Make Your Own Christmas Reindeer!

Keep the kids (& big kids!) entertained over the Christmas holidays with this super easy and fun craft; you'll end up with a lovely, handmade Christmas decoration that you can bring out year on year! Why not go the whole hog and make all nine of Santa's fleet!

You will need:

• A printout of my reindeer template, printed onto lightweight card
• Colouring crayons or pencils
• Scissors (if you're doing this activity with children, please supervise them whilst using scissors)
• Glue stick or double-sided tape (I find tape to be the easiest option)

Instructions:

Step 1. Colour in all parts of your template.

Step 2. Cut out all parts of your template (get your grown up to help you with this...unless you are a grown up!).

Step 3. Use your scissors (get your grown up to help you) to lightly curve the legs, antlers and face, to give them a more natural look. Also curve the body to make it easier to create the cone shape later.

Step 4. Apply glue or double-sided tape to the front of the tab on the reindeer's body; then bend to create a cone; secure the tab on the opposite inside edge of the cone, as shown above (if using glue keep pressure on the tab to allow the glue to set).

Step 5. Use your glue or double-sided tape to fix the two antlers onto the back of the reindeer's head.

Step 6. Apply a small amount of glue or tape to the back of the reindeer's head, and attach it to the top of the cone.

Step 7. Apply a small amount of glue or tape to the front of the top of each of the reindeer's legs, then glue in place inside the front of the cone.

All Done!

I hope you have lots of fun making your own reindeer! I'd love to see some pics of your finished creations; why not send me some! 

Merry Christmas Everyone!

N.B. My reindeer template is for personal use only, thanks guys!

Make Your Own Paper Chrysanthemum

Add a Floral Flourish to your Festive Offerings this Christmas!

Christmas is nearly upon us, so I thought I would provide a little tutorial, giving you all the tools and instructions you need to make your own Christmas Chrysanthemum!

You can simply use the flower as a festive decoration, or add it as a stylish embellishment to a special present. Alternatively, why not make several of them to use as unique place settings; just write your guests’ names on the leaves of the flowers and place on your festive table or dinner party set up.

You Will Need:

• A double-sided print out of my Chrysanthemum Template pdf
• Scissors
• Glue gun (set to low), or other adhesive, such as glue dots

Instructions:

                            Step 1:  Cut out all the pieces from the template                             

          Step 2:  Use your scissors to curl the petals of each of the 6 flower pieces.          

Step 3.  Snip small incisions around the edges of all 3 circular pieces, then bend the snipped edges up to form 3 cup-shapes.

                   Step 4.  Use your scissors to curl the edges of the leaf slightly                    

Step 5.  Use a small dot of glue to attach each set of petals together, stacking them from largest to smallest; the top sets of petals should be placed so as to fill the gaps between the lower sets.

Step 6.  Use a small dot of glue to attach the circular pieces together, stacking from largest to smallest.

Step 7. Use a small dot of glue to attach the stacked circular pieces to the centre of the stacked petals.

Step 8.  If you would like a more tightly-closed effect, cup the flower in your hand and gently squeeze the petals together.

          Step 9.  Use a dot of glue to attach the leaf to the underside of the flower.         

                                                       All Done!                                                            

N.B. The pdf template is for personal use only, thanks guys!

Welcome To My Handmade World!

Introductions First: 

I'm 'Alice' (actually I'm Zoe, but for business purposes it's Alice, which is actually my middle name...confused?!) I'm a northern girl with a love for paper and all things handmade; I spend my days creating beautiful, handprinted wrapping paper and accessories for my lovely customers...oh, and dreaming of the day when I can own my own rescue dog!

How it all Happened:

Well, how long have you got?? The road that brought me to 'Alice' has been a rather winding one. My original plan was always to become an academic or researcher of some sort - I have a Degree and a Masters in History, and had plans for a PhD - however a series of long term health problems put pay to those ideas.

Believe it or not, the business grew out of an off-the-cuff comment made by my brother in the summer of this year; we were discussing job options, when he remarked 'you should just set up my own gift wrapping business' - this may sound odd, but you should understand that the wrapping I surround my presents in is usually more exciting than the gift hidden inside!

Initially I laughed the idea off, but over the next few months it began to percolate in my mind, until it was practically all I could think about. After lots of research and plenty of help and advice from family and friends - there's really nothing like setting up your own business to show you how many wonderful, kind, and talented people you know - I finally took the plunge, and in Autumn 2013 I set up All Wrapped Up By Alice! 

That's me!

My aim is to create beautiful, handmade gift wrap, accessories and cards; and, in the near future, to create my own bespoke party bag range. All of my items are made entirely by hand, making each one special and unique. To create my handprinted wrapping paper and cards, I use a traditional roller technique which has been used in Eastern Europe for over a century to produce intricate wall coverings. I also love to use ink stamps, to give a rustic, homespun feel to my work.

Handprinted Deer Kraft Wrap

It's still early days, but for the first time in a long while, I feel like I have a plan and a purpose, and that will do for now!

My products are available to purchase through my Etsy shop: WrappedByAlice. I would love you to pop over and have a browse; I hope you enjoy having a nosey through my items just as much as I have enjoyed creating them!

I'll be using my blog to post regular updates about the progress of my new venture, as well as how-to-tutorials, so you can get all wrapped up like Alice! See you soon! x