Category Archives: Holiday Crafts

“Love You” Valentine’s Day Card Featuring Heart Motif and Flowers

Crazy Little Thing Called Love: Love You Valentine’s Day Card With Hearts and Flowers Featuring Stamps by Hero Arts

Love You Valentine Card With Hearts and Flowers Featuring Stamps by Hero Arts

Love You Valentine Card With Hearts and Flowers Featuring Stamps by Hero Arts

The lovely people at Hero Arts are having a challenge with the theme of “Crazy Little Thing Called Love”. Pictured above, you can see my entry for this challenge. It’s a Valentine’s Day card featuring stamped images I created using a couple of different Hero Arts stamp sets.

Craft Supplies You’ll Need for Making a Similar Valentine Card:

  • The “Togetherness” Stamp Set by Hero Arts — This stamp set features a gorgeous floral bouquet stamp and 7 lovely sentiment stamps.
  • The Hero Greetings Christmas Messages Stamp Set by Hero Arts — No, this isn’t a Christmas card (although you could make it a Christmas card if you want to; simply change out the pinks for greens, and voila, it’s a Christmas card). The “Hero Greetings Christmas Messages” stamp set includes mostly Christmas-themed sentiments, but it also has other sentiments like “love you,” “you warm my heart,” “stay cozy” and “let’s party”. So you can use it for many occasions besides just Christmas. I think the “love you” stamp is just perfect for using on Valentine cards, birthday cards and everyday cards.
  • Pink Cardstock
  • White Cardstock
  • Kitsch Flamingo Distress Oxide Ink Pad by Tim Holtz for Ranger Industries
  • Love Letter Memento Ink Pad
  • Washi Tapes: I used 3 different washi tape designs to create this card. The one on the top is a glittery, sparkly white washi tape by Graphic 45. The one in the middle is a red floral design by Recollections. The one on the bottom is a lovely design from the Papillon collection by The Happy Planner / Me & My Big Ideas.
  • A Heart Die or Heart Stencil
  • Scalloped Scissors — I used Fiskars Paper Edgers in the Mini Scallop design to cut around my “love you” sentiment.
  • Pens & Markers — You’ll want to personalize your card on the inside, and you might also want to make some touch-ups to the embellishments on your card. I used a Tombow brush marker, color #847 to color in the scalloped edge around the “Love You” stamped image. I also used a Sakura Gelly Roll pen and a Marvy Uchida highlighter to personalize the inside of my card. No need to get these pens and markers specifically; you can use other coordinating pens and markers from your stash to do your personalizing. If you don’t have any pens that will work for this, I definitely recommend the Gelly Rolls; they are affordable and super pretty. I love the results I get from using them, and I think you will, too.
  • Scoring Board or Other Scoring Tool

Thanks so much for taking a look at my Valentine Card. I really appreciate your interest.


Check Out More DIY Valentine’s Day Cards

Find More Project Ideas Featuring Stamps and Supplies by Hero Arts

Posted By: Amy Solovay

Last-Minute Christmas Gift Ideas

Don’t you just hate it when you run out of time or money before you run out of gifts you need to buy? That’s such a complete and total bummer, isn’t it?

Last Minute Christmas Gift Ideas

Last Minute Christmas Gift Ideas

Happily, for crafters who maintain a sizeable stash of papers, yarn or other craft supplies, this sort of thing is almost a non-issue.

If crafting has taught me anything at all over the years, it’s this: if I have supplies left in my craft supply stash, and at least a couple of hours left before I have to present the gift to its recipient, I’ll never be empty-handed in the gift department. I’ll always have a gift worth giving, and it will be a gift created exclusively with the recipient in mind. (Except, I admit that I sometimes make a few extra give-to-anybody-type-gifts ahead of any gift-giving occasion, in case an unexpected long-lost relative or guest drops by for a visit.)

We’re getting dangerously close to Christmas, given that today’s date is December 21, 2022. I’d bet money that, by now, some of you are still stressing out about about what to give somebody-or-other.


Yikes!

I’m here to help you with some suggestions for last-minute gifts you can make using supplies that most crafters would typically have on hand.

Gift-Worthy Projects You Can Whip Up in a Hurry:

If you need to crank out a quick gift, hurry up and grab any of these free patterns or free project instructions from the Internet. Then raid your craft supply stash and get busy!

Quick Christmas Ornaments

See that cute little Christmas tree-shaped ornament pictured at bottom left in the photo posted above? You don’t need anything fancy to make this — the pattern is free on our website, plus you need a little green yarn, a little brown or tan yarn, some stuffing material, and a few buttons or beads for decorations. If you don’t have any buttons or beads, you could try cutting out some little felt or fabric circles to stitch to the tree. Or embroider some little ornaments using colorful yarn, embroidery floss or crochet thread.

This is a reasonably safe idea for a gift, considering that anyone who celebrates Christmas could probably use an ornament.

An even quicker ornament: this easy lace crochet wreath is super quick to make, and it’s really pretty, too. If you have a little ball of green yarn left over from another project, you have most of what’s needed to make this project. You’ll also need ribbon and a scrap of red yarn, or other appropriate baubles for decorating your wreath.

Pouches:

Pouches make fast, easy gifts (not to mention that they make fantastic giftwrap substitutes, if you run out of actual giftwrap.) The only potential problem with that idea is, you might not have the right zippers in your craft supplies stash — but if you do, this idea is definitely a keeper.


You can give pouches to people of either gender and any age; just customize the pouch accordingly. Bonus points if you can add a few goodies to the pouch, like wrapped candies, small toys, pencils or pens, to “sweeten” the gift.

Potholders and Kitchen Gift Sets:

If you have some appropriate yarn and a few hours, you can whip up sets of potholders, or kitchen gift sets, for the chefs on your gift list. If you happen to have red, green and white or off-white yarn in either wool or cotton, you could make cupcake potholders like the one pictured. No need to have these colors specifically, though. If you have any 3 – 4 cupcake-friendly colors of yarn on hand, you could re-color the design to use what you have.

You have a head-spinning number of options for different potholders you could make, so please check out our list of potholder patterns if this idea appeals to you.

Jewelry

For the ladies on your gift list, jewelry makes a great gift. Bracelets, especially, are pretty quick to make, and don’t use up many supplies.

Quick and Easy Last-Minute Scrapbooks

If you have pictures on your phone that your gift recipients would like, plus any scrapbooking paper in your craft supplies stash, you can make quick mini albums to give them as gifts:

  • Either print out your pics using your printer or upload them to the closest 1-hour photo place. You’ll want to use them as the central focus of your mini album.
  • Decide on a size for your mini album; 4×6 or 6×8 are good sizes, but you can make your album whatever size you want it.
  • Cut your paper down to size. If you’re making a 4×6 album, cut your papers to 4×12″. If you’re making a 6×8 album, cut your papers down to 6×12″.
  • Score down the center of each paper.
  • Stack your papers on top of each other with the edges and center fold lines aligned.
  • Grab a ruler and an awl or paper piercing tool. If you happen to have a book binding tool on hand, that’s even better, but it isn’t a necessity.
  • Make evenly-spaced holes along the mini book’s center fold line to use for stitching a saddle-stitch binding on your mini album.
  • Grab a needle plus some thread, crochet thread, embroidery floss or sturdy yarn and use these items to sew a saddle stitch binding on your mini album. To accomplish this, you simply stitch up and down with the threaded needle through the holes you already made in the center fold line on your pages.
  • Now grab your pictures and some adhesive, and attach your pics to your album where you want them.
  • If you have stickers, stamps, inks, ribbon, washi tape or embellishments, you can embellish your album however you like.
  • You can also add journaling digitally by typing it on the computer, printing it out and attaching it to your album pages where you want it. Another option is to stick letter stickers or hand write your journaling. It is also possible to hand stamp journaling blocks and / or sentiments to add to your mini album.
  • Voila! You now have a handmade gift that is more meaningful than anything you could have bought from the store. YAY!!

Christmas Cookies:

If you’re a passable chef, Christmas cookies are a no-brainer as a last-minute gift. If you have a well-stocked pantry, you can usually find a cookie recipe that’ll work. Even if your pantry isn’t all that well-stocked, look for a sugar cookie recipe that doesn’t require much more than flour, sugar, butter, salt, eggs and a flavoring like almond or vanilla.

So there you have it: Those are our best suggestions for last-minute Christmas gifts for crafters who are short on either time, money, or both. I honestly hope you don’t need this list at all — it would be ideal if your Christmas shopping is all finished, and you are now kicking back, relaxing and enjoying time with your friends and family. But if you’re still stressing about gifts for your inner circle, I really hope these ideas will be useful to you.


Merry Christmas to all of you who celebrate it! I hope you will enjoy every minute of your holiday.

Related Resources:

Knitted Christmas Ornaments by Arne & Carlos

Is your Christmas tree looking a little bit bare? Or perhaps yours is beautifully decorated, but you want to make more ornaments to give as gifts to your friends and acquaintances this holiday season. Read on if you need some ideas for creative Christmas ornaments to knit — because I have suggestions for extraordinary knitted Christmas ornament patterns that I think you’ll want to know about.

If you enjoy knitting and crocheting Christmas gifts, you'll want to get your hands on a copy of Arne & Carlos Favorites. This lovely book includes a spectacular selection of patterns for knitting Christmas ornaments, toys like the cute mouse pictured here, chic accessories, blankets, slippers and other items that make fantastic Christmas gifts.

If you enjoy knitting and crocheting Christmas gifts, you’ll want to get your hands on a copy of Arne & Carlos Favorites. This lovely book includes a spectacular selection of patterns for knitting Christmas ornaments, toys like the cute mouse pictured here, chic accessories, blankets, slippers and other items that make fantastic Christmas gifts. Click here to shop for the book at the publisher’s website.

This cute toy mouse is named Magnus. You can knit him, along with bunches of different Christmas ornaments like the one you see pictured here, using patterns from the book called Arne & Carlos Favorite Designs, published by Trafalgar Square Books

A couple of ultra-talented Norwegian knitting pattern designers named Arne & Carlos are the guys behind these incredibly beautiful Christmas ornament designs. I highly recommend their book called Arne & Carlos Favorite Designs, which includes their Christmas ornament patterns plus bunches of other Christmas and holiday friendly patterns.

You can use some of the ornament patterns to create round knitted Christmas ornaments. Some of the other patterns included in the book are useful for making small knitted birds that could either be toys, or Christmas ornaments, or other types of ornaments. Like, if you decorate for Easter, some of the birds could be Easter birds, too.

In addition to all the ornament patterns, the book also includes bunches of other fun patterns for gift-worthy items ranging from dolls to slippers to blankets.

Want to Learn More About This Book?

About Your Book Reviewer: Amy Solovay is a freelance writer with a background in textile design. She has been crocheting and crafting since childhood, and knitting since age 16.

This page was last updated on 12-20-2022.

Make Christmas Napkin Rings With These Free Crochet Patterns

If there’s ever a time that you want to set a pretty table, it’s Christmas dinner. The table sets the mood for the entire meal; you want it to look amazing for your loved ones, not to mention for the family photos (especially if you’ll be posting them online.)

There are many possible ways to pretty up your table, and many different elements that could enhance you table settings and make them spectacular.


A Christmas Place Setting That Includes a Beaded Crochet Napkin Ring, Plus Crocheted Table Linens

A Christmas Place Setting That Includes a Beaded Crochet Napkin Ring, Plus Crocheted Table Linens


Of course, if you have a set of fine china or holiday dishes, it’s the ideal time to get them out and put them to use. Christmas is also the ideal occasion for using a pretty tablecloth or table runner. If you own a beautiful vase, it would be lovely to fill it with flowers and create a unique centerpiece.

And once you’ve done all that, you’d feel pretty silly putting paper towels on the table to use as napkins, wouldn’t you? Of course you would.

This realization could lead you down a whole new rabbit hole: How do you fold the napkins and keep them in place?

The answer, of course, is that you’ll want to use napkin rings to do that.

For you DIY types who like to make creative pretties to dress up your home decor, I invite you to consider the following free patterns for crafting your own napkin rings:


If you like the idea of making napkin rings, but the ones pictured above aren’t quite what you have in mind for your table, you’re invited to check out this list of 6 ways to make napkin rings. The list includes bunches more ideas, some of which involve craft techniques other than knitting or crocheting.

More Ideas for Christmas Table Settings

I wish you a joyous holiday season this year, filled with peace, love, light, creativity and blessings.

Holiday Craft Pattern Books You Need to Know About for Christmas 2022

The Holiday Season Is Upon Us! Are You Ready to Get Busy Making Holiday Crafts?

Happy November, everyone! Today is November 1, 2022. Halloween is now over and done with, and that means your local retailers are probably putting up their Christmas displays and getting ready for the holiday rush of shoppers.

For those of us planning to make our own Christmas gifts and Christmas decorations, the pressure is on to get it all finished before December 25 rolls around. On the one hand, there’s plenty of time. On the other hand, there’s never enough time — so there’s no time like the present to get moving on your 2022 holiday crafting.

If you need a little inspiration for what to make for the 2022 holiday season, we invite you to check out our list of the best Christmas craft books. These books all have fantastic Christmas project ideas, plus the patterns you can use for making each project.

I’ll highlight a few of my favorites from the list here in this blog post — but I hope you’ll check out the entire list to find some amazing Christmas knitting books, Christmas crochet books, and other assorted Christmas craft books.

Annie’s Christmas Special 2020: Includes Patterns for Crochet, Sewing and Quilting Techniques

Annie's Christmas Special Edition 2020: 65+ Christmas Patterns for Crochet, Quilting and Sewing

Annie’s Christmas Special Edition 2020: 65+ Christmas Patterns for Crochet, Quilting and Sewing

If I had to choose just one Christmas pattern book to work from, it would be a tough choice — but I think this is the one I’d go for.

Why?

Because, for starters, it has a high number of usable patterns. It also has a fantastic variety of different techniques to try, which could help to keep you from getting bored out of your mind halfway through your gift-making sessions.

Beyond that, the patterns are mostly appealing ones, and there are bunches of easy, beginner-friendly projects included in the book. So far I’ve made one project from this book, and I’m hoping to make a bunch more before Christmas this year.

Learn More About Annie’s Christmas Special Edition 2020: (yes, this the special edition from a couple of years ago, but don’t worry, none of the projects are out of date; they’re all still totally current for Christmas 2022.).

Have a Happy Crochet Christmas: Lovely Holiday Patterns for Blankets, Ornaments and More

Have a Happy Crochet Christmas: Crochet World's Christmas 2021 Edition Filled With Patterns for Crocheting Festive Blankets, Christmas Ornaments, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Gifts and More

Have a Happy Crochet Christmas: Crochet World’s Christmas 2021 Edition Filled With Patterns for Crocheting Festive Blankets, Christmas Ornaments, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Gifts and More

Another inspiring holiday find is a Crochet World back issue titled Have a Happy Crochet Christmas. This edition of the magazine offers you 40+ outstanding, “giftable” Christmas crochet patterns. I think this is one of the best Christmas editions ever! It’s loaded with fantastic project and patterns you’re likely to enjoy if you make it a high priority to crochet your own gifts for others during the holiday season.

Projects included in this title include a blankets, table linens, pillows, Christmas garlands, Christmas ornaments, a Christmas stocking and more.

A Merry Crochet Christmas

A Merry Crochet Christmas Pattern Book, Published by Annie's Crochet

A Merry Crochet Christmas, Published by Annie’s Crochet

If you’re hoping to find a whole bunch of appealing Christmas crochet patterns, this is a book you’ll definitely want to take a look at. It includes some seriously fun patterns you can use for making your own Christmas decorations plus crocheting gifts for your inner circle. You’ll find patterns for crocheting afghans, Christmas ornaments, an adorable scarf, and many other wonderful holiday-themed items.

Learn More:

Be sure to check out our complete list of the best Christmas craft books HERE!