When @geekgirl announced the Christmas Card Swap, I started thinking about possible card designs. I kept coming back to the idea of incorporating machine embroidery into my design. Then I remembered these Christmas mug designs I had picked up on sale last year. I didn’t know what I would do with them when I purchased them, I just knew that I liked them and that the sale price was too good to pass up.
I stitched the mugs out on some chunky glitter felt sheets (the back of the sheets have a canvas-like texture and some places also call them faux leather sheets). I have learned through experience that it’s best to put a water soluble stabilizer on top of the sheets prior to stitching, in order to prevent the stitches from disappearing into the glitter.
These are the four cards I made for the swap. I also added some colorful rhinestones to different parts of each card to try to bring the colors from the inside of the card to the outside.
One of my swap partner’s, @Whistlefish, said it seemed like the glitter paper would be fiddly to stitch on and my first thought was, ‘no, it wasn’t that bad.’ Then I remembered that I ended up breaking three different needles while stitching out all the mugs, so I would have to agree that it is a bit fiddly. I’m going to pick up some titanium needles to see if they make a difference the next time I embroider on the chunky glitter sheets.
I love the card you sent me… thank you for giving these their own thread and explaining how they came to be, in all their fantastically glittery glory.
These turned out so great! And good tip you about the water soluble stabilizer. I gave my embroidery machine to a friend a few years ago but I’ve been looking at them again recently. I really don’t need one but then awesome projects like this come up!
I never would have thought to put embroidered pieces on cards, but these are just perfect! I like that you also used the designs for tags and a gift topper, too.
Thank you, everyone for all your comments! One of the gift recipients told me that she plans to string a ribbon through hers and turn it into an ornament .
@photojenn, you’re so creative, I can only imagine all the fun things you’d make with an embroidery machine!
Absolutely beautiful cards and tags, they look fantastic!! I’ve been meaning to have a go at trying some freehand machine embroidery for ages and those are really geeing me up!!
Wee-oo wee-woo! 
Your awesome craft is one of this week’s Featured Projects! 
Congratulations! 
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