Labour of Love!

Twenty-one years ago I laboured to give birth to my youngest daughter so it only seemed fitting to create a very special card to celebrate her birthday.

This large box card was a true labour of love and very fun to create!

I've been wanting to make an 'explosion' box card for some time, so this special birthday was the perfect excuse for me to try this fun fold design.

I used retired designer series paper to decorate this card box -- Pattern Party on the outside and Sunshine & Rainbows on the inside. The DSP determined my colour scheme and inks.

The box was made from a 12" x 12" piece of Melon Mambo cardstock scored at 4" on all sides. I made the lid from a 6" square piece of Melon Mambo cardstock and scored it at just under 1" on all four sides so that it would be slightly larger than the 4" square box.

I die cut hearts for each corner from Basic White cardstock using the largest heart from the retired Be Mine Stitched Dies. I also traced around that same die to make each heart-shaped corner for my box.

The Mini Pocket Envelope Dies were the perfect choice to make a little pocket to hide $21 inside for the birthday girl because she is Amazing!

I used one of the Let's Celebrate Embossing Folders on vellum to make the 'Happy Birthday' section of the box.

The Charming Sentiments Bundle allowed me to find the perfect words to place over some frayed gold ribbon on top of one of the Stylish Shapes Dies.

I created a triangular pocket out of designer series paper on one side to hide a little message which allowed me to sign the 'card'. The white heart was the inside of one of the larger corner heart die cuts.

I printed six photos of my daughter at various ages on paper and then die cut them with the largest heart from the Be Mine Stitched Dies to personalise this special box.

The tealight multi-tiered cake was another project I had been wanting to make and I personalised it with the Playful Alphabets Dies. 

I made sure to make the cake hollow so I can easily turn on the tealight. You can learn how to make a cake in my video below.

I've also made another little video showing this special card in close-up view along with explanations of how I made it. All the products I used are listed in the description of the video.

Even though I used a lot of retired products to make this special gift card, you can make your own using whatever you have at hand or purchase some similar products from Stampin' Up!

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #CreativeTherapy #KeepStamping #CardMaking #ExplosionBox #PaperCake #21stBirthday

Getting to know your Gnome Dies!

Sometimes a die set comes along with some pieces which you aren't sure how they are meant to be used. In this blog I'll explain how to use some of the smallest pieces in the set of Gnomes Dies from Stampin' Up! 

Gnomes Dies

There are five large framing dies which allow you to die cut the stamped images from the Kindest Gnomes stamp set -- four gnomes and the large mushroom.

The Kindest Gnomes Bundle includes the Kindest Gnomes Stamp Set and the Gnomes Dies

You can also use some of those dies to cut out a few images from the matching designer series paper -- Storybook Gnomes.

The other dies in this set allow you to create a paper-pieced gnome and build a scene with some mushrooms and grass.

However there is one little die that seems out of place in this set until you notice that it fits into the space at the top of the hat die. This little die allows you to cut a hole in the top of the gnome's hat. 

Why would you want a hole in the top of a hat, you ask? Well, the possibilities are only limited by your imagination!

You could use the hole to create a banner of gnomes.

You could use it to turn the gnome into a tag.

You could use it to add decorative ribbon to hang a trinket from.*

You can change the look of the paper-pieced gnome by giving it arms. I used the 'nose' pieces (ovals) to create hands and the top of the mushrooms as arms. 

The embossed lines of the mushroom dies look like sleeve stitching to me. Have a look at my video to see how to create your own little gnome.

I hope I've inspired you to make the most out of your dies and remember to try to use them differently. You might just surprise yourself!

* Check out my previous blog for more information about the Santa gnome treat box.

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #CreativeTherapy #KeepStamping #ChristmasGiftIdea #CardMaking #TreatBox #KindestGnomes #SantaTreatBox 

Tombstone Treat Boxes -- Tips and Tricks for decorating them

The Tombstone Treat Boxes from Stampin' Up! are so adorable and the perfect size to hide treats and gifts for your ghouls and goblins this Halloween!

The Tombstone Treat Boxes are shipped as a flat-packed kit ready for you to make 8 double-sided gift boxes which can also be used as table decorations. However by using a little Basic White cardstock you can make 16 single-sided boxes that are perfect to treat your little ghouls and goblins this Halloween!

There are two sizes for the inside of the Tombstone Boxes so you'll need to make a back section to fit the size front you are using. Either start with a 6" x 5" (15 cm x 12.5 cm) or 4-3/4" x 5-3/4" (12 cm x 14 cm) rectangle and then score all four sides at 1-1/4" (3.2 cm). After you fold and burnish on the score lines, cut a slit in each of the sides before sticking them together as shown in this picture (as well as in my video).

Here are some of the treat boxes I made using a variety of products from Stampin' Up!

You can even make them in to a light up box, like the two in the centre of the following picture. You just need to die cut an image into the front of the tombstone, add some vellum and use a battery-operated tea light in the box. This would be really spooky at night!

You can heat emboss a sentiment on the tombstone, but make sure you do this before putting the box together.

In my YouTube video I show you how to make this ghost using the Diorama Dies as well give you tips and tricks for creating with the tombstone gift boxes. You can have a look at my video here.

#KeepCalmAndCraft #ComputerAndCraftDesigns #StampinUp #CreativeTherapy #KeepStamping #RubberStamping #Diorama #DioramaDies #TombstoneBoxes