Graphic 45 Nutcracker Sweet Altered Compact

Without a doubt, one of my favorite parts of The Nutcracker Ballet is the Waltz of the Snowflakes (the best version is with Mikhail Baryshnikov, of course).

The scene is beautifully magical and I've been wanting to capture it in some way. Recently, I was about to toss out some used makeup when I noticed a bit of sunlight from the window was illuminating the translucent blue plastic of the compact. 

I'm not sure if that counts as heavenly inspiration, but I immediately saw teeny tiny snowflake ballerinas dancing inside that little case. Below is the end result.

For this project, I used the Snowflake Waltz paper from 

Graphic 45's Nutcracker Sweet collection.

I filled the bottom with lots and lots of Aleene's Glitter Snow Paint.

I also used a VERY liberal amount of Stickles. :-)

Love how the mirror reflects the scene!

This past weekend was a snowy one in our neck of the woods so it was the perfect time to work on this project! 

Christmas Blessings to You and Yours,

Millie

Christmas...Thing-A-Ma-Bob

I'm selling some of my craft items at my church's women's Christmas tea this year. Below are some simple minis I created. There's also a spot to hold a gift card and write a sentiment. Wasn't sure what to call this creation so, for now, it's a "Christmas Card/Gift Card Keeper/Mini Album Thing-a-ma-bob".

If any of you can come up with a more clever (and shorter) name than that, leave a comment. :-)

I'm working on some other items too and will post them soon.

Since it's kind of a mixed audience at the tea, I thought 

I'd keep everything in the traditional colors

of Christmas

This was the first one I created and probably my

favorite. The base of the "thing-a-ma-bob" 

is made from 1 sheet of 12"x12" cardstock.

Each one has the same layout, just different papers. 

I used a Christmas stack from Recollections for this one.

On the right is a place to write a personal note.

Unfold it again and there's a spot for a gift card....

.....and unfold it again, and there's some spots for

some memorable Christmas moments. 

Believe it or not, the DCWV paper stack I used for this one

was found at (Can you guess????)

YUP! My local Goodwill for $2!

Love that Santa paper! The pad came with a couple of

sheets of journaling tags too.

Spot for the gift card (need to use that Starbuck's card...)

....and the spots for photos. 

These were super easy to make and can be adapted to any holiday or occasion. 

Blessings,

Millie

Altered Christmas Stockings and Matchboxes

My two younger sisters mean the world to me. I miss our childhood Christmases together. So many wonderful memories of secretly searching the house for our gifts or quietly staying up, listening from the upstairs hallway of our house until our parents went to bed so we could tiptoe down to see what was under the tree.

We live miles apart now and Christmas get togethers are a little more difficult. They live down South, not far from our mother. In recent years, she's needed more and more attention and care and my sisters have done a wonderful job of looking after her. This year, I wanted to express my thanks and appreciation, in a very special (and crafty) way, for all they have done. They've given so much of themselves to care for her, oftentimes following a full day of work and caring for their own families. To Monika and Amy, know that all you have done and are doing doesn't go unnoticed. I love you both. Merry Christmas.

Our local Goodwill had a HUGE tote filled with 

these stockings. Each was marked .49 cents.

I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them. 

 My sisters have very different tastes so I wanted

to reflect that in the way I altered the stockings.

My sister, Amy, is a lover of all things PINK!

This is her stocking. 

All the trims and embellies came from

things I had on hand. Really love 

how this turned out. It's so girly!

If Amy is a little bit shabby, I'd label my 

sister, Monika, a little bit rock and roll!

I think I captured her spunky person-

ality here. :-)

This isn't my style AT ALL, but I really had 

fun altering this for her. I made sure to 

bling it up quite a bit!

I also altered a couple of small matchboxes

to match their stockings.

Since they live in the South and don't

usually see snow, I thought I'd 

send a little their way. :-)

Backside of Amy's ornament. 

Inside of Monika's ornament.

And the backside.

Love how these turned out. Hope they like them! Merry Christmas All!!!

Blessings,

Millie