Friday, May 30, 2014

Father's Day Card for a Honey of a Dad

When I saw the Tim Holtz honeycomb die I didn't hesitate for even a second and popped it into my shopping basket at Ben Franklin Crafts.  This die coordinates with so many of the other hexagonal products that are sold at HouseMart BFC.  I started making this card by die cutting eight honeycomb pieces from light brown textured card stock.  I ran all eight pieces through my Xyron to apply a sticky adhesive.  I pressed seven of the pieces together to make the shallow boxes for the Martha Stewart microbeads (from a set sold at BFC). The last piece I pressed onto a piece of clear acetate to form the cover for the shaker box (trim off extra acetate).
The honeycomb shaker box was adhered to a piece of decorative card stock from a 6x6 MME pad (Traveller) and then cut out with a craft knife. Next the compartments were dusted with cornstarch to help the microbeads roll better.  Then the beads were added and the cover was glued on.  The base of this card is shaped like a file folder which I made with a few straight cuts and corner trimming.  It is 4-1/2 x 6 including the tab.  I wanted it to look like a small version of a real folder because my children's father has stacks and stacks of them.  He organizes everything....just the opposite of me! LOL!  (There are mini Authentique  file folders available at BFC and they are really inexpensive, but I didn't want printed ones.  I tried stamping on the cover of the file folder but I didn't like the result so I covered it with DP from the same 6x6 MME pad. The ink soaked through the file folder so I had to cover the inside too.  I guess this is what is called a happy accident because I loved the way it looked with the printed paper.  Because my husband is a very frequent world wide flyer, most of the papers from the pad were appropriate.
The date tab and the honeycomb grid on the inside of the card were die cut using pieces from the two new Sizzix Life Made Simple sets. I only glued down the inner and bottom sides of the honeycomb grid so that photos can be slipped into the flap. (A few of the hexagons did not fall out of the grid but I just left them on because it somehow looked more interesting like that.)  To finish the card front I cut out two different sized hexagons (using the Spellbinders set) from scraps of the DP and inked the edges with TH Distress tea dye ink. After double sticking (Merikan tape) down the hexagons, I adhered the honeycomb shaker box on top. To finish off the look I stamped the letters 'r', 'a', and 'd' onto the hexagon shaped scraps using white then yellow ink.  These hexagon letters were then fit onto the card front.  Did you get why I used the letter 'r'?  (It's shorthand for 'our'.)
Although I purchased lots of beautiful Authentique Father's Day stickers and die cuts for this card, I only ended up using one small 'Father's Day' Authentique paper piece on the tab for this card.  Oh well, I'll use them for another project. The important thing is that I was very satisfied with the end result of the card.  Everything on the card represents something about my husband who is the  World's Best Dad.....patient, giving, wise, funny, and hard working.  Even the shaking microbeads match his inability to sit still and do nothing for even a few minutes.  I hope this card inspires you to make the 'perfect' card for the 'perfect' Dad in your life.  Father's Day is June 15th!

5 comments:

Creations by Shirl said...

What a great hexagon shaker card...
Lots of creativity here.... Tfs Lynn on your fantastic idea of putting this card together... Enjoy your wonderful crafty weekend!

Have A Scrap Happy Day said...

Awesome shaker card Lynn. Your hubby sounds like a terrific guy and bet he'll totally LOVE your card....made from the heart.

Leanne said...

Fun Fun Fun Lynn! The hexagons are terrific and the card result is very masculine and fantastic. Thanks for the tips on the cornstarch, had no idea. Your husband is going to love this.
Have a wonderful week!

yyam said...

How fun! Love a happy accident that makes a project even better!

eunice said...

This is such a COOL Fathers Day card, Lynn! Everything about your card is fresh and so intriguing ...especially like how you thought to create the mini hexagonal honeycomb shadowboxes...what a fabulous idea! And how you carried the hexagon theme throughout. Very very creative...and inspiring!