Blog - Eileen Hull

Square Box Chunky Book

14 Feb

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!

Today we are celebrating the release of my From the Heart collection over at the Sizzix blog with a Valentine’s Blog Hop! It’s so exciting to see- our fabulous Design Team has gone to town and whipped up some tasty eye candy for you- make sure to head on over and see all their HEARTwarming creations!

I decided to use the ScoreBoards Square Box die for my project… but in a different way than you might expect.

When designing a die, I want to give good value for the money, so many of my dies function in several different ways. The box I used today measures 3 1/4″ square and is a ScoreBoards die, which means it was specially designed to cut thick material like matboard or chipboard at least 1/16″ thick. There is a special blade set down in the die that perfectly cuts and scores all of the fold lines.

The Square Box can work as a gift box that opens and closes (it’s big enough to hold a cupcake!), an ornament for your tree, a photo cube, or for organizing or storage. The box may be embossed, stamped, painted, inked or misted. A set of baby alphabet blocks would be adorable, don’t you think? The possibilities for this die are endless!

I used the Square Box die to create a chunky little mini-album instead of building a box with it. The die cut pieces were used to make a book cover and page signatures. This is a super versatile die- hope you take some time to explore different options for using it!

Tear dictionary pages in half vertically and coat the back of the page with spray adhesive. Place page on the wrong (uncolored) side of a 6″ x 7″ piece of matboard. NOTE: You will only need two of the three panels of the long die cut piece for each book page so you don’t need to cut a full size panel. Place matboard just over the edge of the second score line, die cut, then trim extra off with craft knife).
Cover ten pieces of matboard (I used colored scraps left over from matting projects) and then roll them through Big Shot. Cut one full panel piece for the outer cover of the book and nine smaller pieces for the pages.

Distress pages with ink and blending tool.
Rub Viva Decor Inka Gold (Gold 901) on a soft rag and apply to edges of each book signature and cover. This adds a really rich look to the book (and I also love that this ink washes off with soap and water if you get it on your hands!)
Bend the large matboard die cut panel into a U shape. This will be your book cover and binding.
Fold each small signature in half. This would be a good time to arrange and decorate the cover and pages in the order you would like them to appear in the book. I used Glitz stamps, Cosmo Cricket Tiny Text stickers, rick rack, flower and butterfly dies of mine cut from some different materials such as bubble wrap, plastic packaging, old sweaters, and fun things I had left over from other projects.
Take a piece of twine and tie each matboard signature securely into the middle of the book. This allows for movement of the pages as the book is opened, closed and moved around. The nice thick binding piece allows you to include all kinds of 3D items.

Here are some sample pages. I’m not done with the book yet but look forward to adding little tidbits here and there as they fit. This is a sampler book of my dies and includes different materials you can cut and techniques to try.

Butterfly die cut from packaging, alcohol inked and heated

flowers cut from Place Card die then colored with Copics

watercolor paper flowers cut from Hydrangeas & Borders and colored
with Copics. I die cut rickrack from fun foam and used it as a rubber stamp
on the left page.

Flower, Layers with Heart Petals cut from book pages and inked

bubble wrap Fringed Flower colored with Staz-On

Label & Buttons die stamped with ImpressArt metal stamps on matboard

Glitz stamps

Fringed Flower, Flower, Layers #9 and DeNami love stamp

I love how this book came out! I hope it helped you to see how much you can do with the Square Box…

GIVEAWAY TIME! Leave me a comment below and tell me how you would use this die- one of you will win a Square Box die for yourself! I’ll announce the winner here on my blog on Tuesday so stop back then to hear who the winner is… And don’t forget to check out all of the DT’s amazing work- head over to the Sizzix blog now- there’s a nice giveaway over there too. Thanks for stopping by!

XOXO Eileen

Ombre Watercolor Gift Card Folder

13 Feb

I found some really heavy (180 #) watercolor paper the other day in the thrift store. Although normally I would never consider paying $6 for a tablet of 15 sheets of paper (in a thrift store no less!), I was intrigued because the paper was really thick. I wanted to see what would happen when I ran it through the Big Shot using a ScoreBoards die.

First I decided to try my hand at a fun ombre watercolor effect. Here’s how:

Pick four colors that look pretty together…

Dip the brush in water and load on some paint and just start

brushing on the paper, blending the colors in as you go.

I like the look of light leading into darker colors and even a little white

paper showing through..

Paint the front and back of the watercolor paper and let it dry

(or speed drying along with a heat tool). Place paper on top of the die

and run it through the Big Shot using the Gift Card Folder ScoreBoard die.

The paper is thick enough that the scoring blade should do its work and

leave a score line. To ensure that the folds stayed crisp,

line up the folder on a scoring board and trace over the score lines.

Stamp “for you” on the label that comes with the die. Then fold it up,

tie a piece of twine around the label and add a gift card!

These would be so easy to make for so many different people and occasions. It’s always nice to add a little personality to a gift card. Plus these are so fast to make, you can assembly line them and have plenty on hand for when you need them.

Hope you will try a ScoreBoard die today! Are you ready for Valentine’s Day yet? Still trying to find the perfect little something for my husband- any suggestions?

Die-cut Cork Doily Coasters

11 Feb

Here’s a quick and easy project that would make a perfect hostess gift.

I found some cork placemats at Ikea and was wondering how that material would react when rolled through the Big Shot. Success! The trick is to find the right thickness. If you feel resistance and the material is hard to roll through, abort the mission. Back it up and try something thinner. You could break the machine- and being without a machine is scary- trust me. Don’t ask about my first Vagabond 🙁 But… lesson learned.

So, you found the right thickness of cork… trim it to a 6″ strip and select a die to work with. I used the Doily, Lace Medallion to cut a set of four cork doilies. They measure about four inches and are the perfect size to hold glasses.

I used the Sweet Things set to make the Sweet tag. Cut one from red paper. For the backing paper, place two pieces of pink cardstock. The die will cut the one closest to the blade through and the one under it will just be scored, but the edges should be cut. Place the scored piece under the red tag.

Tie up doilies with a piece of pink wired ribbon and present!

http://www.tipjunkie.com/all-crafts/handmade-projects/handmade-projects-212/

ATC Box

8 Feb

Here’s a project that I did for the Sizzix UK blog last weekend.

I used the new ATC Box from the From The Heart collection. I also die cut a bunch of ATC Cards using the die of that name. (I just looked it up and it is on sale for $11.99 at Sizzix.com. Get it! Saves so much time measuring and rounding corners…)

For directions, see my Sizzix UK blog post on February 2.

Thanks for stopping by. Have you done your Valentine shopping???

How to make a 3D flower from your husband’s old shirt

5 Feb

Sneak peek of a project coming out on the Sizzix blog this Thursday!

I used the Flower Layers w/Heart Petals die to create this 3D flower embellishment.

I wanted to experiment with some fabric to make flowers and saw my

husband’s old shirt laying on a pile to give away- thought I’d give it a whirl.

I removed a sleeve, cut down the seam and folded it into thirds, then die cut the flower.

Add as many layers as you would like- the more you add, the fuller the flower.

I used three layers for the one shown.

I love how this came out- one shirt will yield many more flowers.

There are are a bunch of ways that you can color the flower but

for this one I took a Copic marker and edged each petal to give a

soft ombre feel, echoing the pretty ribbon I found somewhere in

my travels. Lately I have been loving the monochromatic look-

not sure what that’s all about, but I am going with it.

After coloring the petals, layer them from small to large and glue together.

Sew the button from the sleeve cuff to the center of the flower. Spray

the flower with Stiffen Stuff and wrap it with a rubber band.

Let air dry or use a heat tool to speed it along.

Unwrap and fluff.

Now you have a very cool 3D flower. Since this is fabric, you may get

a little fraying but I think adds more dimension to the look.

Don’t forget to head over to the Sizzix blog to find out how to make this project.

Matted Valentine Hearts

1 Feb

I am happy to say that From the Heart, my new Sizzix die collection, is now available in your local scrapbook stores and other fun places! Just in time for Valentine’s Day!

Here’s a quick and easy project if you own a mat cutter. I love mine and use it every day for one thing or another- wrapping gifts, constructing boxes or books or actually matting something! If you are looking to purchase a well-made, long-lasting mat cutter, check out Logan Graphic Products.

This is a quick and easy way to way to display die cut hearts from my new Sizzlits set, Hearts & More…

Using a mat cutter, cut two off-white mats. Leave one for your backing and cut one with nine windows.
Die cut a bunch of hearts from watercolor paper.
Ink them with different color inks, making extra so you have choices to pick from.
Position solid mat on the bottom and window cut mat on top. Adhere with ATG gun.
Place hearts in windows in a pleasing arrangement. When you are sure you like it, adhere hearts with Zots.
Frame, add a ribbon hanger or just stand on your mantel or table!

If you don’t have a mat cutter, you still have plenty of options…. Take a 10″ square piece of heavy cardstock or chipboard and lay out a grid lightly in pencil. Leave a 2″ border around the outside of the paper and then divide the remaining space into nine equal boxes. Leave about 1/2″ in between each window. Mark the center of each window where you will mount your heart. Ink, stamp, paint or mist your hearts and mount with Zots. Erase pencil lines.

Another option would be to cut nine equally sized squares from coordinating cardstock and mount them on the paper, then add your hearts.

Have you started your Valentine crafting? What are you making?

Matted Valentine Hearts

1 Feb

This is a quick and easy way to way to display die cut hearts from my new Sizzlits set, Hearts & More…

Using a mat cutter, cut two off-white mats. Leave one for your backing and cut one with nine windows.
Die cut a bunch of hearts from watercolor paper.
Ink them with different color inks, making extra so you have choices to pick from.
Position solid mat on the bottom and window cut mat on top. Adhere with ATG gun.
Place hearts in windows in a pleasing arrangement. When you are sure you like it, adhere hearts with Zots.
Frame, add a ribbon hanger or just stand on your mantel or table!

CHA

19 Jan

Hello all! I am back from CHA– still recovering from a crazy, tiring, exhilarating and fun week. For a look at some of what happened, go to the Sizzix UK blog and see some of what went on…

Here’s a pic of me standing in front of my new Sizzix collection called Picket Fence. The display was so beautiful- I loved it!

More coming soon… Eileen

CHA

19 Jan

Hello all! I am back from CHA– still recovering from a crazy, tiring, exhilarating and fun week. For a look at some of what happened, go to the Sizzix UK blog and see some of what went on…

Here’s a pic of me standing in front of my new Sizzix collection called Picket Fence. The display was so beautiful- I loved it!

More coming soon… Eileen

Gearing up…

9 Jan

The Craft and Hobby Show is almost here! It is held in Anaheim from January 11-15 and everyone in the craft industry (pretty much) is there- designers, manufacturers, store owners, publishers, press- everyone wanting to check out what is new and exciting!

My preparations were even more compressed as we just returned for a week in FL to arrive home with 9 days till show- uh, not good… Thankfully, my amazing and talented friends Pam Keravuori, Amy Powers and Kitty Gallanis came over yesterday to help me make kits and samples of my new Sizzix release, Picket Fence. Everything came out so great! I love seeing what can happen with my stuff when people start playing with it.

Here are some pics of the fun…