Upcycled Tins

This nautical pen holder is a great gift for anyone with an office. It is also easy, inexpensive and fun.

Start with a washed can. I think this one held black olives, but a soup can would work as well. Be sure to use a can opener that does not leave sharp edges when it opens the can.

Paint the can with acrylic paint or spray paint and make sure it is completely dry. I let mine dry overnight.

Once dry, add a strip of Elizabeth Craft Designs Transparent Double Sided Tape around the bottom of the can.

Then wrap twine around the base.

Next, apply glitter to the Peel-Offs. You can see how to do this, here.

And color them with Copic markers.

Cut out the stickers and adhere them to the can with dimensional adhesive foam.

Add some to the backside as well.

Cut a piece of Velvet Adhesive Sheet to fit the bottom of the can.

 

Since these sheets are adhesive backed, they attach easily to the bottom of the can. It gives the can a finished look and keeps it from damaging the tabletop!

There are lots of other gift ideas on the Elizabeth Craft Designs Blog today … check them out.

 

With an Asian Flair

The Designer’s Challenge this month for Elizabeth Craft Designs is to create a project with an Asian theme.

Asian is definitely out of my comfort zone, so this was a tough one for me. It took me several days to develop a plan, but in the end, it all came together and I absolutely love it … in fact, it is one of my favorite cards yet!

I started by making my own background paper … I wanted something that looked like water. I took several Distress Ink pads and swiped them on a non-stick craft sheet.

Then I spritzed it with water and drug my background cardstock through the ink.

 

Heat dry and then repeat until you get the desired affect.

I swiped the edge with Distress Ink and adhered it to a black card base.

Then I covered Elizabeth Crafts’ Peel Offs in Cool Diamond Silk Microfine Glitter and colored them with Copic markers. I cut them out and adhered them to the card.

Next, I cut out the koi (Elizabeth Craft Designs die) from Shimmer Sheetz and the layered piece from black Adhesive Velvet Paper (Elizabeth Craft Designs). I added pop dots to the back side.

 

Then I used a border from another set of Elizabeth Craft Designs’ Peel Offs at the bottom of the card. To get it straight and all the way to the edge of the card, I let it run over onto my desk and then trim it after.

Then I adhered the koi and cut out the word Hello from the velvet paper and placed that on the front.

Since the inside was black, I added a sheet of white paper and some Asian corners (they are on the same sticker sheet as the borders).

Be sure to visit Elizabeth Craft Designs’ Blog today to see the rest of the designers responses to the Asian challenge! They are amazing … just saying!

Flowers in a Box

 

Each month, the Elizabeth Craft Designs’ Design Team participates in a special challenge. This month’s theme is flowers and I decided to make a box filled with them.

I started with a simple box card made from green cardstock. I covered the panels and exterior of the box with new paper from Lawn Fawn.

 

Then, I began cutting out flowers of all shapes and sizes with dies from Elizabeth Craft Designs. I began with Flower Set 1, which I cut with Shimmer Sheetz and Velvet Adhesive Sheets and then layered together.

Next, I cut out the Flourish with Flowers die out of a Velvet Adhesive Sheet. Since it did not fit on the box panel, I needed to remove the adhesive off of the back side.

This is easily accomplished with baby powder. Use your finger or a small paint brush to coat the backside in baby powder. The adhesive will no longer be sticky (and it smells good, too!)

Then, I began filling in the space with leaves cut from the Curvy Leaves die. I used two different shades of green Shimmer Sheetz to add contrast.

And flowers cut with the Bunch of Flowers die.

HINT: Use the metal adaptor plate and run it through the Big Shot twice for the best results.

I added pearls and gems to the centers of the flowers.

For a final touch, I added the words With Love from the Assorted Words peel-off sheet.

To see more amazing creations featuring flowers, visit the ECD blog on March 31st.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Riding Along

My husband recently celebrated his 43rd birthday. This is the card I made for him ….

To see how I made this card, visit the Elizabeth Craft Designs’ Blog … I am featured today!

By the way, Matt & I did take a ride to celebrate his birthday … to Clarkston, a town neither of us had ever been to before. He wanted to try the Union Woodshop, an  award-winning restaurant that was featured on “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives” and a favorite hangout of Kid Rock.

 

The food was amazing … I had pulled pork, smashed sweet potatoes and greens. Matt had the “non-burger” burger (he says a burger must have beef) made with pulled pork, homemade spicy sausages and homemade smoked maple bacon that was featured on the TV show.

I cannot wait to scrapbook the rest of the photos from his birthday dinner. It was a nice spur-of-the-moment trip.