So I’ve never been pregnant but this is the closest thing to giving birth that I can relate to. Today I’m so excited to welcome into the world Merry magazine . She’s my baby. Merry is a 100 page online magazine packed with original and awesome handmade holiday inspiration from myself and some of my talented creative friends. It includes DIY projects, holiday art, recipes, entertaining, holiday home decor, style and an Etsy handmade gift guide. Like human babies, it took more than me to make it happen. I worked with no less than 15 other bloggers to bring Merry magazine into the world and we’re a bunch of proud mama’s.

The objective of this magazine is to bring back the handmade element of the holidays. I want you to get lost in the pages and links of great projects then step away from your screen and enjoy those projects and inspiration with some of your favourite people. I’m beyond proud of what the team produced (in an insanely short time) but what’s so great about it is that it’s not totally perfect. It’s a magazine full of real projects by real people who just can’t help themselves from making and sharing. We’re encouraging you to make and share too!

Take some time with a nice tea or coffee to take it all in. In the meantime, here’s a small taste of what you’ll find within the pages of Merry magazine. And if you’re in love with the cover, you can find the full project tutorial below.

Now you’ll have to check out Merry magazine to find all these and way more great projects!

Full disclosure is that this magazine is a great life lesson for me and maybe it will inspire you as well. I left my full-time creative corporate gig just over a year ago in pursuit of a more editorial career as an Art Director and I’ll be honest, it hasn’t been easy. This little blog of mine has been growing steadily and I’ve met a million awesome people because of it but unfortunately it’s not enough to pay the bills, know what I’m saying? I’m struggling and the constant job hunt (and rejection) is wearing me down. So what did I decide to do? Well if getting a job at a magazine wasn’t happening, then I would create my own magazine! Make it happen. That’s one of my all-time favourite quotes. So I made it happen and I can’t tell you how awesome it feels. It was a crazy (!) amount of work but it feels pretty awesome and I’m beyond thankful for such a supportive team. So in the name of manifestation I’m putting it out there! If you’re looking for an awesome art director, consider this my resume.

We were super lucky to get the talented Maya Visnyei (last month’s Chatelaine cover photographer!) to help us shoot our Merry magazine cover. Here’s a little behind the scenes from the photoshoot. As you can see it wasn’t a big production..ha! Just Maya and me making some holiday magic.

Big decisions happening here. Should the wreath move up or down 1 inch?

Do you love our cover and want to make it for your own space? Here’s how. First round up some gold thumbtacks. This was harder than I thought. Silver was easy, gold not as much. If you can’t find them at your local dollar store, try Home Depot that where I found these. I used about 1200 and this is a 13″ wreath. Now that was just for half a wreath, double that if you want to go all the way around.

I spray painted the wreath gold so any parts peeking through the thumbtacks wouldn’t look bad then I just started tacking away.

It takes a bit of time but if you sit in front of the TV or do it together with a friend, it goes by really quickly.

The trees were a little more complicated only because you really need a saw to cut them out. But if that’s not an option, you could always make these out of foamcore and just make a little easel on the back for them to stand. I used 1″ thick finished pine. I made some simple triangle templates, traced them on the wood and used my brand new circular saw, which I’m totally in love with.

Then mix up some painted washes and paint away. Use some white glue and glitter to add some bling snowcaps if you like. Finish it off with a nice fat silk ribbon (silk will look the prettiest, trust me)  and hang up your beautiful wreath for everyone to see!