Flower Patch Card in a Box

If you follow my blog, then you've probably realized that I really, really like the Flower Patch stamp set from the annual catalog.  I tend to use it a LOT.  It's just a fun set, and the possibilities are endless.  It's also the perfect set to use for a card in a box. 

I wanted to make a special card for a friend of mine.  She does so much for our homeschool community in general, as well as some other things specific to my family.  I don't really know how she has time for it all...we joke that she has 36 hours in her days!  But a card in a box definitely qualifies as special, and I modified it a bit to allow for two people to write a message on the back.  Typically when making a card in a box, the back panel is where the message would go.  I added a flap over that so that it actually opens like a card, and then both I and another friend were each able to have a panel's worth of space for writing our message of thanks.

I used the retired Gingham Garden Designer Series Paper for the flaps of the box.  You know a card is special when I give up any of my gingham or plaid DSP!  But it suits this card so well, and really was perfect for it.  I used my Flower Fair Framelits to cut out the various flowers, then whipped out my Fringe Scissors to cut some grass for the flowers to peek out of.  I love how it turned out! 

Oh, and since I went a little crazy with the flowers, they ended up sticking out of the sides when the card was folded up.  Did I worry about it fitting in to an envelope?  Of course not!  I got out my envelope punch board and made a custom envelope to fit this card.

Supplies
Stamps:  Flower Patch
Ink:  Pool Party, Island Indigo, Cantaloupe Crisp, Calypso Coral, Daffodil Delight, Pear Pizzazz, Wisteria Wonder, Rich Razzleberry
Paper:  Island Indigo, Crumb Cake, Pear Pizzazz, and Whisper White card stock, (retired) Gingham Garden DSP
Accessories:  Big Shot, Flower Fair Framelits, Paper Snips, Fringe Scissors, Sticky Strip, Simply Scored Scoring Tool, Stampin' Dimensionals, hot glue gun, hot glue, and Blendabilities markers

Happy Valentine's Day Card in a Box

This is another project I've been wanting to make for a while.  It's a tad more complicated than the wreath I showed yesterday, but still very manageable.  I decided to use up the rest of the pack of Designer Series Paper I used for that project, since I had lots of little scraps along with the full sized sheets I used for the wreath.  I also used some retired paper (hello, Pretty in Pink!) and a retired stamp set.

Tips & Tricks

• Use sticky strip!  I've see so many references online about using glue, and I just don't get it.  Why make a mess when a few little pieces of sticky strip will accomplish the same thing and it won't make a mess.

• Stamps with coordinating punches or Framelits are perfect for this card, especially if you don't want to do a lot of fussy cutting.  The hearts were stamped and punched, and it made the making of this card much easier.  I've seen gorgeous samples of this type of card using the Background Basics stamp set and coordinating Framelits, and they were gorgeous!

I think this card has quite the wow factor, and I will definitely be making more in the future.  Next up will be a birthday version for my sister-in-law, who has a birthday coming up later this month. 

Stamps: Love You Much (retired)
Ink:  Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla (retired), Real Red, and Old Olive
Paper: Real Red, Pretty in Pink (retired), Naturals Ivory
Accessories:  2 1/2" Circle Punch, Brights Buttons (retired), Whisper White Baker's Twine, Sticky Strip, Aquapainters, Heart to Heart punch (retired)