Pop it Ups Winter Wonderland Tunnel Card

Hi all! Today I'm sharing a tutorial for this pretty winter card that I made using Karen Burniston's new Gift Card Accordion die. As you know, I love using the accordion dies to make tunnel cards - it's a great way to get extra mileage from your dies! I've had the idea for this snowy woodland scene in my mind for ages. I just knew that Karen's All Seasons Tree die was going to look gorgeous covered with Elizabeth Craft Designs' Warm Diamond Glitter. So sparkly!

The tunnel cards are such showstoppers. They lay completely flat for mailing, but expand into an amazing diorama. I can't imagine anyone who wouldn't be thrilled to receive a card like this. And even though it looks complicated, it's incredibly easy to make. Here's how it goes together:

1. Begin by cutting a piece of 100 lb Soft Finish cardstock in half lengthwise, creating two 4.25" x 11" panels. Fold each panel in half. Place the folded panel on the Gift Card Accordion die, making sure you drop the folded edge below the cutting line on the die, so that the fold stays intact (you may want to tape it to hold it in place). Run the die and paper through your machine to cut. Repeat for other card. Cut out the center panels and cut off the tabs. Next, cut notches into the outer frame of one panel, and into the inner edges of the other, as shown.

 2. Use a sponge or inking tool to lightly color the panels on both sides.

3. To give the card a bit more shimmer, stamp the two small snowflake dies from Karen Burniston's Merry & Bright stamp set onto the card using embossing ink. Cover with sticky embossing powder and heat. Immediately cover with Warm Diamond glitter. Let cool and tap off excess. Assemble the card. For a more detailed tutorial, see my original post.

4. Cover a sheet of white cardstock with double sided adhesive and die cut seven trees, being sure to cut with the release paper side up. Remove the release paper from the trees and cover with Warm Diamond glitter. Polish the glitter with your finger to completely adhere and bring out the sparkle.

5. To create the snowbanks, cover another piece of cardstock with double sided adhesive and cut several pieces using the wavy die from the Outdoor Edges set. Cut to fit the area of the card you're decorating. Remove the backing paper and cover with Warm Diamond glitter. Tip - for an easy way to adhere the panels, cover the outer edges with a bit of release paper before you apply glitter. Remove the release paper and stick onto your card.

6. To make the stickers usable for the card, adhere them to cardstock and then trim carefully with detail scissors.

Once all your elements are glittered and cut out, it's just a matter of adhering them to the card. I love the way the ECD Glitter Stickers look in this scene - so gorgeous!

Here's a quick video to show the expanding action of this card. I wish you could see how the glitter sparkles on the trees and snow banks. You're just going to have to make your own to see! :)

The supplies I used can be found at Elizabeth Craft Designs and Simon Says Stamp via the links below.

Karen Burniston Gift Card Accordion Karen Burniston All Seasons Tree Karen Burniston Outdoor Edges EDC Silk Microfine Glitter - Warm Diamond Glitter Deer Stickers Soft Finish Cardstock 8.5" X 11" 270gr /100Lb 10 pack (PSF102) Elizabeth Craft Designs Transparent Double Sided Tape Sheet - 8.5" x 11" - 5 pack (502) Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad FADED JEANS Ranger TIM21452 *Ranger Inkssentials INK BLENDING TOOL Applicator Foam IBT23616 EK Success CUTTER BEE Scissors EKCB01 Sizzix MAGNETIC PLATFORM FOR WAFER-THIN DIES Accessory 656499

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Thanks so much for stopping by today! If you'd like to see more of my tunnel cards, click HERE to see my previous posts. Trust me, once you try one, you'll be addicted!

Wednesday With Tutorial!

Hi all! Today, I'm sharing the tutorial for this cool, interactive steampunk card over at the Elizabeth Craft Designs blog. It's another version of the tunnel card I've been making by altering Karen Burniston's Accordion Rectangle die. Go HERE to check it out!

I've just started experimenting with ECD's Shimmer Sheetz and let me tell you, this material is amazing! Don't those hinges look like real brass? Nope - Shimmer Sheetz!

You can find all the supplies I used at Elizabeth Craft Designs and Simon Says Stamp via the links below.

Karen Burniston Accordion Rectangle Die Karen Burniston Accordion Rectangle Card ECD Hardware 1 - Hinges Elizabeth Craft Designs HARDWARE 1 HINGES Die 962 Karen Burniston Clock and Gears Die Set Tim Holtz Cling Rubber Stamps PARIS TO LONDON cms160 Tim Holtz Cling Rubber Stamps STEAMPUNK CMS107 Tim Holtz Cling Rubber Stamps WALLPAPER and WOOD cms126 Ranger 8.5 x 11 KRAFT CARDSTOCK Inkssentials Surfaces ISM35244 Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pad GATHERED TWIGS Ranger Fall TIM32823 Sizzix MAGNETIC PLATFORM FOR WAFER-THIN DIES Accessory 656499 *Ranger Inkssentials INK BLENDING TOOL Applicator Foam IBT23616 EK Success CUTTER BEE Scissors EKCB01

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Thanks so much for stopping by today. I hope you enjoy the tutorial!

Karen Burniston April Challenge - Accordions With Friends!

Hi all! This month's challenge from Karen Burniston is a fun one. Each of the designers got to choose a blogger friend who would receive an accordion die and create a card for the challenge. I chose my friend Lisa Hoel. I've been following Lisa's work since we were a part of the Inspiration Emporium design team. She has made several amazing cards using Karen's dies, so I knew she would be the perfect friend to invite. She'll be posting her card tomorrow, so be sure and check her blog to see what she came up with!

Here is what I came up with for the challenge. I knew I wanted to do a tunnel card using the Rectangle Accordion die, but I wasn't sure what direction to go in. My friend Michelle suggested using the new Pop it Ups Barn die and doing a country scene - complete with a clothesline - and I was off and running! We've both fallen in love with Graphic 45's new Home Sweet Home collection, and it was perfect for creating this sweet, country-themed card. Thanks for the inspiration, Michelle!

I have to admit I am a bit addicted to this style of card! It is the perfect excuse to pull out the scissors and go crazy fussy cutting your your favorite Graphic 45 papers. And how cute is that barn in the back? It's part of Karen's latest release and you'll be seeing me use it a lot! It will be available at the end of April, along with her new characters. See this post for more info.

What I love about creating a tunnel card like this is that it folds flat for mailing, but expands into this three dimensional gorgeousness. And using Karen's Accordion dies make it so easy - no measuring or thinking involved.You can find a full tutorial for creating a tunnel card with Accordion dies in this post from last year. Even though I used the Oval Accordion, the process is exactly the same.

I love this image of the woman hanging out her wash, and adding the clothesline was as easy as punching a couple of holes and threading a piece of baker's twine through them. The cow in the background and the label on the barn are both from G45's Home Sweet Home stamp sets.

Like I always say, still photos will never show the dimension of a card like this, so here's a quick little Vine video that shows how the card expands.

All the supplies I used can be found at Simon Says Stamp via the links below. I'll be sure and update this post when the Barn Pop it Ups die becomes available.

Elizabeth Craft Designs ACCORDION RECTANGLE Pop It Ups Die 972 Graphic 45 Home Sweet Home 2 Cling Stamps Graphic 45 HOME SWEET HOME 1 Cling Stamps IC0332 Graphic 45 Home Sweet Home 8x8 Paper Pad Graphic 45 HOME SWEET HOME 12 x 12 Paper Pad 4501077 EK Success CUTTER BEE Scissors EKCB01 Simon Says Stamp CUSTOM COPIC FRIENDLY WHITE CARDSTOCK 12 Pack Memento TUXEDO BLACK INK PAD Full Size me-900 EK Success 1/8" CIRCLES 3-D Foam Dots Adhesive SPAF-PD or 55-01046 Sizzix MAGNETIC PLATFORM FOR WAFER-THIN DIES Accessory 656499 *Tim Holtz Sizzix VAGABOND MACHINE Die Cutting Embossing Alterations 656850

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Thanks so much for stopping by today! Remember to check Lisa's blog tomorrow for her take on the challenge. On Wednesday, Karen Burniston will have another incredible tutorial on the Elizabeth Craft Designs blog, as well as all the cards from the DT and friends as well. You won't want to miss that post!

Karen Burniston Designer Challenge - Artsy Take Two

Hi all! I have a super fun card to share with you today for Karen Burniston's Designer Challenge. It was a labor of love and I totally adore it! I think it's the most stamping I've done in ages. I was inspired to try some coloring and stamping after trying out some Copic markers at my friend Cyndi's house. After I came home, I couldn't get them out of my mind. I've never been big on coloring, but I guess the time was finally right to dive in and try it! I didn't have a lot of money in my craft budget and wanted to get started right away, so I chose to buy the Spectrum Noir markers which are significantly less expensive than Copics. And I'm really happy I did - I love them!

I knew I wanted to do another tunnel card like THIS one, but using Karen's new Accordion Rectangle die. When deciding what stamps to use, I came upon two sets of brand new circus-themed stamps from Oxford Impression  - Vintage Circus and Big Top - that I'd never even cut up! I guess I was just saving them for the perfect project.

I cut the card panels from cream cardstock and then removed the inner panels. Next, I notched the cards where they would join. I stamped the stripes stamp on the front and back of each panel using black Memento ink, then colored the stripes with a red Spectrum Noir marker.

I stamped the curtains twice, again with black Memento ink, colored them and then cut them apart to fit the space. For the big top, I stamped and colored a panel of cream cardstock and then cut it to shape. The flags were cut with the pennant die from Karen's Lots of Pops set and adhered to painted toothpicks. The stars are beads from my stash.

The circus banner and all the other images were stamped on Neenah smooth white cardstock and colored as shown. I still have a long way to go on my coloring - but I'm having fun!

Here's a fun little video to show the movement of my trapeze lady. I love the image of her hanging from a rope, and I knew I had to make her move somehow! To make that happen, I just cut slits in the outer fold of each side of the center panel and then cut a piece of shrink plastic to fit. I used that because it needed to be fairly stiff. You could also use clear packing. I added tabs to the ends so they wouldn't pull through all the way and then adhered my lady where I wanted her. I wanted to make the dog flip too, but I couldn't figure that one out! ;)

All the supplies I used, other than the stamps, are available from Simon Says Stamp via the links below. 

Karen Burniston Accordion Rectangle Die *Elizabeth Craft Design LOTS OF POPS Pop It Ups Dies *Memento Luxe Ink Pad TUXEDO BLACK Tsukineko *Crafter's Companion ESSENTIALS SPECTRUM NOIR MARKERS 404553 *Crafter's Companion BROWNS SPECTRUM NOIR MARKERS 404607 *Crafter's Companion BLUES SPECTRUM NOIR MARKERS 404614 *Neenah Classic Crest 80 LB SUPER SMOOTH SOLAR WHITE Paper Pack 25 Sheets *Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD BRUSHED CORDUROY Brown Ranger *Tim Holtz DISTRESS INK PAD BLACK SOOT Ranger Sizzix MAGNETIC PLATFORM FOR WAFER-THIN DIES Accessory 656499 *Crafter's Companion YELLOWS SPECTRUM NOIR MARKERS 404591 *Crafter's Companion SKIN TONES SPECTRUM NOIR MARKERS 404546 *EK Success CUTTER BEE Scissors EKCB01

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Thanks so much for stopping by today! Make sure you check out Karen's post on the Elizabeth Craft Designs blog tomorrow. I've seen her card and you are not going to want to miss her tutorial!

Did you know that Spectrum Noir has a challenge each month? This is the first time I've ever entered! You can check out the rules and entries here.