posts in category Christmas cards

12.14.2017

Christmas Card Photos | Heidi Swapp Instax

Sending out Christmas cards is something I look forward to doing every year.

But some years...like this one...I'm just not prepared.

Some years...like this one...I find myself behind the eight ball, with just a week or so left before Christmas, rain in the forecast, busy-kid schedules and nighttime that comes just way too quickly.

I finally found a spare 30 minutes this past Monday. My boys got home at 2:45 and were able to get changed and ready. My daughter jumped off the bus at 3:45 and had just a few minutes to freshen her makeup and throw on a sweater.

And we were off!

I had seen a Christmas tree lot, not too far away (about a 10 minute drive), and thought it would make the perfect backdrop for this year's photos.

All I need was one shot. Just one shot. Nothing fancy. Just everyone looking into the camera at the same time.

We got to the lot with only a bit of light left to spare. Did I mention it had been cloudy all day, and now, at 4:00 pm, it already looked like darkness was setting in?

Kinsley had brought her Instax Camera along and started snapping some photos while I was getting everything ready on my end.

She got some really fun shots...

And the kids looked so cute posing for the Instax I couldn't help but pull out my phone and take some photos of them taking photos!

Realizing I had a job to do, I grabbed my camera bag, threw my camera around my neck and arranged the kids in the middle of the Christmas tree forest.

I went to turn on my camera, and nothing.

Nothing.

The camera battery I had been charging all day was still sitting in the charger at home.

Ugh.

Seriously?

Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans.

I told the kids to jump back into the car. We were going to get this photo taken come Hell or high water.

We raced back home, and I grabbed the battery from the charger. I threw it into my camera and told the kids to run across the street to the neighbor's backyard...she lives up against a forest preserve.

The light was fading - FAST - and I told the kids to just stand near a tree a smile - QUICK!

God love them, they did exactly what I asked and I was able to grab a few shots.

I uploaded the photos and found one that was halfway decent...thank goodness.

Through the magic of Photoshop (hello, magic-hour-lighting), Walgreen's 1-hour premium card printing, and a 50% off coupon, our Christmas cards in hand before bedtime.

It was a Christmas miracle.

And the kids had fun doing a little photographing of their own!

Now I just have to get those babies mailed.

Are you still looking for that perfect Christmas gift to give just about anyone on your list?

Why not give the gift of memory-making?

Instax cameras & Heidi Swapp accessories available Michaels stores and michaels.com

Merry Christmas everyone!

11.12.2015

National Kindness Day...with Heidi Swapp & Starbucks

Hey hey everyone!

Today is National Kindness Day!

And in honor of this very special day I want to share how my kids and I try to spread kindness this time of year...

A few years ago, we started a brand new tradition in our family...one that we continue throughout November and December...and it's a tradition we all love.

During the 8 weeks around the holidays my kids and I will go "Starbucking." Yep, Starbucking.

We'll stop off at a local Starbucks and grab about $100 worth of $5 gift cards...and throughout the fall we'll leave these cards on car windshields. It's probably one of the most fun things we do all year.

And it's definitely one of the most valuable.

This year we did a little something just a little different. This year we added some handmade Christmas cards to our little gifts.

To create the cards I used pieces from a brand new line of Heidi Swapp products found exclusively at Joann stores...products such as card kits, art screens, package decorating items - the list goes on and on...(find a list of stores carrying these exclusive items HERE).

Here are just a few of those exclusives...these are the ones I've used for this project:

*woodgrain card kit

*layered mistletoe cardstock stickers

*holiday art screens

*red art screen ink

*black art screen ink

*layered tags

*Special Delivery address labels

*red & gold tinsel ribbon

*acrylic stamps

And here are the cards I created...

These little layered tags are just perfect for turning into "ornaments!" For this card I simply added one of the little mistletoe layered stickers, and a small length of the gold tinsel ribbon...a little string and bow (created with my journaling pen) and done!

The stag art screen is just gorgeous...and this icon has become one of my very favorite winter symbols. I used black art screen ink for the deer and I adhered a few of the gold layers from the mistletoe stickers and a small piece of the gold tinsel ribbon to give him a little wreath. Some red art screen ink with the "merry christmas" art screen and this card was finished!

Here's another little "ornament" I created with the layered tags. For this one I added a little red bow (created from the red ribbon found in the ribbon pack along with the gold tinsel).

Here I used the "merry christmas" art screen again...and a few of the green layers from the mistletoe stickers.

This card was definitely the quickest one to create...all I used here was the "glisten sparkle etc." art screen. I love the simplicity...

And finally, another little stag - again with the black art screen ink. For this card I added a tiny little pearl (found on the mistletoe stickers) to the deer's nose...and I tied a length of the red ribbon around his neck as a scarf.*

*To do this, I punch two small holes into the front of my card with my Crop-O-Dile. Then I threaded the ribbon through and tied it...easy peasy!

What's your favorite? I truly can't pick just one...I really love them all...

OK...so once the cards were made I stamped a few of the envelopes that come in the kit and put our little kindness packages together...

We left Wednesday morning (the kids were off school for Veterans' Day) to run errands and stopped off at our local Target parking lot...

Here's Kinsley placing the first card...her M.O. is to find cars with baby seats in them...she figures moms with small kids really need a Starbucks break. She's right.

Gray is a lot less selective...

We did a few cars at our local Joann as well...

We still have some cards left...we'll finish those up in the next few weeks.

I always have such a feeling of excitement after we do this...I wonder "who will get the card?" "Will they like it?" "Will they be happy?" "Do they even like Starbucks?" (smile)

I sure hope so...and I hope that whomever receives the cards feels some sort of push to pay it forward.

It's really amazing to me...and I think my kids are learning this, too...that being kind to, and serving others, really benefits the one doing the kind act far more than the one receiving the benefit. It's a wonderful feeling.

How are you helping to spread kindness this year?

Here's my challenge to you...do something kind, something completely selfless, for a stranger today...I'll bet it brings a smile to your face.

12.04.2012

Semi-Handmade Christmas Cards...and a holiday digi-freebie from Heidi Swapp! yay!

There was a time when I envisioned myself sitting at a gorgeous desk with a stack of handmade Christmas cards on one side and a stack of envelopes on the other, lovingly writing each and every card a personal message...

...a time when I envisioned my children sitting at my feet while I wrote, quietly putting together puzzles and giving each other words of praise and encouragement when one of them fit in a piece...

...a time when I envisioned the magic of the holidays filling our home until we were full to bursting with love and peace and faith.

And then I actually HAD children and realized that, yeah...none of that other stuff was going to happen. Ever.

Of course, I still send out cards each year, but they are ordered online, and are usually just shoved into an envelope and addressed with a pre-printed sticker (anything to save a minute or two, right?).

Not exactly the gorgeous handmade beauties of my dreams, right?

So the past few years I have done something just a little different with my cards...I've made them Semi-Handmade. Sure, I still order the basic cards online. Sure, I still use pre-printed address labels (usually). But I've started adding just a little personal touch to my cards...a little something that makes them completely unique and memorable.

This year Heidi Swapp made my job super-easy with her 12 Days of Digital Freebies. Seriously? What a fantastic idea! All I had to do was print and cut out the graphics!

Then I just played around with different ways to dress-up my basic cards! Woo hoo! Here is our Christmas card for this year...

And here are the ways that I used today's "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" freebie to make them extra special...

In this example, I simply printed out the graphic onto cardstock, cut it out and rounded the corners, and attached it to my card with baker's twine. So simple! But really, doesn't that little extra touch just make the cards stand out? It's almost like a little gift that your card recipients get to open in order to see the card. Here's another idea...

For this one, I printed the graphics out onto vellum, cut them to fit around the card...

and attached them in the back...again with baker's twine.

If you're not into changing the look of your card, you can also add a little something to your envelope to make your card one-of-a-kind...

I left the actual card alone in this example, and added the graphic to the back of the envelope (after I inked the edges and added little "ribbons" to the bottom). I love this look...wouldn't that actually make a darling little gift-topper, too?

Now what if you already make your own cards? (and, if you do, I salute you. and worship you. and want to know how you manage to get it all done). Do you buy your envelopes? Or do you make them? What if you suddenly run out of envelopes? Or you just want to change things up a bit? How about something like this?

Little paper bags are a fun, easy way to dress up your card at minimal cost! Here I just printed out Heidi's freebie onto the bag, and sealed it with some baker's twine and washi tape. This would be a great idea for cards you can hand to neighbors or teachers or friends...OR, simply seal the bag a little better, address it and send it in the mail!

**for an amazing tutorial on how to print on a paper bag, check out this post from hellobee.com**

Now, if you are not a card-sender, you can still give your neighbors and friends something special...a "card" of sorts...

I used the paper bags again, but this time I used my photo-editing software to add our family name to the bottom...and then I filled the bags with yummy treats.

Now, when you give these away, you'll be giving a gift AND a card in one! Awesome...

So there you go...a few easy ways to make your cards (and even gifts!) using digital graphics. I hope you love them! And don't forget to visit Heidi's site to download your very own set of holiday freebie!

**For more ideas for Semi-Handmade cards, you can check out my blog post from last year, too**

**In order to download Heidi's freebies (which are in .pdf format) you will need to first have Adobe Reader on your computer. After that is installed, just click on the link to the download and save it to your computer. Once it is saved, you can open it and print...if you have any questions at all regarding the process, please contact me**

11.29.2011

Snaz up those plain ol' Christmas cards!

I have a confession to make.

I am a Christmas card junkie. There. I said it. I've outed myself. I love Christmas cards. And by love, I mean obsess over. I start thinking about cards long before Thanksgiving...and I have a HORRIBLE/WONDERFUL time choosing which styles to order...this year I surfed the net for 3 days before I even narrowed down the sites I wanted to order from.

And then...as if that wasn't enough...after I had already decided which cards to order, my girl Jamielyn from I Heart Naptime told me about Paper Coterie and I had to start all over (in this case, that was a good thing...Paper Coterie is da bomb).

I finally decided on 5 different card styles...yes...5. I ended up ordering 20 each (or approximately) of the 5 different designs...is that weird?

Here's what I got (the "befores")...

from Shutterfly...

also from Shutterfly...

from Paper Coterie - this one actually comes with scalloped edges...love.

another from Paper Coterie...and this one comes in this super-cool scroll-y shape...

I also have one more that I ordered from Snapfish, but I was having trouble with their site, so I can't show you a before (frowny face)... and I was too lazy to actually walk over to the scanner and scan one...(another frowny face).

I received the cards and thought - you know, I wanna try to make these a little more personalized...a little more special...maybe not so "I just went online, typed in our names, added a photo and bang-zoom here are our cards"-ish...so I busted out the scrapbook stuff and set to work...

Here's what I did (and let me tell you, this honestly took like no time at all...I finished half the cards while we were watching TV and I'll finish the other half later this week before I drop them all in the mail)...

Here I just cut out some scallop tags, added some rub-ons & a date stamp & attached them to the corner of the card with some twine...

With the second Shutterfly card I just wrapped a doily around the side and tied on some twine...easy peasy...

I love this Paper Coterie card just as it is (aren't those scalloped edges awesome???)...but I still wanted to add a little something...a little blue bow fit the bill perfectly (the back of the card is the same color blue)...

Another awesome-ly shaped card from Paper Coterie...I added some more baker's twine & a kraft tag and sticker and now it's just a little more special...

And here's the last one...from Snapfish...just your plain jane 4x8 photo card. I wrapped a piece of Tim Holtz glassine kraft paper around the card (after I'd embossed it with a snowflake) and attached the edges in the back with a Christmas sticker...voila. I especially like the look of these cards because I think the kraft glassine looks like leather...ooooh.