2018 #22 C&S Christmas: Stocking and Hanger with HP {by Lauren Hatwell}

 2018 Topic 22: Clean and Simple Christmas Ideas

Wow, this is a stunning fabric post from Lauren! Great to see the Versafine Inks onto fabric with such a detailed result. Perfect contrast with kraft card too! ~ Leandra 

Hi everyone, I can't quite believe it's Christmas time again; where on earth did all the time go?  I'm here to share a couple of very quick makes with you using Hot Picks stamps, which are perfect for putting a traditional or less girly take on things over the festive season.

I have a challenge this year as we have a house full for Christmas and not enough room on the mantle piece to hang all the stockings so I thought I would make some little stocking hangers I can hang on the wall and personalise each one so that, in the melee that is Christmas morning, everybody knows which presents belong to them. There is NOTHING like the excitement of waking up to a stocking full of thoughtful little gifts on Christmas morning, no matter how old you are...

This year I've been introduced (by Leandra, who is ever so slightly ink obsessed) to Versafine inks. They don't like to dry as fast as I would like or expect on fresco paint (though you can get around that by heat embossing your image) but they are pretty amazing for fine detail images on a porous surface. I was dying to see how they would work on fabric and this seemed like the perfect opportunity. You can see a slight shadow around the above leaf and the image is not as clear as I would have liked. This is because I decided it would be better to use a felt backing for a bit of give in the fabric when I stamped it. Not such a good idea as it turned out. The best way to do it was to put the fabric straight onto my stamping platform and anchor with the magnets in the usual way. You can see the surrounding leaves came out much clearer. 

Woodland themes are very big this year in home decor, so I went for this gorgeous oakleaf design from HP1105EZ. I think it works really well and I would LOVE to make a cushion or hot water bottle cover with it too. 

I always use one of my own Welly Warmers to make my stocking template. They are a fleecy lining like a large sock if you've not come across them. I just lay them onto my fabric, draw around them and cut out four - two for the stocking and two for the lining. Here is a tutorial if you've never made a stocking before and want to have a go.

Now for the stocking hanger. Easy peasy using a piece of wood, fabulous Fresco Finish paint and a few pieces of paper stamped, in this case, with some traditional Christmas images from HPXM01 and HPXM04  .

The hardest thing was mixing the paint to the EXACT shade of my brown wrapping paper for the little wooden peg (I ordered this one on line from Ebay and I have found them on Etsy and Amazon too). In the end I managed a close enough match with a combination of Taupe and Toffee Fresco Finish Paints. 

A stocking isn't a stocking without a few (themed) gifts inside. I used brown paper, string and book pages so they chime with the hanger and made a simple stamped tag from HP . I think this looks great and I can't wait to make some more. I do wish I'd stitched the reinforced heel section of the stocking with a darker thread. I will probably go back and hand stitch with a simple brown running stitch just to make it stand out a bit more. Why you never notice these things before you take the photographs I will never know...!? LOL

I think these look great and I really enjoyed making them from a few staple items I always have around the house. It needs to be quick and simple when you've got a lot to do so this is all very basic stuff but I think it all comes together beautifully. 

If you don't like sewing you could make your stocking out of brown paper, stamp it and glue the edges. I think I'm going to make our dogs brown paper bone shaped "stockings" so they can rip them open themselves to get to the goodies inside. 

However and wherever you find yourselves this Christmas, I hope 2018 has been kind to you and that 2019 will bring wonderful things for you all. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Lauren

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There will be no challenge for this topic as we know you are super busy in the lead up to Christmas! So kick back and enjoy the inspiration from our designers instead!