We pride ourselves on having some of the most creative customers in the entire world. And we know you guys really love to outdo yourselves around the holidays! That’s why we are pleased as an elf to present the Paper Source Holiday Crafting Contest! As long as you’re already creating beautiful cards, elegant decorations and festive gift wrap for friends and family, you may as well enjoy the opportunity to be rewarded for it!

 How to enter:

Prizes: Each category (Wrapping, Card Making & Décor) will be awarded:

Deadline: Submission deadline is December 16th, 2012 at 11:59pm CST. Winner will be announced on December 21st, 2012.

To see full contest details or to submit a photo of your project for submission, simply visit click to visit the Holiday Crafting Contest!

Online image submissions only, no submissions will be accepted at store locations.

Tiffany, in our Invitations Department, ignited enthusiasm for the upcoming holiday with festive 4th of July favor bags featuring Chicago’s famed Garrett Popcorn and a little Paper Source flair… or flare in this case.

Using red and white paper straws, solid paper (in Night) and decorative cord, Tiffany created a mini firework adornment for a favor bag that pops. She showed off her sparkling personality with a little message printed on Paper Bag circle labels.

Whenever I read crafting blogs, the first thing I think after seeing a project is, “Wow, that’s adorable!” Then I usually follow with, “Now how can I do that?” Often I am too intimidated to give it a try, opting to simply admire the crafter’s talent without attempting to re-create it myself.

I’ve come to realize that blogs are just suggestions. They have an inadvertent tendency to deceive, making the process look simple and rarely showing the potential flaws.

You’re a crafter. You know there are always little nuances that should be taken into account. Whether it’s factoring in humidity when letting pigment ink dry or picking the appropriate adhesive through trial and error, crafting takes practice – and it takes a whole lot of mistakes.

I even came across a blog that features all these little slip-ups. If you’re ever feeling in the dumps about your crafting project, craftfail.com will help you realize you’re not alone in your frustration.

You’re probably already thinking of a moment when your project took a turn for the worse. Were you able to recover? Did you find a way to laugh about it? What tips came from your experience?

–Lauren, Paper Source Intern
PS colors: chartruese & sage
Latest fave: Vintage Marquis Monogram A6 Flat Stationery