Hello everyone, and welcome to the last Designer Challenge of this year. For this month’s challenge we chose a theme that fits the new year: Make a unique calendar that gets the year 2016 off to a creative start! This could be a calendar for just the month of January, a page per week or month, or the entire year all on one sheet. Let’s see what our designers created!
Judi Kauffman’s calendar project was shown on the Elizabeth Craft Designs blog on December 28. She incorporated Fire Opal Shimmer Sheetz, Els van de Burgt Studio Ribbons 1 dies, an optional clipboard topper from a Tags & More set, and Through the Lens 6×6 papers from the Metal Series pack. After you have taken a gander at the projects shown below, head on back and check it out HERE.
This beautiful accordion calendar was created by Frances Byrne using a combination of new dies from the Karen Burniston Pop it Ups and Joset Designs collections. To create the accordion calendar she used the new Oval Landscape and the new Trellis Wavy Frames. For the page with the calendar she used the Gift Card Accordion from Karen’s previous release. To decorate the calendar the new Joset Designs Shells Large and Banners were used and the Els van de Burgt Studio Numbers & More 1. Find instructions on Frances’s Blog HERE.
Marsha Valk bought a Filofax agenda and created colorful tabs using stencils, dies, embossing folders and her Gelli Arts gel printing plate. She also created a tab to keep sticky notes. Love how she used the new Els van de Burgt Studio Fitted Frames 5 – Lace Circles to create stencils and the Joset Designs Banners to create tabs. For more info on how to create these colorful pages, visit Marsha’s blog HERE.
Jackeline Hernandez created a Stand Up Helper calendar using the new Joset Designs Banners and patterned paper from the Els van de Burgt Studio Through the Lens Wood Series. She also used the new Els van de Burgt Studio Ropes 1 and Stitched Squares and previously-released Numbers & More 1. For more info, visit Jackeline’s blog HERE.
Angela Beavers created her own agenda using a combination of dies from the Els van de Burgt Studio collection. She used the Fitted Frames 2 Lace Squares, Tags & More 7 Vine, Tags & More 8 Lattice and the Alphabet 2 Lower Case. She created pages for photos and notes and different tags. Love how each page is unique. See it all on Angela’s blog HERE.And
Hi Y’all, Robyn here of RainbowWeaves , excited to be guest designing for the Elizabeth Craft Designs blog, sharing with you the new A Way With Words die set designed by Suzanne Cannon of Quietfire Design,. It celebrates my love for Artist Trading Cards (ATCs).
The 2 ½ x 3 ½ size limit sparks my creative imagination and can simply highlight a beautiful sentiment or focal image. They are also a great way to use up small stash scraps.
ATCs are only gifted or traded, never sold, fostering artistic and cultural exchange and world peace.
The New Year is a wonderful time to party, so why not give a tiny piece of art as an invitation. There is plenty of room to write all the particulars on the back.
I bet you can’t make just one! And it doesn’t take long if you want to make a bunch.
Instructions
Trim Soft Finish Cardstock to 2 ½ x 3 ½ inches.
Remove one side of the cover paper of Clear Double Sided Adhesive and adhere to the back of patterned paper and trim to 2 ½ x 3 ½ inches.
Remove the other cover paper and adhere the patterned paper to the Soft Finish Cardstock.
Removing the cover paper a bit at a time, carefully place 1/4 inch Clear Double Sided Adhesive to the edges of the ATC, leaving a bit to overlap. These photos are of another ATC and the process is the same.
Press down well on the cover paper, before you remove it, and cut off any excess on the edges of the card.
Remove the cover paper and place the card in your glitter box. (Els has a video on this.)
Sprinkle Silver Silk Microfine Glitter onto the border and rub in with your finger to polish. Wipe the card with a Swiffer sheet to remove excess glitter.
Removing one side of the cover paper, place Clear Double Sided Adhesive Sheet on both sides of a piece of fun foam.
Die cut, It’s a Party die from the fun foam, running through a couple of times to ensure a clean cut through all of the layers.
Position the die cut before you remove the backing paper to check the placement.
Remove the cover paper on the back and carefully adhere the die cut to the card. Press down well.
Remove the cover paper and place card in the glitter box and sprinkle the Green Silk Microfine Glitter on the die cut.
Polish the glitter with your finger and remove excess glitter with the Swiffer sheet.
Use a hole punch to cut small dots from Clear Double Sided Adhesive Sheet.
Position the dots, then remove the cover paper, working one at a time, and adhere to the card. Layering dots will give you some extra dimension.
Place the card in the glitter box, apply glitter to the dots, polish, and remove excess glitter with the Swiffer sheet.
ADMIRE!
I couldn’t make just one! These are embossed with embossing folders.
Word ‘Faith’ was die cut from Velvet Adhesive Sheet and embellished with some peel-off stickers.
Use a rubber mallet instead of the usual machine to selectively emboss.
The theme for the December 2015 Designers’ Challenge is an item that is near and dear to my heart: Calendars! I love having calendars all around the house. At any given time there are at least five or six in various spots. So why is it so difficult for me to remember what day it is? Oh well…
As soon as we got the Challenge theme I knew I wanted to put some of the new Els van de Burgt Studio ‘Through the Lens’ 6×6 papers into my project. And I knew right away that I wanted to design a calendar to hang on the bulletin board next to my computer desk, the one I look at many times a day. I picked the Metal Series pack.
If you want to make a simpler version of this calendar all you need to do is tape two square sheets together, reinforce the top and bottom with contrasting strips to add stability, top with a calendar, punch a hole at the top for hanging. Done!
I took things a lot further as you’ll see in the instructions. Pattern-on-pattern and lots of embellishments is my idea of heaven…
Tip: Take your time. Arrange, rotate, and rearrange the papers till you get a combination you want. Be very INTENTIONAL in your choices, how you position the papers, and what you do for embellishments.
Options:
*Instead of a calendar with all of the months shown at once, use a calendar pad with one month showing at a time.
*Go for a jumbo calendar and use four squares instead of two with a finished size of 12” x 12” instead of 6” wide x 12.5” long.
*Create smaller calendars using Tags & More die sets for shaped backgrounds.
Instructions:
Choose 4 or more ‘Through the Lens’ papers that coordinate and please your eye. Choose 2 papers to leave whole; one for the top half of the calendar, the other for the bottom half. If you want to duplicate my project precisely as shown, choose the two pieces from the Metal Series pack that star in my project – one with a dark band that looks like a rusty old iron chain made of bent nails, one with a bent rusty metal piece with curves and twists. Both of these elements are oriented so they are strong horizontal bands. (With papers in hand it will be easy to match what I did.)
Cut a 4” x 6” piece from another paper and back with Clear Double Sided Adhesive Sheet. Cut the rectangle into three strips: one 1” x 6” strip and two 1.5” x 6” strips.
Use the 1” x 6” strip on the back to join the two 6” x 6” squares. This strip becomes a decorative element on the back of the finished calendar.
Score and fold the 1.5” x 6” strips lengthwise. Use them as a binding to reinforce the top and bottom of the calendar (like binding on a quilt or blanket). Overlap ONLY .25” of the main squares so very little of the pattern is covered.
Mat a 3.5” x 4.5” calendar with a double border made from two more of the Metal Series papers.
Place the joined papers on a cutting mat and use a craft knife to carefully fussy-cut some of the curved areas at the bottom of the dark metal section (midway down the top paper) so the matted calendar can be tucked beneath it as shown in the photos above and below. Use Clear Double Sided Adhesive Tape to secure the calendar in place.
7. Back three .5” x 6” pieces of Fire Opal Gemstone Shimmer Sheetz and one 2.5” x 1.75” piece of Gold Metallic Shimmer Sheetz with Clear Double Sided Adhesive Tape. Also cut another 2.5” x 1.75” piece of Gold Metallic Shimmer Sheetz (not backed with Adhesive).
8. Die cut three Ribbon strips from Fire Opal Gemstone – two with narrow rectangular holes, one with oval holes. Keep the little pieces that fall out of the negative spaces in the die on a piece of waxed paper or a non-stick craft sheet. See photo above: You will be using the longer narrow pieces to create faux staples in step 9.) There are 5 dies in the Ribbons 1 set, only 2 used for this project. A Metal Adaptor Plate is required for die cutting Shimmer Sheetz. (Reminder: *Review Els van de Burgt’s YouTube tutorial if you are new to this technique, the cutting side of the die must face the metal plate with the Shimmer Sheetz facing UP in between the die and plate.)
9. Lightly sand the adhesive-backed Gold Metallic Shimmer Sheetz to tone down the shine. Die cut one clipboard-style hanger piece from this Shimmer Sheetz and a second one from the Gold piece that does not have adhesive. Attach the Gold pieces (back to back) at the top of the calendar, centered, as shown in the photo below – adhesive-backed piece on the front. (The clipboard hanger piece is from the Tags & More 8/Lattice die set. If you have other Tags & More die sets, die cut a .25” hole and substitute a different decorative reinforcement to surround the hole at the top of the calendar).
Add three pieces of Gold Foil Chevron Washi Tape measuring 1.25” – 1.5”, randomly cut, to the top and bottom bands and one piece on each side of the calendar. To create the faux staples, add lots of the little rectangular pieces of adhesive-backed Fire Opal Gemstone Shimmer Sheetz (that were set aside in step 7) between the pieces of Washi Tape along the top and bottom bands, and around the outside of the matted calendar. The tape and faux staples appear to be holding the project together but they’re purely decorative! (Keep the little oval leftover pieces for another project.)
I hope that you enjoyed this tutorial and get busy making your own calendars with ‘faux staples’ and Shimmer Sheetz Ribbons! Don’t forget to check the Elizabeth Craft Designs Blog on the 31st for more December Designers’ Challenge calendar theme projects.
It’s Wanda here and I hope you are having a wonderful day! Unexpectedly (and we are thrilled) our daughter has made it home for Christmas and our youngest son is here today. We celebrated last night with our oldest son who got married this year.
It seems fitting to share a Christmas project on Christmas Day. I’ve made a card but this design could easily translate to a small canvas or home décor project. The card itself could even be framed.
How I created the card:
1) Cut 2 pieces of Soft Finish Cardstock – One 5 ½” x 8 ½” and fold it in half for the base card – One 4” x 5 ¼” to layer and ink this piece with both Distress Inks, focusing Cracked Pistachio in the upper left corner and Festive Berries around all the other edges. Attach layer to card.
2) Tear music from an old (rescued, damaged) hymnal, paint with Picket Fence Distress Paint, dry; paint again and dry. This mutes the writing and sends it to the background.
3) Emboss music paper, ink with Cracked Pistachio going darker in the upper left corner, flick with Festive Berries Ink in the lighter areas and blot off. Attach music paper to card.
4) Die cut 3 sets of the poinsettia leaves (complete flowers and extra leaves) plus 3 more large extra leaves from Soft Finish Cardstock. Ink edges of one complete flower and 3 large extra leaves with Cracked Pistachio. Ink edges of two complete flowers and all other extra leaves with Festive Berries. Shape leaves from the back using shaping mat and tools. Attach three complete flowers together with small brad. Spray assembled complete flowers and extra leaves with Perfect Pearls Mist; dry.
5) Attach flower to card and glue in extra leaves with gel medium.
6) Cut Love and Exclamation Point from Shimmer Sheetz backed with Clear Double Sided Adhesive. Reminder: a Metal Adapter Plate must be used to cut Shimmer Sheetz. Els has a video regarding this HERE. Attach pieces to card as shown.
7) Color gumdrop with Sunshine Yellow Alcohol Ink. When dry glue to poinsettia with gel medium.
It’s Judi Kauffman, back as guest designer on the blog. Today, it’s all about the ‘bling’ – a pair of cards to tell a friend ‘You R a Gem!’
I created this duo to help introduce Els van de Burgt Studio Chains 1 and Stitched Circles dies. It’s a peek at two of the sets that will debut at CHA, the annual trade show in Anaheim, January 2016.
They’re sized for a #10 business envelope; long, narrow cards, one with a left-side fold, one with a top-fold. This shape provides lots of space for chains, bracelets, and charms or a big, glitzy pendant!
Only 3 easy steps – Cut, Arrange, Embellish:
Cut. Back Gold Metallic Shimmer Sheetz with Clear Double Sided Adhesive Tape and die cut the Chains 1 strips needed for each card and a Stitched Circle (smallest in the set) for each pendant card. Reminder: A Metal Adaptor Plate is required for die cutting Shimmer Sheetz. Review Els van de Burgt’s YouTube video HERE if you are new to this technique.
Arrange. To make the pendant card: Position the two chains and circle on a vertical side-fold card base measuring 4.25” x 9.25”. To make the necklace and bracelets card: Position the chains as shown, on the diagonal, on a piece of cardstock measuring 9” x 3.5”. Crop chains at the edges as needed. Add the rectangle to a 4.25” x 9.25” horizontal top-fold card base made from contrasting cardstock.
Embellish. Add assorted flat-backed gems to the pendant, bracelets and necklace. If gems are not adhesive-backed, use tiny pieces of Clear Double Sided Adhesive Tape to secure them. Complete the cards by spelling out the words ‘You R a Gem’ in fine scale curly, curvy purchased alphabet stickers. Other options: Die cut or hand-letter the sentiment.
Hello, it’s Diana and I am so excited to share a card with you on the Elizabeth Craft Designs blog! I love clean and simple cards and the new A Way with Words dies by Suzanne Cannon are just perfect for them. With such beautiful lettering and elegant flourishes, you just don’t need much more to make a stunning card. Here are some quick and easy steps to recreating my “Merci” card:
Die cut A Way With Words “Merci” out of white card stock 3 times and glue the stack together.
Sponge a 4 1/8″ x 5 3/8 inch rectangle of white card stock in one corner with Distress Inks.
Splatter with water just a bit.
Let dry and then adhere the Merci stack.
Die cut the base of the bird (silhouette shape) from cardstock sponged in the same colors.
Die cut the top of the bird (decorative overlay) in white card and adhere to the colored base.
Pop up the bird next to the Merci.
Punch opposite corners with a corner rounder.
Use foam tape to pop up layer on white card base.
Tip: There are now 4 ways to express gratitude with A Way With Words dies: Merci, Danke, Thanks (1 die with flourishes and initial cap) and thank you (2 dies with flourishes, lower case).
Hi, it’s Karen Burniston with the December Pop it Ups Designer Challenge. Each month I challenge my Designer Challenge team to use Pop it Ups dies for a specific theme. This month the theme is to interpret the phrase Home for the Holidays. The team will definitely put you in the holiday spirit with their beautiful creations, celebrating the warmth of home and those special memories we create with the people we love.
For my card and video I wanted to celebrate Santa’s arrival by creating a pop-up fireplace with dangling boots. The Props 6 cowboy boot dies work just perfectly (with slight modifications) to make Santa’s boots and also to make stockings for the front of the hearth. The fireplace itself is made using the Lots of Pops die, plus an added hand-scored insert strip to line the fireplace and hold the boots. Learn all the steps to making your own fireplace card by watching this video tutorial:
Because the fireplace is bulky and will want to spring the card open, I chose to create a magnetic fold-over flap at the bottom to keep the card closed. I used the Props 5 Santa hat sticking out of the chimney top for the front of the card plus a strip of “Merry Christmas” washi tape across the flap.
When the card is opened the fireplace pops up and Santa’s boots dangle in the fireplace. Other decorations include a candle made from the lower portion of the Lots of Pops pole plus a flame, greenery and berries from the Els van de Burgt Studio Candle die set. Santa’s boots and the stockings are made by snipping away the toe of the cowboy boot (and the heel for the stockings) and then creating a cuff with one of the banners in the Lots of Pops die. The two stars that come included with the Props 6 set layer nicely in Shimmer Sheetz to create the star garland. Rudy the Reindeer’s wreath is glued to the wall behind the candle with a Shimmer Sheetz mirror inlaid inside the wreath to reflect the candle. No Santa card would be complete with the word “Believe” and the Quietfire calligraphy die was the perfect choice.
Here is a side view of the card showing how the boots are hanging inside the fireplace. It’s a very easy technique and the video shows how to do it. I also created a very simple box platform from cardstock for behind the candle. As I say in the video, the decorations for the fireplace are completely up to you. Dig around in your stash and see what you have. Could you make a plate of cookies? A glass of milk? How about ornaments, greenery and lights atop the mantel? Personalize the card by writing names on the stockings.
The finished card measures 5.5″ wide by just under 5″ tall and can be mailed in an A7 envelope. Extra postage will be required because of its thickness.
Ready to make your own Santa’s arrival card? Here’s what you’ll need:
Elizabeth Craft Designs Supplies
Lots of Pops (platforms, boot/stocking cuffs, candle)
Gray, white, black, brown, metallic brown, green & 3 similar red cardstock colors
Basic Grey patterned papers
Gold thread
Scoring Board
Fineline bottle filled with Lineco pH neutral adhesive (or similar fine glue pen/bottle)
Washi tapes
Black Soot Distress Ink and Blending Tool
Strong magnets (Basic Grey or K&J Magnetics)
Crop-a-dile or 3/16″ hole punch
Let’s see how the talented Designer Challenge Team welcomes us home for the holidays. If you’re new to a Designer Challenge post, each designer’s name is a direct link to their blog post for this challenge. Clicking their names will open a new window, so click as you go to open up the windows and see more information, photos, instructions, supply lists, etc. for all your favorite cards.
Frances Byrne created this cozy holiday home using the Adirondack Chair Pop Up plus a host of other decorator dies from various sets. The Holiday House and Outdoor Edges combine for a festive card front and the Merry & Bright Clear Stamps create the greeting. I love how she made the calendar!
Fran Sabad went to the country for this amazing Home for the Holidays creation. She assembled several Characters for the card front, including Brownie the Cow, Cheepers the Chicken, Jolly the Mouse, Snowball the Sheep and William the Goat. The background is the Outdoor Edges and she also used presents from the Sleigh die and the Props 5 Santa outfit.
Open the card and the garland (made from Rudy the Reindeer’s wreath) carries inside where Cocoa the Horse uses it to decorate the barn. I mean brilliant! Fabulous card!
Caz Counsell interpreted the theme a little differently for her project. She wanted to use Pop it Ups to decorate her own Home for the Holidays. Perfect! It’s a great project, too, with Gift Card Accordion pages (embellished with Flourish Gift Frames) strung together with Rudy the Reindeer, Fancy and Katie Labels. Love it!
Karen Aicken really set a wintry scene with this soft pretty card combining the Christmas Trees Pop Stand die with the Holiday House die. By using a pop stand in the center, Karen was able to animate the house just like the trees. I want to visit this house for sure!
Sandy Diller says “Merry Christmas, Ma’am!” with this mighty fine western holiday landscape. She created a floating floor inside the card to allow for the Holiday House, Christmas Tree and Fence dies to be animated in different locations. I love the siding on the Holiday House with the barn front door. Perfection!
Raquel Mason will make you go Awwww! with this adorable mouse house. She used the Barn Pop Stand, also with a floating floor so she could animate items throughout the card. Jolly the Mouse wears the Santa Props 5 and the Holiday House die’s door and string of lights work perfectly to give Jolly’s home a festive feel!
Summer Hills-Painter made a mansion from the Holiday House on this festive card featuring the Flourish Gift Frame for the front of the card and the Merry Christmas pop up inside. I love the doubled window, traditional colors and crisp, classy feel of this card.
Kelly Booth wanted to welcome friends and family home for the holidays with a festive front door. She created it on the Rectangle Pull Card and cleverly combined decorator Katie labels and ovals for the trim and used the slot die from the upcoming Oval Pull Card for the door handle. The new Pull Card Edges allow for shadowed paper placement and Kelly used Rudy the Reindeer for door decor. I also love how she stacked up several cuts on the Merry Christmas to make a faux-chipboard greeting.
Fran Sabad created a mousey wonderland! Jolly and his neighbor meet to go a’caroling outside their picture perfect brick houses. The structure is the House Pivot Card with the tripling technique and Fran also added many accessory dies to set the scene. Fa la la la fun!
Helen Cryer is the queen of pop-up gingerbread house cards and this card certainly shows why! She used the Holiday House die, expanded into a gingerbread mansion, on pop stand dies to make a standing pop-up scene. Absolutely gorgeous! Helen is taking a break from the team to focus on a very exciting new adventure – she’s a new Fire Fighter! How cool is that?! We will miss her on the team, but hopefully we can convince her to do some guest spots with us in 2016. Congratulations, Helen!
Shelly Hickox made this beautiful woodland inviting scene, complete with Holiday House turned log cabin, shrink plastic Rudy antlers (adorable!) and Evergreen Pivot trees turned into stamps, textured with real foliage! See a video of this card opening and closing on her blog plus read all her tips for making this card.
Caz Counsell created a very fun card front featuring Jolly the Mouse, contentedly sleeping in his cozy nest. Caz joked that perhaps Jolly had indulged a bit at the holiday party, or perhaps he is dreaming of sugarplums. I love how Caz created the frame using the Circle Accordion and then ringed it with the Els van de Burgt Studio Leaves & Berry Branches for the perfect little nest.
Karen Aicken made this wonderful tri-panel card featuring the Evergreen Pivot Card. She added the extra flap to the right side of the card that opens up to reveal the Holiday House, a prancing reindeer from the Merry & Bright Clear Stamps, and a sweet greeting. Such a clever card design and so elegantly pretty.
Frances Byrne made a ton of clever adaptations in this fun gingerbread house standing card. By turning the Rectangle Pull Card sideways it becomes a cool standing card. Frances created a gingerbread man by combining pieces of two Character dies. So many great ideas in this card!
Kelly Booth made this sweet card using the Holiday House to decorate the front of the card and the Christmas Trees Pop Stand die inside. I just love the crisp colors and textured styling to everything. Check out her blog to see a flat card made with the Holiday House die as well.
Sandy Diller made this cute little decor piece using two brand new dies shipping in January. She used a new Character die, Baker the Beaver, and the fun Props 8 set, which included the Chef’s hat, heart, spatula, slice of cake and fork. Awww. Bakers gotta bake!
It’s hard to believe that another wonderful year with Elizabeth Craft Designs is almost over. The company has grown by leaps and bounds this year and in just a few short weeks we’ll be at CHA (January 9-12, 2016) debuting many great new collections that you can preview right now in the Coming Soon section of the website.
Join us for our first Designer Challenge in the New Year on Wednesday, January 20, 2016 where we have a wide open theme called NEW! We’ll be showing you all sorts of great ideas using brand new products released at CHA. Pop it Ups Designer Challenges are moving to my blog in 2016. January will be the standard format, but look for a new style of challenges starting in February. (More on that later!)
Have a wonderful holiday season and Happy Crafting,
For a long time I had an idea and a dream: To someday turn my collection of close-up photos of textures into printed papers! Well, it turns out that dreams DO come true and my Through the Lens patterned paper pack series is now a reality, part of the exciting new Els van de Burgt Studio product release taking place at the Craft and Hobby Association (CHA) show in California in early January. And this project is a sneak peek at sheets from the pack called ‘Wood Series’ – Forty-eight 6×6 sheets (80lb/220gr), 16 designs, 3 sheets per design. Please check out the other two packs, Stone Series and Metal Series, too, as they were designed to coordinate with each other.
Of course, I’m sure that what you noticed first about the project was not wood grain, or even the ropes and hearts. I know it is my granddaughter Annika’s face that caught your eye! And that was precisely my goal with the project: To show how easy it is to mix textures in Through the Lens papers to create frames and backgrounds for the focal photo.
In addition to Through the Lens papers, the project also incorporates the new Ropes die set (4 different dies), Fitted Rectangles and Stitched Rectangles dies from the new release, as well as hearts from Ornament Set 5 that came out a few months back. My dies have always been designed to mix and match, to combine and collect. Dies you bought years ago, whatever you choose now and in the future will always be easy to coordinate because I design them for maximum versatility. It’s like how I furnish my home and organize my studio: New things and old things getting together.
Because no two people will have the same photos to showcase, my instructions are written with tips on how to alter and customize the project. Here’s how it works…
Instructions:
Choose a focal photo. Use a vertical rectangle as shown. Other options – Circles, ovals, squares.
Choose Through the Lens papers in 3 different coordinating patterns that compliment the photo. I love the contrast that a black and white photo offers, but color photos work well with Through the Lens papers, too.
Choose 2 Fitted Rectangles and 1 Stitched Rectangles dies that fit one inside the other. Starting with the smallest of the three, die cut the photo print. From two different Through the Lens papers die cut a Stitched Rectangle for the first border (the wider, inner mat) and a Fitted Rectangle for the second border (a narrower mat). Use Clear Double Sided Adhesive Tape to adhere the layers. Alternatively, die cut the photo and two mats using Fitted and Stitched Squares, Ovals or Circles dies.
Again using Clear Double Sided Adhesive Tape, adhere the double-bordered photo to the third 6×6 Through the Lens paper. Adhere to an 8×8 square of coordinating solid color cardstock.
Die cut 4 Ropes strips from Soft Finish Cardstock backed with Clear Double Sided Adhesive Tape prior to cutting, 5 heart charms cut from Through the Lens papers and 3 heart charms cut from Gold Metallic Shimmer Sheetz that has been lightly sanded. (Hearts are not backed with adhesive.) Reminder: A Metal Adaptor Plate is required for die cutting Shimmer Sheetz. View my video tutorial HERE if you are new to this technique. Use Distress Ink to lightly ink the edges of the Ropes strips and bring out the embossed details.
Use twine to tie heart charms to the rope that has open areas (the strip that looks something like a chain). Layer and overlap the hearts as shown.
Assemble the project with 1 rope as a horizontal element across the bottom of the photo (positioned so that the rope curves upward and an unraveled end stops at the right side as shown) and 3 ropes (including the one with hearts) as vertical elements toward the left, overlapping for added interest. Make sure that the hearts ‘dance’ and are not hanging straight down. They are grouped at angles to the left, then right, left then right again.
Mat and frame the project. (I chose a simple and inexpensive standard 8×8 frame.) Options: Add the page to an 8×8 scrapbook. Back it with chipboard and display on a bulletin board or easel. Add flat magnets and put it on the fridge!
I can’t wait to make more projects featuring Annika! I’m having so much fun with my dream-come-true Through the Lens paper packs! And I can’t wait to see what you create, too, so be sure to join the Elizabeth Craft Designs Facebook Family so you can post your projects for the community to see.
We’re bursting with excitement! Elizabeth Craft Designs’ 5 talented designers have created new dies, stamps, stencils, embossing folders, and papers for you to enjoy!
The Sneak Peek begins today and continues in the coming weeks, here on the blog as well as via Facebook. The official product launch takes place in January at the CHA (Craft & Hobby Association) Mega Show in Anaheim, California. Many stores are already pre-ordering with us, so you won’t have too long to wait. And if you can’t find what you want at your local retailer, our online store will be fully stocked. Keep an eye on our blog on Tuesday, December 15th for some extra exciting information!
Els van de Burgt Studio
Els has expanded her endlessly versatile Fitted Frames series with ovals and circles, circles shown above. And there’s more: She has also designed a series of three 6×6 paper packs called Through the Lens, based on her own photography! Wood. Metal. Stone. It’s all about close-ups, and textures that have caught her eye. Each pack holds 48 sheets, 16 designs (3 sheets per design), for cards, for scrapbooks, for any kind of project. She has also created must-have ribbon, chain, rope and jewelry dies, along with some amazing decorative corners that you’ll be seeing in the coming days and weeks, so be sure to stay tuned on our blog and Facebook page…
Karen Burniston Pop it Ups
Two new collections with so much to love! Karen Burniston isn’t monkeying around. Or maybe she is…We just know that the High Jinks Collection with its clear stamps, Jinks the Monkey (one of the two new Characters), the Bananas embossing folder and the rest of the collection is sure to please. You’ll have to wait just a bit to meet Coffee & Cake, the second collection, but not too long – it’s all coming soon, we promise. Meanwhile, HERE is a link to a YouTube video for the High Jinks card.
Joset Designs
Just like the words you see on the cards above, Joset Designs’ new dies by Joset van de Burgt are yummy and sweet; happy, fun dies that celebrate life’s occasions, both big and small. Who doesn’t love strawberries, especially when they are chocolate-coated? And her banner dies will make everybody’s short list, for sure. Be on the lookout for hot air balloons, rainbow, sun and clouds, kites, cupcakes and more!
Susan’s Garden Club
Susan Tierney-Cockburn (‘Co-burn’) continues to amaze, with her garden growing more and more each season. How come there are no weeds? Oh well… We can create paper flowers with her new Garden Notes dies like the low-relief daffodil shown above in a Stitched Oval and make wreaths that never wilt and are perfect for any season! There are three wreath shapes in her new release: Oval, Square, and Circle. The oval is above, the others are equally wonderful. Susan’s adding a brand new Garden Edges collection, the CountryScapes series is expanding, and there are new Seeds of Thought red rubber stamps as well. You’ll see these and more as the Sneak Peek continues.
A Way With Words
Let’s All Celebrate! You asked for more and Suzanne Cannon has met the challenge. Her new release comes directly from her pen and ink hand-lettering, calligraphy that is magically transformed into elegant, amazing cutting dies. In addition to Celebrate, you’ll find Calligraphic Elements (an exclamation point, shown in the card above, plus flourishes), Thank You (in English, German, and French), It’s a Party, Live, Love, Laugh…and…and…we don’t want to spoil the surprise, but we can say with full certitude that there is a lot to love. As always, the dies are big enough to star on card fronts, and perfect for mixing and matching with dies from all of the other designers’ collections. A detail to note: The colorful strings on Suzanne’s balloons.
We hope you are excited for us to reveal the full details very, very soon. You might want to keep an eye on this section of our website too…
Thank you for inviting me to be today’s guest designer. I thought it would be fun to make cards with candles, and as always I wanted to play with unexpected colors and a lot of patterned elements – the candles themselves, along with background papers.
To me, candles always conjure up some kind of celebration, twinkling lights and good times. It was fun to decide which of Elizabeth Craft Designs’ candles to use for my projects. There are several options including dies and peel-offs. I chose Candles Peel-offs 2545 for my three cards because of all of the stripes and dots. I made a card for our goddaughter’s husband’s 40th birthday, one for their children for Chanukah, and one for a neighbor for Christmas.
There are a dozen candles on each sheet of Peel-Off Stickers, and of course with dies there is no limit to the number you can make.
Design Strategies and Instructions:
Place candle peel-offs on smooth white cardstock; color with markers. Use fine point scissors to cut out the candles, taking special care around the flame and wick. Candle peel-offs come in black, gold, and silver – pick the color appropriate to the project. Option: Add a Glitter Dot peel-off to the base of each flame. (As shown, Orange/Silver dots used on birthday and Chanukah cards.)
For the birthday card and Christmas card, die cut a large greeting from Shimmer Sheetz. Options: Lightly sand the Shimmer Sheetz before cutting, cut the greeting a second time from Adhesive Velvet in a darker color to use as a drop shadow as shown on the birthday card. A Metal Adaptor Plate is required for die cutting Shimmer Sheetz. Review Els van de Burgt’s video’s HERE and HERE if you are new to this technique.
For the birthday card cut Shimmer Sheetz and Velvet Adhesive numbers for the age of the recipient. Option: Add Glitter Dots Peel-Off Stickers to the numbers. (As shown, use the same Orange/Silver dots as on the candles.)
To complete the Chanukah card: Use the glittering technique and alcohol markers with a Ribbon Swirls Peel-Off Stickers strip. Choose colors that coordinate with the candles. Review Els van de Burgt’s video HERE if you are new to this technique. Cut the glittered strip into 3 pieces: 6 3/8”, 1”, and 5/8”. Use Clear Double Sided Adhesive Tape to secure these pieces to Blue Velvet Adhesive sheet, leaving a 1/8” border on all sides of the first two pieces and a 1/8” border only on the long sides of the 5/8” piece. Center the menorah on a 4 1/4” x 7” piece of striped scrapbook paper in colors that coordinate with markers used to color the candles. Center the striped rectangle on a glittered cardstock top-fold card base, folded size – 5” x 7 3/4”.
To complete the Christmas card: Color two holly berry/leaf clusters and one bow from the Christmas Ornaments 2 peel-off sheet. Cut around them, separating the berry trios from the pairs of leaves. Position the Red Iridescent die cut Shimmer Sheetz Merry Christmas on a 3 1/4” x 4 3/4″ piece of red cardstock. Use small pieces of Power Adhesive Tabs to hold the words in place. Tip: Cut Power Tabs with non-stick scissors. Mat to a piece of red glittered cardstock, leaving a 1/4” border on all sides. Center red rectangle on a top-fold card base made from diagonally striped paper, folded size – 5” x 7”. Add the holly, berries, and candles, positioned as shown in the project photo. Note: The berries are above the greeting, the leaves are tucked partially behind it.
To complete the flat* birthday card: Center a 3” x 4” piece of glittered cardstock on a 4 3/4” x 5 1/2” piece of striped paper. Add a double border to the striped rectangle, leaving a scant 1/8” border on the darker color and a generous 1/8” border on the lighter color (the bottom layer). Arrange and adhere the die cut greeting and shadow, the numbers and shadow, and four candles, as shown in the project photo. *Flat cards are meant to be displayed on a Card Stand/Easel or hung on the wall. Use a side-fold card base instead if you prefer.
![Calendar-H[1]](https://i2.wp.com/www.blog.elizabethcraftdesigns.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Calendar-H1.jpg?ssl=1)
