Home Stretch Holiday Craft Marathon

This week is my last opportunity to finish up the planned Christmas crafts and new decorations for our home, and I've been working in a bit of a frenzy to get it all done by December 22 Christmas Eve. With able assistance from my 4 year old granddaughter, Miss A, I think I'm on track to have most everything completed in the next couple days.

Here' s a picture of my drawing/crafting board this week -  total chaos. And it's my own fault. I designed a few die cut ornaments along with this year's Thanksgiving cards, then tucked a few into the card I sent to my mother. Well, she loved them (makes me happy) and asked me to make lots  more so she could send them to friends and family all over the world. OK. I can do that. And I did - and they're in the mail, and it's time to make some for our home now.

So this week there are literally hundreds of cut out gingerbread men, families of snow men and dozens of  die cut Christmas tree strips, trios and singles stacked all over the studio and the kitchen table.  I'll use some of the trees in triplicate  to make flame less votive candle wraps. The single cutouts will become gift tags and embellishments for greeting cards or place cards or they'll be perfect as tiny ornaments. The long strips - which I actually designed first - will become paper garlands for the tree and stand up decorations for the mantle, table tops or window sills.

Die Cut Snowman Family Paper Garland

I've had quite a lot of fun using my Silhouette Studio design software and Cameo craft cutter making all these die cut decorations. I could never have crafted all these detailed little gems without a computerized craft cutter. That machine takes the work out of cutting and puts all the fun back into designing paper crafts. I love my Silhouette Cameo - visit the link and you'll see more about it at my web site.

 Christmas Trees with Tiny Gingerbread, Die Cut Garlands and Votive Wraps

I can make my garlands and cutouts in many different sizes all at once. I can also cut multiples of a popular design, like the snowmen garlands.  I'm cutting the snowman family garlands from tabloid size white card stock and they come out just the right size to fit two on each window sill with some trees and gingerbread men alongside. I bought a ream of white card stock in 11x17 and saved oodles of money and time. To create even longer strips (for encircling the tree, for instance) I just tape the 16 inch sections together.

Silhouette Cameo craft cutter in my studio

Here's the cutter deal I recommend. You get the cutter, Silhouette Studio software,  plus craft tools, cutting shape files and a download card to buy more shapes from the Silhouette store. The Silhouette Studio software (basic version) that lets you draw, print, and cut just about any image or font from paper, vinyl, fabric, card stock, magnet material and lots more is free and their software support is good.

I upgraded to the software designer license after I tried out my cutter so I can import files I've created already in Adobe Illustrator. You don't need to upgrade to get started with all the features including the print and cut capability which is perfect for making shaped stickers from clip art or printables.

Father's Day Down Under - September Fun Freebies

Printable Father's Day Camo Sign

Busiest page on the Pastiche Family web site today is in the free  printables section, specifically the (no surprise here if you live in Australia) Father's Day award certificates. There's a print and fill in certificate for every special man in your family there - fathers, step-dads, uncles and grandfathers.

Not far behind in the popularity contest for Dad's Day are the printable coloring pages, father and grandfather clip art, and the greeting cards and iron on transfers. Go,  make a special Father's Day gift today.

Free Printable Bus Tags, Name Tags

Free Printable Bus Tags, Name Tags in color, or black and white, in big or little bus sizes. Beep Beep!

Make Your Own Retro Hip Wayfarers - Cool, Man

Got a party or masquerade event coming up soon? Snag a sheet of these hip papercraft sunglasses to add to the insanity  fun.

Retro Sunglasses Template

Retro-style Wayfarers sunglasses to make an instant mask or toy for kids of all ages - even you boomers who probably still have your original shades. You can print, cut out and put together these knockoff replicas with nifty brads at the corners; add some to your party favors or photo booth props. We recommend printing your papercraft retro sunglasses on heavy photo paper for extra shine but any card stock will do the trick.  Free for any noncommercial use - if you want to share, share the link or the web site page.

Fish Border Printable Sheet

Fun tropical fish border paper provides the perfect setting for summer coloring crafts.

Fancy fish swim along the bottom of the page, printed in black and white and ready for coloring with markers, pencils or water colors.

Fish Border Coloring Sheet

Printable Diploma

Printable Diploma Blank

Need a diploma for GED, home school or other non-traditional educational settings? Here's the latest blank diploma added to Pastiche Family Portal's classroom printables.

Suitable for students of all ages - fill in details for student, date and other information by hand or on computer.  8.5" x 11" printable diploma is free for noncommercial use.

St. Patrick's Day Cupcake Toppers

Leprechaun Hat Cupcake Toppers

If you're serving cupcakes or finger foods for St. Patrick's Day take a peek at these wee flags to add a bit o' party spirit to the table. Call these cupcake toppers or food flags or stickers - it's all fine with the leprechauns. Stick them on a toothpick or coffee stirrer and jab 'em into your food for instant Irish fun.

You'll find a free printable sheet with a dozen of these St. Patrick's Day party cupcake toppers ready to print and cut out for your pub crawl or St. Patrick's Day party.

If ye prefer shamrocks, we let the wee folk talk us into making a printable sheet of shamrock cupcake flags/stickers too. Use  wither one for any noncommercial project to make St. Patrick's Day stickers, food flags, drink charms or even checkers.