Simply Scored Scoring Tool

Flourish Wishes

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Such a perfect combination here. Nearly all of my favorite things combined into one project. The only thing missing would be some water coloring, but with paper this beautiful I don’t feel like there is anything lacking here. Even better, this took almost no time at all.

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I just received an order that had this glimmer paper in it, one of the new free items during Sale-a-bration right now, and I couldn’t wait to enjoy it.  It comes in three colors, but the bermuda bay tone was on top so it was literally that simple. I knew there was the same color included in the cupcakes and carousel dsp stack and that became step two, pick a pattern. I probably spent the longest just deciding which one to choose.

The die cut was not as easy to decide because there are so many wonderful ones to choose from.  I kept it simple though and went for a favorite. The glimmer paper was cut to size and then I did the die cutting from the center, knowing it wouldn’t show, and I could make that paper last longer.  Glimmer paper is such a weakness for me, especially in colors like this. The flourish was glued down with tombo and then the designer paper adhered to the glimmer paper with fast fuse.  Regular adhesive and glimmer paper aren’t friends, it needs something stronger.

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The sentiment was stamped in the same ink color, die cut, layered zippity quick and raised up on dimensionals.  How easy is that? I had a bit of room for another little die cut before I adhered it down, so that had to happen, hence the need for a matching gift box to use that piece. No problem, just get another piece of the same paper and happiness was achieved. What a great way to launch National Craft Month!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Cloud Nine Birthday

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Birthday gift sets really make me smile.  I love everything have a theme and coordinating, very satisfying.  Another workshop project all ready to go.  Should be a large group and this will be the detailed project for sure, not a hard one, but a bit time consuming.

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I have found myself staying away from peekaboo peach because it is so bright.  Almost too bright for my taste.  So, I thought I would take it head on and go for it.  Also, this main pattern of designer paper overwhelmed me like crazy.  Keeping the view controlled really made a difference and I love how it turned out!  Of course it helps to have such a wonderful die cut to focus on.  These balloons are so great.

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The matching gift bag used a whole sheet of paper.  I do try to use and not horde fun paper and this is one of the ways to do that.  Just use it!  It is a bit of therapy for my card group too, they aren’t the best about using up their paper either.  We all need a nudge now and again.  The gift bag is simple, letting the balloon accents take front stage.  The ribbon is a nice accent, but really just a closure.  No bow or focus up there, letting it all fall around the balloons and clouds.

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While this card requires some patience, I think it is worth it.  I love how the die cuts let me decorate the balloon as I would like.  I simply used portions of the same designer series paper that was more solid to fill those spaces.  That way it really coordinates well. I used tiny dots of tombo glue on the back of the balloon to adhere my pieces.  That way I had some wiggle room to put them just where I wanted.  I also used foam adhesive strips to layer it up.  That way there was an extra bit of adhesive to keep those pieces in place and the balloon got extra lift, more height than dimensions alone offer.  I thought that to be appropriate.  I didn’t plan on using basic rhinestones, but I had a tiny dot of ink in a spot I couldn’t get past, so I covered it up.  Job well done!

Have a creative day!

Moana

 

Every Heart Needs

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Gift sets are so great! A bit better than this paper series, but not by much.  I usually am not the kind of person that wants realistic photo paper prints, but this set has my attention. The way the lace is folded really looks dimensional here, even if my photos don’t capture it well.  It is lovely.

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I used one 12 x 12 sheet for this set.  The first cut was to give me a sheet 4 x 12, then a second cut at 5 1/4″ for the card front.  I used the remaining piece to trim out the decorative layers.  The larger section left, measuring at 8 x 12, was scored to create the matching bag. Put that pretty paper to work, otherwise you are left with a bunch of paper that you love and cannot bear to part with.  I know it is hard, but how pretty is this set?

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The doilies are so lovely.  They are very vanilla on one side and whisper white on the other. So versatile, and made from paper that can be worked with a bit.  As you can tell, I sponged these two and gave them a proper crinkle.  A doily doesn’t lay flat after all.

The sentiments came from two different sets and I went against my usual on this one.  I stamped and fussy cut.  I really love a die cut or punch to take care of that, but it had to be done.  Both projects were finished off with this elegant vanilla satin ribbon.  And yes, it is that smooth and delicious to the touch.  I love beautiful ribbon.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Thinking of You

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

What an impact some pretty paper and a lovely stamp can make.  I tried to think of other things to add to embellish this project and kept coming up empty.  So, I left it as is and was quite happy with the simplicity of it.

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The designer paper stack is measured 6 x 6 and I used every bit.  The card front was measured out first which left me a wide strip.  Yup, I made a tiny gift bag to go with.  What can I put inside?  I thought of several that would work and I can’t wait to give it a try.  It was a tricky little bag to put into place.  Any piece of leftover paper seems to find its way to a gift bag or box with me, I do hate wasting!

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Have a creative day!

Moana

You’re So Fancy

~ moanaj ~ 1 Comment

Did I take a day off yesterday?  Well, yes I did.  My daughter and I had a serious movie fest to take care of, and it was fantastic.  My baby is almost 16 and I need to make the most of these fun times together.  Besides, who doesn’t love a Lord of the Rings Fest? (We already had started with a Hobbit Fest earlier on… tee hee!)

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This simple little gift bag turned out better than I thought.  The bold stack the paper comes from is taking a while to grow on me.  So I thought I would make a bag that would show a small amount of pattern at a time.  Well, instead of being pleased how it balanced out, I decided this brick pattern is all right!  Good thing there are four pages of each pattern so I can go back and try my hand at something else.

Lots of treats will fill this little number up, or maybe even a nail polish or two.  It would be a fun thing to find in a lunch box for back to school too.  Wow, that is just next week.  Okay, here we go!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Oh Happy Day

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

There is a certain someone getting close to having a baby girl and this just about sums it up. It is truly a happy day and I can’t wait.  And with the heat we have been having I am sure she is more than excited.

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The very fun and exciting playful palette designer series paper stack almost overwhelmed me. The colors and patterns are so busy, almost too busy for me.  I started out with the most subtle one in the stack.  I can’t imagine some of these patterns in a 12 x 12, good thing this is contained to a 6 x 6 stack.  There will be a lot of fun card and gift bag sets I think. Smaller than my regular by far, which makes it much more manageable.

I punched several balloons from plain card stock, but wanted a different look too.  With my aqua painter I covered a section of water color paper with wide light swipes of coordinating ink.  I did sponge all of them as well. The stamp set, Thoughtful Banners, has tons of sayings that fit inside the banner stamp.  There is a coordinating punch for the banners, so that makes me very happy.  I did my stamping, but trimmed it right to the stamp so I could punch another one from card stock and have a tiny border all the way around.

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The solid bakers twine really makes me happy.  I had longer strings attached to each balloon and trimmed them after they were squished into place with glue dots.  With the extra hanging off the card I tied one simple knot and used it as the embellishment for the gift card sized gift bag.  I do hate wasting product.  It turned out great!

Have a creative day!

Moana

My Happy Day

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Yesterday was my birthday, and it was most certainly my happy day.  I made this project with that in mind.  Using my favorite go to ideas and things that make me happy.  Water coloring is awesome, both intricate and simple cards, and a myriad of other projects all bring me joy.  However, there is nothing more satisfying than a beautiful crisp gift box or bag.  I love making and sharing these, they really do bring me joy.  So I indulged myself a little bit here.

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Using an entire piece of designer series paper goes against my “make it last” mentality, but it was my birthday after all.  So I pulled out a piece that I loved and created just what I wanted.  I like to maximize the height so it can hold more of whatever I have in mind.  This one did get a bit of switching around.  The top of the bag needed to have enough space to hold the large ribbon and bow I had in mind, so it ended up losing just a touch of volume, but it was well worth it.

This ribbon though…it is so very nice.  It looks great in a knot, a simple bow, and creates lovely larger bows just like this.  While I may hesitate using my paper, I do not hold back using ribbon.  I love large bows and could put them on everything.  Something I learned from my mother to be certain.  In a workshop situation I wouldn’t go this large, my ladies would just get frustrated trying to make it pretty.  Can’t have that, but since this was for me, I let it slide a bit.  Then of course a simple layered circle tag set, stamped off once and sponged around the edges.

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Again, my favorite types of things.  Second only to sharing them that is.  The bow of course can just slide off so the box can be filled easily and used again.  I always try to make my gift bags and boxes that way.  They are too lovely to be used just once.  So, I make sure the recipient knows how easy it is to re-gift them.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Happy Father’s Day, a Day Late…

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Where have my blog manners gone?  Well, I had workshop on Saturday and one heck of an adventure before going, so couldn’t blog the projects we were going to make.  I will share them this week though, no worries.  Then there was Father’s Day, and these lovely little tuxedo boxes to make, nearly 85 all together.  So, you can see why I haven’t had a minute or two to share some of these goodies.

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This tiny gift box wasn’t my idea, thank you many people who are also so creative and share online, but I adapted to make it work for me.  They looked so adorable all lined up with treats poking out of the top, but I just didn’t have a moment to photograph them all together before they were given away.  Believe me though, there were many smiles from more than pleased men in my church congregation as they were passed out by the young women I work with.

The box was made with half a sheet of 8 1/2 x 11 black cardstock and measures 1 x 3 4/2 and can hold a lot of little treats.  The tuxedo was assembled and then glued to the box.  All kinds of assembly lines were working with my family being so helpful.  The bow tie was obviously just a bit of ribbon with a knot in it and then trimmed to look kind of right and glued on with a glue dot.  The buttons went on in a bit of a whirlwind, but ended up looking pretty darn adorable.  The boutonniere was made from a retired tiny flower punch, punched twice, and attached together as well as the lapel with a tiny silver brad.  It was a bit extra, but added just the perfect touch.  The lapels and shirt collars were really eyeballed and scored with no real measuring in mind, just trying to make it look right.  I knew I had too many to do to make them too perfectly.

It was a great project that took quite a bit of time, over four days, with plenty of family help, but was worth every moment.  Way to be awesome dads everywhere!

Have a creative day!

Moana

Thanks For Being You

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

The beginning of a new and simple series.  It is focused on one designer series paper set that is new with the new catalog.  It is also all about thank you.  I am fortunate enough to have a great set of TA’s that do so much for me at school.  They of course will be getting special personalized thank you gifts from me.  Some kind words and chocolate, that is what works for them.  Well, me too I guess.

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Super simple and super simple.  I didn’t spend a lot of time on the bags in the series because I know they will look at it for a bit, like it, empty the candy slowly and then it will go away.  No need for a lot of fuss there.

Have a creative day!

Moana

Perfectly Wrapped Flirty Flamingo

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

It couldn’t get any easier than this little number.  Two stamps, one punch and a bit of ribbon and here you go!  It is a tiny little box, but still big enough to hold a small gift or plenty of tiny treats.  How about a yummy truffle?

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I had punched several banners to make samples bookmarks for my club ladies which left me with an odd piece of cardstock.  Instead of making another tall card, I just made two of those this week, I though I would work out a carton box instead.

The stamping was very simple, tone on tone.  This color is awesome, don’t you think?  I spaced out the stripe stamping to make kind of a pattern.  I didn’t stress out about the exactness of the spaces and it turned out great.  And of course, I had to use some of my new favorite ribbon!  What a fun project!

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Have a creative day!

Moana

For the New Two

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Weddings, weddings, weddings, someone has weddings on the brain.  I have to say that I am enjoying that very much.  This was the third project I used for my club ladies this last Saturday.  I hadn’t had them create a card and bag duo before, but they handled it quite well.

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This Brushstrokes background stamp sure has been fun to play with.  The ladies thought this was designer paper, not paper they would create.  So very useful and a ton of fun.  I am sad I waited so long to buy one for my collection.  I can think of so many possibilities, I think black and gold will be next for this stamp, perhaps gold embossing?

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I used the coordinating, or second half of the sentiment on the tag for the gift bag instead of the inside of the card.  It is fun to tie the set together not only be design and color, but by wordings as well.  It really puts the whole stamp set to work.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

It’s Your Day!

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

How about a simple gift box for today?  This one doesn’t feel just about a birthday, but could be to celebrate any special occasion.  I do love to make a project that has several uses.  That way, when you need a quick gift box it is flexible enough to fit the need.

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One whole sheet of designer series paper went into this big box.  Simple scoring, nothing new or creative here.  Actually, kind of my go to measurements.  The tag was a bit more simple, but looked much better after it was embossed.  And with an adorable little bow paper clip to hold it in place, it was finished up just right.  I like how the clip and the ribbon go so well together.  I think I will have my group make a smaller version of this for workshop this weekend.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Remarkable…

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

This quite simply was round two.  I had this fun idea to emboss this flower with silver powder on black card stock.  Thought that would look pretty cool.  Then, I thought I would water color with a bit of silver encore ink and touch it up with wink of stella.  Can I just say that all went in the trash bin?  True story, not a good combination there.  Next try…better.

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These colors are all I have on my brain lately.  The wedding is three weeks away and the reception I am hosting is four weeks away.  It is hard to find blackberry bliss in the spring out and about. I have managed what I can, and have had to let go of other ideas.  It is going well.  Just like this card duo.

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Simple stamping and die cutting with oval framelits.  Touches of basic pearls to set it off and wrapped in pretty satin ribbon.  My kind of yummy.  After donating my stash of cards and bags for a fund raiser, this is the first one to begin the rebuilding.  All for a good cause.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

“Suite” Treats

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

People are placed in our lives for a reason.  It is so wonderful to realize those precious moments as they occur.  A simple, sweet thank you speaks volumes.  As does the kindness shown to me time and time again.

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In my desk scrap file I looked for something pretty to make a gift bag for a friend.  I came across this wonderful foil velum.  I scored the long sides 1″ in, on both sides.  The bottom of the bag was scored at 5 1/2″ and 6 1/2″ to give a 1″ margin all around.  Folding, adhering, and then adding a bow all went very easy.  Deciding on a phrase took a moment, but as I have often enough, I turned to the Suite Sayings set and found just what I wanted.  The stamping was done in the soon to be retired blackberry bliss, I sure will miss that color, and then punched with the 1 3/4″ circle punch.  A layer of silver foil was punched with the 2″ circle punch and then layered in place.  The tag is stuck to the bag so the ribbon can be removed easily.  That is important for getting to those treats and even re-gifting the bag.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Bird of Paradise Giftbag

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This beautiful box was supposed to be shared yesterday, but that day had too many demands on it.  So, it waited patiently for me to get to it today.  Still just as pretty this morning as yesterday morning.  What pretty paper, right?

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One whole 12 x 12 sheet went into this project.  I wanted to have a tall box, but not my usual shape.  Not too many options, I just wanted to show off the wonderful pattern of the designer series paper.  So I widened out the front and back to 4″ and narrowed in the sides to 1 3/4″.  It worked out nicely.  It won’t hold heavy items, but my daughter had the desire to use it to gift a scarf.  That would work out.

The flowers are cut with the botanical builder framelits using cajun craze.  Too perfect.  The leaves are from the same framelit set with old olive.  Not too tricky, right?  I wrapped silver metallic thread around the top, so that can be slid off to insert a gift and placed back on.  Yet another awesome gift bag ready to go.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Woodland Baby Shower Gift Set

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I admit it, I love giving gifts of thank you cards.  Especially when everything goes together so nicely.  This sweet friend was given a woodland themed baby shower and I knew I had just the right paper to fit the bill.  The invitations even had turtles and foxes on them.  Fun work time for me!

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The gift box and gift bag were even fun to make.  I honestly haven’t purchased a gift bag in the longest time.  I love it.  Gifts usually aren’t that large, for the most part.  I just set the gift on my score board, measure some and go for it.  I am usually right on target, the box for the card set was a bit long, but it still worked out.  How about the foil cloud bag though, so adorable right?  I hadn’t paired the silver satin ribbon with it yet, and it looks perfect together.

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The cards were very assembly line, both sets the same.  The background paper was cut with 1/4″ borders and a contrasting, but still coordinating, strip of designer paper from the same set was placed near the bottom.  A card stock 2″ circle layered with a stamped 1 3/4″ circle on top.  I stapled matching ribbon along the side of the circles for one more tiny layer and a bit of interest.  I do think they turned out adorable.

Inside this most adorable bag are two very silly baby books.  One is called “Toot”.  And yes, it is all about passing gas.  Just too funny to not share.  Both books were 7″ wide and 1″ thick, so that was easy enough to measure.  I scored at 2″ along each side and made the bottom scoring at 5″ and 7″.  This gave me a bag that measured 7 x 5 x 2 and worked out great!

All in all the set came together really fast.  From basic design concept, product choice and complete assembly it took about three hours.  Two gift bags and 24 cards, not too bad if I do say so myself.  I couldn’t attend the shower myself since I was teaching my card workshop, but one of my club ladies was also going and she took it with her.  It worked out great.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

A Little Organization Please?

~ moanaj ~ Leave a comment

Sitting down to have a little fun and make something pretty can be cut short if you aren’t organized.  This can often happen when I get a little extra filing built up.  What does a crafter need to file?  More than you might think.  What I get built up is extra kits from workshops.  I used to just break them back down and file the unused paper back.  But I have found that it is a great way to make a quick card if you have materials all cut and ready to go.

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I don’t have to make the exact project, but the cutting is done.  All there is to do is pick a fun stamp or two and maybe a punch and it is ready.  For a busy mom on the go, the constant go, a quick creative burst is always needed.  So this morning I put this little number together and cleared up those kits.  Feels really good and looks adorable.  I love being able to make just what I need.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Crazy About You at First Sight

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Today has started no differently than many other Saturday’s, but I was not going to let another one go by without sharing a project.  I have let my weekends get carried away and it just bugs me that I don’t keep this blog current daily.  Sharing creative projects is my favorite thing and it really keeps me balanced.  So here we go!

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I get to attend a bridal shower today, how fun right?  Well, I have gotten into giving thank you cards as my bridal shower gift.  I think it is most appropriate, since the bride is going to need plenty of these.  Sometimes though, a special thank you is in order, when someone has really been kind or extra wonderful to you.  That is what these are for.

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The steps aren’t too complicated, you can really see them from just looking at the project.  I am really bad about tracking how I score my bags and boxes.  I make them different each time because you don’t always need the same size.  I love to say that I don’t have to toss my first attempt too often, almost never.  I do tell my classes that there are never mistakes, just opportunities, so there is always something you can work out.

I embossed my card base and the bag fronts with the same fluttering embossing folder.  The blushing bride glimmer paper is everywhere.  And yes, my desk is very sparkly just now. Good thing I love glitter.  The bag fronts are raised up on dimensionals, but the card fronts are adhered down flat.  I used liquid glue to place the ‘thanks’ phrase in the middle of the card.  The ‘so much’ phrase was stamped on a 1/2″ strip of very vanilla, punched on one end with the bitty banner punch and raised up on dimensionals again.  The bitty butterflies are placed with glue dots.

The card bases and bag base were made with pink pirouette, not blushing bride.  I honestly liked how it looked together rather than blushing bride to match the glimmer paper.  Hard to tell sometimes why I like what I do, but that is how it worked out.  The bag handle was made with a bunch of satin ribbon, so very elegant.  And there you have it.

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Birthday Blooms with Blackberry Bliss

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And a happy good morning to everyone!  I do love a Friday that is full of promise and enthusiasm.  The only problem is that I usually have my goals too high and get frustrated when I fall short.  Either way, I love Friday and the fun evening often in store.

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This little thank you is so adorable, yet lovely.  I used a half sheet of very vanilla for the box, scoring at 2″, 4″, 6″, and 8″.  Then turning one quarter turn, portrait now, to score at 2″ for the bottom.  I used a companion piece of very vanilla for the stamped and embossed layers. The piece is cut first at 3 1/2″ so the stamping could be done.  I just used the large floral image to create a pattern.  Then the second cuts came at 1 3/4″ each, needing four of these all together.

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Before they were attached I embossed them with the fluttering embossing folder.  Such a nice result.  I layered them up with dimensionals and thought about leaving it just the way it was, but continued on with the plan.

I made the tag from the scrap left over from stamping and punched it with the extra-large oval punch.  A added a ribbon handle and attached the tag to the under side of the ribbon tail.  A few butterflies later and a smidge of pearls and I was ready to add my treats.  So much fun, just so much fun.  Now to deliver!

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Have a creative day!

Moana

Love You Bloomin’ Love

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Just when I thought I could sit down and make something new my time got snatched up. It seems to happen that way more often than I would like, but we do what we have to do.  So, I grabbed a leftover kit from last months workshop and turned a card base into a box.  Pretty cool if I do say so myself.

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I stamped tone on tone with mint macaron using one of the larger flowers from the Bloomin’ Love set to create the background pattern.  My tag was a tiny piece of very vanilla which measured 1/2″ x 4″.  After I stamped the ‘love you’ sentiment from the same set I punched a banner at the end with the bitty banner punch and sponged around the edges with the same ink.  I curled the banner a bit before I set it in place.

The cardstock was cut at 4 1/4 x 11″.  All ready to be a tall folded card.  I scored along each of the long sides at 1″, turned it one quarter turn and scored at 5″ and 6″.  Those last two scored would become the hinge side of the box.  Scoring, snipping and a bit of gluing later and this little box came together.

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I chose the large satin ribbon for my bow.  That is such a rich ribbon.  I just wrapped it around the short side and tied a pretty bow, leaving the tails a bit longer than normal.  I usually wrap my boxes up more, but wanted to be able to slide the ribbon off easy to fill with treats when the time came.  I also decided to add a tiny basic pearl on the banner, but just one.  How cute is that?

Have a creative day.

Moana