3rd Thursday - Juliette

Club SEI's January kit will feature Juliette. This collection has soft, romantic colors and versatile patterns. The papers are treated with glitter, pearl, and pink pearl. Click here to see what club members can make with this kit. If you aren't a club member, you can still sign-up and receive this kit until Monday, December 28th.



These coupons were made using the click-n-prints from January's club kit available to club members only. Happy 3rd Thursday!

Wine Holder

This wine holder was sent to us by Memories from the Heart. We love how it shows what can be done with a little creative thinking. Look around for simple packaging that can be dressed up with pretty paper, ribbons, & tags. One of our favorite things about this wine holder is when you open it up you are greeted with a holiday scene from our Christmas Mint paper collection.

Giveaway Winner

Thank you for all your comments on Amy's blog posts. We are going to have to agree with them. The Mod Podge banner is amazing and those pugs are pretty silly! The giveaway winner as selected by random.org is:


Congratulations Tina! Now all you need to do is send your mailing address to us at seiblog(at)shopsei(dot)com to claim your WinterSong goodies.

Snow Banner + Giveaway

By this time you are probably thinking that I was completely going to skip over Mod Podge – but no way! Mod Podge got me where I am today, so for my final post I bring you a banner made with Mod Podge. This banner is in honor of winter and to celebrate my week here at SEI.

This banner is simple to make, really. I simply painted wood banner pieces (from a local craft store) with red acrylic paint and then dry brushed them with silver. I cut out letters in my own funky handwriting and Mod Podged them to the banner pieces – 20 minutes later I coated the whole banner with Podge. After all was dry, I used this tutorial from Mod Podge Rocks! reader Theresa to make flower embellishments with brads. Glue those on with craft glue, string onto a ribbon and you are good to go!

Thank you so much for having me this week. Have a wonderful holiday season and please enjoy your winter celebrations. For inspiration and to visit me, swing by Mod Podge Rocks! any time. I post a new Mod Podge project nearly every day. Thanks again and I can’t wait to see you soon!

Thank you for a fun week, Amy! We can tell that you are such a fun gal and really love to make all kinds of creative projects.

Readers, which post was your favorite this week? Leave a comment answering this question and you will be entered into a giveaway to win some of the WinterSong products Amy used throughout the week. Just leave your comment by Sunday December 20th at midnight and we will announce the winner Monday. Be sure to check back next week to see if you are the winner because if we don't hear from the winner by December 28th we will pick a new winner!

Winter Birthdays

I just love receiving cards, a very important part of having a winter birthday! We winter birthday babies need to know that in the midst of Christmas, Hanukkah and other holidays that you didn’t forget about us. We like to have our special days. I dedicate the card above to my Grandmother Beverly, my mom’s mom. She was the only other winter birthday in the family, and she died of colon cancer at age 57. I always remember her birthday on that day (January 8th), and I will forever.

One of the best birthdays I ever had was a photo shoot with my best friend, Cody. We bought 80’s sweaters from the thrift store and dressed up, taking photos up and down the street in front of our apartment. It was silly, it was fun and it was something I’ll never forget. Lesson? Don’t forget to document those fun and silly times – they WILL inspire you later. Here’s a few photos from that shoot, and in typical Seattle fashion – no snow.

I Can Has Snow?

Winter celebrations are perfect for scrapbooking! Or should I say, scrapbooking is perfect for winter celebrations? I’m known amongst my friends for doing photos of my dogs to commemorate those “special times.” Cute outfits are a must! I love the anticipation from friends and family as they wait to receive the e-mail with my most recent picture. The reactions are awesome, and I always look forward to the next one – although I can’t say the same for my pooches! Check out some of my favorites:




Back to the scrapbooking page. Keep in mind that although you can’t see it, I have painted the snowflakes running down the right side (punched with my Martha Stewart snowflake punch) with Silver Glitter Mod Podge. It adds the perfect glimmery touch.

One last note – the “I Can Has Snow?” saying is a spin off of my favorite animal blog, I Can Has Cheezburger. If you haven’t been there, go and be prepared to laugh your socks off. Animals in funny positions with captions . . . it doesn’t get much better.

Gift Ideas

Remember I said I was going to focus on winter celebrations, like birthdays? That’s what I’m doing the whole week, and I’m going to be using SEI’s awesome WinterSong for my projects. For my first, I bring you a gift box. Lately I’ve really enjoyed putting together the packages I give gifts in almost as much as giving the gifts! After the holidays, there is a tendency to have about 15,000 metal tins lying around that housed nuts and delicious peppermint bark. Don’t give them away – reuse them!

Speaking of gifts, I’d like to share with you a gift guide I put together. If you are a weirdo who likes blue, you may like all of these. If you are a blogger, making a gift guide is a great idea for your readers – I personally love gift guides! If you are neither a weirdo who likes blue nor a blogger, putting together a gift guide is still purposeful. You may find your next cool craft idea!

Clockwise: Home Sweet Gnome t-shirt from Mod Cloth, $24.99

Japanese Chapeau Animal Mug from Fred Flare, $26

Block Clock by George Nelson from All Modern, $335

Gap Rugby Striped Sweater, $54.50

Red Heart Pomp-a-Doodle Yarn, $4.99 per skein

Mochimochiland Elves in Snow Cross-Stitch Pattern, $5

Just Hello Kitty Necklace from Zales, $150

Urban Outfitters Velvet Poof Pillow, $28 (and it’s not blue!)

Inspiration, if you please.

There are so many things I am inspired by in my life, and I don’t just mean creatively. Life is busy; I know it is for you too – I frequently forget to give thanks to the “little things” that keep me going. Those things that I can fall back on when I’m exhausted and feel zapped of inspiration. The things that recharge me.

I worked at a construction company for a few months long ago (one of my many interesting jobs), and the woman who did the accounting was a friend of my family. Christie and I used to do this exercise first thing in the morning – we would write down five things we were thankful for. It was a great way to start the day, a great way to get re-inspired if you need it. Here are my five.

1. My dogs.



These two crazy weirdos, also known as pugs, run my apartment (which I call Mod Podge Command Central). If they could, they would put me in a maid outfit and make me serve them food constantly. I’ve never met two living creatures who were more food motivated – or more loving. Their snuggle snorts might be loud to some, but they are joy to me. Thanks Roxie and Nellie.

2. Bold colors and patterns.


I like loud clothes – there’s really no other way to say it. If it’s bright and especially if it’s blue, then I want it. If you aren’t really a loud person, I totally understand. But every once awhile, try a bold striped pair of socks under those jeans with your tennis shoes. It’s kind of fun and liberating.

3. Other creative people.


First, I have to thank the Mod Podge Rocks! readers for all of their support – for, over the last year, helping my baby blog grow into what it has today. I get inspired every day by you, so thank you. Secondly, I am thankful for creative people in general, specially those people who think of things that I don’t. To capture those things I see, those ideas that stretch my imagination, I keep an inspiration book. If I see something I like (for instance, the picture above), I cut it out and paste it into the book. I also past in patterns, color chips, words . . . anything else that motivates me. When I’m short of ideas, I flip through. If you don’t have a book like this, get one today! They are fun to put together and can get the creative juices flowing in a pinch.

4. Buttons.


It sounds weird, but they are honestly what started me on this crazy, crafty ride. I played for hours with my great-grandmother’s button collection when I was young. I don’t think it’s possible for a kid to have more fun – sorting by color, by size. I really believe it’s made me the creative person that I am today.

5. Winter birthdays.


I am a January baby, born at 6:18 p.m. in Bellevue, Washington just outside of Seattle (see little me above). My mom always had a funny tradition when my four brothers and I were young – it wasn’t officially our birthdays until the time that we were born hit on the clock. We would have so much fun checking the clock. . . “Is it time yet Mom?” Luckily none of us were born in the middle of the night, right? I’m so excited about my upcoming winter birthday that I’ve actually devoted all of the projects I’ve done for SEI to winter celebrations. Keep reading over the next few days to see what I’ve got cooked up.

Guest Blogger, Amy Anderson

This month we are thrilled to have Amy Anderson as our guest blogger. She is a very crafty gal with tons of great ideas to share. Her blog is full of creative projects so go take a peek at Mod Podge Rocks.

I’m honored to be featured here at SEI for December! Here’s what you should know about the girl behind the Podge:

My mom taught me to sew at a young age, perpetuating the creative gene. I’ve been knitting since I was 15 and decoupaging for only two years. I love making things!

I love polka dots and stripes and wear one or the other every single day.

I really enjoy talking to people and learning what motivates and inspires them. Meeting creative people is honestly my favorite part of running my blog.

Blue is my favorite color, and it makes me happy to wear it. My days are better in blue.

I love to write; it’s how I express myself (besides crafting) and I find it to be therapeutic.

I come from a bigger family. I’m the oldest and have four younger brothers – and because of that I’m a bit of a tomboy. I love fast cars and action movies!

I’m known amongst friends for a large sock and shoe collection in wild colors. Move over Imelda. . .

On the 12th Day...

On the 12th Day of Christmas SEI gave to you 12 scrapbook layouts & calendar pages. Don't forget to take lot's of pictures this Christmas and throughout the year! If you are like me, it is hard to keep up on your scrapbooking. So, just take it one page at a time.

To encourage you, we would like to challenge you to scrapbook 1 page each month in 2010. To help you accomplish this, each month (on or before the 12th) we will post a FREE monthly calendar download and a single-page scrapbook layout. Simply create the layout, print off the calendar page & slip them into a sheet protector. Then you will have a calendar to display with your own photos. Plus, next December you will have twelve great layouts completed to represent the year!





To make it even easier for you, we will have all the items you need to create the layout listed with a link to the items on our website. Now that you have a plan to stay caught-up, all you need to do is check the blog each month & take lot's of pictures!

January 2010:
WinterSong assortment pack
WinterSong ribbons
WinterSong chiplets

We hope you had as much fun with the 12 Days of Christmas as we had creating the projects. Don't worry, the fun doesn't end now. Check back tomorrow to see who is this month's guest blogger. Next week will be another special week for the blog!

Good Things Utah

Did anyone see us on Good Things Utah today? Well, if you missed it, they featured club SEI kits and some easy gift ideas. To see the segment, follow this link to abc4 news website and click on the video in the top right corner. While you're there, check out the amazing Good Things Utah Special we are offering for one week only. If you have been wanting to try out club SEI, you won't want to miss it!

On the 11th Day...

On the 11th day of Christmas SEI gave to you 11 gift tags. Now that you have 10 great Christmas ideas & all of your gifts purchased (he, he, he) you are ready to wrap them up, right? Don't forget the tag!





We layered Christmas Mint papers, ribbons & embellishments to create 11 unique gift tags. Creating your own gift tags is a quick & easy way to make a gift more personal.

On the 10th day...

On the 10th Day of Christmas SEI gave to you 10 ways to decorate a glass ornament! There are hundreds of beautiful ways to make these and we hope these ideas inspire you to come up with even more! Tie one to the top of a big gift or leave a few sweet notes in them and hide it on the tree.

Snow Flurries and Snow Storms

1. Using a hole punch, punch about a hundred of Crystal Arabesque out. Add some of the tiniest die-cuts from Wintersong. Funnel in some snow and go frolic.

2. Simply funnel in tons of snow! Add a tiny reindeer die-cut for some winter hide and seek.

All Wrapped Up

3. Using some skinny white ribbon, wrap around four times, tightly. Use a decorative felt to adhere ribbon to ball. Instant Class.

4. Tinsel or tinsel ribbon makes a shining statement in clear glass. Fill as full as you can go. Adhere some rhinestones to the ribbon before putting in for extra bling!

Reindeers and Flowers

5. Small brown pom poms, green glitter and tiny jingle bells remind us of Rudolph. Add a single red pom pom in there for even more fun!

6. Find a flower pick and pull off the heads. (The smaller, the better) I like that these had glitter, too. Tuck as many heads as will fit inside and carefully use tweezers to arrange them to face out.

Silent Night

7. Cut super skinny strips of Crystal Arabesque or My Wooly Scarf and roll them into oblong shapes. poke in and arrange with tweezers.

8. Using white acrylic paint, coat the inside of your ornament. Patiently and carefully rub on "let it snow" to one side. Hang a few in your window!

Covered and Cozy

9. Take Matt's leafy template and reduce to 25%. Cut the leaves out of wintermint cardstock, and start from the bottom. Start with about fourty leaves and cut more as you go; it's easier. Adhere with a double sided adhesive. Use mocamint as a variation and make pine cones!

10. Grab three tubes of Chick-a-Doo buttons and sort out all those greens. (Then get red buttons and do another version!) Mini glue dots adhere them to the glass perfectly. Don't worry too much about arrangement-have fun! Give to your favorite crafter with a sewing book.

Have a ball! :)
Mandi

On the 9th Day...

On the 9th Day of Christmas SEI gave to you 9 paper stockings. Michelle created these pretty little stockings using the Christmas Mint paper collection. First she cut her paper using this stocking template & folded on the lines:





After cutting & folding the template, Michelle sewed around the edges. Then she added a pretty Christmas Mint ribbon, die-cut accent, and designer brad. Last, she stuffed them full of goodies!





These stockings are a great way to package a gift for friends, neighbors or teachers. You can also do what we did and hang them on a Christmas tree for a decoration.

On the 8th Day...

On the 8th Day of Christmas SEI gave to you 8 place-settings (only four pictured). Matt made these festive place-mats using Christmas Mint papers. First he made this template and cut sixteen leaves for each place setting. Then he folded them in half and strung them together using Kitty's Place Brads. Here is the leaf template he made for you:

You could even use this to compliment your centerpiece or make a layered one for your door. What plans and ideas do you have for your holiday centerpieces?

On the 7th Day...

On the 7th Day of Christmas SEI gave to you 7 hanging decoration ideas! Here is how I got my inspiration:

photo 1: a modern event, photo 2: Martha Stewart, photo 3: rivers are damp, photo 4: Design Sponge

I am so lucky to work with such creative people with great inspiration. I was having a hard time choosing what project idea to give to you on the 7th Day. So, Mandi suggested I research my English heritage. According to this website, England was the first country to use mistletoe during the Christmas season. Mistletoe reminds me of kissing balls so I created this kissing ball by hot-gluing flower-shaped WinterSong papers onto a styrofoam ball and adding a Park Buddies button onto each flower center. I made my flowers by cutting the paper into 2" squares then folding them and cutting as shown in this diagram:





Then, Pia suggested I check out this Martha Stewart idea. Martha has several ideas on how to make hanging decorations out of ribbon. I used Christmas Mint & WinterSong ribbons to make and hang our decorations. I also used some WinterSong designer brads for the center.





As I was searching for more inspiration I found these neat paper ornaments on Design Sponge. Instead of stapling them I used WinterSong designer brads to hold each paper strip in place.



Last, but not least I realized that some of our embellishments can stand alone at decorations. So, the two fastest hanging decorations I made by putting two embellishments back to back. I used WinterSong elements & chiplets.

-Maria

On the 6th Day...

On the sixth day of Christmas SEI gave to you six heart baskets. Many of us have Scandinavian heritage so we thought it would be fun to show you some holiday traditions from other countries. Pia was born & raised in Sweden so she took on the challenge. She told us that in Sweden hearts are a typical Christmas decoration. She and Mandi made six heart baskets out of paper from our WinterSong collection. Heart baskets are fairly easy and inexpensive to make. They can be used to hold goodies for friends & neighbors or hang on a Christmas tree.

There are several websites that show how to create these baskets. Some of them have variations with more weaves or heart shapes in the weaves... So choose which one is easiest for you to understand.
Amazing Moms
Creative Kids at Home
Family Fun
Top Party Ideas

On the 5th Day...

On the 5th day of Christmas SEI gave to you 5 pretty snowflakes. Placing lit candles in paper bags is a fun holiday tradition. For a unique variation with a neat texture, try Matt's luminary idea.

First he cut a snowflakes out of heavy paper (just like when you were a kid). Next he placed each snowflake on a paper lunch bag. Be sure to cover the area under and around the bags to protect from overspray (Matt used a garbage bag). Finally, he sprayed tumble dye on the bags. You can also use the snowflakes you made for stencils to decorate by hanging them on ribbon from your ceiling or tree.





The process was quite simple but here are some tips. Check which side of the bag has the seam. If you spray on the side without the seam, you won't have a line down the middle, like we do. Also, be patient because the dye will take a while to soak into your bag and completely dry. Perhaps the most important tip is use battery operated candles because paper is flammable.

These look so festive down a walkway. What a great way to greet your holiday guests!

On the 4th Day...

On the fourth day of Christmas SEI gave to you four recipes + a cute little apron to hold them in! This apron is perfect for holding cooking supplies, tools, or crafting supplies. It could also make a great personalized gift.





Michelle made this project using paper for the recipes, an apron, buttons, ribbon, and iron-on sheets. These sheets come in different colors. To use them, cut a shape out of the sheet and iron it onto your project following the instructions on the package. Michelle chose to cut circles to look like ornaments.



Here are Michelle's Recipes.

On the 3rd day...

SEI gave to you a three piece neighbor gift! These cookie jars are super fast and handy to have around. Plus, it's (almost) all stuff you already have.

Supply list:
Large Mason Jar
Wooden Spoon
funnel
Christmas Mint Ribbon
Christmas Mint die-cut accents
Raspberry Truffle Paper
Recipe card
Dry ingredients, listed below

1 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
baking chips (optional)
Walnuts (optional)

Take your mason jar and start layering in your ingredients. Using a wide funnel is going to be the best way to put them in. I did the first four on the list, then brown sugar (be sure to pack this down!) then sugar, chips, and cocoa powder. In retrospect I might have done cocoa then chips since they're so green and pretty! They got covered. Put lid on and set aside. Remember, you can do whatever recipe you want, just place the dry ingredients in and create a supplemental recipe to go alongside.


Wrap wooden spoon in Christmas Mint Ribbon. Start at the bottom with a large and thin glue dot (or whatever adhesive you want) and wrap up diagonally. Finish at top with more adhesive. Take leftover ribbon (or another) and wrap jar. Tuck a present die-cut behind the ribbon. Cut a 2 1/2" circle out of the raspberry truffle paper to put on the lid.


Print out our 4"x 6" recipe card or write down the recipe from it. Use a 4 1/2" x 6 1/2" piece of raspberry truffle paper and use as a mat for the recipe card. And voila! You've got yourself a great and handmade gift that anyone will appreciate.

Love,
Mandi