It's a Creative World Blog Hop

Hello! Today I am joining in on a Spring Blog Hop with It's a Creative World where I am a member of the design team.

Today I am sharing a little cube gift box template with you.

First you need to click on the template to enlarge it and then right click and save to your computer. Print the template out onto the reverse of a piece of card that will go through your printer. I have sized it to print on A4 paper, but you can probably tweak it to fit letter size if you are in the US. Next score on the dotted lines and cut out the solid lines.

Glue the tabs where marked and you have yourselves a cute little cube gift box. Dress it up with punched flowers or ribbon to make it special. I like raffia, I think it works well for spring.

If you have a circle punch you can take a bite out the front of your box for easy opening.

You can then fill it with mints or chocolates and with the aid of a lollipop stick and a circle of card, you could use it as a name card holder for a spring tea party. Your guests can then take this home with them as a little keepsake.

The flowers I used to decorate my boxes are punched using my Petal Pairs punches from Tonic Studios. They are now offering a free download on their facebook page of a fun little magazine that can be used with their punches. I made the daisy flower from a tutorial by Kirsty Wiseman, and the pretty mixed flowers were from a "print and punch" sheet in the same magazine. (All you need to do to get access to the magazine is to like their page on facebook.)

Next on the Hop is Gabrielle, so head on over and pay her a visit to see what inspiration she is offering today.


The other participants are...

http://bubbaboobits.blogspot.co.uk/
http://paperthoughtz.blogspot.co.uk/ 
http://highlandhousekeeper.blogspot.co.uk/
http://snappycrafts.blogspot.co.uk/-
http://ifazainon.blogspot.co.uk/
http://www.fruitofmyscraps.blogspot.co.uk/
http://dollysdreamings.typepad.com/
http://6ichthusfish.typepad.com/
http://craftaholicleanie.blogspot.co.uk/
http://www.socksandscrapbooks.blogspot.co.uk/ 
http://tj-runningwithscissors.blogspot.co.uk/
http://rainbowpoppy.blogspot.co.uk/
http://itsacreativeworld.typepad.com/its_a_creative_world/

Just a quick hello...

I am rather busy just now with spring cleaning and various other projects that I am working on so it is just a quick post today. I hope you are all enjoying lovely spring weather. We had a few beautiful days of sunshine however it is a little cooler again and so I have put my winter woolies back on.

I hope this sunny image of some daffodils that are blooming in my garden brightens your day.

A sunny day

Today is a beautiful sunny day. We did have a sunny day yesterday, but I spent much of it scrubbing and cleaning for a couple who were coming to view our home. They liked it but still have their own property to sell, so there will be no moving house for us as yet.

So what creative stuff has gone on around here lately? Well nothing too much as my parents were visiting for a few days. They only left yesterday morning.
But I could show you this giant cupcake that Naomi made last week...

It was made using one of those silicone moulds that come in three parts.
You can buy a similar one here.

It was delicious! Naomi...stop making cakes...we keep having to eat them!

And I did make this card last week (with my Tonic Studios products of course). I like how it makes pretty shadows.

Hopefully I'll be able to crack on with a few more projects next week.
I hope the sun is shining where you are.

A spring bouquet

A pretty spring bouquet picked by my 5 year old daughter added a pretty touch to our  breakfast table this morning.

It's only a teeny weeny bouquet, but it's perfect for a teeny weeny teacup!

Easel card with extras

I added an extra bit to my easel card that I showed you how to make a couple of posts back. You can find it here.

Now you can make a card with a little drawer underneath to pop a little gift inside. If you would like the template for the box, you can download it here.

The "water from the can was made using beading thread and silver glass seed beads.  It might have been better to have the water actually going on the flowers - maybe I'll do that if I use that effect another time. Paper punches by Tonic Studios, Image from the "graphics fairy" Quote by me.

Vintage Paper Feather Bookmark

This is what I have been making in the last wee while. Vintage Paper Bookmarks from a Gaelic Bible from 1924. The Bible was already falling to bits so it wasn't going to be any use to anyone. Now it can take on a second life. These take a while to make. First I age the paper further with acrylic artists paints and some coffee. Then there is a fair amount of sticking and varnishing that goes on before I hand cut each feather - I don't use a pattern so each one is different. Then I wrap the ends with ribbon and embroidery floss before sealing them with a gloss varnish which makes them look like leather. The paper part is sealed with a matt varnish. I love the way they turned out. They are available in my Etsy shop.

If you'd like to get more updates and find out things that never make it to the blog, why not join my new facebook page.

Easel Card Template

As I said in my last post, I've been trying out some new card shapes, just to have a change. I made this easel card using the following dimensions. (Click to enlarge the image if you are having trouble viewing it.)

I used my Tonic Studios Super trimmer for cutting and scoring the card, and I used my shape mates for the circle. The circle shape mate I used is actually slightly over the 12cm, but it still works fine with the card. In fact, it works better than exactly 12cm if I come to think about it.

Then you glue the circle to the card and trim the excess. Then you decorate as you desire.

I used a little button for this card to keep the card propped up. You can use a cut out shape on sticky pads if you prefer.

I stuck punched flowers behind the greeting to frame it with a colourful border.The other punch used in this card is the Multi Detail Butterfly.

For a completely different look, I went a bit monochrome.

With this card I used a petal pairs punch around the edge for a pretty border.

The difference with this card is that I added an extra fold which foreshortens the base of the card and provided a little ledge to stick the dotty border onto.

The image is from the Graphics Fairy.

So with one template,I have created two different looks.
I hope you have fun if you try this.

A Quick Card Post

Here's a little card I made the other day. I've been experimenting with different card shapes. I can't for the life of me remember what you call this shape.
The punches are of course by Tonic Studios.

I think you could say I got a little "punch drunk" with this one!

Newts

This is a random old picture I found on a disc while tidying out our computer desk drawer this morning. I love this picture. It was taken in our back garden and is of a rusty tin bath with some newts from our pond swimming about in it. I love the shapes  they make, and the rust on the blue painted tin. I always meant to do a painting or a lino cut or some kind of artwork inspired by this. Maybe it will inspire you today, and maybe one day I'll get around to doing something with it!