Christmas Joy Matchbox

HELLO HELLO HELLO!!  Or should I be shouting HO HO HO!!?  Tis the season to be jolly and I've got a happy little Christmas project to share with you today.  As this is the last weekend before Christmas, there are, sometimes, the need for last minute crafty gifts, right?  Well, I've got a mini of one for you today--

I've altered a matchbox and created a mini-journal using images from our new Toy Emporium stamp set with a snowflake or two thrown in from our Snowy Woods set. 

In preparation for this project, I used the Tim Holtz Matchbox Bigz die and created a matchbox.  I stamped the sentiment and little Christmas girl from our Toy Emporium set, onto coffee stained mixed-media paper with Jet Black Archival.  I also have pieces of a master board trimmed to size to fit onto the top and inside of the matchbox. 

Here's what the master board looked like before I started cutting it into pieces.  I wanted to create a Christmas-y themed master board, and 'ugly Christmas sweater', is how this turned out!  PERFECT!!

I distressed the matchbox a little bit more with Barn Door DI.  I thought the Vintage Photo DI against the white was too severe, so I brought in more red to really make things festive! 

I further decorated the box with paint circles made with a barrel of a pen, pencil eraser dots and spritzes of Distress Marker ink, finished with a wrapping of tissue tape and a piece of red & white trimming. 

Before I started adhering everything into place, I ran each piece of the master board through my sewing machine to add a messy stitched border.  When creating the mini-journal (I have yet to remember to take pictures when I'm putting one of those together!), I also ran that through my sewing machine to sew the inside pages together and to also add the fun zig-zag stitch as embellishment.  OH--the binding of the book? It's a little piece of black duct-easy peasy!  

I water colored 'little Christmas girl' with Distress Markers and my water brush, heat set and fussy cut with my finger knife.  I also fussy cut the sentiment into word bands, inked with edges with Walnut Stain DI and adhered onto the top of the matchbox. 

 I just love altering matchboxes and making these mini-journals.  This little treasure is another fun mixed-media project that I learned how to do by taking an online class.  I live in a pretty rural part of the U.S. with no craft/specialty stores to go to, to be able to learn new things.  So, the next best thing is taking crafty classes online--Such a great investment and it sure does open up doors of creativity, not to mention creating new things to use your Artistic Outpost stamps with!! 

As Christmas is just a few days away, and I won't be posting again until after the holiday has passed, I'd like to take this moment and say MERRY CHRISTMAS!! 

I hope today's mini project has brought a little bit of crafty Christmas joy and inspiration to you, just in case you do need to whip something up in a hurry--It's never too late! 

Thanks so much for stopping by today!! 

Designer:  Shari Trumbull
Ain't That Artsy Fartsy