TopNote Snowman Gift Card Holder

 Needed a holder for a gift card for the holidays and I had remembered the TopNote Snowman Gift Card Holder I had made long ago so I just made another one. This gift card holder is very easy to put together and goes together quickly:

For the gift card holder I used both white and black #110 weight card stock from Mikes. I die cut out a white TopNote die piece. Cut out two of the black TopNote pieces. Here is one of the black pieces:

Took it to the trimmer and cut it in half:

Used TomBow glue to add one of the cut black pieces to the top of the white base for the hat for the snowman. Used the trimmer and trimmed a piece of striped card stock from the stash 1/2" wide for the hat band. Put this piece across the bottom of the black piece. Using circle punches I punched out 2 3/8" circles for the eyes, and for the mouth I used a 1/4" circle punch and punched out 5 circles. Put the eyes and mouth circles on the snowman face using glue dots. For the carrot I used scrap orange card stock and cut a nose out free hand using scissors. Lightly sponged the edges of the nose and put that onto the snowman face using TomBow glue. Used a dauber and added light pink cheeks to the face.

For the snowflake I used a Snowflake punch from EK Success and punched that out of white glittered card stock. Used red 'bling' from the Dollar Tree and added that to the center of the snowflake. Used large glue dots to put the snowflake onto the hat piece. 

For the back of the snowman I used the solid black TopNot piece I had die cut earlier. Using the Word Window punch I punched a slit to hold the gift card in:

I used tear and tape to put the slit back piece on the snowman TopNote being careful to keep the tear and tape near the edges to allow the gift card to be slid in and out of the holder. When all done I decided to use a light blue ink and sponged the edges of the snowman face:

Easy holder to put together and the #110 weight card stock makes this gift card holder very sturdy. Easy project to mass produce if you need a few gift card holders. 

Gnome Christmas Card

 Started some of the Christmas cards earlier this week and here is one of the cards:

Not all the cards will be the same this year but this is the first design I am using. The card stock base is red with a white panel for the front. The "MERRY" is the Stacked Merry die from MFTstamps that I bought on sale and I die cut that from red foil card stock. I also cut it out using scrap white card stock and stacked those layers together using TomBow glue. The candy stripe strip on the right side of the card front is from American Crafts. For the Gnome I used this die from CottageCutz:

I have worked on these little Gnomes for about a week after work doing it all in stages. First I did all the die cutting using as many of the scraps that I could for the pieces. Stacked the pieces into piles so I could see I had all the pieces I would need:

Then I sponged the edges of the pieces I wanted sponged:

Then, over a couple of days, I glued my pieces/layers together that went together:

This photo shows some of the pieces/layers put together and the next day I did the face, beard, mustache, holly berries with leaves pieces. When all pieces were glued I could assemble the Gnomes and here is a group photo of the Gnomes waiting their card fronts:

With the Gnomes all assembled I cut and scored all the red card stock bases and then cut all the white card stock fronts for the cards. Used pop dots to put the Gnome on the card front:

With the card fronts almost done I cut the white card stock for the inside of the card and stamped my holiday greeting on those with red ink. Working on finishing the rest of the card fronts. Cute Gnome die from CottageCutz - I had bought it last year but did not get a chance to use it for any projects so it was my first choice for holiday cards for this year. Glad to get some use out of the cute Gnome die!  ** Added red crystals to the card front before I mailed the cards out:

the crystals add a little sparkle and shine to the card front:

Now back to other holiday projects -- gift bags and treat holders....

Holiday Gift Cards

 Full Christmassing in the craft room -- holiday tunes on the radio and busy, busy with projects.... Cut and scored all the card bases for the Christmas cards, cut the card front panels, started some die cutting for the card fronts and so it begins....  But this post is about gift card holders --

Many of the retailers that sell gift cards have store cards, restaurant cards, coffee shop cards, etc... but with most is a fee if you buy the gift card -- so why not just give cash and save the fees? Either way if you should get a gift card or decide to use cash a gift card holder will hold both -- here is a photo of the gift card holders I made that did not take long at all to put together:

Used a die from the stash for the gift card holders. These are all made using 6x6 card stocks from the stash. I used all double sided card stocks but any card stock would do. Once all my gift card holders were cut out I folded the scored lines and assembled the holder. Then I decorated the front of the gift card holder:

For the front of this gift card holder I used a "Happy Holidays" die from the stash and die cut that out of red foil card stock. Used liquid glue to adhere this to the front. Added a pre-made poinsettia from Hobby Lobby. This holder could be used for a male or female gift. This next holder:

Card stock design leans towards a male but I still added a holiday poinsettia to the front. Easy holder to assemble and good use for the 6x6 card stock pads in the stash.  For the third holder - red with snowflake print - I added two glittered snowflakes I punched out to the front of the holder and then put a felt poinsettia in the center of that and those are also from Hobby Lobby.  Lots of ways to decorate the gift card holders but fast and easy to put together. 

Thanksgiving Cards

 Thanksgiving cards are in the mail and this year I wanted to use items from the stash. First thing I did was to go through the printed card stock scraps and decide what I wanted to use. Then I went to the extra card stock bases I have that are all cut and scored and ready for use. With the card stocks decided on I went over to the wood stamp storage and pulled out two older stamps I wanted to use. Here is a photo of one of the cards I made:

The "Thanksgiving Blessings" is a stamp from Hobby Lobby from 2008. For the inside I used a stamp from Stampendous from 1997 - here is a photo of scrap card stock I had stamped it on:

No sense in storing all these stamps if they do not get used.... . .  I have some duplicate cards but here are some photos of other cards I had made using items from the stash:

Happy to get some use from the older stamps and to be able to use more scraps and card bases that were cut, scored, and ready to go. Used pop dots behind the stamped panel on the front of the card for dimension. 

A PIC Drop Off

 My PIC (stamping Partner In Crime) dropped off a little goodies bag last week and I wanted to share some of the items inside her bag -- Here is the cute Halloween card she made:

She put a note in the envelope explaining that with all the dies she owns she does not have a Halloween broom die in her stash so she made the broom for the card front -- cute. Fun witch hat also.... so cute card.... she also had a treat holder in the bag she had made:

I took the orange ribbon off and removed the lid and here it the inside:

She enclosed a note letting me know she had seen this idea on "queenbcreations" blog. She also said there was an idea like this for Christmas using the large alpha die set from SU and I had bought that die set years ago on sale -- it was regularly $99.00 for the die set and there was no way I would pay that for any SU product so I waited for a sale and then picked the set up so happy to have another project to use the die set for..... 

I went to the blog she had seen this on and that crafter had a video for her Christmas box and in the video she referenced Candy Ford at her blog: stampcandy.net.  Once you get to her blog go to the search box and type in Tags & Trimmings Ferrero Rocher Box and her post from Dec 2017 will come up for the box. She has all the measurements and directions to print out off her blog. First I had watched the video from 'queenb' and in her video she said she had changed the measurements. But once I found the original posting from Candy Ford I used her measurements that she had in her directions and the box turned out cute -- here is the box closed:

I made one box from start to finish to see how the box, lid, and insert fit together and it is a really easy project to put together... Here is a photo with the lid off and the lid leaning on the box:

This box/treat holder can hold the Ferrero Rocher candies or the Lindt chocolates - anything that is round and about this size. After I had read through the directions I decided I would cut out all my pieces per the instructions but for my gold letters for "HO HO HO" I decided I would glue them down on the insert piece and once dried then I would use the punch to punch out the middle of the "O""

I just think it was easier to glue the letters down and once dried to punch out the circles so that I would know they are all straight and even. Since I did it this way the insert and gluing the letters down was the first thing I did so that they could dry while I cut out the rest of the box pieces. I used red and black card stocks for my boxes/lids since those are the only colours I have in 12x12 card stock that would match some of the Christmas prints I have in the stash.

As Candy suggests I used a glue dot under the tissue piece the Rocher candies have to keep them in place in the box in case the box gets shaken or something and then the candies will be sure to stay in place. Once I finish all the boxes I will post photos of them on the blog. For this first box I used a die from the stash "Happy Holidays" and all the foil card stock I used is the Dollar Tree foiled poster board sheets. They die cut well and are a good weight for this project. Thanks to Candy Ford for her idea and for QueenBCreations for sharing her version and esp to my PIC for giving me the BOO box!! Cute treat holder for sure!  Will add this to the other treat holders I have started for Christmas this year!

Thanksgiving Treat Bags

 Here is a photo of some of the Thanksgiving Treat Bags I finished this week:

The paper gift bags are from the Dollar Tree and the fall printed card stock is from HobbyLobby.com on sale. I used scraps for the banner piece behind the turkey. The turkey was made using a Spellbinders die and scrap card stocks. Wanted to make rosettes for the bag fronts so I used a Sizzix Rosette die and cut out the rosettes using the scraps from the print on the bag fronts. Used a scalloped circle  die and die cut out circles using scraps and these scalloped circles are the base for my rosette. 

Using fine gold thread from Hobby Lobby I wrapped the thread around my fingers four times and used a piece of tear and tape in the center of the scalloped circle to hold the threads in place:

I used hot glue to put the printed rosette over the scalloped circle and thread piece. Used my tulle templates on my table for my tulle - 

I had made these using circle punches and #110 weight card stock for these templates. Used a Sharpie marker to write the size on the circles. For the tulle on my rosettes I folded my tulle into layers and put the 1 3/4 circle on top of the tulle and cut the tulle around the circle template using scissors. With the circles cut I used hot glue for the center of the rosette to put the tulle on. I used two tulle circles for my rosettes. Used hot glue to put the rosette onto the scalloped circle. Using flat back buttons from Hobby Lobby I put a button in the center of the rosette using hot glue:

Die cut the banner piece from various card stocks from the stash. Used white card stock and cut out matching banner pieces. Used liquid glue to put the printed banner piece onto the white banner piece to make the banner more sturdy. Measured and cut my printed card stocks for the bag front. Put these onto the bag fronts using the ATG. Used tear and tape to put the banner piece onto the bag front. Die cut the turkey and put that altogether using scraps. Wanted to "clean up" the back of the assembled turkey:

so using a circle punch and scrap lightweight cardboard I punched out a circle and put it on the back of the turkey:

Used hot glue to put the rosette at the top of the banner piece on the bag. Put the turkey at the bottom of the banner piece using pop dots and tear and tape. Used scraps for my shadow piece for "Happy Fall" which is a die set from Kat Scrappiness. Used foil poster board sheets from the Dollar Tree for the gold "Happy Fall" pieces. Put the words and shadow pieces together using liquid glue. 

Here is a photo of one of the bags:

Have to fill all the treat holders I made for Thanksgiving and pack the bags but everything is put together now so onto to Christmas projects! 

Thanksgiving Nugget Box

 Recently shopped a used stamping products sale and I picked up the Sizzix Shaker Box die for $10.00 - it is the long steel ruled die on the left in this photo:

I wanted to use the box to hold both chocolate and chocolate with almonds nuggets for Thanksgiving. Here is a photo of the finished boxes:

To begin with I used new seasonal card stock - I believe from CartaBella for the prints on the box and the wrappers for my nuggets. For the solid card stocks I used card stock from the stash in three different colours. First I die cut all the boxes and pieces using my BigShot with the extended plate and a crease pad. Once all the solid and printed pieces were die cut I decided I wanted to line the bottom of my box with white card stock. Using a square scalloped die from my stash I die cut my white pieces for the inside bottom of the box. All prints and the white die cut piece for inside the box I put on the box while it was flat before I assembled the box. I used the ATG to put these pieces on the box. Here is a photo of the white die cut piece inside the box:

For the window on the box I used clear transfer sheets and cut them larger than the window opening and I put the clear sheet on the box using Glossy Accents. For the nuggets I cut my wrapper pieces 1" wide by 3 1/8" long. This length allows me to put the glue dots on the wrapper and wrap it around the candy and the glue dots will adhere to the card stock wrapper rather than to the piece of candy wrapping. Once all my nugget wrappers were cut I ran them over the bone folder to make it easier to wrap the nuggets with the card stock. Here is a photo of the inside of the box showing the wrapped nuggets and the clear sheet window:

For the "Gobble, Gobble" I used a stamp from my stash and rust ink to stamp it onto white card stock. I used a frame die set to die cut this piece out. I put it on the inside flap of the box lid. Using another stamp from the stash I stamped "Thanksgiving Blessings" onto the white card stock and again die cut that out using a frame die. I put this on the top of the box and then tied it closed using twine from the stash:

Added sequins to the label for some sparkle. This box is very easy to assemble and makes for a nice presentation for a nugget treat holder for Thanksgiving. Glad I was able to find this older Sizzix die at the sale for only $10.00 rather than having to pay the new price of over $40.00! This box would also hold tea lights and other candy treats as well. A good find for sure!

Bag fronts for Christmas treat bags - -

 Last trip to Dollar Tree I came home with a box of their Christmas cards which I have never bought before but I liked the picture with the glitter and colours. Decided I would use these cards for the front of the treat bags I make for Christmas.  Here is the box of cards:

I had white paper gift bags in the stash so I decided to use them. I went through the paper stash and found red and white card stock from Hobby Lobby for the bag front. Measured the bag and decided what size I needed the striped piece to be so I trimmed that to size and put that on the bag front using the ATG. . 

For the card piece I used the trimmer and cut the front off the card. Used a decorative edge die and I die cut two pieces using the foiled poster board sheets from the Dollar Tree in silver. Cut two more pieces of that for the sides of the card piece. Put the decorative and side pieces onto the card front. Using the ATG I put this onto the bag front. Wanted to have some Poinsettias on the corners of the snowman card front piece so I used the smaller Poinsettia die from Impression Obsession for my flowers:

I die cut the flowers using shiny and foiled card stock and assembled the flowers using mini glue dots. Added a red crystal to the center of the flowers. Using the sprig punch from M Stewart I punched out some sprigs for the flowers. Used TomBow liquid glue to the put the sprigs on the bag front. Here is the photo of the bag front using the Dollar Tree card:

For the Poinsettias I used both shiny and foiled card stock and I used three layers for the larger flowers and two layers for the smaller flowers. For the red foiled "Merry Christmas" I used a die from the stash to cut that out of red mirrored card stock. Put that on the bag front using TomBow liquid glue. Easy project to put together once all the die cut pieces were cut out. The flowers have lots of detail and are easy to bend for dimension. Now off to make the rest of the bags I need . . .