Today's the day! Penni and I welcome you to our new blog series. You guys seemed to really like the projects and tips in our Excellent (Halloween) Adventure, in honor of my BFF's birthday and fave holiday, so this time we've created five Real-Life (Valentine) Crafting Adventures for you, in honor of MY birthday and fave holiday!
We'll be using NON-Valentine-specific stamp sets to create real-life papercrafting projects you can make in 30 minutes or less, with tools you have on hand. We'll share bargain-hunting tips, time-saving tricks, and unique layout ideas to turn stamps into cute Valentine projects without spending an arm and a leg. We hope you really enjoy this week of collaboration!
So let's get on to the projects!
Valentine's Day, like Halloween, is a holiday that is ALL about the candy, so our first projects are candy containers. This is where our Big Shots really shine; we used the Mini Treat Bag Thinlets and the hexagonal Window Box Thinlets (by Sizzix exclusively for Stampin' Up!). Any box or bag can be turned into a Valentine treat in a jiffy, however, just by using a red and white color scheme.
Real-Life Tips & Tricks #1: Throughout our blog series you will see ordinary papercrafting supplies and non-Valentine stamp sets that perfectly play the part, and the secret is the color scheme! Stick with red and white and your project will "say" Valentine even if you don't own any specifically Valentine products. Penni used the Sweet Stack stamp set on her treat bag–a great set that works year-round for all kinds of projects. I used the Irresistibly Floral specialty papers and Real Red ink pad to create the colored patterned paper I needed.
PS–We also both used the Sending Love Designer Series Paper Stack, which admittedly IS designed for Valentines–BUT the cute patterns work great for any time of the year. I even used some of this stack on this Christmas card last month!
Real-Life Tips & Tricks #2: I know you're wondering how to do that fun curly topper on our hexagon window box! You can do this at home with any ribbon IF it has synthetic fibers in it (most modern ribbon does). It needs to be able to melt a little, and natural fibers like cotton or silk won't do that. The Whisper White Organza Ribbon works especially well for this technique.
- Wrap your ribbon loosely around a wooden stick or dowel (we used the handle of a paintbrush).
- Wave your Heat Tool over it slowly from one end to the other, always keeping it moving.
- You may not actually SEE anything happening, but it's acting like a curling iron!
- Slide curled ribbon off the dowel and trim ends at an angle to prevent ravelling.
- If it's not curly, it didn't get enough heat. Re-wrap and try again with the heat tool a little closer.
To make our topper, we used four curls approximately 5-inches long to tie together with baker's twine. Fun and EASY! Fancy ribbon turns and everyday gift box into something really special for Valentine's day.
Our other hexagonal box has a great little heart-shaped folded gift tag that was SO quick–you're going to love this tip and use it ALL the time! we used the Sweetheart Punch for this shape.
Real-Life Tips & Tricks #3: Fold a piece of patterned paper in half (cardstock also works BUT your punch needs to be strong enough to go through two layers simultaneously) and slide it into your heart punch. Position the fold of the paper along the left hand side of the punch, so that when you punch, it will leave a small area of the fold un-cut. PS–this trick only works with open-bottomed punches like the ones from Stampin' Up, where you can clearly see for placement.
Remove the piece from the punch and use a 1/8th inch hand-held punch to make a hole to tie it to your project with twine. You can use this tip to make folded gift tags with ANY shape of punch OR die-cut! If it can go through two layers at once, it can be made into a tag.
That's it for Day One! Penni and I can't wait to share more real-life papercrafting tips with you tomorrow! Leave us a comment if you learned something new today that you might use on your own craft projects this holiday. Thanks for stopping in!
I never thought of making a folded tag with punches and dies – I love that idea! And what a pretty, blinged-up circle tag. I love that circle of rhinestones with the three hearts in the middle. I think I need to find more people to give valentines to because I want to make your projects!
Oh yay! I have been looking forward to this series since the Halloween adventures ended 🙂 I love day one’s projects – they are gorgeous without being over-the-top valentine-specific. I love the tip about curling ribbon, I definitely want to try that one. I had heard you could curl by baking, but using the heat tool would be much easier to do on the fly in my craft room! Can’t wait to see all your fun projects this week.
oh my goodness…..just LOVE using things I already have to create NEW things. Like the punch tags…You are a genius….
I really appreciate these tips! The projects are beautiful too!
Thanks Lyssa!
Thanks for the tip on how to curl ribbon! It looks really pretty.
Très jolies boites, le papier est magnifiqque. Bonne journée.
Love all these projects — from the cute and whimsical to the elegant bows. Thanks so much for sharing!
You have the best ideas. You are so talented. Love the curl
I LOVE these ideas! The ribbon tip is AWESOME!!! Thanks for these ideas.
Can’t decide which tip I like best…the curls or the tags!
Love the curly ribbon idea!
WOW – great tips for the ribbon and heart gift tag! Love these projects.
Such cute ideas! I love the curly ribbon!
Great projects…love the curled ribbon – what a great idea!
The heart gift tag and the curly ribbon are great tips. Thanks
Loved the curly ribbon tip and the punch tag tip!
Again, fun projects. Something about that white little treat bag and the red hearts is really saying, make me! So, off I go to find the stuff to make some. I bet I can figure out someone who would love one of these!
That ribbon curling trick is the bomb!! I have got to use that idea!! Thank you so much.
What a great series! I usually read your blog every day, but have down and out with a stomach bug. What a great treat to get me inspired now that I am better. I really like the hexagon box. But the tags have really caught my fancy. So simple and effective for a small treat . Can’t wait to see the rest.
I love the curly ribbon! Thanks for sharing how to make this!