confetti by lexi

matchboxes of any size

during the last release while sharing projects with perfect match, i shared templates for making two different sizes of matchboxes. i also mentioned that it was easy to make matchboxes of all sizes with a simple formula, so i thought I'd share that today. the finished size of this one is 2-1/2" x 3-1/2" x 1/2" but using the same steps you can make them any size you like. 

 

once you decide on the main size you want your box, you can easily figure out your sizes of cardstock to cut. for the box portion, starting with your width and height, you add your depth once on each side, and again on both the top and bottom (or twice to the width and four times to the height), so for 2-1/2" x 3-1/2" with 1/2" depth, we need a piece of cardstock measuring 3-1/2" x 5-1/2".

 

then you score the depth all the way around once and a second time on each width as shown above.

 

next, you snip the corner pieces as shown and add adhesive. i like to trim the corner pieces at an angle as well to help with folding the flap that hides them.

 

once you fold up the sides, the corner pieces fall into place and then you fold the extra edge over to cover them up.

 

for the sleeve you need a strip of cardstock the same width as the length of the box, in this case 3-1/2", with an overall length to equal three times the width of the box plus two times the depth. so 2-1/2" + 1/2" + 2-1/2" + 1/2" + 2-1/2", for a total of 8-1/2", scored following the same pattern, width, depth, width, depth, width.

 

i chose this particular box size so that i could add a window using the heart die from matchbook medley. any window cutting and stamping should be done to the center box size panel as shown above. i backed the window with a layer of clear cardstock so that my contents could be both protected and seen.

 

to complete assembly, fold the two sections on the right of the box over, add adhesive to the last box size section and adhere to the first section from the left. i like to have the bottom sections overlapping to create a more solid structure and support.

 

once adhered, the box pops up to the right shape, a perfect fit to slide over the box base.

 

decorate and fill for the perfect valentine (or birthday or anytime) treat! dies are great, but having tricks like these up your sleeves adds a bit of flexibility to match whatever you're packaging - pun intended!

happy stamping!
:) lexi

you light up my life in color

good morning! welcome to day five of the papertrey ink december countdown to new stamps and one last look at my new pieces of confetti set, perfect match. i managed a post a day since the introduction - yay! i really wasn't sure i would be able to, so that makes me happy. today, i decided to make a couple of cards in a more unexpected color palette using the outline single stamp image. 

as i always say, i love a good rainbow card! so i started with just that - a line up of rainbow topped matches. i think i need a box of these in real life, lol!

 

i stamped them a little wonky for interest and colored them in with two shades of each color for depth. then i balanced my line up of matches with a mix of black text for the greatest contrast. i love the boldness of black with a rainbow. popped up and flush to the right side, this is one of my go-to clean and graphic layouts. this card lights up my life!

next, i've been dying to pair the matches with bold borders: love - the hearts in the frame coordinate nicely with the small puffy hearts in the perfect match set and the smaller sentiments are just the right size for the opening and layers that fit there.

 

i ended up using a similarly sized layer from nesting basics: pierced rectangles for the extra detail and how it looked popped up, stamping two matches touching tips with a heart above. in keeping with my bright and white theme, i decided on bright blue matches and a contrasting red heart. a perfect match all around - what's not to love?!

 

and there you have it - two clean and graphic cards with a whimsical appeal! these are the kind of cards i could/should leave out for my husband to "borrow" for my gifts, lol! i hope you've enjoyed my projects this week. it's such a fun set to play with, especially when it comes to the non-card projects. but you can make some pretty cool cards too - or maybe we should say they're hot! be sure to check out the papertrey ink blog for the final countdown links and product info and get your trigger finger ready for tomorrow night!

happy shopping!
:) lexi

more matchboxes

good morning! welcome to day four of the papertrey ink december countdown to new stamps and another look at my new pieces of confetti set, perfect match. today, i have a couple more matchbox ideas. this time, i used blank pre-made matchboxes from my bottomless studio. i've had mine forever, but i did find some on amazon, both with matches and without. they're slightly smaller than the boxes i made myself, and since they're made from cardboard, they're a little sturdier as well - perfect for the "interactive" magic i had up my sleeve today...

first up, c'mon baby light my fire! pretty simple from the outside - a match striking up a spark.

pull the ribbon, which i added to be sure the recipient opens it correctly...

 and the fire pops up - happy valentine's day!

the trick for this little pop-up is a spring stolen from an ink pen - hot glued to the back of the flame and into the bottom of the box. it bends when closed and springs up when you slide the box open. voila!

next: hey there, hot stuff! you light up my life!

i wanted the flame to appear from above, so this time i added a pull ribbon to the top of the drawer to direct the recipient.

i still wanted a little action, so i decided on an action wobble. there's a little bounce when it opens and you can nudge it to wobble it more. there's even enough room on this one to add small candies if you want - i'm thinking red hots would be fun!

these little boxes would be great as stand-alone valentines with their elements of surprise or as tags on a hot gift. either way, they're super fun - little boxes of big love! tomorrow i promise to move on to something else, although figuring out these little matchboxes is kind of addictive! as always, check out the papertrey ink blog for more countdown links and new product info and swing back by here tomorrow - one countdown day to go!

happy stamping!
:) lexi

c'mon baby, light my fire!

hello! welcome to day three of the papertrey ink december countdown to new stamps and another look at my new pieces of confetti set, perfect match. i wasn't sure if i was going to make it to posting today, but once i got these little valentine treats finished, i couldn't wait to share them! 

i followed an old formula for making matchboxes and created two in different depths. i'll add a template for these below, and then once the release is over, i'll try to put together a video for those of you who'd like to know the formula in order to recreate them in various sizes. soft stone bitty big made quick work of one matchbox sleeve, adding the little sparks into a few strategic circles, while i stamped my own tone on tone word pattern in sweet blush for the other.

matchboxes are perfect for many a small gift. i've used them for jewelry, stickers, pins, and more over the years. but they're especially perfect for valentine's candy - like the red m & m's in the narrow box and homemade candy "matches" in the deep one. pretzels dipped in candy melts for the win and a fun class valentine project!

i even added a little glitter tape to the sides of each box to mimic striking strips for a bit of a realistic touch. aren't these fun? i may have to make a class set this year for my students - they do light up my life, afterall!

click here to download the matchbox templates

and stop back again tomorrow for another fun post. meanwhile be sure to check out the papertrey ink blog for more countdown links and new product info.

it's lit!
:) lexi

introducing perfect match

good morning! it is day two of the papertrey ink december countdown to new stamps and feature day for my new pieces of confetti offering, perfect match. as you can see, it's a fun new valentine stamp set based on vintage matchbooks. Strike up some love in reds and pinks with the bold words and match images. 

for starters, i created a simple math inspired match card. included in the set are pieces to create a single match as well as a criss-cross of two. 

while drawing images, it dawned on me to include the math symbols for just this card - 1 + 1 = 2, we're a perfect match! super clean and crisp and totally me. while this card does scream valentine, it could also be the perfect anniversary or everyday love card, don't you think?

next up, another card, this time focusing on one match and a flame image, paired with the previously released shape shifters: circle 1 (my fave!) and the new nesting basics: circles and pierced circles (my new fave!).

i love how i can use the nesting basics to frame and cut out the shape shifter detail piece in a perfect simple circle - including the lining circle in red below it - to create the perfect backdrop to highlight the match and flame. 

again, this card would make a great valentine for a guy for whom puffy hearts and flowers wouldn't do. but it could also be a thank you card or birthday card for anyone who lights up your life! 

and last, but not least, a "match up" with matchbook medley die collection, the collection that inspired the stamps. 

the various components are designed to work perfectly with the dies, including sentiments that match up in size, and an interior cut of matches for a whimsically complete card.

hey there, hot stuff! there's a spark between us. happy valentine's day!

i love a non-traditional card, especially for a sweet valentine treat. you could even include your own hand-written personal "coupon-style" activities on the matches to be pulled off one by one. so fun!

and there you have it! three fun cards to kick things off. i was out of town this weekend, but hope to catch up with a couple more posts this week to show off the set, so please keep checking back. until then, there's lots more to see today from the design team, all linked up on the papertrey ink blog. as always, i can't wait to see how they rock my images - i have no doubt they'll be lit! (sorry, couldn't resist!)

happy countdown!
:) lexi

We're a Perfect Match Card
STAMPS: Perfect Match
INK: Fine Linen, Pure Poppy, True Black
PAPER: Stamper's Select White, Pure Poppy
DIES: Perfect Match
OTHER: MISTI, Foam Tape, Glitter Pen

You Light Up My Life Card
STAMPS: Perfect Match
INK: Fine Linen, Pure Poppy, True Black, Harvest Gold, Summer Sunrise
PAPER: Stamper's Select White, Pure Poppy
DIES: Perfect Match, Shape Shifters: Circle 1, Nesting Basics: Circles, Pierced Circles
OTHER: MISTI, Foam Tape, Glitter Pen

Hey There, Hot Stuff Matchbook
STAMPS: Perfect Match
INK: Fine Linen, Sweet Blush, True Black, Pure Poppy
PAPER: Stamper's Select White, Pure Poppy, Sweet Blush
DIES: Perfect Match, Matchbook Medley
OTHER: MISTI, Stapler, Glitter Pen

celebrating the past, present and future: 2007

i started off as a papertrey ink customer with nichole’s very first stamp set in 2007, staying up late for every reveal, following the design team members, submitting entries for guest star stamper - the works! in fact, my blog is very much tied to papertrey ink, beginning in january 2007, about a month before the release of paper tray and filled with so much of that first year of stamps before i spent time on a couple of other design teams. so I definitely wanted to play along during today’s walk down memory lane. 

some of my favorite sets that year were the various labels sets. hershey's nugget labels were one of my first and often projects when i found stamping several years prior. i stamped "it's a girl chocolates" to give to visitors and staff at the hospital when both of my girls were born, and again for most of my friends, chocolates for back to school teacher gifts, various holidays, you name it! i absolutely loved nichole’s new take on the idea, and couldn't wait to add it to my bag of tricks. I was particularly excited about limitless labels and the coordinating year-round possibilities, so with valentine’s day around the corner, i decided to stamp some labels and relive the sweet magic!

i often gave them in bags or set them out in bowls, but i also enjoyed creating custom class valentines for my girls to give to their classmates, so i pulled out my punny valentine, also released in december 2007, and whipped one up. nuts for you valentine - i just love this squirrel! 

and of course i used the cute nugget tins papertrey carries as well. in fact, i paired the two sets together in a tin for a round of "guest star stamper" back in the day and received honorable mention. i also found a halloween blast from the past nugget project using the label stamp from spooky sweets for another 'mention...

so fun! now that i have showcased how this product from the past has remained a classic, it's your turn to share your ideas for the future! stop by nichole's blog to share a new project you make with this product, or just share a creation that is somehow inspired by what i made. get crafting and enter today so you can be eligible for a fantastic prize!

enjoy the trip down memory lane - ten years, wow! i'll be back a little later in the series to share my favorite pieces of confetti sets beginning with 2012 when i started designing. until then...

happy stamping!
:) lexi

treatsie for my sweetsie

in searching for a fun valentine gift for my husband, i came across treatsie, a monthly artisan candy subscription. so perfect! while i found it in enough time to get the february box, i didn't find it in enough time to get something here to give to him today. so how to present it? and then it hit me. how about a mini mock up of the box to introduce and explain it?

i love projects like this! there are probably some good box templates out there already, but i have a little experience with this kind of thing, so i created a printable to match the box pictured on the website - complete with a logo and a real cardboard box texture, of course! once you get the math down, a little cutting, scoring and folding is all it takes...

it looks like when the box comes, there's a card with the contents listed. so for the gift, i created a card with the description from the homepage of the treatsie website, along with a graphic of the box and delivery calendar, also found on the website.

of course i couldn't just leave it like that - it's a valentine gift after all! i opted for red tissue paper for the occasion, closed with a stamped and glittered heart and die cut arrow from my stamp set cupid's arrow. but that's not all...

i filled it with printed and cut images of items from the website, all nestled in crimped shred. i'm a sucker for details! now, i can't wait to see the real thing later this week. i believe this is a gift the whole family will enjoy...

happy valentine's day!
:) lexi

valentine...

you're all that and a bag of chips! chocolate dipped chips, of course. i just love this phrase. it makes a fun valentine for kids of all ages, even adults. this is one of several projects i'm juggling this week as mardi gras and valentine's day collide. and a parade to get ready for too - busy, busy!!

:) lexi

 

my punny valentine

with valentine's day quickly approaching, i wanted to share a few personalized printed valentines from my stash. i created all of these for the same client who likes me to "make something fun!" last year, her daughter was into flamingos, which i loved! i mean, how can you resist a cute bird pun and necking flamingos, lol? i left room above the birds to stick a foil covered chocolate heart, but the idea could also be redesigned as a tag or box wrap.

the first two of these were from the year before last, the donuts an alternate from last year. and we can't forget my girls' mustache ones from 2012. clearly, i love a good valentine pun! for the first one, i recommend sticking a sucker in the open space, ha! for the fish, a few small foil covered chocolate hearts mixed with the heart bubbles. and for the donut? a donut, of course! as with the flamingo design, any of these can be created in different sizes, as a tag, or in such way to work with your specific treat packaging. there's still a little time for mailed orders if you contact me (very) soon, slightly more if you're local or want to order a pdf to print yourself. i love this stuff...

hugs & kisses!
:) lexi

p.s. i've done some great boy valentines too - football, aliens, bugs - so many puns, so little time!