Getting a Head Start on Holiday Crafting

Not so long ago, I thought it was crazy when the stores had Christmas ornaments and decorations out at the same time as the back-to-school supplies. Now I know that there are many people who actually look forward to Christmas decorations in the aisles of their local craft stores in July. Not because they are already decorating, but they are preparing to be decorating and making Christmas cards and planning gift wrap and creating tags and ornaments and gifts and...you get the picture. These smart people are getting a head start on their holidays!

And now, I have become one of them. Spending small amounts of time throughout the year working on holiday projects can let me add some fun handcrafted details to our Christmas celebrations with very little stress involved. And I spread it out over several months. And it’s fun because there’s no pressure. Can you tell that I love it? If I waited until the day after Thanksgiving (or even the day after Halloween!) to start working on these details, I could never get them done.

So. It’s September. There’s still time to get a crafty head start on our holiday season!

Holiday Greeting Cards

One thing I love to do is make Christmas cards. In the past, I spent many years not sending Christmas cards because I kept planning to make them and then not getting them done. Live and learn. Now I start early, keep my design fairly basic, use simplifying tools, and make the cards assembly-line style. This year’s cards are not complicated, but have enough detail to be unique, festive, and personal.

I started with Heidi Grace Flocked Boxed Cards and added fun details with Fiskars’ Block Party and Mint Condition Squeeze Punches and Scalloped Paper Edgers. An important realization I came to was that although the overall design of the cards is the same, the individual cards can have some differences. That’s okay! The recipients will only see their own card and will not know that you didn’t make 20 or 40 or 150 exactly-the-same cards – not that that would matter anyway! So use what you have, mix up the papers a little, dig through your stash of monogram die cuts and stickers and get those cards made. I look forward to dropping mine in the mail on December 1!

Wrapping Gifts

When it comes to gift wrap, I enjoy simple solid papers and more detailed tags and bows. This year’s tags will go with a variety of solid papers, and they will show that I put some thought into making the gift special. These tags have a subtle embossed snowflake pattern on them, which I highlighted a bit with a light ink. Fiskars Clear Stamps helped me to add a handmade touch while making it very simple to make several at a time. When it comes time to wrap Christmas gifts this year, I’ll be happy that I planned ahead and enjoyed the creative process of making these tags well before the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.

The pattern on this wrap is random and intentionally imperfect, so there’s no way to “mess it up.” Just play. Make a memory and some fun gift wrap at the same time.  The Fiskars Clear Stamps have so many designs to choose from, you could be endlessly creating gift wrap! While you are stamping the paper, stamp out several tags with the same stamps to match. Add an easy-to-make handmade bow with the Fiskars Bow Maker and you’ll have a one-of-a-kind gift for someone special.

Gift Jars

Every year we make Hot Cocoa Mix that disappears almost immediately because it is so delicious. We make multiple batches of it, measure it into canning jars and decorate the jars with simple but festive touches. These details are a snap to make with Fiskars Circle Border Punch and Clear Stamps. The new Cloud 9 Chocolate Chalet line has the perfect papers and ribbon to make this a special holiday gift for neighbors, teachers, and anyone else you don’t want to forget. I added some Rain Dots Snowflakes for a sparkly winter touch.

The Countdown

When December 1^st does actually come around, be ready to count down the days to Christmas with these festive blocks. The kids can change them around daily as the big day gets closer and closer! This project is quick and fun to put together with the Fiskars Softgrip Craft Knife and Cutting Mat. The Heidi Grace Number Punchouts are so simple and convenient to use with a huge variety of patterns and each package comes with two of each large number and four of each small one – lots of counting-down-to-Christmas potential there! Using the glue wand on the Fiskars Tool Taxi makes adhering the numbers and letters a quick job. Once you realize how easy these are to create, you might even want to make a few sets for friends and family.

Fiskars tools can make planning ahead for holiday greetings, gift-giving, and decorating easier than ever. The possibilities are endless. Try some of these projects, create some of your own ideas, and then, when December comes, enjoy that wonderful feeling of having prepared some special details ahead of time.

By Stacey Kingman