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Welcome to the Crafter's Companion Blog Hop. If you would like to read more details about what is happening this week visit Crafter's Companion by clicking: HERE

A big thank you to everyone who visits me on this blog hop and hello to you all.

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I don't know about you but crafting helps me to relax and forget about things for a while and I love the Create-A-Card die's because the most simple projects look like they have taken hours of work.

For the projects I would like to show you I used the 5" x 5" Create-A-Card 'Snow Crystal' die but don't worry if you don't have this particular one because you will be able to make at least two of the projects with any of the Create-A-Card dies.

Now I also love sparkly things, but in the making of this project I dropped a whole tub of glitter on my lap, it's not something I recommend you do.....days later I am still finding it everywhere, I will be sparkling for months!

So, here are my projects from left to right: Gift Box, Card, Tree / Hanging Ornament. Why not have a go at making your own, tutorials are below:

Gift Box Tutorial
Items Used:
A4 Centura Pearl Card (3 sheets)
Die'sire Create-A-Card Die (any of the 5" x 5" die's - I used 'Snow Crystal')
Backing paper or card (I used Sara's Contemporary Christmas A4 Luxury Foiled Card with Distress Ink 'Mermaid Lagoon')
Glitter (or embossing powder)
Stick it (or Versamark if using embossing powder)

Measure & cut 2 pieces of Centura Pearl Card to 8" x 8"
(If your Create-A-Card die is larger than 5" increase the size of the Centura Pearl Card by whatever the difference is. So for a 6" die your card would need to be one inch bigger so it would measure 9" x 9" and then just follow the instructions below).

Using either the 'Ultimate Pro' or the 'Big Score' score one piece of card against the box lid side at the 1" mark on all four sides. This is your lid.

Score the second piece of card against the box base at the 1" mark on all four sides. This is your base.

Cut 'v' shapes into each of the four corners.

On the 'base' only fold the sides down and stick the side flaps together using Collall tacky glue. Put this to one side to dry.

Cut another piece of Centura Pearl Card measuring 51/2" x 51/2".  Cover the card with 'Stick It' and place the die in the centre (on top of the Stick It), run through a die cutting machine to cut and then emboss. This is your topper.
(If you do not have Stick it you can either apply glue after you have cut / embossed or you can use Versamark with embossing powder instead).

Remove the Stick It, take your glitter and cover the card. (And this is the point where you should not drop the whole tub of glitter into your lap unless you want to be sparkly for a very long time!). Put this to one side.

Take a piece of Sara's Contemporary Christmas A4 Luxury Foiled Card and cut it to 53/4" x 53/4" Use your Distress Ink to colour over the top of the card. It doesn't have to be an even colour, I think it looks better when there are lighter areas.
(As an alternative you can use backing paper or card).

Glue the die cut topper to the Foiled Card using Collall Tacky Glue.

Glue this to the 'lid' of the box. Next cut 4 pieces of card from Sara's Contemporary Christmas card, each measuring 53/4" x 3/4" and apply Distress Inks to each one. Glue these to the four side panels on the 'lid.'

Next, glue the lid side flaps to create your lid.

All that is left to do is add a little decoration, for this one I used gems and a ribbon and here is the finished gift box:

Card Tutorial
Items Used:
A4 Centura Pearl Card (1 sheet)
Die'sire Create-A-Card Die (any of the 5" x 5" die's - I used 'Snow Crystal')
Backing paper or card (I used Sara's Contemporary Christmas A4 Luxury Foiled Card with Distress Ink 'Mermaid Lagoon')
Glitter (or embossing powder)
Stick it (or Versamark if using embossing powder)

Measure and cut your piece of Centura Pearl Card to 11" x 51/2" and score this in half. Cover one half of the card with Stick It (on the outside section) and place your die in the centre of the card. Run through a die cutting machine to cut and then emboss.
(If you do not have Stick it you can either apply glue after you have cut / embossed or you can use Versamark with embossing powder instead).

Remove the die and the Stick It, take your glitter and cover the card.

Next take a piece of Sara's Contemporary Christmas A4 Luxury Foiled Card and cut it to 51/4" x 51/4" Use your Distress Ink to colour over the top of the card. It doesn't have to be an even colour, I think it looks better when there are lighter areas. Glue this to the inner panel of your card so that when it is closed you can see the blue side behind the snow crystal.
(As an alternative you can use backing paper or card).

To finish off decorate with as many gems as you like and add a ribbon. Here is the finished card which matches perfectly with your gift box:

Hanging Ornament Tutorial
Items Used:
A4 Centura Pearl Card (1 sheet)
Die'sire Create-A-Card Die (any of the 5" x 5" die's - I used 'Snow Crystal')
Distress Ink 'Mermaid Lagoon'
Glitter (or embossing powder)
Stick it (or Versamark if using embossing powder)

Measure and cut your Centura Pearl Card to 5" x 5" and cover both sides of the card with Stick It (when you hang the ornament up it will spin around so you want both sides to look sparkly). Place your die on the card and run through a die cutting machine. (You will be able to get two die cuts from one sheet of card).
(If you do not have Stick it you can either apply glue after you have cut / embossed or you can use Versamark with embossing powder instead).

Remove the die but leave the Stick It in place. Cut away the frame that borders the die cut so you are left with just the Snow Crystal.

Remove the Stick It from both sides, take your glitter and cover both sides.

Take a Distress Ink in your colour choice and gently apply it lightly to the edges of the snowflake.

Decorate with gems and add a string and ribbon. The best thing about this project is you can colour match it to any decorations you are putting up for Christmas.

Apologies that my photo shows them without strings but I have done 3 different colours for you to see:

Well I hope I have inspired you to try and least one of these tutorials and I want to say thank you for hopping by.

Just before you go, at the start of this post I talked about how crafting helps me to relax. Well I also have a little critter that sits on a bed on my craft table, she is always trying to get in on the action and 'help' with the crafting. While trying to score the card she kept pulling the scoring tool towards her. So just to give you an overload of cuteness, here is my little furball 'helping'

For more inspiration and another chance to win a prize follow the hop to the next blog which is being hosted by the lovely Sam, here is the link: Sam's Blog

And just in case you need them, here are the links to all the other blogs from our talented team:

Jen
Sam
Gemma
Sally
Angela
Soraya
Janine
Laney
Julie
Donna
Laine
Kelly