Wrap It Up!!

This week at Wags 'n Whiskers Stamps the fabulous Nikki (co-owner of WnW) has come up with a challenge just perfect for this time of year...Make a gift box, bag or tag!

I am one of those people who loves to wrap gifts. I love picking out pretty papers, cutting, folding and taping it all up so nicely. However, more and more I find we are buying gift cards for people, so my gift wrapping is not quite as labour intensive as before. I used to think gift cards were a lazy gift...but I've since changed my mind. I think my opinion on that changed when my son became a teenager, and started getting picky about his clothing. So, I began to suggest gift cards so that he could just choose for himself. Of course, they ship pretty cheap too for those who need to mail their gifts. I always love receiving gift cards towards my favourite stores too...whether it be a crafty or clothing store. Last year at Christmas, my in-laws gave me a very generous gift card for one of my favourite local crafty stores...I went on quite the spree picking out Spellbinders, Copic markers, papers and other items I had been wishing for!

With this in mind, I thought I would try my hand at making a gift card holder for Nikki's challenge. (It's kind of a box, right??!! Ok...so I stretched on this one!! Lol...I asked permission though, and got the "OK" from the bosses!!)

Back in September, I was at a stamping event where my wonderfully talented and absolutely hilarious friend Andrea Murdock did a make and take with this gift card holder template...I love it!! It's quite easy to make and the possibilities are endless. Thanks Andrea...you rock girlfriend!! I'm sure you could easily whip up a whole bunch of these to have on hand for any occasion...as you can see, mine would suit any occasion. Guess I'll have to pull out the Christmas papers and get going on some for the upcoming holiday season!



Copics: Skin: E000, E00, E11, R20 Hair: E50, E30, E31, E33, E37, E59 Dress: RV000, R83, R85, R89, BG96, BG93, G20, G000, YG11 Wings: Booo, BGoooo, BG93, BG96, Gooo, RV000, R83 Flower: RV000, R83, R85, R89

I stamped "Rosalie" on Neenah Smooth cardstock and coloured her with Copic markers. She was cut out with Spellbinders Labels 2 and popped up with foam squares. The foam squares are necessary on this project because the closure flap tucks in underneath your image panel (see picture below). The cardstock base is a 4 1/4" x 10 3/4" strip scored at 4 1/4" and 8 3/4". So you will end up with 3 sections in your cardstock measuring 4 1/4", 4 1/2" and 2". You will also need to punch a slot in the cardstock for the gift card (see picture of interior), and make sure to only apply adhesive around the perimeter of your patterned paper...or else you will not be able to slip your gift card inside the pocket! All paper edges were sponged with Distress Ink...Antique Linen, Bundled Sage and Walnut Stain. I added in a little tag, jewelry spacer, dollar store pearls and a bow tied with my Bow Easy. Oh, and every fairy needs a healthy dose of Stardust Stickles on her wings...well, I think they do!!

From this angle, you can see how the small flap tucks in under your image panel...it takes a little fiddling to get it just right. I actually doubled up on the foam squares to give more height for the flap to tuck under.


Here's the inside....this is the reverse side of the patterned paper on the front of the card holder. You can see the slot at the top in which I've inserted a gift card. You will want to ensure that your slot is far enough down from the top that you still have room to adhere your paper on the outside. Again, make sure that you only apply your adhesive around the perimeter of your patterned paper on the exterior of the gift card holder...this creates the pocket for your gift card. I used plain white cardstock cut with a smaller sized die of the Labels 2 to give an area to write a little message.


I know you all have gifts to give this year...so get creative with your wrapping and join us for Nikki's challenge at Wags 'n Whiskers Stamps!! Need some inspiration? Hop on over the the WnW Blog to see what the other very talented Divas have been whipping up in their craft rooms! Remember that the WnW challenge prizes are now open to projects featuring any stamp line...but if you use a WnW image on your project, then your name will also be put into a bonus draw!! (You can find them HERE)

Thanks for dropping by today!

Blessings,

Melanie

Stamps:Wags 'n Whiskers "Rosalie"
Paper: Neenah, Bazzill, Fancy Pants (Little Sprouts "Baby's Breath")
Ink: Memento, Distress Inks, Copics
Embellishments: Ribbon, die cut tag, dollar store pearls, jewelry spacer, Stardust Stickles
Tools: Spellbinders Labels 2, Bow Easy