As 2016 winds down to a close I wanted to take a moment to say THANK YOU to all of our wonderful clients. Thank you for choosing us for your invitations & announcements, thank you for your kind words and feedback, thank you for being wonderful you! There are many families that I have been working with for years and I truly enjoy "seeing" their kids grow through their photos from year to year.

I have to say that 2016 was a bit of a bittersweet, rollercoaster year for us. We added a sweet baby boy to our family in February, and in June lost one of the most cherished people in our lives after a year-long battle with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Managing a business as a sole proprietor hasn't been easy while raising a little one (and all on 4 hours of sleep!), but it's something that I wouldn't trade. This business has been such a fulfilling creative outlet for me for the past 9+ years and I can't imagine doing anything else. 

(family photos on back of card by Amanda McMahon Photography)

In March 2017 Lil' Sprout Greetings will celebrate 10 years in business and I'm excited for what this new year has in store. New beginnings, new product, and hopefully more growth. I look forward to working with clients, old and new. I hope your holidays were filled with joy and the new year holds great things for you as well!

If you haven't already taken a peek, head on over to check out the new designs added to our holiday card section! 

This year metallics such as gold, rose gold and silver with black and white continue to be popular choices as well hand drawn lettering and accents. I've added many new designs with these elements and really focused on offering options for each of the new holiday card designs such as color options and number of photos. 

Our Blessed Family holiday card above is the perfect example of multiple offerings. The black/white/gold option above offers a clean, modern option while the red/black plaid and multi-color options below offer a holiday and more child-oriented option. 

In many cases we can also change colors to suit whatever you would like, just drop us a note first! 

More Christmas card designs will be added throughout the month of November, as time allows for creating!

Can someone please tell me where the month of December has gone? Seriously...I swore last December when I was sitting in a hospital bed working on holiday card orders while recovering from a sudden appendicitis that this year would be different-- that I would be organized, on top of my game, and have plenty of free time to do all of those fun holiday things that we've missed during the past few years. Has it happened? Nope. There's always next year. In the mean time, while I was tackling the pile of gifts to be wrapped I realized that I failed to stock up on gift tags. Since I'm too lazy to drive to the store for just tags, why not just print some that I had created last year? And of course I have to share. These bright and colorful tags are a fun addition to any package! Click on the image below to download and print on standard 8.5x11 inch stock.  

Happy holidays!

In past years I've found it difficult to locate larger sized tags to pin on homemade holiday goodies. The newest freebie, our 3.5" gift tags offer a solution to this problem. With a red and white color scheme, herringbone background and lots of fun fonts, these tags work great on large Mason jars, boxes, or bags. I've printed mine on cardstock and adhered to the jar, but print on sticker paper or tying the tags with twine would be nice as well. The white block on the tag leaves ample space for writing your name.   Download the tags in a PDF format here or by clicking on the image above.

With December only a few days away I've been hitting Pinterest for some new and clever decor ideas. There are so many wreaths I'd like to make, but I do only have one door that anyone would see it on, and then there are the ornaments, paper trees.... you get the idea. Here are a few of my absolute favorites so far: This dried fruit wreath made from orange and lemon slices. Fragrant, and it steps away from the traditional red/green decor. 

An adorable paper tree advent calendar- use solid cardstock and decorate or use patterned scrapbook paper.

Another advent calender using... Dixie Cups! I love the colors used in the sample.

Photo Christmas wish list ornaments. This is a great idea to preserve Christmas memories and for your children to look back on when they were older to remember what they asked Santa for that year.

This adorable DIY cake plate would make any holiday treats taste even more delicious.

source/tutorial

Check out the rest of our Holiday/Christmas Decor Board and while you're at it take a peek at our Homemade Holiday Gifts Board on Pinterest for a few ideas on what to MAKE for those special and hard to buy for people in your life! 

Our "Keep Calm and Jingle On" download is the first of several free downloads to come this holiday season. This 8x10 sign can be downloaded in three different color schemes. Print and frame for a fun addition to your Christmas decor!



Download your "Jingle on" freebies here. (Note: these items are for personal use only. Please do not redistribute or sell. Feel free to share news of the freebie, but please provide a link back to our blog so people can download the file from us.)