My Hex box - some examples!

I am so pleased to highlight some examples of the box that I posted yesterday.

Mervale called this her "before breakfast, before work "Nelda Box". 

Gailpage used some Colorbok paper from Walmart to make hers. 

Thanks so much for all the nice comments! If you would like to have your box featured here, just post a photo on the forum or email it to me at neldacnm at yahoo. I would be happy to include your interpretation of my file.

There are some who would like to make it a little bigger, so I have this file for you. 

This will make a box about 3.25" high and 4" wide on 2 sheets of 8.5 x 11 paper. In order to keep the top and bottom separate, I have the bottom colored with a teal texture (above) and the bottom in a yellow texture. If you do not want to use score lines, I have them on different layers as well. Download the MTC file here (free until June 15). 

Free MTC Box file: Hexagon box

You can always use a box file, right? This one is a perfect size for small trinkets or gifts. I made it from 8.5" x 11" and it made a box about 2.5" (H) by 3.25" (W). You can make an even bigger box with 12" x 12" paper or if you split the files onto 2 different pages.

You can get the free MTC here (through June 15).

Tutorial: Shaped Edge card with cut-outs

I had a request for a tutorial on this type of card. Reba made one and posted it on the MTC forum here. She included a file to show how she designed the card.

The request was to use this file (available free from Dave through June 7th  here) to make a similar card.

She did not need the colored parts, just the blue part to be used as the base for the card.

Open the file and delete the layers with the unwanted colored parts.

Mirror it (use the mirror button) and re-size it to a workable size.  BTW you do not need to mirror it - but I like it better with the angel looking to the inside of the card. If you do not mirror it, the remainder of the steps are the same but the image will look slightly different.

Select the image and shadow it. The depth of the shadow depends on you, I usually make it thick enough to allow for good support around the edge.

Add rectangles to the shadow layer (I changed the shadow layer to white first but this is not needed). This layer will become the card base; the fold edge should be straight, as well as the base. The bottom edge can remain irregular but if the bottom edge is not straight, the card will not stand up on its own.

You may want to zoom in to be sure that the rectangles meet the edges of the shadow evenly.

Weld the rectangles and shadow together (I changed it to white - but you do not need to).

Now choose all (the shadow and the image) and join them together. This will make the cut-outs in the card base. Change it to white for the next step.

Make an inner shadow of this piece. I make it just a little smaller than the actual front of the card so that I have a little fudge room when placing it inside. (I think Reba made it the same size, either way will work but it does need to be made now before going further with the design of the card.) I moved the layer below the card base and locked it.

Now make the other half of the card. You can do this 2 different ways, depending on what you want. The upper example shows the card with both inside and outside with shaped edges. Just mirror the base, blackout, and move to the left. Then weld these 2 base layers together and add a score line if desired.

For the lower card, start with the mirrored image moved to the left but add a rectangle to it (use the shaped base to help you size it). Weld all three base shapes together to form the final card base. Add a score line and you are finished.

Hope that helps if you want to make this type of card. Not all images can be used like this, you need to start with a stencil-like image for the part that will be cut out.

Last chance for the Clearance items at LD!

Don't you just hate it when something is the "last chance" to get it? It makes me nervous and I start buying things! Well if you are that way as well, you might want to avoid this sale....or maybe not? 

Another (free) MTC Grad card file

This one is based on the idea presented in this youtube video:

She does not provide a template so I thought I would design one. I based it on the previous file that I had already designed. I did need to length the depth of the brim, otherwise it is almost the same.

I have not cut this one out yet from card stock, just from paper as a mock-up so I do not have pictures. If you would like the MTC file, it will be available free through May 31 here.

Graduation Hat Card (free MTC file)

In need of a card for a graduate?

Well, I have one for you! And along the way you will get the instructions on how to make it yourself.

So grab yourself some squares and circles from Basic Shapes (you can do this in other programs as well but I will demonstrate it in MTC) and let's get started!

Rotate one square to a diamond (use the Ctrl key as you rotate to control it in 15 degree increments).   

Use the re-size arrows or the dimension settings to make a diamond that is 4.5" x 2.25".

 Now add a rectangle that is 3" x 1", and center it below the diamond, overlapping it about 3/4". 

Use the scew arrows to change it into a rhomboid with a more narrow upper edge.  

Grab that circle and change it into an oval that is approximately 2.65" x 1".  Place it as shown over the rectangle. Now copy it and move the second one over to cover the other side of the rectangle. 

 Here's a close-up of how it should look. 

Join the 2 ovals together. Now select the oval shape and the rectangle and do a Boolean join.  (I also duplicated and rotated the diamond in this image - I forgot to mention that part so do it now). 

Your project should look like this (more or less) at this point. You can stop at this point and have a card. But we are going to add another flap to make a pocket (for gift cards, money, etc).

Place a rectangle over the lower portion of the hat. We are going to cut off the part that extends into the upper diamond. (You could also just move it down but I wanted a thinner hat brim portion).

Do a Boolean join to get this shape (I used B-A). 

Duplicate the brim, and rotate it so that it connects with the right edge of the brim. This flap will fold over to make a pocket. (You could also place it to the left of the brim - your choice.)

 If you plan on adding a yarn tassel, you can add a small hole for the brad at this point. Add it to the upper left diamond, in the very center. Join to the diamond.  

You may also want to add an inner shadow to the main diamond now. You can add a sentiment to this later (if desired). Keep this inner shadow on a separate layer. 

 

Move the pieces so that they touch or overlap just a hair. Now weld all pieces of the main card (but not the inner shadow). Your card is finished! You can add score lines if desired, and you will also want to rotate and resize it to your desired size.  You can also add a  sentiment to the inner shadow. 

Do you want to try this yourself but are a little unsure of the shapes? Well, here is a file with all the shapes that I used to make this file if you would like to try to re-construct it yourself. Or.....  

....if you want the completed MTC file for the card and insert, you can get it here through May 31. I used Copperplate Regular font for the sentiment, it is available free here. 

I slipped a paper behind the sentiment to show where there is a hidden pocket for money!

As always, happy crafting and I would love to showcase your card on here if you make one!

Friday Freebie at LD - Mad Scientist

You can use this printable to make a transfer or poster. Here you see it on a shirt used as a lab coat.

(photo from the LD FB post)

And just in case you want to make more items, this freebie coordinates with other Mad Scientists graphics.

Friday Freebie (a little late) and another freebie

Sorry, weekends are busy for me because I works nights. This is still good through TODAY, so hurry on over to get it!  (images are linked)

Also, My Vinyl Designer has a freebie as well (scroll down to see it).

There are a few other freebies there too, so look around while you are there!  And Happy Mother's Day to all!

Cinco de Mayo - freebie from LD!

Too cute! I can see the kids really getting into this!

Just click them into your cart and check-out for free! (images are linked)

Pens for Mother's Day...and free cone file

I've made these pens before (and thought there would be gobs of videos on youtube - but if there are I can't find them) and wanted to share. These are customized for Mother's Day but you could change the insert saying to whatever you want, for a baby shower, wedding shower, or just leave them plain.

I purchased most of my supplies at The Dollar Tree, so it makes this craft somewhat inexpensive. You can get 2 RSVP Pentel pens for $1, and also a bunch of flowers. There were about 6 flowers in my bunch, so 3 packages of pens, and one bunch of flowers ($4) makes 6 flowers.

I made the inserts for the pen in MTC, at a size of 0.78 x 3.4. As you can see, I personalized some of these (for the 4 girls that I work with - they will be giving these to their mothers for Mother's Day). I used a green striped texture based on the paper from Sheri K's free kit here. (She has lots of free files, so be sure to check out her blog.)

Print and cut the inserts, roll them up tightly, remove the top to the pen and insert them into the barrel. 

While the pen top is off. you can also prepare the top for the flower.  I took a pair of scissor and reamed out the top of the pen so that I could insert the flower stem into the pen.  In the photo above this one you can see the hole. There is a little bit of a divot in the Pentel pen caps, so I used it as a guide.

I pushed the leaf up to the top of the flower and cut off the stem at about 1" (more of less). Be sure to include the plastic covering on the wire. It looks a little scraggly here but the plastic helps it to stay secure in the pen top (you could also use hot glue). I stripped off the plastic covering off the wire about 1/3" below the calyx.

Here's a rather unfocused look at the flower stem.

Screw the pen top back on and stuff the flower stem into the hole. It should fit snugly. If it does not, you may need to put some hot glue into the hole and then insert the flower. Your flower is finished!

For a special presentation, I designed a paper cone in MTC. I started with an 1/12th of a circle and added scallops, then flowers to the scallops (like the flowers I made here).

I gave the arc an inner shadow, did some welding and joining, added a heart from Basic Shapes, etc., etc. to come up with this design.  The cone overlays one scallop in the back to make it easier to assemble. I used scotch tape to assemble it.

It has 6 scallops in all when assembled correctly.

And here it is, ready for gift giving!

I used a quarter round of tissue paper as an insert to show through the hearts (I just hand cut them). I had considered green but didn't have any on hand, so pink it was (and this project is for the self-proclaimed "Pink Girls" so pink was more fitting). Insert the flower into the cone and you are ready for gifting.

The MTC file for the the inserts is here.

The MTC file for the paper cone is here. Both will available free through Mother's Day.

(I did find a few vids on making pen flowers but they all use floral tape to cover the stem - not what I was looking for).

 After finishing the cones, I decided they needed something n the hearts so I added this.