Sugared Frame Ornament Tutorial

Hi all! I have a quick little tutorial to share with you today. I have a group of friends who are participating in a handmade ornament swap and this is what I came up with. I was inspired by something similar I saw at Hobby Lobby. Of course, I was like, "hey, I think I can make that with a die!" :)

Here is how I made it:

Begin by cutting five frames from heavy cardstock using the Sizzix Ornate Frames 2 die. Fold each frame in half as shown.

Next, match up the right edge of a folded frame to the left edge of another frame and glue. Continue until all the frames are glued together and a 'cage' is formed. Let dry.

When your frames are dry, apply glue to all surfaces (I used Glue 'n Seal) and cover with Rock Candy Distress Glitter.

While the joined frames are dryng, cut two snowflakes out of cardstock and paint the front of one and the reverse side of the other. These die cuts aren't symmetrical, so you'll glue them front to back so that they line up.

When the paint is dry, cut a 5" length of silver cording, sandwich it between the snowflakes and glue. Cover the snowflake sandwich with glue and then coat with Broken China Distress glitter.

To finish the ornament, thread the cording through the ornament (there will be a small gap where the frames joined), from the inside up to the top. Loop the cord back on itself and insert end into the top of the ornament. Adjust height of snowflake and glue in place.

All of the supplies I used can be found at Inspiration Emporium, except for the frame, which you can find at scrapbook.com. At IE, you can enter the code 'thankful' and receive 20% off your order! The coupon code is good through Sunday night (Dec 1). If you missed the cutoff, you can always use my code - stamptramp - to save 10%.

Sizzix Ornate Frame 2 Sizzix Mini Snowflake Broken China Distress Glitter Broken China Distress Paint Neenah Solar White Cardstock Ranger Glossy Accents Inkssentials Glue N' Seal Rock Candy Dry Glitter

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Thanks so much for stopping by today - hope you're all having a great weekend!

Sizzix ScoreBoards Apothecary Cabinet

Have you ever seen something and said, "Hey, I can make that!" Well, I do that all the time - it's pretty much my mantra. When I saw the apothecary cabinet that Tim Holtz used at this summer's CHA show, I absolutely knew I had to have one. Of course, I would never be able to find one exactly like his, so I knew I would have to make it myself.

The question was, how? Enter Eileen Hull's ScoreBoard dies. When I made my French Storage Caddy a few months ago, I noticed that the boxes, when turned sideways, were the perfect size to hold a Distress ink pad. I filed that little nugget of info away, knowing that I needed a storage solution for my inks. When combined with the idea for the apothecary cabinet, it blossomed into the perfect cabinet for studio storage!

The drawer fronts were covered with galvanized metal that I bought at the hardware store. I used tin snips to cut it to size. Be VERY careful when you do this! The edges are really sharp. After I glued it to the boxes, I was quite distressed to see it was shiny - like mirror shiny - and I wanted mine to look more like aged zinc. After doing a little research on how to dull the finish, I ended up burnishing it with steel wool that I dipped into vinegar. It knocked that shine down almost instantly! The knobs are plain old craft store unfinished wood knobs. I painted them black, sanded them, and inked them with Brushed Corduroy Distress ink.

This shot shows the basic construction of the cabinet. The upper cubbies are made from Eileen Hull's Box die. The lid was cut off and the box turned with the open side facing out. The drawers on the bottom were made with Eileen's Candy Drawer die, and the little vertical cubby was made with her Caddy die.

The hardest part of this project was figuring out the spacing. I used lots of mat board shims to get everything to match up just right. It was all glued together with Beacon's 3-in-1 glue before painting.

Here is a great shot showing just how shiny those drawer fronts were. Pretty for another project, but not this one! After I painted the whole piece with black acrylic paint, I added a little cove molding to the top and sides. I glued a thin piece of decorative molding just above the drawers to add a bit of detail.

If you don't want to use your cabinet in the studio, it is perfect for displaying all your favorite treasures in your house! It's incredibly sturdy - especially when it's filled. The drawers could be left open for display as well.

I am just too thrilled with how this project turned out! It was definitely a labor of love, but well worth it. It's so hard to believe that it's almost entirely made of paper.

I apologize for not sharing a full tutorial for this, but I am gearing up for CHA sample making and just don't have the time right now. I'm planning to write one up and have it available as a downloadable project after the first of the year, so check back in a month or so. :)

Sizzix Square Box Die Sizzix Candy Drawer Sizzix Caddy Brushed Corduroy Distress Ink Idea-ology Sanding Grip

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Thanks so much for stopping by today. I hope you enjoyed this project! Have a wonderful week!

Glittery Ice Skates Card

Hi all! Today I'm sharing one of the cards I created for Tim Holtz for this summer's CHA show. His Ice Skates die was one of my favorites from the latest release and this card turned out to be one of my faves too!

The base of the card was created from kraft cardstock that was stamped with the text stamp from Tim's Old Fashioned Christmas set. On top of that I layered a panel from his new Merriment paper collection. The plaid background was created with another new product - Tim's Plaid Texture Fade. It was embossed on manila paper and then colored with red Distress Stains. I highlighted the raised portion with Gathered Twigs Distress ink and then stitched it to the music panel. After threading the new Black and Cream Trimmings through a Christmas Word Band, I adhered both panels to the kraft card.

Doesn't the Rock Candy Distress glitter look awesome on the skates? They were cut from Grungeboard and painted with Snow Cap, Silver, and Pitch Black Dabber paints. When they dried, I added the glitter and then laced them with Paper String.

The 25 was cut from Grungeboard using Tim's new Vintage Market alpha die and covered with Stickles dry glitter. It was mounted on a tag I cut from kraft cardstock using the Tiny Tabs and Tags die (I snipped the bottom to give it a pennant look). The top was tied with a piece of the new Red and Cream Trimmings. Love that stuff!

Everything I used to create this card can be found at Inspiration Emporium via the links below. Be sure and use my coupon code - stamptramp - to save 10% on your order.

Sizzix Ice Skates Sizzix Snowflake Pattern and Plaid Sizzix Vintage Market Die Sizzix Tiny Tabs & Tags Stampers Anon Old Fashioned Christmas Stickles Dry Glitter - Silver Rock Candy Dry Glitter idea-ology Trimmings - Black and Cream idea-ology Trimmings - Red and Cream idea-ology Paper String - Solids Christmas Word Bands idea-ology Merriment Paper Inkssentials Manila Cardstock Inkssentials Kraft Cardstock Grungeboard Gathered Twigs Distress Ink Barn Door Distress Stain Festive Berries Distress Stain Inkssentials Glue N' Seal Snow Cap Paint Dabber Ranger Dabber - Pitch Black Silver Adirondack Dabber

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Can you believe Christmas is less than FIVE weeks away! Yikes! I need to get busy. I wish I could say I am prepared, but I'm not. Every year I tell myself it will be different, and every year I am scrambling at the last minute. I'm making lists though...lots and lots of lists. We'll see if that helps!

Have a great weekend! :)