A Paper Tree Tutorial

Hello Everyone, Audrey Yeager here today!

One of my favorite projects I recently did for GCD Studios was a simple little Christmas tree, and I'm going to share with you how I did it!  You can view it and lots of other inspiration HERE in the latest edition or the GCD Studios Magazine "The Paper Cut".

1.  Cut two circles of each size, starting with 7" as the largest, and going down to 1.5", in half inch increments.  This will give you 12 different sized circles for your tree.

2. With wrong sides together, stitch around the circle, but leave about a 1.5" opening.  Fill each circle with Poly Fill batting. (To give some weight to the base of your tree, you could fill the largest base circle with some dried rice or beans.)

3. Once all the circles have been stuffed, stitch the openings closed.

4. At this point, you can stack your circles.  There are different ways to do this.  You could run a string through all of the circles right up the center, starting at the bottom, and then leave some threads at the top so that you can hang your tree.  You could also use a wooden bamboo skewer or dowel and pierce through the holes to provide some more stability.  Or you could do what I did and just use glue dots to attach one circle to the next.

I have been doing a lot of Christmas decor this year on my blog, here are a few sneaks at some of the other projects I've done.  Just click on the link to see more! 

Christmas Village Frame

Countdown to Christmas Calendar

LOTS of Christmas layouts

Christmas Tree Gift Card Holder

Beginnings of my December Daily 2012

Christmas Tags

Thanks for stopping by today!

**Designer projects are not always linked in our posts, but you can always find their blogs in our sidebar or in the staff tab**

Getting Creative with Christmas Trees

Cathy is here today to share some cute little paper Christmas trees that are fast and easy to create!  They cute, whimsical little trees that kind of remind me of the trees you might find in Whoville.

 The first tree is made from Spellbinders Scalloped Circle Dies and The Girl's Paperie Tinsel and Twig line.  I loved the line so much that I wanted to make something special with the last bits that I had left.

 I used about 45 circles in all to create the tree, 9 pieces of each size.  After you have the circles cut, crumple them up.  Arrange your circles in the color order you would like, (double sided paper works best) and then starting with the largest circles, poke a hole in the middle and layer onto a BBQ Skewer.  I then hot glued the skewer into a vintage thread spool.  Topped it with a two snowflake chipboards from the Tinsel and Twig line.  After I had it all assembled, I sprayed it with spray adhesive and added glitter and micro beads. 

 This little tree is my favorite.  It is made from Echo Park's Season's Greetings line and Tim Holtz Rosette Dies.  I cut 3 rosettes of each size, assembled them, Tim Holtz Rosette Die Tutorial, and then stacked them onto another vintage spool.  They are glued with Ranger's Glossy Accents.  Inserted a pin topped with a rusty star, a cute little flag from Echo Park and a little bit of twine.

 Here's another Spellbinder Scallop Circle Tree made with vintage sheet music.  If you choose to use sheet music you will need approximately 80 circles.  I have also made this tree with old sewing patterns, since they are so thin, it takes close to 120 circles to make a tree. 

Cathy's Blog

Pin It **Designer projects are not always linked in our posts, but you can always find their blogs in our sidebar or in the staff tab**

Rolled Christmas Tree Tutorial and Layout

I loved what Ann did with this layout and I asked her if we could share it early (it was originally slated for our Christmas layouts feature next week) because I thought some of you might find the Christmas tree tutorial useful.  Check out her fabulous tutorial for this rolled tree by clicking here.

Pin It **Designer projects are not always linked in our posts, but you can always find their blogs in our sidebar or in the staff tab**

December 9th- Pop up Christmas Trees

Hi, this is designer Carolina Garrido with a new Christmas feature for you. Today I'd like to show you two pop-up tree cards. I'm in love with pop-up cards, as there is always an element of surprise in them, so a couple of months ago I bought the Sizzix pop-up tree die, which I used for the card below:

I have to say those visions of mass-producing pop-up cards abandoned me promptly once I began putting this tree together, since it is not as easy as it looks, but it is still worth the effort. Have a look at this close-up, isn't it beautiful?

If, like me, you have had this die for months and haven't dared try it, or if you think this could be a good addition to your Christmas list, have a look at these video tutorials by Karen Burniston, who designed the die cut set. They are clear and detailed and will show you everything you need to know about them.

And if you want to have that pop-up element in your Christmas cards but your Christmas list is too crowded to add the Sizzix dies to it, here is the solution for you:

This is a very, very simple pop-up tree designed by Robert Sabuda that could be decorated to make any card stand out! You will find printables and detailed instructions here.

I hope you have enjoyed this feature as much as I enjoyed making these trees, and if you decide to make any of these, I'd love to see what you create! Leave a comment below so we can visit your blog/gallery and leave you some love.

 Merry Christmas to all of you
.Pin It **Designer projects are not always linked in our posts, but you can always find their blogs in our sidebar or in the staff tab**

Twine Tree

Hi everyone! This is Ann and I'm here to show you a fun and quick Christmas decor idea. Don't you love how Practical Scrappers is idea central for everything Christmas? Keep coming back everyday for more great ideas for Christmas decor, pages, cards, and so much more. Today I want to share a quick tutorial on making a cute little Christmas tree!

Here's what you'll need:

styrofoam cone

twine of various colours

bling or gems or other embellishments

quick drying strong adhesive such as Beacon's

needle

Working at the backseam, use strong quick dry adhesive to glue the end of the twine to the cone. I started at the top and worked my way down, wrapping the twine around the cone. After about an inch or so of wrapping, I switched the shade of green by snipping the end and adhering it to the backseam of the Styrofoam cone, and starting the new colour in the same way. This process is repeated throughout the height of the cone, just alternating green shades when it seems pleasing to do so.

Next, to adorn the twine wrapped tree, I made an assortment of pompoms from twine. To do this, you will need a fork. Snip a piece of twine about 2” long and set aside. Now, holding on to the end, wrap the twine around the twines of the fork. The bushiness of your pompom will vary depending on how many times you wrap the fork. Mine varied – some pompoms were 20, some were 25 and some were 30. Once you are done wrapping, snip the twine.


Grasp the piece of twine you set aside and tie it around the middle of the pompom by coming up from behind in the space between the centre tines.

Pull very tightly and tie a knot.


Then slide the pompom off the tines of the fork.







Using sharp scissors, snip between the loops.



Then begin to poof your pompom into shape, clipping long strands.
Then thread the needle with another colour of twine and string the pompoms on the twine (like you do popcorn at Christmas!) by inserting the needle through the knotted area. Experiment with the spacing of the pompoms, and then start to wrap your pompom garland around the tree. I started by adhering an end of the garland at the bottom of the tree, and wrapped it, again adjusting the placement of the pompoms. When I was satisfied, I used the glue to adhere the pompom to the wrapped cone.


To finish the tree, I adhered various sized gems to it.
I also dabbed some sparkly Stickles to the pompoms.
Lastly, I wrapped a star shaped chipboard punchout with twine and then used a coiled wire to put it at the treetop.

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial today!

Pin It **Designer projects are not always linked in our posts, but you can always find their blogs in our sidebar or in the staff tab**

Christmas Tree Projects Showcase

Today we're going green on Practical Scrappers... as in evergreens. Before we share those projects how about a little history lesson on the origins of the Christmas tree.

"The Christmas tree is often brought into a home, but can also be used in the open, and can be decorated with Christmas lights (originally candles), ornaments, garlands and tinsel during the days around Christmas. An angel or star is often placed at the top of the tree, representing the host of angels or the Star of Bethlehem from the Nativity. The tradition of decorating an evergreen tree at Christmas started in Livonia and Germany in the 16th century.

The origin of the Christmas tree is obscured by uncertainties of oral histories of pre-literate European cultures. For example, according to Christian lore, the Christmas tree is associated with St Boniface and the German town of Geismar. Sometime in St Boniface's lifetime (c. 672-754) he cut down the tree of Thor in order to disprove the legitimacy of the Norse gods to the local German tribe. St. Boniface saw a fir tree growing in the roots of the old oak. Taking this as a sign of the Christian faith, he said "...let Christ be at the center of your households..." using the fir tree as a symbol of Christianity"
~Wikipedia
Now, here are some of our favorite submissions that we received featuring Christmas trees...

Kirsten