Cute Snowman "Ornament"

Finding the perfect gift for a neighbor who just had a baby can be challenging. In my past, I've always felt like I overdo things. This time, I wanted just a simple gift that would be easy to make, super cute and commemorate the birth of a first child.

I started by buying a pattern that was just too big for an ornament. Then I stumbled upon THIS SNOWMAN over at Etsy and found him to be perfect. His price can't be beat either. He was on sale for just $1.39 when I purchased him, but even at $1.99 regular price it can't be beat.

I also love buying PDF cross stitch patterns because it's easy to screen shot them and mark the rows off. It's also nice to be able to zoom in on both my iPad and my phone.

The only thing lacking in this pattern was the wording. For that I went over to STITCHPOINT and wrote out Asher's name and date of birth. I sketched that in to the left of the snowman pattern and it worked great. The only problem was that it made the design a bit larger than I wanted, but still within the acceptable size for an ornament. It ended up fitting in a 5" circle hoop. I finished it off with a bow, a bit of stuffing in the back and felt behind that.

His mom really liked it, and that's what it's all about!

Santa & Fido

Here's a fun freebie that's perfect for any dog-lover on your Christmas Card list. It shows a dog, which I believe to be a greyhound variety, looking up the chimney as Santa is falling down it. I know my dog Bella would be going crazy!

Here's the free digi. As always:

1. Snag it to your desktop or photos.
2. Put it in a Word or Page Document.
3. Resize it to the size card you want to make.
4. Print it out, either at home or at a copy center. 

I hope you enjoy the freebie! Thanks for stopping by my blog today and have a wonderful day!

In The Meadow...

Here we are in December already! Time goes way too quickly these days. I had hoped to make more Christmas cards by now, but I still have a few weeks so that's good.

The first card of this month is called "In The Meadow...." with thoughts of the timeless song that continues "we can build a snowman..."

I really do love snow even though I'm here in Florida. I have many fond memories of playing as a child, then playing with my own children, in the snow. There's really nothing that says "Christmas" quite like snow, although my mom reminds me that Jesus was born in Jerusalem and that it doesn't really snow there are that it really has nothing to do with Christmas.

Bah humbug!

This card will be entered into two challenges: 1) NBUS Challenge #69 because I bought this set last year from Mark of the Angel Card Project and haven't used it until this card and 2) WORD ART WEDNESDAY"S Challenge 675 & 676 because they have great challenges that are always "anything goes."

Here's my complete supply list:

• Lawn Fawn's Making Frosty Friends
• Lawn Fawn's Merry Messages
• Patterned Paper (gifted from a friend)
• Stampin' Up! Mossy Meadow Card Stock
• SU! Pear Pizzazz Card Stock
• Memento Black Ink
• Stickles Star Dust Glitter
• Copic Markers

Thanks so much to everyone who makes these challenges

possible time after time. I really appreciate the inspiration and the ability to share!

This card is a little bigger than even a regular slimline so I think it's going to take a bit more postage to send it to someone. Hopefully they will like and appreciate snow!