No one I know has enough time or money so today, I want to share with you some techniques that I have learned to work efficiently AND get the most out of my supplies. I’m trying to actually get my Christmas cards out before Easter this year so I’m working on them early. First, I came up with a basic design that is simple yet elegant:
Check out the following tips for efficiency and frugality (is that a word?) when designing a big batch of cards.
1. Make them different?
My first big revelation about creating multiples is that they don’t have to be exactly the same. In general, no one will ever know. And, I decided, if they do find out…I’m ok with that. This practice keeps my supplies in check and I find it a little more interesting to change up my design as I progress.
3. Use an assembly line approach:“component passes from station to station…and something is done or added to it. By the last station, the product is fully assembled and is identical to each one before and after it. This system ensures that a large quantity of uniform-quality goods are produced at a relatively low cost.”~ (science.jrank.org) So, actually, I cut and folded my card bases. Then I cut all my labels and stamped them.
4. Use your scraps: I decided on a couple of papers that I really liked. The tan one had an interesting pattern that I wanted to keep intact. I cut strips in two sizes. Then I cut the red striped paper 1″ larger. You can also see two different label dies and two different stamps from the same set.
When I ran out of the tan patterned paper, I decided to try something a little different and add Magic Mesh in place of it. I added a ribbon for just a little something extra.
Finally, I had small pieces of the red striped paper left over so I created an almost totally different card as seen here:
So, my last card looked a lot different than my first card but I was able to use my supplies in the most efficient manner. I love that!
I hope you found some tips you can take into your craft room for the approaching holidays.
Don’t forget our Spellbindersâ„¢ and Tattered Angels month-long blog hop! Today, we would like to spotlight our Design Team Member Linda Duke! See what she has in store for you by visiting her blog.
Hmm…with gift giving season coming up, I’m thinking I would try my hand at making a box! Since Halloween is just around the corner, why not make a little treat box. See where I’m going with this…box! LOL!
Then score 1/2″ from each short side and 1/2″ on the bottom of the long side of all four S5-019 Labels Eight die cuts. Make sure to cut the corners at the bottom to make the tabs easy to fold.
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Adhere to each side making four walls but do not connect the last sides together yet. We need to embellish the walls first before completing the frame of the box.
Taking your S4-226 Harvest Border Petites, cut/emboss the leaves border (this particular border cuts all the way around to make a great accent piece) and stencil with Clearsnap Colorbox Fluid Chalk Chestnut Roan. You’ll need to cut/emboss/stencil four times (for each side). Trim to fit inside the scored lines - approx. 1/2″. Then line up the borders to make a straight line as shown and adhere.
Using the S4-227 Pumpkin Nestabilties® die #3, cut/emboss with orange cardstock and with Sparkle ‘N Sprinkle Burnt Orange Flocking Powder, I textured the pumpkin. Determine which side will be the front of the box and adhere the pumpkin. Mist Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist Raven onto a small flower, dry and add Hero Arts Pearls in the middle. I used Crafty Secrets Creative Scraps Seasonal Calendar/Halloween image and the black pearl pin to go with that glimmery flower.
Now you can put the last sides together to form the frame of the box by using wet adhesive. Then cut 4.5″x 4.5″ size piece of cardstock to make the bottom of the box. With wet adhesive, edge the bottom four sides of the cardstock and then drop it in on top of the scored edges of the box frame. Let dry.
To finish it off, add your favorite Halloween treat and you’ve got yourself a box! Now remember to think inside the box for your next project!
I attached it to a clear block with a bit of adhesive. Then I inked the leaf with Clearsnap Colorbox Chestnut Roan Fluid Chalk Ink.
 Actually I used the same ink, but from 2 different ink pads, and I think it looks pretty cool!
I also added the S4-226 Harvest Border Petite , with a green ribbon under it to add some color.  It’s wrapped around the My Minds Eye Penny Lane Chasse cardstock. I inked through the Borderabilitiesâ„¢ die template like a stencil, to color the embossed areas.  That piece is mounted on brown cardstock.
Don’t forget Spellbindersâ„¢ is partnering with Tattered Angels on a Designer Blog Hop so come join us as we feature Karen Hunsaker today! See what project she created using Spellbindersâ„¢ and Tattered Angels products!
I really enjoy this Spellbindersâ„¢ S4-227 Pumpkins Nestabilities® set! So many different ideas come to mind like what if I added the S7-017 On The Vine Border Grand. What a great pumpkin patch that would be! Well, that’s exactly what I did…a layout of my boys visiting our local pumpkin farm where they had such a blast! It pays to carry around a small camera in my purse to “capture that moment!”
Rather than just a one dimensional pumpkin, I cut two S4-227 Pumpkins Nestabilities® #3 die (the smallest being #1) to create a “puffed” pumpkin. One of the pumpkin shape serves as a base and the other, I cut into sections length-wise as shown (note: I cut the stem off the cut pumpkin). Make sure you have them in the right order so that you can put them back together again.
First I curled each section of the cut pumpkin. Then inked all the edges of the base pumpkin and the cut pumpkin with Clearsnap Queue Ink. I also inked the pumpkin stem with Clearsnap Colorbox Fluid Chalk Dark Moss. Then with wet adhesive that dries clear, I glued each section onto the base. Set aside to dry.
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To give my pumpkin some glimmer, I sprayed with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist Vintage Pink (I also used the Glimmer Mist Gold for the other pumpkins). It’s one way to make a pumpkin “pretty!” After it dried, I reapplied the ink around the edges of the pumpkin and ink the stem to give it a stronger coloring. Repeat the same process with two more pumpkins, I made a total of three (3) “puffed” pumpkins.
Using the S4-226 Harvest Border Petites die #2 (the accent die template - the one with the cut line all around the die template), I cut/embossed a piece from Core’dination ColorCore and stenciled it with Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist Gold. I added the small leaf pieces which I sanded to accent each side of the border. Adhered all to the mat that I cut for the two pictures. Set aside.
I had a pumpkin patch pattern paper in my stash that went well with the theme and adhered both border die cuts onto the page in an “L” shape. I then placed my “puffed” pumpkins onto the border along with a pumpkin die cut used as a journal box. Add the matted pictures along with the title of the farm’s name and a beautiful Fall memory is recorded!
The air is getting cool. The leaves are turning colors. Kids are planning Halloween costumes and me? I’m buying candy corn. I love the fresh, soft and sweet taste of these seasonal tri-colored confections. I eat them all month.
But then by November 1st, I can’t stand’em for another year.
Yet, this crazy cycle inspired today’s project using the Limited Edition Pumpkins Nestabilities®, and Harvest Borderabilities® Petite die templates. My little candy glass is perfectly sized to sit right by my keyboard and keep me company while I create and write. I hope it will inspire you to create your own “desk mate” for October or other season of treating!
Instructions:
Cut two 1½x12″ strips of the yellow, white and orange papers. Cut one 2″x12″ strip from the orange paper. Using the 2″ orange strip, cut/emboss S4-226 Harvest Borderabilities Petite (two times). Color the borders and die-cut leaves with metallic rub-ons to give definition to the embossing. Adhere the borders to the glass. I trimmed off the outer parts of the strips at the leaf, as shown here.
Then to make the strips lay horizontally, I snipped the top part of the center leaf and stretched the borders down. I adhered a tiny die-cut acorn to cover the openings. Add the die cut leaves around the glass.
To make the pumpkin “picks,” glue the yellow, orange and white strips together creating stripes. Cut/emboss four #4 pumpkins from the stripes. Stamp the sentiment onto the pumpkins. I chose “Sweet on You.” If desired, sand the pumpkins and add some metallic rub-ons for a distressed look. Glue two pumpkins back-to-back with the bamboo stick at the center. To make one shorter, trim the stick with wire cutters. Cut/emboss On the Vine Borderabilities® Grand from brown checked paper. Trim it to add vines and leaves to each of the large pumpkins.
Taking your 3″ of reserved paper, glue these strips together closer than the for the large pumpkins. Cut/emboss the #1 pumpkin from this. Using a head-pin and jewelry tools, add a green bead to the pin and string it onto the pumpkin, giving it a “Z” turn so it can hang from the glass like a charm.
To finish it up, add the charm to the glass, add some yummy candy corn, place your picks in the candy and ENJOY!
NOTE: Just wanted to remind you that Spellbinders is teaming up with Tattered Angels for a blog hop. Why not hop on over to Terre’s Blog: Terre’s Scrap Therapy for an amazing project using Tattered Angels products and, of course, some Spellbindersâ„¢ products too!
After reading Beth’s Savvy Saturday idea, I had a “light bulb” moment! Why not finish my fall holiday card swap using this method?! Rarely I join a swap because when it comes close to deadline, I haven’t even started! Has that happened to you? I’m sure I am not the only one! LOL! But using the W-026 Grand Cut Mat Kit, I can create these cards in half the time so why not start today. Maybe an incentive to join more swaps?!
I will be creating five fall holiday cards that will shipped to Japan where the host lives. This swap is an international swap so I am excited about getting ideas from different countries…a worldwide card making effort! If some of the participants follow this blog, I will only show two of the cards and leave the others as a surprise!
Grabbing the JustRite Stampers Favorite Occasions images, I stamped a total of five times on a 2 1/2 x 12″ strip of Core’dinations Color Core cardstock. Taking household tape and tapping it on my jeans to make it a less tacky (very high level technique!), I taped the flat side (not the cut side) of the die template to the cardstock to hold it in place when cutting and embossing. Notice I’m using two different sizes of die templates (S4-114 Standard Circle Large #3 and S4-116 Standard Circle Small #3) but as mentioned before they are only 1/8″ difference and really doesn’t hinder the design of the cards. Another advantage is I am able to cut/emboss two images in one pass instead of one at a time with the Grand Mat Kit.
In addition to this clever idea, I also wanted to use the Grand Mat Kit for its original use - cut/emboss Borderabilities® Grand. Cutting the S7-014 Grand 12″ Classic Lace Border with a strip of white cardstock, I wanted to add a little vintage accent to the card. I stenciled with Clearsnap ColorBox Ink in Dark Moss and lightly tapped brown chalk to the lace.
With the 4 x 5.5″ card base made out of My Mind’s Eye Fall In Love Collection, I rounded the corners and inked the edges with Clearsnap ColorBox ink. Using the various die cuts, I adhered them for each card front along with ribbon and other embellishments to accent. The use of Crafty Secrets Heartwarming Vintage Cuts “Autumn Blessings” and Creative Scraps “Calendar” really made it come together. Now I think it’s ready to be sent off on a worldwide journey!
Happy World Card Making Day! We’re doing a little celebration on our Facebook Page, you can add your Spellbindersâ„¢ creations and we’ll pick a winner via random drawing. You could win a free Spellbindersâ„¢ die template! Be sure to become a fan!
On to today’s project! I recently organized a fundraiser for a family adopting a child half a world away. My friends and family supported my efforts and I wanted to make them each a thank you card.  I’m a slow crafter, so my goal was to design a card that was not too complicated and efficient to make. I already had coordinating cardstock and enough pattern paper to make the cards.Â
Next I needed to do some die cutting and embossing. If I make 20 cards, and each has four die cuts using four different colors of paper, I’ll either be up all night or I’ll have to streamline the process. This is what I did:
I stamped the JustRite Stampers ”Thank You” sentiment 20 times onto white cardstock.  I cut/embossed 2 die templates in one pass, the S4-114 Standard Circles, Large #3, and the S4-116 Standard Circles, Small #3 . The difference between the dies is 1/8 inch. Eli explained the differences between the Nestabilitiesâ„¢ sets here. Yes, I had 2 different sized circles, but that’s ok, they both look nice with the stamped image.
Next I assembled the cards.  I used either two trees or two leaves on each, and used a 3D Foam Adhesive Square from SCRAPBOOK ADHESIVES by 3L to add dimension.
I know, they are not complicated cards, but I think my friends will appreciate my efforts. I’ll also add a personal note to the inside.
I am using World Card Day to make the world just a little bit smaller for one family. I hope you can make your world smaller by sending a few cards to those you care about.
I cut/emboss the S4-227 Pumpkins Nestabilities® #4 in orange “Love”, the S4-233 Labels Nine #5 in blue “Katie Lou”, and #6 in the striped cardstock, which is the back side of the green “Beauty” cardstock. I lightly inked the edges with the brown ink to camoflage the white core of the paper.
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Next I cut the green paper to 5.5×5″, and cut/embossed the S4-226 Harvest Borderabilities® Petite, Pumpkin Border on each side of the green paper. Since one edge cuts and the other embosses, I aligned them so the cut edge was along the outer edge of the paper. I used tape to secure the border so it didn’t move around.  After embossing, I inked the paper through the die template like a stencil, so the embossed areas were accented. I also let the ink rub a little over the edge of the die template to enhance the embossing along the border’s edge.
Yesterday was Autumn Equinox (the equinox divides the day and night equally) which means we are officially into Autumn. So what a great excuse to make a card just for the season!
Just to recap, I’d like to go over the sandwich recipes that you will be using on the pumpkins:
1. Cut Sandwich (from bottom):
White Master Mat
Magnetic Mat (black side up) S4-227 Pumpkins Nestabilities® die #2 (ridge up/cut side up)
Cardstock
White Master Mat
2. Emboss Sandwich (from bottom):
White Master Mat S4-227 Pumpkins Nestabilities® die (with cardstock embedded/cut side up)
Tan Embossing Pad
White Master Mat
Repeat this process five more times and make sure you sand each piece to show off that design. You will need a total of six embossed/impressed pumpkins to achieve the accent shown on the card pictured below. Fold each pumpkin in half, adhere one side to one side of another pumpkin’s side, connecting them. Make sure you have a flat side to adhere the 3-D pumpkin to the card base. Set aside to adhere to the card as a last step.
I continued to cut and emboss the S5-019 Labels Eight die #5 and two of the Doodle Parts long thin swirl die. Note that I have stenciled the long thin swirl die with Clearsnap Fluid Chalk Ink Chestnut Roan before taking the papers out of the die. Make sure to clean the ink off of your die.
Using the Clearsnap chalk ink, I inked the edges of: Crafty Secret Fall Cotton Scraps, S5-019 Labels Eight die cut and card base (make sure to corner round the card base first). Adhere all the parts as shown with the exception of the pumpkin. I used Flower Soft Autumn to accent the image and let dry. Lastly, the pumpkin was adhered to make a wonderful (and colorful) card!
After seeing Design Team Member Karen Taylor’s technique on Savvy Saturday I was a little perplexed, I have not worked with foam very much, just a few room parent projects when my boys were younger. Â
I started out making a leaf project with foam. I cut the S4-228 Nested Maple Leaf die template with 3 colors of foam, several die cuts of each size maple leaf. Then I used my heat tool to warm up the I2-1009 Impressbilitiesâ„¢ Flourish. I embossed with the foam in the die, attempting to preserve the embossed edge from the die, like this. Because foam has some give to it and it stretches, the results were less than spectacular. Also, the flourish pattern wasn’t as noticable as I wanted it to be. EUREKA! What if I used the iron?Â
I turned the iron onto the highest heat setting without steam. I built the sandwich upside down (White Master Mat, Tan Embossing Mat, die cut maple leaves). I placed the Impressabilties™ template on the ironing board and put the hot iron onto the Impressabilities™ for about 15 seconds. My iron just about covered the entire template, evenly heating it. I used a pair of kitchen tongs to pick up the very hot Impressabilites™ and placed it onto the die cut foam maple leaves, covered it with the other White Master Mat and fed it into my Wizard™. I did this so that I could quickly feed the sandwich before I lost the heat. By the time the sandwich was out of the Wizard™, the Impressabilities™ was cool enough to touch.
I achieved the shiny, evenly embossed area that Eli did by using the iron. Remember that once heated, the Impressabilities™ template is HOT!  I embossed all the leaves using this technique.
To assemble my little wreath, I cut a circle from chipboard and glued the leaves around it. I added some light green foam S4-198 Flourish Accents and dark brown foam S7-017 On The Vine Border Grand, cut into several pieces. Just add ribbon to the back and its ready to hang!
