A Christmas Shadow Box

Hello Crafters!

It's officially December now! Is everyone ready for Christmas? I know I am. The tree is up. The lights are on. The stockings are hung. The presents are (not) bought and (not) wrapped - which means that it's time to play, right? Today we are making a quick and easy home decor project that is great for showcasing your ever-growing collection of Christmas photos. I've actually made 2 of these so far. My mom saw the one I made for the store and asked me to make her one, too. Which brings me to the next idea - these make AMAZING Christmas presents for grandparents. Just use a 4x6 photo of their favorite grandchildren with Santa, wrap it up, and Voila! Santa pictures on Gramma's desk at work for her friends to oooh and aaah over! Perfect! (And it only takes 30-45 minutes to make! Quick, easy, and fun!)

First, gather your supplies: a 7 Gypsies shadow box ($9.95 at the store - comes in black or white!), poinsettia flowers (25 in a pack for less than $2! My kind of embellishment!), some Christmasy patterned papers (I used some from Theresa Collins, My Mind's Eye Lost and Found Christmas, and Basic Grey), black cardstock, label stickers from My Mind's Eye (I think I've used some of these on just about every project I've done the last few months - I'm in loooove), a big, pretty brad, bakers twine (5 yards for $1!), Tim Holtz Distress Stains in Forest Moss and Antique Linen, and some Distress Stickles. (You can see some 7 Gypsies tags in the photo below, but I ended up not using them.)

Now comes the 'hardest' (lol - j/k) part of this project - trimming. You need to measure the little squares on the side of the shadow box and cut 3 squares of patterned paper to size (I think they were just under 2 inches square, but I'm not positive).

Punch out the 'December 25th' element from the Theresa Collins Christmas paper. It is very white. I wanted more of a vintage look on this project, so I used my Anique Linen distress stain to color over the white. My label is now ivory! Perfect!

I also decided that I didn't want the white dots on the Theresa Collins paper to be white. I tried the Antique Linen first, but then decided I wanted it to be green. Forest Moss worked perfectly. You can see the difference between the original white, the Antique Linen, and the Forest Moss in the next picture, so you can pick whichever look you prefer.

Next, apply a thin layer of Distress Stickles to the poinsettia petals with your finger. Distress Stickles work best with a light touch. They are designed to appear like glittery, glass flecks of color on your element. If you want a thicker look, let your first layer dry, then apply an additional layer, instead of making your first layer thick. While the Stickles dry, layer your 'December 25th' punched circle onto some black cardstock (I die-cut mine into a snowflake shape for a bit of variety) and then onto a larger punched circle of patterned paper. Poke the brad through your flowers, attach it to your tag, then tie some baker's twine around it.

Now matte a few label stickers on cardstock or patterned paper. Place about 1/3-1/2 of a label on each of your patterned paper squares and adhere into your shadow box. If you want to add chipboard monograms or other decorations to your squares, be sure to do it BEFORE you adhere them into the shadow box (Trust me. It just works better this way. Learn from my mistakes :)

Glue on your 'December 25th' tag element to the edges of the shadow box using Diamond Glaze or another clear, liquid glue.

Lastly, adhere your photo into the box to complete your project.

And now I would like to remind you that ScrapHappy's 3 Year Anniversary party is coming up next weekend, on December 10. We'll have a photo booth, make-and-takes of Tim Holtz's 12 Tags of Christmas, sales, and a birthday cake. Come shop and play with us as we spend the day crafting together! I look forward to meeting you!
- Cori