Black for Christmas

I thought I would try using black card blanks for my Christmas designs this year. I'd been thinking about it for a while so one day took the plunge buying a pack and set about doing some tests. Instantly I was hooked and loved the way they looked.

I started designing and as I traced on the gold pen and saw how effective it was I couldn't wait to experiment with different papers. I trolled Pinterest for Christmas ideas and found golds, reds and greens worked well with black and looked great.

At the end of last year I picked up a big pad of origami Christmas papers so was eager to get using them, they had been sitting way to long! I started cutting and adding these in the shapes of holly, berries and stars.

The thin origami papers need care to cut out so half way into the first order I started using two sheets, which gave a cleaner cut - plus I got double the quantity of holly!

It has all worked out well and they have had a very positive response so far so maybe they will continue into next year.

And to end, carrying on with the Christmas theme, here's a pic of a new paper cutter - bought in a charity shop for the grand old price of 99p.