL for 12% off your order.

Kick Off Time for Eileen Hull's Christmas Journaling Event!

 

We need some fun in our lives so all of us at Eileen Hull Designs put our heads together and came up with an event that you can participate in as much or as little as you'd like. It's a challenge of sorts and we'd like to see you to make a Holiday Journal for this season using any of Eileen Hull Design's book dies. Your journal could include activities, photos, recipes, shopping lists, daily thoughts, etc. Really, it can include anything you want; after all, it's your journal!

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday between November 27th and December 23rd there will be a post in the Eileen Hull Fan Club from one of Eileen's team members with a prompt for a journal page. These prompts are meant to get your creative thoughts flowing and give you page ideas for your Holiday Journal. It might be in the form of a blog post, Facebook Live, recorded quick video, or a Facebook post in the group. It's up to you to take it from there and we can't wait to see what you come up with, so please share your covers and pages with us in the Eileen Hull Fan Club.

Today it's Day 1 and I'm sharing the journal cover that I made for the event. I can't wait to fill it up with Christmas goodies and share some prompts with you too.

Front

I used Eileen's XL Journal Die for my cover base. Delving into my stash, I used a ton of Tim Holtz media, stamps, dies and Idea-ology ephemera to decorate it! (I have quite a *ahem* collection lol.)

Back

Here's a peek at the inside too:

Inside

Thanks for stopping by! Check out Eileen's blog and if you are not already a member, join the Facebook Eileen Hull Fan Club group. If you want to participate in the Comfort & Joy Event with us you will need to join as that is where all the action will be! It is a warm, supportive group with lots of inspiration and sharing going on. You'll just have to answer a few simple questions when asking to join (to keep out spammers) and then you'll be added. ;-)

Supplies used:

Dies:

Eileen Hull Sizzix 

Journal XL Die  ( Sizzix / SB ) 

Tim Holtz Sizzix

Festive Trims, Colorize ( Sizzix / SB )

Crochet ( Sizzix / SB )

Large Funky Festive ( Sizzix )

Holiday Greens ( Sizzix / SB )

Sizzix Mat Board

Distress Crayons

Distress Spray Stains, Oxide Ink, orginal Ink

Tim Holtz Christmas Idea-ology: Trim Tape, Snippets, Sticker Book, Layers & Baseboard Frames, Paper Dolls

Some links in this post are affiliate links which do not affect the price you pay but allow me to earn a small percentage of a sale. Thanks! (My husband also thanks you!) If you shop at Topflight Stamps, use my coupon code LISAHOEL for 12% off your order.

Celebrate Fall!

Hello there! Before I move onto Christmas projects, I wanted to do one last fall project. Fall is my favorite season! I love the crisp days, golden light and above all the colorful leaves. The bright autumnal hues are totally my jam! I still had a stash of paper leaves I made during the fall Facebook live demonstrations that Tim Holtz did last month so I was able to incorporate them into my little thrift store upcycling project:

I found the bottom half of a nut dish at the thrift store as well as a pair of cute squirrel salt and pepper shakers (into my basket they went!) Perfect for a fall project!

I wanted it to look like a forest floor on a fall day. I sprinkled the leaves about along with moss and berry like things. I also discovered that you can use Distress Glaze on the Idea-ology Toadstools and they look great!

As Tim shared in one of his demos, when applying Glaze to an impervious surface, it works best to coat the surface with Collage Medium and glue the embossing powder to it. When it's dry, you can emboss as usual. It worked perfectly! I painted some spots on afterwards. Love them! I may need to stock up on more Toadstools ha ha.

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a great week and get inky!

I am also entering this into the Funkie Junkie Boutique Blog's current challenge, "Celebrate". It runs for another week so you have a chance to enter too.

Supplies used:

Dies:

Tim Holtz Sizzix
Fall Foliage ( Sizzix / SB )
Tattered Leaves 656927 - retired

Idea-ology Toadstools (in stock here)

Ranger Distress Glaze - Crackling Campfire, Fired Brick
Ranger Distress Inks - various fall colors
Ranger Distress Oxide Inks - various fall colors
Ranger Distress Spray Stains - various fall colors
Ranger Distress Spray Oxide Stains - various fall colors

Some links in this post are affiliate links which do not affect the price you pay but allow me to earn a small percentage of a sale. Thanks! (My husband also thanks you!) If you shop at Topflight Stamps, use my coupon code LISAHOEL for 12% off your order.

Blessed Home Fall Wreath

Howdy readers! I am on a wreath kick. I had picked up a few wreaths (with re-do possibilities) from the thrift store so I could get a base for the new Halloween wreath I wanted to make this year. I ended up using a black grapevine wreath for the Halloween project so I had a brown twiggy one left. I knew it would make a great fall wreath and the dark brown would make my Tim Holtz #timholtzleaflove challenge leaves really pop! I also had the theme in mind from the current Funkie Junkie Boutique Blog challenge, "Home is Where the Heart Is". 

Home really is where the heart is and I feel very fortunate to be living where I do with my family. We are truly blessed and I am so thankful! We have not regretted moving to our new state for a moment and we are thriving here. It was all the Lord's doing and looking back we can see his plan for us in coming here.

The leaves are cut using various Sizzix leaf dies designed by Tim Holtz. The past two Saturdays Tim has been doing Facebook Live demos showing all sorts of techniques using his products to make fall projects (Fall Vibes and Leaf Love). What fun! I used part of my pile 'o leaves to decorate this wreath. The little house is from his new die set Paper Village (oh I have plans for this set!!)

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you have a great weekend and have a chance to do something crafty and creative. =)

I am also entering this into the Funkie Junkie Boutique Blog's current challenge, "Home is Where the Heart Is". It runs for another week so you have a chance to enter too.

Supplies used:

Dies:

Tim Holtz Sizzix
Paper Village ( Sizzix / SB )
Fall Foliage ( Sizzix / SB )
Layered Leaf 660039 - retired
Tattered Leaves 656927 - retired

Ranger Distress Glaze - Crackling Campfire, Fired Brick
Ranger Distress Inks - various fall colors
Ranger Distress Oxide Inks - various fall colors
Ranger Distress Spray Stains - various fall colors
Ranger Distress Spray Oxide Stains - various fall colors

Some links in this post are affiliate links which do not affect the price you pay but allow me to earn a small percentage of a sale. Thanks! (My husband also thanks you!) If you shop at Topflight Stamps, use my coupon code LISAHOEL for 12% off your order.

Blessed Home Fall Wreath
by MonalisaH -Lisa Hoel
Scrapbook.com