Making your own gift packaging is Sweet (Sorbet!)

First of all, I must just say how overwhelmed I am by the amazing response from my "So Very Grateful For The Pinkies Blog Hop" post over the weekend! WOW! Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to leave a comment, I was really touched! Also, as so many people have asked me how I made the shadow box card, I will endeavour to get a tutorial up on my blog at some point this week! So, watch this space, as they say!!

In the meantime, I thought I'd share some ideas for gift packaging that I have recently made. These will be given out as free thank you gifts to my class attendees who book a place for themselves and a friend of theirs, who is new to me/my class. Both the attendee AND their new friend get to choose a gift from my special basket as a thank you from me for the introduction. At my next evening class, one lady will be bringing FOUR of her pals with her, so she will be getting to choose FIVE gifts and her four pals will each get one gift too! I am really looking forward to meeting them all and I can't wait to see which gifts they all choose!

Anyway, here is the photograph for you to see:

I made the tags by stamping on Whisper White Cardstock with the gorgeous "Petal Parade" Sale-a-Bration stamp set (available for FREE when you spend £45 until 31st March 2014) using the  following colours: Crisp Cantaloupe, Pool Party, Sahara Sand and Pistachio Pudding. I then used my trusty Envelope Punch Board to shape the tops of the tags and also to round the bottom corners.

 

I punched a pretty flower-shaped hole in each tag using the "Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack" and threaded them with with either Coastal Cabana Ruffle Stretch Trim ribbon or the Crisp Cantaloupe Twine (the latter is from another fabulous Sale-A-Bration freebie set: the Sweet Sorbet Accessory Pack, which has three generous reels of different colour twine and some printed cork stickers! Love it!). The 'thank you' sentiment comes from the "So Very Grateful" stamp set and is stamped in Jet Black Stazon ink. I carefully swiped my Write Marker brush tips around the edges of the sentiment banners to add a bit of definition, before sticking them onto the labels with Stampin' Dimensionals, to give a bit of height.

I took the inspiration for the tag colours from the utterly beautiful "Sweet Sorbet" Designer Series Paper that is also available for FREE in the Sale-A-Bration offer - which I have really fallen in love with! It is my "go to" paper at the moment and I am already sad that it will only be around until the end of March -boo hoo!

 

 The peachy-coloured gift envelope and its co-ordinating belly band are both made using the "Sweet Sorbet" papers and again, I used the fantastic Envelope Punch Board to whizz it up in a jiffy! I adore my Envelope Punch Board - it is just SO versatile and you make make so many other fabulous projects with it too: boxes, gift card holder cards, crackers, mini albums - all sorts! It is an amazing piece of kit!

Think you don't recognise the gift bag on the left of the top photograph? Well, it started life as one of Stampin' Up!'s "Tag a Bag Gift Bags" - three scores, three cuts, a little bit of glue plus a small rectangle of cardstock, to strengthen the base, was all it took to transform the flat paper bag into a pretty, three-dimensional, free-standing gift bag! Da-naaa! Easy! Bit of ribbon and a tag and you're done!

 

If you want to have a go at making your own gift packaging then it is really easy using the Stampin' Up! products I've mentioned above, as they all coordinate beautifully!

 

All of them (and more!) are available to order through me. You can place an order direct with me (via phone or email) or, if you prefer, you can buy them via my online shop 24hours/7days a week. Shipping is only £4.95 direct to your door, regardless of the size of you order! AND don't forget that for every £45 spent (before shipping) during Sale-A-Bration, you earn one FREE special Sale-A-Bration item, too!

The hardest part is deciding which of the 13 gorgeous Sale-A-Bration goodies to choose first!! Good luck! ;O)

Right, I am off to make some more gift packages and plan my shadow-box card tutorial I think...

Until next time, happy crafting everyone!

 

Lucy x

Pinkies Blog Hop!

Pinkies Stampin' Up! Seasonal Catalogue Blog Hop...

Thank you for  joining us on another  Pinkies Blog Hop. 

We’re  showcasing lots of gorgeous projects using products from the 

new Stampin’ Up!® Autumn/Winter Seasonal Catalogue.

Simply use the buttons at the end of each post to keep on hopping. 

 

 

If you have arrived from Sarah's blog, a big hello to you...

 



 

 

Firstly I would just like to say that I am sooo excited to be taking part in my first ever blog hop! Whoop whoop!! There are so many fantastic, yummy new products in the new Stampin' Up! Autumn/Winter Seasonal Catalogue, that I have found it very hard to narrow down my choice of what to show you today, so, I hope you like what you see here; I have certainly enjoyed creating the projects!

 

A couple of weeks ago, I decided to challenge myself to make Christmas 2013 a wholly hand-made Christmas... I make all sorts of things - cards, jewellery, stained glass, crochet, sweets, jam, chutney - you name it I've probably made it at some point over the years! I've always been a crafter, for as long as I can remember! However, as I'm not exactly the most organised person I know, I jumped with glee when I saw the new Season of Style This and That Journal in the new catalogue - this could be the key to completing my gargantuan self-challenge!! No more easily-lost scraps of paper with scribbled lists on for me this year... just this beautiful journal with pre-printed pages in useful sections, some coordinating Designer Stickers and a rotary stamp to help me keep organised and on track to completing my hand-made presents challenge! Here is a photograph of the inside cover of the journal with a set of the stickers that I have tucked inside the useful pocket and a piece of the yummy new 1" (2.5cm) wide Cherry Cobbler Stitched Edge Grosgrain Ribbon tied to the binding to make a book mark:

 







 

I bought one for my sister for her birthday too and  I decorated the front of hers, but I've yet to decorate my own one though!







 

I love the way that Stampin' Up! coordinate their products so beautifully. The Season of Style Designer Series Paper matches this journal beautifully and as I'll have lots of hand-made gifts to give this Christmas, I thought I'd better make a start on some pretty packaging for all those gifts... Here are just a few ideas for some gift boxes/bags - all of which are really simple, quick and easy to make:

 

 



 



I have used the Season of Style DSP, the same Cherry Cobbler ribbon as above, plus the textured 12x12" Cherry Cobbler cardstock to make these and embellished them with the help of the Very Merry Tags stamp set, a few of Stampin' Up! must-have punches, the really cute and dinky Old Olive Simply Styled Embellishments paper clips (which are also from the Autumn/Winter Catalogue) plus I've added a little bit of sparkle with a Vintage Faceted Button and some Dazzling Details glitter glue... I think my favourite is the bucket gift bag with the Rudolph tag - the Cherry Cobbler Candy Dot nose matches the polka-dot pattern on the paper perfectly, don't you think? He's so cute!

 

 





 

 

 Anyway, that's enough from me for one day! Please pop back again soon, as I plan to show you more of things that I make in my hand-made Christmas quest - and will show you how to make some of the boxes and gift bags too. Do you fancy joining me in the hand-made Christmas challenge? Do let me know if you do! 

 

 

 

 

So next stop is Caroline's blog, 

why don't you take a peek at what lovely things that they have created?  

Thank you so much for visiting!

 

Lucy