TIME FOR THE CHRISTMAS COUNTDOWN!

Happy Hump Day stampers!!! Yes, I know it has been awhile, but I had some personal family health issues to focus on as my family is always my priority! Although we still are dealing with what lies ahead, and know it is going to be a VERY long and bumpy road, we are going to walk it together!!! So, I though it was time to get back into some semblance of a normal routine (do we EVER have that??) and share something crafty!! I want to share with you the Christmas Advent Wreath I made and then turned into a class - I did three sessions and each session was really fun!! And, we all left with a great decoration too!  I did all the cutting and the sticky tape ahead of time so they could put it together and decorate it - the fun parts, lol! We started out with a flat wooden circle that I ordered from an online supply store as I wanted the wreath to have a really sturdy base. We wrapped that in Cherry Cobbler wide striped ribbon, leaving enough to make the hanger you see in the picture. So, from the back side, you don't see ugly wood, you see pretty ribbon :-) We then cut out a circle that fit the back side of wreath - we used the cardboard from the paper packs since you can't see it. Then, we covered that with the Cherry Cobbler card stock circle you see in the center - both are attached using hot glue since we never want it to come off, lol!!  The 24 boxes you see are made with the matchbox die for the Big Shot and the base is made of Cherry Cobbler card stock to ensure they are nice and sturdy for many years to come! The lids are made of patterned paper from the Letters to Santa Designer Series paper pack - such beautiful paper!! The bottom twelve boxes are sticky taped to the circle first, creating the base for the top ones. They are placed out diagonally around the circle in order to keep the circle shape since as you go around the circle, the angles change quite a bit - this was tricky, but everyone got it :-) The top boxes then were staggered in between every two of the top boxes, creating that awesome wreath look! Each of the top boxes have an Old Olive Ornament that was punched out with the Ornament punch and adhered to the box. The numbers on the box were cut out using the Medium Sizzlets alphabet for the Big Shot, and were cut using the Silver Glimmer Paper - looks amazing, all sparkly!!! Then, the ornaments were each adorned with tiny bows using some of the yummy Cherry Cobbler Quilted ribbon.  The numbers for the bottom boxes are on the inside of the wreath and correspond with each box, making sure 13 started to the right of box 12, keeping the sequence going. In the very center of the wreath, there is a Scalloped Circle of the Letters to Santa DSP that was cut on the Big Shot. A Whisper White circle was also die cut and nested in the center after it was stamped using the Christmas Postcard A la Carte stamp. It was stamped in Stazon, then colored in with Stampin' Write markers. For some fun accents, we added a snowflake and some of the holly leaves out of the super cute Stitched Felt package you can find in the Holiday Mini, along with the Holly Berry Bunch button we used in the center of the snowflake! To finish it off, we put Rhinestones on every other scallop, and added some Dazzling Details to the stamped image, making the whole project sparkle!! Everyone loved how it turned out - including me!! I am thrilled with this wreath and can't wait to start using it tomorrow :-)

Here are some closer shots of the wreath as well as showing how the drawers open to put the treat inside!  I hope you enjoyed seeing this as much as I enjoyed designing it! I think made from the heart decor is the best kind, don't you?? I have made several home decor items this year that I will share with you over the next few weeks as we count down the days until Santa comes!! Christmas is my very favorite time of year, and I am so very excited as my oldest son will be coming home for the holidays as he transfers to Southern California for his first Marine Corps duty station. Yes, my baby is all grown up!! I still can't wait to hug his neck though, lol!!! I will be back tomorrow with some other super fun and cute projects to share, but until then, take some time to be creative, it makes for a better day!!  Have a wonderful Wednesday!
Wreath Recipe:
Paper -  Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Whisper White cardstock, Letters to Santa Designer Series paper, Silver Glimmer Paper
Inks - Black Stazon, Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Marina Mist, River Rock Stampin' Write markers
Stamps - Christmas Postcard
Tools - Medium Sizzlets Alphabet, Scalloped Circle die, Clear Circle die, Matchbox die, Big Shot,  Ornament Punch, Sticky Tape, hot glue gun
Accessories - Basic Rhinestones, Cherry Cobbler Wide Striped Ribbon and Quilted Ribbon, Stitched Felt, Hollyberry buttons, Dazzling Details