Mix It Up Challenge: Christmas Cards by Wendy Sue

Hello there, Doodlebug friends!  It's Wendy Sue here today, sharing my project for the fun "Mix It Up" challenge!  I mainly used the "Milk & Cookies" collection to create this fun set of holiday cards, but I also added in some "Cream & Sugar," "Yankee Doodle," and "Here Comes Santa Claus" products!  Can you spy the different collections?  Probably not - because they work absolutely seamlessly together!

Here's a closer look at each of the cards.  Let's start with the Santa card:

If you look closely you'll find some "Cream & Sugar" papers and a maybe a sticker from "Here Comes Santa Claus!"

Isn't this printed die with the kitchen scene adorable?

That fun red paper is straight out of the "Yankee Doodle" collection!!

Nothing says "warm and cozy" better than stockings hung by the chimney with care!  And adding some cute cupcakes to the mantle is perfection!

There's the "Yankee Doodle" paper and a little peek of paper from the "Here Comes Santa Claus" collection too!

And, finally, let's enjoy a little treat with our good friend, Santa Claus:

Lots of cute "Cream & Sugar" products in this festive card!

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night! ♥

Partying It Up: Hot Cocoa Bar by Wendy Sue

Hi Doodlebug Friends!  It's Wendy Sue here today, sharing my fun little hot cocoa bar party!  I always enjoy hot cocoa in the wintertime, especially around the holidays, and when I have fun little add-ins, it's even better!!  So, naturally, that's what I decided to create and share with you today!

I have a little buffet table in my kitchen, and for the next little while, it's going to be a hot cocoa station!  I used papers and embellishments from the "Milk & Cookies" collection to make it cute and fun!

I made these little cup wraps by cutting 1 1/2" strips of patterned paper and wrapping them around simple styrofoam cups. Where they cross in the middle, I punched a ladybug red cardstock circle and added a Christmas tree cute clip!  It was easy to put these together - and as a bonus, we won't get our cups mixed up!

In the background here, you can see that I framed the cute Santa Scene - because it's so super cute and I just had to display it this holiday season!

Of course, you can't have hot chocolate without a spoon to stir it with - so I embellished a simple mason jar and some fun wooden spoons with doodle tape!  Quick and easy and so much fun!

And the hot chocolate...we love the individual packets around here - no need to measure!  (Except for that jar of striped goodness in the top right corner of the photo below - that's my very special, very favorite Hazelnut flavor cocoa!!) Of course, the best part is all of the extra sweetness that can be mixed in!

I made these cute little candy bowls with a silhouette cut file and various patterned papers from the "Milk & Cookies" collection!  Then I filled them up with all of my favorite festive and "meltable" candies!

I'm fairly certain there's a law against NOT putting a candy cane in your hot cocoa in December.  Wouldn't want to break any laws, right?!?

I cut out these letters with my Silhouette and hung them on Chunky Twine before hanging them to the wall behind the sweet goodness!

And if one banner is good...two is even better, so I made a cute little scallop banner to attach to the front of the tabletop!  I used my sewing machine to quickly stitch them all together!

Are you craving some hot chocolatey goodness yet??

Go ahead, put together your own little hot cocoa party bar - everyone will thank you!!

Thankful Project: Banner and Favors by Wendy Sue

Well, hello there Doodlebug pals!  It's Wendy Sue here today, I know Halloween is tomorrow, but I'm getting a little jump start on the next holiday, which will be here before we even know it!  I love adding little festive touches to our Fall decor to turn it into "Thanksgiving" decor, so I'm switching up this simple frame with a little "Thankful" banner!  And, don't look now, but I'm making some little party favor type boxes to fill with delicious white chocolate popcorn!

Since Doodlebug didn't come out with a new collection for Fall or Thanksgiving this year, I wanted to use some of my favorite fall colors from the basics collection.  I used a leaf die to cut each colorful leaf and beautiful gold "Abigail" letter stickers to create each flag on the banner. Each set of leaves is connected to the banner with a gold or brown mini clothespin.

I used some pre-made craft boxes for the treats, but, of course, I doodlebugified them!! 

I used the same leaf die-cuts, along with mini doilies, mini clothespins, and doodle twine. 

Then I filled each one with yummy white chocolate covered popcorn! 

Wouldn't it be cute to add a name to each clip and use these as placecards for Thanksgiving?!?

To sum up, I'm super thankful for all things Doodlebug!  I'm always inspired when I pull out Doodlebug products to create!  Hopefully you're finding time to be grateful and celebrate it over the coming weeks!

Washi Tape Challenge: Christmas Tree Layout by Wendy Sue Anderson

Hi Doodlebug Friends!  It's Wendy Sue here today, sharing my take on the Washi Tape Challenge!  I couldn't wait to create a fun tree for last year's Christmas PJ's layout.  Here's a look at the completed page, but keep reading for more details!

I started by cutting a Christmas Tree shape out of white cardstock.  I used the same piece of cardstock for my layout base.  After I added a piece of patterned paper, the spot where the tree was cut out is covered up.  Here's a look at the back.  You could actually create a fun layout right on this side too!

Anyway, back to the tree.  After I cut out the simple tree shape, I started adding strips of washi tape.  I didn't want it to get too busy, so I alternated two different designs.  You can either trim off the edges, or fold them to the back.  I did a little bit of both.  After the front was covered, I added lots of coordinating glitter sprinkles and made a make-shift pot to put the tree in.  I added it to the layout with foam adhesive squares for a bit of depth.

Don't you just love these new "Abigail" letter stickers?  I sure do!  They worked perfectly for my title, and I used a sticker (again on foam squares) with a heart shaped clip for the subtitle.

I wanted to keep the page pretty simple so the focus could stay on the photos and the big tree, but I had to add a few embellishment clusters like this one with stickers and enamel sprinkles.

And, of course, another bit of washi tape here on the bottom:

So...how about you?  What's your favorite way for using washi tape?!? I challenge YOU to make an oversized tree for your next layout!

Milk & Cookies: Christmas Gift Trio by Wendy Sue

Hi there Doodlebug friends!  It's Wendy Sue here today, sharing a set of cute Christmas packages I whipped up with the fabulous new "Milk & Cookies" collection!  I'm always needing cute little boxes and bags for small gifts and gift cards and treats, so I was excited to get a jump start on my stash this year!  Here's a look at the set:

I'd love to share the details with you! Let's start with the Chimney/Santa gift box:

I think these two papers might be my favorite in the whole collection - I mean, come on, a Chimney with Santa on top?!? cuuuute! 

I added foam adhesive behind the sticker, then embellished with chunky twine, a big Santa from the ephemera pack, and three sparkly glitter sprinkles!

Next up is the Tree print gift bag:

I used a Silhouette cut file for this sweet little gift bag.  Again, I tied with chunky twine and added a sticker to the front with foam adhesive for dimension.

Isn't that little tree so sweet?  It looks like it took a lot of work, but guess what?!? It's a doodle-pop and ALL the work was done for me!  Those cute little ornaments, the layering, all of it!  All I had to do was peel and stick! ;)

Finally, here's the cutest little milk carton gift box ever!

Again, I cut the box with my Silhouette, tied it with chunky twine, and added a sticker to the front with foam adhesive squares.

As far as embellishment, I had to add the milk and cookies from the ephemera pack, of course!

Oh, and did you happen to notice that little banner in the background?  It's simply triangles cut from the 6x6 paper pad with holes punched in the corners and connected with doodle twine!

Thanks for stopping by the blog today - I hope you're inspired to create some cute gift packaging with the "Milk & Cookies" collection!

Booville Collection: Trick or Treat Banner by Wendy Sue

October is just around the corner, which means I've already started decorating our home for Halloween! Hi Doodlebug friends, it's Wendy Sue here today to admit I couldn't resist making a fun trick-or-treat banner with all of the cute little trick-or-treaters in the Booville die-cut pack! Here's how the banner looks hanging in my kitchen:

And here's a closer look at all of the pieces:

Each flag consists of a circle-shaped base (I actually used a die-cut meant for making a mini album):

Each base has a strip of black cardstock in the center.  Before I added the black piece, I used a star embossing folder to add texture!

Next, I added two different styles of doodle tape to the top and bottom of each black piece.

Each trick-or-treater was placed on the black piece with foam adhesive - I just love adding extra dimension to my banners!

I used doodle-pops, sprinkles, and additional die-cuts to embellish each trick-or-treater and his background.

After all of the trick-or-treat flags were complete, I punched two holes in the top of each flag.

Chunky twine is perfect for stringing any banner!

It's worth another look to notice the CUTE shaped sprinkles and doodle pops in this collection!!

And in the middle of the trick-or-treat parade is the perfect place to add some words!

And with that, I'm off to make something else with the Booville collection to add to my fun and colorful Halloween decor!