Papercraft Christmas Cards

Forgive the terrible iPad photo (see my shadow?), this is the only photo I took of our 2012 masterpieces. If I'd had a blog at that time, I would have felt justified in taking many more photos, with my nice camera.

We had a lot of fun making these cards.

I bought these supplies:
1. Set of blank cards with envelopes
2. Pack of A4 Christmas papers
3. Bottle of PVC glue
4. Tub of red glitter
5. Scraps of yarn
6. Scraps of cardboard
7. Scraps of aluminium foil
8. Letter stamp set and ink pad (red)
9. Confetti shapes

There are loads of supplies that you probably already have around the house: ribbon, wrapping paper, beads, sequins and cotton wool would all be great additions to the supplies above.

Then we set to work cutting and sticking. I got some inspiration from papercraft websites (I'm afraid I forget which). The tree and the squares definitely did not spring from my own imagination. Here's a rundown of each card:

Red Star, Noel
I started with the red star, Noel card. I drew the outline in pencil on the card, then went over the line with glue. Then I sprinkled the glitter all over the entire card and poured it away (saving for later, of course) to reveal the glitter stuck to the glue. Very simple but very effective.

Present
Next up, I tackled the present. Layering the papers is a great way to get a better looking finish on the cards. This is two rectangles of complimenting papers, slightly different sizes. The smaller one is stuck on top of the larger one. More glitter-over-glue makes the ribbon and bow.

Snowflake
The kids really enjoyed making snowflakes. We folded sheets of paper in half, and half again, then cut sections away, leaving the centre point intact. When you unfold it, you have a magic snowflake. For contrast, I stuck it over a large red section. These would be great to make out of aluminium foil and stick on a turquoise or blue background. Maybe this year, we will do all foil shapes.

Baubles
Now we're getting on to my favourites. These looked great. I used different circles I had around the house: a glass, inside of a sticky tape roll; to cut different size circles from the papers. I glued a line of scrap red yarn for the string and made a glitter bow on top. Buying a set of papers, rather than individual sheets was perfect for this because I could use the same design in different colourways and keep the whole thing looking co-ordinated.

Fireplace
This was really fun. We cut out a tiny stocking shape, plus a large rectangle for the background and two strips for the sides. Then I pulled apart the layers of a piece of corrugated cardboard for the mantlepiece. I peeled the three layers of cardboard away from each other and used the flat side but stuck it wrong side out so you could see the lines where the glue was. I fancied it looked like a grain in the wood.

Christmas Trees
These were made from strips of paper laid in rows with the edges trimmed to make a triangle shape. Cardboard was the perfect tree trunk and I cut a scrap of foil into a star shape for the top of the tree.

Squares
This was a total scrap-buster but looked really special. Some of the papers had quite juvenile pictures on them and I didn't want to use them in other cards, but they worked really well here. I cut out some of the stuffed animal pictures, plus a tiny star, tree and circles. Then arranged them on the tiny squares. Some of the squares I left without a shape, if they already had pictures on them. There are loads of variations that you could do with this basic layout and once all the tiny pieces are nicely cut and arranged side by side, it makes a really cute card.

We had to mark our handiwork as handmade so I bought a set of letter stamps and a red inkpad. We arranged the letters to say "Made by Cathy and E..." and stamped this on the back of each card. I didn't get a picture but it looked really cute.

I weighed all the cards down under some heavy books for a few days (the paper ones, not the glitter) because they were curling up quite a bit. I think it worked - you'll have to ask my family in Australia how they looked on arrival.

The final touch was confetti inside the cards and we also glued one snowflake shaped confetti to the outside of the envelope.

White Dress

I have a make-in-progress to share:

I am posting now because I think I am going to have to take out the skirt and reduce the circumference. The fabric is very delicate and light and the skirt is too full and gathered, it looks like a wedding gown!

My knitting has taught me that if I suspect it is wrong, then it is wrong. It is better to stop now, re-do and get it right. Right? Right.

Mood Loot

I got to Mood Fabrics while I was in NYC!

Of course, I made time in my schedule to get there and I was so pleased that I did.  The store was very well signed and the staff were really helpful.

As you can see, I didn't get much in the way of fabric but the one I did get is silk and is going to be perfect for the lining of my Little French Jacket. The chain is for the hem too. I baulked at the silk organza for stabilising the sleeves because I got a bit overwhelmed by that point.  I got loads of invisible zips because, at $1 each, you can't beat that price. I wish I'd got more.

Finally, tracing paper, a tracing wheel, and an impulse buy at the checkout, Perfect Fitting, which so far is great bedtime reading! 

There is so much more I could have bought, I didn't want to go crazy without specific projects in mind, if you are in NYC, it would be an amazing place to have nearby to pop into when you need something.

The entrance to the store is something I've not experienced before, it is an office building, no signage, you just go in and take the (non-self-service) lift, I mean, elevator, to the third floor where it opens out like a warehouse.

I did see some beautiful Marc Jacobs fabric, a dusty pink with embossed leaves, silk (I think). I couldn't figure out what I might make with it, it was too heavy for a dress or blouse and too pale for a skirt or jacket. A spring coat would look great, but I have a pink coat and I am trying to be a bit more sensible in my making - by making things that my wardrobe actually needs.

Shopping plans

Guess where I'm going to be this week?  Here's a clue:

The store I am probably going to visit 5 times in 3 days starts with an "M", ends with a "D" and has an "OO" in between...

Design help please!

I have an upcycle in mind but I am struggling with the details. Maybe you can help me?

This is a bridesmaids dress that I wore last year, I want to re-make it into a girl's party dress.

When I hold the skirt up to the older one, the waist seam comes to her underarms. I'll be removing one skirt panel because it is marked.  The skirt is a-line. The bodice is pieced, 7 pieces in all. It makes it very difficult to cut a new bodice for a child.

Do I:
a. make a skirt only
b. take in all the pieces and keep the same style, fitted for a child?
c. do something cleverer that I haven't thought of?

Dual Ghouls

These two little ghosties had fun trick-or-treating on Halloween!

The costumes had been requested for months and I knew it would be easy to oblige.

The little one fitted into one meter of polycotton that I got at the Isle of Wight this summer. The big one is much taller and her costume had to be cut from my favourite blue sheet. Yes, I will be washing these, unpicking them and putting them back in my stash.

I seamed a few large darts though the head area to pull the fabric closer to their faces. It made it (slightly) easier to see if the holes were up against their eyes. Otherwise, the edges were cut with pinking shears and I stitched around the eye holes to reinforce them.  I left the edges completely unfinished at the hems.

Unfortunately, wearing a sheet over your head to go up and down stairs, kerbs, cross roads and be offered candy by strangers wearing scary costumes is not easy. They want to be witches next year.

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