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The whole month of September is the Cuttlebug Challenge Birthday Palooza! Each member of the design team is picking a different party theme for the month's challenges. Hopefully, You fab readers & challenge participants will play along too! There are all kinds of great prizes and exciting things planned. You can read all about it here.

Hope you can join in the fun!

(And please spread the news?) :o)

The theme I chose for the month is a Stamping Party (I'm plannin' a surprise for my cousin Shealagh, since happily all of the gals in my family like to craft.) And of course the focus of all the stampin' fun will be on Cuttlebugging. :-D

Pocket Card Invitation made from a
Provo Craft Embossing Folder:

For a strange little twist, the pocket invitation to Shea-Shea's stamping birthday party is a wrapped Cuttlebug embossing folder. (It's designed to be a gift and to be taken apart by the recipients--who can use the embossing folder & use the leaves as card candy.)

Most of the embossing folders will fit in a standard acrylic card box with room for any information (a map?) or treats you'd like to add--the acrylic box also protects the folder invitation (so that you can mail it in a bubble mailer if you like.)

1...Cuttlebug Challenge Blog: Be Inspired Wednesday challenge (Invites)
2...make a pocket card invitation (from a Cuttlebug embossing folder)
3...embossed damask leaves

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Cuttlebug Challenge Blog

Be Inspired Wednesday #47 (Birthday Invitations)

Hope You can join us in the challenge:

(#47 Birthday Invitations)

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...make a pocket card invitation

(from a Cuttlebug embossing folder)

Paper: Graph paper: Cosmo Cricket's Girl Friday Collection (Wednesday.); Core'dinations Whitewash cardstock
Colour: Distress inks (Peeled Paint & Broken China), Tempting Turquoise Craft ink (SU), Glimmer mist (Garden Fairy), White Sakura Souffle pen
Stamps: Leigh Hannan Damask leaves (Paper Gardens Projects)
Tools: Provo Craft Embossing Folder as card base (Swiss Dots); Provo Craft Embossing Folders (Happy Birthday & Floral Fantasy); and a Cuttlebug Machine
Miscellaneous: Tim Holtz ink applicator & foam pad, clear embossing powder & heat gun; Wax paper/non-stick mat; Stampin' Up! Birds & Blooms sizzix dies; Acrylic card box

Step 1} Cut various pieces to fit one of the older smaller sized Provo Craft embossing folders (of course you could make a card like this with the new larger sized embossing folders; it just won't fit in the standard size acrylic card box.)

This card uses pieces cut to the following sizes:

Bottom: 1 strip measuring 4-5/8" wide x 2-1/2" high
Sides: 2 strips measuring 1" wide x 5-3/4" high
Back: 1 piece measuring the the full folder size: 4-5/8"wide x 5-3/4" high

Step 2} Add the bottom piece (stuck on the front)

A) Emboss the Bottom strip (1" wide x 5-3/4") of Whitewash in a Cuttlebug folder
B) Sand it & fold in half.
C) Put adhesive on the back of one half & adhere it to the top of the Cuttlebug folder (to hide the text)

Step 3}

A) Emboss & sand the full back panel (4-5/8" wide x 5-3/4" high.)
B) Lay the panel over the back of the folder (with no adhesive on the large full panel at all.) C) Adhere the back of the bottom strip to it.

Step 4} Emboss the two side strips (1" wide x 5-3/4" high.) Sand them & fold them in half.

Step 5} Adhere the side panels to the front of the folder.

Step 6} Wrap the two side pieces around the back (onto the full back panel.) Then you've made a frame on the front & a pocket on the back.

Step 7} Create the pocket card (with the party information on it) to slide in the pocket. I embossed the text on Core'dinations Whitewash straight out of the printer (just sprinkle clear embossing powder on it while the printer ink is wet & heat with a heat gun.)

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embossed damask leaves

Step 1} Stamp & Emboss Leigh Hannan Damask leaves (an acrylic stamp set I bought at Paper Gardens Projects.) The Graph paper is from Cosmo Cricket's Girl Friday Collection (specifially, Wednesday.)

Step 2} Ink Damask leaves with Distress inks (Peeled Paint & Broken China)

Step 3} Spritz leaves with Glimmer Mist (This is Garden Fairy-a lovely soft green)

Step 4} Add more colour using Tim Holtz's "wrinkle free distressing" technique (add Distress Ink & Glimmer Mist to wax paper & press image on it to pick up colour)

Step 5} Cut the leaves out & shade them with Copic markers to add dimension

Step 6} Add White Sakura Souffle pen details.

and put it all together...

The leaves are attached with temporary adhesive,
(so they can be taken apart.) :-D

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Hope you have the most beautiful day,

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You've probably already seen this Teresa Collins project that I linked to (on the Cuttlebug Challenge Blog), but I thought I'd post it here as well, to answer a couple of questions & add a few more photos (with big honkin' ones.) ;o)

You can click the pics here to make 'em even bigger for a detailed look.
The new purse box templates are in this post now too (at the bottom.)

I got to play with the gorgeous Journal It Girl collection from Teresa Collins Designs. There are unlimited possibilities with this trend-setting kit. (I love all the stationery elements madly!) I used it to make this gift set: a purse box, with a little pocket tag (as a wallet on a chain), and a pocket calendar book.

The collection has so many details making it such a thrill to work with and so fun with everything matching. Even Teresa's instructions are pretty! (They made the text paper for the flowers) :-D

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...make the Journal It Girl purse:

Journal It Girl double sided paper (Pink Ledger paper TC-6140)
brackets from the Journal It Girl Crown Notes sheet
Box & purse panel templates
Provocraft Embossing Folder (used here: Textile Texture & Argyle)
Cuttlebug machine
Versamark, Clear Embossing Powder, & heat gun
Paper piercer, needle, & thread. Embroidery floss
Strong double-sided tape
For the handle:Core'dinations Whitewash cardstock (black piece), pink fabric & fabric glue, white craft ink.
Misc: 3 for You Stampin' Up! punch, Pink Copic marker, Swarovski crystals
Large beads (box feet) & misc. hardware from an old Prada purse

Step 1} Make the box as a base for the purse (a tall rectangular shaped box)

1A) Print & cut out the template for the purse box base.

1B) Trace the box template onto the Journal It Girl double sided paper (I used the Pink Ledger paper TC-6140 .) Cut the box out & score it. The template is designed to fit exactly 2 boxes per 12x12 sheet of paper.

1C) Assemble the box & embellish it: adhere large beads for feet...and add a little purse tag, if you like:

Measurements for the finished box:

Height (without handle): 3 and 3/4 inches
Width (side to side): 2 and 7/8 inches
Depth (front to back): 2 and 1/4

Step 2} Make the panels for the front & back: Print & cut out the purse panel templates & trace them onto the largest of the Journal It Girl die cut file folders. Cut them out.

Step 3} Emboss & embellish the panels:

3A) Cuttlebug heat emboss the purse panels:

-->Ink a cuttlebug folder with Versamark (or other clear embossing ink)-on the negative or positive side, whichever you prefer.
-->Run the 2 purse pieces (for front & back) through the Cuttlebug in the inked folder.

-->After you Cuttlebug emboss the panels, sprinkle clear embossing powder on the wet Versamark.
-->heat set the embossing powder with a heat gun.

3B) Embellish the panels: Pierce & stitch around the edges.

3C) Enforce the panels by adhering them to cardstock & cutting them out.

3C) Add fringe made out of pink embroidery floss to the bottoms:

the fringe:

(I had a question about how to make this so I wanted to add the answer here:

To make the fringe I just snipped lots of pieces of embroidery thread (about an inch long each); then, added them side by each to a strip of really sticky double-sided tape on the purse panel back. You don't have to worry about getting them straight at all: really sharp scissors are great for cutting them in a nice straight line.

Step 4} Make the front purse flap:

4A) Make an acetate piece for the flap by tracing the purse front with a permanent marker onto acetate & cut it out.

4B) Create a black frame by tracing the acetate piece onto Core'dinations cardstock, cutting the brackets from the Journal It Girl Crown Notes sheet, & trimming it to that bracket shape:

4C) Cuttlebug emboss the acetate piece, adhere the frame & stitch around the outside.

4D) Add some flowers (punched from the Journal It Girl file folder instructions section-which makes great text paper for small flowers.) Adhere the purse flap to the front of the box. Colour the flower centers pink & add Swarovski crystals:

Step 5} Make the handle:

5A) Adhere a strip of fabric 12" x 1-1/2" to a piece of Core'dintations Cardstock (I used the black piece from their Whitewash collection.) Trim & fray the edges of the fabric Cuttlebug

5B) Emboss it, ink the black side with white ink & stitch it with black thread.

Step 6} To assemble the whole thing: Adhere the panels to the purse box base & attach the handle.

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...make a pocket calendar
out of the Journal It Girl Collection

12 months from the Journal It Girl Calendar sheet TC-6447
Medium Die Cut File Folder
Journal It Girl Pink Tags sheet
Black cardstock

To make the pocket calendar book:

A) Cut all 12 months of the year from the Teresa Collins Journal It Girl Calendar sheet TC-6447

B) Fold the matching Medium Die Cut File Folder in half

C) Cut 4 pieces of black cardstock (each piece measuring 3-3/4" x 5-1/2") Score them each down the middle & fold them in half. Lay them over each other, pierce them down the middle & stitch or adhere them into the File folder to make a book.

D) Adhere the calendar months & embellish the pocket book with pieces from the Journal It Girl Collection.

E) If it's tied shut with a ribbon, it fits perfectly in the purse box.