Cute as a Bug clean and simple gift bundle of cards

 Now whilst I'm loving using pattern  papers sometimes I want to go a different route.. and today is one such day! With the adorable Cute as a bug papers  scraps littering my creative table I was inspired to look not at the whole sheet but at the smaller bits. There are lots of ways to use scraps, indeed there are many examples on this blog 😉. But this time I was taken by the cute characters and started fussy cutting them out. Now fussy cutting isn't for everyone but I love it! For the non-fussy cutters amongst us I'm happy to report that many of the images on these papers can be die cut using the coordinating dies from the Sweet Bugs bundle 😉

So where did my fussy cutting send me? Well straight for a plain white card base and simple white mat to go on top. I decided to add a little colour behind my images by using a blending brush and a blue/ grey shade of ink. Called cloud cover this colour is a great neutral shade that worked well to ground my characters. 

First up let's me introduce you to knitting Nanny grasshopper...

Isn't she the cutest?

Then there are the bestie beasties having a tea party...

And finally introducing Mr Grateful Grace hopper... who maybe asking a lady grasshopper out ... oh my my imagination went overboard with these characters 🫣🤪

Once I had all 3 cards made I sorted through a variety of stamp sets to find suitable sentiments. The sets I used are Cutest Crew, Nature's symphony and Creative Haven.

I decided to add a little extra to these cards by decorating the envelopes with a piece of pattern paper to the flaps. I also thought it would be fun to make them into a gift . So created a cute tag and bundled them up together.

Wouldn't you be happy to reive this cute cards? I know I would and I had fun making them! They maybe clean and simple on design but they certainly have the wow factor I was inspired to create. 

Who's your favourite? 

Until the next time

Have fun

Cary xx

Cute as a Bug double pop out fun fold card

 Do you like whimsical?  Or slightly retro? Well if you do then you need to take a look at the Cute as a Bug suite collection! The collection offers stamps, dies, ribbon, embellishments and of course beautiful double-sided pattern papers. With a colour palette of retro earthy tones the cute images are brought to life. The paper is called Cute as a Bug and is the key element to today's fun fold card.

The double pop out fun fold card offers lots of space to decorate and these papers are ideal for such a card.

The colours used for this card are basic beige and pumpkin pie.  The soft beige is a perfect foil for the earthy tones in the paper . And the rich orange is just right to continue the retro feel.

The card starts with a piece of cardstock measuring 14cm x 28cm scored at 14cm ( 5½" x 11" scored at 5½") You'll also need a mechanism piece that measures 6cm x 15cm that is scored at 2.5cm, 10.5cm and 13.5cm ( 6" x 2⅜" scored at 1", 4¼" and 5⅜") This piece is also marked at 7.5cm ( 3") top and bottom and scored diagonally from the marks to the 13.5cm (5⅜") marks as shown below.

You're also going to need mats to decorate the inside. The inside right mat is 13.5cm x 13.5cm ( 5¼" x 5¼") with a piece of pattern paper on top measuring 13cm x 13cm ( 5⅛" x 5⅛"). These are adhered to the inside right before the mechanism is added. The left hand inside mat measures 10.5cm x 13.5cm ( 4⅛" x 5¼") with a piece of pattern paper measuring 10cm x 13cm ( 4" x 5⅛"). 

Along with these you'll  need a mat measuring 8.5cm x 13.5cm (5¼" x 3⅜") with a piece of pattern paper measuring 8cm  x 13cm ( 5⅛" x 3⅛") . As well as 2 pieces measuring 6cm x 6cm (2⅜" x 2⅜") which you can add mats of either pattern paper or cardstock measuring 5.5cm x 5.5cm (2⅛" x 2⅛").

Watch the  video below to see how this all comes together.

The finished card stands for display and flat for postage.

Adding a panel on the back of the card gives a great place to add your personal written message.

All the decoration has been either fussy cut or die cut from the fantastic Cute as a Bug pattern papers making sure of a very cohesive look to this card.

Here is the video with the tutorial. 

I do hope you find this useful and have fun creating your own version.

Have fun 😀

Pop out Easter Basket spring card

 Spring is here! The daffodils are abundant,  the daylight is stretching and finally the sun has decided to put in an appearance 🌞. As a child summer was my favourite season but now as a sometimes grown up I love Spring. So what's your favourite season? With a little spring in my step I decided to share a fun pop out card.  This fun fold has a mini card inside that springs out to greet you when you open it! I've chosen to decorate the card with the adorable bunnies from the Easter Basket stamps and dies bundle. Don't be put of by the name the images in this set will work for so many occasions the images are just soooo cute!

The pattern papers used in this sample are from a pack called True Blue Floral.  ( Sadly this product of the month exclusive has sold out in the UK so check your market for availability. )

I've used lots of layers for this project but remember when you make your version you do you! Different colours and different pattern papers make each card as unique as you and the lucky recipient.

The card , as almost all do 😜, starts with a card base made from a piece of cardstock! This one is a larger square card made from a piece measuring 14.5cm x 29cm scored at 14.5cm ( 5½" x 11" scored at 5½").

You're also going to need a piece of cardstock measuring 10cm x 20cm scored at 10cm (4" x 8" scored at 4" .

The mechanism piece is made from a piece of cardstock measuring 5cm x 10cm scored at  1cm, 5cm and 9cm ( 2" x 4" scored at ⅜", 2" and 3⅝"). Next mark along the bottom at 2cm and 8cm ( ¾" and 3¼") Now mark down the center scoreline from the top to 2cm ( ¾"). Next you're going to score diagonally from the center mark out to the 2cm and 8cm ( ¾" and 3¼") marks as shown below.  Please note diagram not to scale and only shows cm's but the inch measurements are above.

Please watch the video further down for how these pieces come together. 

The card is what I call a mantlepiece card. When open it lays flat with the pop out proudly displayed.

Here is the video...

I enjoyed making this card very much and hope you will when you make it too. 😃

Fun fold Easter Time mix and match ephemera card

 This week I'm sharing a fun Easter card. The fun fold is a very easy diorama card.  Created using an firm favourite from my die stash the Everyday Arches dies. These dies are a great Nested set of dies that range from card size down to small sentiment layers.

To decorate the card I have used the Easter Time mix and match ephemera pack. This fun pack contains gorgeous die cut ephemera with each pack containing 2 sheets each of 3 designs.

The images range from specific Easter ones to ones that can be used for Mother's day, new babies,  sympathy and so much more. The colour palette whilst bright isn't brash. 

The colour I chose to use fir the card base is the beautiful shades of purple called gorgeous grape. 

The diorama starts with a solid die cut of the largest of the Everyday Arches dies.  You'll then need 5 frames made by cutting the largest and 3rd largest dies together.  Adhere 2 of the frames together and repeat with another 2 frames.

You'll also need 4 bumper panels. These concertina pieces are made using the same colour cardstock.  Measure the height of the side of the frames straight side. For me this was 8.5cm. Then measure the width of the frame and multiply this by 4. Mine was 0.8cm wide so the piece will be 3.2cm. Next score the stip by the width of the frame 3 times. So for this sample that means scoring at 0.8cm, 1.6cm and 2.4cm. This would change depending on your frame.

The bumpers are adhered between the double layered frame and the solid piece first then the single layer frame, and finally the second double layer frame.

In the video I included 2 strips of acetate between the frames as well to create areas to adhere die cuts to.

Watch the video further down this post to see how it all comes together. 

I die cut a smaller panels in white and adhered it to the back of the card as a place to write the personal message.  Although I couldn't resist using another die cut to decorate it 😃.

A sprinkle of the Easter assortment embellishments, a heat embossed sentiment and the card was complete. 

Here is the video showing how the card is made.

I do hope you enjoy making a version of this project. I'm  thinking of all the Nested dies I have such as the Branching Out dies , the Beautifully Celebrated dies and of course circles and so much more!

Fun pop up box card

 Here in the UK Mother's day is coming up very soon! In fact in just over a weeks time ! So with that and Easter being not to far away as well spring colours and flowers blooming all around my hands just had to reach for the Easter Joy suite which includes these fun papers

As well as these oh so adorable stamps and dies.

There is  also the  fun coordinating Easter time mix and match ephemera. 

I used the Ephemera pack to decorate this version of the fun fold card for a wow Mother's day card.

Once the belly band is removed the fun pop up box is revealed

The card is created by making a cardbase from a piece of cardstock measuring 14.85cm x 21cm scored at 10.5cm ( 5½" x 8½" scored at 4¼") Then adhere mats to the inside before creating the pop up box mechanism. 

The mechanism starts with a piece of cardstock measuring 20cm x 11cm (7½" x 4¼") . Next score along the long edge at 2cm, 6.5cm, 11cm and 15.5cm (½" , 2¼", 4" 5¾")

Then score along the short edge at 4.5cm and 9cm ( 1¾" and 3½")

Now burnish all the scorelines and cut as shown in the diagram below.

To make the box up please watch the video here to see how it goes together. 

For the Mother's day version I have also added a simple bar to adhere ephemera to by taking a 1cm x 7cm (⅜" x 2¾") piece of cardstock and scoring it at 1cm (⅜"). I then adhered this in side the box so that it stretched across the box once in place secured on the inside on one side only. Below is a picture to show how it goes.

Here are some pictures of the card I made during the video.

Aren't these bunnies and chick just the cutest ?

Elegant book card fun fold

Hello and welcome. It's been a while since I've posted but I've been very busy with lots of good things including my annual weekend retreat 😀 But now let's get back to business here! The card I'm sharing today is a bit of a trompe l'oeil. It looks like a 3d book but is actually a card! 

It starts with a piece of cardstock measuring 14.85cm x 10.5cm scored at 2cm and 2.3cm ( 4⅛" x 5½" scored  ⅞" and 1") . 

Next take a piece of the same colour cardstock measuring 17cm x 12.1cm scored at 8.5cm ( 6½" x 4½" scored at 3¼") 

You'll also need a piece of gold foil measuring 2cm x 10cm ( 4" x ⅞") You're going to score randomly along the short side to create the look of pages.

Please!se watch the video below to see how this comes together along with tips and tricks to create the project.

A piece of white cardstock measuring 8cm x 11.6cm ( 3" x 4") for the inside.

Here's the video of the Facebook Live at 5 where I make the card. In the video I also share all the dies I've used to decorate my sample.

I do hope you'll give this fun project a go as it's quite simple but hopefully you'll agree very effective. 

Twist fold card Gobby Haven Beautiful Gallery

 This week it was my son's birthday and I had to make him a card and a gift card holder.my son is 26, 😱 how did that happen! He likes architectural design and very monochromatic colour palettes.  For his card I went with a strong repeat pattern made from cardstock in various shades of teal. But for his gift card holder I went shades of gray with a fun fold that is very architectural in shape. The fold is called a twist fold and is deceptively easy to achieve. The papers I used to decorate it are from a pack of double-sided pattern papers called Beautiful Gallery . At first glance these might not appear to fit the bill but that's the beauty of double-sided papers!

I introduced a pop of colour by chosing not to use white on this gift card holder. The colour used is called pool party and is a pale turquoise.

The project starts with a piece of cardstock measuring 10.5cm x 29.7cm ( 4¼" x 11") scored diagonally from the top left to bottom right corners. Once folded over score at the center point where the cardstock crosses over. Watch the video below to see how this is achieved.

To decorate cut a piece of pattern paper measuring 10cm x 12.5cm ( 4" x 4½") then mark at 5cm ( 2") and cut diagonally from the mark to the opposite bottom corner. Top tip make sure to check the paper is the side up you want to see uppermost and that the pattern runs true.

Next take a piece of pattern paper measuring 14.4cm x 5cm (2" x 5½") and cut diagonally.  If you're using a directional paper you may need to cut 2 pieces.

You're also going to need either another piece of pattern paper or a piece of cardstock to go on the inside. This piece is cut exactly as the front pattern paper above.

The sentiments are from a set called Fabulous Sayings. The foliage pieces are from a die set called Beautiful Motifs. The inside pocket fits a gift card perfectly 👌 or of course you could add a tag or just write your message here. 

Next I made another version of this fold following a suggestion made by the lovely Kay on my Facebook live. 

To decorate I used the fun Hobby Haven pattern papers and the fun die cut elements included in the packet.

Kay suggested turning the card so that it was in a portrait orientation.  So here it is...

It stands very well.

It can still be used as a gift card holder. Although I would suggest using a glue dot to hold it in place securely for delivery.

Here you can see that there is plenty of space to either place further decoration or write your message.

Which layout do you prefer?  Landscape?  Or portrait?  I like both!

Here is the video showing how I made the card