Papercrafting: More Cards For Box Of Balloons !

 

I wrote in May about an organization called Box Of Balloons that works to ensure that children get to be celebrated on their birthdays. They were then partnering with several of my local Starbucks locations to collect cards, wrapping, decorations etc. and as a Cardmaker and a Mom, it was right up my alley. I did it for the sheer joy of combining those two loves and because I want every child to know the feeling of being special on their birthday. 

I was honored and humbled to receive the following email from the local chapter President, Amy:

"I'm so impressed with your handmade cards and gift tags and wanted to say THANK YOU so much for your wonderful donation.

I've been putting a card and gift tag in each birthday box I've been creating and it adds such a personal touch to each box. Thank you so much for donating these as I'm sure they took a lot of time and energy to create. They're so beautiful and made so well and I'm just blown away and grateful :) "

I was thrilled they were happy and would be put to use and immediately planned on making more! As I've written about (probably ad nauseum!) June was a bust for creating between prepping for a planned move and spending an unplanned week in the hospital. So once things had settled ( somewhat...life is life!) in July, I wanted to get back to it and on Saturday dropped another three dozen cards in the mail! 

Supplies:

• Birthday Themed Papers (American Crafts, The Color of Memories Collection from JoAnn and Happy Cake Day stack by Recollections from Michaels)
• Cardstock
• Birthday Themed Washi Tape ( Park Lane, JoAnn) 
• Glitter Papers ( Recollections, Michaels) 

 This time around I used some American Crafts birthday themed papers I found at JoAnn along with some Park Lane birthday themed washi tape I scooped up on sale there. 

Like some of the sheets from the Recollections "Cake Day" stack, this sheet had panels I cut up to use as the focal for the cards, matting each with coordinating glitter papers. The washi tape coordinated perfectly with the colors (and it didn't hurt that it was an additional 50% off clearance). 

The Balloon background paper is from the same American Crafts collection. I kept things simple, matting the image on glitter paper, then another coordinating paper ( great way to use scraps) and attaching to the card with foam squares. 

Since I still had plenty of papers from the "Happy Cake Day" stack I previously used (and may or may not have bought another stack when Michaels had another buy one get two free Hot Buy sale which is my kryptonite) I made some more using those. 

Unintentionally, I usually make my cards in a portrait vs landscape orientation...no reason...just do...but since these panels didn't lend themselves to that, made some that way too. 

It's very fulfilling to feel like doing something you absolutely love can make a difference. Especially now. Especially in a child's life! 

Papercrafting: Layered "Moonogram"

 

I mentioned that I'm going to be a "Fairy Grandmother" since my bestie's daughter is having a baby. The nursery is coming together with a very cool ombre wall done by one of our other friends and has Moon elements. I made this layered "Moonogram" to complement that theme. 

Supplies: 

• Black Cardstock
• Lavender Glitter Cardstock
• Coordinating Scrapbook Paper ( Let's Wander Stack by Recollections from Michaels)
• Shadowbox Frame (Michaels) 
• Moon SVG (Creative Fabrica) 
• Digital Cutting Machine ( I used my Cricut Explore2) 

As always, I needed to choose what papers I wanted to use. I had a general sense of what I wanted to do but the papers were key! I went with black, since like me, the mom to be is non-traditional and has a lot of black and white in the nursery, a lavender glitter paper and a sheet of very celestial looking paper from the Let's Wander Stack by Recollections. 

The next step was to design the "Moonogram" so I popped over to Creative Fabrica (disclosure, I am an affiliate there) to look for a Moon themed SVG and found this bundle which was perfect: 

I uploaded the "Man in the Moon with Stars" and the "Man in the Moon" images to Cricut Design Space. Then I chose the letter of the baby's first name in a font that would work well with the Moon images and used the Slice function in Design Space to make the cut out layer of the letter adding stars as well. 

I assembled the "Moonogram" layers using foam squares. 

Then I cut the background paper to fit the frame and attached the "Moonogram". 

The paper, with the gold foiling was already pretty but I'm a more is more person so I wanted to add some more bling and when I saw these jewels at Michaels ( on sale for $5!) they had to come home with me for this project. 

I like how they almost look like raindrops. To finish, I used the interior of the star images from the top layer of the "Moonogram" and attached those with foam squares. 

I need to adjust the letter ever so slightly to straighten as I look at these pics but I'm so happy with how this turned out! 

Sharing At: 

Framed Layered Square Mandala

I attended a virtual  multi-day Makers Fest last December where I met so many talented people. Not just talented, but generous in that they shred and continue to share their creativity and talents through free designs you can download. One of my favorites is Gjoa from Special Hearts Studio who designs gorgeous layered cut files that can be used in your Cricut or Silhouette. We love Frank Lloyd Wright designs and right now live not far from his Taliesin West architectural school so when I saw this one, it was all kinds of perfect! You need a password to download files so just follow the instructions at the link. 

Supplies: 

• Square Mandala Cut File #137
• Coordinating Papers. All papers by Recollections from Michaels
• Background Paper (Michaels)
• Shadowbox Frame (Michaels)

Since I tend toward neutrals, I selected my papers: white, silver, black and cream

I find that it's helpful to lay your papers out in the exact order you want the layers to be on your finished project. It helps me keep things straight! 

Import and size file in Cricut Design Space. The frame I chose was 8x8 so I sized my project to 6x6 because I didn't want it to fill the entire frame. Then, cut each layer. 

Once your layered pieces are cut, then you can assemble them! I have done layered file with foam tape or spray adhesive depending on the intricacy of the layer and the effect you want. For this project, I used spray adhesive and I like using a repositionable adhesive so you have the flexibility to line up the pieces properly. 

Spray the back of each layer and adhere. I like building up from the bottom layer. 

Here's the base white layer with the first silver layer. 

Then black over the silver layer. 

Cream layer over black

White layer over cream.

And finally the last (silver) layer on top! 

Cut your background paper to fit your frame. I did use foam dots to attach the assembled Mandala to the background paper. 

I have it displayed on our entry table atop a thrifted candleholder I painted. Make sure to stop by Gjoa's Blog and check out her wonderful creations!

Sharing At: 

Our Hopeful Home

Layered Butterfly Mother's Day Cards With Cricut

 

Things settled down enough on my end to be able to work on some Mother's Day cards for family and friends. I'd had fun with my Layered Easter Egg cards so I decided to keep it simple and use the same approach to these, creating three layers in Cricut Design Space and then attach them using foam squares. 

Supplies: 

• Recollections 110lb Cardstock ( Michaels ) 
• Coordinating Paper ( Michaels ) 
• Foam Dots / Squares
• Self Adhesive Rhinestones 

Since Michaels enables me with their regular sales of their Hot Buy paper pads ( seriously, they could make me their ambassador for just these!) I gathered up some coordinating stacks. I decided on two color palettes. One pinks and lavenders and the other turquoise and white. 

I cut my own cards because I like them heavier than most of the pre-cut card packs since I tend towards heavier cards. This is why the Recollections 110lb Cardstock is my go to. Cuts clean and stands up to the weight of my cards. 

Using the Cricut Design Space software, I chose a plain Butterfly image then created two additional layers, adding ovals and circles. 

I cut each layer with the top layer being cut from the glitter cardstock. 

For the cards, I cut the cardstock 7x10 then scored, cut the panels and assembled the butterflies using foam squares. 

I kept these simple because the papers are pretty enough to speak for themselves. To finish, I cut a bunch of small flowers from white shimmer paper and layered with a foam square and curled up the top layer's edges. 

To finish, I added self adhesive rhinestones in the layered openings. Et, voila! 

Sharing At: 

Our Hopeful Home

Papercrafting: Mod Podge Keepsake Eggs

 

I had a couple of large plastic eggs in my stash so I decided to add to my Keepsake Egg collection that I didn't even know was a collection until I realized how many I've made! All you need are some plastic eggs, pretty paper, Mod Podge, and some embellishments. 

Supplies: 

• Large Plastic Eggs (Michaels)
• Decorative Paper ( Paper Source)
• Mod Podge (Michaels)
• Ribbon and Charms (Stash)

Matte Mod Podge is my go to for almost everything although I have and love the other formulas. It works really well with handmade papers. They absorb it and dry really nicely. 

I just drew an oval bigger than the egg on the back side of the paper, cut, then cut around the edges to make it easier for the paper to lay down. 

Flipped the paper over, coated the back with Mod Podge, then wrapped the egg. I covered most of the eggs this way, then just tore pieces to cover the remaining exposed spots. 

With a heavily patterned paper like this I wasn't too worried about any crinkles most of which you can smooth with your finger but even those that remain just kind of blend in. If you're using a less patterned paper where wrinkles may show more, you can be more precise about applying the paper. 

Once the eggs were covered, I coated with more Mod Podge and let dry.  One reason I love Mod Podge is it stays wet enough to get your paper where you want it yet dries fast so a project doesn't take forever. 

After that, it's up to your imagination! I grabbed some gold satin ribbon and some tissue paper like yarn I had in my stash, along with some Fleur de Lis Charms that worked with the colors and style of the paper.  Cut a length of the satin ribbon large enough to fit around the egg and make a bow, anchor on the bottom of the egg with a dot of hot glue, then wrap and tie a bow. Cut a length of the ribbon yarn, slide under the bow, knot,  then cut some more strands and lay atop the knot and use the ends to tie on the charms. 

I like that these aren't explicitly Easter and can be left out for Spring since eggs are a symbol of renewal. 

I've heard people say they're intimidated by decoupage but don't be! Start with a project like this where it's not about precision. Once you make one thing, you'll be hooked!