cool city christmas cards. DIY.

Hey! Do you live in a cool city? Do you tend to move around a lot? Do you like to make cards?

Me too!

I'm originally fom Ohio.  I spent a few years in Chicago <3 and now I live in New York. 

This year, I knew that I wanted to make my own cards & I knew that I wanted to them have some relation to New York.  If nothing else to keep the people I'm sending them to up to date with my whereabouts. :) and this is what I came up with.  

This idea would also work for pretty much any location, you would just cut out the state instead and pinpoint the city you live in.

this one is still awaiting my final touches...

this project turned out to be insanely time consuming and tomorrow I'm going to go to Kinko's to try to speed up the project with some color copies. :( fail. 

so... I don't recommend this if you need more then a handful of cards OR go for it if you have a ton of time on your hands.   

Supplies I used (but open to interpretation):

heavy card stock to be the foundation of the card

scrap booking paper in holiday colors & prints

a simple print out of the island of manhattan

fun holiday stickers & letters

rubber stamps & ink

a felt tip marker

a hot glue gun & scissors

embroidery floss & large needle

a safety pin to punch a few holes

& gold dome studs 

or whatever you feel like embellishing it with!

bottom right image shows my embellishments.  

I used red embroidery floss to indicate the NYC bridges.  

top to bottom: queensboro, williamsburg, manhattan & brooklyn.  

& I also attached a gold dome stud to the approximate location of my neighborhood within the city.

LES.

DIY. recycled magazine holiday bows.

via 100 layer cake

Step 1: Cut the page lengthwise into nine 3/4-inch-thick strips of heights shown: Three at 11 inches, three at 10 inches, two at 9 inches, and one at 3 1/2 inches.
Step 2: Twist each strip to form loops at both ends. Make a circle out of the smallest.
Step 3: Secure the ends with a piece of double-sided tape.
Step 4: Layer and stick, starting with the longest strips. End with the circle in the center.

 

my version. of course it's black and white. emma stone/chanel b&w bow.

DIY. 3D paper snowflakes.

I made all of these paper snowflakes two years ago... 

such beauties but they don't store so well.

Each snowflake uses:

6 sheets of paper, 

scotch tape, 

& scissors... 

then fishing line to hang them.

I attempted to make my own video, but my camera angles were no good so you are stuck with these pictures... 

1. start with a square sheet of paper & fold it in half

2. fold it in half again

3. cut 5 slits into the triangle... careful not to cut all the way through

(cutting from either edge works the same)

4. it should look like this

5. unfold your piece of paper

6. so it looks like this

7. start with the 2 inner pieces and roll them together (either direction)

- securing it with a small piece of tape

8. turn it over and take the next two inner pieces and connect them with tape

9. 10. 11.

continue taping the appropriate pieces together

& flipping it back and forth to alternate the sides

12. this is what the finished section will look like

- make 6 of these

13. take three of your finished sections and gather them in the center

14. secure it with a staple

15. things should be starting to shape up :)

16. where the sections naturally come together...

(where my fingers are in #16) put in a staple to secure it

- continue doing this to all of the sections

17. take your first half

18. join your second half & staple it

19. finish stapling all connecting pieces

20. wow wasn't that easy?

If you wan't to punch it up... try some other colors like the fun ones below... 

Also make sure to experiment with the distance between the slits you make...

that way they will all be unique if you are making a bunch!!!