Joyeux Noel

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Christmas is such a joyful holiday celebrated world-wide that I felt inspired to create a festive card that felt like Paris! I chose a luxe palette of pinks and blacks and LOTS of glitter. So prepare yourself for a massive clean-up of glitter and glue when you are finished, but the results will be soooo worth it! Even my husband said "Wow! Pretty!" when he saw this festive creation.  So let's put the pretty to work!

We begin with the square shapes in wood from Unique Laser Designs 

There are 18 separate squares in this set, and the smallest squares fit inside the center of the larger squares. Select the squares that you'd like to use on your project. I used 3 small squares, 2 squares with dots, and 2 squares with diagonal lines.

Paint your squares with a nice smooth coat of paint. I like acrylics. You don't need to use an expensive paint; something from the local craft store works great. I painted the three small squares pink, black, and white, and each large square in black and pink. Set aside and let dry.

Once your painted squares are dry, you are then ready to set up the glitter assembly line! I take three pieces of small scrap paper, add a big puddle of craft glue on the first, then leave the other two blank. Immerse your wood square into the glitter puddle, pull it up, then use your finger to evenly smooth and distribute the glue. The small square of scrap paper makes a nice space to blot out excess glue from your wood piece and your finger.

Once your square is evenly covered in glue and the excess has been wiped off, place it on the third piece of paper and cover it with glitter. I selected Onyx and Crystal Fine, from Martha Stewart, and Faerie, from Barbara Trombley's Art Glitter. Really get in there and make sure the entire piece is coated with a nice thick layer of the glittery magic! Gently pat it down with a dry finger and shake off the excess onto your paper.

Once all your pieces have been glittered, just set them aside and let them dry for a while. Since all these shapes have these pretty detailed cuts in the center, take a long sewing needle and clean out excess glue and glitter from the inside cuts.

To prepare the card stock card base, cut a square of bright white card stock 5.5 inches square. Cut another square slightly smaller in black, and then a third in a pretty pink pattern paper of your choice that reminds you of Paris! I found this pretty dimensional pink and white harlequin diamond paper at a large craft store chain. Adhere all your squares together.

Now it's time to create and assemble your glitter paper cuts. I used glitter paper in shades of pink, black, and white to create ribbons and bows. Glue them onto the glittered wood "packages"and trim.

The swirly Christmas tree, the star, and the curled ribbons were created with my favorite die cuts and my die cutting machine. The complete product list is included at the end. Assemble your tree, star, ribbons, presents and bows onto your card, and
                                                                        VOILA!

It's a very bright and merry Joyeux Noel!

Enjoy your glittery crafting holiday season, and from our Unique Laser Designs family to yours,  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Live your life in color!

Supplies List:
Unique Laser Designs Shapes -Squares
white card stock paper
black card stock paper
patterned card stock paper
pink glitter paper
black glitter paper
white glitter paper
Onyx glitter, Martha Stewart
Crystal Fine glitter, Martha Stewart
Faerie glitter,  Barbara Trombley's Art Glitter
Poppystamps steel craft dies: Christmas Baubles and Birthday Stack
Memory Box steel craft dies: Curled Ribbons, Crisp Bows, Winterland Tree, Winterland Tree Background