Cozy Winter Banner with Guest Designer Kathy Clement

Hello, Friends! Just a few more hours, and it will be Christmas! Then a few more days will go by and we'll begin to take down all our pretty Christmas decorations and pack them away until next year. That always makes me feel a little bit sad. That's why I created this Cozy Winter Banner as my final guest designer project for Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts. I plan to hang this cutie pie on my mantel to spread cheer all through the long winter months. Here's a peeky at the project:

 

I spent a delightful afternoon playing with Authentique's Cozy paper collection and chippies from Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Winter Shape Set. Making a Cozy Winter Banner is a great way to chase away the post-Christmas blues!

  

I did a little experimenting with paper piecing on this project. One of the great things about working with high quality chippies is that you can alter them in any number of ways. For this dapper snowman, I traced around the snowman chipboard, then cut it out, inked the edges of my paper with Vintage Photo Distress Ink and glued it onto the chipboard base. I sanded off any excess paper, inked again and look just look how cute he is! I used this same process for the mittens, hat and scarf, using different patterns from the paper collection. So if you are afraid to paint, this is a great option for solid shapes like this snowman! Here's a close up so you can really see all the fun detail this technique allows you to add to your chips.

  

I painted the snowflakes with Picket Fence Distress Paint, and then sprinkled them with glitter while still wet. I even glued one onto the top hat once it was dry. The "snow drifts" were created with a cutting die, and I just tucked Mr. Snowman right in there to make him look like part of the scenery. 

 

Because the snowflakes in this set are loaded with amazing detail, I opted to paint them and then add some sparkle with a little glitter. For the chipboard title on this pennant, I painted just the snowflake, and once it was glittered and dried, I went back with Stormy Sky and Weathered Wood Distress Paint to add just the right shade of blue to the lettering. The edges were inked with Vintage Photo DI, and then I just lightly tapped the letters with Picket Fence paint to give them a snowy appearance. Simple, but effective!

  

I love how quick and easy it is to alter chipboard, and I love having the ability to custom color it to match the papers I used on this cozy winter banner.

  

This mug of cocoa was paper pieced as well. I just traced around the mug onto my designer paper, then added some cute sticker strips and a big sparkly snowflake to finish it off. I really love the way this turned out!

  

Each pennant on this cozy winter banner measures about 4.5" x 6.5". I freehand cut them, matted them on blue card stock and then stitched them to pretty burlap. Then I just stitched them onto pretty Antique Gold Gingham ribbon, adding a strip of crocheted lace as I sewed along. Add some poufy blue bows, painted white jingle bells, vintage buttons and mulberry flowers and you've got a warm and cozy banner that will keep you smiling all winter long! I've had so much fun serving as a guest designer for Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts this month, and I hope I'll be back in 2016! Thank you for letting me share with you all this month. I hope you've had as much fun as I have! You will surely see more chipboard in my designs, as I love the dimension and texture it adds to a project. Yup...I'm hooked! And with Christmas just 48 hours away, I'd like to take this opportunity to wish you all the merriest, happiest, chippiest Christmas ever! If you'd like to see more of my projects, I invite you to visit my blog, Kathy by Design. Thanks for stopping by!

Cheerio, kathy