Day 17 of the Advent - Gingerbread Love

I'm so excited to be bringing you another day to celebrate the Advent with us here at Belles N' Whistles! When I saw these sweet babies called Gingerbread Love, it so reminded me of the time I tried to make a gingerbread house with my nephew, Stevie. They didn't have the kits like they do now and I tried to make one from scratch and, well, let's just say that the trash can was a lot heavier because the icing ended up like cement! I much prefer these sweeties!

I thought I'd make a candy gift for a friend of mine and this is what I came up with. And I didn't bake this time! I used an old SU container and I love those Hershey's Nuggets and I wrapped them in coordinating paper around the nuggets and colored these cuties up and made a wide bank for the package. What do you think?



Can you resist their sweet faces? I sure can't! You could just eat them alive, just like the gingerbread!



Now my girls bake cookies and make peanut butter balls and have a love for baking and cooking like I never had. I so hope my granddaughters will love to bake and cook. Perhaps some of that will rub off on Nana! So tell me what's your favorite candy or snack to make for others for the holidays?

And don't forget to stop by again tomorrow for the 18th day of the Advent. I love seeing what my ever so talented design team sisters come up with! Happy Holidays from me and mine to you and yours!

Card Ingredients:

Gingerbread Love by Belles N' Whistles, Eskimo Kisses paper from BasicGrey, K&Company Christmas stack paper, Stickles, copics, Soufflet gel pen, SU empty packaging

Try It Out Tuesda #48 - Bling It Out with Dance!

Today is Try It Out Tuesday for Susana's Custom Art and Card Design and our inspirational leader, Suzanne, challenged us to bling it up! If there's anyone who loves Stickles as much as me, it's got to be Suzanne! But I've got to admit that I did hold back just a bit and tried to let Belle, this gorgeous stamp from Victoria Case from Susana's Custom Art and Card Design, shine on her own.



This time of the year always brings thoughts of the Nutcracker Suite and I thought I'd do Belle up in a soft colors and make her pop with this gorgeous paper from DCWV. She's colored with copics and I added some silver rhinestones to the corner of her frame and just let her sweet self stand out.



Don't they have the most gorgeous faces? You could just color them over and over.

So make sure you head on over to Follow Your Heart and see what my of so talented designing friends have come up with for your viewing pleasure! And remember, blinging it up always makes things better!

Card Ingredients:

Belle from the Hearts and Hugs Collection from Victoria Case for Susana's Custom Art and Card Design, Stickles, copics, Dress It Up paper pack from DCWV, ribbon, hatpin, silver rhinestones, Diamond Glaze.

Roses on Paper Design Team Challenge - Deep Red, Green and Gold!

It is my time to host the Roses on Paper Design Team Challenge so I came up with the color combination of deep red, green, and gold for the holidays. I chose this gorgeously sweet Bildmalarna from their Christmas and Winter Collection that you can pick up from Summer at Roses on Paper. These little sweeties just pull at my heartstrings!

I love the deep, elegant colors of Christmas as much as I love the bright red, green and white. I used some great specialty paper from the Paper Company and made some poinsettias with my Shapeabilities by Spellbinders. This is one of my favorite sets! And I love adding the leaves and branches with my Martha Stewart punches and I think the large Bling is just the right size for the centers, don't you?



Don't they just have the sweetest faces on them? There's something about the sweetness of their smiles that just draws me. I'm just taken with them!

So make sure to stop over at Roses on Paper's Design Team Blog and see what my design team sisters have come up with to share with you. They'll inspire you beyond belief! And join in our challenge. We'd love to see your fabulous creations done in these rich, lucious colors!

Card Ingredients:

Christmas Angel Mimosa by Bildmalarnas, copics, nestabilities, shapeabilities, Stickles, Diamond Glaze, Bling by Basicgrey, Specialty paper from The Paper Company, MS branch and leaf punch.

Try It Out Tuesday #47 - Fun Folds!

Is there anything cuter than a little girl at Christmas time with some books? I absolutely adore Daisy from the Sampler 2 from Elisabeth Bell for Susana's Custom Art and Card Design and have been waiting for the perfect time to color her up. Suzanne, our oh so talented Design Team leader challenged us to create a card with folds and I decided to do a gate card. It's simple, but I love how you can decorate the sides and use ribbon and flowers. And the way it opens is fabulous!

Make sure to stop over to Susana's Custom Art and Card Design as she's got some great new products and deals going on. A selected few of her Shapeabilities are on sale so go on over and get a deal on some of them.

You know how I love these sweet faces! I just couldn't resist putting this one on a cute Christmas top with some green bows in her hair. Nothing makes me as happy as coloring up an Elisabeth Bell creation!




I love the look of the gate card and you can do anything with them that you want!



Make sure to stop by Follow Your Heart and see what my other Design Team commrades have come up with for you. They never let you down!


Card Ingredients:

Daisy from Elisabeth Bell for Susana's Custom Art and Card Design, Peppermint Forest paper stack from DCWV, Stickles, Smooch, cuttlebug embossing folders, Prima Flowers,
Rhinestones, nestabilities, Diamond Glaze

Day 2 of the Advent - Belle's Carol

I am so excited and glad that you've come to celebrate the Advent with us at Belles N' Whistles! Summer has some wonderful surprises for you so make sure to come back and visit every day. My Design Team sisters have the most wonderful traditions and memories of this precious and wonderful holiday to share with all of you.

One of my favorite things about Christmas is the music. I love the older, traditional songs as well as the newer, contemporary tunes. When I saw "Belle's Carols", my mind started filling up with the wonderful sounds of the holidays. I remember being a little girl and right after Thanksgiving, Mommy and Daddy would pull out the Christmas decorations and and packed away would be the cutest little paper Hymn books from our church that would have Silent Night, Oh Come All Ye Faithful, Joy to the World, and all of those hymns we grew up on. I would take that book and just look over it again and again and would day dream about seeing myself up on a stage singing to all the world in the most angelic voice anyone had ever heard. Well, if you've ever heard my voice, you'd tell me it's a good thing I can color! I would just sit and practice my stage act on my dolls and sing to the top of my lungs - in my head! I could lip sync like no one's business and I always knew my dolls thought I was the most dazzling of entertainers!



I would love to hear what your favorite holiday carol is so, please share that with us. Oh, Happy Holidays and let the fun begin!

Much love,

Susan

Card Ingredients:

Belle's Carols from Belles N' Whistles, Eskimo Kisses Paper from BasicGrey, Stickles, copics, Prima Flowers, BasicGrey Bling half moon pearls, Peppermint Forest paper from DCWV.