Families

Sticker is DCWV
Papers are Fancy Pants

Box

Grrrrr, so I figured out the measurements for a box to hold a 230g bar of Dairy Milk....and Cadbury's have changed the size to 200g.
I'm sure it won't make any difference to the box dimensions but annoying that they think customers won't notice there is less chocolate!

So I made a smaller box to hold a different manufacturer's chocolate bar.

The box is made the same way as the one I showed the other day, just change the measurements slightly and it will hold 'ChokaBlok' 100g bars instead of Dairy Milk. The Dairy Milk boxes are made with a single piece of 12 x 12 whereas this one uses a piece of A4.

I find it easier to buy something (chocolate!) and then build a box to fit rather than make a box and have to search for something to go in it.
I use a Martha Stewart scoreboard if I want imperial measurements and a Stampin' Up board on the top of that if I want metric. So for bars of chocolate I lay them on some scrap paper, on top of the scoring board, and roughly score around the bar, from there I can work out approximately what the actual measurements are.

 For 'ChockaBlok' 100g box:  

Take a piece of A4 card-stock, stamp a pattern randomly if wished.
Score at 2cm and 4cm along each side as shown above
Spin the card-stock round so it is landscape and score at 7cm, 9cm, 20cm and 22cm

Cut away each corner and fold all score-lines inwards.

Add a line of glue or ultra-sticky tape as shown in red above.
Assemble box and tie closed with ribbon and tag.

Winter Wishes

Image is by Tilda.
Doily (chopped up) is by Dovecraft
Gingham layer is made with washi tape, magazine freebie.

Adhesive Bargain

I don't normally pay much attention to adverts in card-making magazines but recently one caught my eye.

A company was advertising bumper packs of assorted adhesives for £9.98. I'd never heard of the company but had a look at their website and decided to take a chance.

The kit looked such good value I thought I ought to get two and thus take advantage of free p&p.

I ordered on Sunday and the two kits arrived this morning, this is what one kit looks like;

I use a lot of 'red-liner' tape when making boxes and have paid £3 for one roll in certain craft shops, this has eight rolls. I would have been happy with just those and the non-stick craft mat so everything else was a real bonus!

Here's a link to the company concerned. I have absolutely no connection to them whatsoever and am not being paid to advertise. I will also say that I have not yet had time to actually use any of the products so fingers crossed that the quality is okay.

Shaker

The first couple of years after I started card-making I had to try every new technique and trend. I was a very regular visitor at my local craft shops they must have seen me coming and got sucked into buying things that with hind-sight I really shouldn't have.

Spirelli, decoupage, accordian cards, iris-folding, tea-bag folding, one of those Fiskars shape-cutters that everyone else hated too.

And shaker cards.

I really liked the idea of shaker cards but mine always looked a bit boring: they were okay when being shaken but the rest of the time (ie 99% of the time) they were just sad.

The other day I got it into my head that I should have another go at shaker cards, no idea why, I must have been ill.

So I gave it a go but hopefully have now got it out of my system and won't attempt another one for the next decade or so.

Snowflake frame is a Sizzix die
Stamp is by Woodware
Card is midnight-blue pearlescent . I've filled the shaky bit with Diamond Dust and some Bedazzles.

Christmas Wishes

I'm trying to use up old Christmas stash instead of buying new. Every year I pull the same stuff out, throw it around my desk, then put it all back again. I'm sick of seeing things that must be six years old or more!

This is stash from last year or maybe the year before so it's not too bad.
Image and papers are Nitwits, sentiment is Craftwork Cards.

Recycling!

Last Christmas I was given a really nice handmade card by my SU demo. It was too nice to throw away so I saved the front and have now recycled and enlarged it!
Basically the kraft portion with the stamped trees and sentiment is by Yeeting and I have matted it on brown card and added some patterned paper (Dovecraft). The ribbon is from Ernest Jones jewellers - bought something there and they tied the bag up with this ribbon - so that is also recycled!

25th December

First Christmas card of the year!

I saw a card sample in a craft shop in the Lake District a week or so ago, this is my take on their card.

Stamp is by Woodware and I've decoupaged and added Glossy Accents. Paper is from my old stash (I think it's Papermania/ Docrafts)

Chocolate Box

 When it's someone's birthday at my card-making club we like to give them a small inexpensive gift.
Cadbury's Dairy Milk is currently on offer at Tesco so I stocked up on a few bars thinking they would be ideal for the card-making ladies. I just needed to design a box to make them look a bit more exciting.

I decided on this wallet-style box, made from a sheet of plain 12 x 12

I've since made some with patterned card-stock and also tried stamping my own patterns on plain. It's a good way of using up patterned card-stock that I have been hoarding and don't know quite what to do with.

Score the sheet at 1 1/4" and 2" from the left and right hand sides, then score at 3" and 3 3/4" from the top and bottom.

Cut off all four corners where the lines intersect, that should give you something like shown above. Fold all the score lines inwards.

Put a couple of strips of super-sticky tape just on the bottom flap. If you want the top flap to have a fancy/ punched edge then do that now.

Adhere the bottom flap to the sides. This should now be a basic wallet-box.

It's just the right size for a 230g bar of Dairy Milk.

My craft club ladies have suggested punching holes in the top and threading ribbon through to make it look like a handbag. I just used some ribbon wrapped around and tied in a bow then added a matching tag.

Another suggestion was instead of using it for a bar of chocolate to put a bulky card inside, something like decoupage, that wouldn't fit in an ordinary envelope. I like the excuse of buying bars of choccy though...

Boring

One of those cards that seemed like a good idea in my head but did not work out as expected!

It will go on the 'unfinished' pile and hopefully be tarted up a bit.

Stamp is by Papermania, newsprint paper is SU.

Kiss

Vellum quote is DCWV

Paper all from stash, I've added glitter.

Embellishment made with a sparkly brad and some tulle.

Baby

Vellum quote is by DCWV

Embossing folder is an old Cuttlebug one.

Always

Bit hard to photograph due to the metallic sheen (silver textured card at top and bottom but it looks like two different colours here)

Patterned paper is SU, sticker is DCWV, ribbon from stash.

Marriage

Paper is SU

Vellum quote is DCWV

Thinking Of You

I really, really, don't like orange. Not in clothes, home-decor, or crafting.

However I was determined to try and use some orange paper that was in a pack with other colours.

Having made this card I still don't like orange.

Everything except the button is Stampin' Up!

I didn't have a button in a suitable colour so smeared one with an inkpad and dipped it in embossing powder before heating with a heat gun.

Thinking Of You

Main image is an Inkadinkado stamp, it's been heat embossed in silver.

Sentiment is Craftwork Cards.

Love

Heart stamp is by Hero Arts and has been heat embossed.

Love stamp is Stampin' Up!

Birthday Wishes

Another card made with scraps.

Sentiment is a Waltzingmouse stamp.

Baby

Stamp is Waltzingmouse

Oval dies are Nesties

Embossing folder is by Craft Concept and is called 'In Stitches'

Retro

Paper is Cosmo Cricket.

I'm toying with putting a circular sentiment on because I think sometimes a card without a sentiment looks unfinished, not quite sure with this one.