ArtsyTransfers Christmas nostalgia--**new**
ChristmasMagic No. 2 brushes: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/Christmas-Magic-No.-2.html
ChristmasFotoBlendz No 2: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/Christmas-FotoBlendz-Clipping-Masks-No.-2.html
LightLeaks No. 3: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/LightLeaks-No.-3.html
Frame-Old World Artplay Palette: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/ArtPlay-Palette-Old-World.html
FineEdgeFrames No 2: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/FineEdge-Frames-No.-2.html
ArtsyStains No. 2: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/ArtsyStains-No.-2.html
Painted Numbers 2: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/PaintedNumbers-No.-2.html
UrbanStitchez No. 7: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/UrbanStitchez-No.-7.html
ChristmasWordART5: (retired)
MagicSparkleFotoBlendz No. 1: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/Magic-Sparkle-FotoBlendz-No.-1.html

Embellishments:
Minilightstring: Night before Christmas Artplay Palette: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/ArtPlay-Palette-Night-Before-Christmas.html
Gold button and gold paint: Christmas Magic Artplay Palette: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/ArtPlay-Palette-Christmas-Magic.html
SantaWord Art: Santa Christmas Artplay Palette: http://www.oscraps.com/shop/Artplay-Palette-Santa-Christmas.html

Process:
In this layout I used the artsy transfers to make a background of Santas. I started with the photo (blurry, snapped by my daughter) and positioned the Santa, paint, and Fotoglow layers of Artsy Transfer No 1 underneath. I put the photo on multiply blend mode and presto! There was Santa, grinning in the background. I used layer masks to eliminate the stray bits of the transfer. I merged all that and clipped it to a Christmas Fotoblendz. I used a frame as a mat behind the photo and a fine-edge frame on top, for definition.
I added the title and journaling so I could better judge what space I had to fill.
I then added the main part of the backgroundArtsyTransfer No. 5. To keep the diagonal flow going, I dragged in word art from ChristmasWordArt5.
And then it was the light leaks, because my photo was dark as well as blurry.
The third Santa came nextthis one from the new Christmas Magic brush set.
After that, because this layout is about Advent Calendars, I added the numbers to the background and to portions of the frame. The embellishments, stitches, and stains came next. As a last step, I isolated the MagicSparkles from their FotoBlendz and randomly clipped gold paint to them for extra bling. I positioned them as a sort of border on the left.