From a Sketch to a Sleigh - Product Journey

The Story Behind Our Christmas Sleigh Album

When we started thinking about our next Christmas folio, we knew we wanted to create something more than just a beautiful album.

We wanted to create something giftable, display-worthy, and special enough to become part of Christmas itself. After all, there is something a little sad about spending hours creating a beautiful project only to put it away on a shelf once the occasion is over. We wanted something that could sit on a table, mantel or shelf, be brought out every Christmas, or be given as a thoughtful handmade gift.

That led us to the idea of a Christmas sleigh.

It had everything we were looking for an unmistakable Christmas story, a beautiful silhouette, and the potential to become much more than an album. We could already imagine it sitting under a Christmas tree, carrying photographs and memories, and becoming part of someone's Christmas décor.

It Started With a Sketch

Before we cut our first piece, we started where every product begins: with an idea on paper.

We sketched the sleigh, thinking through its proportions, structure and how the album could actually work while still retaining the character of a traditional Christmas sleigh.

But a sketch can only tell you so much. At some point, the idea has to leave the paper and become something you can actually hold.

So, it was time to build.

Prototype No. 1

Our first prototype was made with a simple white base. At this stage, we weren't concerned with pretty papers or embellishments; we wanted to understand the structure and see how the sleigh looked as a real three-dimensional object.

And that's when the prototype told us something the sketch hadn't.

Some of the proportions and dimensions needed adjustment. Things that looked perfectly fine on paper felt different once we could actually assemble the sleigh and see it from every angle.

So we went back to the drawing board.

Prototype No. 2

We adjusted the dimensions and built the second prototype with the corrected proportions. This time, we also used a red base, which brought us much closer to the Christmas look we had imagined.

The sleigh was beginning to look like the idea in our heads. But getting the structure right wasn't enough; we wanted to see if we could make the finished piece even more beautiful without making it more complicated to create.

The Little Changes

This is where some of the most interesting design work happens.        

Instead of adding lots of extra pieces or complicated mechanisms, we focused on small refinements, subtle changes to shapes, proportions and details that could make the sleigh feel more polished and dimensional.

Each change was small, but together they made a noticeable difference.

This is something we keep in mind when designing CrafTreat projects: more complexity doesn't automatically mean a better project. Sometimes, the right little change can create much more impact than adding several extra steps for the crafter.

 

Designing the Whole Experience

Once the second prototype was ready, we started looking beyond the album itself.

We didn't want this to feel like simply a sleigh-shaped album base. We wanted it to feel like a complete Christmas experience from the moment the kit was opened.

That's when we decided to add reindeer die cuts and cotton cord to the kit.

The reindeer brought the Christmas story to life, while the cotton cord added another tactile detail and helped complete the look. Each element was chosen to work together, rather than simply increasing the number of pieces in the box.
 

The idea was simple: when you open the kit, you should feel like you have the key pieces you need to start creating your own little Christmas scene.

From “What If?” to the Finished Sleigh

Looking at the finished project now, it's easy to forget how many decisions happened before it reached this stage.

There was the initial idea, the sketch, the first white prototype, the realization that the dimensions needed work, the second red prototype, the small refinements, and finally the decision to bring the reindeer and cotton cord into the experience.

That's the part of product design that often happens behind the scenes. A finished product may look simple, but getting there can involve quite a bit of experimenting, testing and rethinking.

And that's exactly what we love about creating at CrafTreat.

We don't just want to design something that is fun to make. We want to create projects that are beautiful enough to display, special enough to gift, and enjoyable enough to make.

Because when you've spent time creating something for Christmas, we think it deserves to be seen, not locked away in a cupboard.

And perhaps that's what we love most about our little Christmas sleigh. It started as a sketch on a piece of paper, went through a few versions and many little decisions, and eventually became something that we hope will find a place in someone else's Christmas story.

Create More. Struggle Less.