Thursday

Holiday Day 4: Flowering Santa

Today marks the HALFWAY point of our Happiest Holiday sneak previews — can you believe we have four more sets to share? And we still have so much creativity to explore.

It always strikes me as funny to work on Christmas designs in the middle of summer. Sometimes my mind wanders a bit while I’m sketching and scheming. One minute I’m thinking about Santa... but in the midst of gardening, dreaming about plant combinations, or dare I say, designing my wedding flowers, Santa’s curly beard morphs into a blooming bouquet.

Notice how closely Santa’s beard resembles a cascade of flowers...


To my mind, it’s a no-brainer — Santa’s beard was meant to bloom! I loved the image above from an old Neiman-Marcus Christmas catalog, a very clever quilled paper construction, where the beard swirls into beautiful snowflakes. But then look at those winter bouquets, spilling over with flowers and leaves. Why, some of the bouquets are the classic shape of Santa’s beard! Hmmm...

I let my mind wander, and Santa Claus and I took a merry skip through a fantastical winter garden to create our new stamp set, Flowering Santa.


In my interpretation, Santa’s curly strands have twirled their way into a bouquet of poinsettia and holly, starry-shaped daisies, and plump berries. Whether you color this large-scale image in full flowery splendor, or you keep it more monochromatic and even metallic, you’ll come away with a card that totally dazzles and delights the recipient! Flowering Santa is going to be the image I use on my cards this year!

I’ve included three sentiments in sweepy script for a myriad of holiday uses — but this Santa says so much all on his own, with his sweet smirking eyes and rounded spectacles. Don’t you just want to give him a hug?

To help your Christmas cards come into full bloom with Flowering Santa — just look at what the Bloom Brigade made:


What vision those Bloomies bring to everything their talented hands touch!! And I KNOW that YOU TOO can bring out the sparkling awesomeness within to create cards that are special and unique in every way. This image would be fun embossed, watercolored, and glittered, and could be completed en masse! Ohhhh I can already see the assembly line I’m going to mount on our dining room table... come here, children, Mama needs you... 

Psssst! Fans of one of our recent holiday digis (one that MIGHT have featured a whole lot of berries!!) will want to tune in to see what’s coming up tomorrow...

12 comments:

CherylQuilts said...

Oh, Miss Marcy, what a fun and adorable Santa! I can almost hear him chuckling in his "ho-ho-ho" way at the thought of flowers being in his beard, right? Can't ya? And smiling all the way at thinking how much fun he will bring with these blooms. What a dear and sweet face, and the Bloomies really made some adorable and amazing cards! Love it all! Hugs! xoxo

Marianne said...

Oh my, how totally fun and gorgeous at the same time!

Melanie Ann MacKenzie said...

Wowza! Well....I am at a loss for anything else to say! :)

NancyK said...

I love this santa! I hope you don't mind me saying this , but he looks like John Lennon! And he looks great with the flower in the beard!

Berina RGA said...

This is so much fun!!

Linda Pekrul said...

This release is bringing me great joy! Every day I look forward to seeing what your fabulous designers have created for us! This Santa.... oh my how I love him!

Lisa said...

I just love how unique this Santa is! He is awesome!

Heidi MyLittleStampingBlog said...

What a really fun Santa! Not like any one I have seen before!

creatingincolors said...

OMG I'm running out of words. Cutest Santa ever. You are so creative.

janecrisci said...

I love how you have combined Santa with your beautiful flower images!

Joyce Erb said...

You are amazing! LOVE this and can't wait to see the rest

Marjorie DUMONTIER said...

This Santa is soooo cool !!