Too Kind Note Card Gift Pack

Hi there

Today I thought I would share more details of the 'Too Kind' Note Card Gift pack that we made in class on the weekend.  It is an embellished folder that holds 3 Stampin' Up! note cards and envelopes on each side, using the lovely 'Too Kind' 2-step stamp set.  It closes with a bow at the centre front. This is the pack closed:

When it is open you see the 2 card designs - one set landscape and one set portrait with the envelopes sitting behind.

Each card is a different colour combination which gives it a bright and happy rainbow feel and with a selection of greetings, there is a card that should suit most occasions. It would also be fabulous as a pack of thank you cards, which are always useful to have on hand. 

The ladies loved the end result and are looking forward to gifting their projects to someone special.

I have a prepared a detailed tutorial that includes dimensions and instructions for making the folder and both sets of cards. You can find it here. The Stampin' Up! Note Cards are great value at $9.95 AUD for 20 cut and scored cards and envelopes. They are heavy weight card stock, not the Whisper White weight.

 Thanks for looking!

Masculine Get Well

Hi there

With my husband being the president of his local Rotary Club this year, I have been asked for more masculine cards recently. This time, it was a get well card. I went to my current masculine 'go to' stamp set "Wetlands" and with some inspiration from Pinterest, I created this card. It is very 'flat', which is unusual for me. I had to resist the temptation to add more embellishment, however, I like the clean lines of it.

I made a mask with the Squares Collection Framelits to create the sponged background. I suggest you cut your mask the exact size of your finished piece to make placement easy without further trimming being needed. The images from 'Wetlands' were stamped after the mask was removed.  The background colours are Wild Wasabi, Crumb Cake, Marina Mist and Soft Sky.

This is the inside of the card, where I have done some 'freehand' sponging to ground the goose image from 'Wetlands'. To me, decorating the inside of the card is one of the things that makes a handmade card 'special' and it doesn't take that much longer when you already have everything out on your desk.

 

I think I will be making a few more of these to have in my stash.

Project Details
Stamps	Wetlands, Delightful Dozen
Card stock & Papers	Marina Mist, Early Espresso, Whisper White
Ink	Early Espresso, Baked Brown Sugar, Wild Wasabi, Crumb Cake, Marina Mist, Soft Sky
Accessories	None
Tools	Squares Collection Framelits, Big Shot, Stampin' Sponges, Stampamajig

Thanks for looking!

Next Class Sneak Peak

Hi there

I thought I would give you a (big) sneak peak of the class I am running this Saturday (20th September).

We will be making (and embellishing) this folder and its contents, which are 6 Note cards and envelopes. This set would make a gorgeous gift for someone special or to have on hand yourself when you need a card. I find the Stampin' Up! note cards the perfect size for 'hello', 'thank you' and 'just because' occasions.  

Come and join me for a great afternoon of crafting, chat and chocolate!  All materials and tools are supplied as well as afternoon tea. You will receive a detailed tutorial so that you can make more at home. Don't you think it would make a fabulous Christmas gift? 

Click on my Card Making Classes tab to get more details.

 Thanks for visiting!

3D Star Boxes

Hi there

Today I want to share this fabulous star shaped box made with the Stampin' Up! Stars Framelits and matching 'Bright & Beautiful' stamp set. Stampin' Up! have produced a video showing you the basic process, which you can watch below. Their project shows how to make a 3D star box that you cannot open after it is constructed. This is perfect for decor items (they definitely aren't just for Christmas) or as decorations to hang on your Christmas tree. However, as soon as I saw this video I wanted to make one with a removable lid so that you could put treats or a gift inside without having to destroy the box to get to the contents.  This is how my finished star box looks.

I always make my prototype 3D projects in Crumb Cake card stock, but as this turned out pretty well, I decided to add some embellishment. I have white embossed the largest of the 'Bright & Beautiful' star images which adds some pop to the Crumb Cake and Real Red combo. I've added some bling with the smallest of the Stars Framelits used to cut the centre star from Silver foil and the Itty Bitty Accents punch cutting the smallest star from Silver Glimmer paper. It matches the shape of the Stars Framelits perfectly.  This next photo shows the lid removed.

I recommend that you watch the Stampin' Up! video first, so that you understand the basic process and then hopefully my tips and comments below will make more sense.

 

For my star box, I used the largest of the Stars Framelits as I wanted a box that would be sufficiently large to hold treats (eg Lindt balls, homemade rum balls etc) or other gifts.  Using the video as a basis, here are my recommendations/measurements.

1.  Use heavyweight card stock for your box. Whisper White and Very Vanilla would not produce a sturdy box. The 'Under the Tree' Specialty Designer Series Paper would be suitable as it is card stock weight and has the advantage of having kraft or coloured designs if you wanted to minimise the embellishment.

2.  As you are adding the side strips to the star shape, I found 2 star shapes glued together first gave a sturdier base for this process. I did this for the top and bottom of the box.

3. The measurement of the arms on the large star is 1 11/16", which is not a very friendly measurement to work with.  I scored the side strips at 1 3/4" and found this worked well, as you lose a tiny bit when you score anyway.

4.  I used Tombow Multi Liquid glue instead of sticky strip. It gives you a bit of wriggle room to manoeuvre the points into place. However, if you do use liquid glue, make sure the point is set before going onto the next one, as you may find it will move out of place.

5.  For the side strips for the TOP of the box - cut 2 strips from the full length of A4 or 12 x 12 card stock 1 & 1/8" wide. With the short edge at the top of your scoring tool, score at 3/8" down the full length of each strip. With the long side at the top score every 1 3/4". You will find that the last piece of your strip is less than 1 & 3/4", so cut it off at the last score line. These measurements give your lid a finished depth of 3/4". You will need to join the strips as per the process shown in the video.

6. For the side strips for the BOTTOMof the box - cut 2 strips from the full length of A4 or 12 x 12 card stock 1 & 7/8" wide. With the short edge at the top of your scoring tool, score at 3/8" down the full length of each strip. With the long side at the top score every 1 & 3/4". You will find that the last piece of your scored strip is less than 1 & 3/4", so cut it off at the last score line. These measurements give your base a finished depth of  1  & 1/2". You will need to join the strips as per the process shown in the video.

7.  In the video you see the side strips being stuck to the underside of the star shape. Use this process for the base of the box, so that you have a completely smooth underside that will be seen.   Cut another star shape and adhere it to the inside of the base, to cover the tabs (you can see I used Real Red, as a contrast to the Crumb Cake). You may need to trim the inside angles a little bit for it to fit.

8. To achieve a neatly fitting lid to the box, I adhered the tabs of the side strips onto the top side of the star shape. By bringing the card stock over the top edge of the star shape, it is automatically going to be a tiny bit bigger, allowing it to fit over the base without a problem, but not enough to be sloppy. This leaves the inside lid of your box with a lovely smooth finish (as per the base), but you will need to add a finishing layer to the outside of the lid to cover the tabs. This gives you the opportunity to decorate the top with a contrasting colour card stock or to use the gorgeous 'Bright & Beautiful' stamp set as I have done. 

Well, I hope this remotely makes sense, but drop me an email if you have any questions. 

Project Details
Stamps	Bright & Beautiful
Card stock & Papers	Crumb Cake, Real Red, Silver Foil, Silver Glimmer paper
Ink	Versamark
Accessories	Basic Rhinestones, Real Red 3/8" Satin Woven Ribbon
Tools	Stars Framelits, Big Shot, Simply Scored Board, Tombow Multi liquid glue, Itty Bitty Accents Star punch

Thanks for looking!

Stars Framelits Die

$45.95

Bright & Beautiful Clear-Mount Stamp Set

$42.95

Real Red 3/8" Satin Woven Ribbon

$11.95

Rhinestone Basic Jewels Embellishments

$8.95

Liquid Multipurpose Glue

$6.95

 

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

 

Bloom with Hope Sympathy

Hi there

Sympathy cards are not the kind we want to make everyday. However, when my husband had need of one for a colleague recently (in a hurry, as always!) I went straight to the gorgeous 'Bloom with Hope' Hostess stamp set. It has the perfect images for such an occasion and I even cased the frame from the card that was displayed in the Catalogue. 

I think Smoky Slate is the perfect colour for such an occasion as it evokes (to me) calmness and serenity, so I started with that and paired it with Pink Pirouette and lots of white. I have coloured the flower buds with Wisteria Wonder blendabilities and white embossed the sentiment from the retired 'Close as a Memory' stamp set.

While I had everything on my desk (and a bit more time) I decided to make another one to put in my stash.  I have used the same flower buds image and coloured it in Calypso Coral Blendabilities this time and added a little bow of Calypso Coral Bakers Twine. I prefer this one, as I think the oval shape is more pleasing to the eye. This design will work well with any of the subtles colours.

You can purchase this beautiful 'Bloom with Hope' stamp set with the Hostess Dollars earned with a $300 AUD order or party. Not only that, for a limited time you will also get FREE this fabulous 'Good Greetings' stamp set (shown below). There are lots of greetings for the coming holiday season, as well as many other occasions.  Talk to me about hosting an Online Party - your friends can order online and their orders contribute to you earning Hostess benefits and getting this fabulous stamp set for FREE.

 

 

Project Details
Stamps	Bloom with Hope (Hostess), Close as a Memory (Retired)
Card stock & Papers	Smoky Slate, Crisp Cantaloupe, Pink Pirouette, Elegant Eggplant, Whisper White
Ink	Memento Tuxedo Black, Versamark
Accessories	Pink Pirouette Seam Binding ribbon, Calypso Coral Bakers Twine (retired), Basic Pearls
Tools	Ovals Collection Framelits, Windows Frames Collection Framelits, Perfect Polka Dot EF, Fancy Fan EF, Big Shot, Festive & Occasions Paper Piercing Templates, Stampin' Pierce Mat, Paper Piercing Tool, Blendabilities - Wisteria Wonder, Calypso Coral, Heat gun, Dimensionals, Glue dots

Thanks for looking!