lindaalbrecht

Christmas' past and Giveaway winner!

 
 
 
 
I always become a little nostalgic at Christmas time....especially as the days draw closer to Christmas Eve.  I hope that I can take the time this year to pull out old VHS tapes and watch some dear Christmas memories from years ago when my adult children were small. 
 
Christmas 1985 

Those memories are what makes me love winter and snow... and the sharing of gifts and time.  Time most importantly.  Where does it go?  It's always fleeting and ever precious.  My wish each year for Christmas is to always have it slow down so that I can savor each moment and memory....but it is a gift too complicated to hold.  A wish for such a gift is immense and beyond what I can understand or comprehend.  So in God's infinite wisdom we are given just enough time and it is up to us how we use it.  
 
Christmas 1974

So much has changed since I was young.  Some people that I loved have passed on and my sisters and I have families of our own, but every year still holds dear. 
 
Christmas 1999

No matter how we change, it's still about the coming together of family and for that we are blessed beyond measure.
 
Christmas 2003
 
Christmas...  The very word brings joy to our hearts.  No matter how we may dread the rush, the long Christmas lists for gifts and cards to be bought and given - when Christmas Day comes there is still the same warm feeling we had as children, the same warmth that enfolds our hearts and our homes.  ~Joan Winmill Brown
 
 
Another version of the house pattern from Victoria magazine's website.  I made this ornament for the Glue Arts blog using Makng Memories papers and embellishments and a lot of Christmasy sparkle.

Now on to the winner of the Winter House box from my last post.  Thank you to all who left a kind comment.  They never go unappreciated and I read them all and smile.  The winner is.....

Barb in CA who commented on Dec 18 2010 @ 10:29pm.  Send me an email Barb in CA and I will ship this off right away!
 
Thank you all again for visiting and leaving such nice comments.  I hope that each of you have a wonderful holiday, however you celebrate. 

Linda

 

Winter Wonderland & Giveaway winner

In the meadow we can build a snowman......

That's what's been happening around here lately.  Not the cold, outdoor snow type but still snowmen all the same.  I 'should' be out building a snowman or two in the yard though because we are knee deep in snow here and it's still coming down.  I like snow.... it's pretty and sparkly.....and makes me feel like I live in a snow globe.  What could be wrong with living in a perfect little world that's all glittery? ;-)

So here is my first snowman project.  One morning after I woke up as the alarm was going off, I pictured this in my mind.  Maybe I had a dream about it and I was just recalling my dream, but I saw this little flat snowman standing on a snowy hill made of crocheted laces and vintage buttons. 
 

 
He's made of paper clay and sparkled up with some Mica flakes.  The background paper is by Girl's Paperie and the hat is made with a paper from BasicGrey's new Christmas collection.
 
I love those old pieces of lace.  There are a couple of them that are new, but the others were some tiny strips that I saved from an old doily...so perfect for my project.  The buttons were picked up at an antique store.

To apply the lace to the paper I used Glue Arts Perma Tac Adhesive then added some glitter in case some of the adhesive was visable through the lace.  The pearls are from Melissa Frances.  I handstitched a few snowflakes onto the scene and some french knots along one of the mini ric rac pieces then added Jenni Bowlin buttons to the corners of the frame.

 

I also did a snowman project for the Glue Arts Blog.  You can find the supply list, instructions, and a few step out photos on the blog on December 16th.
 
The papers used are from Graphic 45.  They are perfectly vintagey and merry.  I added little jingle bells to the snowman's tummy (my most favorite part about him!) and used Snow-Tex to add a snow effect to the tips and top of some of his parts.  If you use this be sure to add a light sprinkling of clear glitter to really make it look snowy.  I do this right after I add the paste while it's still moist. 

A little close up of his face and fun paper clay nose:
 
 
 
So.......it's time for the winner's name.  I wish that I could give each of you something, but you can make them yourself too.  Remember to get the instructions for my last giveaway at the Ally Scraps blog HERE.  Oh... and I have been asked a couple of times about the link.  Here are some other directions for finding the houses templates on the Victoria Magazine blog:

1. Go to http://www.victoriamag.com/
2. Move your mouse over to the "Favorites" column.  That will make a drop down menu appear.
3. Click on the "Holidays" word.  That will take you to several do it yourself projects.
4. Click on the "Harvest Project Patterns" and print out the templates created by Olivia Kanaley.  Thank you Olivia Kanaley!!!!

Okay, back to the winner.....
Karey who commented on December 06, 2010 @ 5:52 pm...congratulations to Karey!  Please email me with your address so that I can get your gift to you before Christmas. Yayyyy!!!!

I love to giveaway!  It makes me feel so good and because of that, I am going to give away another one of the houses from my last post.  I want to get this off to the winner early next week so that they might have it right around Christmas so I'll be back on Monday, December 20 to announce the winner's name.  This time I'll be giving the blue house away that sits on the oval shaped box.  Post any merry comment for another chance to win one of the holiday houses!
 
 
Thank you so much for stopping by and spreading holiday cheer!  I'm grateful for all of your comments.  May you continue to have Christmas blessings find you and yours.

Linda :-)

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" Giveaway

My house is getting all decorated up for the holiday.  I feel like I have a pretty good start on it, but still need to do a couple of big things....like the trees.  It's so fun to take out the things that I love to decorate with each year.

Like my collection of bulbs that I place around the house in baskets and amongst the greens.
 

 
I looooove sparkly stuff at Christmas...and things that look like ice and frost.
 
 
 

I love my little paper houses....pretty painted houses with their tarnished silver accents.....
 
And silly, happy snowmen.......
 

 
And the angels that I made with my Dad years ago.....
 
What are your favorite things about the house this time of year?  I'd love to hear!
 

I have a fun project to share with you that I did for the Ally Scraps Blog.  I downloaded patterns from the Victoria Magazine website to make these Vintage Village boxes.
 

 
The papers, mini pom pom trim, chipboard snowflakes, crystal topped stick pins and stickers can all be purchased from their store HERE.

 

 

 
I used Mica Flakes and clear glitter for the sparkle and distressed up some jingle bells and used silver pipecleaners for trimming.  I love silver pipe cleaners!  

You can go to the Ally Scraps Blog to get the complete list of supplies and directions, plus the link to the Victoria website for the templates for the houses.  They'd love to have you stop on by.
 

So I also mentioned a GIVEAWAY in my title, so I want to let you know how to have a chance to win a bit of Christmas from me.  Above I asked what are your favorite things around the house at Christmas time, so just tell me about that and you will be entered into the drawing to win.....................

the striped (pink, red, and blue) "Home for Christmas" Vintage Village House Box shown above!  I'd love to share this with one of my blog readers.  I hope that you'll enjoy it as much as I did making it.  So go ahead and leave me your comment-- I can't wait to read them :-) 
 
Thanks for stopping by!  I plan to be back again in about a week to announce the winner of the Village House Box and to share another project or two.  I've been making a few little clay pieces to add to projects so stop back when you can.

Have a wonderful winter weekend!
Linda