Chocolate Rabbits Shaker Easter Card

To me, Easter means enjoying chocolate rabbits!  Since I can't mail a chocolate card, I decided to design a card that has the spirit of my childhood chocolate candy Easter rabbits.  I have a really old Tim Holtz chocolate rabbit die that I used to make the rabbit cut outs.  (Recently, I noticed that Whimsy Stamps is selling a set of rabbit silhouette dies which probably can be used to create a similar card to this one.)  Because the old rabbit die is one that is about an inch thick, it is rather difficult to align the three rabbits...but it can be done!  

After die cutting the rabbits from a printed card stock, double stick adhesive is applied around the rabbits before a piece of cellophane is pressed down.  (To be thrifty, I use clear packaging from my craft supplies.)  Then foam tape is lined around the under side of the die cut rectangle piece and three of the protective strips are removed.  This rectangle was then pressed down on three sides of a card blank.  Shaker confetti pieces (MIx Upz, Easter Basket) was poured into the pocket before sealing up the open adhesive side.   

Easy-peasy....the card is done!  I really love how easy this card was too construct. I think the bright, colorful confetti that I purchased from HM Ben Franklin Crafts really made the card something special!

I also had some Doodlebug Designs 'Happy Easter' washi tape I decided to use to decorate the back of the card too. I just applied one strip so that I could write a long Easter message.  I'll use the washi tape to make the envelope 'spiffy' too.  I hope you'll make an Easter card that will brighten someone's holiday season.  It will brighten your holiday celebrations too!

Two Chocolate Easter Bunnies and a Shaker Egg

My childhood memories of Easter always include chocolate rabbits so I just had to include some on my Easter card. I used a Tim Holtz die to cut out the bunnies from brown card stock.  Then I coated the surface of the bunnies with 'chocolate' from a tube of BoBunny perlescent dimensional paint. (The Bo Bunny product may not be available anymore but there are other dimensional paint companies who do manufacture chocolate colored paint in a squeeze tube.) Once the rabbits were dry, I glued on some bows cut from colored card stock using the Tim Holtz die that came with the bunny die.)

Next I used a Spellbinder egg-shaped die to cut out the oval for the shaker part of the card.  I glued a piece of acetate (cut from a discarded cello bag) behind the opening. I framed the opening with double stick foam tape to make a well to enclose the shaker pieces. From HM Ben Franklin Crafts I purchased a great pack of Easter themed confetti.  I pressed down most of the taped egg shaped opening and then filled in the opening with enough confetti to fill the egg about halfway full before sealling the rest of the opening. Double stick tape was used to fasten down the printed card stock edges and the banner which came from a Doodlebug Design ephemera set.

Since I had a Doodlebug Designs 'Happy Easter' washi tape, I decided to decorate an envelope to go with the shaker card. Making a matching envelope always signifies to the recipient that there is a special greeting inside.  Make someone's day fabulous...send a them a homemade card today!

2026 Easter Cookie Box

 This year I am hoping to make some Easter cookies and thought that I should make some decorative boxes to house them.  This box is recycled from a candy box. (I always save sturdy, clean boxes to re-purpose into decorated containers.)  This box was especially nice because it opened up flat, making it easy to cover with printed cardstock.  I simply traced the flattened box onto the cardstock, cut it out and folded the new box.  The 12x12 Doodlebug paper was slightly too small so I added a patch to the bottom of the box (hardly noticeable).

The bunnies were die cut using the Lawn Fawn die set, Build-a-Bunny.  Since I didn't buy the coordinating Accesories die set, I used a sticker and cut out a carrot to decorate the bunnies.  Usually I would put blue and pink paper behind the eyes and ears but I didn't want to search for the paper scraps so I simply used my Copic markers to make colored paper from plain white card stock and then placed them beneath the appropriate eye or ear spaces.

Without the ribbon and after the cookies are eaten, the box can be a cute storage for trinkets, stickers, etc. or new cookies could be baked and given to someone else. Yum-yum!

The 12x12 printed cardstock is from a Doodlebug Designs pack (purchased at HM Ben Franklin Crafts) as were the DD and Echo Park ephemera packs.  The cute chicky puffy stickers are a Paper Source product.  I found the green ribbon in my stash but I'm pretty sure it came from HM BFC....I shop there a lot....hahaha! I am so pleased with this recycled box that I am searching for other containers to recycle into cookie boxes that can be enjoyed long after the cookies are eaten. Recycling and repurposing should be a crafter's second hobby! 

Tucson 2026 Rock and Gem Show

Recently, I had the pleasure of attending the Tucson Rock and Gem Show. Although the show was a bit quieter than in previous years, it still was a wonderland of nature's geological beauty. There was also a marvelous aray of tents and rooms brimming over with affordable and millionaire-only-priced jewelry/gemstones.  

 Yes!  This dinosaur skeleton was actually on display in one of the tents at the Tucson 2026 Gem and Mineral Show. It was a small specimen compared to others but it was still way bigger than me.

Even in the tent area of the show, there were amazing displays and collections.  One of my favorite displays was a gigantic carved jade dragon.  It was certainly museum worthy and it was exciting to be able to see it up close. If you are a rock hound or gem collector, you really need to attend the Tucson Rock and Gem Show at least once in your lifetime.  Even if you can't afford the museum quality gems, you wil surely find something in your price range that you will treasure and display in your home forever!

  

We didn't buy any of these gorgeous Ethiopian opals which were being sold by the carat. The colors radiating from them was blinding! 

We also only stroked the boulder opal slabs but did buy a few small pieces with the intent of someday mounting them into jewelry.

In the Tucson convention center there were amazing displays of one-of-a- kind mineral specimens.  They were breathtakingly beautiful and it was unbelivable that people discovered them and were able to mine them in such pristine condition.  Although, I would never be able to afford the museum worthy mineral specimens, it was fun to gaze at them and wish. Although this quartz cluster is not really a rare occurrence, it is still an eye-catching display.

This gigantic cluster of gem grade aquamarine is so gorgeous that I can't believe it grew naturally and was carefully excavated before being displayed for everyone to enjoy.

    

There were lots of amethyst formations on display and surprisingly they were affordable. I guess amethyst is not as rare as other minerals.

I don't know what kind of minerals make up this delicate formation.  I was overwhelmed by the delicacy of the crystals.  How is it possible that the crystal structure did not collapse?   

At the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show it is possible to purchase some beautiful gems and jewelry. If you can, you should attend the next show to see if you can uncover some real treasures at affordable prices. Besides learning tons of information, I guarantee you'll feel like you've excavated hidden minerals and dug up jewelry fashioned for royalty!

Easter 2026 Shaker Card

I purchased a pack of Easter die-cut ephemera and pack of Easter confetti from HM Ben Franklin Crafts and decided to challenge myself.  I wanted to see if I could design a shaker card using just the ephemera pieces and confetti.  I started by cutting a hole in a large piece of ephemera. There were words which I cut out.  I attached a clear piece of acetate behind the opening and added foam tape behind the plaid frame. A piece of Lawn Fawn pastel paper was adhered to a standard card blank.  The plaid frame was partially adhered to the card and confetti sprinkles were inserted before sealing the frame to the card.  

 

The 'Easter memories' and 'what a Beautiful day' ephemera were adhered. The butterfly was cut off the 'Beautiful day' piece and fussy cut before being attached to the card with a foam adhesive dot.   This was a very simple card but I think it turned out well.  I am pleased that I was able to make a special card using just a few supplies. I hope that you will check out the beautiful Easter card making supplies being sold at HM Ben Franklin Crafts.  I'm sure you'll be inspired!

Chenille Kitten Kit

 While traveling, I decided to make another furry chenille friend. I chose a kit for a kitten from HM Ben Franklin Crafts.  As with the other kits I've tried, this one was super easy and resulted in another cutie pie despite the fact that the instructions are in Japanese and I don't read Japanese characters.  (The Easter bunny and chick in the photo were purchased from Daiso.)

The kitten is sucking on a pacifier and is wearing a bib.  The wire going through one ear is a key chain that can be removed if desired. The big pink stuffed bow and heart charm look cool when attached to a handbag.

The instructions in these chenille kits are pretty straight forward even though they are written in Japanese characters.  However, I did end up with a four inch piece of chenille that I was going to just wrap around the kitten to make him fatter but then I realized that he didn't have a tail so I curled the extra inches of chenille into a tail.  I guess they forgot to write in the directions for making the tail.  Hahaha!  Every kitten needs a tail....don't you agree?

Picture Frame Keychain Kit

 Gosh, you gotta check out all the new cool kits at HM Ben Franklin Crafts!  Recently, while shopping at HM BFC, I couldn't stop adding items into my shopping cart.  One of the most interesting kits I discovered were the picture frame keychain ones. They came in many colors but I limited myself to two colors....going to go back later for other colors (hahaha!).  Although the store had separate parts you could buy, I thought I should start with a kit so I would be sure to get everything I needed to complete a project.  After laying out all the parts for the project, I decided that I wanted more color so I added some cute puffy animal stickers ( Angels Craft).

HM Ben Franklin Crafts also has tons of adorable charms and doo-dads to add to your projects. In the photo above you can see the other frame kit I chose and some of the fun charms I plan to add to my next keychain.  By the way, the clear colored gel that comes in the kits has a screw on tip that will extrude the gel like cake frosting.  Also there is enough gel leftover to make other frames.  In future posts, I plan to show you the other fantastic Japanese craft goodies I purchased from HM Ben Franklin Crafts.  Please come back soon to check out new products I found at HM BFC and see the  projects that I've crafted.