scrapbooking2angels: A Simple Stories Christmas

Simple Stories December Documented is a fabulous, totally versatile Christmas Range....I used all five of the Simple Basics papers plus a couple of the Bingo Cards and white cardstock to make my five Christmas cards and tags.

Keeping up with the current chalkboard trend, and feeling just a tiny bit 'bah humbug' about Christmas being so close again, I started with Chalkboard Snowflake/Chevron and made a bottle topper. We have a male friend who likes a good red wine and he sometimes feels a little grumpy about Christmas too so I made my tag to suit him perfectly :)

Tracy has a fantastic tutorial for bottle toppers, including measurements here.

For this one I used the Snowflake side of the paper on the front, and the Chevron side on the reverse. My embellishments are in keeping with the grumpy theme - a prickly die cut pine border, a sad, emo snowman stamp and an old Brrr... rub-on for the front, and on the back some more pieces of prickly pine, and a die cut frame attached with two black brads. The sentiments - brief and to the point - are from Tim Holtz'

Idea-Ology Chit Chat Stickers. You can find just about every word you will ever need in both white and Kraft right here in these stickers. I love them!!. The edges of the papers and the tiny words are swiped with Black Soot Distress Ink. Here's how they look on the bottle. (sorry for the dodgy photo sizes!)

Having made a start, I brightened up a bit as I went along.....

Using Green Snowflake/Chevron I made this 3D Step Ladder card (mine is 6''x10'' and I watched this tutorial from Andrea Walford on YouTube.) The Snowflake side of the pp decorates the mountain fold sides and the Chevron side is on the valley sides behind. The papers have all had their edges inked with Pine Needles Distress Ink.

The only embellishments used here are white cardstock diecuts - scalloped at the bottom using a punch and sparkled at the top using Picket Fence Distress Stickles. This card is my family's favourite, very dramatic and graphic - Tango liked it too!

Using Red Snowflake/Chevron, and now inspired by YouTube tutorials (this time Christina Thomas) I made a Diamond Fold Card next.

Again, the decoration on this one is very simple, the Snowflake side of the paper and the Chevron side complimenting each other in different sections of the card. On the front is a die cut snowflake - again just white cardstock - and my only embellishment is a Large Antique Silver Christmas Tree. I attached it using a plain red brad and decorated it with Red Rhinestones

Hiding the brad at the back and providing writing space at the same time is another red diamond and a white die cut shape, and this time I also made a matching envelope.

With only two colours to go, so I started on my tags.

For both these tags I used an Inkssentials Manilla #8 tag as a template, tracing the shape for the first one onto white cardstock.

This one is decidedly feminine. The edges of both the tag and the two Snowflake layers of Blue Snowflake/Chevron are distressed at the edges and layered over the tag. These are followed by a die cut white snowflake and the ''Peace'' Bingo card from the Bingo cards/Chevron pp. I have added some 3mm Ivory Pearls to the snowflake and some White Frilly Lace makes a border around the bingo card. I didn't have any white pointsettias in my stash, although Tracy does have them in stock, so I made my own using two layers of Pure White Starflowers and the stamens from the centre of a Large White Gardenia.

Finishing touches are a big bow made with White Organza Scalloped Edged Ribbon, a larger White Pearl and a pretty Angel stamp.

On the back, a layer of the Chevron side of the pp and a spot for writing or stamping your sentiment. The edges of the die cut snowflake have again been embellished using 3mm Ivory Pearls

And FINALLY, my last tag is one for the younger boys....

I cut this tag directly from the Bright Green Snowflake/Chevron paper and inked the edges with Mowed Lawn and Pine Needles Distress Inks. The edges are also distressed lightly. I stamped my Toy Soldier directly onto the paper using Jet Black Archival Ink and stamped the image twice more on white stamping paper.

Next I attached the torn and inked "Holly Jolly" Bingo Card at the top and wrapped some Honeydew Light Chartreus Green & White Bakers Twine around the tag a few times. I attached a ''Wish'' Word Stick with the knot.

Then I coloured one of my stamped soldiers and popped him up on dimensional tape directly over the original stamp. This way you can still see all the finer detail in the stamp around the main image. I did the same with the Toy Soldier label. The second stamp was used for just the feather in his hat, the yellow crossed braces and the boots. Although you can't really tell from the photo, they are popped up on more dimensionals to stand out further from the tag.

Finishing touches on the front of the tag are some crinkled ribbon stained with Mowed Lawn and Pine Needles Distress Ink and two gorgeous trinkets from my2angels - a Red and Silver Charming Pin securing a silver Christmas Sleigh with Santa and Hanging Present charm.