Journaling Card Box
Hi Friends! I’m excited to welcome back special guest Anna Karin Evaldsson to our blog today! If you want to see what she’s up to on a weekly basis check out her blog HERE and our weekly Monday Challenge! Read on and enjoy!
Hello everyone! I (Anna-Karin) am really happy to be back here with another tutorial. For many years now, one of my favorite surfaces to work on has been mat board. I love to use mat board, both as a base for 3-D projects and to die cut embellishments or letters from. The Sizzix Little Sizzles Mat Board comes in white and cream and the sheets are 6 x 13 in, which is perfect for die cutting. The techniques can be used on other surfaces too, such as manila or watercolor cardstock.
I used the Recipe Box Scoreboards die by Eileen Hull and Sizzix to make a box (4.1 x 3.1 in). The box die is great and the box it can hold, for example, a little gift, a mini-book, gift cards, photos, or little cards or notes. Today, I filled it with cards, which can either be given away as cards, or used as journaling cards in a project. Mat board is really sturdy and holds up to a lot of use, for example, I made some storage containers for my son when he turned three, and they are still holding up four years later, even after being handled often by little hands. When it comes to techniques, mat board takes ink beautifully and works great together with stamping, paint and even water techniques. Let’s start!
Start by die cutting the Recipe Card Box from cream Little Sizzles Mat Board. This is an XL die, so you need the Extended Cutting Pads, but it fits perfectly in an ordinary Big Shot or Vagabond machine. You don’t need the Big Shot Plus. Use this sandwich: Extended Cutting Pad, die facing up, mat board, second Extended Cutting Pad. As you can see on the photo, the ScoreBoards dies both cuts and scores the material, making assembly very easy. You can also use chipboard.
White emboss flowers from Tim Holtz Mini Bouquet set on the front, back and sides of the box. Remember to make sure that you are stamping them in the right direction. It is easy to by mistake stamp upside down on the front.
Start inking with the lightest shade of Distress Ink, using an Ink Blending Tool. The embossing will resist the ink.
Continue inking the box until you are happy. I used Twisted Citron, Mowed Lawn, Tumbled Glass and Mermaid Lagoon Distress Inks.
Splatter the box with water to create a bit of texture.
Randomly stamp the box with a script stamp and Jet Black ink. You can skip this step, if you want a less messy look.
Apply a strong adhesive along the flaps of the box. I used Ranger’s Wonder Tape.
Assemble the box and carefully sand the edges slightly to reveal the cream mat board.
Cut cards from watercolor paper. Mine are 3,9 x 2,9 in. I made 12 cards, one for each sentiment on Tim Holtz’s Mini Motivation set. White emboss the sentiments on the cards, varying the placement.
If you want to, you can round the corners of the cards.
On a craft sheet, smear a line of Mowed Lawn, followed by a thinner line of Twisted Citron and finally at the top, a line of Mermaid Lagoon. Mist with water and start pressing the cards into the ink. Wipe the sheet and reapply the ink when you get to the end of the line.
Continue until you have colored all the cards. Sometimes I added a little bit of darker ink with my finger over a word or two, to make them stand out better.
Tuck the cards into the box and tie with a string.
I stamped a sentiment from Simple Sayings on the flap of the box. You can also close the box with Velcro.
Mirrored Hearts are great embellishments that fit almost any project, giving a little bit of bling.
At the bottom of the box, I glued a piece of lace, and I also added a couple of Chit Chat stickers.
This is the back of the box. If you use other stamps and colors, this box can work for almost any theme.
The box can easily hold more cards then the twelve I made. Or you could also add little envelopes, which I did in another project of mine, namely this Quick Gift Card set.
Here’s a look at the cards. These sentiments are so great and fit many different occasions. You can color the back of the cards too or leave them white.
The cards can be used as journaling cards, or as simple greeting cards. They could also be added to gifts, as gift tags.
I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and that it inspired you to play around with mat board.
Thank you so much for looking!
Happy crafting!
Anna-Karin
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Thanks for reading today, and thanks to Anna Karin for being our special guest!
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What a great project. Thanks for the step by step instructions.
Cute!
This is my favorite color combo ever Anna-Karin! Your journaling cards and box are stunning and love your easy to understand tutorial. Thank you so much for using my dies and making them look so amazing ❤️
This is an absolutely breathtaking project.
Amazing inspiration. Thanks for sharing!!!!
Very pretty. I like the colors.
Cute project! Thanks for sharing!
Beautiful color palette. And a really fun gift idea!
Love those embossed flowers and black text.
Love the colors chosen!
Great project! Love the box.
What a cool project. I love that box die. Your color choices are wonderful. Thanks so much for the great instructions.
Such a nice project, I just love the combination of colors!
SO FUN!! THANKS for sharing!! =)
Love this project and am inspired to create cards of my own using this technique.
THANKS
Robin
Awesome project. The box is gorgeous and the cards are beautifully done. LOVE the colors ♥
how pretty these are and what a great idea to keep on hand as gift tags.
I think this is the best project you have blogged in a long time. I want to try this project. I see that you are out of the sizzix box die but hopefully you will have it back in stock soon.
Oh my goodness Anna-Karin this box and card set is just fantastic! I love the colours you have used and the white embossed sentiments look lovely with the backgrounds.These really ARE great for multiple occasions and a great idea for a gift for that hard to buy for person. ♥ it, very well done!
Great techniques incorporated into this project…very beautiful!
This is such a cool idea! Thank you for inspiring!
The colors really caught my eye. What a neat project.
Love your project …
This is such a cool project. It would make a wonderful gift!
Oh, I do like this a lot! Those colors are great together.
I really love this project! The colors are perfect also. Great Job!!!
Wow!!! This box and set are incredible!! I love the Mermaid Lagoon colour too!
What an excellent project and tutorial! Lots of great tips, thank you Anna.
WOW, well this is certainly a beautiful eye-catching project! LOVE your choice of colors and the way you’ve distressed it!!!
Thanks for the inspiration! Fantastic box! i love the fresh colors you used and the white embossing. TFS
Gorgeous color combo and fabulous project!
What a fabulous project! So many cool things you can do with it.
Gorgeous!
Love this project! Beautiful.
What a stunning project! I love the color combination and all the small details on the cards! I also love the decorating hearts. Thank you Anna-Karin, this is so inspiring!
Stunning, I love these colours together! And what a fun project, too!
Those colours!! What a wonderful project ❤️
Beautiful colours, thanks for sharing!
Such a darling box to house your lovely art cards.
This is such a beautiful box and set of cards! Love the colours and the embossing!
Oh my, Great project! Love what you did with the distress ink.
Awesome project and colors!!!
I like your color scheme and the idea of journal cards.
stamping sue
http://stampingsueinconnecticut.blogspot.com/
Beautiful! What a lovely bundle of inspiration! Thank you for the wonderful tutorial and all your hard work!
Absolutely beautiful! I love every single one!
Cool project!
Love the techniques. Thanks for a beautiful project.
Great project! :)
Gorgeous box!
I love the bright colors. Beautiful background. Gorgeous creation.