Christmas card with fireplace

Hello everyone, although it's summer here I'm so in love with Tim's latest Sizzix release. The last time I created a Christmas scene where I used the Fireside die among others. I made a white fireplace and I really enjoyed decorating the mantelpiece. Now I decided to make another version.

What I used:

Sizzix Thinlits die, Fireside - for the fireplace

Sizzix Thinlits die, Home For The Holidays - for the text

Sizzix Thinlits die, Mini Christmas Things - for the Christmas trees on the mantelpiece

Sizzix Thinlits Die, Mini Snowglobes - for the snowglobe on the mantelpiece

Sizzix Thinlits Die, Village Christmastime -  for the garland and bows on the fireplace

Sizzix Texture Fades, Bricked&Woodgrain - I used the brick embossing folder for the wall in the fireplace

Sizzix, Dimensional Domes - for the snowglobe but I cut off the ring with the adhesive so I fixed the dome with Matte Multi Medium 

Ranger Matte Multi Medium

Ranger Distress ink pads (Walnut Stain, Frayed Burlap)

Idea-Ology, Seasonal Paper Stash 8x8 - for the top layer

DecoArt Americana paints

Most of the die-cuts were hand-painted with acrylic paints like this cute little Santa in the mini snow globe.

I hope you like it!!! Happy crafting!!!

Framed Christmas scene

Parallel to the Santa of my Christmas banner, I made another one that I used for this framed scene. 

So this is an A4 panel which was placed to a simple IKEA frame. 

For this project, I combined the new dies with the old ones.

What I used:

Sizzix Bigz die, Bell Jar - I used this for making a table for the Christmas tree

Sizzix Bigz die, Evergreen - for the Christmas tree

Sizzix Bigz die, Retro Packages - for the biggest Christmas box

Sizzix Bigz die, Window Box - for the window

Sizzix Movers&Shapers die, Mini Wreath&Bow - for the wreath

Sizzix Thinlits die, Fireside - for the fireplace

Sizzix Thinlits die, Jolly St. Nicks - for Santa

Sizzix Thinlits die, Santa's Helper - for the little Christmas boxes

Sizzix Thinlits die, Tiny Snowglobes - for the deers on the mantelpiece

Sizzix Framelits die and stamp set, Holiday Joy - I used the pine tree stamps for making a winter night scene

Idea-Ology, Kraft Stock Christmas Paper Stash 8x8 - for the Christmas packages

Idea-Ology, Dapper Paper Stash 12x12 - for the floor

Idea-Ology, Seasonal Chit Chat Stickers

Ranger Distress ink pads 

Ranger Archival ink pad (Olive)  - for the pine trees

mini half pearls - for the wreath and Christmas tree

etc.

With this project, I would like to join the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Not a card

 I hope you like it!!! Thank you for stopping by!!!

Greetings

Dear All!

A wish you a blissful and peaceful Christmas and all the best for the new year!

Thank you for your visits in the past year and in the future!

Monika

Styrofoam owl for Halloween

I always wanted an owl as part of the Halloween decoration on my mantelpiece. So I decided to prepare one. For this I bought a styrofoam owl. 

I painted many coats of brown acrylic paint to hide the tiny holes. I used sandpaper to sand the protruding lines on the sides of the form. (But just if you painted at least two coats.)

I used gold paint to highlight the eyes, the feathers, the ears and the beak. In the end I put Schmincke acryl fluid-meduim.

And here is a not too fearsome Halloween mantelpiece with the owl.

I also show you my last year Halloween mantelpiece without the owl.

My other blogpost on this subject:


Styrofoam owl decorates with decopatch technique

Christmas decoration on mantelpiece 2.

I redecorated the mantelpiece. As Saint Nicholas/Saint Nicolas/Mikulás has already visited us during the night of 5th December and as he has already filled our stockings with presents,  I decided to put the stockings away. Anyway, the mantelpiece was a little bit crowded like that. Don’t mistake me, there’s nothing wrong with that if there are no other Christmas decorations in the living room. But now we have Advent wreath and the Christmas tree is coming soon, so I thought it quite exaggerated which was around the fireplace.  

It was like this:

Later, it was like this:

And now, it's like that:

Christmas decoration on mantelpiece

Yesterday I changed the decoration on the mantel and I put  there all the things from last year. Later I may do something more sophisticated, but for the moment copying the tested decoration is perfect enough.

The stocking holders are used, silver-plated Pottery Barn pieces I have bought at Ebay.

The Christmas stockings from the Pottery Barn Kids.

I put emptied IKEA glass, scented candle holders (TINDRA) with tea lights. This is ideal as background lighting. 

The two silver-plated candle holders are from Hungary. My daughter got them from her grandparents.

For us the Christmas stockings play role on 6th of December when Saint Nicholas comes and visits us. In Hungary Saint Nicholas (Mikulás) puts his presents into the well cleaned children’s boots which stand on the window sill. 

I remember how carefully we shined our boots with my sister and how excitedly we waited the old chap who was our mother of course. She always had to put a lot of stuff next to our boots since girl boots are not big enough. 

Our Christmas stockings are definitely much bigger and in this case I’m in trouble every year to fill it thoroughly with presents. 

The difference between a PBK stocking and a girl's boot

Fake fireplace

It’s two years now that we moved to our new apartment in Luxembourg. We have been living here since 2004 and at the beginning (for many years) we have been just tenants here, in Luxembourg. But I (more than my husband) longed to be  an owner. I longed to have our own flat where I can do whatever I want. And here we are, in our own property.

When we bought this flat, it had a fake plaster fireplace installed in the living room. We had plenty plans about the flat and in this plans the fireplace didn’t play any role. Moreover, it was just an obstacle.

When we moved in

But until our plans was not developped well we started to use the fireplace. I put some decoration on the mantel, and I asked my husband to fix the antique mirror above it and I placed a hand-woven basket under for the magazines.

And one morning in December when I took my child to school, she mentioned me that how great it was that on the roof of our new house there were chimneys. I told her yes, that’s true, but where we lived before there were chimneys on the roof too. And she replied immediately: “Yes, but here we got a fireplace as well! And you know mum, when Santa visits us, he will plop right into the magazines!” 

When I organized a birthday party for Eszter

In that very moment I decided to safe the fake fireplace. And by now I became fond of this piece. I recognized what an ideal place it is to decorate. Sometimes this is the only tidy place where there are no toys or other inappropriate objects in the living room. This is an island of the peace, a home altar :-)

Autumn decoration in 2011

I enjoy decorating it from season to season. And I discovered many home decoration stores, which sold fake fireplaces in many designs and in many materials (wood, plaster, etc.). If the illusion of a fireplace is enough for you, you just have to go to a home decorating store and buy one. And you don't need a flue. Here I would like to show you some options.

Maison du Monde Atelier

Maison du Monde Newport

Orac