Merry Little Christmas

AllyScraps is having a "Merry Little Christmas" and it's only November 1st! We are so thankful to Jennifer Beason for this very special and wonderful project that she created for our blog. It's just stunning, and will be such a beautiful decoration in Jennifer's holiday home. We are also thankful that Jennifer took the time to create such detailed instructions (with LOTS of photos) to help us create one of these for ourselves. Take a look... you'll be amazed.





Instructions:
* Use two pages of a Maya Road Snowflake Coaster Album to create the reindeer's antlers. (You can see in pic.1 how the snowflakes were cut to shape.) Cover the front and back of each antler with patterned paper, then set aside.
* Next begin to cover a 4 inch styro-foam ball with patterned paper. (If you find the paper won't adhere, try coating the ball with a thin coat of Spackling Compound first.) For the neck area cut a 1/4 inch strip of cardboard and adhere with the glue and more patterned paper (pic. 2). The muzzle and nose (the top section of a Babushka doll, seen in pic3) was then also covered with brown and red patterned paper and attached with glue. Where the ball / head and muzzle meet use more paper to hide the seam. A scalloped border was used to finish the nose.
* Cover two chipboard petals front and back with patterned paper, add a little color to the inside of the ears, by using a pink patterned paper cut slightly smaller. Cut two slits on the top of the reindeer's head. Apply glue to the ears and insert into the slits. Adhere the antlers to the side of the head in the same manner.(pic.4&5)
* To complete the head, add some eyes. I used the Silhouette to cut mine out of some cardstock, then used markers and colored pencils to add more details. (pic6)



* To create the hat, draw then cut out a zig-zag border similar to the one in pic.7. Cover the border on both sides with contrasting patterned papers. Join the ends together with glue to form a crown. (pic.8)
* Next make a cone out of patterned paper to fit into the center of your crown. Add some Mod Podge adhesive to the inside of the cone, then bend the tip and shape the hat to desired look. When the cone is dry, glue it to inside of the crown. Embellish the hat with fur, a flower, pearls and Silhouette cut borders and leaves.(pic9)



* Create a large cone shape out of cardboard. NOTE: When making this, use your second foam ball as a guide for the size. You want the cone to sit snug on top of the ball. Cut a zigzag pattern along the bottom edge of the cone. Then cover with patterned paper.(pic10)
* A triangular piece of paper in the reindeer's skin color was added to the front of the cone. Then more patterned paper was added to create the collar and border stickers were added to the edge.
* Cut the jacket detailing on the Silhouette (pic11). Overlap two small pieces of the border then glue into place. Use trinket pins as your buttons after the jacket has been attached to the rest of the body.
* Make two small cones for the sleeves of the jacket. Bend one of the sleeves as seen in pic 12. Apply fur to the end of the sleeves and adhere them to jacket.
* Cut two small egg shapes out of chipboard to create hoofs / hands. Cover them with paper and attach them to the inside of each sleeve.



* Cover existing wood base, legs and boots with patterned paper. Add small curled up cones to the tip of each boot. Use paint to add heel and sole detail. Then embellish boots with a Silhouette cut border, some fur and crochet trim. (pic.13 &14) Attach boots to base.
* Next paint your second foam ball brown (pic15). When the paint is dry, insert the dowels / legs into the foam ball. Remove the dowels, apply glue then re-insert.(pic16)
* Using a long length of tulle, loop the tulle all the way around the top of the ball as shown in pic. 17 and 18. Use a pin to hold in place.
* Apply glue to the inside of the jacket and fit it over the ball. Fluff the tulle skirt, then trim to desired length.
* Apply the Trinket Pin "buttons" into the front of the jacket now as they will go directly into the foam. Note: I added a little dab of glue to the back of each pin crystal before applying them to the jacket.
* Cover a chipboard hoop with patterned paper, then use some embroidery floss to tie on a bell. Add a tulle bow, then fit it over the top of the jacket. Adhere into place.
* Adhere the reindeer's head then hat.
* To add the finishing touches, wrap a small box with patterned paper and ribbon and adhere to base. Then create a small gift bag out of patterned paper, add cord for the handles and a sticker to the front of the bag. Using a small strip of paper adhere the shopping bag to the back side of the reindeer's hoof/hand.



Ally Scraps Supplies:
Pink Paislee Queen Bee Collection 12x12 Double Sided Paper Paper - Honeycomb
Pink Paislee Queen Bee Collection 12x12 Double Sided Paper Paper - Bees Wax
Pink Paislee 365 Degrees Collection 12x12 Double Sided Paper Paper - Be Free
Echo Park Paper Everybody Loves Christmas Collection - 12x12 Paper - Ornaments
Echo Park Paper Everybody Loves Christmas Collection - 12x12 Paper - Trim The Tree
Echo Park Paper Everybody Loves Christmas Collection - 12x12 Paper - Bright Stripes
Echo Park Paper Everybody Loves Christmas Collection - 12x12 Paper - Christmas Bells
Echo Park Paper Everybody Loves Christmas Collection - 12x12 Paper - Christmas Words
Echo Park Paper Everybody Loves Christmas Collection - 12x12 Paper - Borders
Echo Park Paper Everybody Loves Christmas Collection - 12x12 Paper - Alpha Stickers
Maya Road - Chipboard Snowflake Coaster
Maya Road - Trinket Pins
Maya Road - Vintage Crochet Trim - Baby Pom Pom - White
Maya Road - Velvet Pleat Flower
Other Supplies:
October Afternoon - Good Cheer Collection Stickers
Samantha Walker - Silhouette files (Border Dripping Circles, 1 Piece Leaf Cluster, Border Frame Set - Laurel Leaves and Animal Eyes.)
Plaid - Mod Podge (Matte) and FolkArt Paint (Raw Umber and Taffy)
Craft supplies:
Red and green tulle, bell, fur trim, 2 - 4" styro-foam balls, chipboard or cardboard, small box, Babushka doll and base with legs (recycled from wood cutout)

Thank you, thank you Jennifer... you've gotten me into the Christmas spirit already.

~ Dana