Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Tag Exchange 2022 - A Decade of ONE BEAUTIFUL Tradition

 

Another Christmas season has come to a close.  Incredible.  As I think of the past month of preparation, in the moment, I felt like I was never going to make it.  I thought I was going to fall flat on my face but somehow it all got done and guess what?  It was wonderful.  I am so glad to make time for traditions like our tag swap.  This is something I will ALWAYS make time for no matter how busy the season seems.  So sit back and reflect on your holidays and make note of the traditions you just cannot do without while you have a look at these beautiful tags created by very special friends.

Nancy, Santa would be thrilled to see your festive tag under the tree!  There is no shortage of details on this beautiful tag.  The glitter on the candy cane, the little ribbon and bell and the pom pom trim?!?  Perfection.  I just love your rich colour choices. Thank you for always bringing your laughter, smiles and your love of paper to our swap over all these years.

Oh Christmas Tree!  I feel like this is the most beautiful little crafty scene ever set inside my favourite crafty element of all time....an embroidery hoop!  How gorgeous is Michelle's Christmas tree set in front of her ivory eyelet material?  I also absolutely love the paper tag complete with delicate embroidery floss and gold thread.  Very well done, Michelle.  Thank you for finding our swap and going out of your way to be apart of this!

Oh Lou!  I do not know who this little elf is but he is absolutely adorable!  Look at him balancing those ornaments so carefully and with such pride.  I love the beautiful night sky you created with oxide inks and soft iridescent snowflakes created with embossing paste.  What a great tag!  Lou, I love hearing about your so carefully thought out details.  You create with such joy and love.

I will admit that I had a very hard time committing to my tag this year.  I am not sure why I was so indecisive.  But somehow it all come together....I think.  I am so happy with my rustic little tag.  It is actually a small bag and I clipped a whole bunch of gorgeous elements to a wooden clothes pin including those incredible dried bunny tails that I found at Purple Pansy.  They all went beautifully with that sweet little owl stamp from Impression Obsession.  Have a told you how much I love the creative process?!?  

Jody has created a simply elegant tag.  What I enjoy most about this tag is the refreshing colour combination.  Sage green, fuchsia and gold.  Stunning.  And what about that leaf die?  Jody, anyone would be thrilled to receive your beautiful creation.  Your care and pride in your creations always come through.  You are a constant in our exchanges and I am very happy for that!

On Facebook, Jasmine entitled her tag 'Forlorn Christmas'.  Ok.  Forlorn Girl.  You've got to snap out of it.  You are a trendsetter.  You are rocking THE most beautiful gown sewn with an eclectic mix of incredible papers and everyone at your party is going to love it.  Nothing to worry about.  Why do I have this feeling that the moment I look away, she will be beaming with pride knowing that she was create with such love and attention to detail.  All joking aside, Jasmine, you have created a masterpiece.  You always do and I look forward to seeing your ideas year after year.

There is a reason Hilary wears that crown called "Queen of Technique".  Hilary loves to play and you can see this in her design once again this year.  I love all the beautiful heat embossing used on the background.  It looks like she has used an iridescent embossing paste on the snowflakes and awesome pink rhinestones.  Great job, Hilary.  I am so glad you are apart of our tag swap community.

Well Evan.  You are a wonderful addition to our little community.  Thank you for joining!  Your mini envelope tag is awesome.  There is such great dimension including a wooden snowflake, flannel, bells and paper.  And the little tag inside the envelope is wonderful.  Well done, Evan!  Hope to see you next year!  ;)

When I examine Erin's tag, I am transported back to my youth.  At Christmastime, we would be busy making Christmas cookies and gingerbread houses.  We worked on special crafts for loved ones.  We made friendship bracelets.  I just love that Erin's creation has brought me back to those wonderful times.  Thank you, Erin.  What a beautiful, whimsical tag!  

Donna!  Look at this adorable little gnome.  He is so perfect.  Your colour choices are spot on and I love the stitched border.  What you can't see here in this photo is that his little feet swing back and forth.  What a cutie.  Donna, thank you for sharing with us once again.  You bring your love of dies and clean elegance year after year.  Thank you!

As you know, I have known Debbie my whole life (yes, I am her niece!).  Debbie is incredibly talented  and is always so full of surprises.  She paints.  She sews.  She literally does it all.  That's why when I saw her tag this year, I just had to shake my head.  I mean, what CAN'T she do?  Her Santa gnome is so super sweet.  I just love him.  He will be on my tree every single year from now on. Debbie, thank you for always sharing your love of crafting with me!


I have such appreciation for the amount of work that went into Barb's tag.  I am SO tempted to count the number of pieces that she had to cut out and then carefully put together.  Actually, I counted 11 on just his head alone....Barb!  This soldier may be one of my favourite dies of all time.  Barb, I am very happy to have found you through our love of paper.  Your work is always so full of care and love.

Well that's a wrap.  Looking forward to the next 10 years of community and love of paper.  Have a great year everyone!  Can't wait to see your next creation.

Kim xo

1 comment:

Jasmine said...

All beautifully done!
So happy to be part of this Christmas Tradition, planning for next year already!

...and you're right, Kim, I think she does show a smile when no one is looking 😉