Free Christmas Tree - Traditional

These are free stencils to print. But don’t forget that you can copy them to word processing documents and resize them to fit your project size. They are very flexible.

Just one more tip before I go - before you cut out the openings (islands) cover the paper with clear shelf liner or even strips of packing tape for a protective coating. That way you can use your stencil again and again.

Enjoy your Free Printable Christmas Stencils.

Well, Merry Christmas and Happy Stenciling,

Penny

Cut out a snowflake pattern in paper. You can always adjust the size of the snowflake stencil to the size of the cookie by reducing or enlarging on a copy machine. Trace the snowflake pattern onto a sheet of mylar, acetate or stencil film so that you will have a water proof stencil that you can wash and reuse. Cut the stencil from the mylar with a craft knife and clean thoroughly. Make sure all of the trace marks are gone.

Bake the cookies according to your favorite recipe. I used the boxed up ready to go version where I just need to add an egg. But if you are a skilled chef, go ahead and make your goodies from scratch. Sugar cookies work best because they have the smoothest surface after baking. A cookie with too much texture is not going to produce a good stenciled image. I like to slightly flatten the tops of the cookies right after they come out of the oven with a spatula. If the stencil can lay flat on the cookie you’ll get a much better image than if it has to roll over rounded edges. Let the cookies cool.

Prepare your “paint” by adding water to powdered (confectioners) sugar. The mixture should be thick enough to stick to the tip of your finger but thin enough that it will not make a permanent indent if you touch it. Make colors by adding food coloring.

Place the stencil on top of the cookie. Use a finger to dab the sugar mixture into the stencil openings. Just like with a regular stencil, use a dabbing or up and down motion to dot the surface with color and not a rubbing back and forth which will encourage color seeping under the stencil edges. In stenciling, you always want to use a little paint so that it does not seep under the stencil. No difference here. The best tool is an index finger to lightly dab the confectioners’ sugar and water mixture over the stencil opening.

Carefully remove the stencil by pulling directly up. You don’t want to drag the stencil over the wet color mixture which will smear the color.

And Voila! You have some tasty snowflake cookies!

It might take a little practice but remember you get to eat the mistakes.

You may want to make a different size cookie than the normal 2-1/2 or 3 inch circle. No problem! Just take the paper snowflake and reduce or enlarge the size to fit the area you want to place the picture. Then move on to the tracing. This is great if you want to make a large cookie cake too!

If you use a recipe for a highly textured cookie, like gingerbread, oatmeal or chocolate chip, you can put a base layer of powdered sugar and water to create a very smooth area and then stencil your image on that. Actually, that can just add to how creative you can be with decorating cookies with stencils. For example, you can put a background of a red or green circle on top of the cookie behind a white snowflake. Make sure that the first layer of color has dried thoroughly before adding your image.

If you can’t find mylar or acetate at your local craft supply store, try transparency films at an office supply house. Just make sure that the material will accept pen or ink so that you can trace on it and that it will be safe to use with food items. Also, you have a large number of suppliers of stencil films on line.

Hey, who wouldn’t like a basket full of festive snowflake cookies! They make great gifts for the neighbors.

Need some help cutting out a snowflake design? Well, we’ve just added eight snowflake designs in a unique downloadable book to The Stencil Store (see tab above). You can find the snowflakes in the Holidays Collection. Four of the designs are for snowflake cutouts and four are to make snowflake stencils. The book includes many projects for using these snowflake patterns including creating a 3-D centerpiece, decorating napkins and some thrifty gift making ideas.

Happy Stenciling,

Penny

There are so many ways to decorate with 3-D snowflakes. My favorite is to arrange three different size gold snowflakes as the centerpiece of the dining table. It’s simple and yet so elegant.

Another way to decorate with 3-D snowflakes is to make several and hang them in an arrangement from the ceiling, a chandelier, in a doorway…

Here’s how you can make a 3-D snowflake. I like to use stiff felt that I can find at the local craft supply store and of course I use white. You may be able to find a stiff felt that already has a glitter effect but if not you can either use a spray glitter or spray glue and glitter sprinkles. Cut out a snowflake pattern in paper and then trace the design onto the stiff felt in two places. Cut out both snowflakes from the felt with a craft knife. Now on each of the snowflakes make one cut straight into the center from one of the closest points to the center. Slide the snowflakes together through the cuts to center. You may need to make two very close cuts along the one you made into the center if your snowflake does not open into four directions easily.

If you are using spray glitter or any other means of decorating your snowflakes, do that before you assemble the two pieces.

So, you can’t find stiff felt. That’s OK. You can cut the snowflake patterns out of regular felt (or any fabric for that matter). To make the fabric stiff so that it will stand up treat it with a fabric stiffening solution or regular school glue. Just lay the fabric flat and brush on the solution. It may take some time for the stiffener or glue to dry, so be patient. Also, you can iron the fabric with a heavy starch. Experiment with these solutions on some scrap fabric until you find the one that works for you.

I hope you have some fun with this idea and get really creative. For example, if you can make any fabric stiff (according to the hint above) then why not use a tartan fabric or a toile? Using a fabric that will be a good match to your normal décor can help blend your Christmas decorations with the permanent residents of your home. Check out these two snowflakes in red and green!

By the way, these 3-D snowflake decorations breakdown and store easily for years to come.

Need some help cutting out a snowflake design? Well, we’ve just added eight snowflake designs in a unique downloadable book to The Stencil Store (see tab above). You can find the snowflakes in the Holidays Collection. Four of the designs are for snowflake cutouts and four are to make snowflake stencils. The book includes many projects for using these snowflake patterns including creating decorating napkins and some thrifty gift making ideas.

Well, I hope you create some great 3-D snowflake patterns.

Have a Merry Christmas and Happy Stenciling!

Penny

Here’s a great way to turn an old jar into a nice gift. Clean the jar well and remove any labels. Use the snowflake stencils to paint on the jar. You can find paints especially for glass at a crafts supply store. If not, craft acrylics work well too. Just secure the stencil to the jar with tape and use a dabbing motion to lightly tap on some paint. Remember, stenciling is a dry brush technique, so don’t overload your brush. Use more layers of paint to achieve deeper colors instead of more paint in a single application. Also, don’t brush back and forth because that will drive paint under the stencil. You can use one snowflake, several images of the same snowflake, several paintings of different snowflakes and even different color snowflakes. It’s your design so be creative.

If you want the snowy effect, consider lightly spray painting the jar with white before or after the snowflakes with a soft light spray. Don’t cover the glass in white, just mist it. Hold the can of spray paint a little further back then you usually would. Maybe make it a little heavier near the top. There are so many ways you could enhance a jar.

But wait! You need to fill it with goodies and top it off. Make some cookies or fudge or other goodies for your jar. Whatever you specialty is. Does the person receiving it have a love for a special candy like peppermints, butterscotch or M&M’s? Then fill the jar with that. It’s so easy to make them happy. Maybe your friends would like a jar filled with homemade bath salts. That’s easy. Just mix 2 cups of Epsom salts with 2 tablespoons of baking soda and 9 drops of essential oils (flavor of your choice – like rose, gardenia, mint, chamomile…). Lock the top of the jar back in place and cover with a piece of festive fabric and secured with a ribbon. Again, you can customize this for the person you are giving it to. If they like cookies, fill it with cookies. If she likes the scent of roses, make a rose scented bath salt. Your gifts will be the ones of envy!

Spruce up a plain brown bag by painting on some snowflake designs from stencils or gluing on a snowflake cutout. Then tuck your gifts inside wrapped with some loose tissue paper. Again, if you want the snowy effect, hold a can of white spray paint about 12” away from the bag and spray a very light mist over the bag. It will only take one or two passes to get that misty, snowy look.

Have you seen those nice cloth or velvet wine bags at the discount stores? If you find some plain ones they are great for enhancing with painted snowflakes. Just secure your stencils in place and tap on a little paint. The one in the picture above is red and green velvet with a gold cord and tassel. So I painted my snowflake designs in gold paint and then used a light coat of gold spray glitter.

During the year I collect boxes. Sounds strange I know but after covering them in a solid color of paint, they are a blank canvas for decorating. Stencil on a few snowflakes. Don’t just stick with white snowflakes. Imagine a box painted dark blue with pink and light blue snowflakes. It’s up to you. You can make your snowflakes traditional or absolutely funky.

Make a sachet by stenciling a snowflake design onto a small pouch. You can always find ready made pouches or small draw-string bags at your craft supply store. Wet a few cotton balls with a fresh scent or essential oils and slip into the pouch. Enclose the sachet in a box of clothing or socks or a scarf and the scent will waft out when it is opened. Or just hang it on the outside of a gift bag.

Stencil a snowflake on the corner of a nice linen handkerchief. You can give it as the gift itself or wrap a treasure inside. I like to hang them over the side of a basket and fill the basket up with goodies like the one pictured above which is overflowing with red and green apples.

Like I mentioned before, the best thing about making your own is that you can custom build any item for the person who is receiving it. If you have traditional friends, work with red, green, silver and gold. But if you have friends into retro, then create snowflakes in bright colors like cyan blue, neon green and hot pink. They will feel very special when they receive a gift tailor made for them (including the wrapping). Don’t forget about all of the fun you’ll have designing and giving!

Happy Stenciling,

Penny

Here are a few ideas that I have for you to bring the snowflake into your Holiday decorations by painting them on fabrics and much more!

We’ve just added eight snowflake designs in a unique downloadable book to The Stencil Store (see tab above). You can find the snowflakes in the Holidays Collection. Four of the designs are for snowflake cutouts and four are to make snowflake stencils. The book includes many projects for using these snowflake patterns including creating a 3-D Centerpiece, decorating napkins and some thrifty gift making ideas. Here are some craft projects that you can create with these patterns.

Set a unique and festive Holiday table this year by decorating cloth napkins. I found a great pack of colorful cotton napkins at a discount department store and painted a small snowflake in the corner using the snowflake stencils. When the napkin is folded or strung through a napkin ring, the snowflake is the centerpiece. Make sure to find a napkin that is made from a smooth fabric that does not have a texture to it. You can find fabric paints at your local crafts supply store. When applying paint to the napkin through the stencil use an up and down, dabbing motion to apply paint to the fabric. A back and forth motion with the brush will push paint under the stencil and smear your image. Use a brush made for stenciling. Foam brushes work well too. Keep the brush on the dry side. An overloaded brush can cause paint to seep under the stencil. Heavier color is achieved by applying several light layers of color with drying time in between.

Along with the keeping it simple theme, I tied my napkins with a thin rope chord and glued a couple of wooden Christmas trinkets to each end instead of using a fancy napkin ring.

I mentioned that you can find fabric paints at your local craft supply store, but if you can’t, regular acrylics work well too. However, they may not wash as well and tend to be a little stiffer when dry.

Good golly – let’s get jolly! Do you like to wear your Christmas spirit? Then paint some snowflakes on a t-shirt or sweatshirt. Maybe you know someone who likes to wear Christmas art. Then make a wearable gift for them. Paint several snowflakes across the front. Use a different color for each and then top it off with some spray glitter. There is so much you can do with simple snowflake crafts.

Have you seen those nice cloth or velvet wine bags at the discount stores? If you find some plain ones they are great for enhancing with stenciled snowflakes. Just secure your stencils in place and tap on a little paint. The one in the picture above is red and green velvet with a gold cord and tassel. So I painted my snowflake designs in gold paint and then used a light coat of gold spray glitter. Slide the bag over a nice bottle of wine and you have a fine gift for even the hardest to please.

Stencil a snowflake on the corner of a nice linen handkerchief. You can give it as the gift itself or wrap a treasure inside. I like to hang them over the side of a basket and fill the basket up with goodies like the one pictured above which is overflowing with red and green apples. I like to browse the flea markets and thrift stores to find vintage hankies. They lend an old world feel to your snowflake crafts.

Well, those are just a few of the ideas that you can find in the Snowflake Designs Book. From paper snowflakes to great gifts.

I hope you have a Very Merry Christmas and Happy Stenciling!

Penny

We’ve just added eight snowflake designs in a unique downloadable book. Four of the designs are for snowflake cutouts and four are to make snowflake stencils. The book includes many projects for using these snowflake patterns including creating a 3-D Centerpiece, decorating napkins and some thrifty gift making ideas. And here is another idea about how you can create with paper snowflakes.

It’s fun and easy to make Christmas Cards. Using colored construction paper, cut a rectangle to 8 inches by 6 inches. Fold the 8 inch side in half so that you have a 6 by 4 inch card. Cut out any of the snowflake cutout designs and glue to the front of the card. Be creative and cut out two or three different snowflakes and make it snow. For an extra bit of color, glue a ribbon along one side of the cover. I like to use a hole-punch tool to make small circles of colored paper and glue them in random patterns around the snowflakes.

Making gift labels is easy with snowflakes too. Just cut out a small square, rectangle or oval in construction paper and glue on a snowflake. Write your greeting and who the package is for and attach to the gift with a ribbon tied through a hole made with a hole-punch tool.

I know that your family and friends will enjoy getting handmade card.

Happy Stenciling!

Penny

So is the same with paper snowflakes. Any small variation in cut renders a different design. Snowflakes have become an integral part of winter decorations. We can remember making them as children and hanging in the windows. But do you remember how to make them?

It’s fun to make paper snowflakes. And I’ll bet you’ll be surprised as to all the great Christmas snowflake crafts you can do with them.

Snowflakes designs are hexagonal in shape; meaning that they are always six sided. I could not remember how to fold a piece of paper to create a six-sided snowflake. It was sad to think that the years which have gone by made me forget such a simple pleasure. So, I set out to rekindle my past and found a great deal of joy when I started to create some decorative winter snowflakes. And in the process I found that there are many other ways to decorate with snowflakes than hanging them in the window. Now I want to share with you the snowflake designs and decorative ideas that I discovered.

We’ve just added eight snowflake designs in a unique downloadable book. Four of the designs are for snowflake cutouts and four are to make snowflake stencils. The book includes many projects for using these snowflake patterns including creating a 3-D Centerpiece, decorating napkins and some thrifty gift making ideas.

These patterns are easy to use. To make cutout paper snowflakes, fold the paper along the dashed lines. With a craft knife cut along the solid lines. Unfold carefully and flatten. Now you have a snowflake cutout design. Creating a stencil is the same easy procedure (fold and cut).

Don’t forget that you can put the designs on a copy machine and reduce or enlarge the size to fit your project area or have a variety of different sizes.

Here are a few ideas of what you can do with paper snowflakes and stencils. And of course we provide the complete how to instructions and inspiration.

The cutout designs are great for hanging in the window just like the old days. Don’t forget to use construction paper to make different colors. Make some small ones to hang as ornaments from the Christmas tree (use a hole-punch tool to make a round hole and tie up with a ribbon). If you want to add a touch of elegant flair to the age old paper snowflake, cutout a few different designs in a stiff white felt, sprinkle with a small amount of gold glitter and hang them from the dining room chandelier by a gold ribbon. Add a little gold garland or ribbon for some extra glitz.

I know you can put these paper snowflake designs to a hundred other uses. So use your imaginations and create!

Happy Stenciling,

Penny

There are so many reasons to return to the simpler times when we exchanged homemade Christmas crafts. Here are just a few of the best reasons:

First and most important, I think we all need to use this time to step back and reconnect with our family and friends on a personal level. We spend our lives emailing and texting from the carpool line. We rush through days and events sometimes not knowing if we are coming and going. Do you ever wonder what you might be missing? I know it’s not easy to put aside a block of time but do it anyway. Trade off some of the time you will be standing in a line at the mall for time at home crafting some decorations or gifts or cards. Invite some friends over to share ideas or get the kids involved.

You’ll save money by making homemade gifts, cards and decorations! These days everyone can use a little of this. But don’t feel guilty about giving homemade gifts. A gift should never have a dollar obligation amount attached to it. It really is about what comes from the heart and a homemade gift shows that you took the time to make something special for a loved one and what is more valuable than your time. Besides with some great ideas you’ll be delivering gifts that everyone will enjoy!

Looking for a stress buster? Well, creating Christmas crafts is a great way to reduce stress for a couple of good reasons. First, if you make some great gifts and decorations, that’s less time in the stores and malls (and what’s more stressful than fighting the crowds and worrying about if what you bought is the perfect gift). Second, it’s very relaxing and enjoyable to create. Not to mention that you will feel uplifted and motivated to think about the nice gifts that you are making for the special people in your life or the wonderful decorations that will enhance your holiday décor.

Want to make someone feel really special? I will always remember the time a friend of mine cried because she loved my homemade gift so much. The truth is that if you give someone a gift that came from your hands that is truly an item that they cannot get anywhere themselves. No matter how much money they have or what resources they can pull from, a homemade gift is unique!

Christmas should be about the people in our lives, right? Then I have a great idea! Plan some time to get together with friends and family to work with Christmas craft patterns. It’s a great way to share ideas and work out some one-of-a-kind decorations. Have a wine and cheese and crafts party. Better yet, get the kids involved. They love making things and can you think of a better way to encourage their creativity. Arts and crafts are great for people of all ages, so don’t leave out Grandma and Grandpa too. I bet they can add a few hints to the projects on hand.

In fact, children love doing craft projects, but after a while, there is no room left to display their little masterpieces. But, the holidays offer a unique time because they can make gifts for the family that will be highly cherished. Don’t laugh! I bet somewhere in your Mother or Grandmother’s closet is something you made in first grade. It’s easy to find Christmas craft patterns and ideas that everyone in the family can do and enjoy.

I know when you take the time to relax and immerse yourself into a fulfilling project you will not only get into the spirit of the season you will also make someone feel very special because you took the time to make something special for them (and it’s OK if that person is you)!

Now, I know you can come up with many creative Christmas crafts. After all, it’s that personal touch that you are shooting for, right?

Need some ideas? You don’t have to look too far. Just click on the Stencil Store and check out all the Christmas Stencils and projects in The Holidays tab. I know you’ll be crafting before you know it.

Happy Stenciling,

Penny

That being said, I have come up with some great Christmas card ideas. First, I designed a few stencils (of course) and then found many ways to use them. What I came up with was a Classic Collection of Christmas card templates in the form of A Reindeer, An Ornament, A Christmas Tree and A Family of Carolers. Then I set about exploring the variety of card making techniques that I could apply to these four little designs. And even I was impressed.

So, now I want to share my Christmas card making ideas with you because I know when you take the time to relax and immerse yourself into a fulfilling project like this you will not only get into the spirit of the season you will also make someone feel very special that you took the time to make something special for them!

Let’s start with the basics of card making and then move on the creative ideas, alright? Cut a sheet of colored paper down to a 6×8 inch rectangle. Fold in half to create a 4×6 inch card. Put this on the side for later. Place a copy of the stencil on top of another sheet of colored paper and cut along the lines with a craft knife. Press down firmly to cut through both pieces of paper. Glue the image to the front of the card. That’s it! Easy, right?

Well, here are some great ideas for adding a creative touch:

Words are powerful. How about putting some traditional holiday greetings on the card behind your stencil image? It’s easy. Just type your message (Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas) on a Word Processor. Set the margins so that the message will print on your 4×6 inch cover and print on the card stock. Experiment with different fonts and colors for your card.

Don’t forget that even though these stencils are created to be cut outs, you can also apply paint through them. In fact, once you have cut out the image from the construction paper, you now have a stencil for painting more cards.

Be creative and use these stencils in the negative. There are many ways to do this. For example, let’s say you cut out the tree for one card and now you have a piece of colored paper that has an image of a tree cut out of it. Cut that piece into a 4×6 inch rectangle with the tree in the middle and glue it to the front of another card of a different color. Or you could trim around the tree and create just an outline.

Don’t forget that these stencils can be flipped to face in a different direction. For example, the reindeer can face to the left on one card and to the right on another.

After you have used your stencil to cut out the first image (as described above) you will have a traditional stencil with an opening which can be used to trace the image onto other sheets of colored paper for multiple cards. Of course, these images will have trace marks on them, so gently erase the marks or turn the paper over and glue with the clean side facing up.

Find other ways to decorate the cards. Glue a festive ribbon along the bottom or use some spray glitter to give it a glamorous look.

Use a hole punch tool to make cute circles from the construction paper and glue randomly over the card as snow or just decoration.

Paper tends to get rippled when glued, so after the glue has dried, place the cards in a heavy book to flatten them back out.

Reduce the size of any image on a copy machine. Cut out the image to decorate the envelope and match the card.

Now, I know you can come up with many other creative Christmas Card Ideas. After all, it’s that personal touch that you are shooting for, right? And don’t forget that even in the end the Grinch found out that Christmas was something that comes from the heart!

Happy Stenciling,

Penny

Of course, you’ll need a stencil and you can find some great printable Halloween stencils here in the Stencil Store. This makes it easy because you can just print it out and start creating your pumpkin. Look for the bat stencil like the one pictured here.

To paint jack o lantern stencils on a craft pumpkin is the same as painting a real pumpkin. Check out the blog I have on the process for this. It’s real easy.

However, carving a craft pumpkin is a little different from carving a real pumpkin. You’ll need to cut out the stencil islands and trace it onto the pumpkin instead of using a punch tool. The punch tool is not very effective in penetrating the plastic. Trim the excess paper from around the outside of the stencil with scissors making sure to leave at least a ½ inch border on all sides for the tape. Line up the pattern on the pumpkin and tape both sides of the stencil, top and bottom. To tape the corners, you may need to crease the stencil. Depending on the roundness of the pumpkin, this may distort your design so try to make the creases where the pattern will be the least distorted. Trace the stencil onto the pumpkin surface and remove.

Use a sharp, triangular blade X-Acto or craft knife instead of a carving saw. A smooth up and down saw motion is best to keep control of the blade. Only use gentle pressure to avoid stressing and breaking the tool or the pumpkin. It’s best to start in the center of the design and work your way out. You may need to rotate the pumpkin in your lap to keep the side that you are cutting closer to your hand. To cut sharp corners, remove the saw blade and re-insert it at the new angle. Use your finger to push the cut pieces out from the inside of the pumpkin. Cut large areas into smaller ones for easier removal.

Also, the plastic pumpkins are flammable so you need to use a battery operated tea light candle inside or install a night light kit. Instead of cutting a lid on top, cut a circle in the bottom to sit the pumpkin over the light source.

The whole project took me about 30 minutes and it was sooooo much easier than carving the real thing. As far as Halloween Crafts and projects go, this was one of my favorites.

Happy Stenciling!

Penny