Inspiration Team Surprise Baby Shower!

Surprise! Today, the Eileen Hull Inspiration Team is hosting a special surprise baby shower for our teammate, Anna-Karin Evaldsson. Anna-Karin recently gave birth to the most adorable little boy, Leo. Even though we can't be there to celebrate, we wanted to do something special for her, to let her know how much we care.

I decided to use Eileen's elephant die to make a tiny little pull toy. Since these dies are Thinlits, the thickest material they can cut is very thin chipboard. By stacking the die cuts, though, you can make the pieces quite thick and sturdy. I also used one of the die cuts from Eileen's new Make it 3D die to make this into a cute little container. Here's how I made it:

I started by cutting six elephant dies from thin chipboard (I used a cereal box). I glued them together in two sets of three. I also cut two of the detail layer die.

Using the same dies, I cut coordinating paper to cover the inside and outside of the chipboard elephants. I covered another piece of chipboard with polka dot paper and cut the 3D piece.

To assemble the pull toy/container, I painted the edges of the stacked chipboard white and then covered the front and back with paper. I cut the 3D piece to length and adhered it to each of the elephant panels, creating a box. I finished the box off with vintage buttons tied with baker's twine.

We invite you to visit each of the team member's blogs to see what they created for baby Leo.

Diana

Lisa

Oxana

Pam

Donna 

Tracy

Nicole

If you'd like to leave a message of congratulations for Anna-Karin, be sure and stop by Eileen Hull's blog and leave your well wishes in the comments!

The supplies I used can be found at Amazon and Simon Says Stamp via the links below.

Sizzix Make-It-3D Box Sizzi by 6-Inch by 13.75-Inch ScoreBoards Die, X-Large Sizzix Thinlits Dies, Elephant and Giraffe, 7-Pack Be Amazing Follow Your Heart 6X6 Paper Pad (My Minds Eye) Sizzix MAGNETIC PLATFORM FOR WAFER-THIN DIES Accessory 656499 Tim Holtz Distress Ink Stain PICKET FENCE White Ranger TDW31246 *Beacon's 3 IN 1 ADVANCED CRAFT GLUE Crystal Clear Instant Grab Fast Dry Glue 00210 Lawn Fawn CLOUDY Single Cord Trimmings

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Spring & Easter Inspiration Round-Up

Hi all! Today I thought I'd share a round-up of some of my favorite Spring and Easter projects. There is a little something for everyone - from building a birdhouse using Sizzix dies, to pop-up cards, to favors for your Easter table. Hopefully you'll find something that inspires you!

Spring Butterfly Crown - I made this a few years ago using one of Tim Holtz's On the Edge dies, the Tattered Florals die, and a lot of glitter and embossing powder. One of my all-time favorite projects!

Dollar Store Easter Cloche - If you're looking for a pretty, easy Easter decor piece, this is it! Made from a dollar store wineglass and Tim Holtz's adorable Mini Bunny die.

Tattered Florals Birdhouse - When I made this for Tim Holtz's Tattered Florals challenge, most people thought the structure was something I bought. It's not! It's made from Tim's Cameo Frame die and treated with a faux metal finish.

Pop-it Ups Easter Card - Karen Burniston's dies always elevate a card from pretty to pretty amazing - this card is a great example of that. It only takes a couple extra minutes to create a card that will really 'wow' the recipient!

Graphic 45 Easter Basket - I made this sweet Easter favor using Eileen Hull's Cube die and Graphic 45's Sweet Sentiments paper. Eileen's box dies make projects like this a breeze!

Shabby French Peat Pot - If you want a project that literally takes 10 minutes to make, but looks like you bought it from a fancy shop, this is the project for you! Tissue paper, a peat pot, and some white paint are all you need for this rustic looking project.

I hope you've been inspired by this collection of some of my favorite projects. Most of them are easy enough to finish in a couple hours - you could have your Easter decorating done in an afternoon, or make a special card to brighten someone's day.

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Come back tomorrow when I'll be sharing a very special Easter project that I created for the Ranger blog. I think you'll love it!

12 Tags of 2015 - Pop it Ups Style

Hi all! Today I'm sharing my version of Tim Holtz's March tag. I needed to make a card for my Dad's birthday this month, so I used a bit more masculine colors and images and incorporated the design into a card using Karen Burniston's Accordion Rectangle Pop it Ups die.

I have to say, Tim's embossed texture paste technique totally blew my mind! I can't wait to try this with other stencils and embossing powders...you know how much I love my embossing powder. :) I can see so many different possibilities using this technique!

To made the card, I cut two panels from black cardstock. I cut two more panels from Ranger's manila cardstock and removed the center portion. I used Tim's fantastic tutorial to create my background on the manila, then adhered them to the black card. To finish it, I added gears cut from metal sheets plus various idea-ology bits and pieces. The Happy Birthday greeting was cut from black cardstock and rubbed lightly with metallic rub-on paste (I love that stuff!).

All the supplies I used to make my card can be found at Elizabeth Craft Designs, Simon Says Stamp, and Amazon via the links below.

Karen Burniston Accordion Rectangle Card Karen Burniston Accordion Rectangle Die Karen Burniston Clock and Gears Die Set Karen Burniston Happy Birthday PopUp Die Tim Holtz Mercantile Tim Holtz Idea-ology TISSUE TAPE COMMUTE TH93019 *Tim Holtz Idea-ology LABORATORIE Tissue Tape TH93095 *Tim Holtz Idea-ology TISSUE TAPE SYMPHONY Music Self Adhesive Vintage Paper Tim Holtz Layering Stencil 2015 TYPO THS040 Ranger TEXTURE PASTE 4oz INK44444 Tim Holtz Distress Paint CRACKED PISTACHIO Ranger TDD43577 Tim Holtz Distress Paint WILD HONEY Ranger TDD36531 Tim Holtz Distress Paint SALTY OCEAN Ranger TDD36449 Ranger Archival Ink Pad JET BLACK AIP31468 Ranger Inkssentials 8.5 X 11 MANILA CARDSTOCK Surfaces ISM28246 Ranger Surfaces BLACK CARDSTOCK ISB42105 Ranger Embossing Powder SILVER EPJ37361 Ranger Embossing Powder CLEAR 3 Oz Jar EPL45694 Tim Holtz Idea-ology NUMBER BRADS Metal Hardware TH93123 *Tim Holtz Idea-ology SPROCKET GEARS Watch Parts Hardware Tim Holtz Idea-ology PEN NIBS TH92909 Sizzix MAGNETIC PLATFORM FOR WAFER-THIN DIES Accessory 656499

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Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Karen Burniston Designer Challenge - Make 'em Laugh!

Hi all! Today I'm sharing my card for Karen Burniston's March challenge. The theme is 'Make 'em Laugh' and these stamps from Funny Bones definitely made me laugh! I was lucky enough to have a chance to visit Stamper's, Ink in Kansas City a couple months ago. Not only was I excited to visit a real life stamp store - I knew it would also be my chance to find the perfect stamp for this challenge, since they are the owners of the Funny Bones line of stamps. Honestly, the hardest part of this challenge was choosing a stamp. They are all hilarious!

This challenge actually started another new obsession: coloring. I have always been intimidated by coloring, but I knew I would have to color this woman stamp. I practiced a bit with my friend, Cyndi's, copics and then bit the bullet and bought Spectrum Noir markers. And then I bought more, and more, and more. I'm still a total novice, but I'm having fun!

To make my card, I first cut two panels from black cardstock using the Fancy Label Accordion die. Next, I used the same die to cut two more panels from Graphic 45's Typography paper. I mixed and matched the papers and adhered them to the black base card. The woman was stamped, colored, cut out and adhered to the card with foam dots. I stamped the sentiment on manila cardstock, cut it into strips and adhered it to the card. The small images were fussy cut from the G45 paper. I used one of the frames from Karen's Fancy Frame Edges to decorate the front.

(By the way, if you're a fan of my previous cards using Karen's old Sizzix 3D Accordion die (like this Love card, or my Time Machine steampunk birthday card), this is the pefect replacement for it, since it's no longer being made.)

The supplies I used can be found at Inspiration Emporium and Simon Says Stamp via the links below. Remember you can use my coupon code - stamptramp - at IE to save 10% on your order! The stamps I used can be found online (Burning Bridges & Wondering Midge), or at Stamper's, Ink.

Karen Burniston Accordion Fancy Label Karen Burniston - Fancy Frame Edges Neenah Solar White Cardstock Neenah Epic Black Cardstock Inkssentials Manila Cardstock *Graphic 45 TYPOGRAPHY 8 x 8 Paper Pad 4500775 *Crafter's Companion PASTELS 24 SET SPECTRUM NOIR MARKERS 751712 *Crafter's Companion LIGHTS 24 SET SPECTRUM NOIR MARKERS 751743 *EK Success CUTTER BEE Scissors EKCB01 Sizzix MAGNETIC PLATFORM FOR WAFER-THIN DIES Accessory 656499 *Tsukineko MEMENTO Full Size Ink Pad TUXEDO BLACK Ranger Inkssentials MINI COLLAGE GLUE STICK Adhesive IWT44666 *3M Scotch PINK ATG ADVANCED TAPE GLIDER 1/4"" Adhesive Glue Gun *Tim Holtz Sizzix VAGABOND MACHINE Die Cutting Embossing Alterations 656850

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Thanks so much for stopping by today. Make sure you check out the Elizabeth Craft Designs blog on Wednesday for another great tutorial from Karen, plus tons of hilarious inspiration from the team!