CELEBRATION TIME!!! (Part 1)

Fifty and Fabulous!

No, not me! My latest newly published card! You can find it in Paper Crafts Magazine's special issue titled Card Creations: Quick & Easy. It's on page 76 in their section on Birthday Cards and it's called "You're 50."


The editors chose the "Gift" card from my "Birthday Bubbles" series of cards. (That's an earlier version of the published card in the photo above.) The card base is a piece of transparency film folded to form a square card. The rest of the card is very quickly assembled using some ribbon and a couple of squares and a rectangle cut from some festive double-sided cardstock. My Xyron machine was a big help with this series of cards. (Please see magazine for complete instructions.)

And here's a special bonus for you, my readers! What the magazine does not show is the inside (and punchline) of my "You're 50" birthday card.

Front of card: You're 50
Inside of card: That's 10 Celsius. Happy Birthday.


Hmmm... know anyone who acts their Celsius age instead of their Fahrenheit age??? Then this card would be perfect for them!

Bonus Tip! Need a card for a different age? Check out this Fahrenheit to Celsius Chart...

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Well, this is my final post of the year. I would like to thank 2007 for being such a wonderful, creative, and productive year for me. And special thanks to all of my readers for all of your encouragement and support over the past six months. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be blogging! Check back next year for additional how-to's from my Birthday Bubbles series, plus a whole lot more!

Hope you all have a Happy, Healthy, and Creative New Year! Thanks for reading!

~ Angela

Holiday Gift Packaging

Hope you all had wonderful holidays! I know I did! And now that the gift-giving is over, I can share with you a few of the projects that I created to wrap up some of my presents this year...

Guitar Gift Card Holder

This first one is a guitar shaped card that I used to hold a music store gift card. I used the pattern and instructions from PaperCrafts magazine's "Card Creations, Volume 5" issue. It is the card titled "Always in Tune" that Nichole Heady created for the Father's Day section. I love the realistic effect that Nichole achieved using the embroidery floss and mini brads!

I embellished Nichole's design with my own holly leaves to make it more appropriate to the season. I completed the holder by attaching the gift card to the inside with removable adhesive dots.

Finished size 4" x 5.5".
Additional photos in my online portfolio.

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Holiday Gift Card Tins

These are two more CD tins that I altered to hold gift cards. I chose cardstock from Reminisce's Snow Globe collection. Similar to my "Hoppy Birthday" Gift Card Tin, I again used a paper sleeve to wrap the tin. And I finished both of them off with more of my personalized tags which I attached using colored safety pins.

For the "Blue Snowflakes" tin, I chose Reminisce's Snowglobe cardstock for my main patterned paper. I attached two layers of ribbon to the outer sleeve using eyelets and some adhesive. I embellished the cover using rub-ons and a plastic snowman.

For the interior of the cover, I again used the Snowglobe paper, and accented it with diecut stickers, green tree buttons and some more ribbon. For the actual gift card holder, I created a flapped pocket using Reminisce's Frosty Frame Up cardstock, and held the flap closed with a piece of Velcro. I wrapped the gift card holder with a length of ribbon and a plastic snowflake. Finally, I finished the look with some additional rub-ons.

For the "Red and Green Stripe" tin, I used Reminisce's Polarity patterned cardstock for the sleeve. I wrapped it with a length of gold ribbon tied in a bow. I again accented the cover with a rub-on.

I covered the inside of the cover with more Polarity cardstock and gold ribbon. I also added some plastic snowflakes and a diecut sticker. I created another flapped pocket from the Frosty Frame Up cardstock to hold the gift card, and used my slot punching tool from Making Memories to create a half circle slot to hold my flap down. Finally I embellished it with an additional plastic snowflake and ribbon bow, and added some rub-ons to the tin.

Finished size 5.5" x 5".
Want to see more? Check out my online portfolio!

HP's Activity Center

I found another great website with hundreds of FREE print projects. It's HP's Activity Center and right now they're featuring a whole bunch of great holiday downloads, including these fun 3D Holiday Ornaments.

Stuck for some last minute gift wrap and tags? I found these cute tags and stickers on HP's site. You can also print out your own gift wrap and boxes. Not to mention dozens of creative cards and paper for your very own family newsletter. Already done with all of your holiday cards and gifts? HP also has calendars and party kits for the New Year!

Happy Holidays Everyone!
~ Angela

Holiday Boxes and Bows... Oh My!

Here are a couple of gift boxes that I created for the holidays. I got my inspiration from a number of different online resources. The box is your basic origami box. There are a many great websites offering instructions on how to create this box. To find them, just enter "origami box" into your favorite search engine. One of the best is Kristina Werner's video tutorial which can be found on her blog. I chose one patterned paper and one solid paper to create my box. Then I tied the two color schemes together with my bow and accents.

The paper bow is my own variation of the tutorial which can be found on SplitcoastStamper's website. However, instead of cutting and gluing 13 individual loops, and using multiple brads, I used fewer strips of longer paper and just one long-pronged brad.
Here's how...

Materials:

• 6" x 12" piece of double sided paper
  (Note - heavier double sided cardstock will also work,
  but it will be more difficult to manipulate)
  
• brad/paper fastener with long prongs
  (you can find these at your local office supply store)
• paper piercer (or a thumbtack, for an inexpensive alternative)

Instructions:

1. Cut eight 10" x 3/4" strips and one 4-1/2" x 7/8" strip of the double-sided paper.
   Tip: First cut your paper into two 6" x 10" and 6" x 2" rectangles. Cut the eight strips from the larger piece and the small strip from the 2" piece.
   
2. Pierce 3 holes down the center of each of the 10" strips: 1/2" from each end and one in the middle.
3. Pierce 2 holes in the 4-1/2" strip: 1/2" from both ends.
4. With the prongs facing up, place the end hole of one of the 10" strips on the brad, inside pattern side up. Using a figure eight pattern, place the center and second end holes on the brad. Always keep the inside pattern facing up on the brad.
5. Rotate 90 degrees and repeat step 4 so that the loops form a plus sign.
6. Continue with the remaining 10" strips, rotating so that each new loop falls in between existing loops.
7. Finish with a single loop made from 4-1/2" strip. Bend prongs to secure bow.

Bonus Tip! Since I knew that I would be attaching this bow to my paper box, I pierced a whole in the center of the lid of my box. I then inserted the brad from the inside of the lid so that the prongs protruded up on the outside of my box. Next I put my box lid over a jar, so that I would have a stable surface to create my bow. Once I finished my bow, it was already neatly attached to my box! Voila!

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I based the design for my personalized tag on Nichole Heady's Mini Gift Cards. I love the simplicity and elegance of Nichole's design! Since I didn't have her stamps, I decided to use a graphic from a Digital Kit instead. I chose the holly leaves from Kate Teague's "Berry Days" Kit which I downloaded from the Two Peas in a Bucket website. I finished it off using Font Diner's Rickles font, my Marvy Uchida Mega Scalloped Square Punch, and some ribbon. I attached my gift tag to my bow using a small safety pin.

Finished size of boxes approx. 4.25" square x 2.75", exclusive of trim.
Bow is approximately 4-1/4" across.
Additional photos in my online portfolio.

Holiday Frame Ornaments

Here is a super quick and easy (and inexpensive!) holiday idea that would be a great project to do with the kids. I designed them as ornaments, but they would also be wonderful as package decorations and as gift tags.

Here are the basic instructions for the base:

1. Cut a 3" x 6" piece of patterned cardstock.
   (Heavier cardstock works better for this project than the lighter weight patterned paper.)
2. Fold in half to form a 3" square.
3. Using a 1-3/8" square punch, cut out a hole in the center of one of the squares.
   Note: I really like using EK Success' square punch for this project, because I can simply insert my paper all the way into the punch until it stops. And then I center the punch visually on the paper and squeeze. That's it! No measuring required! Of course, if you do not have this punch, you can cut out the square with a craft knife or scissors.
4. Glue your 1.5"-1.75" square photo in place.
5. Glue the frame closed.
6. Attach wire or ribbon to hang ornament.
   

That's it! Now it is up to you to embellish as desired. My only caution to you is to not go too crazy with the embellishments, especially the heavier ones, as the base is only paper. And also keep in mind that you want your ornament to hang straight, so you may need to balance out an embellishment on one side, with an additional one on the other side.

Blue Snowflakes Frame Ornament
Finished Size approx 3" x 4.25", exclusive of wire hanger.

I attached snowflake brads to the top corners and wrapped the ends of a length of wire around them to form the hanger. You could also attach eyelets and thread ribbon through.

I then added a playful plastic snowman using mini glue dots. Finally I attached three plastic snowflakes using jump rings. I really like the dangling effect that I achieved here!



Red & Green Striped Frame Ornament
Finished Size approx 3" x 3.25", exclusive of ribbon.

I chose to have a photo on both sides of this ornament. Simply do steps 3 & 4 on both sides of your cardstock.

I added a sheer cream ribbon as a hanger. To attach it, I carefully cut a slot through the top of my photos, where the pictures meet the frame. I then slid my ribbon through.

Hint: use a thin piece of metal or plastic to help guide your ribbon through the slot.

I then knotted my ribbon at the top to form a loop and tied a red bow around my ribbon at the top of the frame. Finally I adhered a ribbon poinsettia to each side of the frame using glue dots.

Enjoy!

"CHARMED, I'm sure..."

Speaking of News and Newsstands...
I just got my copy of the Dec/Jan 2008 issue of Paper Trends magazine. And guess what I found on pages 94-95??? My "Charmed Birthday" creations! Woo Hoo! It's the very first project in their section on charms. I'm not permitted to post pics of my project until after the magazine leaves the newsstands, but I did manage to sneak in a tiny peak... (see inset at right)

I hope this project inspires you for your next birthday party! Or perhaps for a bridal or baby shower?

EXTRA! EXTRA! Subscriptions Now Available!

Good News! After multiple requests (and a couple hours of research), I have added an e-mail subscription link to my blog. You can now get my posts sent right to your mailbox. That's right! All my brandy-new rantings and ravings, my stream-of-consciousness jabbering, and (oh yeah!) my paper craft projects delivered to right your computer's doorstep, all fresh and hot from the oven!

Still interested? Just enter your email address in the form on the right. You may regret this...

p.s. Prefer to get the latest scoop delivered to your Reader? Subscribe to my feed by following the Atom link on the very bottom of the page...

Editor's Note: If you find you are not getting my email subscriptions sent to your inbox, please check your spam folder.

Holiday Tin Ornaments

Here are some ornaments that I made for a Paper Crafts swap. I created a total of 24 ornaments, using four different designs. This was a fun and simple project using 2.5 oz tin containers with clear lids and images that I cut out of gift tags and attached using foam tape for added dimension. (Hint: this would also work really well with stamped or paper pieced images! Or maybe a photograph?!?!) I finished it off with some fake snow, a ribbon loop for hanging, and some rub-ons on the lids.

Finished Size approx 2.75" circle x 1", exclusive of ribbon.
Additional images in my online portfolio.

Creative Imaginations Projects

Hello all! I know I've been a very absent blogger recently. But I will make it up to you by sharing not one, but THREE projects that I just completed. These are all for a contest sponsored by Creative Imaginations and Scrap Happy KT. Wish me luck!

"Road Trip" Mini Album

I created this mini album using Creative Imaginations' Studio Basics 101 "Rugged" Collection. I used Creative Imaginations' Gift Card Holder from their Bare Elements line as the base for this album. Instead of placing a gift card in the holder, I decided to create a door to conceal a hidden picture. The entire album is held shut with a couple lengths of blue grosgrain ribbon tied in a bow.

Inside, I used another Creative Imaginations element - a Negative Strip from their Narratives Collection - combined with a series of photos of my best friend's son playing in his toy car. I also added a photo to the back cover. Too cute!

Finished Size approx. 5.5" x 5.5" (not including ribbon).
For more photos of this project, check out my online portfolio!

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"Summer Fun" Journal

I altered an inexpensive wire-bound book to create this summer-themed journal. For this project, I used Creative Imaginations' Studio Basics 101 "Lush" Collection. I love the playfulness and bright, cheery colors of this collection.

I decided to create my own dividers for this journal and used the collection's circle stickers to decorate my tabs. I also added an attached ribbon bookmark, and adorned the wire binding with some gingham ribbon.

Finished Size approx. 6.75" x 6" (not including ribbon).
Want to see more? Check out my online portfolio!

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"Hoppy Birthday" Gift Card Tin

I altered a CD tin to create this combination birthday card and gift for my brother-in-law. I again used Creative Imaginations' Studio Basics 101 "Rugged" Collection. However, this time I went for a masculine feel, as opposed to my little boy theme for my "Road Trip" Mini Album. (And I think I would have been completely successful if I had resisted going for the pun and using the frog tag!)

For the outside, I created a paper slide and adorned it with ribbon and my frog tag. For the inside, I first lined both the base and cover with patterned paper. Then I created a gift card holder adorned with the same ribbon as my slide and attached it to the base of the tin. I also added a ribbon-embellished tag to provide space for an additional sentiment and signatures.

Finished Size approx. 5.5" x 5".
More photos of my gift card tin on my online portfolio!

Paint Chip Cake Card

As seen in the Aug/Sept 2008 issue of Paper Crafts magazine!

Yep! That's right folks! It's yet another card made from a Paint Chip! This time I thought I would stay away from the Christmas theme and go with something a little more generic. I created this to be an anniversary card, but it could easily work as a wedding or birthday card with just a few minor changes.

I began by cutting off the sides containing the text and rounded corners of my Behr 5"x6" paint chip. Next I trimmed off the darkest color, leaving me with three swatches. Instead of separating the three colors, I decided to keep the paint chip in one piece. I removed 3/8" from each side of the middle color and 3/4" from each side of the lightest color. I also trimmed some off of the top of the lightest swatch to make the top "tier" shorter, and rounded the top and bottom corners.

To decorate my cake, I added mini paper blossoms and accented some of the flowers with pearls. I finished it with some rub-on swirls. Finally I adhered the cake to the card base with foam tape. I also designed a coordinating envelope created from the discarded pieces of my paint chip.

Bonus Tip! When working with delicate items like paper flowers and adhesive dots, don't pull up on the flower to remove it from the adhesive's liner -- you will most likely tear the flower. Instead, use a craft knife or other metal tool (I like to use my paper piercer) to go between the adhesive and the liner and lift from there.

Supplies:

• Cardstock: Assorted Box of Cards by DCWV
• Accents: Neutral Mix Mini Blossoms & Doodles rub-ons by Making Memories; Wedding Adhesive Pearls by K&Company
• Adhesive: foam tape by Scotch; Mini adhesive dots by Glue Dots
• Tools: retro flower punch by EK Success; hole punch
• Other: paint chip by Behr

Finished Size 4.25" x 5.5"

For more pics of my Paint Chip Cake card, check out my online portfolio.

Paint Chip Santa Cards

Here are some more cards that I created using those now famous Paint Chips. This time I chose to turn them into that favorite of Christmas icons... Santa Claus!

For these cards, I again choose to use Behr's 5"x6" paint chips. However, unlike in my Holiday Tree Cards, I did not cut them on an angle. I simply trimmed the text and rounded corners from each long side of the paint chips. Then I marked the middle of the top of the paint chips and trimmed from middle point to each bottom corner to get my triangle. Using the white lines as a guide, I added the following accents:

• Santa's "beard" - half of a scalloped oval
• Santa's "nose" - circle punched from darkest color of paint chip remnants, attached using a pop dot
• Santa's "eyes" - 2 medium circle brads
• Santa's "hat" - small pom pom
• Santa's "belt" - velvet ribbon and metal buckle

For each of the cards, I added a patterned paper background and finished the cards with a rub-on and a snowflake brad.

Supplies:

• Cardstock: Halcraft USA and DCWV
• Patterned Paper: Pinecone Press Papers or Provo Craft
• Brads: black circles by Making Memories and white snowflakes by Jo-Ann Stores
  
• Metal buckles: Jo-Ann Stores
• Pom poms: Westrim Crafts
• Rub-ons: Holiday Word Decor by Royal & Langnickel
• Fibers: Dashes, Dots & Checks black velvet ribbon by Michaels
• Tools: 5/8" circle punch and Mega Scalloped Oval by Marvy Uchida
• Other: paint chips by Behr

"Ho Ho Ho"
Finished Size 5" x 6.5"

"Believe"
Finished Size approx 6.5" x 6"

For more pics of my Santa cards, check out my online portfolio!

Creative Park website

I found a really great website that I want to share with all of you. It's full of really cool, FREE materials that you can download and print for your scrapbook, cards and general crafts. It's called "Creative Park" and is brought to you by the fine folks at Canon.

When you go to the website, you can navigate to six different categories: Greetings, 3D Paper Craft, Scrapbook, Art Craft, Calendars, and Digital Photo Gallery. The Greetings category contains envelopes and stationery for various holidays and occasions. I love their 3D Paper Craft section! It's full of simple and complex three dimensional animals and crafts. It also contains some really gorgeous pop-up cards. The Scrapbook heading has many kits for various occasions, as well as accent items like tags, borders and frames. The remaining three categories allow you to create projects using artwork, print your own calendars, and search for free hi-res digital photos.

I hope you enjoy crafting with these items as much as I know I will!

Paint Chip Tree Cards

As seen in the Oct/Nov 2008 issue of Paper Trends magazine!

Here are three quick and simple holiday cards that I created using, ... wait for it, ... Paint Chips! Yup, that's right! Those sample swatch sheets of color that you get from the paint or hardware store before you buy the full gallon.


I chose Behr's wide 5"x6" paint chip samples to design these cards. I decided to use the paint chips on an angle to create a more dynamic design.


First I started by cutting the text off of the left side of the chip.



Next I trimmed off the remaining two rounded corners, leaving me with a rectangle.



Then I cut the rectangle in half on the diagonal, from corner to corner, giving me two triangles.


Finally I measured the left side of my triangle. I marked the same measurement on the long side of the triangle and trimmed from corner point to the mark to make the base of my tree.



I now have two trees ready to decorate!



I titled this one "Celebrate Tree." For this smaller card, I created a slightly smaller triangle. I tore a strip of green cardstock to create my deckled edge "ground" and attached it to the bottom of the card. I accented the tree with white snowflake brads and a ribbon "trunk." Finally I finished this simple card with sheer ribbon and a rub-on.




This is my "Twin Pines" card. For this card, I first covered my folded base cardstock with a snowy patterned paper. I then adhered a torn strip of white textured cardstock along the bottom to make "snow." I again accented my trees with white snowflake brads and ribbon "trunks."






My final card is called "Christmas Tree" and it is the most colorful of the trio. Like my "Twin Pines" card, I started with a similar snowy backdrop. But I made this one more playful by accenting the tree with a wooden star and colorful button "ornaments." I finished it off with a length of red plaid ribbon.





Hope you like my cards and are inspired to create your own designs using paint chips. If you would like to see more pics of these cards, check them out in my online portfolio

SNOWMAN P**P EVERYWHERE!!!

Or at least at a newsstand or bookstore near you...

Drum roll please! Here it is! My very first published project is finally out in print! You can see it on page 12 of PaperCrafts magazine's December 2007/January 2008 issue. It is the featured item in Stacy Croninger's "Editor's Note."

Woo Hoo! I'm so excited! I actually haven't even seen it yet myself. I just got an email from a fellow crafter who saw it in her magazine.

I originally created this project for the magazine's "Winter Blues" feature. I used dry embossing stencils to make a holder to wrap up a package of hot chocolate and a small bag of marshmallows.


Amusing side note... Apparently in the Editor's Note, my project is titled ""Snowman Cocoa Wrap." I originally submitted it with the title "Snowman Poop" (because of the poem on the outside). I guess the editors changed my title. Perhaps they found my original title to be too offensive to "Creatures of Ice Crystalline Origin"??? LOL!

To see more of this project, you can simply wait on the street while I throw hundreds of copies of PaperCrafts magazine from every tall building within a 50 mile radius, ... or you can avoid all risk of painful head injury and go out and get your own darn copy, dag nabbit! ;)

Alternatively, you can check it out in my online portfolio...

My Trio of Halloween Treat Boxes

As seen in the Oct/Nov 2008 issue of Paper Trends magazine!

Here they are! These are the Halloween Treat Boxes that I created for Paper Crafts magazine message board's daily challenge. I had lots of fun creating these cute, little boxes using various digital kits and the Chinese Takeout box template from PackageTech.com.

I created this box using the October Orange Kit from Two Peas in a Bucket. I finished it off with a length of black velvet ribbon from Michaels Stores.







This one uses the Treats from the Streets digital kit from ScrapStreet.com. I added some yellow ribbon from SEI's Kaboom collection and attached it with black brads from Making Memories.

I designed this last box using the Harvest Spice kit from ShabbyPrincess.com. I decided not to add a handle on this one.



Finished Size Approx. 2.5" x 2.25" x 2.5", exclusive of ribbon. More pics in my online portfolio

Trick or Treat!

Created using Adobe Photoshop and elements from the
Shabby Fall and Harvest Spice digital kits from shabbyprincess.com.

Happy Halloween everyone! Today I'm hosting the daily challenge over on the Paper Crafts magazine message board. Would you like to join us? Here's the info...

I hope you're not all Halloween'd out, because today's challenge, should you choose to accept it, is both a TREAT and a TRICK.

Here's the Treat:
Create a Halloween Treat Box out of a Chinese Take Out Box.
You could do it by decorating one that you already have (I know the craft stores around me sell them) or you could take one apart to use as a template. Or you can use this template that I found online by PackageTech.com:
www.packagetech.com/chinese-takeout-boxes.html
(Scroll to the bottom to find the blank templates and instructions.)

Now here's the Trick:
Use at least TWO digital elements, when decorating your Treat Box.
You can use ones that you already have, or choose from these Free Digital Kits that I found online:

From Two Peas in a Bucket*:
The October Orange Kit (about halfway down the page).

From ScrapStreet.com*:
Treats from the Streets or
Falling into Fun.

From shabbyprincess.com:
Shabby Fall or
Harvest Spice.

* Note that Two Peas and ScrapStreet both require that you sign in or create a free account to download their kits.

If you don't have a working printer, you can just do the Treat part of this challenge. But I'm trying to encourage everyone to try something new, like using digital elements, in their paper crafting.

Please join me in doing this challenge! No prizes or awards, just trying to get our creative juices flowing and thinking outside of the box. (Or thinking about and making a box, in this case...) I will post my own creation(s) later today. If you would like to see your Treat Box on my blog, feel free to email me a photo. I would love to see what you all do!

Happy Halloween!
Angela