Papertrey Ink Blog Hop 7

Once again, it’s time for Papertrey Ink’s Blog Hop. This month’s theme is holiday gifts. I know that lots of people are looking for ideas for great handmade gifts they can make for friends and family for the upcoming holiday season. I have a quick, easy, and inexpensive gift idea to share with you that uses two of PTI’s new stamp sets, Rustic Snowflakes and Made of Snow.

I used a 6x6 glazed ceramic tile (less than a dollar at Home Depot) to create a winter themed tic tac toe game. I used a fine-tipped permanent marker to draw the grid lines at 2” intervals horizontally and vertically across the tile.

Then, I stamped two different snowmen figures by combining pieces from the Made of Snow set. I went with one snowman with a hat and one with a scarf. I used Palette inks for the images. Since the tile’s surface is slick, it may take a few tries to get the right amount of pressure to get your images to look right. Fortunately, it’s easy to erase any mistakes with a damp paper towel or baby wipe while the ink’s still wet! I filled in the carrot noses with just a touch of orange marker for a little more color.

Once the ink was dry, I sprayed it with a light coat of clear acrylic sealer so that the images wouldn’t get rubbed off by the game pieces. I also added some small felt pads to the back of the tile to keep it from leaving scratches any playing surfaces it is placed on.

The game pieces are made from large glass page pebbles with stamped images glued underneath them. I picked two of the snowflake images from the Rustic Snowflakes set and stamped them in Pure Poppy ink on Aqua Mist cardstock. I punched them out with a circle punch, then used a dot of strong clear glue to attach the images to the flat sides of the pebbles. Now you’re ready for hours of winter game-playing fun!

Materials Used:
Rustic Snowflakes and Made of Snow stamp sets, Pure Poppy and Noir Black Palette inks, Aqua Mist cardstock (Papertrey Ink); 1 1/8” circle punch (EK Success); Crystal Effects (Stampin’ Up!); permanent markers (Sharpie); acrylic spray sealer (Patricia Nimock); 6x6 ceramic tile (Home Depot); ruler; felt pads