Who Wants A Peppermint Snowflake? A Mixed Media Christmas Tag

Peppermint

I have never been a huge fan of peppermint but around the Holidays it can be found in everything from Peppermint drinks, peppermint cookies, peppermint ice cream and wait for it…peppermint donuts. The donuts is taking it a bit far, in my opinion. I am a jelly and creme filled kinda girl. And the more filling the better!!

So when it comes to holiday baking I don’t include peppermint. Except when we decided to make some homemade chocolate pretzel bark to give as gifts this year. We did sprinkle the top with crushed candy canes and pretty holiday sprinkles.

Here are a few pictures of our baked items so far. Last evening, we made pretty chocolate crinkles. My hubby and I laughed about how they went into the oven looking ugly (compliments of my two helpers 😉 ) and came out looking like they had a makeover. I would definitely make these again with children as they are very forgiving. And tasty.

The second cookie is Oatmeal Chocolate Chip. I went grocery shopping this morning with a specific request from the hubby for fudge cookies. I came home instead with a container of rolled oats because I couldn’t remember if we had anymore and I needed it to make our sweet potato bake for Christmas Day. Hubby always complains I never have enough snacks in the house. I try to keep extra goodies out because I am on a specific meal plan without Gluten and sugar. Sweet things are pretty much my weakness. So, to get back to the hubby…he requested these cookies since we now have 3 containers of Rolled Oats.

Making The Tag

Inspiration

Yea! I made it to tag #12 at the 12 Tags of Christmas sponsored by The Funkie Junkie Boutique. Linda’s tag reminds me of a retro Christmas! Her beautiful argyle background, snowflakes and touches of red inspired my tag.

The Process

Again, I decided to re-purpose an old tag. I used a stencil with embossing powder and dripped some Brushed Pewter Distress Paint. It has been a while since my Tim Holtz snowflake rosette dies have been used so I dug them out and gave them some love! The bakers twine rolled up was a last minute idea. But doesn’t it remind you of peppermints? I would have done red for both but I couldn’t find anymore so red and gray it is. The JOFY tree from PaperArtsy is quickly becoming a favorite so I used it again as well.

Kate

Challenges Entered:

Tag #12: The Funkie Junkie

Craft Stamper: Anything Goes Stamping

STAMPlorations: Tags All About Christmas

Mixed Media Warriors: moodboard

Tag Tuesday: Christmas Memories

The Merry Christmas Challenge: Anything Christmas

The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge

Stamp and Stencils: It’s Beginning to Look A lot Like Christmas

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Stockings and Santa: Mixed Media Christmas Tag

Stockings and Santa

 

I thought I would share another Christmas vignette in my house. My MIL gifted me this old world Santa a few years ago. I am not into primitive decor but I absolutely love old world Santa’s. I think it has something to do with the wood and distressed look. As of right now I only have this one but I am eager to find some more.

Below my old world Santa hangs all of our stockings. I still have one left to make but that may not happen this year. You may have noticed there are 6 stockings and only 5 in our family. I have decided to start hanging a stocking for Faolan every year. I enjoy finding little ways to incorporate his memory into our special events.

Making Tag #11

Inspiration

I  am onto tag #11 at the 12 Tags of Christmas over at The Funkie Junkie sponsored by The Funkie Junkie Boutique. My tag took a very different turn but I still drew inspiration from Linda’s tag. I really liked her trim around the center of the tag, the bow and the center focal point.

The Process

I started by picking out a tag base that was never used, from my stash. I reworked it by adding a few layers of Distress paint and some color spray. Next, I added a circle stamp in gold and some dyed vintage lace trims to the center of the tag. For the center focal point I stamped and embossed ornaments from The Artistic Stamper. The color on the ornaments was created by dipping the wrong end of my paint brush in paint. I added feathers to the ornaments to give a more boho look.

Kate

Challenges Entered:

12 Tags of Christmas #11: The Funkie Junkie

The Artistic Stamper: Christmas

Country View CHallenge: Christmas

The Merry Christmas Challenge: Anything goes Christmas

Sparkles: White Christmas

 

Weeping Trees Make Me Smile: Mixed Media Christmas Tag

My Little Tree

I thought I would share my tree since the theme of this post is trees. We got this pretty Balsam Fir the day after Thanksgiving. I wanted to have a full month to enjoy my Christmas decor. Unfortunately, the needles are already starting to fall and it is looking a bit crispy up close.

At the end of last year, I made this tree skirt for under my tree. I based it off of a picture of a Anthropology tree skirt.  You can see my tutorial HERE. I am loving the way it looks under my tree. My kids put their Lego train around the tree but the pompoms on my tree skirt were interfering with their Lego track. They weren’t very happy about that so we bought more track to make it larger to extend past the tree skirt. Now I can see all of my tree skirt and my boys have their Lego train.

Making Tag #10

Inspiration

l am on a roll! Only 2 tags left to go for me. I am playing along with the 12 Tags of Christmas over at The Funkie Junkie sponsered by The Funkie Junkie Boutique. You can see Linda’s #10 tag HERE. While my tag looks nothing like Linda’s I did draw inspiration from her tag. I loved her rows of stenciled tinsel and the greenery from the wreath.

The Background

Since I didn’t have any stencils that looked remotely similar to tinsel, I used rows of stars. Definitely festive. I used PaperArtsy Infusions in the background and then daubed on some green ink before embossing some script in white. I made a wreath out of fake greens but in the end I remembered this really beautiful PaperArtsy Jofy stamp that I never used. Not my typical style but I love it! I want a real tree that looks like this 😉 I stamped the tree and then painted it using Distress Makers.

I am playing along with Elizabeth for Tea Day. Thank you for joining me today.

Challenges Entered:

12 Tags of Christmas #10 Tag: The Funkie Junkie

Stamp and Stencils: It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas

More Mixed Media Challenge: Anything Goes

Simon Says: Gift It

Simon Says: Christmas/Winter Holidays

We Love 2 Create: Anything Mixed Media

Surviving the Freshly Fallen Snow: Mixed Media Christmas Tag

Only 25 Days

Actually it is 17 days till Christmas but who is counting 😉 To be honest, it doesn’t feel like Christmas. My shopping is done, I am listening to Christmas music and I have done a little baking but the one thing missing is SNOW.

Beautiful, glistening, pure white powder coating each and every branch and surface. Tonight we had our first storm of flurries but not the real thing. I love waking up to a winter wonderland outside my window, the house illuminated with light due to the suns reflection off the snow. It is a most glorious sight that continues to awe me. God’s creation is SO beautiful. That is, until the snow plow comes along and makes everything dirty and black. Then suddenly I am over it. Oh, that and when I have to drive up our hill/ridge to get to our house. Last year I had to drive up the hill after getting my kids off the bus and it started snowing. My little Honda was sliding backwards and swerving from one side to the other. I was so scared that we were going to slide backwards into the road while I had all my babies with me. Thankfully, hubby got me new tires so he says that shouldn’t happen again.

So, what’s your favorite thing about snow?

Making Tag #9

Inspiration

Here is my next tag for the 12 Tags of Christmas over at The Funkie Junkie sponsored by The Funkie Junkie Boutique. You can see Linda’s #9 Tag HERE. I took inspiration from her beautiful purple background, freshly falling snow, trees and the deer.

Background

I started by using a border die as a stencil with some texture paste. I painted the background and used PaperArtsy Infusions.

Recycling

When it came to the composition I had difficulty at first. I started looking through my animal stamps because I didn’t have any deer. I discovered that I have very few animal stamps and those that I did have would not look good under a snowfall. I remembered my 25 Tags of Christmas that I made many years ago. I didn’t put it on display this year so I was contemplating remaking them. And then I saw a tag with a deer and some greenery and I knew that was what I needed.

So, the deer, greenery and 25 are from a few different tags and then I added gold glitter since I didn’t have white. I splattered some gesso for the snowfall.

And that’s it for this tag. Have a beautiful weekend. And if you have snow, enjoy God’s beautiful creation!

Kate

Challenges Entered:

12 Tags of Christmas Tag #9: The Funkie Junkie

Stamplorations: December TAGSplorations

 

 

 

 

 

A Shiny Christmas: Mixed Media Christmas Tag

Shiny Christmas

As I sit in my favorite sunken in spot on the couch, I am watching a episode of Supernatural with the hubby and enjoying the shine of the Christmas lights twinkling through my house. I love the extra glow that the Christmas lights make when they reflect off the silver and gold mercury glass baubles on my tree. Isn’t Christmas the coziest time of the year?

Making Tag #8

Inspiration

Linda over at the Funkie Junkie is almost finished with her 12 Tags of Christmas while I am only on tag #8. You can See Linda’s #8 Tag HERE. I am taking my inspiration from her lovely embossed background,  pastel colors Broken China and Worn Lipstick as well as the metallic silver. Her amazing store, The Funkie Junkie Boutique is sponsoring this challenge.

Making the Tag

Now that I look at it, it needs more foliage. But sometimes you don’t want to go back and re-due it.

So, I painted my background with Spun Sugar and Broken China Distress Paint. I embossed in silver over the embossed background. The stamped image is from Lynne Perrella and the ferns are from I Am Roses. The sentiment is also from a Lynne Perrella stamp set and the background was painted with worn lipstick Distress Paint. I added a bit of lace and Stickles to finish off the tag.

Thank you for stopping. And a Happy Tea Day for those of you joining Elizabeth.

Kate

Challenges Entered:

12 Days of Christmas Tag #8: The Funkie Junkie

Poinsettias For Christmas: Mixed Media Tag

Poinsettia’s For Christmas

I am not really a fan of poinsettias but maybe that is because growing up our church covered the front with red ones. Church members would donate money to purchase the poinsettias ‘In Memory Of’ and the next Sunday there would be an entire page in the bulletin dedicated to deceased loved ones. Now I associate red poinsettias with death. Around Christmas time I certainly don’t want to think about death. Unless it it the death of Jesus Christ, which has made eternal life possible. That is the one and only death that I am thankful for. Christ’s coming, death and resurrection is why I celebrate Christmas.

So, while I was shopping at Lowes this past Friday, I found this beautiful light green poinsettia. I like this delicate color so much better. So, I bought a few. I also bought a red one but I gave it away. 😉

 

Making the Tag

Inspiration

Here is tag #7 for the 12 tags of Christmas over at The Funkie Junkie sponsored by The Funkie Junkie Boutique. You can see Linda’s Tag Here. I am drawing inspiration from the poinsettia, the black frame and the word tape on Linda’s tag.

The Process

I stenciled using a Stencil Girl stencil over patterned paper. I painted over top and daubed ink. A script stamp was stamped over top. Next, I started adding my embellishments. I made some poinsettias using a spellbinders die, added a fancy frame die, fiber, gold twigs and a stamped little boy from Artistic Outpost.

Tags of Christmas

Tag #1

Tag #2

Tag #3

Tag #4

Tag #5

Tag #6

Thanks for stopping by,

Kate

Challenges Entered:

The 12 Tags of Christmas #7: The Funkie Junkie

Christmas Is Coming: Mixed Media Card

Holly Leaves and Snow

Thanksgiving was full of amazing food and conversation. The next day we went to Walmart because we always shop for blu rays when they are on sale. After that, I dug out my Christmas decor and decorated to my hearts content. It took me several hours, lots of glitter and hundreds of pine needles to sweep up! Sounds like fun, huh? Maybe I will share some of my Christmas decor in another post.

What is your favorite Christmas decoration?

I am a bit behind on my tags/cards for the 12 Tags of Christmas over at The Funkie Junkie so I am going to share two today.

First up is my Card #5. You can see Linda’s tag HERE. The inspiration for my card was drawn from the framed vintage Santa and the holly leaves on Linda’s tag.

Making Card #5

I started off by spraying my background paper with Lindy’s and PaperArtsy Infusions. I stenciled the background before embossing it with snow flakes. My vintage Santa was stamped and framed. I stamped several holly leaves on patterned paper, layered them and added Stickles and liquid pearls.

It’s Christmas

Here is my tag #6. You can see Linda’s tag HERE. My inspiration from Linda’s tag was drawn from her doily and the snow. I used a doily stencil in the background and embossed with white around the edges to look like snow.

Making Tag #6

I used texture paste through a stencil and painted with fresco finish paints and daubed it with green and gold ink. I stamped over top with a script stamp. The kids are cut out of a Artistic Outpost stamp. The peach maple leaves and white flower centers are from I Am Roses. I added some black thread and a white die cut border.

Check out Linda’s Boutique.

Thanks for stopping by.

Kate

Challenges Entered:

12 Tags of Christmas(Tags #5 & #6): The Funkie Junkie

I Am Roses: November Challenge  (STDA15, ZQL4 – 700 )

The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge: Anything Christmas Goes

 

 

 

Is Turquoise My Color?: Mixed Media Tag

Real-Quick

I had so much fun joining in Tea Day this week for the first time over at Elizabeth’s. I was amazed at the amount of people playing along and the incredible art! I love finding inspiring artists and making new blog friends. I am thinking I will have to play along more often. Time is short tonight so I will leave you with how I made this tag.

Creating the Tag

My background is just leftover paint that I soaked off another project. I stamped over top with a paisley stamp. I then tore a strip of muslin fabric stamped it with a Japanese wave and layered a piece of scrap paper on top of that. My favorite part is the strip of texture paste from a Stencil Girl stencil. A handmade rose, paper flowers and fiber finish it off. I thought I would go simple this time around!

This Saturday, I’ll be eating lots of cake at the baby shower. Maybe a piece for each comment left. 😉

Happy weekend!

Kate

 

Gardening with Groundhogs and a Man Tag

Gardening with Groundhogs

I thought I would share a view of my garden from my backyard deck. My amazing hubby, over at CY Innovations, put up the fencing and more raised beds for me this past spring. I am growing:

• red onions
• sweet potatoes
• strawberries
• blueberries
• blackberries
• red raspberries
• basil
• oregano
• mint
• dill
• peppers
• cabbages

Last year, my cabbages and tomatoes were eaten by some unknown creature. If you have a garden you know how maddening it can be to pour your time and money into a project just to have some free loader come along and eat all your hard work.

Despite installing new fences and chicken wire around the perimeter, something is still getting in and eating my cabbages. My hubby caught one groundhog in my garden already this year so I installed bird netting around the cabbages. That evil groundhog is now gnawing holes through my bird netting and demolishing my cabbages. There goes my dreams of homemade sauerkraut and dill!

What are your suggestions for keeping out unwanted creatures? I am thinking barbed wire and electricity?!

On a happier note, here is a masculine tag that I created.

Creating The Tag

For the background, I used a Christy Tomlinson Unity Stamp. I embellished the sides of the image with stamps and that is pretty much it. Simple, huh?

Happy weekend!

 

Memories Are Time: Mixed Media Tag

It has been a while since I sat down and made a tag just for fun but that is what I did this week. I was inspired to work with my new Eye Lattice Stencil by Stencil Girl. They sent me a few stencils for a guest post later on in the year but I couldn’t resist playing around ahead of time.

I reached all of my goals for this project by using my lattice stencil in the background, Sassafras stickers (that I have had for years!) to embellish and a few die cuts that have been sitting on my desk. It feels great to use old stuff up!

Well, this is a short post. Hope you have a great week!

Kate

Challenges Entered:

Tag Tuesday: Anything Goes

 

 

Corsets: The Price of Beauty; Mixed Media Tag

Mixed Media Tag

I always enjoy layering items together and this tag was no exception. I really love how the background came out and how all the little elements tie together. My favorite part about it though is the color combination. Vibrant and bright!

Corsets VS Comfy

I have to say, corsets can be a thing of beauty. What woman doesn’t love the idea of having the ideal waist measurement, magically achieved all due to a piece of clothing. When shopping for clothes I have found myself wishing I lived in a time when intricately hand crafted dresses and hats were made specifically for a individual and not mass produced. The fabrics and details are definitely lacking in today’s clothing industry. But…

I love my comfy jeans (that are not really jeans) as they are stretchy and they fail to leave pressure marks on my abdomen. But I also love being feminine and dressing like a lady. Wearing dresses with tight undergarments to “suck it all in” seem to always make me a little more confident and in turn make me feel prettier. Or perhaps that is just the Spanx keeping me from my usual slouching position.

Every time I see a movie or photograph of women from the previous eras, I cannot help but admire their clothing and at the same time think of all the damage these women did to their bodies in the name of proper etiquette and beauty.

Here are a few such health issues:

• deformed ribs and spines
• blood presure elevation, uterine prolapse, constipation, skin irritation, headaches, nerve pressure
• reduced pelvis size, digestive issues

Although I love the clothing of many historical periods in history, I am thankful to God for placing in this century. Clothing, sanitation and medical practices have come so far and I know that I am enjoying the benefits of all of these advancements. I also know that God made each each one of us unique and individual. If he wanted us all to have a 20 inch waist he would have cut us all from the same mold. Aren’t you glad he didn’t?

Above is a picture of a corset dress by Angela Clayton. She makes all her period costumes. I have spent a lot of time browsing her site and watching her YouTube Videos. Believe me…if you like period clothing her blog will be pure eye candy.

Challenges Entered:

That’s Crafty: Outnumbered

A Perfect Time To Craft: Anything Goes

Take It Make It Challenge: Anything Goes

Altered Eclectics: Anything Goes

Hop into Spring with Mixed Media Tags

Mixed Media Easter/ Spring Tags

 

Here are a few more Spring tags. The backgrounds are made using stamping, ink sprays and Distress Inks. The roses were made using the Tim Holtz Pine Cone Die. I used a few die cuts and some tissue tape in the background as well. All the items I used are below.

This tag has a bit of vintage lace in the background that was sprayed to achieve the colors I wanted.

More Spring Project Inspiration on My Blog.

Click on the picture to view the Spring themed Project.

It Begins With a Vision:Wendy Vecchi Mixed Media Tag

Mixed Media Tag Using Wendy Vecchi Stamps

I don’t pull out my Wendy Vecchi stamps often but when I do, I wish I played with them more. This tag is not a recent make but as I am working on some new things I thought it would be nice to bring back some older projects. The background was made by blending Distress Inks: Broken China, Tea Dye, Lindy’s Stamp Gang Starburst Sprays and stamping. The main stamp set I used was An Eye for Art. I stamped my images, colored them with distress inks and sprays and then layered my elements. Some time ago I made another tag, Be Yourself Wendy Vecchi Tag, using a different set of Wendy Vecchi stamps.

Wendy Vecchi Stamps

Here are a few inspiring Wendy Vecchi Stamps that are on my Wish List.  Aren’t they beautiful! I just love all the vintage lace and such.

Mysterious Lady: Mixed Media Tag

 

PaperArtsy Tag

I really enjoy making tags as they are fast and small. It has been a while since I made one but I thought I would share this one today. You can view my step by step tutorial HERE over on the PaperArtsy blog. The Hot Picks stamps over at PA are really fun for anyone that loves vintage style stamps. My favorite part of any project is usually making the background and for this tag I enjoyed adding the tag to the bottom with ribbon.

Lynne Perrella Tag

 

Just Chit Chat…

I forgot how much I missed blogging. Football season is the perfect excuse to hop on the computer while hubby is busy. I don’t much prefer football so I find it the best time for crafting or catching up on other things.

This week I am focusing on making personal lists. Since I am all about lists I am working on creating a bunch of ‘TO DO’ lists for my art goals. I love the new year because it gives me the chance to start over on all those uncompleted projects. Of course that means I am a year older this time around but that can’t be helped.

The Tag

So, on to the project. Lynne Perrella is one of my favorite stamp artists. She never disappoints when it comes to her new releases over at PA. I made this tag for PaperArtsy using a beautiful Lynne Perrella stamp and a few other goodies from PA. I have a step by step Tutorial over on the PA blog.

If you didn’t answer my topic poll. I would love to hear your opinion. It is in my last post. Take a sec to fill it out so I can start implementing a few more interesting topics into my posts.

Kate