12 Days of Home for the Holidays Welcomes Lisa Swift

Lisa is an incredibly talented woman designing for companies like Little Yellow Bicycle and published in magazines like Scrapbook Trends and Scrapbooking and Beyond.  Lisa is a friend from Two Peas in a Bucket and is wonderful sweet.  Welcome Lisa!

Holiday time in our house means a number of different things. One of the very first things we do each year, even before Thanksgiving, is attend the Sweet Creations Gingerbread House display at the George Eastman House in Rochester, NY. This exhibit features upwards of 100 gingerbread house creations made by families, scouting troops and professionals. I am always so impressed by the creativity I see (and the spicy smell of the gingerbread is pretty amazing too).  This is a layout I did about our 2010 visit.

Making holiday cards is also at the top of the list. I like to make them over the course of the year, whenever the mood strikes me, and I start mailing them out right after Thanksgiving. Here are a couple of cards I will be sending out this year. The cat theme was my daughter's idea since she LOVES cats.

Once the cards are mailed, it’s time to turn our thoughts to decorating.  Although we put decorations throughout the house, the biggest task is the tree.  You’ll find an eclectic mix of ornaments on our tree — everything from handmade crafts to items my daughter made as a preschooler to ornaments we’ve collected during our travels (the most recent from our summer trip to Disney World). As an interfaith family, Hanukkah gets equal coverage on the tree. You’ll find Hanukkah-related decorations, like menorahs and Stars of David, mixed right in with everything else. This is a page I did about our 2009 tree.

Every once in a while I like to try my hand at making an altered item or two.  This year I transformed a plain pre-lit wreath into a piece of home decor that I look forward to taking out of storage year after year. I used embellishments from Little Yellow Bicycle’s Once Upon a Christmas collection and an assortment of small ball ornaments to create this.

They say it’s better to give than to receive, so homemade gifts are always on the to do list. This year’s neighbor gift is a treat jar filled with Twizzlers red licorice and the sentiment, ‘Twiz the Season.

In year’s past, my daughter and I have made pretzel treats to give to friends and neighbors. These are really simple to make with only three ingredients:  small waffle pretzels, Hershey’s Kisses, and M&Ms. I made sure to include the recipe on this layout, as well as the tag we attached to the packaged treats. 

Sometimes pretzel treats are more fun to play with. My daughter wanted to pretend she was Rudolph. :)

So that’s pretty much how the holidays go in our house. I've enjoyed sharing some of our holiday traditions with you today. Debby, thank you so much for including me in this wonderful event! I wish you all a wonderful holiday season and I hope you are able to spend it surrounded by those you love. :)

Thank you so much Lisa.  Your holiday season is full of making wonderful memories and crafting.

Lisa
Remember The Good Times blog

Lisa's Personal Giveaway...

From Little Yellow Bicycle's new Winterings collection: a set of the 12x12 papers, a chipboard; acrylic album, and one package each of the following coordinating embellishments: vellum tape strips, clear cuts shapes, and favorite piecescardstock stickers.  You can see the collection here:  Little Yellow Bicycle Leave a comment here for Lisa and it counts toward this giveaway as well as the sponsored giveaway. I will announce a winner to Lisa's giveaway tomorrow.

Giveaway

What an incredible giveaway from Graphic 45, X-ACTO, Sizzix, and May Arts!!  Leave a comment for Lisa and I’ll put your name in the drawing. Leave a comment on each of the 12 day's posts to be entered for 12 opportunities to win this gorgeous prize package!  You can also go to X-ACTO's, Graphic 45's, Sizzix's, and May Art's Facebook page and “like,” leaving a comment you came from D’s Paper Studio and leave another comment on one of the blog posts letting me know to be entered again.  One blog reader's name will be drawn and announced on Monday, December 14th. On your Mark, Get Set, Go....!

Included in the Giveaway: 

Graphic 45:  Nutcracker Sweet 12x12 paper pad; both sets of coordinating stickers; Ornate Metal Keys; Ornate Metal Key Holes; Flower Staples, Envelope Tag Staples

May Arts:  (as pictured) Red and Green Center Strip 25 yards; Jute 400 yards; Mini-Pom Poms 30 yards;  Velvet 50 yards; Cotton Strip 30 Yrds

X-ACTO: X-ACTO Designer Series 9’’ Fixed Blade; X-ACTO Designer Series Precision Scissors; X-ACTO Designer Series Corner Punch; X-ACTO Designer Series Gripster; X-ACTO Designer Series Shapes Templates; CraftBond Glue Spots; CraftBond Quick Dry Dual Tip Glue Pen; CraftBond All Purpose Glue Stick

Sizzix: The New Tim Holtz Texture Fades;  They include: 658269 Holly Pattern & Wreath Set;  658273 Brush Poinsettias; Winter Berries Set;  658270 Textured Poinsettia Pattern Set; and 658272 Holly Branch; Pine Branch Set

I'll see you tomorrow with another new guest and their holiday traditions.  Check out Facebook Events for 12 Days of Home for the Holidays for a sneak into tomorrow's guest.

Have A Wonderful Crafty Holiday!