Snowflake Box

Hi friends! Last day of June already - Summer is going by too fast!!

I'm part of a last day post at Die Cut Divas; we're sharing final hours of inspiration for our June Challenge. We've been using our favorite die cuts this month; I hope you can get a quick project in to join us! You have until 9pm Pacific Time to link up. 

Here's my project for today (a bonus follows):

Supplies: Paper - Core'dinations plaid; Neenah Solar White; 

Poptone Blue Raspberry; Michael's lime green

Dies - Elizabeth Craft Designs Book Box &

Snowflakes

Stamps - Hero Arts Jingle Bells Script Bold Prints

Other - TH Black Soot Distress Ink;

Taylored Expressions printed sentiment

Elizabeth Craft Designs sponsored this month's challenge.

They've offered a $25 gift card for our random June winner - thanks!!

So, I've already said that my absolute favorite die cut shapes are hearts but boxes of any kind also delight me! And I love snowflake dies too - I have too many!! I combined these loves for my project. 

Die cut the box and wrap around piece, a topper layer & a side layer which you can see below. I stamped the topper and side layers with a texty print. Next I die cut two of the snowflakes from the 3piece set & layered. Assembled the box, added the layers and the snowflake. A preprinted sentiment finished the top. Here's the box side:

Add'l supplies: Hero Arts Christmas Trimming Stamp & Cut (retired)

Star cut out with one of the snowflakes above

You can see a previous book box HERE. 

Ready for a bonus? I just love ECD journaling dies so I thought I do a page for my little ECD art journal that I started in 2022 (see other pages HERE & HERE if desired). I've been remiss in adding to it, haven't I? Oh well...

Supplies: Paper - Core'dinations plaid; Neenah Solar White; 

Poptone Blue Raspberry; Michael's lime green

Dies - Elizabeth Craft Designs Snowflakes;

Lawn Fawn Winter Wonderland Window (small flakes)

Kits - Elizabeth Craft Designs Lost in the Woods

(used the page die, dots & boots stamp & boots die) &

Classic Christmas Special Kit (used 2 of the snowflake dies)

Stamp with die - Colorado Craft Company Cozy Cat

(die HERE)

I die cut the page from aqua plaid, trimming off the end since I have a smaller journal. Scored the center. On the front side I stamped some dots in aqua. On a scrap of Neenah, I stamped & colored the boots, then die cut. Die cut snowflakes & assembled the page. Added a CCC sentiment from the bits box. I'll have to work on the interior and back pages later. I'm adding the journal page to Darnell's June NBUS Challenge #63 since my Lost in the Woods kit is getting first play here.

That's it for today. Please check out our June Challenge and share your project with favorite die cuts by 9pm Pacific Time. Thanks for visiting!!

Favorite Die Cut Shapes

Welcome friends! Summer arrived yesterday in the Northern Hemisphere - woo hoo!! We've already been enjoying some warm weather here in Minnesota and I'm looking forward to all the summer fun! 

I posted the card below for inspiration at Die Cut Divas today. We're using favorite die cuts for our June Challenge. I hope you can join us!

Supplies: Paper - Bazzill A2 Card; Tim Holtz watercolor paper;

scraps of black & green; Penny Black Painted Blooms

Dies - Elizabeth Craft Designs Ornate Butterfly &

Bubble Wrap;

A Jillian Vance Design Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set

Other - TH Distress Oxide Inks;

Creative Expressions Wordies Friendship Sentiments

Elizabeth Craft Designs sponsored this month's challenge.

They've offered a $25 gift card for our random June winner - thanks!!

If I'm being honest, my absolute favorite die cut shapes (or any shapes for that matter) are hearts. Comes from having a Valentine birthday, I guess. I didn't have an ECD heart die to showcase but I have many favorites from other categories - butterflies being my favorite insects. I die cut the three layers from Ornate Butterfly and assembled. Die cut another favorite shape  - an open weave type mat. Added them to an acetate smooshed watercolor background I did a couple weeks ago, then to an A2 card. Used a preprinted sentiment & done - quick and easy! I just love the PB patterned paper for the detail butterfly wing layer! Since this die set is newly used I'm adding my card to Darnell's June NBUS Challenge #63.

Here's a photo of the backgrounds I made and the inks I used. The one on the right focused more on the oranges and reds. I also used some common packing materials as stamps - on left: a sheet of soft lined wrapping & on right: some bubble wrap. 

Ready for a bonus card? I used the background at right to make it:

Supplies: Paper - Card Warehouse Paper A2 Card; 

Tim Holtz watercolor paper;

scraps of black & copper glitter

Dies - Elizabeth Craft Designs Get in to Gear;

A Jillian Vance Design Stitched Dot Rectangle Backdrop Set

Other - TH Distress Oxide Inks;

Creative Expressions Wordies Friendship Sentiments

I don't know what it is about cogs and gears dies but I just love them! These were another new purchase from ECD during their Memorial Day sale. Luckily they arrived in time for me to use them in June!!

That's it for today. Please check out our June Challenge and share your project with favorite die cuts by June 30th at 9pm Pacific Time. Thanks for visiting!!

Last Day for Christmas in July at Die Cut Divas!

Hey crafty friends - it's already the end of July and summer in Minnesota is flying by!! Time for the last day of the month post at Die Cut Divas where I'm sharing the project below. Be sure to head over and see what the rest of the team posted for some last minute Christmas in July Challenge inspiration!

Supplies: Paper - Paper Studio solids and glitter, 

A Country Christmas 12x12"

Dies - Elizabeth Craft Designs Book Box,

Florals 12, & Winter Greens; Lawn Fawn Mini Snowflakes

Other - Parklane gems;

Taylored Expressions Simple Strips in Reverse Christmas

The fabulous Elizabeth Craft Designs sponsored us for July and the Diva team enjoyed creating with their amazing products! I couldn't resist the book box die set once I saw Els doing this video of it in action. The set contains 16 dies at a great price point. Since the Divas were doing Christmas, I decorated my box for the holidays using some other ECD die sets. This box will be great for holding a little gift when the time comes! Here's a closer look from the bottom:

This was my first box and I used some paper I've been playing with recently - A Country Christmas (sadly retired at Hobby Lobby). It's not double sided but I've since cut some books from another brand's double sided paper - so pretty! It was just a matter of die-cutting the book, flower and greenery pieces, then assembling them. Very fun!! The flower set comes with just a large center but I knew I had a Lawn Fawn snowflake set with a similar small version - perfect! I popped a gem in each center and added a pre-printed sentiment strip - done! And here's a side view and a view of the box partially open:

Still with me? I do have a bonus card today but it has nothing to do with Christmas! Earlier this month I attended a Sweet Adelines International Education Symposium. You may remember I went to England in 2019 for the last one (none in 2020 or 2021 due to pandemic). The 2022 event took place at Trinity University in San Antonio Texas and they offered the first-ever Diamond Division (over age 60) quartet contest. Some chorus and Regional friends competed so I'm sharing one of the Good Luck cards I made. This one features a jumbo ECD sentiment - love it and as of writing this post, it was on sale at ECD (& as I like to say, practically free!!). My friends Upbeat Quartet appreciated the card and I'm sure it helped them take second place - woo hoo!! 

ECD die - Good Luck

Other supplies - Spellbinders & Neenah paper;

Hero Arts Nesting Oval Infinity Dies;

Kat Scrappiness Mini Slimline Diamond Wire & Woodgrain Frame;

Art-C Stamp & Cut (diamonds)

The mini-slim frame was one Diva Arlene (A Bit of This and That) sent me (thanks again, Arlene!) but she enabled me to buy my own die - love this one. I thought the vellum oval kept the sentiment from getting lost on the wire background. I shaded the diamond with a light blue Copic and added Stickles.

That's it for today! Hope I've inspired you to upload a last minute Christmas project (using a die cut or embossing folder) into our July Diva Gallery. You have until 9pm Pacific Time today to enter. 

Thanks for stopping!!

Jack Frost

Hey crafty friends - it's my day to post at Die Cut Divas where we're celebrating Christmas in July with our fabulous sponsor Elizabeth Craft Designs (ECD). Here's the card I'm featuring, plus you'll find a bonus card further down.

Supplies: Paper - Neenah Classic Crest Solar White;

Scraps of red, green, orange, brown & black;

Paper Studio Old World Winter

Dies - Elizabeth Craft Designs Jack Frost;

Sunny Studio Slimline Nature Borders

Stamps - Elizabeth Craft Designs House

Other - SSS sentiment strip; white & black pens;

Copic Markers; Black Soot Distress Ink

Isn't this little snowman the cutest?! I die cut all the elements in various card stocks and paper-pieced the scarf for 2 colors of stripes. Mr. Frost comes with little shoes but I left them off, prefering him to be like he was just rolled by kids. I stamped and fussy cut a couple holly leaves using a stamp from ECD's House set. I diecut red snowman buttons for berries! Assembled the snowman & added to a mini slimline along with a stitched hill & a pre-printed sentiment strip cut to be a sign.

**Updated - I'm home from being out of town and since I created Mr. Snowman after the current Christmas Kickstart was announced, I'll add him to that challenge - Show Us Your Snowfolk! It's my second entry...

Bonus:

My bonus card uses a fabulous retired ornament die from ECD. I have been a casual customer for years but their sponsorship at Die Cut Divas helped me become more faithful. And I enjoy their product videos and Facebook Lives done by Els - so much fun!!

Supplies: Paper - Neenah Classic Crest Solar White:

Paper Studio A Country Christmas 12x12",

Pine St. Square 4.5x6.5" & glitter paper;

scrap of copper metallic paper

Stamps - Elizabeth Craft Designs House

Dies - Elizabeth Craft Designs Ornament Set 2 (retired); 

Newton's Nook Slimline Frames & Portholes;

My Favorite Things Blueprints 26 (retired)

The ornament die set I used contains a solid ornament and two fancy overlays for it - I love it and feel bad that it's retired! I simply die cut three of the solid ornament die using rustic patterned paper. If you want to check out other ECD ornaments, take a look at their Classic Christmas Special Kit which also contains gorgeous snowflakes, a stamp set, and a slimline coverplate!! While writing this post, I've ordered that kit along with a few other goodies for future use. Some of them were, as I like to proclaim, practically free!! Do check out the amazing ECD Sale section for great buys, the House stamp set being one of them.

Thanks for visiting and have a crafty Christmas in July!!