The theme for this year’s swap is holidays and celebrations and I selected Saint Patrick’s Day for this round.  Using Lettering Delights “Sheep Shape Year” for the central character, I made a 6″ by 6″ recipe page with the Irish sheep and added a bunch of clover and a tea cup from the Silhouette Online Store.  I used the Silhouette Designer Edition software to make the little title tag.  The plaid paper in the background is from Jillibean Soup and is appropriately titled Irish Farmhouse.  And that and some embossing, dimensional foam tape, Copics, and Chestnut Roan ink about wraps it up.

It’s the lovely Sofia D who said:

Another beautiful project from you! I really do love how it came together and love that you were inspired by Pinterest.

Sofia, I will be emailing your $25 gift card to Simon Says Stamps!

Thank you all of stopping by and leaving a comment, and I look forward to seeing you back again.

This is the pin that inspired me to try it out and a big assist from Nadia at withglitteringeyes.blogspot.com who translated the metric measurements from the original site into standard measurements that are applicable to U.S. scoreboards.

Want to try one?

Here is how to do it.

Start with a 12” piece of cardstock and put it on your score board.  If you click on the steps below, you can see a graphic that explains the directions.

One Sheet – Step 1

Score at 2 3/8” and 7 1/4”.

Now, rotate your cardstock clockwise so that the score lines are horizontal.  The 2 3/8” score line should be towards the top of scoreboard.

Step 2

Score again at 3 7/8”, 4 1/8”, 8”, and 8 1/4”.

When you look at your scored piece of 12” cardstock, you will have 3 top flaps and six similarly sized rectangles.

Using your paper trimmer or Xacto knife, trim the the 1/4” scored area from the bottom row and top flap.  Always stop trimming at the first horizontal score line.

Step 3

For the inner right hand pocket,

• Trim the top flap so that it measures 1 3/4” from the score line. Using a corner rounder, trim the outside edge of the flap.
• Trim the lower flap so that it measures 3 3/4” from the score line.
• Cut a piece of patterned paper that measures 3 1/4” by 3 3/8”.  Cut a mat that measures  3 3/8” by 3 5/8”.  Adhere the mat and patterned paper to the outside of the lower flap.
• Using a 1 1/2” circle punch, punch a semi circle in the lower flap edge.
• Attach closure mechanism to the lower flap.
• Using 1/4” ScorTape, tape the two side side edges and bottom edge of the lower flap and fold up to make a pocket.
• Flip the lower flap up and using 1/4” ScorPal tape, adhere to center section to make a pocket.

Step 4

For the middle flap, trim a triangle from edge to make a pointed flap.

• Flip the triangle, place on the left edge of the middle flap, and snip the same triangle again.
• No need for measuring or aligning – your flap will be symmetrical.

Step 5

To decorate, cut various patterned papers at 3 1/4” by 4”.  You will need a total of ten pieces of this size.  I added a 3 1/2 ” x 4 1/4”  solid mat under each patterned paper, you will need ten of those as well.

I also added an extra chipboard mat on the front and back cover so that the weight would help keep the book closed.  Once it gets filled, the owner may wish to make a belly band of it – but I know her mom will help with that if necessary.

The butterfly on the front cover is from October Afternoon’s Farmhouse collection.  I used champagne sparkle Versamark and Ultra Thick Embossing Power to add a little shine and sparkle.

The “m” is embossed in similar fashion.  The “m” is from the Close to My Heart Artiste cartridge.

The inner tags are from the Close to My Heart Art Philosophy cartridge.  I used the “m” again from Artiste and embossed again.  The tag is attached with a jump ring to the ribbon.

The little books were cut from the Farmhouse paper.  I also added a back of the same size and made a little folder.

This is for a special young friend who is packing up soon and heading out to new adventures and new friends.  I thought she might like a little book to tuck away some of her memories of living in Rhode Island.

Here is the album opened fully:

Here is my inspiration – a super fun mini album in a box.

I loved this mini-album in a box and here is how I interpreted it.

The completed box measures 6” by 8”.  You will need chipboard, cardstock, some patterned paper, embellishments, ColorBox Chestnut Roan stamp pad, ribbon, a scoreboard, and a Cricut in order to create one for you or a friend.

1) To begin, cut the chipboard as follows:

• Box back – 6” by 8”
• Outside flaps – cut two 6” x 5” flaps

Next cut the “hinge” pieces.  I used Papertrey Ink cardstock (my favorite strong cardstock).  You will need to cut:

• Top and bottom hinges – cut two at 6” x 2”, score a 1/4” and 1 3/4”
• Side hinges – cut two at 8” by 2”, score at 1/4” and 1 3/4”

This photo is my prototype.  You can see the hinges are all of the inside of the framework.  You will cover all of the scored margins of the hinges with patterned paper.

If you are inking the edges of your project, you will want to ink the chipboard and the chipboard now.

2) Next, cut the patterned papers for the outside of the box and the inner flaps.

• Box back – 6” x 8”
• Outside flaps – cut two 6” x 5” flaps (I added some texture with the Cuttlebug Honeycomb embossing folder)
• Inside flaps – cut two 6” x 5” flaps

If inking, do it now.

Begin box assembly.

• Apply 1/4” ScorPal or other strong adhesive to the 1/4” scored edges of the top and box hinges and fold edges inward so the adhesive is on the outside.  It will look like a “U”.
• Attach one edge of the first hinge to the inside of the chipboard top flap.
• Cover front of the top flap with patterned or embossed paper.
• Attach hinge to bottom flap and cover front with patterned or embossed paper.

Attach top flap and bottom flap to box back.  Determine how you will close the box (I used a ribbon loop over a large Graphic 45 metal button brad).  Mark centers on flap.  When closed, your box angles should be at 90 degrees and your bottom flap should extend beyond the top flap by 2”.  Make sure you attach your brad in the appropriate location.  If attaching brad, attach brad first before adhering patterned paper to the inside the flap.  If you are using eyelets, you will want to adhere the patterned paper to the inside flaps before you break out the Crop-A-Dile.

• Adhere inside top and bottom flap patterned paper.  Check for pattern direction before adhering.
• Attach side hinges to box back.

Cut two side doors in patterned paper at 3” x 8”.  If you want your pattern to align perfectly, cut a 6” x 8” piece of patterned paper and then cut that in half lengthwise. Use a substantial cardstock like My Mind’s Eye or Authentique.  If your patterned paper is lighter weight, you could cut the panels from chipboard and cover them.

Attach outside side doors to the hinge.  Check and make sure you have the pattern aligned correctly (not upside down) before adhering.  Open doors, and attach inside side doors to the back.  Your patterned paper will cover the hinge.

You will also need to cut two side door panels 3” x 8” in patterned paper for the inside of the side doors.

Cut a 6” by 8” patterned paper for the outside of the box back and adhere.

Add patterned paper on the exposed 1.5” sides (the depth of the box).  You will need  to cut the paper at 1” wide.

Decorate top flap with embellishments.  I used the bee from “Every Day Pop Up Cards” to accent the label.  The labels are from Spellbinders, and the smaller one is layered on thin chipboard cut with the same die.

I repeated the same label to adhere make a closure for the side doors.  This label set has a small and a large chipboard layer.  One half of the label is adhered to the right side door and I used velcro on the left hand side to keep the side door closed.  The flowers and leaves are from “Flower Shoppe”

I cut two pockets from patterned paper to create pockets and used Close to My Heart “Art Philosophy” to make 4” tall tags.  I cut two layers – one from blue and one from black and adhered.  I think the little envelope is from “Artiste.”

I will be back tomorrow to share some ideas on making the book inside the box.  I hope you will come back to visit then.  You can see the front cover in the final picture above.

In the meantime, please leave a comment for a drawing for a $25 gift card to Simon Says Stamps.

Several of us have joined together to share in the fun of National Scrapbook Day (Weekend).  Please stop by their blogs to see more.

With Glittering Eyes - 8AM EDT Saturday, May 4, 2013 “It’s All About Perspective” Tutorial and Blog Prize – $20 Hobby Lobby Gift Card!
Around the Block with Scrapalette  – 11AM EDT Saturday, May 4, 2013 “Tic Tac Toe Challenge and Blog Prize!
Col’s Creative Corner – 1PM EDT Saturday, May 4, 2013  “Ease on Down the Road” Blog Prize- $15 Michael’s Crafts Gift Card!
Stamp, Cut, Create! blog – 4PM EDT Saturday, May 4, 2013. “Tin Is In” theme and Blog Prize!
All Scrapped Out - 6PM EDT Saturday, May 4, 2013  “What’s It Owl About” theme and Blog Prize!
The Non-Crafty Crafter  – 8PM EDT Saturday, May 4, 2013 “Let’s Split- CCR Tutorial” (Learn to create a split letter monogram) and Blog Prize!
Scrappin With The Bug blog – 10PM EDT Saturday, May 4, 2013 “The Crazy B’s Challenge”  and Blog Prize!
Sara W. Andrews blog - 9AM EDT Sunday, May 5, 2013 “Go Big or Go Home” theme and Blog Prize – $20 Hobby Lobby Gift Card!
Scrappin With the Bug blog – 11AM EDT Sunday, May 5, 2013 “Tropical Sunset Color Challenge” and Blog Prize!
I Came, I Saw, I Created blog – 6:30PM EDT Sunday, May 5, 2013 “Did-I-MENSION???” Challenge and Blog Prize!

I used a lot of bright colors to celebrate both my friend’s South Florida residence and Spring.  It was a lot to fun to create her tropical outfit from Basic Grey’s Sweet Threads 6″ paper pad.  I used a Copic marker to add her “highlights” to her blonde hair.

The cake display case is from the Silhouette Online Store.  I added a layer of acetate to the case after assembling the case (with the cakes) by placing the case on top of the acetate and hand cutting a rectangle to size.  The banner is  from the Silhouette Online Store and I used the print and cut feature to create the “Take a Number” sentiment on patterned pink paper.  The banner and buntings are also from the Silhouette Online Store.  Now is a great time to shop there as all die cuts are on sale for 50 cents through 2 May!

This card is also a T-slide.  When you pull on the “ticket” at the side of the card,  a surprise message pops up on the side.  The interior of the card is fairly simple with another print and cut label and a small birthday cake.  I added the patterned paper to both sides of the card, and I have to say, I really like the look of it.

I used Snapdragon’s Snippets Sunflower card from the Silhouette Online Store as the base design element.  As designed, it is a super fun card, but I wanted to add a little more texture and pattern to the card.  The first step was to scale the entire (grouped) file to 8.0″ inches tall.  While setting up the file for cutting, I also added a circle for my sentiment and sized it to fit the center of the flaps cut.  I moved it off of the cutting mat, and saved it until I was ready to make the sentiment using the Print and Cut feature.

This card is designed with a right and left flap and right and left petals (they are not symmetrical).  I cut the center base flaps twice.  To make sure the same patterned paper was on the inside of the flaps, I horizontally flipped one of the base flaps before cutting.

  I also wanted a little extra dimension to the petals and I cut two petal sets as well.

Assemble the sunflower by gluing together the flap base pieces with the yellow and white pattern facing outside.  Then adhere the left and right petals together by gluing the circular areas only.  After that, attach the petals to the circular areas of the flap base.  Do not adhere the petals so they can curl.  Add the half circles to the circular area  (in brown).

Cut the stem and leaves and adhere to the background patterned paper.

Before adding the sunflower to the card, use a Crop-A-Dile to set a grommet in the brown centers for the ribbon tie.  Cut a 18″ piece of ribbon and run it through the grommets.  Align the ends.

The base of the sunflower cannot be directly adhered to the background paper as the petals need room to open and reveal the inner message.  To enable this, I cut two squares of 6mm foam, layered them, and adhered them to the back of the sunflower and then to the card.

To complete the card front, I print and cut two small bees from Lettering Delights Kawaii Kalendar.  I also cut and print a little birthday party hat and used foam dots to attach the hat and the bee to the flower.  I like to combine all of the print and cut elements on one sheet of paper to print and cut at the same time.  So I also included added a sentiment to the circle I sized to fit the sunflower and made two larger bees for the inside of the card.

I adhered the sentiment directly on top of the ribbon running through the grommets.  The ribbon is not glued into the interior of the card.

After adding a few more layers of paper to the front of the card, I adhered it to my 5.25″ square card base from Papertrey Ink’s  fabulous cardstock.  The interior of the card includes more patterned paper, a label in the “sunflower” patterned paper, a Penny Black Stamps sentiment, and the double layered (with foam dots) bee and her party hat.

Of course, she will be headed out in the Lori Whitlock mailer (best 99 cent investment ever).

So, using Graphic 45′s “Before Your Time” Kraft Reflections cardstock as the background patterned paper, I set out to create a Yorkshire Pudding recipe page.  I found a darling Yorkie puppy at the Silhouette On-Line Store and replaced her reindeer antlers with a Happy New Year headband.  The Yorkshire Pudding tag was made using the Print and Cut feature on the Silhouette Studio Designer Edition – this feature alone should be enough to propel you to buy this software (and die cutter) if you haven’t already.

My Cricut education lead me to making the Yorkshire Terrier a little more dimensional.  The snapshot below shows what I did.  I cut the golden fur pieces as designed.  I copied the golden “facial ruff” and removed the “mouth” and “blaze” cuts to have a solid black ruff.  I also copied the “nose” and “eyes” and removed the small highlight cuts to create a base.  The terrier body, black eyes, and black nose are cut from American Crafts card stock in black.  The black ruff piece is cut from lightweight black chipboard.  I cut the base nose and eyes from white card stock.  The gold ruff pieces are cut from a pale golden-peach color and I used Copics 11 and 13 to add furry texture and color.  As the ears are specific to the right or left side, I found it easiest to leave the pieces on the mat, remove one, color, and adhere.  Then do the second ear.

To start the assembly, I added the Yorkshire Pudding tag to the mouth of the golden ruff piece.  I then added the golden ruff (with the tag) to the black chipboard.  The other golden pieces were adhered directly to the black dog piece.  The completed ruff piece is attached to the dog with a foam dot and another foam dot is under the tag.  Unlike Cricut, there are no “guideline cuts” as to how the pieces align.  So pick a few “alignment points” like the little swoop on the right hand cheek of the ruff and line that up before adhering.  Then layer on the white “highlight” nose and eyes and layer the black pieces directly over them.  Finally add some Glossy Accents to the eyes and nose.

The Happy New Year headband is cut from American Crafts white card stock.  I colored it with Copics Y28 (Lionet Gold) and used spray glue to adhere some micro-fine glitter in the “warm” color way.

The fourth cut is the champagne glass from Cricut’s Something to Celebrate cartridge.  I used Cricut Craft Room to hide the champagne bottle in all of the layers.  I used my Crop-A-Dile to punch the bubbles.  I filled the bubbles with a combination of gold Stickles and Glossy Accents.  Finally, the polka dot label came from Spellbinder’s Nestabilities.  The Yorkie is adhered with some foam tape.

And for those who are interested in the recipe, here is the link.  Yum!

I used some Christmas paper  I found on sale for the red faux bois bird house base (Jillibean Winter Tortellini and Spinach Soup Paper) and My Mind’s Eye Sweetest Thing for the roof.

The crafty bird is from Lettering Delights Crafty Bird cut it set.  The bird measures about 1.25 inches tall.  I printed and cut two birds with a small offset.  I attached one bird with a thin foam square to the box and placed the second bird directly on top of the first with a thin foam square.

Assembling the box was relatively easy.  After I folded all of the score lines, I cut a 24″ piece of ribbon.  The ribbon keeps the roof attached to the house.

Run the ribbon length through the two slits on the box.  Making sure the ends meet, add ScorPal tape on each side of the ribbon (inside the box) and on all of the flaps.  First, adhere the flaps to the right and left of the center.  These flaps should align perfectly on the bottom and completely cover the ribbon loop on the inside of the box.  Next, fold in the flaps and adhere when once you are satisfied that your sides are square to one another.

To assemble, simply put the ribbon through the slits in the roof and tie in a bow.  Trim ribbon as desired.  I also added a small tag (from the Silhouette Online Store).  I used the Print and Cut feature to add the sentiment.

I used Cricut Craft Room to hide the contours in the Snow Man and flipped him horizontally to create his backside.  I also flipped all of his accessories.  His scarf was hand-trimmed as the ends are only visible on the front.  When assembling, do the front first, and then turn it over to act as a guide for placing the back accessory pieces to ensure alignment.  I purchased the mug at JoAnn’s and inserted a styrofoam disc to build the flower base.

I used Stampendous Cowlik birthday for all of the stamped images and sentiments in this card.  After stamping in Memento Tuxedo Black, I colored the images with Copics.  The cupcake frosting and the cow head were stamped twice and trimmed.  I used thin foam squares to add a little dimension.  I used my Spellbinders Nestabilities for the labels – each label is mounted on chipboard base.

This is a T-slide card.  When you pull on the green tab to the right, the image lifts to the right, and reveals a “hidden sentiment.”

You can find the directions to make a T-slide card at Splitcoast Stampers.  I made the card according to the first set of dimensions in the tutorial.  My completed card measured just slightly more than 5.25″ square.  The T-slide front is adhered to a 5.25″ cardstock base.  I used Spellbinder Nestabilities for the inner sentiment.  The milk bottles are Glossy Accent-ed.

And that it is – I hope you’ll check out the T-Slide card tutorial and make one soon.