Gift-spiration!

Oh my gosh! How many days until the big day??? As always it seems I am not in the least bit ready and with my oh so energetic baby Ruby reaching her 6 month milestone, spare time has become extinct!

But I am determined to get into the festive spirit and the Gift-spiration challenge theme over at Simon Says Stamp and Show gave me just the push I needed. I always say you can't go wrong with paper decorations and if like me you are short on time, then these hearts are just the ticket!

I often get asked to make something "Christmassy and crafty" for family or friends and this year my task was to create a child friendly tree decoration. They gotta look pretty... but no tears if little fingers go AWOL.

I love blue and white together and decided to make use of my Distress Ink Pads as there are so many wonderful shades of blue to choose from. I also needed quite a strong card so I went for Ranger's Specialty Stamping Paper, also knowing it would give a good inky result.

I randomly stamped one side of the card with the Mr. Tim snowflake and the other side with the Mixed Media dots. As the paper gets cut into strips don't be too fussy with the stamping. Each heart needs two long strips and two shorter strips (the strip length depends on what kind of shape heart you like). I just went by my eye and what looked right to me. You could also use three strips for each side if you fancy...

After cutting the strips I distressed and inked the edges. As you can see, the hearts are made out of two halves which I then stuck together, sandwiching a ribbon in between. I was going to leave them like that then I thought they needed a word to add a little more festive identity! I picked out two words from the background stamp from the Season's Silhouettes set and my hearty creations were done.

You could really go to town with this idea, creating a whole set, making them as fancy or funky as you like. They would make great gifts - and not just at Christmas either. How about embossed metal or even a fabric version... Ah, if I had but the time. If you are making a special inky something for someone, why not join in the challenge at Simon Says Stamp an Show and you could win this fabulous $50 goody voucher. If you're looking for inspiration, then head over to The Design Team Blog and feast your eyes on the wonderful ideas from all the team. Okidokie, that's my inky news for today. Keep calm and keep Christmassing!
See you soon, Sarah.

*Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD FADED JEANS Blue Ranger	*Tim Holtz Distress Ink PAD TUMBLED GLASS Blue Ranger	*Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD SALTY OCEAN Ranger SUMMER	*PREORDER Ranger 12"" x 12"" SPECIALTY STAMPING PAPER Inkssentials Surfaces ISP35657
*Tim Holtz Cling Rubber Stamps SEASON'S SILHOUETTES CMS117 Summer 2011	*Ranger Inkssentials COLLAGE GLUE STICK Adhesive INK33103	*Tim Holtz Tonic PAPER DISTRESSER Altered Aged Edges	*Tim Holtz Cling Rubber Stamps 2012 MIXED MEDIA cms125

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