It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...


I had a vague idea that I wanted to make some ornaments for the tree this year, I also knew that I really wanted to used the MERRY JOY set from Kellie Stamps to do it. I just wasn't quite sure how. I wondered if you could "stamp" onto clay, and it turns out you can!

I used some neon red Sculpty clay, and a light touch with the stamps and it worked perfectly. I started by rolling out my clay, lightly pressing the cutter shape into it as a guide, gently stamping in the appropriate places (and I also used my powder tool to stop any sticking) before cutting fully with my cookie cutters and baking. I suggest a bit of practice first as it took me a little while to get the right stamping pressure. Afterwards I cleaned my stamps with a bit of soap and water and they were right as rain.



Next, I did a bit of Christmas prep by making some gift tags to top my presents. I grabbed a few bits of scrap paper, some dies and the MERRY JOY set again. Then I had myself a merry little time stamping and cutting and embossing and putting these together. Keeping everything in a tight colour-scheme helps it look cohesive but you could just as easily try it in a variety of colours.

A simple way to add a festive touch to my gifts this year.


And if you didn't manage to get your hands on the MERRY JOY clear stamps, you can always try the digital stamps! I printed and cut out this title to up-cycle a gift bag. I used some old tissue paper to cover up the logo on the bag then added some sparkly paper, my title and some twine. A simple idea for wrapping and an easy way to re-use an old bag!