{CUTplorations Creative Cuts} Creative Celebration Projects by Maureen

   

Happy Friday, STAMPlorations friends! CUTplorations Creative Cuts puts the spotlight on the thin metal dies we carry in the store. We have Maureen Ruangchamneil sharing her last set of projects, although I'm hoping she will be back again soon to guest design! Make sure you comment on this post for a chance at a $15 prize code. Every month, we draw 7 winners, with the winners randomly drawn from all posts published during the month. The more posts you comment on, the more chances you have.

    

It's nice to be with you again, STAMPlorations fans!  March is my favorite month because it happens to be my birthday month. And to celebrate, I thought I'd create projects you could make for celebrations, made with the awesome CUTplorations dies, of course. I really think the Gift Builder #1 and Trendy Spring Bloom dies are the most adorable sets. Plus, the Lowercase Alphabet can help you personalize your items - and it's hard to buy that in a party store. I hope you enjoy!

Project 1 - Flower Pot Treat Topper

Trendy Spring Blooms Dies

ATC Tag Builder

Gift Builder #1 Dies

This project was inspired by the flowers I just planted in my backyard. For the pot, I cut a 3" by 3" square of brown paper, and folded at the 1.5" mark. Taking the flat hexagon edge of the ATC Tag Builder set, I trimmed off the edges of the folded paper. It helps to use washi tape to hold the die and paper in place through the machine. With a 1" by 3" strip of paper, I added a top to the pot, and secured with foam dots, then dusted the edges with brown ink for dimension.

The flowers are cut, pulled apart and reassembled in opposite colors, and then I punched a small 1" circle out and glued it to the back of each flower, so the pieces would stay in tact. By using a circle, the flowers look cute from the back too.  

I cut several fern leaves from the Trendy Blooms set in green and glued to the back edge of the pot. Next I cut the bow from the Gift Builder set and secured it to the pot. Taking the flowers, I arranged them at various heights and glued into place.  

This pot can stand alone as a place card on a party table or be attached with adhesive runner to a bag of candy - or even, a small bag of flower seeds!

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Project 2 - It's a Boy (or Girl) Cupcake Picks

Gift Builder #1 Dies

Lowercase Alphabet Plate Die

Clustered Hearts Die

We've had quite a few baby showers at my work lately, so I thought it would be nice to turn these dies into baby shower party picks! After all, cake makes any meeting a party, right? I start with a white card stock base cut with the base Gift Builder #1 die, and then chose my boy (blue/green) and girl (pink/purple) colors from a sparkly paper pad.

The sparkle paper is cut out with the top layer gift die, and the bow in the alternating color and glued together. On the white gift base, I glued on a fringe toothpick and let dry. Then, I secured the top layer on with foam dots for dimension. On the back of each gift, I've glued on the letters from the letter set to form the words 'girl' and 'boy' in a coordinating sparkle paper.  

The message is handwritten on white card stock and trimmed with a scissors to make a flag. Using the Clustered Hearts die, I took the medium heart shape and attached it to the message.  

Once a guest chooses a cupcake, they will see the word 'boy' or 'girl' on the back. Great for gender reveal parties too! The Lowercase Alphabet Plate has so much versatility in a little font die!

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Project 3 - Mini Gift Birthday Banner

Gift Builder #1 Dies

Lowercase Alphabet Plate Die

Trendy Spring Blooms Dies

Not only is it my birthday this month, but my oldest is turning 20! We both love to celebrate, so this project is for her. We are working with the Gift Builder #1 die set again, and it's perfect to make mini banners because of the built in holes at the top!

I chose a white card stock then dug out my pastel ink pads and sponged the gift base in a rainbow pattern. Next, I cut a white daisy flower from the Trendy Blooms set and glued to the middle of the gift. Taking the Lowercase Alphabet die, I cut the name out in black card stock, then glued each letter to the middle of the daisy.  

To embellish the gifts, I drew a border with a black gel pen around the edges of the gifts, and then added some glitter and a gem on the bow at the top. With colored twine, I strung the gifts through the bows and tied them to a gift bag.

The mini banners work well also as cake bunting - you can tie them to paper straws and stick them into the cake.  Sometimes I've hung banners at the top of a chalk board, or even the top of a picture frame. You can fold these up and send them in the mail too - which is where this one is going, because my daughter is up at college for her birthday!