Sizzix Party Ideas - Embossed Kraft Favor Box

Hi all! This month, the Eileen Hull Inspiration Team is sharing some fun party ideas. One of my favorite dies - the Square Box die - has just be re-released so I thought this would be the perfect time to highlight it!

Sometimes my projects can be a bit time-consuming, so I decided to keep this one sweet and simple. I love the look of Eileen's new Heart and Soul flower cut from coffee filters and her new Lace Medallions die is extra pretty when it's highlighted with white paint. Here's how I made it:

Begin by cutting two box pieces from medium weight kraft chipboard. Emboss as shown using Eileen's Lace Medallions embossing folder. Highlight the raised areas with white paint. Let dry and assemble using Beacon 3-in-1 glue, or other strong adhesive.

Next, cut several flowers from white coffee filters using the Heart and Soul die. Separate and stack the large flower and the small one. Thread a wire through a large white pearl bead and twist to secure.

To hide the wire, thread one small flower onto the wire and adhere with glue.

Finally, add the rest of the flowers, securing with a dab of glue. Fluff the petals for a full look.

Isn't this just the sweetest flower? And so easy and very inexpensive! I think this box would be a great wedding or shower favor. Or, change up the colors and use it for a birthday party. Coffee filters are so easy to dye with spray inks and stains, so you can match your flowers to any theme.

You can find the products I used at Sizzix, Scrapbook.com, and Simon Says Stamp via the links below. All Eileen's dies are on sale at Scrapbook.com right now, and all Ranger supplies are on sale at SSS. It's a great time to stock up!

Eileen Hull Square Box Die Eileen Hull Lace Medallions Eileen Hull Heart and Soul Die Ranger Paint Dabber GLACIER WHITE RAD43751 Beacon 3 IN 1 ADVANCED CRAFT GLUE Crystal Clear Instant Grab Fast Dry Glue 00210 Tombow MONO MULTI Liquid Glue Two Applicators 62191 Sizzix BIG SHOT PLUS MACHINE Gray And White 660340 Grafix Medium Weight Chipboard Sheets, 12-Inch by 12-Inch, Natural, 25-Pack BUNN BCF100-B 100-Count Basket Filter

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Thanks so much for stopping by today. Check out Eileen's blog for more great inspiration for your parties!

Pop it Ups June Challenge - Photo Accordion Albums

Hi all! This month, the supremely talented Karen Burniston challenged the Pop it Ups team to create any style accordion album using photos. When I was working with her new Ring Accordion Album earlier this month, I had the idea to add a stem at the top of the album and create a pocket watch shape. I knew I had to try it out, so I found an image of a watch, enlarged the stem area and printed it out on cardstock. A little glue and I had a pocket watch!

Since this is called the Ring Album, how perfect is it for a wedding theme? I decided to use all the dance photos from my daughter's wedding reception - the bride and groom's first dance, the father/daughter dance, and the mother/son dance. I think this will be a really sweet gift for my daughter and son-in-law.

The Ring album will be available the first couple weeks in July. Make sure you ask your favorite retailer to order it for you! The Ring album comes with little ornament top dies so you can turn this album into multiple little Christmas ornaments. So cute!

You know how I love using Vine to share a quick peek at how these albums open. So much better than a pic!

Thanks so much for stopping by today. Remember to check the Elizabeth Craft Designs blog tomorrow for an amazing tutorial from Karen and lots of inspiration from the whole team!

P.S. I thought I'd share my image in case anyone else would like to turn their die into a pocket watch. Just click on the image, then right click or drag it to your desktop to save.

Art with Heart Challenge - Floral Wedding Album

Hi all! Eileen Hull's Art with Heart challenge inspired me to make this pretty wedding album for my daughter and her husband. They just celebrated their first wedding anniversary and I thought it would make a perfect gift for them!

How gorgeous are these flowers?! By just inking the fronts, you get a great contrast when they're curled...and the Perfect Pearls spray gives them the prettiest shimmer. I am also very excited about the Liquid Pearls stamens! A few months ago I was trying to figure out how to make these myself and happened upon the most simple yet elegant solution. Read below to see how this sweet wedding album came together.

Begin by covering a piece of ScoreBoards mat board (front and back) with decorative paper. Since the paper I used was only 6x6, I had to piece it together. The spine will be covered, so it was ok to have a seam. Insert the Decorative Frame die into the Movers and Shapers opening of the Mini Album die and cut your album.

To create the pages for the book, fold cardstock in half and cut using the album die, aligning the fold just below the first score line. Punch holes in the pages and thread with a single piece of idea-ology Paper Twine. Punch two holes in the spine of the book, thread the strings through, and tie.

Now let's make our flowers! Cut several flowers from white cardstock using the Layered Flowers die from Eileen Hull. Sponge with various colors of Distress ink and then mist heavily with Perfect Pearls Mist. You want to have them fairly saturated for the next step.

Take your dampened flowers and form them around a dowel, or the end of a paintbrush. Remove and let dry. This will give them a great, vintage texture.

To create the stamens, cut a 3" length of Paper Twine and separate into two pieces. Fold each in half.

Next, dispense a small amount of Buttercup Liquid Pearls onto a nonstick craft sheet. Dip each end of the string into the Pearls. The Pearls will naturally form a perfect little droplet shape on the end. Hang the stamens to dry, making sure they don't touch anything.

To create the flowers, stack several sets of petals. Gather a few sets of stamens together and insert into the opening in the flower. Add a dab of glue on the back to hold in place. When dry, trim the Paper String.

To complete the album, cut a piece of burlap paper using the album die, aligning it along the cutting area for the spine. Adhere a piece of Crinkle Ribbon to it and then adhere the burlap to the cover. Cut a piece of thin cardstock using Karen Burniston's Chevron die and cover with gold glitter. When dry, adhere to the bottom on the book. Add your flowers and a length of pearl trim, and you're done!

For the cover photo, I chose an image that would fit the opening and then adhered it to the first page. I added more photos to fill the book. Mine is fairly simple, because that's my daughter's style, but you could really go crazy with more embellishments, etc.

Have you joined the Art with Heart Challenge? The theme this month is May Flowers and we would love to have you play along. One lucky winner will receive a great prize package!

The dies I used can be found at Sizzix and Inspiration Emporium via the links below. Be sure and use my coupon code (at IE only) to save 10% off your order!

Eileen Hull Mini Album Die Eileen Hull Decorative Frame Die Eileen Hull Flower Layers with Heart Petals Karen Burniston Chevron Border Perfect Pearls Mist Idea-ology Crinkle Ribbon Idea-ology Foliage Kaiser Rhinestones - Silver idea-ology Paper String - Solids Xyron Mega Runner Idea-ology Sanding Grip Inkssentials Glue N' Seal Vagabond

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This project is also a great fit for Inspiration Emporium's Celebrate! challenge. You can find all the details here. Hope you can play along with both of these fun challenges.

Thanks so much for stopping by and have a wonderful week!

Pillow Box Shower Favors

Happy Friday, everyone! I finally got around to writing up the tutorial for these sweet pillow box favors that I created for my daughter's bridal shower earlier this month. Since it was in Los Angeles, I tried to come up with something that was portable and would travel well without getting crushed. These were perfect. My favorite part is the gold leafing - I think it adds such a rich look!

My new gold leaf obsession started out with a Better Homes & Gardens email about the latest trends. Apparently, gold/gilding is very hot right now! Drawing on my vast experience in the 90s (I used to gold leaf anything that didn't move) I decided to gild some thrift store vases to use in my daughter's reception table arrangements. She loved my test versions and we ended up doing them for all the tables. So easy!

You can see just a little glimpse of the bottom of one in this photo. Her flowers were absolutely beautiful. Almost all the containers were thrift store finds - pink Depression glass, milk glass, vintage pressed glass, and a variety of cute planters. I found all the silver trays at thrift stores too. It was fun to have an eclectic mix of shapes and sizes.

When I sat down to work on the favors, I spotted the leftover gold leaf and knew I had to incorporate it somewhere. The little touch of gold on the frames gives them an elegant look and is something unexpected.  These pretty pillow boxes go together really quickly and would be appropriate for any feminine occasion.

Begin by cutting desired cardstock using Tim Holtz' Pillow Box die from Sizzix. I didn't find I needed a crease pad, but if your score lines are cutting through, trying using one.

Assemble the box and emboss using one of the Book Covers Texture Fades, centering the flat circle portion in the middle of the box. The score lines will still be visible after embossing.

Next, cut a frame from chipboard using Tim's Tag and Bookplates die. Cover with adhesive size. This glue is made specifically for adhering gold leaf and can be found at any large craft store. Mine came from Michaels. Let dry until tacky.

When the adhesive has dried to a tacky consistency (this usually takes 30 minutes, but was much quicker on the chipboard) apply the gold leaf, burnishing to remove the excess.

Thread a 16" length of baker's twine through the frame and attach to the center of the box using glue dots.

Cut woman's silhouette from black cardstock using Tim Holtz' Mini Silhouettes die. Apply foam square to back and adhere to center of frame.

Fill box with treats, fold in ends and tie as shown. The baker's twine was a Target Dollar Spot find. I picked it up knowing it would come in handy at some point, and I'm so glad I did - I think the gold thread ties everything together (ha!) perfectly.

Most of the supplies I used can be found at Inspiration Emporium via the links below. When you use my coupon code - stamptramp - you'll save 10%!

Sizzix Pillow Box Sizzix Mini Silhouettes Sizzix Tag & Bookplates Die Sizzix Book Covers Neenah Epic Black Cardstock Foam Sticky Squares Dot 'n Go Glue Dots Vagabond

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Finally, here's a photo of my beautiful daughter, Olivia, and her new husband, Rickie. They make the most adorable couple! My son, Luke, was a groomsmen and looked so cute in his tux and cream bow tie.

Ok, just one more pic! Even though it's blurry, I just love this photo taken during their exit. I can't wait until I have the professional pictures to share!

Thanks so much for stopping by - have a wonderful weekend!