BFF Open House

 

Happy New Year's Eve Eve everyone! Can you believe we're about to say goodbye to 2021?! Or is it still 2020...some days it's hard to tell. I hope everyone who celebrated Christmas had a wonderful holiday. Santa Hubs was very good to me and I am now the proud owner of a Cricut Maker 3!!! I haven't unboxed it yet because I remain being lazy and enjoying time w/ my son but soon! I cannot wait to play with it. 

NYE has never been a big deal in our house. Aside from the first year we were married, we've never gone out and basically celebrate at midnight East coast time because we're usually asleep by midnight unless we set an alarm. I hope everyone is safe and above all healthy this New Year's Eve. 

Light party last week given the timing, but some great ideas that could be done for tomorrow night! 

I love potatoes. LOVE. When I lived in Denmark, the joke among my fellow students about living with our host families was not IF we were having potatoes but what kind every night for dinner. Fine by me! These Melting Potatoes from The Lou Lou Girls are on my list to make! YUM. 

If you are hosting a NYE or New Year's Day event, a dessert open house is a great idea. This post from Scratch Made Food has some "food for thought". 

Pots and Planes shared this amazing Salted Chocolate Bark which looks amazing! More than enough time to whip up a batch. 

Finally, wrap up the old year and wash things down with a White Chocolate Eggnog Cocktail from Cindy's Online Recipe Box. 

Well...that's a wrap for 2021 link parties. I'd like to thank you all for spending time here at my place this year and hope to see all of you back in 2022! 

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BFF Open House

 

Happy Friday Eve all! Happy Christmas Eve Eve and in our house, it's Nisse Night which means the Scandinavian gnome like creature expects rice pudding, leaves small gifts, and depending on their mood, sometimes leaves sarcastic notes. It's a tradition I married and maybe added to ( eg the notes). 

Hope you're all doing well. I'm almost panicking that everything's wrapped, stocking provisions are done, meals are planned, groceries have been gotten and I don't really have anything left to do but some cooking and baking. Son got here on Saturday and we've just been enjoying laying low and hanging out. A few presents I made I can't post until after Saturday so I haven't been sharing much this past week but have enjoyed seeing your most recent creations. So let's take a look at some highlights from last week's party that are all things you can still fit in! 

Whether you need a creative package topper or you have little ones to entertain and want to do a quick craft, these Accordion Christmas Trees from White House Crafts are perfect! 

At some point, we come into possession of vintage hankies either through inheritance or thrifting. The question is always what to do with them. This  Vintage Hankie Ornament idea from My Thrift Store Addiction is PERFECT and a great way to make a last minute keepsake gift for a family member. Who among us makers doesn't have extra clear ornaments in our stash?!

Another "fab, fast, and festive" idea for a last minute gift or package topper are these ornaments from Paper Seedlings. A great way to use up leftover scrapbooking paper! 

Finally, there's always room for one more addition to the cookie table right? These Nutella Rum Balls from Pots and Planes are just the thing! 

Wishing all who are celebrating a very 🎄Merry Christmas 🎄. 

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BFF Open House

 

We are in the home stretch Makers! My best present and the one I want the most in the whole world is on his way. Son and Granddog are headed this way and can't wait until they get here. 

Every time I mail cards I hold my breath in suspense until one of the recipients confirms receipt because the Post Office can sometimes hate me for my thicker than normal cars. Whew! This week I shared the Christmas cards I made this year along with some last minute Peppermint Gnome candle additions to my Hot Chocolate Bar. 

You all have been quite busy so let's take a look at some of the wonderful things shared at last week's party! 

Fresh Lisa by Lisa S shared a way to bring even more vintagey goodness to bottlebrush trees using faucet handles! Love. 

The DIY Dreamer shared a wonderful way to create ornaments from old light bulbs (I've also seen lightbulb ornaments). 

Brilliant! We've seen doll houses transformed into Haunted Houses but Jennifer from Studio 27 has taken it to a whole 'nother level by making a Gingerbread House! Genius. 

Finally, given my husband's Norwegian background and my own ties to Denmark, I really need to make this one year. This is a traditional Danish Christmas dessert shared by Lazy Budget Chef. We do have a tradition of Nisse gifts so I really should make this for Nisse night which we celebrate on 12/23!

OK. Now let's see what everyone's been up to this week! 

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Christmas: Peppermint Gnome Candles

 

Stash busting meets Christmas! I always have a few of these blank prayer candles from The Dollar Tree in my stash and while grabbing for something else I saw them and thought of a quick and easy idea. This is a fast an easy project that could work as a hostess gift or an easy addition to your decor!

Supplies:

• Dollar Tree Glass Candles
• Scrapbook Paper (I used papers from the White Christmas Stack at Michaels I used for my cards)
• Vinyl (Oracal Red)
• Image (Creative Fabrica)
• Ribbon
• Mini Ornaments

I didn't even take pictures while doing it. If you don't have a cutting machine, you could easily do this with stickers. 

These are the plain candles from Dollar Tree. Similar ones are also sold at many grocery stores. Measure your scrapbook paper for circumference and height, cut. I cut mine 7.25 x 7.25. Tear the top of the paper. Apply to your candle using double sided tape or you can use Mod Podge. 

In your cutting machine's software ( I used my Cricut Explore 2 and Design Spance ) size your images accordingly, cut, weed. Apply transfer tape and then center and apply to your candles. 

To finish, wrap coordinating ribbon with a charm or mini ornament and DONE! Easy Peasy! I like the subtlety of the print on the paper behind the outline of the Gnome image. Easy additions to my hot chocolate bar for which it looks like I  need to make more hot chocolate mix and marshmallows since a certain tall elf who lives here has been enjoying! 

Sharing At: 

Christmas 2021 Cards

 

This week's party continues here.

I had maybe the most fun I've ever had with making Christmas cards this year. I've really focused on learning how to work with layered cut files and while I am still a novice at making my own, I almost don't need to ( except for my innate stubborn nature and wanting to do "all the things" ) with all of the amazing files that are out there. For these, I used files from Creative Fabrica and Sweet Red Poppy 

Disclosure: I am a Creative Fabrica affiliate so I do get a small benefit if you order through my link

Supplies:

• Christmas Scrapbook Papers (I used various packages from Michaels)
• Foiled Cardstock (Recollections, Michaels)
• White 110lb Cardstock (Recollections, Michaels)
• Foam Squares / Tape (Dollar Tree)
• Coordinating Sequins, Glue, Tape Runner

I used a combination of papers I already had and ones I got new this year because I'm a paper addict and Michaels keeps coming out with gorgeous papers and when they have their buy one get 2 free Hot Buys can you blame me?! 

This year I added White Christmas: 

and Evergreen

and this week (12/12-12/18) they're on sale for $4.99 each!!! Hmmm...

I can never decide on just one style both because the papers are too inspiring and the cutting files too plentiful. So I did some with silver as the primary, some with gold, and some red. 

I'm also having fun playing with a great site called Designify I learned about from Abbi Kirsten, one of my favorite designers, who taught a workshop I attended called The Magic of SVGs and showed how to easily remove backgrounds from photos. Basic use of the site is free ( you can pay to upgrade ) and includes some backgrounds like the one I used in the focal image. 2021 was supposed to be the year I really focused on skills but it had other plans and distractions and I'm glad to be able to get back to it. 2022...don't get any ideas! 

For the red cards, I used papers from last year's Hot Buys: Christmas Red and White.

I imported, sized, and cut my images using Cricut Design Space and my Cricut Explore 2, and then layered them using foam squares and foam tape then finished them by adding adhesive rhinestones and coordinating sequins. 

Cardmaking remains my first crafting love! 

BFF Open House

 

Happy Friday Eve all! It's been a week that's gone by quickly and slowly at the same time. I'm not sure how that's possible but that's how it's felt for me. The clock stays ticking and we're almost within the two week window for Christmas which seems hard to believe. Looks like you've all been creative and busy Elves, getting presents done and your halls decked. 

Let's take a look at some of your inspiring ideas!

These Icing Cones from Studio 27 by Jennifer Adams look good enough to eat don't they? However don't! They're made from ... spackle! What a wonderful addition to holiday kitchen decor and/or a Hot Chocolate Bar. 

Even if you don't have a digital cutting machine you can still make beautiful papercuts like this gorgeous tree by Priyam at Simple Joys. Great for a card, ornament, or package topper. 

Speaking of trees, LOVE these rust Twine and Wood Piece Trees from Saved From Salvage! 

Finally, if you're looking for a special holiday dessert, you can never go wrong with a Chocolate Mousse and this one from Kiku Corner looks perfect! 

Now let's see what everyone's been up to this week! 

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