One of the very first holiday themed stamp sets that I designed a few years ago was Take a Bough. A fun little set that allowed you to decorate a limb with different shapes & sizes of ornaments. While preparing for this holiday release a few months ago, it occurred to me how fun it would be to have entire trees that you could decorate in the same manner. This is how Tree Trimming Trio came to be!
Tree Trimming Trio contains a total of three large-scaled trees that each have three openings for ornaments to be added. The ornaments can be stamped directly into place or punched out and added in with foam dimensionals. You can even use buttons or rhinestones too, if you prefer! Many of the ornaments feature design elements from some of your favorite sets, such as Background Basics: Retro and Beyond Basic Borders.
The details.
- Tree Trimming Trio will be available for purchase on September 15th.
- It will retail for $24.
- It contains a total of 28 images (3 trees, 15 decorations for the trees, 3 tree bases and 7 sentiments).
- All of the ornaments coordinate with a 1/2" circle punch, which we will also have available for purchase September 15th.
- The ornaments also coordinate with 1/2" epoxy dome stickers, which will be made available too.
Now let's get to some projects, shall we? As I told you at the beginning of countdown week, not only would we be highlighting some quick & easy holiday cards, but also gifts. Today's post will be full of easy, economical gift ideas that you can start on NOW in preparation for December!
To begin, I'll start with the card portion of my ensemble. I decided to use the polka-dotted tree as my focal point, so I stamped it onto Vintage Cream cardstock using Hibiscus Burst ink. Notice the "empty" spaces that are designed to allow future placement of ornament images without requiring any masking.
Next is the actual addition of those ornaments. The ornament images are each separate, so you add three different ornaments to the trio of spaces, or repeat the same design in each space. I chose to repeat the same design, but rotating them just a bit each time to provide a little contrast. It is SO fun to go through and pick out which ornaments to use!
Here's the tree mounted on my card front, which is simply created with Hibiscus Burst & Spring Moss cardstock along with a center border of Raspberry Fizz Grosgrain Ribbon.
Here, if you look carefully, you'll notice the addition of Sweet Blush cardstock. The smaller dots that make-up the polka-dotted tree coordinate with 1/4" hole punch. All I did was punch a few circles from the Sweet Blush cardstock and adhere them into place using a 2-Way Glue Pen. It's such an easy way to integrate another color without having to try to ink some of the circles separately or even masking.
Lastly, I added the 1/2" epoxy dome stickers to the Spring Moss ornament images I stamped earlier. That addition makes them really pop and adds some interesting contrast and texture. You'll notice that there's no sentiment on the cover. I thought about adding one and tried a few different things, and finally decided that I would leave it as is. It just allows more focus on that beautiful tree!
*sigh*.....Don't you just LOVE that little tree! These little cards come in at only 57-cents each, including the envelope! While I was designing them, I kept in mind to make them mailer friendly. that's why I love the epoxy stickers so much! They add such great dimension & detail, but are inexpensive and flat! If you weren't mailing these and just hand-delivering them with your gift, the addition of glitter, rhinestones, pearls would also be a fun way to take it to the next level!!!
Now, earlier I promised you a quick & easy homemade gift idea. I chose an ensemble that is truly a gift of relaxation & comfort, something I am planning on making for all of my girlfriends this year. A Flannel Blanket & Heat Pillow Duo. If you can sew a straight line on your SewMini, then you can create this inexpensive and well-loved project!
What you will need:
- 5 yards of flannel (I got 2.5 yards each of two contrasting colors/patterns)
- grosgrain ribbon
- rice
- sewing machine & thread
- iron & ironing board
You will want to wash, dry & press your flannel before starting on your project to ensure there is no significant shrinking later when you wash the completed pieces.
Let's start with the easiest part, the blanket!!! To begin, cut 1/2 yard from each color of flannel (setting the small pieces aside for later), leaving you with two 2-yard pieces. Place them RIGHT sides together on the floor, pinning the edges randomly around the perimeter to hold everything in place. Use the sewing machine stitch around the outside perimeter, keeping about a 1/2" seam allowance.
The solid dots on the diagram above show you where to stop and start. You will notice that you will want to stop & start on an end, leaving an opening that is not stitched shut. This space will allow you to turn the blanket right side out.
After turning it right side out and pressing all of the edges crisply, you will want to stitch around the perimeter one more time as a finishing stitch, using about a 1/4" seam allowance again. Stitch right over where the opening was earlier and you won't even be able to tell where it was, as shown above.
You want to repeat the same steps as above only on a smaller scale for the heat pillow. The two flannel pieces should measure 8" x 20" (taken from the leftover flannel you set aside earlier), placed right sides together and stitched around the perimeter leaving an opening. Turn right side out and press. Do the finishing seam everywhere EXCEPT where the opening is. Use a funnel and fill the pillow with about 40 oz. of rice (I used two 20oz. Dixie cupfuls to measure accurately). After the rice is added, you can go ahead and finish the seam on that end of the pillow. SUPER easy!!!
(click on above photo for a larger view)
Here's the completed ensemble, totaling about $15 in quality materials. There is even enough fabric leftover from the five yards to create a little drawstring bag (threaded with grosgrain ribbon for the drawstring) to store the blanket & pillow in. If you aren't familiar with these heat pillows, you throw them in the microwave for about 2-3 minutes and then place them on any areas of your body that you want to relax, such as your neck. They retain the heat forever (nearly an hour!) and they can be used over and over again for years. I can just picture my friends all cozy with their blankets and heat pillows, curling up with a good book on a chilly winter day!
(click on above photo for a larger view)
One last detail that I forgot to mention is the handmade label I created. I stamped the "handmade by" image from Quilter's Sampler onto muslin fabric with Raspberry Fizz ink. I trimmed the edges with pinking shears and stitched the label onto the corner of the blanket. I love the personal "designer" feel it gives to the project! I am SO excited to give these gifts to all my friends! I know it is something they will enjoy using throughout the year whenever they want to take a few moments out of their busy schedules and get cozy! And you just can't beat the price!
I challenged the design team to create a holiday card with Tree Trimming Trio and also share some of their plans for homemade holiday gifts this year. September is a great time to plan ahead so you can get an early start and have a stress-free holiday! Enjoy!
CLICK HERE to read more from Debbie!
CLICK HERE to read more from Mish!
CLICK HERE to read more from Lisa!
CLICK HERE to read more from Heather!
CLICK HERE to read more from Niki!
CLICK HERE to read more from Dawn!
CLICK HERE to read more from Lauren!
CLICK HERE to read more from Becky!
CLICK HERE to read more from Geny!
CLICK HERE to read more from Melissa!
CLICK HERE to read more from Betsy!
If you don't feel inspired to get a head start on your holiday projects after all of that eye candy, I don't know what will! I am so thankful to be surrounded by so many talented women! It certainly makes things easier when you have such amazing people to be continually inspired by!
So, can you tell how incredible excited all of us are about Tree Trimming Trio? Can you see all the possibilities for the ornaments and mixing & matching? Just think! Buttons, Epoxy stickers, giant rhinestones, large adhesive pearls! The sky's the limit! I'd love to hear your initial opinions of the set! Just for leaving a comment today, you can have a chance at a fabulous prize package!
- Tree Trimming Trio stamp set
- package of 75 Epoxy Dome Stickers
- 1/2" circle punch
You have until 8am EST Sunday, September 13th to leave your comment to be eligible to win. One winner will be randomly selected at that time. The winner will be announced before noon EST the same day on our September Release Winners Page. Please play nice, only one comment per person.
Well, enjoy the rest of your day and I look forward to seeing you back here tomorrow for more sneak peeks of what's to come! Thank you so much for stopping by!
Melissa Bickford has even more projects to share using Peaceful Poinsettia.
Dawn McVey is highlighting her new set, Signature Christmas.
Beth Silaika shares another project with us using her new set, Winter Swirls.
Complete shopping & cutting lists for my project are available HERE (also featuring a little tutorial on how to construct the coordinating drawstring bag!)
