Merry Christmas to You!!
I hope Santa is good to you and leaves lots of goodies in your Christmas stocking!
Thank you for being my Stampin’ Up! customer, my stamping friend, my follower on social media, or my newsletter subscriber! I appreciate all of you and hope you are having a wonderful holiday!
Here’s an idea that’s been around a long time! Buy one of those giant chocolate bars and print out this poem!
Need a gift bag? Decorate to look like a snowman! Don’t have a white bag? Make this design or similar on a piece of white cardstock and stick it on the front of a bag!
One of my favorite votives of all time! I think it was the black and white gingham paper with the greenery and red berries. Dress up any votive holder or little jar you have and decorate however you like. Put a tea light inside. Of if it is a jar, fill it with candies or little cookies for a gift!
Here’s an oldie, but wow! Still just as cute eleven years later, if I do say so! Just cover a chocolate candy bar with designer paper or in this case, cardstock, and decorate or stamp or print a holiday greeting. Who wouldn’t enjoy a cute candy bar for Christmas? It’s a good stocking stuffer!
And of course, gift card holders are always great at the last minute. Or put in cash! Or write an IOU for that gift that didn’t arrive yet! Here’s the link with directions. And there are two styles on that post!
Have a Merry Christmas Eve!!
I’m reposting this from last year, as I came across it for a Quick and Easy Gift Card Holder. I’m thinking that at this late date, a lot of us might be looking for simple gift card (or cash!) holders. Of course you can use any cardstock and designer series paper you have.
Start with a 4″ x 12″ strip of cardstock. You could make it taller if you wanted to. Score this strip of paper at 4″ and 8″, basically in thirds, since the paper is 12″ long. Then on the end section, cut from the score line down to the corner on a diagonal. This can be on either end of the card.
Put a strip of Tear & Tape Adhesive or other strong adhesive on the bottom of that section with the diagonal cut. Then fold that diagonal piece over to the inside panel next to it.
My sample is a card base of Real Red, and I used the Reindeer Days Designer Series Paper and Sticker Sheet to decorate the holder. On the front, I cut a piece of designer paper with the packages at 3 3/4″ x 3 3/4″. The tree and strip of holly leaves behind it are stickers from the Reindeer Days Sticker Sheet.
You can decorate the inside however you like or leave it plain. I put another paper behind the diagonal piece and a diagonally cut piece of designer paper on that diagonal corner. Just cut a square of 3 3/4″ x 3 3/4″ and cut diagonally from one corner to the other. Just make sure you have the pattern going the right way and that you cut to and from the correct corners. You can write a message on the inside left of the holder or add a piece of Basic White on which to write or stamp something.
Put your gift card or cash in the pocket. Decorate the front a little more with some bling, like these Iridescent Faceted Gems on the tree. If you prefer, make a belly band to go around the gift card holder to keep it closed. These are so quick and easy, I bet you can’t make just one!
Create thoughtful cards with a botanical motif and heartfelt sentiment! Makes 9 cards, 3 each of 3 designs. Click the link above.
Something different and wonderful to create for your own child or to make as a gift!
Create an adorable album to capture baby’s first year with the As You Grow Kit. This all-inclusive kit has everything you need to document sweet memories each month. With plenty of letter and number stickers and pockets for holding extra treasures, personalizing the album is a breeze! From baby’s first moments to first birthday, keep track of every unforgettable milestone with this kit!
DETAILS
– Makes 1 album
– Album size: 5-3/4″ x 9-1/4″ x 7/8″
– Colors: Basic Beige, Cajun Craze, Cloud Cover, Crumb Cake, Daffodil Delight, Pecan Pie, Petal Pink, Secret Sea, Soft Sea Foam, Timid Tiger
– Sentiments printed in English, French, and German
Kit includes one of each item listed below.
– Hard paper-wrapped album cover with elastics
– 2 fold-out pages
– 2 pages with pockets
– 3 precut printed journal pieces
– 12 sticker sheets: 3 sheets of sentiments (1 per language), 9 sheets of images, numbers, letters, and more
– Project suggestions (Feel free to get creative—follow the project suggestions or assemble any way you like)
– Adhesive
Lots of choices and would make great gifts!
I guess it’s time to be wrapping holiday gifts, if you’ve done your shopping, that is! One of my favorite things to do is create decorative gift bags for any occasion, such as this Decorative Trees Gift Bag, perfect for a Christmas gift.
You may have shopping bags like this kraft one from shopping at certain stores, usually nice gift shops. Even if they have the store name on the front, you can usually cover that up with your decorating. You can also buy a pack of gift bags in various sizes like this one, or sometimes in white or colors, at a craft store. It’s just like making a card except on a larger canvas! Creativity knows no ends!
This gift bag is actually the third version of my original idea. Actually, it’s not even close to my first idea except for involving Christmas trees, but creativity often evolves as you work on your project. I saw the Decorative Trees Stamp Set on my shelf and it is still current, on the Last Chance List discounted 50%! When I looked it up in the Stampin’ Up! Online Store, I saw a cute idea for a card which I just translated to a bag. Perhaps you have this stamp set from last year or whenever it came out.
For the background on this bag, I stamped the greeting “O Christmas Tree” in the stamp set diagonally across the bag in Crumb Cake ink. Then I stamped three different colors of trees, just the outline, in Garden Green, Shaded Spruce, and Old Olive. I didn’t want to look for the dies, but there are some although not available at Stampin’ Up!, so I just cut them out by hand. The first two are embossed and the third on has stamping on the inside. The first one is embossed with the Dotted CIrcles Embossing Folder. The second one is embossed with the Forever Plaid folder. I added a little Pecan Pie trunk to each tree. The center tree is popped up with Stampin’ Dimensionals.
If you don’t have tree stamps or dies, just cut some out by hand! We’ve all drawn Christmas trees by hand at least when we were kids, so just channel your inner child! If nothing else, just draw a triangle!
Then the fun began! Decorative the trees and bag with embellishments! Use whatever you have! The first tree has current Traditional Sparkling Sequins in gold and Pool Party (which almost looks like silver). The middle tree has retired Cherry Cobbler and Clear Berries gems (some name like that). I colored the clear ones with a Dark Cherry Cobbler Stampin’ Blend marker to look like berries. Some are in sets of three, some single. The third tree has adhesive gold stars in a strand that a special friend brought me all the way from Japan! They fit perfectly on this tree! And because I came across them, I used the small white stars in the Shimmer Star Foam Stickers to look like little stars or even represent little snowflakes.
Even though my first idea was to use a white paint pen and form a tree shape by drawing small snowflakes on the kraft bag, I thought I should make something that other stampers could copy. But if you wanted that look, you could use white craft ink and a snowflake stamp. There’s always a work-around for ideas!
You probably have a bag of bags in your house somewhere so check it out and personalize a bag or even gift wrapping. If you run out of fancy wrapping paper, use the kraft-colored grocery paper bags or plain wrapping paper. You can always decorate these things with your stamping and scrapbooking supplies!
Here is the new Paper Pumpkin Kit for January 2026! It isn’t easy to think ahead to January and the New Year when we are so busy with holiday preparations, but I’m sure this Special Delivery Paper Pumpkin Kit will help us start the year off right! If you recently subscribed to Paper Pumpkin, your December Kit went out and you’ll receive it soon. Now that the December Kit went out after December 10th, it is time to think about the next kit! If you are not a subscriber yet, you can join any time through January 10th to receive this Special Delivery Kit! Personally, I don’t even have to see what is in the box, I want THE BOX! Look at how pretty it is! You can save and use this box for storage or gifts or anything after you make the kit. I love when they give us a specially designed box!
Here is a sneak peek of the information about the kit!
Subscribe December 11–January 10
Send heartfelt valentines featuring sweet postage stamp designs and sentiments for love
and friendship.
• Makes 9 cards: 3 each of 3 designs
• 3 different coordinating envelope designs
• Precut paper pieces with gold foil accents
• Coordinating colors: Blueberry Bushel, Bubble Bath, Darling Duckling, Garden Green,
Mossy Meadow, Poppy Parade (Classic Stampin’ Spot)
I think this is going to be a Paper Pumpkin Kit we will love, and I believe we will be able to use these cards for lots of occasions, probably even Valentine’s Day!
Go ahead and subscribe to Paper Pumpkin right now so you won’t forget! And once you are a subscriber, if you see a past kit or refill (no stamp set or ink spot) you like, you can purchase it. If you already have a subscription, you don’t need to do anything. If you skipped the December Kit, be sure to go into your account and make it active for January.
Many, many years ago I went to a Stampin’ Up! convention in Salt Lake City and we got to take a side trip to Riverton, UT to see the Stampin’ Up! home office. It was great to tour the home office and see the shipping area. In the first part of the tour, there were different displays, the history of Stampin’ Up!, decorative things, I don’t remember what all. But one idea I saw was this lamp with a clear base filled with stamps! Back then we probably only had the wood-mount stamps. Just like many creative ideas I see, I HAD to have a lamp like that filled with stamps.
Eventually I found this lamp, probably on Amazon, maybe it was even before Amazon! Anyway, I bought the lamp and then, like many things, for all these years, any minute now I was going to put the stamps in it. FINALLY FINALLY the other day as I was sorting through my very old wood-mount stamps, I selected some stamps that I thought would look good inside this lamp. I thought I would just toss them inside the lamp. But it was the bottom of the lamp that was removable AND there is a rod through the middle holding the cord going to the light bulb. So there wasn’t a big open space inside the lamp base and I had to reconsider which stamps would really fit inside. It was NOT an easy job trying to fit the wood blocks inside in a curved container, keeping the center rod straight, and trying to keep the wood blocks where I was putting them! But I did get the lamp filled and arranged pretty well! I only have one boo-boo. Do you see where it is? I had to save the rest of the stamps in their cases and remember that those are the sets where the missing stamps are in the lamp.
So after all these years, here are photos of my stamp lamp with these stamps artfully (?) arranged inside as best I could! I do like it and it’s perfect in the room with all my craft stuff and retired stamp sets, paper, etc.
And yes, you can buy a lamp like this one on Amazon! Just search for something like “clear glass base table lamp fillable”. I’ve seen people fill lamps like this with seashells, so you can certainly fill one with stamps!! Maybe I should buy another one and fill it with markers for a very colorful lamp!! Or all my leftover ribbon or embellishments! So many possibilities! LOL!
If you would like more modern stamps that Stampin’ Up! sells these days and any other stamping or scrapbooking products, remember that Stampin’ Up! has FREE SHIPPING with a minimum $75 order, today and ending on Friday, December 12. Also, if you are a Paper Pumpkin subscriber, or become one right away, you can take advantage of the sale on Paper Pumpkin Past Kits, Refills, and Add-on Dies. This sale also ends on Friday, December 12. And with a $75 order, you may choose to also purchase the Product of the Month for only $5.00. You may use some or all of your Rewards as long as your merchandise total does not fall below $75. And don’t forget the Last Chance List with some products discounted plus the newest Online Exclusives and the big selection in the Kits Collection! Enjoy!
Today begins three days of FREE SHIPPING at Stampin’ Up! with a minimum order of $75.
What should you order?? Anything you want! Order from the Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalog, the Holiday Mini (which ends January 5, 2026), Online Exclusives, Kits from the Kits Collection, Last Chance Products (some discounted), Scrapbooking supplies, Craft Class…..and if you are a Paper Pumpkin subscriber, there is a sale today through Dec. 12th on Past Kits, Refills, and Add-on Dies!
AND….with a $75 order, you will also be eligible (if you have your own account) to purchase the Product of the Month for only $5.00. This is a package of 12 sheets of 12″ x 12″ designer series paper, True Blue Florals. If you love blue, you really need to check out this paper. The Product of the Month will be available while supplies last. Next month there will be a new Product of the Month!
What do we love? FREE SHIPPING!
Beginning tomorrow, Wednesday, December 10 through Friday, December 12, 2025 Stampin’ Up! is offering FREE SHIPPING with a minimum order of $75 or more!
PROMOTION DETAILS
This is my unofficial advice – if there is something you want to order that you HOPE to have arrive before Christmas, I would order today! Especially if you do not have a $75 order. You will beat the free shipping orders tomorrow. Today, December 9th is the date Stampin’ Up! gave as the last day to order and hopefully receive your order before Christmas.
GO FOR IT! FREE SHIPPING! ORDER EARLY!
This kind of card is difficult to photograph with its gold foil accents, but I assure you this Traditions of Christmas Season’s Greetings Card is pretty in person! This is the particular patterned paper that “spoke” to me when I looked in the Tradtions of Christmas Specialty Designer Series Paper. That’s a good way to get your creativity going – just look at a package of designer series paper and see what strikes you! Then go from there!
I really liked the Pool Party color on some ribbon and flowers on this paper so I really wanted to have Pool Party be a part of the card. I could have put the colors in reverse or used only Pool Party as the card base, but this time I used Real Red for the card base with a layer of Pool Party ( 4″ x 5 1/4″). Then the designer paper is cut at 3 3/4″ x 5″.
With this paper, I was rather purposeful in wanting the red flowers centered and hopefully not hidden when I added a greeting. Sometimes you can trim the sides or top and bottom so that you get a certain image in the spot where you want it to show on the card.
For the greeting, I used the Traditional Labels Bundle (stamp set and dies). You can do it either way, but this time I diecut the label and then stamped the greeting in Real Red on Pool Party cardstock. To add a layer, I adhered the stamped label and greeting to a piece of Gold Foil, the simply cut around it leaving a narrow margin of gold. It was easy to cut it by hand so don’t be afraid to do it! Before adhering to the card, I added some Stampin’ Seal on the back and adhered some Gold Striped 3/8″ Ribbon to the backside where I wanted it, then used Stampin’ Dimensionals to pop up the greeting and help hold down the ribbon. I love this ribbon! However, it is unavailable right now and not due back in stock until February!!
Just so you know, the Traditions of Christmas Designer Series Paper, is currently unavailable as are the Christmas Tags & More 6″ x 6″ DSP and the Greetings For You Ephemera Pack, but all are due back in stock next week!! So check back earlier or fill in the blank to be notified with each product. Sometimes things arrive sooner and you can grab them before everybody else.
If you already have these materials or even make a card like this one last-minute, I think you will find it plenty easy to make with no fuss!
This Christmas Tags & More Presents Card was a fun card to make with the ephemera pieces in the designer paper! I think I’ve made a card like this in the past, using paper to make it look like a stack of Christmas presents. When I looked at the ephemera pieces in the Christmas Tags & More 6″ x 6″ Designer Series Paper, I saw a couple actual gifts plus a couple other pieces that could be gifts!
This card has a Garden Green base with a layer of Real Red. May as well use green and red together today for a Christmas card! To start stacking the gifts, I used the green and white plaid one first, and then the red plaid banner in the ephemera looked like it could be a gift also. I cut off the banner end and shortened the green and white gift on the top. The bottom holly piece was just another tag or some kind of piece of ephemera that was the right size to put underneath the red plaid gift. Then I also noticed the little green package with white polka dots and slipped that at the top of the stack of gifts. The green and white package already had a bow on it, so for the other two, I just added two ephemera bows also in the package.
Before adhering the stack of gifts, I figured the Basic White top layer was going to look a little plain. Another good opportunity to use the Metallic Textures Rub-Ons to add a little design for the background in gold! These things are so fun to play with! I put the cross-hatch design in diagonal corners and some dots in the other two corners. After adding those, I adhered the gifts to the card front.
For the greeting, I found this one in the Greetings For All Ephemera Pack. I had tried out some others, but this one seemed to be the right size and showed up against the background. Instead of the Metallic Textures Rub-Ons, you could emboss the white background first with something not too busy or add some sequins or gems for a little bling and sparkle.
When you have an assortment of these ephemera packs, you have an easy and fun way to make a card!
As many of my cards do, this Elegant Pine Snowflakes Card From Our House to Yours card came about from looking through the package of designer series paper! Quite often, your creativity kicks into gear once you start looking at your products and paper. I liked the background paper and thought maybe if I cut out a snowflake that would look good for the focal point of the card.
This card starts with a card base of Shaded Spruce cardstock with the fold at the side rather than the top of the card. Cut the cardstock at 4 1/4″ x 11″ and fold at 5 1/2″. You could also put the fold at the top of the card. Usually we have the fold along the long side of the card.
The snowflake layer of paper is in the Elegant Pine Snowflakes Designer Series Paper. I chose one of the larger snowflakes from another sheet of the same designer paper and cut it our by hand (fussy-cut) with my Paper Snips. It’s so easy to cut out things by hand if you turn and move the image you are cutting out rather than moving your scissors. It really does make it easy once you change your focus on cutting. I planned to just adhere the snowflake to the front of the card, but I thought it needed something behind it. Since there was this Basic White diecut circle from the Stylish Shapes Dies already in my package of Basic White, I tried placing that behind the snowflake and liked the look of it. I also added a piece of the Shaded Spruce & Gold Edge 7/8″ Ribbon underneath. I think just the strip of ribbon looks pretty enough. No need for a bow anywhere. The snowflake is adhered flat on the white diecut circle and then the whole thing is popped up on Stampin’ Dimensionals.
The greeting is from my favorite thing, the Greetings For You Ephemera Pack. I think the small banner size fits perfectly on the card without detracting from the big snowflake. I trimmed off the right side of the banner to be straight along the edge of the designer paper. For a little sparkle, I added a small red Traditional Sparkling Sequin to the center of the snowflake and three gold sequins on the background paper. Those sequins are on the Last Chance category now and reduced 10%. I think you should get some! They are so pretty! I’m already on my second package and haven’t even made all my Christmas cards and projects yet!
Check out the whole refreshed Last Chance Products!
Check out the Cyber Prepaid Paper Pumpkin Sale through Dec. 9th!
Check out the new Kits in the Kits Collection (even the old ones, great gifts to give!)!
Check out the newest Online Exclusives!
And check out the new Product of the Month for only $5.00 with a $75.00 purchase!
Paper Pumpkin Prepaid Subscription Sale Happening Now!
These are the cards you would have made had you been a Paper Pumpkin subscriber back in October! (And once you become a subscriber, you can order any past Kits or Refill (like this one!) (no stamp set or ink spot) that are available, while supplies last.) Every month is a new papercrafting kit that comes to you in your mailbox! I say it’s a gift you give yourself if you like stamping, papercrafting, cardmaking, crafting, but honestly, it looks like a gift! Sometimes you get a special designer Paper Pumpkin box and sometimes it’s the regular Paper Pumpkin box. But inside, you will find all the supplies you need (except maybe a scissors) shrink-wrapped and then enclosed in colored tissue paper! So it really looks like a gift!
From December 1-9, the Prepaid Subscription Sale for Paper Pumpkin is going on. If you like, you can sign up for Paper Pumpkin and pay by the month when your kit ships right after the 10th of the month. Shipping is included and you do earn Rewards on your purchase. But right now, you can purchase a 3-, 6-, or 12-month subscription at a discount and save money when you get your Paper Pumpkin! Even if you are paying by the month, you can purchase a Prepaid subscription, enter the special code Stampin’ Up! will email to you, then you account automatically knows you have a Prepaid subscription and won’t charge you by the month. You can still skip a month and your account will keep track. Once your subscription runs out, it will revert back to a month-by-month subscription if that’s what you had before. if not, your subscription will just end and you can choose to continue or not.
If you subscribe during this sale, or even the month-by-month, the first kit you will receive right after December 10th will be the Watercolor In Bloom Kit. With this kit, you can show your love and appreciation with rich watercolor hues and elegant botanical flourishes.
• Makes 9 cards: 3 each of 3 designs with 9 coordinating envelopes
• Copper foil and copper sequins
• Precut paper and vellum pieces
• Coordinating colors: Copper, Garden Green, Night of Navy (Classic Stampin’ Spot),
Pretty Peacock, Secret Sea, Shaded Spruce
Anyone can make these kits! You don’t have to be an experienced stamper! There are pictorial directions and a video you can watch. Or use the supplies to make your own creations!
Take advantage of this Cyber Monday offer for fantastic deals on 3-, 6-, and 12-month prepaid subscriptions.
From December 1–9, prepaid Paper Pumpkin subscriptions will be discounted as follows:
3-month prepaid: $61.00 (regular price $81.00)
6-month prepaid: $122.00 (regular price $162.00)
12-month prepaid: $244.00 (regular price $324.00)
This offer ends on December 9 at 11:59 p.m. (MT)
Purchase a Prepaid Subscription today in the Stampin’ Up! Onine Store Here!
Starting today, December 1, at 8 a.m. (MT), Stampin’ Up! is offering big savings on prepaid Paper Pumpkin subscriptions! There’s never been a better time to subscribe to get a new all-inclusive crafting kit delivered to your door each month. I consider it a gift I give myself! Once a month you get some actual HAPPY MAIL right in your mailbox!
You can read about Paper Pumpkin HERE!
Whether you’re looking for a last-minute Christmas present that sparks creativity or resolving to make time to craft in the new year, a Paper Pumpkin subscription is the gift that keeps on giving. Read on for more information about this special offer and some key details you should know.
Take advantage of this Cyber Monday offer for fantastic deals on 3-, 6-, and 12-month prepaid subscriptions.
From December 1–9, prepaid Paper Pumpkin subscriptions will be discounted as follows:
3-month prepaid: $61.00 (regular price $81.00)
6-month prepaid: $122.00 (regular price $162.00)
12-month prepaid: $244.00 (regular price $324.00)
This offer ends on December 9 at 11:59 p.m. (MT)
And now, here’s the fine print:
Don’t miss your chance to enjoy months of exciting kits at an incredible value!
SHOP for your PREPAID PAPER PUMPKIN SUBSCRIPTION HERE!
Click the link above and then scroll down a little bit to the Prepaid Plans.
ALSO: This is the LAST DAY for the Black Friday Sale. Stampin’ Blends markers are still available if you need to get some or you need to replace some of your older ones! And you might be able to get Stampin’ Dimensionals, too!
The Stampin’ Up! Black Friday Sale is still going, through tomorrow, Monday December 1st. The deadline for ordering is December 1, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. (MT). While the sale was disappointing to many of us that some products were sold out right away the first day (or during the night!), if you are interested in Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers, there are many colors that are on a great sale and still available!
The Stampin’ Blends Markers are wonderful for coloring, but they don’t last forever. While this sale is going on, I would recommend getting a scrap piece of white cardstock (not just computer paper) and testing each end of the markers you have with just a little scribble to see if any are dried out, particularly the brush end which is what I use the most. Sometimes they just get mushy and are difficult to color with. I periodically go through mine and order new ones if I have markers that are not easily usable. So if you need new markers, right now is a good time to buy some on sale.
The Blends combo is normally $11.00 and is now on sale for $6.60. So if you want markers or more colors or have some that are past their prime, be sure to catch the sale before it ends tomorrow night, Dec. 1st!
As I write this, Stampin’ Dimensionals are the only other product still available on the sale and are about $1.00 off.
Remember, tomorrow Monday December 1st will be the beginning of the Cyber Monday Sale on Prepaid Paper Pumpkin subscriptions!
From December 1–9, prepaid Paper Pumpkin subscriptions will be discounted as follows:
3-month prepaid: $61.00 (regular price $81.00)
6-month prepaid: $122.00 (regular price $162.00)
12-month prepaid: $244.00 (regular price $324.00)
This offer ends on December 9 at 11:59 p.m. (MT).
Learn about Paper Pumpkin Prepaid subscriptions HERE and then scroll down for the Prepaid subscription information.