"It's the start of the Christmas gift tags" Part 1....by Melissa Struhs

Morning Colour Blast Fans!

It's hard to believe that it almost the last weekend in November already and it has only just dawned on me that I need to get a little bit of a wriggle on and get organised for the coming Christmas season.

Each family has their own traditions, one that was started in our home began when our son was born,was handmade gift cards with a monogram letter. This use to be something we added to the Santa gifts but now it is a quirky element that I like to make each year for all of the presents.

Some years are more elaborate than others...here's the start of them for 2016!

I began with a very inexpensive set of wood veneer shapes that I picked up in the 50% off sale at Lincraft and also found a few other raw pieces that I scored at Craft Alive!

Using some random washi tape to mask off a section of the wood veneer, Tangareen Dream Colour Embossing Powder was applied over an inked surface and heat set. Several layers were added to give a smooth, raised finish.

This shape had Lipstick  Colour Embossing Powder applied with the same technique...

and this one was covered with Apple of my Eye  Colour Embossing Powder.

Once the embossing powder was cooled, the washi tape was peeled back gently to reveal a defined line. The paint dipped look was really lovely

but I decided to add Crackle Accents to the remaining half and sprinkle with micro beads for texture.

Next, onto the Monogram letters onto small kraft tags. They too were embossed with the same Embossing Powders.

"G" is for Griffin, his pieces were spritzed and flicked with Tangareen Dream Colour  Shimmer Spray...

"M" is for Melissa, mine had the same treatment added with Lipstick Colour Shimmer Spray...

"A" is for Adam and his uses Apple of my Eye  Colour Shimmer Spray.

Right now there are lots of little elements using Colour Blast to create the Hot Tropical colour scheme that I love. ...stay tuned to see how the final products can be used 3 different ways this coming holiday season and how a little Colour Blast can be used to dress them up.

As you read this blog post, the Christmas decorating begins at our home and the finishing touches will start to come together for the gift cards, I can't wait to show you all!

Happy Crafting this weekend.

Mel.