Origami Gift Box

 

Make a small gift box by folding a couple of square pieces of paper

This gift box is made up of two parts, a lid and a base. Both made in the same way from square pieces of paper. It doesn't require any gluing - just folding.

I've used Christmas wrapping paper to make this box. It could be a last minute wrap for a gift or maybe you could make them for Christmas table decorations (my dog doesn't like the cracker bangs, so I make little gift boxes instead and put the joke, hat, chocolate etc into the gift box). 

I've been making these boxes since I was little and once you know how to make them you will never forget. You can make them for any occaision using different papers and in different sizes - just make sure the starting base square is a tad smaller than the lid square (in my example below, I've made the starting base square a centimeter smaller than the lid)

The internal dimensions of the box made in this blog is 7 cm square and just short of 3 . 5 cm deep 

 

You can use almost any type of paper - just make sure it can hold a fold and it's not too thick.

Follow the below link to find out how the box was made

Peaceful Deer

 

Use Stampin Up's Peaceful Deer stamp and punch set to make this beautiful Christmas card

Rather than use lots of decorative papers to decorate a card, I have used the stamp set to create the background. Because I have used the stamp set and it's not reliant on a particular printed paper, you can make your card in any colour you wish. I've gone for a festive green.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Christmas Dreams Tag

 

Make your gift tags as pretty as your greeting cards - this one using Lawn Fawns Christmas Dreams stamp and die sets

I buy fairly basic wrapping paper for my Christmas gifts and then make pretty tags to match the paper. This time, I thought I'd use a stamp set and make a tag similar to making a greeting card.

I've got friends and family who have dogs, so this tag would be ideal for them :) .  The stamp set comes with a cat too for those who prefer cats.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Giant Holiday Message Tag

 

Make really easy tags using Lawn Fawns Giant Holiday Message Tag stamp set

Sometimes you just need a quick tag for a last minute gift. This is a really easy way to make a tag and doesnt take very long at all.

I've made mine red and white to match my wrapping paper - but because you are making them yourself, you can change the colours to match any wrapping paper.

The tag could be added to a blank greeting card as a topper.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Gonk Christmas

 

Make this fun Christmas card using a large Gonk stamp

These gonk images have been quite popular recently but I often struggle using larger stamps especially if I do not want a large card such as A5. I have created a card base that has a shorter front panel so that you can see the right hand part of the back panel from the front. Just makes it a little different from the norm!

I just love the phrase - 'It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas' - and teamed up with the Gonk image it just makes me giggle that he looks ready for Christmas :)

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Cats Happy Birthday

 

Decorate a large Happy Birthday with the recipients' favourite items

This card is so easy to adjust to your recipients' favourite things - whether it be flowers, animals or monsters. Just stamp and colour in the large Happy Birthday then add the flowers or animals to decorate. In my case I needed a birthday card for my friend who is cat crazy.

If you don't like colouring in, then stamp the Happy Birthday onto patterned paper and cut around it

If you do not have a large Happy Birthday stamp, then why not use one printed from your computer.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Circular Halloween

 

Use Crafters Companion 'Spring Blooms' die set to make the base for this spooky card

I bought the 'Spring Blooms' die set by Crafters companion at a local craft fair recently, knowing that it could have several uses. So, this week I wanted to show you that a spring die could be used to make an autumn card.

This die set has several bits to it, but the two main die pieces make a circle for the centre of a base card. But instead of using the flowery part of the die piece, I just used the stringy part twice to create a circle. I thought it worked well for a Halloween card as to me it looks slightly spooky as it is irregular cut outs.

I used a small Cuttlebug Halloween die that I have had for years to cut the little characters on my card. You can use any stamp, die or punches to make your Halloween characters to decorate the card.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Mummy Box

 

Make this cute Mummy Halloween pillow gift box from black and white card

I made a bat halloween box a couple of years back (click here if you missed it) and thought I'd have a go at another halloween pillow box this year - this time it's mummy!

I used a sizzix pillow box die but you can use any pillow box die you have or download my template - see the link in the 'you will need section'.

It's basically a black pillow box and then it is wrapped in paper strips - maybe you are a neater crafter than me, but I got very sticky doing this one, so make sure your crafting surface is covered to protect it. 

Luna my dog decided to join me in my make this week - she's so cute but doesn't lay still very often - too nosey! So I thought I'd add her photo so you can see what I have to contend with when crafting - she may look like she is asleep but as soon as I try to run something through my sizzix machine, shes batting it with her paw!

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Rose Garden

 

Use the Rose Garden decorative edging die by Crafter Companion to make this really pretty card

Yay! My local craft fair was back this week following the covid lockdowns. It was so nice to go to it again. It's not a big fair but there's normally a good selection of stalls and you get to meet and talk to some lovely people. I bought a couple of really decorative edging dies by Crafters Companion and this weeks card is made using one of them.

It's a fairly basic card but doesn't it look so decorative just because of the rose edging?

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Butterfly Kisses

 

Learn how I made this slider card with Lawn Fawns 'Butterfly Kisses' Flip Flop stamp and die set

This is a cute slider card - just tilt the card left or right to see if the fox can catch any butterflies.

Lawn Fawn make these flip flop stamp and die sets which are basically the main character from one of thier other sets but the image has been flipped over the other way.  In this instance the fox from the original 'Bitterfly Kisses' stamp set is facing right whilst the one with the flip flop set, I have used, is facing left. It's so you can have both sets and have two foxes looking at each other. The flip flop set is much smaller than the other set and has just the fox, net, butterflies and small greeting. Enough to make this card :)

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Just a Note to Say

 

Use Lawn Fawns Critter Concert stamp and die set to make this musical themed greeting card

I've combined two stamp and die sets to make this card - Lawn Fawns Critter Concert and Lawn Fawns Window Frame sets.

The window set was used to make the stage but if you do not have this die set, then either cut by hand or just frame the rectangle with a decorative rectangle frame

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Box of Flowers

 

Use Lawn Fawn's Scalloped Box Card Pop-up Die to create this box of flowers

Create this box of flowers for decoration around the home or it folds flat so you can post it as a greeting card.

Use any flower dies you have and any coloured card to create a unique gift or greeting card for your recipient. 

 

This would make a lovely new home gift or card and also a thank you note. 

I have made one of these type of cards in my blog before - using cat stamps. If you missed it you can click here to open the blog page.  When you get the hang of gluing the box pieces together - you can decorate it however you wish.

 

Follow the below link to find out how the card/gift was made

Best Fishes!

 

Make this fishy birthday card using my free templates

I do find it hard to make mens birthday cards - I don't seem to be able to find the right images. Therefore I have made my own template for this card which can be made for someone who keeps fish, likes fish or maybe a fisherman.

I've used my computer and printer to print templates and the greeting but if you have a stamp or die you can use them instead.

Obviously your fish could be any colour but I rather liked the orange colours.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Ice Cream Birthday

 

Use Stampin Up's Sweet Ice Cream stamp set and matching punch to make this cool birthday card

The weather here is still hot so ice creams seemed an ideal image to put on a birthday card that I need to make for next week.

The card has a small cut away part from the right hand edge which gives that card a little bit of character.  The Happy Birthday greeting is actually on the inside back of the card.

You may not have the stamp set, punch or paper that I use but that's ok, just use the card as a guide and use what ever ice cream, lolly or cupcake punch and stamp sets to make a similar card.  I give some further guidance of others ways to create this card in the instructions below.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Birthday Cake

 

Use Stampin Up's 'Piece of Cake' stamp set to make this birthday greeting card

This is a fairly simple card to make and although I've made mine into a birthday card, there are other cake designs to use from the stamp set that it could be adapted for other occaisions such as a wedding card.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Birthday Doilies

 

Use Stampin Up's Dear Doily die set to create this pretty but simple greeting card

I picked out one of my stamp and die sets at random this week and challenged myself to make a card with it. I picked out the 'Dear Doily' set by Stampin Up. I had a vision in my head of how I wanted the card to go but I just couldn't get the doilies to look right! Sometimes it's just best to walk away and come back with a fresh head another day. This is what I did and came up with this card:

It's quite a simple card but you can change the colours so easily and the greeting too so this could be a greeting card for almost any occaision.

If you don't have this specific die, you can use any doilies from your craft stash or cut circles out instead.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Enjoy Today

 

Use Stampin Up's Waterfront stamp set to create this really pretty greeting card

This is a fab stamp set as it requires just inks, no colouring in, and it produces a lovely watercolour feel to the image.

Each of the objects, ie mountain, land and water are their own stamp so you can make up various landscape designs, just by changing their position and colour. My card is a beach style card with little beach huts but you could just as easily use it to create a forest scene.

I've used a greeting from another stamp set as I wanted a simple greeting. However there are some nice ones that come with the waterfront stamp set and you may just have to change the placing of the greeting banner depending on the size of the greeting chosen

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Toot your own horn

 

Use Lawn Fawns Critter Concert Stamp and die set to make this 'Cause you're awsome' card

I thought this card would make a great well done on your exam's card, but could be for so many other occaisions where someone has done something brilliant or just to tell them they are awesome.

Rather than place the layers directy ontop of each other, I have offset them at an angle.  This adds a different look to your card and if you are someone who struggles to get the layers squarly positioned - just go for the purposely jaunty look :)

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Magic Picture Changer

 

A picture changing card where the flowers grow

I really like interactive cards and this one is really fun. Just pull the tab up and the picture changes from a pot of stems being watered to a pot full of pretty flowers. All done with Lawn Fawn's Magic Picture Changer die set.

Lawn Fawn have a few stamp sets that work well with this magic changer die set such as fox's that change outfits. However you can use other stamp sets - a bare tree and then one with leaves or blossom would work quite well.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Sending Smiles

 

Use Lawn Fawns Virtual Friends add on dies and stamp sets to make this card for an office worker

I treated myself to some new Lawn Fawn stamp and die sets and this virtual friends add on set was one of them. I had an instant idea to have an office chair that could wheel up and down your card - how fun would that be?

This card could be used for a birthday, for someone leaving or starting a new job, a retirement or just to say hi to someone.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Reveal Wheel Speech Bubble Birthday Card

 

All the penguins have grouped together to wish a Happy Birthday

I've used a group of penguins to send wishes on this greeting card

This card can be so easily adapted for your intended recipient by changing penguins to their favourite character such as robots, Mickey or Minnie mouse, Gorjeous girls or a favourite animal. Likewise change the greetings - instead of birthday wishes, the card could easily be changed to new job, good luck or congratulations.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Paper Beads

 

Two different ways of using paper beads on greetings cards

If you want coordinating beads for a project then why not make your own out of paper. I made some straight beads to create a frame for the fox picture greeting card and then made more traditional paper bead shaped beads to embellish the Happy Birthday greeting card.

You can experiment with different thicknesses of paper but the best to use is the sort of paper you use in a printer. The paper I used for the fox card was a little thick and I had a little difficulty in rolling it - although with perseverance it was still doable. You can also experiment with the width and length of strips you use to make the beads - the wider the strip the longer your bead will be and the longer the strip of paper you use, the thicker your bead will be.

Rather than use them on your greetings cards, you can turn them into a bracelet or necklace by threading them onto elastic. You can also coat them with a varnish to make them glossy and a little more hard wearing.

Follow the below link to find out how the beads and cards were made

Dandy Day Slider

 

Make this fun interactive card where the little mouse flies across the card hanging onto his dandelion

I haven't made a slider card for years, so determined to give it another go, I dug out my 'Dandy Day' stamp and die set by Lawn Fawn and this is the result:

The little mouse holding the dandelion, flies across the card because of the slider hole and mechanism I have used. The mechanism is no more than a coin and some double sided foam squares! Nothing complicated. I found a 5 pence piece coin was exactly the right size for the dandelion head, so as it moves along the slider hole, the mouse dangles below it.

How cute is that?

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

A Toast To Us

 

Use Lawn Fawns 'Let's Toast' stamp and die sets to make this interactive funny anniversary card

I love interactive cards and this one is brilliant - the toast pops up out of the toaster! It really brings a smile to my face.

I have had this stamp and die set for a while and was a bit daunted on how it went together. It's actually quite easy though and now I'm looking through my other stamp sets to see if they would work with the toast pull tab mechanism.

The stamp set comes with lots of different phrases and greetings so you can turn it into a different greeting card rather than anniversary card. I wasn't going to use the smiley faces on the items but my son insisted I did.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Letter Holder

 

Make a letter rack to hold your incoming or outgoing post or your greeting cards

This week I'll show you how to make this cute letter holder from scrapbooking card.

I've made mine to fit A5 envelopes but I will show you how to adjust the size if you wish to make a smaller holder.

It can be used as a rack by your door to remind you to post your greeting cards or maybe just to hold the greeting cards you have made. I've also made a couple to hold advent calendars (I know it's a bit early to be talking about these, but scroll to the bottom of the blog page where I will show you why and what I have done to make a festive calendar).

It might be nice to make one of these as a gift for a friend and fill it with greeting cards that they can post. Or why not make one to hold your favourite recipes?

Follow the below link to find out how the letter holder was made

Shed Birthday Card

 

Use a shed peel off to create this really cool card

When I first started card making, I bought a lot of peel off's as they were an easy way of creating an image. I found this shed peel off and decided to make this weeks blog card using it.

You can really go to town decorating the garden part - adding a fence, path, plant pots or fish pond. If you stick the shed to a white base card instead of the craft coloured one, then you could colour your shed with brighter colours.

If you do not have a shed peel off or stamp, then why not use a house peel off or stamp instead?  You could draw one, print an image from the internet or even use a photo.    

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Patterned Birthday Card

 

Use patterned paper to make this simple yet effective birthday card

I have some really lovely patterned paper and I am always looking for ways to show it off on my cards. This week is another one of those !

I needed a more manly birthday card this week, so used beige and brown patterned papers but you could really go to town with any patterned papers you have. This is a simple card to make and would therefore make great thank you or thinking of you cards

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Blossom Anniversary Card

 

Make this beautiful card with just a few items from your craft stash

I love using pretty papers to make cards and this one is just fab.

I've used some blossom paper from a scrapbooking pad called 'Soft Romance' by Craft Sensations. You can use any pretty flower paper you have in your stash. I've used a small flower die to cut the flowers as this matches the size of the flowers on the paper. You may want to try different flowers to see which ones look best.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Lollipop flowers

 

Use Lawn Fawn's Reveal Wheel flower add on dies to make these cute little lollipop gifts

With Easter coming up, I thought these would make lovely little gifts. You can easily make a few to create a flowerpot of flowers.

I bought a packet of lollipops from my local cheap store. I've made two types of flowers, one on round lollipops and another sort on flat lollipops.  I'll show you how to make the basic lollipop flowers below and then you can decorate them to your hearts content.

Follow the below link to find out how the flowers were made

Hello Spring

 

Make this cheery card with cute smiley flowers

Spring is on it's way and this really cheery card could be used for a birthday, Easter or just to say Hi!

My flowers have white petals and yellow centres but you can make them any colour that your recipient will love. I've also used a 'Hello Spring' greeting but you can use whatever greeting that's applicable for the occasion.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Owls in Tree Birthday Card

 

Create a birthday card or new home card with cute owls hiding in a tree

This weeks card can be made into a birthday, romantic or moving house card quite easily by just changing the greeting.

I've used an owl stamp but you could use any kind of bird stamp to be peering out of the hole in the tree. You could add more or less birds, just adjust the size of the circle die cut out to accommodate your birds

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Fold Back Decorative Paper

 

Another card which you can make to show off your favourite decorative papers

I have lots of really pretty decorative papers and it's lovely to make a card that shows them off. If your paper is so pretty and decorative you need very little embellishments to make the most of it.

You need paper that has patterns on both sides, which I have quite a few of, so it's a lovely way to show them both off in one card.

This is such a universal card and can be made for any occasion from invites to thank you cards to get well soon.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Tea Cup Gift Holder

 

Use some pretty decorative card to make a holder for a tea cup gift package

This week I thought I'd make a wrapper so you can gift a tea cup filled with homemade biscuits and a few individually wrapped tea bags. It makes a brilliant little gift for someone feeling under the weather, having a bad time at the moment or just needs a little gift to say hello. :)

You can buy some really pretty and fairly inexpensive cups and you can fill it with hot chocolate sachets, sweets or whatever your friend may like.

Follow the below link to find out how the wrapper was made:

Tea Light Decoration

 

Make these cute little tea light decorations to light up these dark evenings

This week has been quite overcast and my thoughts turned back to Christmas when my house was covered in lights which created such a cosy feeling So this weeks blog will show you how to turn a homemade bakers box into a tea light decoration for a little battery operated tea light. Please don't use wax candle tea lights as you would set light to your house and that's obviously not a good idea.

I started off making a leaf patterned tea light decoration but then thought it could easily be used for other occasions, so I went on to make a heart one for valentines or anniversaries and a Christmas one (not that I probably need any more lights at Christmas !)

I decided to have a tie top on the box, so it could be undone to turn the light on and off. However once I had done that, I realised that actually it would be easier to seal the top with a miniature peg rather than keep tying and untying a ribbon. So my photo's may show two holes in the top of the box - just ignore them, unless you obviously wish to have a ribbon tying the top of your box together

I've made mine from a bakers box die but you can use any box die you have. If you don't have any applicable dies, scroll down to the bottom of this blog and I will show you how to fold a box using card and a guillotine with scoring and cutting blades

Follow the below link to find out how the tea light box was made

Tree Birthday Card

 

Masculine birthday card made using Beauty of Friendship stamp set by Stampin Up

I haven't done some stamping for a while, so todays card uses Beauty of Friendship stamp set by Stampin Up. I also use the matching Designer Series Paper pack and die set to complete the card.

You could amend this card for the different seasons, just by changing the colour ink pads - for example using orange and reds for a more autumnal card

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Lacy Birthday Cake

 

Use any lacy border die you have to create this really pretty cake card

I've got a few lacy border dies and I very rarely use them. So this week I wondered what I could make using the lacy border die as the main part of my card - the answer was a cake!

You can use any lacy border die or use lots of different ones to create the cake shape. If you don't have any lacy border dies, then just cut some thin rectangles and layer them in the same way.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

3D Decoupage Dog in Cake

 

How to turn a digital stamp into a 3d decoupage image for a birthday card

I will show you in this blog how to turn one image into 4 images and then how to turn them into a 3D image for a birthday card.

I've used a digital image of a dog bursting out of a birthday cake that I bought from LOTV (you can get it here), however you could use a block or clear cling stamp and just stamp it 4 times ontop a piece of white card.

My digital stamp was an outline image but you can get pre-coloured images from LOTV if you do not fancy colouring in.

The hardest part of this card is knowing what part of the image you wish to layer. Just play around with your image - you need to get the parts of the image that are closest to you as the top last layers. As you are printing these images (or stamping them) yourself, you can always re-print them if you weren't happy with your first attempt. There is no real right or wrong, just go with what looks appealing to yourself.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Diagonal Happy BIrthday

 

A simple birthday card that is made beautiful by the use of pretty paper

We all have such busy lives, so I really like a simple greeting card. Although this card is really quite simple, it still looks really effective with the use of beautiful paper and having a bold Happy birthday banner on a slant.

This card can easily be changed for other occasions - why not make a child's card using a colouring book image for the top patterned paper piece.  Or an invite by using a calendar image and then circling the date in question

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Banner Birthday Card

 

This is a great card to use up small amounts of patterned card or paper

I'm playing with my new toy - a banner punch today to use up scraps of patterned card to make quite a simple birthday card.

I used the banner punch to cut out the triangles in the bottom of each bunting flag. I used to do this with my scissors and just eyeing up whether I got the right angle on my cuts, but this punch is so much easier!

I don't know about you, but I hang on to all scraps of pretty card and paper and it's lovely to use up these small pieces. For this card, you only need pieces maximum 1 inch wide and 2 inches long.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Balloons Birthday Card

 

Use a die to cut out shapes and show some pretty paper through them to make this wonderful birthday card

I've used two different shaped birthday balloon dies to make windows on plain card for some pretty patterned paper to show through. 

 This is a really easy card to make and can be adapted quickly by using different shaped dies such as stars, flowers or butterflies. Just remember you will only be left with the outline of the image so try to choose a fairly simple shaped die.

Follow the below link to find out how the card was made

Money Box

 

Create a money box from card and decorate to inspire saving for your goals

As it's the start of a new year, we often make resolutions or our thoughts just turn to having a great year. So why not make a money box to save for a particular event or occasion or maybe just for a rainy day? You could give the money box away as a gift with a few coins in to start the recipient off on their savings for something particular.

I've made mine to remind me of the summer and my love of going to the beach, having ice creams and cups of tea. I'm going to save my odd pennies for trips to the beach :)

I've used the Bakers Box Thinlits die set by Stampin Up as it can be tied at the top so you can get your coins out just by un-tying the ribbon. However if you have a different type of box die such as a milk carton, I am sure you can adjust it in a similar way to create your money box. Like all my blog pages, I am hopping this will inspire you to use what you have. I have made a window in the back of the money box (by cutting out a rectangle and covering it with acetate) so you can see your collection growing, however you can ignore this and just have a solid money box if you would prefer.

The bakers box die doesn't make a tall enough box for what I needed.  So I will show you how to cut the top and bottom of the die and therefore making the middle section bigger.    

I've made mine out of patterned paper and then went on to decorate it further. You could make yours out of plain card and then embellish it. It can be adapted for so many occasions such as saving for a car, Christmas, rainy day or maybe as a gift for a new born child.

Follow the below link to find out how the money box was made