Christmas

DIY Farmhouse Felt Christmas Ornaments

56 · Nov 14, 2018 · Leave a Comment

I am going to label this season at WhipperBerry the felt season. I LOVE all things felt and I love being able to cut and customize my felt designs using my Cricut Maker & my cute little Cricut EasyPress 2. I have been wanting to create a farmhouse style tree that is all black & white so I thought some simple and elegant felt ornaments are a perfect addition to the tree. Farmhouse felt Christmas ornaments are sure to be a classic staple for years to come as you decorate for the holidays, plus they are super easy to store and won’t break! I love it!! Here’s how you can make a set of your own.

+ This post is sponsored by my favorite folks at Cricut +

What I love about these ornaments is that you can tell your Christmas story right on your tree with these simple word ornaments. If you love Santa and would like to have a tree dedicated to words that evoke fond memories of all things Santa, you can create that!

If you would like to tell the story about the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ you can do that as well. I know that each family is different but that’s what’s beautiful about these simple ornaments. You create your own story.

Not to mention the fact that YOU can select the colors. If you are like me and would like to stick with black & white, great. If you want to have a rainbow tree, awesome! It’s all up to you and I LOVE that. Here, let me show you what you need and how to make these simple but elegant ornaments for your tree.

Farmhouse Felt Christmas Ornaments Supplies

Instructions

First, what you’ll need to do is to click on this LINK to my project in Cricut Design Space. My design will let you add your own words and customize it how you would like OR, open Design Space and create some ornament designs of your own.

Now, if you are using my design, everything is sized and ready to go for you. If you are creating some ornaments of your own design, double check the sizes and make sure everything is prepped and ready to cut. If you don’t know how to do that you can visit this post that has a full video tutorial on how to prep your design for cutting in design space.

Once you are ready to cut, all you need to do is load your felt onto your Fabric cutting mat and follow the directions on the Design Space screen.

Now for cutting the felt, I have been more successful using the rotary blade than the deep cut blade so, you’ll have to manually change that when you’re ready to cut.

Here are a couple of VERY IMPORTANT RULES…

When cutting felt on the Fabric Cutting Mat, DON’T worry about the fuzz that is left behind. I have been cutting all kinds of felt on just one cutting mat with fuzz and all and it’s not a problem. The more you play around with the cutting mat and try to scrape or wash that felt fuzz off, the more you are damaging your mat. Just keep going and ignore the fuzz. Of course, test to make sure that your felt is secure on the mat. It will after quite a few cuts become difficult to use and at that point, it’s a better idea to dispose of that mat and start using another one.
DON’T FORGET TO MIRROR YOUR IMAGES! I’ve done it more than I would like to admit which drives me CRAZY! When you are cutting your designs when using the iron-on vinyl, make sure to mirror your images. Remember, the design is cut on the back side of the Everyday Iron-On. You will flip it over and iron on your design onto the surface of your project.

It looks like a crazy bunch of backward letters but, flip it over and cut out your words and it looks just fine.

Now that your words are all cut along with your felt ornaments now, it’s time to press the EveryDay Iron-on onto the felt.

HANDS-DOWN the best tool to press any type of iron-on material is any of the Cricut EasyPress tools. I love these gems and don’t know what I would do without them in my crafting arsenal. The EasyPress and the EasyPress 2 machines are far superior to a regular iron. If you love to create anything with an iron-on element you need to invest in one or more of these great machines. The heat plate holds a consistent temperature all throughout the plate. With irons, you will have hot and cool spots. Also, the EasyPress 2 heats up super quick! I LOVE all three of the EasyPress 2 sizes. For this project, I’m using the small 6×7 size. CUTEST LITTLE EASYPRESS EVER!!

Now, all you need to do is to lay your felt down on your EasyPress Mat, place your words on the felt in the proper place, cover your ornament with the Cricut Protective Mat or a cotton tea towel and press with the small Easypress 2 set to 35o˚ for 60 seconds.

I use the remover tool to save my heat sensitive fingers from the Easy Press Mat and let it cool for about 1 minute.

Then I carefully pull the protective sheet from the top of the Everyday Iron-on material. Always start slow and pull carefully. If you see any lifting, stop and give it another run under the EasyPress 2.

Now, all you need to do is add some ribbon bows if you’d like and some ribbon for the ornament to hang from.

And, that’s it! You have some great non-breakable ornaments for your tree or to use as gift tags or even for a simple gift for neighbors!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Cricut. The opinions and text are all mine.

How To Make A Large Scale Felt Banner for Christmas

59 · Nov 9, 2018 · 3 Comments

Boy-oh-Boy… I LOVE large scale projects! Sometimes bigger really is better in my book. There are times when you really need to make a statement and a large scale felt banner or large drop cloth sign created to wow your guests or to really make a room POP! I wanted to create a large felt sign for the Christmas season to add to my living room and to also use for a Christmas party that I’m planning this year. Let me show you what I made and how YOU can make one yourself!

• This post is brought to you by the amazing folk at Cricut •

Many of you might say that a project of this size is impossible, especially with the Cricut cutting machines. You can really only cut 12 inches by 24 inches, right? Technically, yes. However, if you have learned to master the Slice & Contour tools in Cricut Design Space, it’s actually very do-able. Especially now, with the Cricut Maker & the new larger Easy Press 2… Projects like this are a DREAM! The Maker can handle all kinds of materials like the most delicate paper and fabric to the tough stuff like matboard, leather, and balsa wood. What I especially love is that you can use it to cut FELT! One of my favorite materials to create with. Now, you can do it on a much LARGER scale with the help of some tips and tricks that will follow.

How to Use the Slice and Contour Tools

I have heard a few people who have complained about the lack of freedom in Design Space and I’m here to tell you… That’s not true! You have a ton of freedom when designing in Cricut Design Space if you are good friends with your Slice and Contour tools. These are the two tools that help you customize either your own graphics or graphics from the huge library of designs in the Design Space library. Here is a quick video to show you how I break this large design ( it’s roughly about 4 feet wide and a little over 4 feet tall) into smaller pieces so that they will fit on my 12×24 cutting mat for the Cricut Maker.

Isn’t that cool! I love that with a little knowledge and some imagination, you can truly create something incredible with the Cricut tools.

Supplies for Large-Scale Felt Banner

1 1/2 yards of black canvas fabric
24 – gold felt 9×12
8 – white premium felt 12×18
5 – antique white felt 9×12
3 – red premium felt 12×18
5 – heathered gray premium felt 12×18
3 – dark green felt 9×12
3 – light green felt 9×12
24 – large wood beads of various sizes 1 inch, 1 1/4 inch
10 – black wool felt balls – 2.5cm
Cricut Maker with Rotary Blade
1 – Fabric Grip Cricut Cutting Mat
Heat n’Bond
Cricut Easy Press 2 – 12×10
Cricut Easy Press Mat-20×16
Cricut Iron-On Protective Sheet
hot glue gun
hot glue sticks
2 – 4 ft. wood dowels
cotton rope
measuring tape

Instructions

You will want to set-up your Easy Press 2 and the Easy Press Mat and iron-on the Heat n’Bond on one side of each of the felt pieces. I LOVE the Easy Press 2 for this!! Seriously way easier than using a small iron and the consistency of the heat plate make this a breeze.
Jump into Cricut Design Space via this LINK HERE to get access to my design file. I have this project all ready to go for you. It’s sized to create a LARGE 3 1/2 x 4 foot banner. The design is already sliced and contoured so that you don’t have to worry about that step. All you need to do is follow the on-screen prompts and load the mat with the color of felt that it corresponds with and you’ll be good to go. NOW, the felt that I had was smaller than the designs, not to worry though. I placed my felt onto the cutting mat and easily pieced them together while I was pressing them onto the fabric. If you’re careful you won’t even see the seam.
You will find that some of the designs don’t all fit onto one sheet of felt. Don’t worry about that. Just keep all of your pieces organized with where they need to go. Then when you’re ready to iron them on, you’ll do just that with even the little pieces and you’ll never know there was a cut there.
Once everything is cut, press your black canvas. You don’t want to have any wrinkles. I just use my Easy Press 2 for this process. WAY EASIER!
Now, I have you cutting 2 sets of the gold wreath section of the banner. That’s not a mistake, I wanted the wreath section to pop out so that it’s 3D rather than a flat design.
Lay out your wreath & quote on the black canvas and make sure that it is placed in the center and spaced according to the photo below. This is when you will want to make sure you have kept any small pieces and have placed them in the right spot.
Once you have placed the design the way you would like it. Place the Easy Press Mat under the first section and set your Easy Press 2 to 350˚. Lay the Iron-On Protective Mat on top of the first felt section and then lightly press the Easy Press 2 for 60 seconds on that first section.
Continue over the entire design until it is all ironed onto the canvas.
Next, you assemble the flowers with hot glue. I used a wood bead in the center of each flower because I like the look and it stabilizes the flower a little more.
Once the flowers are assembled, start laying them out on the canvas until you get the look that you like. Then section by section, hot glue the flowers and leaves onto the banner.
At this point, you have two choices. You can finish off the banner by sewing the pocket for the dowel OR, you can faux sew like me and just hot glue the pocket. I fold the top of the fabric down about 2 1/2 – 3 inches and then hot glue or sew across the bottom of the fold leaving a pocket to feed the dowel through.
Repeat the last step at the bottom of the banner as well. This is needed to add some weight at the bottom of the banner. If you don’t have this the banner will hang a little wonky.
Tie the cotton rope onto the top dowel so that you can hang the banner.

Now, you’re all finished! You have an amazing work of art that you will treasure for years. What other large-scale signs are you wanting to make? I just finished creating all kinds of large-scale projects for my daughter’s wedding and I can’t wait to show you what I created for that amazing event.

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Cricut. The opinions and text are all mine.

Soup Mix Sharing Jars

146 · Nov 9, 2018 · 5 Comments

This post is brought to you by Ball® Fresh Preserving Products by Newell Brands

Not all holiday gifts need to be ooey gooey sweet. Savory holiday gifts are just as lovely, sometimes even more so. I personally have been off sugar for 3 months now and I’m really nervous for the holiday season to arrive. Having the house fill up with sweets is NOT what I’m wishing for this Christmas. I would LOVE to get one of these Ball® Sharing Jar soup mixes as a gift. Not only is the soup mix soothing to the soul, but they are also good for you as well.

You can go as crazy wild as you want, adding all kinds of savory dried ingredients that are perfectly hand-picked by you, or keep it super simple and dress-up a store bought soup mix. My favorite Ball® Sharing Jars are the inspiration for my Sharing Jar Soup quartet.

I love the simplicity and earthiness of these soup mixes paired with a simple label & ribbon. As Ina would say, “How easy is that?”

Sharing Jar Soup Mix Labels

Before we get into the soup, I want to chat about the labels. I selected some classic soup recipes and created home wintery labels that are not only good throughout the holidays, but all through the winter. You can download and use these free printable label s HERE.

They are designed to be printed on card stock paper and then, using double-sided tape, taped onto one of the sections of the beautiful quart sized Sharing Jars. It’s a stunning way to highlight the character of the unique BALL® COLLECTION ELITE® WIDE MOUTH QUART SHARING JARS, which are perfect for gifting.

The Sharing Jar Soup Mix Collection

Here are three soup mixes along with their recipes that work perfectly for gifting and are typically real crowd pleasers.

SPLIT PEA SOUP, a classic, and one of my family’s favorites! You can download the recipe cards for this concoction HERE.

This spicy gem, BLACK BEAN SOUP, is a staple at many houses and will for sure be appreciated by whomever you gift this soup too. HERE are the recipe and mixing directions.

Lentils have become a favorite of mine and this soup does not disappoint! You can download the recipe for this treat HERE.

Now, last but not least is a little cheater method… If you are in a super hurry, grab a packet of a Tomato Based Soup with Pasta and an extra bag of Mexican style noodles to add to the mix and dump it into your Sharing Jar. This simple but heartwarming soup is fabulous during those winter months. Plus, it’s SUPER easy to throw together this gift!

You can download the mixing directions HERE.

Now you need to go stock up on some of the giftable Ball® Sharing Jars and get busy, those holidays wait for no one! Surprise your friends and neighbors with this thoughtful gift this season.

White Chocolate Ginger Scone Mix In A Jar

50 · Nov 6, 2018 · 6 Comments

This post is brought to you by Ball® Fresh Preserving Products by Newell Brands

When it comes to Holiday gifting, I wholeheartedly believe the best friend, neighbor, co-worker, and teacher gifts come wrapped in a jar. Don’t you? Scrumptious jellies, jams, preserved fruit, and veggies. Not to mention; candies, cookies, fudge, cupcakes, rolls… I could go on and on. I LOVE what you can do with a simple Ball® Mason Jar. This year, I’m working on all kinds of fun gifts for the Holidays that will look spectacular gifted inside of a jar. One of my favorites is the White Chocolate Ginger Scone Mix in a jar. It’s really easy to put together a whole bunch of these gifts and really not expensive at all. It’s always a bonus to save a little money during the holidays.

To put these together you will need to gather a few ingredients, grab some classic BALL® WIDE MOUTH QUART JARS and in no time you’ll have a bunch of scrumptious gifts to share with your friends and neighbors. Here’s what you need…

White Chocolate Ginger Scones Mix Supplies

BALL® HOME CANNING FUNNEL

2 tsp Ginger, ground
3 3/4 cups All-purpose flour
2 Tbsp Baking powder
1/4 tsp Baking soda
1/2 cup Brown sugar, packed
1 tsp Cinnamon, ground
1/4 tsp Cloves, ground
1/4 tsp Nutmeg, ground
1/2 tsp Salt

1 cup White Chocolate Chips

3 – Quart size wide-mouth Ball® Jars

Printed copies of the baking instructions and labels on card stock paper

Ribbon

Greenery

Instructions

Now, this project makes 3-quart jars, however, feel free to double, triple… quadruple the recipe to make however many you need.

One tool I find invaluable when creating gifts like this is my handy funnel. I love this thing! It’s specially designed for wide mouth mason jars and it helps so much with keeping the mess down, not to mention wasted ingredients.

I like to line up my jars like an assembly line and then layer each ingredient.

I start with the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. In a small bowl, I combine those three ingredients and then evenly distribute them into the 3 jars.

Next, I add the brown sugar, then the spices & salt.

Then, top it all off with the white chocolate chips.

Now is the extra fun part, decorating the jar. I have two options for you here. If you are a Cricut owner and would like to use my Cricut cut files for the jars, you can access those HERE.