It's Release Day for Christmas In July 2023!

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to release day! I want to remind everyone that I'm going to go live in my Instagram stories this morning at 10am EDT, so feel free to join me over there if you want to ask any questions or see some behind the scenes peeks!

First up, let's take care of some very important business. We have winners to announce! We have one randomly selected winner from each day of introductions.

On Day 1 I asked "When do you start decorating for Christmas?"
Jennifer Nye said

On Day 2 I asked "Do you prefer a real tree or a faux tree for your holiday decor?"
Betty Jo R said

On Day 3 I asked "What is your favorite Christmas tradition?"
Claudia B said

Jennifer will win a $150 gift certificate and Betty and Claudia will each win a $50 gift certificate. Congratulations to all of you and many thanks to everyone for playing along! Please contact Customer Service (customerservice@poshtadesign.com) within 30 days to claim your prize.

The release will go live today at Noon ET, but I thought we could all use one last bit of inspiration before the launch. 

I made this whole set with the Jolly Holiday Color Story and the new Homespun Holiday: Keepsake Ornaments II Kit. The only other die set I used was the Accessory Alphabet, so all these designs are possible with just the kit.

This first ornament is a rounded ornament that I decorated with the striped pattern. I shared an ornament the other day with this same detail, but this time I opted to use patterned felt for the wide center stripe and I didn't use the diamonds insert. I am totally in love with this Peppermint Stripe felt. It makes such an impact! I chose to sew on a sprinkling of sequins and beads for a touch of sparkle and shine.

Next up is this 2-segment ornament.

I have a mercury glass ornament that is a very similar shape and it's one of my absolute favorites. I used the trio of teardrops in the top segment and the singleton down in the bottom segment. I'm loving the thread contrast and the tiny hint of sparkle.

How about a teardrop ornament?

I used the curly circle design on this one to highlight a monogram. I used multicolored beads to decorate the circle and really make it feel special. I also whip stitched the monogram to give it a smoother, bolder look. 

This second rounded ornament features the embroidered snowflake design with a tiny pop of Peppermint Stripe there in the center.

The beads are so pretty in the light on this one and I'm really digging the lazy daisy stitches on the ends of the legs. I want to try another one with bugle beads really soon!

I built a medallion on the center of this 3-segment ornament by pairing the teardrop trio with the circle accent dies.

I sewed the teardrop layer behind the opening and the circle in front of the opening to give the pieces different looks. I love how easy it is to change up the style by simply modifying the layering. Also that pop of Cardinal is the best.

This teardrop also plays with the layering of the oval.

You can sew the solid oval either on top of or behind the window. I chose to layer it on top for this ornament so I could use the stitching to create a sort of border. Once again, I whip stitched the monogram and added minimal sparkle since this is for a fella who may not appreciate the shiny things quite as much as I do.

I managed to amp up the interest with the Peppermint Stripe back though!

And, lastly, I have a 3 segment ornament with the ric rac stripe.

I kept things fairly simple on this one, but I did add a sprinkling of sequins and that striped topper to add some interest. I also wanted to give the ric rac a little sparkle, so I embellished with a few clear beads on the stripe itself (instead of in the valleys of the design). I really like the subtle shine they add!

Thank you so much for joining me this week. It's been a lot of fun to share these new designs with you and I can't wait to see how you will use them to build special holiday memories of your own! The release is today 7/1 at Noon ET so set your clocks. Happy crafting and I'll see you again soon!