A Couple of Last Minute Christmas Gifts

Good morning everyone - it's Helen N here with a couple of ideas for last minute gifts using some gorgeous Little Claire products.

First of all I've made a very simple calendar.  For the base I used half of a shaped card blank but you could die cut a shape or just use a square of card.  I covered the base in kraft paper - I find it easiest to cut a square of paper which is bigger than the base, attach it to the base and then cut the paper to fit.  To neaten the edges I ink with brown ink using an old very dry pad - it's much easier to build up the ink that way.

The stamp I've used is the the very elegant 'Cherish, Hope and Dream' which you can find here on the Little Claire website.  I coloured it with Promarkers and then layered it on to some red card before adding the little calendar pad which I also layered on to red card underneath.  To finish I added some Card Candi coloured with my Poppy Promarker.

Next is a desk top notebook and calendar.  Anyone who has looked at our December challenge post will have already seen this but hopefully won't mind me sharing it again!

The photo above shows the cover and this is the inside:

The base is a piece of blue card measuring 28cm by 21cm - with the longest side towards me, I scored at 13cm and 15cm to give the 'spine' which you can see in the middle.  This size and the scoring measurements can be adjusted depending on what you want to put inside.

I created a pocket on the left hand page for receipts, appointment cards etc - this is simply layers of blue and white card which I then attached with tape along the bottom and two sides.  I would suggest red line tape for this to make sure it stays in place.  I created a separate little cover for the note pad and die cut the word 'notes' - an alternative would be to use letter stickers or a computer generated label.  The calendar pad is matted on to blue card and then attached to the base.

The stamp which I've used on the front and also on the pocket is the beautiful 'Butterfly Blossom' which you can find here.  I've also used pale blue gingham paper which you can find here - anyone who has been to the Little Claire classes will know I have a bit of a gingham paper obsession!!  I love it because it makes it easier to line things up using the squares as a guide - perfect for a project like this.

I hope you've enjoyed my two projects - don't forget our current blog challenge which is 'make a gift' - you can find all the details in the challenge post here.

Have a lovely weekend and a fabulous Christmas!

Helen N x