Bring on the light

AKA: Happy birthday to me!

Have I mentioned that Moose is the best husband ever? If you need proof, I give you exhibit A:

He built me a light box!!! What a totally amazing birthday gift! Plus, it’s one that just keeps on giving… just think of all the wonderful embossed cards I’ll be able to make with it. Plus, it’ll be exceptionally useful whenever I need to trace something!

Moose built the light box mostly out of things we had on hand: scrap wood; electrical wiring; an electrical switch; some 13W CFL lightbulbs and a piece cut out of a broken fluorescent light diffuser. He only had to purchase the piece of glass and the light fixtures. He has promised me that he’ll write up a tutorial on how to make a light box of your very own for me to post on here soon.

Here’s a couple shots of the box turned on (it’s SUPER bright, so the pictures didn’t turn out very well):

And, finally, here’s a picture of the very first project I did with the light box (a Mother’s Day card I made for my amazing Mom):

Be sure to show your Mom just how much she means to you this Sunday! Have a fantastic week, everyone!

An egg-cellent time of year

At long last, Easter is once again upon us. It’s one of my favourite holidays. After all, Easter is the holiday that welcomes spring, with plenty of pretty spring flowers, cute and cuddly holiday icons (who doesn’t like bunnies and little fuzzy chicks?!) and lots of yummy, yummy chocolate to be had.

A holiday this wonderful deserves a sparkly and pretty card to celebrate it, so of course, I just had to dig out the leftover white glitter foam scraps from December’s snowman card to make this shiny Easter egg card to mark the occasion.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” purple card stock

·      Rectangle of white text paper, measuring 3 3/4” x 5”

·      Rectangle of white glitter foam (with sticky back), measuring approximately 3 1/2” x 4 3/4”

·      Scraps of pink and blue card stock

Equipment:

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Glue runner

·      Pencil

·      Scissors

·      Small circle paper punch (about 1/2” diameter)

·      Hot glue gun

Directions:

1.     Use the paper trimmer to cut the purple card stock in half to get two pieces, measuring 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”. Set one aside for future projects.

2.     Fold the remaining piece of purple card stock in half with the bone folder to get a 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” card.

3.     Attach the white text paper rectangle to the inside right panel of the card with the glue runner.

4.     Trace an outline of an egg on the back of the white glitter foam rectangle, using as much of the space as possible. Cut out the egg shape.

5.     Peel off the sticky backing on the foam and attach the egg to the front panel of the purple card.

6.     Take the pink and blue card stock scraps and punch out eight pink circles and six blue circles.

7.     Use the glue gun to attach the pink and blue circles to the front of the egg.

I hope you’ve enjoyed today’s card. Have a fabulous weekend and I’ll see you next week!

Happy Birthday, Carol!

Last week, my mother-in-law celebrated her birthday. Carol is a lovely person. She’s always excited about things and has such a zest for life – it’s pretty inspiring! She’s the one who always wants to find out what’s around the next bend or what’s over the next hill when we’re out walking. She’s incredibly crafty (crafting fairies, knitting, crocheting and felting are her specialties) and she has the most amazing garden with such beautiful plants and flowers.

And so, here is a bold, bright and sparkly flower card to celebrate the day of my mother-in-law’s birth.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” bright green card stock

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” white text paper

·      Scraps of purple and pink glitter card stock (big enough to punch out two flower punch sets from each)

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Multiple flower punch (see picture in step 5 for example)

·      Glue runner

·      Glue stick

Directions:

1.     Create a new letter-sized document in a design layout program (or Word) with 1/2” margins. Create a 3 1/4” x 4 1/2” text box in the upper left-hand corner and write in the text, “Happy Birthday” at the top of the box. Centre the text horizontally. Print the document on to the white text paper.

2.     Trim the white text paper with the paper trimmer to create a 3 3/4” x 5” panel. Cut the bright green card stock in half to create two pieces, measuring 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”. Set one aside for future use.

3.     Use the bone folder to fold the bright green card stock into a 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” card.

4.     Attach the white text paper with the “Happy Birthday” sentiment to the front panel of the card with the glue runner.

5.     Punch out two sets of flowers from each scrap of glitter card stock.

6.     Glue the flower pieces together, alternating the colours.

7.     Glue the finished flowers to the front panel of the card, alternating colours and flower design.

This week was my first week back working full-time (plus a three hour commute, round-trip). I have plans to keep posting, but please be patient with me if I, once in a blue moon, have to skip a week!

Have a wonderful weekend. See you next week!

Happy birthday, Dad!

Today is my Dad’s birthday. Word cannot express how wonderful he is. He’s always been there for me, whether it was helping a four-year-old me unlock the shed door so I could go and play with the Barbie house when my older sisters weren’t around, or walking me through my very first house purchase when I was 21. He’s bolstered my self-esteem when I was down, congratulated me on my achievements when I was on top of the world and walked me down the aisle when I married the man of my dreams.

My Dad is a farmer. He’s big, tall and strong – so much so that when I said my Dad could beat other dads up, I wasn’t lying (not that he would, but he certainly could!). He has farmer’s hands. You know the ones, big and always showing traces of grease, no matter what. As a kid, I used to watch him working in his shop, sometimes handing him tools (I still am terrible at remembering which tool is which, so I don’t know how helpful I really was) and observing him work his magic to get the farm equipment running again.

Recently, I borrowed some Paper Crafts magazines from our local library and came across a series of Father’s Day cards that used nails, washers and nuts. I thought that idea was brilliant and so perfect for my Dad, so I came up with this design for his birthday card.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” light beige card stock

·      Strip of 3” x 5 1/2” patterned card stock in coordinating colours

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” white text paper

·      Four (or more, if you wish) washers (two large and two small – I used 7mm and 10mm)

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Glue runner

·      Hot glue gun and glue stick

Directions:

1.     Open a new letter-sized document in a design layout program. Create a text box (about 2 1/2” wide) with the sentiment, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” written in it. Print the document.

2.     Use the paper trimmer to cut the light beige card stock in half to get two pieces, each measuring 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”. Set one aside for future projects. Cut out the “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” sentiment, leaving a small border around the text.

3.     Fold the piece of light beige card stock in half to make a 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” card.

4.     Attach the “HAPPY BIRTHDAY” sentiment in the middle of the strip of patterned card stock with the glue runner. Glue the patterned card stock strip to the card, centering it vertically.

5.     Using the hot glue gun, carefully glue the washers on to the card in the pattern of your choice.

Enjoy your April Fools’ Day and the coming weekend, everyone. See you next week!

Happy Birthday, Ruth!

Today is Ruth’s birthday! Ruth is truly a wonderful human being – she is the type of person who senses when you are down and gives you a huge hug, she has an infectious laugh and she can make you feel happy just by being in her presence.

She’s up visiting us for a few days right now (we live over 10 hours away from each other by driving, so visits are highly anticipated and always over too soon), so I had to make her card, take pictures and write this post before she arrived on Wednesday. I, of course, left it to the last day, so here I sit typing away feverishly 45 minutes before I have to leave to go pick her up at the bus terminal. Luckily, I had already decided exactly what I wanted to do for her card, so after a last minute trip to Michael’s this morning for supplies, I was able to craft this pretty and glittery greeting for our dear friend.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” black card stock

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” silver text weight paper

·      Two sheets of 8 1/2” x 11” white text weight paper (to catch glitter)

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Glue stamp pad

·      Clear stamp mounting block

·      Clear acrylic stamp (I used a rose patterned one)

·      Hot pink glitter

·      Glue runner

Directions:

1.     Create a new 8 1/2” x 11” document in a design layout program. Make a text box in the upper left hand corner (approximately 3” wide) and write the words, “Happy Birthday” in the font of your choice. Print the document.

2.     Use the paper trimmer to cut the black card stock in half to get two pieces, measuring 5 1/2” x 8 1/2” each. Set one aside for future projects. Trim the silver text weight paper to create a small rectangle around the “Happy Birthday” text. Trim a 3 3/4” x 5” rectangle from the remaining silver paper and set the rest aside for future projects.

3.     Fold the black card stock into a 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” card with the bone folder.

4.     Use the glue runner to attach the 3 3/4” x 5” rectangle to the inside right panel of the card.

5.     Place the card on one of the sheets of white text paper. Mount your stamp on the stamp block. Tap the stamp on the glue pad to coat the stamping surface with glue. Stamp four roses on the front panel of the card, positioning them in the four corners (make sure to coat the stamp with glue between stamps).

6.     Pour glitter over the stamped images. Once completely covered, pick up the card and tap it on to the white paper to get rid of the excess glitter. Use a small paintbrush to brush any bits of glitter that remain on the card (that aren’t part of the stamped image, of course!).

7.     Wash the stamp and stamp block before the glue dries.

8.     Put the uncapped bottle of glitter on to the other sheet of white paper. Take the paper with the excess glitter on it and funnel it over the glitter bottle to return the excess glitter to its container.

9.     Use the glue runner to attach the “Happy Birthday” sentiment to the middle of the front panel of the card.

Have a wonderful weekend , everyone (or long weekend, if you are in Ontario or anywhere else that has a very much needed long weekend this week!). See you next Friday!

Countdown to Valentine's Day: Card 5

Conversation Heart card

Today brings us to the last card in the Valentine's Day series. It's a cute and fun card that brings back memories of passing those bright and colourful (yet, oh so chalky!) hearts around the grade two classroom, everyone hyped up on too much sugar and the excitement of the holiday. We had so much fun decorating those brown paper bags, taping them to our desks and then running around delivering those little Disney or Looney Tunes themed paper Valentines. The day was so innocent then - it was all about arts and crafts, candy, and a day full of fun school games. And so, in an attempt to recapture that innocence, here is the Conversation Heart Valentine.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2" x 11" red card stock

·      Sheet of 8 1/2" x 11" white text paper

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Heart border paper punch

·      Large heart paper punch (approximately 2" wide)

·      Mini heart paper punch

·      Glue stick

·      Piece of wax paper

·      Heavy book for pressing

Directions:

1.     Create a new 8 1/2" x 11" document in a design layout program. Make a 4" x 6" text box and write in three conversation heart sayings (like "BE MINE" "SWEET HEART" and "KISS ME") using capital letters in a sans serif font (like Arial). Centre the text and space the sayings so that there is room to punch large hearts around them. Print the document.

2.     Use the paper trimmer to cut the red card stock in half to make two pieces, measuring 5 1/2" x 8 1/2". Set one piece aside for future projects. Trim the white text paper so that there is a large border around the three sayings. Trim the rest of the paper into a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" rectangle. Set the rest aside to use in step six.

3.     Fold the remaining card stock piece with the bone folder into a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card.

4.     Use the heart border paper punch to punch the right edge of the front panel of the card.

5.     Glue the 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" piece of white text paper into the right inside panel of the card.

6.     Use the large heart paper punch to punch out the conversation heart sayings (centre the text in the middle of each heart). Use the mini heart punch to punch out six mini hearts from the remaining white text paper.

7.     Glue the three large hearts down the middle of the card with the glue stick. Take the mini hearts and glue them around the large hearts.

8.     Place the wax paper over the folded card. Put the heavy book on top and press until the glue is dry.

I hope you all have liked the cards in this series! I had a lot of fun designing and making them. See you next Friday!

Countdown to Valentine’s Day: Card 4

Key to my heart card and gift bag

 It’s the first post of February and time to get back on the countdown to Valentine’s Day. Today, we have a card and gift bag combo, great for surprising that special someone this February 14.

Supplies:

·      Two sheets of 8 1/2” x 11” red card stock

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” white text weight paper

·      Scrap of coordinating patterned card stock, measuring at least 4” x 6”

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Embossing stylus (optional)

·      Pencil

·      Scissors

·      Craft knife

·      Metal-edged ruler

·      Mini heart paper punch

·      Glue stick

·      Glue runner

·      Decorative edged scissors (I used the “double bubble” ones)

·      Wax paper

·      Heavy book for pressing

Directions:

1.     Using a design program, create an 11” x 8 1/2” (letter-sized) document in landscape layout with 1/2” margins. Insert a heart shape (measuring no bigger than 5 1/4” wide x 4” tall), two key images (one 1 1/2” long and one 2” long – I used this image) and the text, “You hold the key to my heart” as shown below. Print the document.

2.     Trim one sheet of card stock in half lengthwise with the paper trimmer to get two pieces, measuring 11” x 4 1/4”. Set one aside for future projects.

3.     Fold the 11” x 4 1/4” card stock in half to make a 5 1/2” x 4 1/4” card with the bone folder.

4.     Turn the card over so that the opening is on the left. Place the heart image over the card, lining it up so that the right edge overlaps the fold a little bit. Using the embossing stylus (or a pencil if you don’t have a stylus) to trace over the heart image to transfer the shape on to the card stock. Cut the card stock with the scissors to create a heart-shaped card (make sure to have the overlap so that you end up with one card that unfolds, not two heart-shaped pieces of card stock).

5.     Trim the patterned card stock with the decorative edge scissors to get one piece measuring approximately 3” x 1 1/4” and another measuring 2” x 1”.

6.     Cut out the key images with the scissors and the craft knife. Cut the individual words of the sentiment into little rectangles with the craft knife and the metal-edged ruler.

7.     Punch out six mini hearts from the left over patterned card stock.

8.     Glue the key images with the glue stick on to the patterned card stock rectangles. Glue the larger key on to the front of the heart-shaped card. Glue the text above and below the key image. Glue the mini hearts along the sides of the image.

9.     Place the wax paper on top of the folded card and press with the book until the glue is dry.

10. Mark the second piece of card stock with guidelines for the bag layout, using the template below. 

Bag template

11. Cut and score the guidelines, using the template as a guide.

12. Glue the small key image on to one of the large panels of the gift bag (on the opposite side of the pencil marks), centered underneath the handle.

13. Use the technique in step 9 to press the key image on the bag until the glue has dried.

14. Use the glue runner to glue the bag together, using the images below as a guide on how to fold in the panels.

 

Hope you like this card and gift bag combo. Have a wonderful weekend and I’ll see you next week for the final card in the Valentine’s Day Countdown! See you then!