Thursday, December 19, 2024

Tinsel Time Christmas Explosion Box

Hi crafters! There's still time to create some handmade Christmas gifts and today, I have a great idea for one. I'm sharing a wonderful little explosion box for my latest Doodlebug Design Team Project that is packed with layered pocket pages, cute papers, and 5 ... yep, FIVE Doodle-pops from the Tinsel Time Collection!

The 5x5 inch box is by Scrapbook.com and made of thick, heavy-duty cardstock. It comes already made so all you have to do is decorate it. I started by covering the outside in colorful 12x12 pattern papers, then added a white scalloped adhesive ribbon from MayArts around the bottom edge of the lid (product links below).

On the top of the lid, I used a 3" scalloped circle punch and a 2.5" circle punch by Marvy Uchida to create a mat, then added the pretty Merry Christmas Doodle-pops. The enamel candy cane & dots add a little shine.

When you lift the lid, the sides drop down and the box's layers unfold to reveal ...

... tadaaa!!! ... all of these amazing little pocket pages and embellies! Because I can be a Doodle-pops hoarder, I'm super proud of myself for using 4 inside, lol! 

In between each set of pages is a heart shape that connects one section to the next. Below, I've added some tips for cutting the pattern paper for these.

In the center, I added a beautiful wreath die cut from the Odds & Ends and some glitter dots for sparkle. Since it's flat, there's room in the center for a small gift once the box is closed. You could add:

  • jewelry
  • a gift card
  • tickets to an event
  • candy
  • a key chain, or a key to something!
  • a small toy
  • or a love note

Each of the 4 sections has 3 built-in POCKET pages, giving the box 12 in total. If you count the front and back of each ... that's 24 little scrapbook pages to fill with photos and stickers. And isn't the So Endeering Doodle-pops adorable with her little pink collar?

Lift up the pages and you'll see where the opening for each pocket is. I covered the pages with more 12x12 pattern papers, added some pretty die cuts from the Odd & Ends, and created different shaped photo mats.

All the circular mats were created with the same 3" and 2.5" punches that I used for the lid. The square mats are the same size but I cut them out. Oh! And do you see the Jolly St. Nick Doodle-pops above? So cute.

Here, you can also spot the Christmas Cottage and the Christmas Candy Doodle-pops. ~ Dear Santa, I want a pink house just like that one, please. 

So, I just counted. If you add a photo on each page and in each pocket, this sweet box could hold 40 photos, plus the small gift in the center!  Whoa ... that's a lot of Christmas cheer packed into a 5x5 inch space.😉

Now for the tips on cutting those heart shaped pieces ...

I cut out four squares, each measuring 4.5 inches. Then, I folded the squares in half corner to corner. Next, I traced the shape of the heart onto the paper and cut the curve out.

Unfold it, and ... voila! You'll have a perfect little heart shape to layer on the box.


So what do you think? Wouldn't this be a GREAT surprise to give someone this Christmas? It has so many fun pages tucked inside, and ... I didn't even use all the little interactive elements that come with the box! 

I had a great time making this with the cute and colorful Tinsel Time Collection. I hope today's project inspires you to create something wonderful. Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

 
Supplies: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.  Affiliate links are used in this post at no additional cost to you. I receive a small amount of compensation when you click through and shop using the provided links. This helps me to continue building my small business. Thank you!

Wednesday, December 18, 2024

NEW! 12x12 Calendar Scrapbook Kit

Happy Wednesday! Ready for a sneak peek into this week's NEW scrapbook kit that will be in my shop on Friday? It's a Calendar Kit titled My Life 365 that is perfect for the new year and so much fun to create. With 2025 just weeks ahead, it's a wonderful place to save photos, document your events, and stay organized. And, once the year is complete, you'll have 12 wonderful scrapbook pages to add to any album!

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar Kit by Artsy Albums

I created this with the Bella Blvd, My Life 365 Collection and I absolutely love it. There is so much packed into this one collection. It's suuuper cute and colorful, AND ... it has papers and embellishments that cover all of the seasons, holidays, and themes that you look forward to throughout the year!

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for February with hearts, rainbows, and hot air balloons

I also used the 12x12 Year Full of Memories Calendar by Simple Stories. It is spiral bound and comes with stickers and die cuts, however I only used their monthly word stickers. But, they will all still come in the kit. 

These calendar pages are great for adding birthdays, appointments, vacations, scrapbook retreats or crops, date night, anniversaries, holidays, work meetings, kids sports, and more!

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for March with shamrocks, green beer, and leprechauns

For the decorative sides, I designed them with lots of cute pattern papers and die cuts that coordinate with each month's theme. Some of them even have fun little pockets, tags, and flippies.

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for April with Easter eggs, flowers, and colorful raindrops

The calendar has space for 60 photos in total. That's a lot of fun memories packed onto 12 scrapbook pages!

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for June with waves, a sun, swimsuit, and flip flops

Hang this cute calendar on your wall to keep track of all your events at a glance.

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for June with waves, a sun, swimsuit, and flip flops

I used a simple binder clip to hang mine but you could also punch a hole in the pages to hang them.

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for August with palm trees, beach cottages, airplanes and sand castles

Once the year is over, remove the binding and add these colorful layouts to any 12x12 scrapbook album. You could add all 12 pages to one album that is specifically for them, or ...  add them to an existing album as the first page for that month’s memories.

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for October with ghosts, haunted houses, bats, and pumpkins

I love this cute page for Halloween pictures. There is space for 4 photos with lots of adorable ghosts, pumpkins, haunted houses, and bats to highlight them!

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for October with candy, a pickup truck, and pumpkins

The calendar pages come undated so, you can start with any month and add the dates as they suit your needs. My pages are just an example. Also, there are enough numbers in the kit to add one to every day.

12x12 My Life 365 Scrapbook Calendar page for November with fall leaves and pumpkins

This My Life 365 Calendar Kit is a great project to start the year with. I hope you have fun with it. I know I'll be referring to mine a lot in the days to come. It's such a cute way to remind myself of what's ahead.

Thanks for stopping the blog today, and don't forget ... this wonderful calendar kit and premade will be available in my shop this Friday! 

 

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Monday, December 16, 2024

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album

Hey friends! If you're tired of Christmas shopping in stores or searching online for the perfect gift ... why not give something handmade? Today, I have a cute Christmas mini album titled Eat, Drink, and Be Merry that is so simple to make thanks to one of Lori Whitlock's fabulous cutting files. It makes a thoughtful present, or a great keepsake for your own holiday photos.

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album

Lori's cutting file is called 5x5 Mini Album with Gusset Pages and I decorated it with the super fun Bella Blvd, Merry Mingle Collection (links below).  And don't forget the Acrylic Display Stand. These are available in my shop and they're perfect for showing off your works of art!

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album

The album is made with a cover piece and 3 gusseted pages (which gives you 6 scrapbook pages inside). To start, I cut the base out of white cardstock then decorated the pieces with lots of cute Christmas papers. 

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album

Here is a photo of the gusseted edges. The white pages go inside the cover piece and the holes line up perfectly for binding. 

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album

I ran 3 pieces of Doodlebug Design's chunky twine in bubblegum pink through the cover and each page, then tied them in a cute knot on the inside.

On the cover, I added a 3x4 card with a fun little bar cart, holiday cocktails, presents, and champagne bottles. Then, a row of colorful candy shaped puffy stickers (links below). 

This mini could be used for ANY of your favorite photos from the season, but wouldn't it be especially perfect for pictures of a Christmas party?! OR ... an ideal hostess gift! After the festivities are over, the host would have a wonderful place to save her memories!

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album Page with colorful ornaments, polka dots, and macaron cookies

For the inside pages, I covered each one in a fun 12x12 pattern paper. I love the prints above with the ornaments and cute polka dots. The macarons piece is a die cut from the ephemera.

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album Page with cute houses, santa driving a car, and a tree

Above, you can see the first gusset where I tied the pink and white twine.

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album Page with a pink house, colorful string lights, and pink stars

I am loving all the pink in this Bella Blvd Collection. It's so fun for Christmas! I mean, how fabulous is this pink house? But wait, there's more ...

Pink cocktails with a peppermint stick? Yes please!


Or ... a pink car filled with presents? Oh my gosh, yes. So adorable!

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry Christmas Mini Album Page with colorful lights and stars

While I decorated this mini album in a fun Christmas theme, Lori's cutting file is literally a wonderfully blank canvas and could be designed with ANY paper collection. Imagine winter, Valentine's Day, spring, Easter, Mother's Day, or ... anything! I love Lori's projects ... the
possibilities are endless. 💕

Below are product links for this project and a few other staples of mine. I hope you'll give them a try!

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Thursday, December 12, 2024

NEW! Real Life Scrapbook Album Kit

Hey guys, it's time for an early peek into this week's NEW scrapbook kit! This one is a mini album titled Real Life and it will be in my shop tomorrow (Friday). It's wonderfully generic so, it can be used for pictures of anything like every day moments, family and friend memories, special events, and all the fun experiences that make up your "real life".

Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Kit by Artsy Albums

I designed it with a 6x8 inch Doodlebug Design binder album in bumblebee yellow and the Simple Stories, For the Record Collection. The papers and embellishments include cameras, flowers, typewriters, numbers, fun geometric prints, a few office / stationary supplies, and cute sayings.

Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Page with a folding card, a typewriter, flowers, and colorful numbers

Inside, there are 28 scrapbook pages that include 3 fold-out pages, 2 pockets, 8 flippies (yay!), and space for a whopping 66 photos on the pages (and more in the extra page protectors!).

Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Page with a fun pocket and cute journaling cards

You could use this as a 2025 planner and add pictures, memorabilia, journaling, and schedules to document the upcoming new year. However, there are no dates or months so you'd have to add your own.

Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Page with a typewriter, flowers, 2 folding cards, and colorful stripes

I love this simple but fun little page. I've added 2 flippies with space for 6 pictures (or journaling), a colorful striped background, and 2 cards embellished with cute stickers.

Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Page with a journaling card, small rainbow squares and stripes
 
This collection has lots of great sayings, like ... I want to remember this, Looking forward, Always remember I love you, Together is the best place to be, Good things are happening, It's the little things in life that matter the most, You are just my type, and ... We take photos as a return ticket to a moment otherwise gone.
 
Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Page with a folding card, cameras, flowers, and a colorful plaid paper

Those sayings work for all kinds of memories! So, add photos of birthdays, date night, coffee with friends, girl's night out, and family gatherings. Or, maybe you have a favorite hobby you'd like to document like scrapbooking, crafting, yoga, pickleball, or a book club!

Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Page with small colorful polka dots, flowers, and a lined journaling card

What about travel? You can also add pictures from a week long family vacation to a short weekend getaway. Whatever the events are that make up your real life and bring you joy can be saved in this keepsake.

Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Page with a camera, flowers, colorful squares, and a cute folded corner

This album doesn't have to be filled quickly. It can be added to throughout the year with all of the smaller moments where you only take 4-5 photos. We all have pics of a friend's wedding, a bridal or baby shower, a graduation, prom, a church event, a local festival, an anniversary, or work event. This album could be used for all of those and simply evolve beautifully over time.

Real Life Scrapbook Mini Album Folding Page with lots of colorful push pins, flowers, and a camera

My brand new Real Life Scrapbook Album is perfect for any photo memory whether it's of family, friends, a holiday, a special event, travels, or happy everyday moments. The kit and premade will be available in my shop tomorrow (Friday), so ... I'll see you then!


Thanks for visiting the blog and have a great day 😍

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