Amanda Coleman Archives - Page 10 of 13

Thanksgiving Takeout Boxes

Nov

Now that Halloween is over, I can finally dedicate my energy to thinking about the upcoming feast of Thanksgiving. And with that feast comes leftovers. Glorious leftovers.

This is the one time of year I don’t mind having my fridge stuffed full of last night’s meal. But alas, sometimes those leftovers need to be sent home with friends and family. Today I am sharing a simple takeout box that you can mass produce with ease. Wrap each box with a piece of patterned paper and send those leftovers away in style.

Let me take a minute to address the obvious. There will be no leftover pumpkin pie. This piece of homemade pumpkin pie is for photography purposes only, and only briefly at that. Yum.

Now let’s get back to looking at the boxes. Each box is die cut from textured cardstock and is wrapped with a piece of patterned paper. This tuck and fold style box stays together without the wrap, but the wrap makes it extra pretty.

It is easy to die cut fun shapes in each wrap. You can use a single shape, or cut different shapes for each box.

This project is great for all of those leftover patterned paper strips you have laying around. Trim a strip of patterned paper to create a band around each box. Choose fall-themed colors or use anything you have on hand. Hop on over to my blog to see how I used the remaining turkey die cuts to make cute tags and labels.

These tuck and fold boxes are super easy to open and close, making it really easy to stuff them full of delicious leftovers. Be sure to line the box with parchment paper or wrap leftovers in a plastic bag before putting them in the box.

To make the takeout boxes, you will need two sheets of 12″x12″ cardstock. Die cut two box pieces and adhere them together with This to That double sided super sticky red tape. I like to use this tape when I am making 3-D projects.

After you have adhered the two box pieces together, you will fold it into a box shape. Hold the box together by adhering a few pieces of transparent tape on the inside of the box. The rest of the box is held together with tucks, tabs, and folds.

Trim several 2″ strips of 12″x12″ patterned paper to make bands that go around the box. Add some festive flair by die cutting a turkey in the middle of each paper strip.

You can assemble your boxes before the big feast, or assemble them on-the-fly as you send guests home with leftovers. Yum!

Happy Thanksgiving!
Amanda

Supplies:
FROM ME TO YOU DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ THANKS
FROM ME TO YOU DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ HELLO
THIS TO THAT DOUBLE-SIDED SUPER STICKY RED TAPE
American Crafts textured cardstock

Pumpkin Gift Boxes

Oct

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Happy October! Amanda here today with a darling set of pumpkin gift boxes that will charm the pants off of your friends and family. I love making pumpkin crafts because they are so versatile. You can use them for Halloween, Thanksgiving, or any fall occasion.

I picked several of my favorite yellow-orange papers from my Pebbles collections and got going. Let me tell ya, the Birthday Wishes collection is the gift that keeps on giving. Two of these orange papers came from that collection. I think I have used that collection for more non-birthday projects than birthday projects. It is just so versatile. I used my gift box punch board to make the boxes which made this project both fast and easy.

I added some warmth and texture to each box by wrapping them with a piece of jute twine. I tied on a pair of die cut leaves and inserted some paper spirals to mimic a pumpkin vine. If you don’t have a die cutting machine, cut a pair of simple leaves by hand.

Fill the boxes with treats, gifts, or even party leftovers. I lined these boxes with a piece of parchment paper and filled them with fresh roasted pumpkin seeds. Yum!

I was able to make and assemble these boxes in a snap with the WRMK gift box punch. No fancy die cutting machines or tools required. I picked three different papers, cut them to size according to the chart on the punch board, and got to scoring and punching.

Create paper spirals by tightly wrapping a narrow strip of paper around a round pencil. Hold in place for a few seconds and release. This will leave you with loose spiral. To make a tighter spiral, secure the paper to the pencil with a bit of tape, lightly wet the paper, and let dry completely.

I like these boxes so much I plan on using them as home décor. If they stick around long enough, they may just be part of my Thanksgiving centerpiece!

Thanks for stopping by!
Amanda

Supplies:
Pebbles Paper Pad 12×12″ 48/Pkg Basics
Birthday Wishes Double-Sided Cardstock 12×12″
WRMK Gift Box Punch Board

Create a Scene with Stickers

Oct

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I love creating a scene. Not the kind that leaves the public squirming in discomfort, but the kind that is perfectly placed on a greeting card. Amanda here today with a few fun ways to create scenes with stickers on Halloween cards.

Using a single package of cardstock stickers from the Thirty-One collection, I created a trio of Halloween cards, each with it’s own spooky scene. I had so much fun mixing and matching stickers, I kept making cards until I ran out of stickers! To see some bonus cards made with stickers from the Thirty-One collection, head on over to my blog.

This happy jack-o-lantern card was created with patterned paper and a few stickers. The star paper sets the scene at night and the striped paper creates Boo Street. I popped up a couple of pumpkins with foam to add dimension to the scene. I stitched a border around the card to add a bit of texture.

The skull paper from the Thirty-One collection is my favorite. It is a little bit creepy and a little bit fun all at the same time. I paired the ghoulish skulls with the silvery ghost stickers and created a custom sentiment to complete this simple scene. I used a tear strip to created the striped border and stitched around the card to add some texture and color to the card.

I popped up the custom sentiment with foam to add dimension to the card. Head over to my blog to see additional ways to use this custom sentiment and download it for FREE.

This next scene has lots of details and layers. I adhered chevron paper to the card base and added a herringbone hill to create the background. I stitched the papers to the card, adding stitching detail to the top of the card. I layered all kinds of scary stickers to the card to create a spooky night scene.

I added depth to the scene to adhering the tree with foam. The clouds are adhered directly to the card making them appear as though they are floating behind the tree. I also popped up the little bat with a foam square.

One of my favorite tricks when working with lots of stickers is making them unsticky by coating the back with a thin layer of cornstarch. With a dry paint brush, I apply a thin layer of cornstarch to the back of the sticker and gently brush off the excess cornstarch into a garbage can. Unsticky stickers are easy to reposition, which is important when creating a scene on a card. After I have determined the final placement of a sticker, I adhere the stickers to my project with a tape runner or other adhesive.

After I had applied corn starch to all of my stickers, I experimented with background paper. I arranged a bunch of non-sticky stickers on a piece of patterned paper until I had a scene that I was happy with.

While the orange chevron paper was fun, I wanted my scene to have a spooky nighttime feel, so I placed the stickers on a black background to see what they looked like. Because the stickers were no longer sticky, it was super easy to move them to a different paper and try moving some of the stickers to a different position.

Happy Halloween!
Amanda

Supplies:
Thirty-One Cardstock Stickers 6×12 Phrase and Accent
Thirty-One Double Sided Cardstock 12×12 Mystical
Thirty-One Double Sided Cardstock 12×12 Dreadful
Thirty-One 6×6 paper pad

Party Favor Bags

Oct

2 Comments

Amanda here today and I am crazy for Pebbles’ treat bags! They come in a variety of fun patterns and can package up gifts in several different ways.

Today I will be showing you how to package up the same treat bag in three different ways using mini clothespins to secure tags and labels to each bag.

One of my favorite ways to secure a tag or label to a treat bag is with a mini clothes pin. It eliminates the need for a permanent closure, making it easy for the recipient to get into their goodies and save some for later.

The easiest way to package treats is to fold over the top of the bag and secure the bag and tag with a clothes pin. Embellish your tags with die cuts, popping up some with foam to add dimension.

I love scrunching the top of my treat bags to make them look like a sack full of goodies. Tie the bag closed with a piece of baker’s twine and add a tag to the twine with a mini clothes pin.

Another fun way to package up goodies in a treat bag is to crease and fold the bag so it stands like a lunch bag. This is a great way to package treats that need to stand upright. I topped this bag with a folded circle and some fun die cuts.

To create a stand up bag out of a flat treat bag, start by folding in the sides of the bag about 3/4″. This creates the creases that you’ll need to help form your bag.

Next, fold the bottom of the bag 3/4″ creating another crease. The most important thing to do is to make all of your folds the same depth so all of your creases line up.

After you have created creases in your bag, open the bag and make nice creases all the way around the bag, creating little triangles at the base of the bag.

Secure the triangles to the bottom of the bag with transparent tape.

Now your bag should stand up nicely and look like a pretty little lunch bag. Fill with presents, goodies, or gift cards!

Have a great day!
Amanda

Supplies:
BIRTHDAY WISHES PRINTED BAGS
BIRTHDAY WISHES CARDSTOCK STICKERS
BIRTHDAY WISHES CARDSTOCK TAGS
BIRTHDAY WISHES CARDSTOCK DIE-CUTS
BASICS MINI CLOTHESPINS MULTICOLOR
BAKER’S TWINE VALUE PACK

Cozy Fall Cards

Sep

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Fall is in the air! Amanda here today with a trio of cozy fall cards. One of my favorite parts of fall is rediscovering my collection of soft, bulky sweaters. I admire them all year long as I wait for the air to feel crisp.

Using sweaters as my inspiration, I created cards with rich earth tones and soft textures.

The gray and white striped background on this card is just like my waffle knit cardigan that I wear around the house on chilly mornings. I paired the stripes with glittery gold polka dots on kraft and some pretty, feminine flowers.

I anchored a bundle of natural jute twine to the face of the card with a cluster of flowers. The flowers are fussy cut from the same sheet of 12″x12″ paper.

The zigzag pattern on the blue patterned paper reminded me of the lines that are formed on a knit sweater. The polka dot burlap leaves and glittery gold circle add texture and richness to this cozy fall card.

I die cut several paper flowers and layered them together to create the large flower. I added extra dimension to the flower by curling the petals in different directions.

The dark gray houndstooth background on this card gives it a decidedly masculine feel. I attached the journaling card sentiment to the card with a couple of contrasting stitches.

Adding stitches is a fun and easy way to add detail to a card. Place your card over a piercing mat and punch holes with a paper piercer in a square pattern.

Starting from the back of the card, hand-stitch Xs with colorful twine. Secure loose ends with a knot or a piece of transparent tape.

Happy fall!
Amanda

Supplies:
HOMEMADE DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ AQUA FLORAL
HOMEMADE DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ SILVER PATTERN
HOMEMADE DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ GREY WHIMSY
HOMEMADE DOUBLE-SIDED CARDSTOCK 12″X12″ BEST DAY EVER
HOMEMADE GLITTER STICKERS GOLD CIRCLES
HOMEMADE KRAFT BAGS 12/PKG W/GLITTER ACCENTS
PEBBLES PAPER PAD 6″X6″ HOMEMADE