Hand Stamped By Heather Wright-Porto: Countdown to Christmas Project #4Polar Party Box Topper Gift Bag

Friday, October 28, 2011

Countdown to Christmas Project #4
Polar Party Box Topper Gift Bag

Good morning and welcome to week 4 of Countdown to Christmas with Sandi & Friends! 

During the holidays especially, we love to give gifts in a gift bag...so why not make a handmade one and one with a box topper!!!

Just a mention of Blog Candy to come…..make sure to leave a comment on my blog and those of the other Artists and you will have a chance for lot’s of Blog Candy….start leaving comments today and we’ll be drawing from all the Friday Countdown Comments for some fabulous Blog Candy at the end of the Countdown.  

Each of the design team members are offering blog candy…so that is 7 chances to win!  Be sure to send in your comments on Countdown to Christmas Fridays :D.  Picture to come……



This box topper (kinda of like a bag lid - LOL) and decorated gift bag features the Polar Party stamp set as the featured stamp set (center panel) and the Bright Hopes stamp set for the snowflakes you see.

The color scheme this week is Cherry Cobbler, Not Quite Navy and White.

What other color do you see in there?

The techniques used this week are the "Markers" (where you stamp in a base color and then use a Stampin' Write Marker and literally color on the stamp/ink) and "Masking" (where you can hide something behind something else and bring an item(s) to the front, like a Send to Front in MS Word).

For the snowflakes on the box topper trim, notice the base is  Cherry Cobbler and the Not Quite Navy accents are on the outer part of the snowflakes and the center (could not be accomplished with last week's Rock-n-Roll technique).  Markers also give a rich color.

Look at the center of the front panel and notice the Polar Bear is in front of the trees!  That is where the masking technique was used.  And then lets not forget watercoloring using the Watercolor Pencils and a Blender Pen.

OTHER IDEAS
I was trying not to "overdo" the gift bag.  But here are a few other ideas that you could use but it will add a little more time to do your project!
  • I was going to add silver or clear brads to the center of the snowflakes in the box topper (there are many!).
  • You could add any brads or jewels to the trees on the front panel to add sparkle.
  • You could use Crystal Effects on the tree decorations or the polar bear's hat and scarf for added dimension and shine.
  • Stamping snowflakes or a background stamp on the actual white gift bag. I thought about this but again I didn't want to overdo it. LOL.
  • Lastly, you could add ribbon to the project - everything looks nice packaged/sealed with a bow! :D

If you haven't already, sign up for the Countdown to Christmas newsletter in the upper right sidebar to get the free tutorial for this week's Box Topper project!


If you have a moment and want more holiday inspiration,
please visit the design team!

COUNTDOWN TO CHRISTMAS
DESIGN ARTISTS 
RETURNING Team Members:
Lee Conrey - Florida, U.S.A. website
CaroleAnne Sluchinski - Alberta, Canada website
Sandi MacIver - Oregon, U.S.A. website

NEW Team Members:
Shelagh Freemantle - British Columbia, Canada website
Linda Geater - New South Wales - Australia website

Kate Creasey - Washington, U.S.A. website
Heather Wright-Porto - New York, U.S.A. website (ME)

Happy stamping!
Heather Wright-Porto
http://www.blogsbyheather.com/
http://www.handstampedbyheather.com/

23 comments:

Carey said...

Oh I love this set and the colors you used. I would be hard pressed to decide which blog I loved the most in this project. This stamp set is great and you did a fantastic job with the project.


Carey Rogers
aka Roscoe's mommy (the swap eating dog)

Carole'Anne AKA Stampin Stressaway said...

really nicely done Heather this is adorable I think this is the cutest stamp ever
I love the snowflakes on the topper

lisa808 said...

Great color combo for your cute project.

Heather Wright-Porto said...

Thanks so much!!!

yes, I went outside my comfort zone…LOL. I normally don't do many "cute" things - LOL. But I saw this set and really like it :D Thanks for visiting!

Anonymous said...

It is a cute bag! It will give smiles to whomever is lucky enough to receive it. Thanks for sharing.
Blessings,
Deborah

sandi maciver said...

aw, I love it too, such bright cheery colors, and I love how you are incorporating techniques into the projects too, what a great idea, and thanks so much for sharing them.
Hugs my friend

Beastybunny said...

Great work! I love the clean lines and colors on this. And I love the whole concept of these bag toppers. Just fantastic!

Texas JennyWren said...

What a cute idea to top the gift bag. Love your design.

Patti said...

Love this idea. I like the clean look of your bag.

Linda Geater said...

What a cute stamp set Heather and what a great job you did on this one...well done!! hugs xo

Pat P. said...

Great topper and stamp set. I'm thinking a child would love a gift under the Tree from Santa in this bag. Thanks for sharing.

Kaye W. said...

What a cute and fun bag! I need to make one like this for my best friend, she loves bears and snowmen! Thanks for the great idea!

Kristie said...

Cute bag. Thanks for sharing.

Shelagh Freemantle said...

I can't believe it....I love this stamp set but I don't own it. That will change. So much fun, thanks Heather for this and all you do. Hugs Shelagh

Melissa said...

Nice choice of colors!

NancyS (momsnack) said...

Cute! and I love all your tips for additional ways to dress it up!

Sandy Jones said...

What a cute bag/topper!

DawnKathleen said...

Awesome bag!

Anonymous said...

Love your project. Dianne Bell

Anonymous said...

Heather, Cute bad, and I'm glad you did a larger bag than the others----shows us we can also package those bigger things--like stuffed animals for the little ones--in these neat bags. I find making "toppers" so much easier than trying to wrap odd-shaped/sized things. Thanks so much!
=) Gail S.

transfirstteach said...

Heather this is a beautiful work of art. I love the whole thing. I use to use material to top my bags, but will try this for may Christmas pkgs. Thanks for sharing and I hope I am the lucky winner.

Kathy Mc said...

Heather, your nontraditional holiday colors really are great together. Your main image really pops. Is that bashful blue for the one layer? Your bigger-size bag is also very useful. Thanks for sharing your techniques and other ideas for embellishing!

irishgalkelly said...

Hi Heather! Love your topper here. The colors are so pretty together. I like the idea of "hiding" what is inside your bag. Great idea!