Bride Dress and Groom Tuxedo Party Favor Boxes

Please follow my new blog, Paper Zen, to see my new die cut patterns!

Printable quilled thank you card and envelope

Dear Crafting Creatures readers, I want to say thank you!

I started this blog years ago with my friends to inspire each other with our projects. I've been the only one adding to it for some time, and the name Crafting Creatures doesn't suit my new direction. I will continue blogging in my spare time, but now it means more to me than a hobby. I'm taking my paper on new paths and I really hope you'll follow me there, as I will not be updating this blog anymore.

My new blog is Paper Zen, which describes both how tranquil I feel when working with paper, and the enlightenment I hope my work gives others.

I'm indebted to you, kind reader, for giving me wonderfully encouraging words to keep going. To return your enthusiasm, I'd like to give you my quilled Thank You card and matching envelope. It'll be for sale in my Etsy shop afterwards, so grab it now by visiting Paper Zen!

Damask Chair Party Favor Box

Although I'm more of a tomboy than a girly-girl, I did save every wedding party favor as a little girl, dreaming of the day I would marry my sweetheart. I don't know why I have such a thing for boxes, but I do love how it's hiding a small surprise. The ones I love most serve double purpose, whether to be decorative or in this case, to show a guest to their seat.

I used a heavyweight vellum which allows the damask pattern to be seen yet not obstruct the guest's name. A square tag is glued to the front, with a couple's special day and message.

The 1.75" cube has a chair backing that is 4.25" tall. Two boxes can be cut from a single sheet of 11 x 8.5" paper. In this example I've used Silver Stardream cardstock. The font used here is Great Vibes.

Damask patterns have always been used in classic decor in such a broad range, and I struggled for quite some time to have the design be strong enough to hold the name tag. I also think it looks just as complete without the name tag, so it's perfect for occasions other than weddings.

My Damask Chair Box is now available in my Etsy store for instant download. I've saved the files in SVG, DXF, MTC, and PDF formats. Thanks so much for your kind comments!

Kite Ribbon Storage Hanger (SVG, DXF, PDF, MTC files)

I don't have ribbon fever, but I do save the ones I'm given with gifts because they are still re-usable for other gifts or even my cards.

I used to save the scraps in small plastic bags to keep them from fighting, but when I'd discover it wasn't long enough, I'd have to re-ravel it – or if it was right, I'd have to deal with all the kinks.

So I made my own with 4 layers of cardboard (the thickest my Silhouette can cut) and glued them together for strength and rigidity. You can also use poster board, chipboard, cardboard, even cereal boxes - whatever your machine or hand can cut. I added white vinyl to the two outer sides (before cutting) of my cardboard to give myself a neutral, white background, but I can imagine my kites and their ribboned tails against a light blue sky background too.

I love how the ribbons are stored with thicks and thins in orderly columns. Threading the ribbons through the 3 lines was quick to do, but also quick to remove too! They don't slide off (unlike my shirts on plastic hangers) and I can visually guage the length, color, width at a glance for my project. It now hangs in my craft room closet, kink-free!

I'm offering my Kite Ribbon Storage Hanger in the following formats: SVG, DXF, MTC, and PDF (for hand cutting if you prefer).

Happy Father's Day (3D die cut card)

My dad wears a ratty, tattered vest and even though I've given him new ones, he still keeps wearing the old one anyway. He doesn't wear a bow tie, but I think he'll get a kick out of this card anyway.

I've been experimenting in the realm of "printables" and this is made of 3 pieces - the bow tie, shirt, and vest, cut from 1 sheet of letter-size paper on 80lb cover stock. It was fun to shade the bow tie and give it a sense of 3D while really giving a 3D shape. Details in the buttons and stitching was a cinch to print. It helps keep the vest flaps down when the card is closed. I've written my message under the shirt, which is removable.

 

Somehow I quite like the back as well simply for its minimalism. He's a man of little words, so I'll see what kind of reaction I get during tonight's dinner.

 

If you'd like to cut this card by hand, I'm selling a "printable" and "cuttable" file on Craftsy.

Monster Bookmark - Free Die Cut (SVG, DXF, PDF)

I'm showing Ann Martin's book, All Things Paper, to family and friends, and as I flip to my project in I realized I could simplify my life with a bookmark.

 

There are many wonderful monster ones out there but I wanted ear flaps so they stuck out for easy finding. I added a dash of color in the eyes, so some quick marker strokes were all that was needed before gluing down the triangular flap.

Download a free compressed file containing SVG, DXF, and PDF files for personal use. Please leave me a comment if you have some time - I love hearing if you're inspired to make something.

Flights of Fancy - My Favorite Pop-ups

I've always wanted to make a pop-up book – not design one, because my mind doesn't think this way – but I've always wanted to see how the mechanism worked just for the sheer magic of minimalism at its finest.

This swallow is a design by Jessica Tice-Gilbert who makes the most wonderful "how to" video that takes away any intimidation of making pop-ups. The wing rotates!

So when Paper Poet's Meet Up Group theme was Birds of a Feather, I interpreted it loosely and chose to make pop-ups I've admired over the years.

 

1) I used paper I had on hand. I had a stack of pre-cut metallic pearl colored card stock which I scored into an accordion fold for the spine. The inner page elements are all cut from Daiso's colored paper, which was perfect for colors and thickness.

2) I loved how inkjet printing on it still allowed the metallic sheen to come through, as if the blue itself was metallic.

3) The message of hopeful love is so obvious and engaging in Mari Kumada's Pop-Up Valentine.

4) Robert Sabuda's Bird comes flying out of its house.

5) The Angel by Robert Sabuda always evokes an "ahh" from my readers.

6) Even though most didn't think this dove silhouette qualified as a pop-up, I love it for it's minimalism and how it evokes a quiet peace for me. It's an invitation for Christian Blanken by Agitprop.

7) I thought the Ark by Robert Sabuda could be seen as flying the high seas, but anyway, I just loved how all the animals are on different planes yet it's all one sheet of paper.

8) I made line drawing outlines of each page and added credits to my book. I'm so grateful to all these amazing designers for sharing their work. I loved making my small version of their world.

If you haven't tried making your own pop-up book, I hope you'll be inspired by these examples.

Happy Mother's Day Card (die cut tea cup)

My mom has kept and treasured the handmade cards I crafted for her as a child. There's no better #1 fan than the person who has reassured my fears and advised me to do what made me happy.

I tend to be very structured in my designs, even though I have always admired more free flowing pieces. So I'm trying to push beyond my comfort zones and this is my first experiment.

 

I sketched my ideas, imagining how the layers of colors will come together. Stardream and Daiso paper is wonderful to cut even with a dullish blade and somewhat fine lines, because there aren't any residual fibers of paper sticking out in tight corners.

It's amazing how an idea can end up being so much more labor intensive than I imagined. The finer lines makes a smaller area for gluing, so the flowers simply take more time to secure. The graphic designer in me wants to simply print the color, even though I enjoy the look of layered paper. However, I can't dispute how well it looks overall when it matches the teacup perfectly.

I'm still working out the kinks on my 3D teacup, but I like how it comes off the page. I wanted to make the "tea" shiny and wet looking so thought of using some glitter nail polish.

DIY Flocking

I've been seeing flocking all over the stores (and some ingeniously decorated nails). It's kind of like colored, fluffy, cotton candy, but in teeny pieces. I didn't want to buy more things, so my first thought was can I make my own? Yes I can!

I borrowed the microfine shredder from the kitchen, wadded up some paper scraps from Daiso, and shredded away. In case I didn't cover everything, I used the same color yellow as a backing, covered it in glue and dipped into my paper flocking (tweezers are helpful!). Then I glued it to my daisy flower, which then decorated my 3D cakes.

3D Cake Card by Stephanie Elliott

This is a card made by Stephanie Elliott, who customized my 3D Cake Collection. I love how she customized it with dripping icing and then topped it off with glistening glitter. Here's how she did it:

I love microfine glitter so I layered cardstock with double sided adhesive, stacked the icing designs on the cake, and sent it through the cutter twice – once to cut the design from the adhesive liner, the second time to actually cut the parts from the card stock. The design cut beautifully and, after coloring the icing & cake parts with glitter, assembly was easy (with your great instructions). I used the double sided adhesive only because I wanted to color by selection with glitter. Using that adhesive, though, proved to be incredibly useful in assembly. I completed one card and constructed the box (which is great, by the way). I love how everything turned out.

I cut all of the parts for the first card on a Black Cat Cougar. I cut all of the parts for this last card on a Cameo (can’t let either cutter feel left out). This card is a top fold card with accordion pockets on the inside. There are note cards in each pocket. Again, thank you so much for designing such a wonderful set. I’m already thinking of a dozen events for which your design will be perfect.

OK, so I admit to being just a tad OCD and the way Stephanie has opened up those pockets to show the accordion file holding note cards makes me itch to make something just as organized. However if I were the recipient of this wonderfully coordinated card, I couldn't bear to use them!

When I asked her about the differences between cutting machines she's used, Stephanie went into great detail, describing their fine points and sharing her knowledge. She has been tempted to start a blog to share tutorials and files, but I think she's busy creating gifts to be cherished. She very kindly let me show her work here, and I hope you'll leave a comment for her to read - and hopefully she'll start her blog to share more of her projects! Thank you, Stephanie!

3D Ornament Gift Tag

I've seen many wonderful 3D ball ornaments and thought it might also make a great gift tag. It's also a great way to use up small scraps of left over paper.

It's super easy to make. Just fold your circle/ornament in half and glue about 5 various colors to each other, then to the tag. The best part is that it's easy to re-fluff back up if it's been squashed by another gift.

Have a happy crafting season everyone!

How to use up scrap paper

I have a big-ass folder of scraps because I can't bear to throw anything away that might someday be of use. I know this circle can be cut from this triangular corner, but how do I make sure I get it right the first (and only) time?

I lay down a used piece of paper (I salvage the papers from work that have been printed on too), then cut my shape. I cover the circle with my scrap and secure it with removable tape. Now when I cut again, I KNOW it will be 100% where I want. You can see I had just about 2mm margin of error.

Let me know if this method worked for you too!

Paper Poinsettia and Wreath

Poinsettias simply say Christmas! The feedback I received for my fringed flowers was so overwhelming, I just had to make a Poinsettia version for Christmas cards.

These paper blossoms are designed as a fringed flower to be quilled into shape. The stamen, petals, and leaves are designed as one strip of paper to allow for quick rolling / quilling. Color markers were used on white 28 lb paper in these examples, however they can be cut from colored paper and the three parts glued into one strip.

The pine needle wreath is cut from two pieces of 80 lb paper and overlapped, then fluffed into shape to give the poinsettias a festive base. This example is a 5" x 7" card.

A regular envelope wouldn't do, so I made a windowed box to protect the blossoms.

Maybe I was a squirrel in a previous life, but as a little girl I loved boxes to hold things, keep secrets in them, and to give gifts in. This cube has a prepared hole for an enlarged version of the poinsettia. The cube is 2.5" x 2.5" x 2.5".

I don't bake a lot of cupcakes so this is about as close as I'd come to cupcake toppers. I have loved ones who are allergic to nuts and some who can't handle spicy foods. Instead of a quilling tool, I rolled the poinsettia in a toothpick, then glued in place. Added the warning flag at the bottom, and voila - food markers.

If you'd like to cut and quill paper poinsettias this Christmas, this Poinsettia Collection can be downloaded immediately via my store. I'd love to see what you make with my files, so drop me a line!

Fringed Flowers for Quilling

Last year I created a letter E monogram for a dear friend. After all the positive feedback, I'm pleased to offer it on Etsy. This is a combination of my top two paper passions - quilling and die cutting, my worlds colliding.

The flowers blossom at varying stages just by the way you curve the paper petals. The colors shown here are done by hand using alcohol-based markers. The stamen, petals, and leaves are designed as one strip to allow for quick rolling / quilling.

Fringed quilling strips have traditionally been limited to 90˚ or 45˚ cuts, but with a digital die cutter, the sky is the limit. This collection of 4 flowers with rounded petals are combined with a scalloped edge heart tray to hold your bouquet. They are ideal for card making, gift wrapping, or decorating custom monograms or letters.

Heart Inspired Bunting

This is my first die cut paper banner / bunting / pennant design. A much anticipated little girl is expected this Valentine’s Day, and I wanted the shape of her shower’s banner to be reminiscent of a heart but not be quite that obvious. I also tried to keep some dynamic movement by having the overlapping shapes show thick and thin areas – not just a straight outline.

I’ve always felt ribbon is akin to a backup singer – to support the lead and not steal the show. To give all the emphasis on the lettering, I ensured the ribbon is easily threaded through loops on the back layer so one doesn’t see the supporting holes.

The three shapes (pink, green, white) are cut from 8.5″x11″ paper. The three layers are aligned using a jig so no eyeballing is needed. The lettering (not included) is Adobe Caslon at 410 pt. I can’t remember the brand name of ribbon, but it’s a sheer lime green and I got it from Michael’s.

Part 5 (and final installation) of my Valentine Collection on Etsy.

3D Paper Ball with Hearts and Arrows

Beware of Cupid’s shooting arrows! It was a great discovery my first time to use an ink pad on the edges of my paper ball decorations to add dimension. I realized dragging the ink pad across the arrow would make it appear as if Cupid had just let it fly, especially when it caught on the edges.

Version 1 is easy to put together since it’s a single sheet of paper. Simply use beading wire, fishing line, or string to thread from the bottom hole, then thread each arc at the top. A rolled paper straw in the middle keeps the ball fully inflated. A scalloped circle finishes the top and bottom and the beads are optional. Version 2 allows you to combine two different papers, of course.

Part 4 of upcoming Valentine collection on Etsy.