5 Easy Christmas Gift Tutorials

After yesterday's easy 2012 planner tutorial I wanted to remind you of a few of my other tutorials that would make great handmade Christmas gifts:

 Board Book Mini Tutorial

 Envelope Mini Book Tutorial

 File Folder Mini Book Tutorial

 Notebook Makeover Tutorial

Tea Tin Makeover Tutorial

2012 Pocket Calendar Planner - Easy Christmas Gift Tutorial

Now that Thanksgiving is over I know we are all starting to think about (and if you are like me - stress about) Christmas gifts for everyone on our list.  Personalizing a 2012 calendar planner makes a perfect gift for those tough to shop for friends - coworkers, teachers, extended family.  It's also a great craft for children or teens to make to give their friends! And best of all it is cheap and super easy and quick to make! 

2012 Planner Tutorial:

 

First you want to start with a cheap planner - I got mine from the dollar tree.  Make sure that the cover is removable.

 Remove the cover from the planner and measure it.  Cut paper so that it is exact size for the height of the book and about 2 inches (give or take) longer than the width.  In my case I left the paper at 12" across (this gave it close to 1 in on each side).  Discard the plastic cover and glue the patterned paper to the outside of the planner making sure to leave about an inch hanging off of each side.  Fold the hang over piece and adhere it to the inside of the planner. Measure and cut a piece to cover the inside cover (back and front) - adhere.

 Cut a piece that is the same height and about 2-3 inches wide.  Fold in half and adhere to the spine of the book.  Embellish with a funky border and a title.  I also embellished the inside title page with 2012 stickers. 

And there you have it - a cheap and easy handmade gift for the holidays!  Last year I did something similar with a pocket calendar - to see that project click here.

Black Friday Weekend Sale

BLACK FRIDAY SALE!! Take 25% off your entire order. Use coupon code: BLACKFRIDAY2011

 In addition - spend $50 or more and get a FREE 25 piece ephemera grab bag (value of $5)!

Offer good 12:01am Friday 11/25 - Monday 11/28 at 11:59pm EST. Offer does not apply to custom orders. To receive free grab bag you need to spend $50 after the discount and not including shipping. No coupon necessary for the free grab bag - I will include it with your order when it ships.

Studio Mess and a SALE!

This is what my studio table looks like after a day of creating!  I have been working on some thrifty Christmas gift ideas (with tutorials) hopefully to put up on the blog soon!  Hope you are having a productive, fun, and creative weekend!

And I am having a sale in my Etsy shop this weekend.  Use the code VETERANSDAY to receive 20% off your purchase!  It's a great time to get some vintage Christmas items for your holiday crafting! Sale ends Sunday night and does not apply to custom orders. 

Vintage Christmas Items Available in the Shop

I feel like I have been away for so long!  I have had a ton of stuff going on lately and the blog sort of just fell down the list of things to do.  I have a lot of ideas for the blog as we get ready for Christmas - I'm hoping to work on some gift idea tutorials soon - so let's cross our fingers for that! (haha).  And since we are on the subject of Christmas - I wanted to share with you some of the fun vintage Christmas paper items I have available in my etsy shop:

Vintage Christmas Postcards - Pack of 10: $8.  These postcards are from the early 1900s (with most from 1900-1920).  I have sold through hundreds of these in the past month and I have a very limited amount left - get them while they last!

Vintage Seals - Pack of 100: $8. Originally sold to raise money to fight tuberculosis - Christmas seals are still used today to raise money for the American Lung Association.  I have Christmas seals from the 1930s - 1980s - and I have TONS!  These are cute embellishments for minibooks, cards, and tags!

Christmas Ephemera Kit $15.  Lots of goodies in these kits - perfect for those December Daily journals!  I have them in $6 packs too!  I will be adding more of these to the shop soon.

Vintage Unused Humor Christmas Cards from 1948 - Pack of 5 for $7.50.  Cheaper than Hallmark cards these cute humor cards would be perfect for sending this season. They are also filled with cute images that could be cut out and used in your Christmas crafts.

I have over 60 Christmas items in the shop so there is lots to look at!  These items would be great to add a vintage touch to Christmas cards, tags, and those December daily journals I know you all will be keeping up with!

You can check out all of my Vintage Holiday Ephemera here


You can check out my store here.

** Oh and if you make a purchase in my Etsy shop - mention my blog in the comment section at check out and I might just slip in some extra goodies for you! **