Hello Shaker Card

I wanted to make something my sister could have on her desk.  We don't get to see each other that often since she works all week and I work mostly weekends.  And every time we make plans, something seems to come up - this last time it was the snow.  So I made this sweet little shaker so she'd know I was always thinking of her <3

What I Used to Make my Card:
White Card
Lawn Fawn Ready, Set, Snow Stamps , #LF973
Lawn Fawn Ready, Set, Shake Dies, #LF975
Acetate {I used an overhead projector sheet}
Hello stamp was a Lawn Fawn Gift {and the first time I've used it}
Versafine Onyx Black Ink
Copic Marker
6mm White Craft Foam {Michael's}
Shaker Fill {explained below}
Washi Tape

This is the actual foam I used.

I filled the shaker with sequin hearts, some glitter, and a few black cats {I have a black cat and she adores my sister} and all of it came from my extensive stash of sequins.  I have quite a collection; aside from your average stars and cups, I have cats, chili peppers, flowers, dots, and much more.  These are all left over from when we used to actually use sequins as an integral part of our cards.  Not just one or two tastefully placed sequins, oh no - we'd plaster happy birthday sequins all over a card!

I digress.  I made this sweet shaker the same way I made the Happy Purrthday shaker.  The only difference is I made the shaker {which is the snow globe} the actual card instead of using it on the card.  I colored the bottom with a red Copic, stamped the "sending you hugs," cut the sentiment out, and attached it to the bottom.  I actually took a chance and stamped the Hello directly on the back of the card.

The inside

The Hinge

I used a piece of washi tape as a hinge - here is the inside of the card {I had already written in the card before I took these pics, so I blurred it out.  I didn't think you all needed to read the gushy sisterly stuff I wrote}. I attached the hinge to the back of the shaker, the back wall that actually holds in all the shake, and then just made another panel and hinged to that. You can sort of see what I mean by looking at the photo. Oh and I added a little red glitter heart that I had lying on my desk.

Here's another look

This set is SO versatile - you can make ornaments out of it for any season or use it like I did.  My sister just sent a text that she loves the card and people in her office want my blog address; I guess I did well! Thanks for reading and have a wonderful day! Christi

I am entering my "Hello Shaker Card" in the following challenges:
Die Cuttin' Divas - #354, Anything Goes
Unicorn Challenge Blog - M, #28, Anything Goes
Crafting with Dragonflies - #96, Anything Goes
Crafter's Castle - #1, Anything Goes
Scrapy Land - Anything Goes
As You Like It - Favorite Die & Why - this is my FAVORITE die set because I love making shaker cards and this makes it SO easy & fun! And Lawn Fawn products are just so stinkin' cute!

I Love You Easel Card

I hate to admit it, but this is my very first easel card, ever.  I was never good with patterns {even though there have been many of them floating around the internet}, all that resizing and the need to cut a straight line was just too much for me.  However, when I was browsing my Silhouette files I saw I had purchased one that was an easel card and today was as good a day as ever to try one out! And, honestly, I had a new DCWV pad that needed to be broken in.

What I Used to Make my Card:
White Card
Silhouette CAMEO Machine
Lori Whitlock's A2 Easel Card Be My Valentine, File #117356
Hero Arts Stamp & Cut, Hello, #DC151
Core'dinations Pastel Pink Paper {used as base}
DCWV Copper Luxury Paper Stack {hope they didn't close!}
Wink of Stella in Clear
White Brad

Yes, I'm spoiled.  All those complicated cards are a breeze now thanks to the

The card closed

electronic cutting machines and all the dies that can do the hard work for you.  I don't care; I think this is a beautiful card! There really is no tutorial because Lori Whitlock has put together a fabulous one; it's a generic tutorial for all of her easy easel cards.  If you happen to have any type of Silhouette machine, consider purchasing the file for this card.  It was super easy to make and lots of fun.  

In fact, the card was easy to see how to construct just by looking at the pieces.  The one thing I

Ah ha! It's a brad!

couldn't figure out {before I watched the tutorial} was how the cards stayed "up" like an easel.  I realized I'd never looked that hard at one of the cards to see the brad!  How ingenious, and frankly, since these cards are so striking, who's gonna be bothered looking for how it works {well, I did, but only because I was making one}? 

I did discover how to fix a mistake I make often - putting glue on the wrong side of the cardstock.  At

least in this case I quickly wiped the glue off with a baby wipe and then covered the heart in clear Wink of Stella - ta da! No glossy tell tale glue marks on this heart! If you look closely, you can see the wonderful Wink sparkle.

Well, I hope you enjoyed my short post and my lovely card.  The patterns and colors of the Copper Luxury stack are perfect for any cards or projects you might have on your 'to do' list.  Thanks so much for visiting ~ Christi


I would like to enter my Love You Easel Card in the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Layer it Up
Cardz for Galz - Anything but Square {I hope this qualifies!}
a2z Scrapbooking - M, New to Me {never made this type of card before}
Joy Clair - Dec/Jan, Make it Pop!
Wednesday's Creative Inspirations Challenge - M, Something New!
Die Cuttin' Divas - M, Something New {2}
Fussy and Fancy - #204, Fussy and Fancy
SumMoreFun Mood Board - #20 

It's Written in the Stars

This is only the second time I've gotten to play with the Lawn Fawn Shadow Box Card die set, but I've had this card brewing in my mind since I bought the Upon a Star Stamps and matching dies.  I've had this set for a while but I have never used it; I just couldn't get this card out of my mind! Now that it's finally made, I can move on <grin>.  Speaking of moving on, I just placed another order with Dies R Us because not only are their die prices insanely low, but they now stock paper, adhesives, Distress markers, and SO much more.  If you haven't been to the store in a while, you need to GO!  Now let's get back to my card; I truly enjoyed making it and I hope you like it.

What I Used to Make my Card:
Black Card
Lawn Fawn Shadow Box Card Die Set, #LF1486
Lawn Fawn Scripty Sayings Stamp Set, #LF844
Lawn Fawn Upon a Star Stamp Set, #LF1407 {New}
Lawn Fawn Upon a Star Die Set, #LF1408 {New}
MISTI
Lawn Fawn Starry Skies Die, #LF1377 {New}
Star/Night Sky Patterned Paper {stash}
Banner - Silhouette Cameo {but you could use these instead}
Hero Arts Intense Black Ink
Scor-Tape, 1/8" size
Embossing Ink
Simon Says Stamp Detail White Embossing Powder
Watercolor Paper
Derwent Inktense Water Color Pencils
Light & Dark Brown Card
Silver Glitter Card
Wink of Stella in Clear
Acetate 

Like all fabulous Lawn Fawn products {the Shadow Box Card is a stand alone die, which means there is no coordinating stamp set}, Kelly has produced an amazing video that you can see here.  However, I changed my card up a bit.  I was inspired by this card that Kelly created {the owner and designer of Lawn Fawn}.  She used a piece of acetate to hold up one of her constellations; she talks about it in the video I referenced above.   Click on the image and you can see where I pointed out the acetate.  Like usual for me, the bunnies I used were already colored with Derwent Watercolor Pencils and cut out.  I actually have a few pairs of the rabbits and the foxes, which come with the Upon a Star set, all colored and cut out, ready to go for when the mood strikes me.

These cards are not complicated, but I took a few photos of how I made the card and how I changed it a bit.  

 On the right hand side, here are the two panels that were cut out from the dies, all the creases and tabs are folded. 

On the left you'll see the two panels attached to each other, but it's not time to do that yet.  

The background paper of the night sky was cut out and attached to the very back panel of the box prior to attaching the hills.

 Here are the panels - I cut out three of them - two I attached as instructed and one I kept separate to cut it down.  The third panel is what I am going to use to attach the acetate components.  This where I changed up the construction of the card.  On most of the shadow box cards made with the kit, there are only two hills.  I needed the third to attach my pieces that will look like they are floating {if it comes out the way I picture it in my mind}.
On the right are all three panels attached to the shadow box on one side.  The left shows the box constructed and how the first two panels {hills} can be seen, but the third one, in the very back, can't be seen.  

I put the box aside and began to construct the banner that I wanted to use. In the photo on the right, I show how I stamped the sentiment on the banner.  I used my MISTI to hold the banner and the stamp in place.  The sides of the banner are folded and I put sticky notes under each side because the stamp is longer than the banner.  This way the over-stamp won't get on the sides of the banner.

The photo on the right shows the banner stamped.  See how there was a bit of over stamping on the sticky note?


Here is a picture of the banner completed: 

Back to the shadow box; here are the three hills attached.  This is the view from the top of the box, the patterned paper is the back and the opening is the front.  On the left are some of the pieces I wanted to use in the shadow box.  I ended up switching them up, which I do quite often when making a card.  I think I want certain things and then I think other things will look better.

As I began to build up the scene, I decided I need a few bare trees to even out the box.  I cut out the small trees with dark brown paper and attached them to the second hill.  Then I cut out the skinny strips of acetate I needed to hold up the heart constellation; at this point I wasn't sure what else I was going to put in the scene.  

I flipped through my dies and came across the Lawn Fawn Starry Skies die set and decided a few glittery stars were just what I needed.  I cut out some of the stars from silver glitter card and attached some to the back of the card {where the patterned paper is} and then I floated some using the acetate strips.  I attached the bunnies and the banner; lastly, I used Clear Wink of Stella around the exterior of the box to give just a bit more sparkle.

On the right you can see a side view of the card.  It was a trial to get a good picture not showing the acetate!  I hope you enjoyed this tutorial as much as I did making it.  Don't forget, the Dies R Us store is carrying more than dies now, check out the new and improved inventory of crafting goodies! Hugs, Christi

Another Look

Don't forget to join in on all the fun at the Dies R Us Challenge Blog.  

There's  a new challenge theme offered on the 1st and 15th of each month

 and one lucky  randomly drawn winner will receive a gift voucher prize to 

the Dies R Us Store.  For your convenience, all the important Dies R Us 

links are provided below.

click below for:

STORE
CHALLENGE BLOG
FACEBOOK
INSPIRATION BLOG

FRIENDS OF DIES R US PINTEREST PAGE

I am entering my It's Written in the Stars card in the following challenges:
Lawn Fawnatics Challenge - #21, Inspiration Board {see graphic below}
Daisy Chain Challenges - #15, Something New
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Add a Sentiment
Die Cut Diva's - M, Use or Do Something New
a2z Scrapbooking - M, New to Me
Cuttlebug Mania - Valentines
Crafting by Designs - Out of this World
The Rubber Buggy Challenge - #10, Valentine {see graphic below}

 

Let it Snow

Another snowflake card; sorry to those who are getting snowed under!  We had a bit of snow yesterday, but most of it is already gone.  We are due for a good snowstorm!

What I Used to Make my Card:
White Card Base
Tim Holtz/Sizzix Mini Paper Snowflakes Die, #661599
Lawn Fawn Let it Snow Border Die, #LF992
Tim Holtz Mini Swirly Snowflakes Stamps, #CMS320
Simon Says Stamp Embossing Powder, Detail White
Embossing Ink
Vellum
Pale Gold Card
Homemade White Brads

This card started out with stamping the snowflakes on vellum with embossing ink and then embossing them with detail white embossing powder; I had no plan for the vellum, I just love the way white embossing looks and I wanted to play.  I made this panel at the same time I made the panel used in my Simple Snowflake Cards.

When I went to adhere the vellum panel to the card base I realized I had no white brads {yes, I found some later, which is always the case for me}.  So, I made some.  I've done it before and it is so simple; just dip the head of your brad into some embossing ink, then the embossing powder, heat, and repeat until you are satisfied with the results.  Easy!  Once the brads were made, I set them aside to cool down and set about making the embellishments for the card. I cut the sentiment out of the same card as the snowflakes {choosing which  

snowflakes to use out of the set was the most difficult part of making this card!}, a luscious pale gold that I've had for years.  Once the vellum was

Another Look

attached to the card base, I glued the sentiment and the snowflakes I'd chosen to the card.

It really is so pretty in person! I am absolutely fascinated with white embossing, as you may have noticed lately.  It just looks so fresh and clean to me.  Have you jumped on this craze as well?  If so, I'd love to stop by and see your creations, just leave me your information in the comments.  And, since you are already here, I'd be grateful if you'd consider becoming a follower.  It took me a very long time to get the guts to share my art and now that I'm an old pro at sharing, I'd be honored to continue sharing it with you.  Thanks so much and I hope to see you soon! Christi

I would like to enter my Let it Snow card in the following challenges:
Use Your Stuff - #295, Monochromatic
A Snowflakes Promise - M, #47, Anything Goes
Artistic Stamper - M, #1, Anything Goes
Crop Stop Challenge - M, Anything Goes (#2)
Card Mania - M, #100, Monochromatic
Get Creative With Stamps - M, #22, Snowflakes

Wintertime Joy

This is a simple card and my main goal was to use up some of my stash papers.  This is the first time I used the die and I think it came out beautifully.

What I Used to Make my Card:
White Card Base
Gold Glitter Snowflake Patterned Paper
Gold Shimmer Paper, dark
Gold Shimmer Paper, pale
Memory Box, Wintertime Joy die, #99589 {not sure if retired, but available}
Wink of Stella, Gold

I have no idea where the Gold Glitter Snowflake Paper came from; I'm certain I got it in a kit umpteen years ago.  I have a bit still hanging around so you might see it make an appearance in a card next year.

The panel of patterned paper was already cut, so all I had to do to make this card was cut out Joy twice.  I used the pale and the dark gold {and again, I've had these papers for so long!} and inlay the dark gold letters into the pale gold card.  However, I wasn't happy with how the dark gold letters looked once they were inserted into the pale card. The dark gold paper didn't quite match up to the shimmer of the pale gold, so I colored the letters over with a gold Wink of Stella pen.  In the picture on the left, the rounded piece of cardstock is the original dark gold, and the letters are cut and colored using the pen.    

Coloring the letters made a huge difference in the shimmer and I feel like it matched the pale shimmer much better.  I took a gazillion pictures to try to capture the beautiful shimmer of the pale gold and, honestly, I think the picture at the top pf this post shows it the best.  But I also wanted to show the intricacy of the die, so I decided to use the picture on the right.  I think I could even snip those snowflakes away and use just the outline of the word for another project that isn't so seasonal.

Another Look

It's easy for me to make a snowflake card because we haven't had much snow here in the Denver area of Colorado, yet {EDIT: I just heard we are expecting snow today! Only 1 to 2 inches, but we desperately need it.  I hope we get some!}  We will see what old man winter brings us in the next two months. I hope this little tutorial finds you in good health as I see that there is a bad flu making the rounds.  Thanks for reading and I hope to see you soon! Christi
PS: We are getting snow right now! :) 

I am entering my Wintertime Joy card in the following challenges:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Use Patterned Paper (#2)
Crafty Cardmakers - Bling's the Thing, #203
Poppy Stamps Challenge - M, Snow Day, #40
Craft Rocket Challenges - Winter, #44
Cute Card Thursday - #512, Something New (die is new)
Die Cut Divas - M, Use or Do Something New (die is new)

Happy Purrthday

My very best friend is having a birthday this month so I thought it was a 'purr'-fect time to break out my new stamps and dies from Lawn Fawn.  Speaking of new, did you know that Dies R Us is beginning to carry other really cool products such as paper, inks, and about 1000 more different supplies?  Just pop over and take a look at all the new goodies and don't forget to check out the New Arrivals!

What I Used to Make my Card:
White Card Base
Blue Card {Core'dinations Sea Glass Paper Pack}
Lawn Fawn Meow You Doin' Stamps, #LF1315
Lawn Fawn Meow You Doin' Dies, #LF1316
Lawn Fawn Ready, Set, Snow Stamps , #LF973
Lawn Fawn Ready, Set, Shake Dies, #LF975
Acetate {I used an overhead projecter sheet}
Hero Arts Ink in Intense Black, Sapphire and Deep Blue
Sequins {stash}
Glitter {I used a chunky, glass type glitter from my stash}
Watercolor Paper
Derwent Watercolor Pencils
MISTI
VersaMark Ink Pad
6mm White Craft Foam {Michael's}

This is the actual foam I used.

ENABLER ALERT: The Core'dinations Sea Glass Paper Pack is still on sale, 50 sheets for $2.97! Just follow the link above and it will take you to Consumer Crafts.  Now, on with the post!

I love shaker cards and I LOVE the fact that they are SO easy to make now! Gone are the days of piecing tape together or scraps of dimensional dots! I could explain exactly how I made this card, but Kelly at Lawn Fawn has made an awesome video that explains the shaker card process - check it out!  In the video, Kelly explains how she used foam to make her shakers and I literally ran out right then to my local craft store {Michael's} looking for the 5mm foam she talks about.  I'm not sure if she got the size wrong, but there is NO 5mm craft foam, anywhere, that I could find.  Not even on Amazon! But, there was 6mm foam.  I wasn't sure if that one millimeter was going to foil my attempt to use the dies with it, but I bit the bullet and bought it anyway.  I am thrilled to say it worked perfectly.

I thought I'd show you a few of the steps for making the card just in case videos aren't your thing.  This is very photo heavy, so grab a drink and a snack.  I've made all these photos small so this post wouldn't take forever to load.  If you want any of the pictures to be larger, just click on it.

First, out of the 2 stamp sets, these are the stamps and dies you need to actually construct the shaker snow globe.

 

 I've stamped the globe on white card using black ink. 

 Now I've lined up the die with the stamped image and cut it out.

The front of the globe is cut and ready to go.

 Next, use the same die and cut your foam.

Next, cut your acetate cover using the same die that you used to cut out the back of the globe.  I enhanced this photo so you could see the acetate.

The next step is attaching your foam to the back piece of the globe.  Then, you want to attach your acetate to the front piece, so you essentially have two separate pieces of your card.  Then the fun part! Decorate the back piece with whatever you choose, then add the shaker bits; again, it's your choice.  I've used glitter, cut outs from cardstock, sequins, and beads.

If you live in a dry area, or just seem to attract static electricity, it could cause your shaker bits to clump together. Some people rub the sides of the foam with

an anti-static sheet, cornstarch, or baby powder and even use the little anti-static pouch you use when you wet emboss.  Once you have finished decorating the inside of your card (the back piece with the foam attached) simply add your shaker bits and attach the front of your card (the front piece with the acetate attached) to the back and you now have a shaker card!  Just a quick word about acetate - I've literally used the same package for years; I don't even know if they make it anymore.  I've used packaging leftovers, too.  Honestly, the packaging leftovers can be bulky and I found that it doesn't dry as flat as transparencies do, but I've seen many a successful shaker done with left over packaging.  You can literally purchase acetate sheets made for shaker cards as transparencies can be costly.

Now that you've made your shaker piece there are different ways you can use it.  There are some cute options in the Lawn Fawn video I referenced above; for this project, I attached the shaker piece to an A2 card.

The background I made

Now, since my friend lives on the East Coast and is currently getting pounded with snow, I didn't want to use the characters that came with the Ready, Set, Snow stamps.  Instead, since she loves cats as much as I do, I grabbed a cat from Meow You Doin'? set {which I had already colored and cut out} to use as the focal point.  I also added the cute little birthday hat that comes with the set.  Once the shaker portion of my card was done, I decided to add a layer of blue paper to the white card base.  I used the paw print and the can of cat food with the candle to make my own background paper using the VersaMark pad.  I love it!

Looking at the card now, I see I need a bit more practice putting the pieces of the shaker together, they're a tad wonky; but, as I always say, that's the beauty of homemade!

Another look with the Hero Arts inks I used.

I hope you made it to the end of my tutorial.  I appreciate your stopping by to visit and I hope you keep in mind that there is a NEW project posted daily on the Dies R Us Inspiration Blog.  Have a fabulous Sunday and I'll see you next week! Christi

Don't forget to join in on all the fun at the Dies R Us Challenge Blog.  

There's  a new challenge theme offered on the 1st and 15th of each month

 and one lucky  randomly drawn winner will receive a gift voucher prize to 

the Dies R Us Store.  For your convenience, all the important Dies R Us 

links are provided below.

click below for:

STORE
CHALLENGE BLOG
FACEBOOK
INSPIRATION BLOG

FRIENDS OF DIES R US PINTEREST PAGE

 I am entering my Happy Purrthday Card in the following challenges:
Brown Sugar Challenge -M, Birthday, #274
Scrapy Land Challenges - M, Anything Goes, #81
Double D Challenges - M, Birthday/Anniversary Using the Mood Board {I used color and the general celebration}

Seize the Birthday - M, Anything Birthday Goes 

A Few Thank You cards. . .

It is one of my New Year's Resolutions to make {AND send} more thank you cards.  This Christmas I got some totally unexpected cards from a couple of my Blogger friends and, since I sort of coasted through the holiday, I decided to make them some thank you cards.

Both of the cards.  They look better in person, trust me :)

What I Used to Make my Cards:
White Card Base
Basic Grey Patterned Paper, Sultry Vogue*
Pink Cardstock {Core'dinations Pastels}
Hero Arts Stamp & Cut, Thanks, #DC152
Homemade Dots {see below}
Wink of Stella, Clear

*Basic Grey closed its scrapbooking section in 2016 so I highly doubt you'll find the paper I used to make the cards, but there are plenty of beautiful florals out there - bet you have some in your stash!  

I had a blast making these cards and they were super easy!  I just trimmed the patterned paper, attached it to my white card base and then embellished.

Since there are two cards, I'm calling this one "Pop Out" and the second card "Dots."

This is the second "pop out sentiment" card I've made.  If you'd like more information on making this type of card check out this post I made in October.  It's got detailed directions and a link to Jennifer McGuire's blog post on how to make these beauties. I used clear Wink of Stella to give the "thanks" a bit of sparkle; you can't see it in the card above, so here is a close up:

On to the "Dots" card.  As I stated above, I made these dots myself.  I hope you like the card and find a chuckle in the saga explained below.

I used Perler Beads to make my dots.  I bought a huge package of them from Amazon {I ended up giving a bunch away because I had SO many} and being I had never used them before, I had fun experimenting with them.  I also learned a few things; make absolutely sure you use parchment paper on your cookie sheet, you can literally bake these things for hours {yes, I forgot about them, but you'll see why in a second} and they won't burn.  I had the oven set at 350 degrees and they baked for hours!  I had originally timed them at taking about 45 minutes to bake; well, no worries about forgetting them! Lastly, you can cut the beads in half to make smaller dots, which is what I was doing when I got a nasty gash in my finger, hence forgetting about the beads baking.  I'm healing up though and no trip to the ER was needed.  I was nervous when I cut myself

Another look

because I am due for an ER visit; I seem to average one every six months or so and it's time. All in all, I'm glad I used the dots, I'm glad I made them smaller and I'm really glad that my finger is healing just fine.  Come to find out that Perler actually sells mini beads {and there are other companies who make the same type of beads}, so all that could have been easily avoided.  Eh, story of my life! {hehehehe}  

I am very happy with how the cards came out, even the dots.  I just bought some new dies {and have even more on their way!} and I intentionally purchased some larger word dies so hopefully I'll find some time, most likely once Valentine's Day is over, and get to making some more of the "pop out" cards.  They are really fun to make.  I hope you have a wonderful day and thank you for stopping by! Fondly, Christi

I am entering my Thank You cards in the following challenges:
Craftaholics R Us - Patterned Paper, #2
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Use Patterned Paper
Through the Craft Room Door - Always Anything Goes
Cuttlebug Mania -Flowers
Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper Challenge - M, Anything Goes
Scrap From Your Heart - M, Flowers, #17