The DIY Holiday Card

I heard a piece on the radio last week about the decline of the annual holiday card.  And you know what?  It made me sad.  I love social media, I love how connected we can be, I love seeing my friend-from-elementary-school's kids growing up on Facebook.  But I also love mail.  Oh, how I love mail!  And I love seeing those cute family photos, I love hanging them up across the mantle, and I actually keep them.  I do.  I have a special album.  I'm not a keeper of many things, but yes, I keep those holiday cards.  

The thing I don't love is how expensive it can be to have a nice card printed.  So - you knew where this was going, didn't you? - I made my own!

First, I bought some kraft paper card stock and envelopes, some cute Christmas washi tape, 

and pulled out my glue and paper trimmer.

Next, I went to an online infographics design house (like Piktochart) and played with one of 

their free pictograph designs, changing a font here, switching up the layout there, 

to make our year-in-review blurb.  

Then, I printed it out, two on a page, and took it to my local copy center 

to have it copied onto my card stock.

Trimmed it all up to make 5"x7" cards.

Then, I took my stack of family photos - which we took ourselves using a tripod and my husband's mad photo editing skills, then had printed at Costco - and using a dot of glue in the middle, and washi tape at the edges, attached them to the back of the card.  

Done!  Here's the front and back.  And each card cost about 70 cents, including the envelope.

Happy Holidays!

Sketchbook Tuesday

Maybe you've seen books like this, and maybe you've even bought them for your kids.  But they're fun for grown-ups, too!  Especially if you only have a minute or two - keeping a book like this around is a great way to keep sketching even if you're busy.

Happy sketching!

Sketchbook Tuesday: While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night (A Tutorial!)

Today's sketch is a little bit of a cheat, since I didn't make it in the last week.  But it's also a good reminder to pick up and start again!  

One of the reasons I was too busy to sketch: I was making shepherd costumes, without a pattern, from sheets!  And in case you ever need to make easy-peasy "you'll only wear it this once so it doesn't really matter if it's perfect" shepherd costumes, I took photos of some of the process for you!

You'll need old sheets, a t-shirt in roughly the size you're making the costume.

First, cut the top edge off the sheet - you can use it later for a sash/tie/whatever.

Next, fold your fabric into two layers, then lay the t-shirt on top to get a rough idea of size.  Cut the two layers bigger than the t-shirt, to allow for seams and because sheets don't stretch like t-shirts do.  You'll have two really long rectangles.  Keep them together for the next bit.

Now line up the top of the shirt with the top (short end) of your rectangles.  Stretch the neck opening of the t-shirt out both ways to get a rough idea of the neck opening you'll need for the tunic.  Use pins to mark the opening, then stitch it together like so:

Now, let's make sleeves.  Take the extra sheet material, that you cut off from the main part of the tunic, above.  Fold it into two layers, using the sleeve of the t-shirt as a guide for how wide the sleeve needs to be.  Make it wider than the t-shirt sleeve, again for seam allowance and because this fabric really doesn't stretch.

Cut the sleeve out to the width and length you want it, leaving it folded in the layers (don't cut on the fold).

Next, open the main part of the costume, and line the center of the sleeve up with the seam you made when you created the neck opening.  Stitch the sleeves to the tunic.  When you're finished, if you open up the whole thing and lay it out, it should look like this:

Okay, final step!  Fold the tunic in half, with right sides together, and the top of the tunic making the fold.  Stitch from the wrist of the sleeve, all the way to the underarm, then make a 90 degree angle and stitch all the way down the length of the tunic.  Repeat on the other side.

Now flip it right side out, and you're done!

If the neck opening is too small, just cut a small notch in the middle front of the opening, and rip the fabric until it's big enough - we're going for rustic, right?  And if the tunic is too long, just cut/rip the bottom edge to make it the right length.

Use your extra pieces of fabric to make sashes, ties, cowls, headpieces, whatever!  I ended up making costumes for 4 adults and 2 kids out of 4 big sheets from the thrift store.  Super cheap and easy.

Romance at the Book Festival.

On our first date, my husband took me to Northwest Bookfest.  Really, he was a keeper from day one.  Most of the day is a heady blur, but I do remember some of the amazing book art on display.  And I was most impressed with the books that had been altered in some way.  Growing up in a family that reverenced books to the degree we did, it had never occurred to me to take a sharp blade and some glue to one - the horror!  So my world opened up to new ideas, I said "yes" 3 months later, and we are living happily ever after.  

I thought about that day recently, when I saw an idea for a journal made from an old book.  It looked fairly simple to do, and more than that it looked like fun.  And it was.  Here's a peek at the results:

What do you think?  Seriously, they were so much fun, I think everyone should make them.  

Of course, if you'd rather, you can find them in my shop.

Sketchbook Tuesday: Even if it Sucks!

I must confess, with the wonderful busyness of the Thanksgiving holiday last week, I didn't take the time to sketch until late, late last night.  And it's not even all that original.  Sometimes, just to keep drawing, I will find an inspiring image and do my best to copy it - whether it be the whole thing or just some element.  I even keep a board on Pinterest just exactly for that purpose - if you're interested, you can find my Inspiration board here.

Last week also left no time to blog, but I have some fun things to show you soon, so don't give up on me just yet!