Reminder: Don’t forget the Spellbinders™ and Tattered Angels blog hop with our designers! Today, we are visiting Design Team Member Kimberly Crawford’s blog “For The Love of Paper” to see what kind of eye candy she will inspire us with. Come back to our blog to find out who the next designer will be to create a wonderful project!

Did you see Eli’s wonderful “contained” project? I love how she used the combination of many Spellbinders™ die templates. Very clever! So from a box to a container to … a bag! I thought it would be fun to do a shaped bag - perfect for that special little tricker or treater.

I brought out my S4-227 Pumpkins Nestabilities®, S4-228 Nested Maple Leaf, S7-017 On The Vine Border Grand and S3-150 Ribbon Tags Trio Two. Using the Fancy Pants Designs Trick or Treat paper, I cut/embossed two S4-227 Pumpkins Nestabilities® die #5 (the smallest being die #1).

Then I put the two pumpkins (pokka dots sides out) together and used a paper piecer to piece holes to look like stitching. When I was in high school, I almost failed sewing class (thanks Mrs. Fish for putting up with me!) - I did better in wood class! LOL! So I’m playing it safe and making holes before stitching the brown embroidery floss.

After stitching together the pumpkins, I cut/embossed the S4-228 Nested Maple Leaf #1 and the S3-150 Ribbon Tags Trio Two (the rounder tag with the embossed corner as shown) with Core’dinations ColorCore cardstock.

Cut/Emboss the S7-017 On The Vine Border Grand but leave the paper inside the die template as we will stencil with Clearsnap ColorBox Fluid Chalk Dark Moss. Set aside.

Since the pumpkins had that distressed look, I sanded the S3-150 Ribbon Tags Trio Two tag and stamped a cute image from Hero Arts Owl-Oween stamp set and added googly eyes for a fun accent. Then I added ribbon tails on each side of the tag and adhered onto the bag. I wrote my niece’s name (Jessica) on the maple leaf die cut which I also sanded and used foam adhesive.

Going back to the vine border, choose a part of the border to embellish the pumpkin stalk and adhere. Then I punched two holes - one in the front and one in the back. Thread a ribbon through both holes to make a handle. To finish off the embellishing, I added one of the leaves from the vine border with foam adhesive to give it dimension.

So all we had to do is fill with candy and add a little toy - it’s ready for Halloween!

Don’t forget our Spellbinders™ 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.

Everyone says “think outside the box” but have you ever thought of “the box?” So thinking inside the box, I went into my “box” of Spellbinders™ die templates to find S5-019 Labels Eight, S4-226 Harvest Border Petites and S4-227 Pumpkin Nestabilities®.

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!

First we need to cut/emboss four S5-019 Labels Eight die #6 (#1 being the smallest) with My Mind’s Eye Fall In Love Collection.

Your cut sandwich will be (from the bottom):
White Master Mat
Magnetic Spacer Plate
S5-019 Labels Eight die #6 (cut/ridge side UP)
Cardstock
White Master Mat

After cutting your cardstock, remove the Magnetic Spacer Plate and grab your Enlarged Embossing Pad for your emboss sandwich (from the bottom):
White Master Mat
S5-019 Labels Eight die #6 (w/ cardstock, cut side UP)
Enlarged Embossing Pad
White Master Mat

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.

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!

Hope you have a wonderful Saturday!!
MargieH

Today’s Savvy Saturday is all about  Letterpress.  This technique dates back to the year 1450, with thanks going to Johannes Gutenberg, as the main method of printing until the invention of offset printing. That is today’s history lesson.

You can do this technique with Spellbinders’™ Impressabilities™!  I started by playing with ink.  I rolled my brayer across an ink pad, then onto the I2-1004 Impressabilties™ Flowers.  I built my sandwich this way:

• White Master Mat
• Inked Impressabilties™ (ink side up)
• Paper
• Embossing Mat
• White Master Mat

Feed the sandwich into the Wizard™.  One pass in the Wizard™ will emboss the paper and transfer the ink into the debossed areas. This is the result with Clearsnap ColorBox White Pigment Ink and black cardstock:

Then I tried acrylic paint. This is the result with Ranger’s paint.  This is a fast drying acrylic paint, and despite working quickly, I am not 100% happy with the coverage in this example. We’ll come back to paint another time.

So then I got to thinking, if ink works, what about ink and embossing powder? I used the brayer to apply Clearsnap Top Boss Watermark Ink to the Impressabilities™, fed the sandwich through the Wizard™ and then applied Sparkle and Sprinkle’s Outerspace Embossing Powder. I heated the paper to melt the powder. Oh my! Its beautiful! Check this out:

Then I did the reverse stencil technique with Clearsnap Black Pigment Ink and S4-234 Ribbon Tags Trio  2, the oval shape. I stamped “thank you” from Hero Arts onto the label with the same ink, and added ribbon from my stash.  It needed just one more thing, so I cut an oval using S4-112 Classic Ovals, Small #4, from the same patterned paper, which is Fancy Pants Caroling.  I mounted that onto black cardstock.

I love the texture and sheen from the embossing powder, don’t you?

Spellbinders™ Die Templates used: S5-019 Labels Eight, S4-112 Classic Ovals, Small #4, S4-234 Ribbon Tags Trio 2, I2-1004 Impressabilities™ Flowers.

Here are a few examples from our Design Team Members:

 Janine Blackwelder also used Impressabilities™ Flowers for this bookmark.  She cut the Impressabilties™ apart and letterpressed a small section.  Clearsnap ink, Hero Arts stamps, and the S4-112 Classic Ovals, Small as well as S4-113 Scalloped Classic Ovals, Small were used on this project.

Julie Overby embossed her chipboard letters with Impressabilities™ Flowers. On the card she used S5-019 Labels Eight; 12-1004 Impressabilities™ Flowers;  Cardstock; Patterned paper; Cosmo Cricket and Maya Road chipboard; ClearSnap Colorbox Ink.

Have a wonderful Saturday!
Beth

PS. Don’t forget to go over to “When Creativity Knocks!” - and vote for Impressabilities™ in the Great Crafter’s Tool Hunt…you could win something cool and we would win ultimate fame and glory (maybe even a trophy? who knows). Click HERE for more info.  Voting closes September 8 at midnight PST.

Who loved Margie’s Savvy Saturday Card?  Me!!  Here’s a quick one I put together using the same set of S4-205 Eyelets Pendant and S4-214 Eyelets Borderabilities®.  I used the Border, which is the die template that has one cut line, to cut/emboss the detailed edge of the paper.

I started with patterned paper from My Mind’s Eye’s Penny Lane collection, Clearsnap Colorbox Lemon Grass pigment ink and a Colorbox ink applicator tool.

The green “Beauty” background is 6 x 6″.  The cream “My Friend” mat is 5.5 x 5.5″.  To cut the detailed border, I placed the S4-215 Eyelets Borderabilities® die template along the edge of the paper and taped it in place with low tack tape.  The tape keeps the border from moving.  I cut/embossed in the Wizard™.  I removed the tape and applied Lemon Grass ink to the back side die template and just slightly along the embossed edge.

I cut/embossed the S4-205 Eyelets Pendant from the blue “Peace” paper, and the Center die from the “Beauty” paper.  I actually cut/embossed both pieces at the same time!  I inked the Pendant and Center pieces in the same way as above.

I assembled the card and added a button from my stash.  Yes, I actually sewed that button on!

Do you love the look of the Borderabilities®?  My next Savvy Saturday will be how to use the 5.5″ Borderabilities® on paper longer than 5.5″!  And don’t forget about the Pendant Project Contest, entries will be accepted through August 10!

For today’s Savvy Saturday, I’d like to show you all one of our newest Borderabilities®, the S4-214 Eyelet Pendant Petite Borderabilities®.

You may recall that we introduced these products during our recent Blog Frenzy. Design Team Member Jennifer Davis had created such a wonderful project and provided a video to show her steps through the process.

In the video, she had mentioned that the set of two Borderabilities® each having a different function. One (we will call Border #1) will emboss all the way around BUT will cut on one side only. The other (Border #2) will cut and emboss the entire die template to become a beautiful accent piece. I love the choices with these Borderabilities® sets! I will show what I did using the Borderabilities® on a card I made.

Using my 4.5″x6″ card base that I made from Core’dinations Color Core Cardstock, I edged my card by using the Border #1. I fold the card inside out and sandwich the magnetic spacer inside with the Border (cut side away from magnet). You may wish to use removable tape to line up the border to the card base. Place all between the two White Master Mats and put through the Wizard™ to cut.

Next fold the card back to its original position and then carefully replace the Magnetic Spacer with the Tan Embossing Pad. Again, place all between the two White Master Mats and put through the Wizard™ to emboss.

Then using a lighter tone of the card base, I cut/embossed Border #2 which I plan to layer on top of the edge card base. Note: after cutting/embossing, take great care when pulling out the piece from the die template. Many of the new Borderabilties® have intricate cuts and will be delicate. I used my embossing tool (the one with the rounded tip for dry embossing) or a tooth pick is helpful too.

I sanded both borders (to give emphasis on the embossing) as well as the card base edge. Thread the ribbon through Border #2 before adhering with Scrapbook Adhesives to the card base and add Hero Arts Pearls to both borders.

Add ribbon in the middle of the card base and single knot to secure (you may wish to adhere the back for more security). Using Crafty Secrets’ Cotton Scraps Flowers, I frayed the edges and inked with Clearsnap Queue. Then matted onto Core’dinations cardstock and adhered to card base. Stuck two stick pins into the knot to complete the look of the card.

I hope everyone has a wonderful and memorable 4th of July here in the U.S.!
Happy Birthday, America!!!
MargieH

Taking some inspiration from Beth’s darling Baby Boy card from Savvy Saturday, I thought I would create something for another thing happening a lot right now: Graduations! So get out your Inverted Scalloped Square and your straight edge Classic Square die templates.

Supplies:

The Wizard
Square Nestabilities™ (S4-128 #7, counting #1 as the center)
Inverted Scalloped Square Nestabilities™ (S4-196, #4)
Black, red and yellow cardstocks (Core’dinations)
Glue Dots
Red ball chain and fine gauge wire
Large brad and star clips (Creative Impressions)
Rub-on Sentiment
Quick drying liquid glue

Instructions

1. Cut the card base from black cardstock 12×5″ and fold in half for a 6×5″ card.
2. Open the card base and place the magnetic spacer plate inside with the black side facing up.
3. Place the Square Nestabilities™ die template onto the magnetic surface with the cut ridges up.
4. Lay the cardstock/spacer plate onto the white mater mat and add the other master mat on top.
5. Run through the Wizard
6. Open the sandwich and keep the inner square.
7. Using yellow cardstock (I used a piece from a mat stacks at 4½x6½” from Core’dinations) cut the Inverted Scalloped Square Nestabilities™ die template. Do not emboss.
8. Trim around the outside of the inverted square, giving about a 1″ border around the scalloped edge. Adhere it to the underside of the square window you cut in the card base.
9. Cut a piece of black cardstock 1¼x4½”. Score at ½”, 1¼”, 2′, 2¾”
10. Fold all scores inward, making a square C shape.
11. With Glue Dots on the ends (that are facing in) adhere the black strip to the black square on the diagonal.
12. Create a tassle from red ball chain by cutting four pieces approximately 1″ long. Hold the four together using a fine gauge red wire.
13. Twist the wire ends together and create a loop in the end. Slide it onto a star clip.
14. Add a large brad to the square and add quick drying liquid glue on top of the brad. Add the star clip/tassel to the top.
15. Trim the red cardstock mat to 4½x5¾” and add to the inside of the card base.
16. Open the card and adhere the graduation cap  where it will show in the card window.
17. Gently push the card to the right so that it lies flat. The tassel should still show through the inverted scalloped window.
18. Add a sentiment and send it off.

Here’s one more look at the card, but this time, let’s show you how it actually pops up.

Have a great week! Eli

This was my yard Monday morning. WAHHHHH!

These are peonies I planted last year, and it looks like they survived the winter.  And like me, they’ve had it with the cold weather!

I can’t wait until they look like this:

If Mother Nature won’t give me pretty peonies yet, Spellbinders sure will!  I took the Spellbinders S4-193 Peony and S4-132 Classic Rectangle Large die templates, a pad of Fancy Pants Daily Grind paper, a stamp, Pop-Up Glue Dots and some scissors and made my own pretty peonies.

I started by cutting and embossing each of the S4-193 Peony die templates with a different pattern paper from the pad.

I played a bit with them, looking for a way to stack the different size flower die cuts while adding dimension to the project.  I decided to fold, cut and curl the edges just like this:

I folded, cut and curled each die cut, and stacked them using Pop-Up Glue Dots in between the layers.

I added a S4-132 Classic Rectangle Large with a stamped verse, and assembled as shown. Add some flowers to your projects and lets hope Mother Nature catches up with us!

Have a wonderful weekend,

Beth

Edgeabilities, that is!   And what a difference embossing makes!  I wanted to share a few more examples from our wonderful designers.  You’ve seen Holly Craft’s Wedding Ensemble here before:

Here’s a close up of her card to the bride and groom which she kept the die cut intact on the front of the card, and used reverse stenciling to ink the debossed areas in a darker green.  On the seating card for the reception Holly trimmed the die cut to use just the flower portion.  Holly used the S4-044 Rose Blossom Edgeabilities on these projects.

Product Designer Toni Kelly also used the S4-044 Rose Blossom Edgeabilities.  She cut and embossed onto white paper.  Easy yet so very elegant!

Here is another comparison of 2 designers working with S5-004 Sunflower Garden Edgeabilities. Design Team Coordinator Cathy Chlebana cut, embossed and inked the paper, then used the aperture to highlight a stamped verse.  Can you see how the embossed border outlines the project?

This is 2008 Design Team Member Holly Craft’s artwork with the same die template, S5-004 Sunflower Garden Edgeabilities.  She also used a stamped verse, but used reverse stenciling with brown ink to highlight the embossed border, as well as stenciling through the die template to further color the embossed areas of the die cut.

Thank you ladies!
Beth

Edgeabilities are a ready made design, that when cut, embossed and embellished, give you a beautiful results without a lot of effort. The key is in embossing the detail of the die.  They die template cuts a design as well as an opening into the paper.  This can be used as a part of a card, a journaling spot, or an opening on the project.

For example, this S4-098 Fern Edgeability when cut, makes an interesting shape.

Only when its embossed does the shape take on the detail that makes the design unique.  The design is further enhanced when the die template is used as a stencil, with ink applied through the die template.

Toni Kelly, designer of the Edgeabilites and other Spellbinders product, provided these samples of the Edgeabilities:

S4-096 Asian Bamboo Edgeability

Toni does beautiful work, I think you’ll all enjoy taking a look at her blog and website.  Thanks Toni, for the wonderful designs and great samples!

We reintroduced Spellbinders’ Pierceabilities not too long ago, here.  Thanks Eli, for the 101! Lets take another look at some more examples.

I made this quick card to use as a lesson for Spellbinders’ Pierceabilities Die Templates.

1. Cut white cardstock 8.5″x5.5″, fold in half.

2. To make the decorative edge on the white cardstock, line up the cut edge of S4-173 Fancy Scallop Pierceabilities die template with one edge of the card.  Secure the die template with household tape.  Cut this edge, no need to emboss it.

3. With a piece of peach Worldwin Double Mates cardstock 5.5″x4.5″, align the cutting edge of the Pierceability with the edge of the cardstock.  Tape in place.  Cut and emboss in the Spellbinders Wizard.

4. Leaving the tape on, you can embellish through the die template like a stencil.  I used ink applied with a sponge applicator for a subtle look.

5. Place die and paper (still taped) onto a foam pad.  Use a piercing tool to poke through the small holes in the die, through the paper.

6. Remove the tape, adhere the pierced cardstock to the front of the card.  Be sure to line up the decorative edges.  Trim excess to fit card front.

In this example I cut and embossed both Long Rectangle die templates.  Then I cut and embossed the S4-165 Pinking Pierceabilities die template along one edge, as above.  I pierced the design while the die template was still taped in place. I traced the outline of the Pierceabilities die template design with a Copic Spica Atyou pen, then traced the Long Rectangle die templates.
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Each Spellbinders’ Pierceabilities Die Template comes with a clear guide. Don’t poke through it! This is used when you want to line up a Pierceabilities Die Template for precision piercing.

Simply decide where you want the pierced design to be, lay the clear guide over the selected spot, then slide the die template underneath the clear guide.

Pierce through the die template, embellish through the die if desired.

You don’t have to cut or emboss with the die template to use the piercing holes.

Wendy Weixler’s Journal of Thanks used the Pierceabilities Die Templates to make the background border on this altered notebook. Wendy used S4-165 Pinking Pierceabilites and S4-147 Labels Trio.

Heidi Blankenship airbrushed with Copic Markers through the die templates and over the flower Impressabilities.  She used S4-173 Fancy Scalloped Butterfly, S4-171 Nested Butterflies, L2-1004 Impressabilities Flowers.