Toolbelt Birthday Card & Matching Treat Box

My Dad is a retired carpenter, so I thought this toolbelt card and matching "wooden crate" treat box were fitting for his birthday!

The card base is 5-1/2 x 4-1/4 inches, top folding, in dark brown (Stampin' Up Early Expresso). The layer on top is cut to 5-1/4 x 4 inches, using one of the papers in the Stampin' Up Wood Textures DSP Stack.

For the toolbelt, I cut a piece of kraft cardstock at 5 x 2-1/2 inches, rounding the corners with a 1/2 inch corner rounder. For the pockets, I cut two pieces 2 x 2-1/4 inches, and rounded those corners as well. I used a 1-3/8 inch circle punch to punch out a small portion of the top on the 2 x 2-1/4 inch pocket pieces. I attached the pockets to the toolbelt using a very thin bead of glue around the two sides and along the bottom, leaving the top open.

I added two small belt loops on the side and in the middle between the two pockets. I used a 2-inch strip of kraft cardstock, lightly curling it with a pencil or bone folder. Just make it large enough to go around whatever you want to insert in the loop.

I used a dark brown marker (Stampin' Up Early Espresso) to make the faux stitching around the toolbelt and the pockets. I added some silver brads to the bottom corners of the pockets and the two top edges of the toolbelt.  I attached the toolbelt to the card using dimensional adhesive tape.

I used some yellow washi tape that looks like measuring tape. I can't remember where I got it, but I checked on Etsy and there are several different ones available. I wrapped the washi tape around the wood DSP before attaching that layer to the brown card base.

If you have a tool die cut set, you can make a fast job of cutting out the tools you want to use. I didn't have any, so I looked on line for tool clip art, resized them,  printed and cut them out. For the ruler, I just added some of the same measuring tape washi to a piece of cardstock.

The birthday sentiment is from the Tin of Cards stamp set by Stampin' Up. I used some letter stamps I had to stamp out "dad" and cut those out with a 1/2 inch circle punch, and added the letters to the bottom left pocket on the toolbelt.

The "wooden crate" treat box is created with a simple box construction. Finished box measures 2 inches high, 3 inches long, and 2 inches wide.

Start with a piece of kraft cardstock cut to 7 x 6 inches. Score at 2 inches on all 4 sides. On the 6 inch side, cut up to the score lines to form the sides of the box. Fold together and attach with glue or other adhesive. My punch wouldn't cut through all the layers of the sides, and I forgot to punch each layer first, so I simply punched out a small "handle" using a slot punch and glued it on each side of the crate.

To make the box look more like wood, I used a sponge and dark brown ink (early espresso) and sponged in streaks along all four sides of the box until I got the color and look I wanted. I added a piece of the yellow ruler washi tape around the box at the bottom.

Add any greeting you would like. I used a greeting from the Framed Love April 2014 Paper Pumpkin Kit. I cut it out using the Tags & Labels Framelits from Stampin' Up.  I added some kraft colored crinkle paper and small candy bars (Hersheys and Twix).

I have seen other toolbelt type cards on Pinterest, but this design and measurements are what I came up with. It is not complicated. The most time-consuming part is making the tools.

I hope you enjoy these projects and will give them a try next time you need a masculine card or gift!

Pocket Birthday Cards

These pocket birthday cards were created using several Stampin' Up papers and cardstock. The pocket is hand cut and open at the top to insert a message, gift card, money, etc.

Each card is 4-1/2 x 5-1/2 inches, top folding. To make the pocket, I cut a piece of blue cardstock to 2-3/4" wide by 2-5/8" tall. At the bottom of the cut piece of cardstock, find the middle. Using a ruler, measure up diagonally on each side approximately 1/2 inch, mark and cut off the corners. I used a white gel pen to make the faux stitching, and added some punched out colored circles for "rivets." For the pocket tabs, I used the top of a die cut tag for the striped card and a small banner for the blue and red one. Attach the pockets to the card using a thin bead of glue or a thin strip of double sided tape to the two sides and along the bottom, leaving the top open.

Stamp and punch/cut out your greetings as desired. I added a die cut star to each card for embellishment. I also inserted a "To You" stitched tag inside the pocket on the striped card and a folded piece of lightweight red paper inside the blue and red card to look like a handkerchief. You could also insert a gift card or money!

Products Used:

• Stampin' Up Cardstock in Real Red for both cards.
• Stampin' Up Birthday Memories DSP for the first card, along with Pacific Point Cardstock for the pocket and partial front piece. 
• Stampin' Up Color Theory DSP for the second card, along with Night of Navy cardstock for the pocket. 
• Stampin' Up Tin of Cards stamp set for birthday greeting.
• Stampin' Up Perfect Pairings stamp set for the "To You."
• Stampin' Up Perfectly Wrapped stamp set for the dotted circle around the greeting on the striped card. 
• Various die cuts and punches to cut out greetings, stars, banner for pocket, and tag top for pocket. 

I plan on giving these cards to several teenage boys for their birthdays! 

Summer "Beach Bag"

Here is a fun little bag for a summer gift! I made these type of paper bags back in 2015 (See that post here.) After I saw the darling papers in the PhotoPlay Summer Day Dreams Collection, I knew I had to make a summer version of the bag!

I used the flip-flops and sunglasses stickers from the pack to add to the front of the bag, attaching them with tiny white clothespins. (I adhered the stickers to cardstock and then cut them out.) The straps and base of the bag were made with a lime green cardstock from Stampin' Up called Lemon Lime Twist. Just choose any bright colored cardstock that coordinates with the paper. Both of the striped papers used for the bands of the bag are from the Summer Day Dreams collection.

The bag will hold a Post-It Notepad and pen, candy treats, small lotions, etc. I am going to add some pedicure supplies. Finished size of bag is 4-1/4 x 4-1/2 inches. With the handles, it stands approximately 8 inches tall.

This bag varies slightly from the bags in the post mentioned above in that I increased the height of the bag to 4-1/2 inches and made the handles a little taller. The base of the bag remains the same. There is a You Tube video by Ophelia Crafts that shows how to put the bag together. Click here for that video link.

Here are the directions for my Summer Beach Bag:

1. Make the base of the bag starting with a piece of colored heavyweight cardstock cut to 2-1/2 x 5-1/4 inches. Score at 1/2 inch on all 4 sides. On the long side, cut on the score lines up to the horizontal score line, fold and glue tabs to form the bag base.

2. Cut a piece of patterned paper to 4-1/2 x 12 inches. (Note: Double-sided paper works best so that the inside of your bag is pretty too.) Add sticky tape to the bottom and along one side of the 12-inch piece. Starting in the middle of one long side of the bag base, wrap this 12 inch piece around the base, starting with the side that does not have the vertical sticky tape attached. It will overlap slightly in the back when wrapped around. Remove the vertical sticky strip and attach to the rest of the wrapped piece.

3. For the bottom band on the bag, cut a strip of patterned or colored paper at 3/4 x 12 inches and wrap it around the bottom of the bag. Glue works best for this step.

4. For the handles, cut 2 strips of colored cardstock at 3/4 x 10 inches and attach on the front and back of the bag from the inside. Glue dots works best for this step. (Note: The handles won't show on the inside of bag because they will be hidden by the inside band.)

5. For the top band, cut 2 strips of patterned or colored paper at 1 x 12 inches and attach around the top of the bag, one on the outside and one on the inside. Glue works best for this step.

6. Decorate as desired!

"You're So Sweet" Summertime Popsicle Card

This is a popsicle card I made recently for an anniversary.  It could easily be turned into a birthday or thank you card.

I used the Summer Daydreams Collection from PhotoPlay #thinktoremember. I used the Multi Dot and Popsicles paper from the collection. I cut the twin popsicles using the Cricut Doodlecharms cartridge, p. 43, cut at 2 inches. I inked around the edges in a darker pink color to add some shading. I layered the popsicles onto a 2 inch polka dot circle, then onto a 2-1/2 inch circle.  I added two die cut circles in pink and peach behind the larger circles, and added dimensionals behind the popsicles to attach them to the card.

I used Stampin' Up! cardstock colors for the card, layering pieces, and circles in Flirty Flamingo, Peekaboo Peach, and Lemon Lime Twist. For the die cut circles, I used the new Dotted Circles Dies from Catherine Pooler Designs, plus a 1-1/2 inch punch to cut out the greeting.

I stamped the "you're so sweet" greeting using markers to ink the stamp from the You're So Sweet stamp set by Stampin' Up! and stamped the "together" in lemon lime twist from the stamp set Crazy About You from Stampin' Up!(now retired).

Finished card is 4-1/4 x 5-1/2 inches, top folding, with each of the colored and patterned paper layers cut 1/4 inch smaller than the previous layer. I added a couple brads from my stash that matched the colors pretty well! You could also use enamel dots or sequins, whatever you have on hand.

This makes a perfect summertime card for a lot of occasions with all the sherbet like colors!