By Lisa Gutierrez on 12/03/2012 
I finished up our Christmas card, this weekend. I had a few different ideas, but in the end, simplicity won. I took the photos about two weeks ago in the boys’ bedroom (the windows in their room are right next to each other, so there’s great light). They wore gray gingham shirts from Target and I crocheted some simple bow ties. They totally brought the charm and I got several nice photos.
When designing the actual card, I wanted something beautiful, but not outrageous. I found the font on Lost Type Co-op [Lavanderia] and was in love. The rest was pretty simple, a line here, a line there, and some stars. I ordered 4″ x 6″ prints from Snapfish and mounted them on white cardstock. Easy peasy.
What took time was my peace dove. If you turn it upside down, it’s an angel! I’m leaving it to the recipient to decide what it is.
Anyway, my original plan was to put it on some white cards and then have the photo on the inside. I made a few using some pewter ink (from my Speedball metallic ink set ), but I didn’t really dig the huge contrast between white and dark gray. I liked the print enough to know I wanted to use it somehow. After rummaging through supplies, I found the kraft bags and since they were the perfect fit for the print, I decided to give it a shot. I used white ink and fell in love. The hours of printing and washing and carving (over and over and over because I kept finding new pieces to carve out) really paid off.
And that was that! I closed each up with a bit of Christmas-y washi tape on the back. The ones I have to mail will be put into white envelopes for some extra protection.
Have you made your Christmas card yet?? Are you DIY-ing any part of it?
I’m linking this post up to The Paper Mama’s Holiday Photo challenge. Go check out the adorable entries (and maybe enter yours??)!
By Lisa Gutierrez on 12/02/2012
It’s finally here. We’ve been listening to Christmas music, drinking hot chocolate (though the weather is just ugh here in Houston), and decorating. I really like the inspiration this month brings. I want to make so many things. I want to knit all the time. I want to cover everything in stamps or glitter or washi tape. I really wish I felt like this every month of the year.
That lino up there might be my nemesis. It started nicely, but now that I’m done and actually making prints, I don’t know, man. I have had to fine tune it no less than 8 times. I keep finding itty bitty pieces to carve out. I got tempted to just throw it in the trash but, NO….I’ve worked way too hard to just let it go. I had a tough time getting my ink right, but some of the final prints I made last night during my test batch were actually pretty. Today, I finish up our Christmas card! I’m really excited because the photos I took of my boys for it might be my favorites yet. Outtakes:
 
Yeeahhh.
By Lisa Gutierrez on 02/17/2012 
15; a new skill
This isn’t new-new, but it is the newest skill I’ve learned. I started carving my own stamps, last year. This is my most used (with a regular dye ink pad). It gets stamped on the envelopes that carry printed copies of Lace Love all over the world! Can you see it? It’s a crochet pineapple. No, it’s a heart. No, it’s both. Ohhh-aahhhh.
Speaking of Lace Love, I have less than 15 copies left! If you would like one, please see the shop.
16; texture
The texture of mercerized cotton is pretty neat. And that color? Glorious. I contemplated converting the photo to black & white, to bring out the texture, but I couldn’t bear to part with that lovely morado.
17; last FO I used
After taking some photos of my hooks in an old Picante sauce jar, I realized I liked the shorter/fatter ones more. SO- I put my hooks into this old pimento jar! I have a lot of glass jars. They look so sweet with cozies, no?!
[See my other craft photos from this month.]
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By Lisa Gutierrez on 12/12/2011 
It was last Christmas when I gifted myself a copy of Print Workshop and the basic tools of a block-printing kit. Over the past year, I’ve made quite a few stamps using my trusty lino cutter , including a crochet-inspired one that I’ve been using on the envelopes for my Lace Love orders. I’ll share that one with you soon, but today I want to talk about my Christmas card!
I doodled this tree, inspired by a drawing in a children’s book, several times and knew I wanted to incorporate it into our Christmas card somehow. I cut a small version on a scrap piece of Speedy Carve and liked it so much, I began drawing it larger. When I was finally satisfied, I drew it directly on a linoleum block and began carving. I found some metallic Speedball ink on clearance at Hobby Lobby one day and took it as a sign. THIS needed to be on the front of my card! I got to work immediately and had my 30 cards printed in a few short hours.
Its metallic-y shiny goodness–which was surprisingly hard to capture in photos–is not the best part of the card. Nope. The BEST past of the card? The handsome little fellas on the inside:
Thrifted blazers, vests, cardigans, lollipops. Informal to the max, but just our style.
You want to see outtakes, you say? But, of course!
I took the outdoor photos first. There was more than one meltdown, I can promise you that. The black & white photo shows what a toddler looks like when his big brother tells him he WILL NOT hold his hand. Oh my word, the tears! I spared you the photo of them BOTH crying because I threaten their treat. When we finally came back in, they got their lollipop prize and were still so adorable, I HAD to take more photos. In our dining room. Lucky I did because I ended up loving one of those the most!
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Did YOU take your own Christmas card photo? How did it go?? How did you “dress it up” for your actual card? I want to know!
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p.s. Don’t forget to enter the giveaway for 100 custom postcards I posted earlier today!
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p.p.s. I totally forgot to mention I’m linking up with The Paper Mama’s Holiday Photo challenge!
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