Elizabeth Craft Designs January Group Challenge

This month we were challenged to create planner pages with the new Elizabeth Craft Designs Planners. I've posted a few of my divider pages (created to divide up the monthly pages) online, but I'm sharing more details with this fun project!

I have to say I was surprised by how much I'm enjoying playing in these planners, but I probably
shouldn't be from years of teaching bookbinding, art journaling and altered books.  I'm not really a planner person - I always call it the twitter of scrapbooking - meaning that you have a lot of fun in a small space.

I've also been delightfully surprised at how well the A Way With Words dies, which were designed for card making, are so easily used in planners and art journals.  I guess I need to think outside the box more! Making up pages like this is a little different than card making - it's like assembling cards but with a bit different end product in mind. And darn, it's fun!  There are unexpected die combinations that work really well.  Check your stash to see what you can come up with!

Without further introspection, let me share how you can make this divider spread and what supplies I used to make it.

If you want to see what the other designers are “planning”, head over to the Elizabeth Craft Designs Blog today.

Elizabeth Craft Designs Supplies with links:
A Way With Words - Love  Quietfire | ECD
A Way With Words - Thank you    Quietfire | ECD
A Way With Words - Forever   Quietfire | ECD
A Way With Words - Calligraphic Elements 2   Quietfire | ECD
A Way With Words - Save the Date   Quietfire | ECD
A Way With Words - Months and Numbers Collection Clear Stamps   Quietfire | ECD
A Way With Words - Love & Hearts Collection Clear Stamps   Quietfire | ECD
Planner Essentials - 1
Planner Essentials - 2
Planner 2- Espresso
Stitched Squares
Moda Scrap Sweet Vintage Rose

Other supplies:
Imagine Crafts Brilliance Pearlescent Crimson
Cardstocks in pale and dark pink
Glue Dots

Instructions:

1. Die cut two planner pages from coordinating papers in the Sweet Vintage Rose collection using the page die from Planner Essentials – 2.  I cut one from the back so that the pages would face each other to form a spread.
2. Die cut Love, Forever and Save the Date from pale pink cardstock. Cut the smallest die in the Stitched Squares set from pale pink.  Die cut Love, You (from Thank you) and Forever from dark pink cardstock as well as the flourished heart from Calligraphic Elements 2.
3. Layer the Love diecuts slightly offset to form a dropshadow effect and adhere together.  This helps the word stand out from busy background papers.  Repeat with Forever.
4. Adhere the heart flourishes in the corners as shown and layout Love you Forever and attach to the page.
5. Stamp "Mine! You're all mine!" between the hearts near the bottom.
6. Attach Save the Date as shown. Stamp February above the diecut and the bouncing hearts border at the bottom of the page.
7. Stamp "love you" in the Stitched Square diecut and use the little tab from Planner Essentials -1 to die cut one of the tiny roses from the paper collection.  Assemble and attach to the page as shown.
8. Snap the pages into your binder and get ready to play some more!

Just ask if you have any questions!

Happy planning! Suzanne

Elizabeth Craft Designs December Designer Challenge

I'm excited to be sharing a post for the Elizabeth Craft Designs Designer Challenge for December.  This month the challenge is to use any of the Garden Notes - Frame It/Stitched Nested Dies.  There are four different die sets in this collection … squares; rectangles; ovals and circles.

You can join in the challenge for a chance to win a prize OVER ON THE ECD BLOG by answering the challenge question, Which of the Garden Notes - Frame It/Stitched die sets would you use on a project and how would you use it?

These dies are a wonderful addition to your collection as they leave the stitch marks on the piece the shape falls out of.  I thought it would be really fun to use them to make a shaker card.  

Cut a 6" square piece of 100# Soft Finish Cardstock.  Die cut the Frame-It Square and Heart Spray from the piece as shown.

Add adhesive around the square opening on the back of panel and attach a piece of clear plastic (transparency) over the opening.

Cut another piece of 100# Soft Finish cardstock to 3 3/4" square.  Stamp hearts (I used the heart created with all the little "love" words) across paper with Archival Ink.

Back to the first panel.  On the back (the side you adhered the clear panel to) add foam tape all the way around the square opening.  You want the foam tape to match up at the corners and not leave any gaps so that nothing can fall out.  *I did take a picture of this but somehow that picture is damaged*  Add whatever you want on the inside of your shaker to this area.  I used some small beads, some holeless round beads, and chunky glitters.  Carefully remove the liners from the foam tape taking care that none of your pieces pop up and sticks to the tape.  Place the stamped square of cardstock over your shaker area, stamped side down so it will show through the window.

Add pieces of foam tape for support around the edges of the panel and in the Heart Spray area.

Cut a piece of red cardstock to attach over the back.  This will finish the back and show through the Heart Spray cut out area.  Back another piece of the same red cardstock with Clear Double Sided Adhesive and cut the word Love and the Hanging Heart element.

Stamp "Mine! You're all mine!" on a scrap of card, ink the edges and add a gold bow.

Die cut the Ladder Fern three times, ink and shape.  Die cut the pieces for Rose 2, ink, shape and assemble.

Ink the edges of the front panel.  Attach all elements as shown. 

I hope you've enjoyed this project.  If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Hugs, Wanda

Supplies --

A Way With Words, Hearts & Pawprints - (QF or ECD)

A Way With Words, Love - (QF or ECD)

A Way With Words, Calligraphic Elements 3 - (QF or ECD)

Love & Hearts Collection Clear Stamp Set - (QF or ECD)

Garden Notes, Frame It/Stitched Squares - ECD

Garden Notes, Rose 2 - ECD

Garden Notes, Ladder Fern - ECD

Soft Finish Cardstock - 100 lb. - ECD

Clear Double Sided Adhesive - ECD

Cardstock - Red, Green

Gold Ribbon

Archival Ink - Ranger Ink

Distress Ink - Ranger Ink

Foam Tape

Clear Plastic or Transparency

Beads & Chunky Glitter

Gable Box Christmas Finery

It's Suzanne here today and I’m thrilled to share this blog post with you!  I thought it would be fun to see how the Gable Box could be decorated for Christmas, so I asked around….  And here are the amazing results!  Many thanks to all the designers who came out to play.

 It’s easy to get started.... and hard to stop!  Simply die cut the Gable Box and start playing...









 Although the Flourished Christmas Minis were designed to fit in the Love Joy Peace Christmas Ornament, they work beautifully on the Gable Box!

Christine Pooler  has used traditional colours to create these sweetie gift boxes.  So simple to make and so joyfully received!  Use them for small gifts or chocolates.  Leave them at each place setting!  Growing up, we always had one last gift at the dinner table.  These boxes would have been perfect.  I think the tradition will include decorated Gable Boxes this year!

 I mentioned the Love Joy Peace Ornament….  Well why not use the inserts from that die set on the sides of your Gable Box?  Frances Byrne has done just that with some help from Elizabeth Craft Designs Glitter!  I want to know if she's eaten those chocolates yet....

Sandy Diller was on a roll  creating luminaries!  It’s an awesome way to decorate your mantle for Christmas or as a centerpiece on your dining table. Visit her blog to read the details as she uses both the Flourished Christmas Minis and the inserts from the Love Joy Peace Christmas Ornament as well as other dies and stamps from Elizabeth Craft Designs.

Kathy Jo Wood used Joy from the Love Joy Peace Christmas Ornament to create this adorable clear ornament box. So delicate and sweet! Fill it with a special ornament or tasty treats - the contents become part of the decoration! 

Connie Nichol went with the elegant and formal look, sticking to fabulous gold and white. Simply stunning!

Kelly Booth swung into the icy blues using the snowflake from Brrrrrr and the flourished heart from Calligraphic Elements 1 to create these peek-a-boo boxes filled with yummies! What a fabulous little gift!

 Yogi Grunwald created a Gingerbread cottage for the Gingerbread family. Of course it looks like a little house!  Too cute!  See the details on her blog.

 Wanda Hentges created a gorgeous background paper to make this lovely ornament with a hint of advent!  She’s used the Merry Christmas Small die and stamps from the Merry Christmas Collection and the Months and Numbers Collection, too!  See the details on her blog.

 I wanted to use some of those wonderful muted Christmas papers by ModaScrap on one of my boxes.  This is a combination of papers from the Christmas Holiday Collection and the Xmas Vintage Collection.  I’ve also used the snowflake from Brrrrrrr and the Noel die as a little tag element.  The layered squares are cut from Fitted and Stitched Squares dies from Elizabeth Craft Designs.

And now we have absolutely adorable versions!  Diana Nguyen has created two boxes using the Flourished Christmas Minis, the words from the Love Joy Peace Christmas Ornament and Penguins!  You can see lots more details on Diana’s blog where she got on a roll!  Here are a couple more:

 Katelyn Grosart loves the earthy colours – and so do I!  She has cut windows and added inserts, using Joy from the Love Joy Peace Christmas Ornament.  You can read all the scrumptious details on her blog.

Robyn Josephs created this charming little box from printed paper and festooned it in gilded word tags from the Love Joy Peace Christmas Ornament.  She has all the details on her blog.

  
I had a lot of fun with this box!  This is Alcohol Ink on Yupo (Lettuce, Red Pepper and Watermelon ink) with some Schminke Pale Gold TroCol sprinkled in.  Using stamps from the Merry Christmas Collection, I lifted out the colour using Alcohol Lift-Ink.  Additional embellishments were the snowflake from Brrrrrrr and the stars from Calligraphic Elements 3.

  You will already have seen this recently, but I couldn’t help adding it here!  I’m always so proud of myself when I make one of Susan Tierney-Cockburn’s floral creations!  All the details on this project are here.

 Remember that hint of Advent I mentioned with Wanda’s box?  Well, the last few boxes are full on Advent!  Here are some simple ones in blues that I created using the numbers from the Months and Numbers Collection with some help from layered Fitted and Stitched Stars.  I’ve added in the snowflake from the Brrrrrr die set and well as some trimmed died cuts (Brrrrrrr and the flourish from the Flourished Frame die set).

 But it was Diana that really did Advent!  Look at this!!

Isn’t this spectacular? The heart in the top of the box makes it easy to add a bow or twine to allow for hanging the box as an ornament.

And here they are on a tree!  Doesn't it make you want to get cutting and decorating?

Share your creations on the Elizabeth Craft Designs Family Facebook Page or on the Quietfire Design Facebook Page.  We'd love to see them!

 Merry Christmas! Suzanne

Thanks for looking!  You may see this blog post on the Elizabeth Craft Designs Blog with additional product links!