Lucky Birthday Card

I know that this is an unusual birthday card, but it is for someone (my husband)who is very lucky and skilled at game machines, the kind with a grab claw.  I guess you might say that winning prizes from claw machines is his 'super power'.  LOL!  It was easy to construct this shaker card because the window is a simple rectangle.  I just cut out the opening and glued a piece of acetate behind it.  Next I placed two layers of foam tape (HM BFC has some in the picture framing area) all around and behind the opening to form a well for the confetti. (Two layers of tape will make the confetti well deep enough to allow the confetti to move.) I removed the sticker paper from all the tapes except the ones above the machine so that the confetti could be filled into the machine.  Once the front with the game machine image is adhered to the blue card blank, the confetti can be loaded and the upper strips of tape can be removed and the shaker completed.

I had planned to use some 'happy birthday' word confetti but they are lost somewhere in the mess I call my craft room. I did find some party hat, star and balloon confetti so I used them instead.  Oh yes, I ended up adding a 'Happy Birthday' gold sticker to the inside of the machine because I wanted the card to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY somewhere on the front of the card.  I colored in the machine image with Copic pens and added the silver l-u-c-k-y letters .  The silver letters were not my first choice but other cardboard letters were the wrong color or size.  In the end though, I am happy with the finished result and I think the card will make my husband smile.  Secretly, I think he is proud of all the winnings he's had and I am delighted with my collection of prizes on display in my room.  I guess 'lucky' would be a good name for me too!

 

Valentine Treat Boxes

I'm one of those crafters who looks at empty food boxes and wonders how they can be repurposed.  Usually, I just cover the boxes with printed paper or card stock, but when I noticed that the Diamond Bakery cookie box was actually made from just one folded piece of card stock, I wondered if I could reproduce the whole box from 12x12 card stock.  I carefully took apart the box and laid it out flat.  Unfortunately, the width of the flattened cardboard box was slightly more than 12", the width of my largest sheet of card stock. 

Being a master box counterfeiter, I determined that if I cut the box template in half and overlapped the center by 1/2", I could fit the pattern onto a standard 12x12 card stock sheet. I traced this revised template onto the chosen Valentine 12x12 sheet and cut out the pattern. Using the original Diamond Bakery cookie box as a guide, I folded the box and amazingly it made a slightly smaller version of the original cookie box.  

I formed the box with the help of some double stick Heiko tape and then decorated the front and back with images from a sheet of Authentic 12x12 Valentine card stock (old stock from my stash) and recycled Xmas ribbon from a gift.

Here is a view of the how the box opens up.  I just love how the box folds closed without any Velcro or snaps other than the tab that fits into the slit on the front.

This is another version of the treat box. I used stickers from a $15 Doodlebug Valentine 12x12 paper pack to decorate the front and back of the box.

Also note that I used more of that same red leftover Xmas ribbon...yes, I save ribbons too...such a hoarder, I know.  Anyway, I hope you've been inspired to look carefully at containers before you toss them away.  They might provide great templates for a multitude of projects. Keep recycling and creating!

 

Valentine Porcupine Shaker Card

I just couldn't resist the new Lawn Fawn porcupine Valentine stamp and die sets. They are adorable and come with some clever puns (which I plan to use on the inside of this card).  I decided to make a full front shaker card using a piece of conversation hearts printed card stock, a Heiko sealable cello bag, and some sparkly and colorful heart confetti.  HM Ben Franklin Crafts has an amazing array of gorgeous confetti packages perfect for making an assortment of seasonal and everyday projects. It's easy to size the printed card stock to fit your card base.  For this card, I used a glittery red Paper Accents blank card.  After putting the card stock in the cello bag, the confetti was added and the bag was pulled tightly around the card stock before it was taped in place from behind. This shaker piece was adhered to the card base with Heiko double stick tape.

Next the stamped and colored (with Copic pens) porcupines were die cut and attached to the card with foam sticky dots.  The red heart with the silver foiled words was made with the Lawn Fawn metal plate (plus foil and a hot foiling machine) and cut out with the LF heart die. This foiled Happy Valentine's Day heart was glued to the front of the card above the porcupines.  This full front shaker card was super simple to make and makes me happy as I shake, shake, shake the hearts. What is it about shaker cards that make them irresistible? Am I the only one who can't stop playing with shaker cards? LOL!

 

Valentine Heart Pouches

It's fun to make Valentine treat pouches with the Lawn Fawn dies.  You just have to die cut two pieces, fold them, and assemble them with double sided Heiko tape.  The LF die even cuts out the holes for the twine.  For these pouches, I purchased a Doodlebug 12x12 Valentine design card stock pack that included some lovely printed and glitter sheets including some cute stickers.

For the foiled words on this pouch, I used a Lawn Fawn hot plate, silver foil, and a Minc foiling machine. I discovered that the  Lawn Fawn Ta-Da diorama heart die was able to perfectly cut out the foiled words heart.

To add some interest on the back of the pouch, I used one of the stickers in the Doodlebug pack to make a tag.

The second pouch was made using a mail envelope print card stock from the Doodlebug Design pack (only $15 from HM Ben Franklin Crafts).  Another two stickers were used to make the tag that I tied on the front of this pouch.

Although these pouches are not too big, they will hold some candies or a couple of cookies..enough to treat a friend, co-worker or classmate.

Here's a view of how the pouches are strung to form a container.  Twine fits nicely through the holes but you could enlarge the holes if you want to use ribbon instead.  The twine with the sparkly threads was purchased from Daiso and the other one is a Doodlebug Design product from HM BFC.  The Lawn Fawn heart pouch die makes it super easy to cut out and make dozens of treat boxes for a your Valentine friends.  Happy Heart Day!

 

Strawberry Shaker Birthday Card

I bought the Lawn Fawn strawberry frame because I wanted to use it to make a strawberry shaker element.  I'm not sure what the frame was supposed to be used for...perhaps it goes with one of the other LF stamp sets.  Anyway, I cut two red sheet foam strawberry frames and one red card stock one.  I glued (Beacon 3 in 1 Fabri-Tac) some clear acetate behind the card stock frame and trimmed around it.  Then I glued the two foam frames together and glued them onto some red card stock before trimming around the strawberry.  Next, I added the heart confetti (from Hm BFC) to the recessed area and then glued on the framed acetate strawberry.  Finally I die cut the leaves and stem and glued them to the strawberry shaker.  A sweet, crafty friend (that's you, Karen) sent me the Lawn Fawn stamp set and I couldn't wait to use it.  I thought the little mice with strawberries would look super cute with the giant shaker strawberry. The mice were easily stamped, colored with Copic pens and cut out before adhering them to the card with adhesive foam dots. I tried several die cut Happy Birthday words but none of them seemed to fit so I finally went with a birthday tag I had in my stash.  Using Heiko skinny rainbow colored ribbon added an extra pop of color and movement.  Because this card is for an older person, I chose an appropriate saying and stamped the message inside the card.  I KNOW the card looks like it was designed for a child but the recipient IS young at heart! (P.S. the shaker strawberry would be fun on a Valentine's Day card, too.)
 

Year of the Dragon

Happy New Year 2023!  It's the Year of the Dragon!  According to the Chinese Lunar Calendar, the year of the dragon occurs every twelve years. Because I was born in the year of the dragon, I am very excited to welcome in this year. Of course I felt obligated to make a special calendar to commemorate MY special year.  I started with a square rounded corner coaster purchased from Celebrations (Mapunapuna) in a pack of 50.  On the back of each coaster I glued a magnet sheet (purchased in a large roll from HM Ben Franklin Crafts).  The magnet sheet is easily trimmed with a regular scissors.  Next crinkled red washi paper with gold and silver flecks was cut to be slightly larger than the coaster and a dragon stamp was used to leave a clear image ink impression and then applying gold embossing powder.  After using a heat gun on the image, the red crinkled paper with the gold dragon image was glued onto the front of the coaster and trimmed. Gold cording was then glued around the edge of the coaster magnet. Finally, the Vippies mini 2024 calendar was glued onto the dragon decorated red magnet.

I am happy with the simple look of the calendars because they can be given to men or women. Also they look Chinese and very traditional which is exactly what I was hoping to achieve. I hope the recipients of my calendars will attach them to some visible area where it will remind them to enjoy the Year of the Dragon especially since it won't happen again for another twelve years!

 

Soapmaking 101

Soapmaking is unbelievably easy.  All you really need is the soap base, a glass mixing bowl, some molds, and a microwave oven.  It's really fun to experiment with colors and scents.  All the supplies are available at HM Ben Franklin Crafts. First you cut up the block of soap base.  You'll need about four 1-1/2" blocks of soap per bar (average size) you plan to make. Put the blocks in the microwavable bowl and melt for about 2 minutes at 8 power.  Next mix in about 10 drops of soap dye and then stir in several drops of soap fragrance.  Pour this colored and scented liquid soap into lightly oiled soap molds. Let the soap harden for a few hours before attempting to unmold the soap bars.

I scented my Xmas soaps with peppermint (pink swirl) and apple (seafoam green) but HM Ben Franklin Crafts has many soap scents and colors for sale.  For gift giving I chose to wrap my soap bars in cello bags (many sizes available at HM BFC) so that the scents or colors wouldn't bleed into each other. 

I found some really elegant bamboo trays at Daiso and thought that they would be perfect for holding the gift soaps.  I wrapped the trays in a washi paper that had some great raffia-like fibers in it and used raffia to tie up the package.  If you can't find interesting washi papers (check Celebrations) try using parchment paper.  I made these soap gifts for holiday hostess gifts and small 'just because' presents. It's so easy and inexpensive to make soaps that I think once you get started you'll be making them all year long for many occasions. Remember Valentine's Day and Mother's Day are on the horizon. Soaps are much loved and appreciated gifts!

 

Snow Globe Ornaments

Yes, I know that I should have made and blogged these snow globe ornaments before Xmas but I only purchased the Lawn Fawn stamp and die sets recently.  I had a light bulb moment when I found the Flat Fillable Ornaments at HM Ben Franklin Crafts.  It was a no brainer that I had to combine the stamped images with the fillable ornaments.

I traced the ornament onto some  two sided printed Xmas card stock scraps. Then I stamped the words on the backs of the papers and heat embossed them with gold or silver powder.

The bear, dog, desk and snow globe images were stamped on smooth white card stock and colored in with Copic markers before matching dies were used to cut out the pieces.

The hats were glued on as were the snow globes on the desk (which had its legs shortened) before foam dots were used to raise up the images from the backgrounds. About a teaspoon of 'snowflakes' was added to each half globe before the scenes were glued to the half ornaments.  Cording was then glued onto the edge of the flat ornament along with a bow of red ribbon with the words 'Let It Snow' on it. The 5 pack of fillable ornaments will actually make 10 ornaments because only half of the ornament is used to make each snow globe scene ornament.  I plan to get started on this style of ornaments earlier next year because they were so easy to make and turned out exactly as I hoped they would. There are so many scenes that can be incorporated into these flat snow globe ornaments. Maybe now is the time to purchase some packages of Flat Fillable Ornaments so you will be ready to make some NEXT Xmas....hey, they might be on SALE right now!!!