Surrounded by Pillow Boxes! Such fun!

There are a lot of really great samples in our brand new catalogue.  You've probably seen the cute pillow box on page 122 and wondered how it was made, considering that Stampin' Up! retired their little Pillow Box Bigz die over a year ago.  The answer is a template.  Isn't that terrific?  A template just costs the paper you print it on and can be resized to fit your needs.  It truly is the best of both worlds.

Using the pillow box template, I had to try my hand at a couple of pillow boxes (are you surprised?).  My first one highlighted that favourite stamp of mine, the Swallowtail (item #131943).  That giant butterfly has helped me create so many wonderful items!  I'm still madly in love with it.

So, I made a sandwich (no, not the edible type).  At the bottom I placed my Stampin' Pierce Mat (item #126199).  Then came my Designer Paper (or cardstock).  Next came my template and I was good to go.  Using my Simply Scored Stylus (item #125624), I firmly traced all the lines of the template (for the straight lines, I depended on a ruler).  Once traced, the lines were nicely visible on my Designer Paper and I was ready to begin cutting the solid lines of my template using my Paper Snips (item #103579).  When that was done, I simply folded along all the broken lines of my template and was ready to put it together using some Sticky Strip (item #104294) along the side flap.  Before I did that, however, I used my 1" Circle Punch (item #119868) to cut a partial circle into one of the rounded pieces on each end of the box.

After that, it's a matter of decorating the pillow box.  Since it's a nice, generous size, the Swallowtail stamp fit pretty well at a slight angle.  I decided to use the Embossing Resist Technique and therefore stamped it using my VersaMark (item #102283) and Clear Embossing Powder (item #109130).  Once that was set using my Heat Tool (item #129053), I let it cool down completely and then pulled out a Sponge Dauber (item #102892) and my Basic Gray stamp pad (item #126981) and began working the ink into the embossed butterfly.  I was careful not to get a lot of ink past the outline of the butterfly but at the top, around the head and wings, I made it quite a bit darker and went over the outline quite darkly in order to make it appear like a shadow and give a 3-D effect.  Remember, you can always add more ink with your dauber, so begin lightly and keep adding until it makes you happy with the effect.

When I finished with my shading, I adhered the side tab  to the untabbed side and my little pillow box looked great already.  My final touch was to add one of the large buttons made with the Simply Pressed Clay (item #130685) and then used a Stampin' Dimensional (item #104430) to add one of the smallest flowers made with the Simply Pressed Clay to the centre.  I adhered that to a piece of folded 5/8" Crochet Trim (item #118481) and attached it all to a corner of my Pillow Box.  I loved the result.

Of course I had to make another one.  This time I used cardstock and decided to use my Honeycomb Embossing Folder (item #129378).  I stamped a few bees into the pattern towards the edge so that they would still be visible after I added a girdle to the Pillow Box.  I used contrasting cardstock for the girdle and decorated it up using my Secret Garden stamp set (item #129144) and the matching Secret Garden framelits (item #129372).  For a sentiment, I used my A Round Array stamp set (item #129090) and its matching 7/8" Round Scallop Punch for the centre and used a dimensional to put it in the centre of the larger tag which I made using my Label Love stamp set (item #130622) and its matching punch, the new Artisan Label Punch (item #130920).

The two Pillow Boxes couldn't look any more different but they're both gorgeous.  I can't wait to see what type of Pillow Box I'm going to create next!

NOTE:  I added the following Pillow Box on June 28th, after making this one using paper from the Soho Subway Designer Paper and adding extra "bling" to the finished box.  In real life this one sparkles enough to make you put on sunglasses!

Watch for my upcoming classes.  I'll be offering technique classes and other fun classes where you can learn to make some of the items I'm featuring on my blog.