Fri 11

Butterfly Kaleidoscope with a Gypsy Butterfly
by Anne Thompson

Woot!  Woot!  There's a new collection from Memory Box that landed this week:  2025 Cheerful Countryside.  I've chosen the large cling stamp CS2085 Butterfly Kaleidoscope as the feature element for this card.

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materials used

  • white A2 note card
  • purple plaids from GLADIOLA PLAID PP1027
  • purple mirror card stock from RAINBOW REFLECTIONS MIRROR PAD FP1003
  • CS2085 BUTTERFLY KALEIDOSCOPE cling stamp
  • VersaFine Clair Nocturne (black) ink; watercolor paper; clear embossing powder; lavender watercolor paint; purple-ish ink 
  • GYPSY BUTTERFLIES 94890 and a scrap of BLACK GLOSSY PAPER SH44004

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to make this card

  • trim a piece of purple plaid paper from Gladiola Plaid 5 1/4 X 4 and add it to the front of the side-fold note card
  • trim a piece of purple mirror card from Rainbow Reflections 3 1/2 X 4 3/4 and add on top of the plaid paper
  • stamp BUTTERFLY KALEIDOSCOPE on watercolor paper using VersaFine Clair Nocturne (black) ink and emboss with clear embossing powder
  • color the butterflies paper with lavender watercolor and set aside to dry
  • when dry, ink the edges direct to paper with Archival Cactus Flower ink (or some other purple-ish ink)
  • add the butterfly panel to the note card
  • die cut the bodies of the Gypsy Butterflies from the black glossy paper (you'll only use one for this project; save the other)
  • die cut the largest detailed butterfly wings from purple Rainbow Reflections Mirror card stock
  • die cut the largest solid butterfly wings from a purple plaid in the Gladiola Plaid paper pack; assemble the butterfly
  • use a dimensional foam dot to add the Gypsy Butterfly to the painted butterfly panel

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There's plenty of space left on the front to add a sentiment appropriate for whatever the occasion.  And there's plenty of shine on this card with the embossing of the butterfly panel, the mirror card, and the black glossy butterfly body.  You could even add more sparkle with  Fairy Drops, Gemstones, Fairy Jewels or Glitter Glue also available from Memory Box.

Take a look at the 2025 CHEERFUL COUNTRYSIDE collection here.  Happy Crafting!

Anne Signature

CS2085 94890 PP1027 FP1003 Thumbnail

Butterfly Kaleidoscope CS2085.          Gypsy Butterflies 94890                       Gladiola Plaid PP1027.                          Rainbow Reflections FP1003                   Black Glossy Paper SH44004

 

Thu 10

Butterflies Floating By
by Jean Okimoto

MemoryBoxFloatingButterflyPlate, MemoryBoxCheeryHello, MemoryBoxCheerfulCountryside, MemoryBoxEtherealButterflies, MemoryBoxRectangleBasics, MemoryBoxRainbowReflectionsMirrorPad, MemoryBoxGracefulGardenGlitterPad, MemoryBoxCo, MemoryBoxDies, Diecutting, DiecutCards, FloralDiecuts, FloralCards, CardmakingIdeas, JeanOkimoto, ButterflyCards, ButterflyDiecuts, StencilledCards, Stencilling, EmbossedCards, Embossing, RadiantNeonInkpads, ImagineCrafts

Floating Butterfly Plate - from July's Cheerful Countryside release - is quickly becoming a Design Team favorite.  It's versatile - and great for pressure-embossing and stenciling,  in addition to creating a beautiful diecut background.  Hi, Jean here - with a pressure-embossed, stenciled, heat-embossed design for any occasion.

MemoryBoxFloatingButterflyPlate, MemoryBoxCheeryHello, MemoryBoxCheerfulCountryside, MemoryBoxEtherealButterflies, MemoryBoxRectangleBasics, MemoryBoxRainbowReflectionsMirrorPad, MemoryBoxGracefulGardenGlitterPad, MemoryBoxCo, MemoryBoxDies, Diecutting, DiecutCards, FloralDiecuts, FloralCards, CardmakingIdeas, JeanOkimoto, ButterflyCards, ButterflyDiecuts, StencilledCards, Stencilling, EmbossedCards, Embossing, RadiantNeonInkpads, ImagineCrafts

Spritz both sides of watercolor paper with a light mist of water - then pressure-emboss the smoother side with the new Floating Butterfly Plate using the rubber embossing mat and plates required for your diecut machine.

Cut a Floating Butterfly Plate stencil from printer paper.  Stencil the design with pigment inks - Radiant Neon Electric Green, Electric Purple and Electric Blue are used here - work quickly to apply and  blend the inks so they'll still be slightly moist to adhere the embossing powder.    Heat-emboss it with detail clear powder.  Let it cool, then diecut it with the 3-1/2" wide Rectangle Basics die.

Attach it to a white A6 card (4-1/2" x 6-1/4").

Cut watercolor paper with the 1-1/2" x 2-3/4" Rectangle Basics die.  Cut Cheery Hello at an angle.  Attach tape behind the cutout.  Cut the turquoise Rainbow Reflections 6x6 with the Cheery Hello die.  Place it in the taped cutout for a quick and easy inlaid greeting.

Cut the largest Ethereal Butterfly from the violet Rainbow Reflections 6x6.  Cut the set of centers too.  We're using the extras for the background butterflies.

MemoryBoxFloatingButterflyPlate, MemoryBoxCheeryHello, MemoryBoxCheerfulCountryside, MemoryBoxEtherealButterflies, MemoryBoxRectangleBasics, MemoryBoxRainbowReflectionsMirrorPad, MemoryBoxGracefulGardenGlitterPad, MemoryBoxCo, MemoryBoxDies, Diecutting, DiecutCards, FloralDiecuts, FloralCards, CardmakingIdeas, JeanOkimoto, ButterflyCards, ButterflyDiecuts, StencilledCards, Stencilling, EmbossedCards, Embossing, RadiantNeonInkpads, ImagineCrafts

Attach the diecuts to the background - use foam tape for the upper half of the Ethereal Butterfly.  Add 1/4" dots punched from a green Graceful Garden Glitter Pad 6x6. Dots usually have smoother edges if you punch from the reverse side of the glittered cardstock.  Cut an A6-sized piece of cardstock to protect the card front for mailing.

We've added some extra steps here - pressure-embossing the butterflies and precutting "hello" for an inlaid design to add dimension and texture.   You could also stencil the butterflies directly through the cutting plate - but then you'd have to clean the plate very thoroughly!

Thanks for stopping by - hope you'll visit the blog again for more Cheerful Countryside designs from our team...

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Wed 09

Alcohol Ink Butterfly Card
by Sara Cook

Hi everyone.  I have a birthday card featuring the Floating Butterfly Plate that is perfect to put over an alcohol inked background.  This is a simply and easy card but with bright colors that pop.

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On Yupo paper dribble on some yellow, blue, purple and pink Distess alcohol ink.  Add some blending solution and use a blower to move the ink together.  Then dribble on some silver mixative an more blending solution and blow that around.  Do not over do the inks or over blend. (I had to do this 3 times to remember that).  You want the inks to just combine around the edges.  Let air dry.

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Die cut the Floating Butterfly Plate from white card stock.  Save the butterfly cut outs to use for later projects by putting them in the envelope.  I will be reaching for them.  Adhere with liquid adhesive the die cut to the alcohol inked background. Trim off the background panel. Adhere to a A2 size white card.

Die cut the Cheery Happy Birthday sentiment from white card stock.  Ink blend the bottom layer with Versfine Clair Hawthorne Rose. Clear heat emboss.  Adhere the top layer to the bottom.  Adhere to the center of the card using foam tape

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Supplies

94894 Cheery Happy Birthday

94901 Floating Butterfly Plate

Tue 08

Garden Pail Bouquet from the Cheerful Countryside Release
by Jean Okimoto

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(Re-posting - hope the photos will format and upload correctly!)

The new Garden Pail Bouquet - from July's Cheerful Countryside release - is the perfect way to celebrate a summer birthday. Hi, Jean here with a design from our latest collection. Beautiful blossoms, fresh greenery and a rustic garden pail filled with colorful blooms are great for any occasion.  Add an instant greeting - like in a  grocery store bouquet or arrangement!  

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Mon 07

New Release: Cute Christmas Tag
by Donna Sledzik

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Hello everyone!  Memory Box has a new release today called Cheerful Countryside. I have a cute Christmas Tag for you featuring the sweet mice dies.

When I first saw the Town Mouse and the Milo Mouse dies I immediately thought of Christmas.  So I had to make a Christmas in July project!  They are so cute!

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I began by die cutting one Nested Globe die from red cardstock and a smaller one from white cardstock.  I ink blended a light blue background on the white die cut globe, spattered it with white ink and glued it to the red globe die cut.

Next I die cut the Winter Arch from white cardstock and glued that to the tag.

I die cut snowflakes from white glitter cardstock and adhered them to the background.

The mice were die cut from white cardstock and I used small ink blending brushes to add color to them.

I assembled the mice and added white dots to Milo's hat and a white pom pom.  I used foam tape to adhere them to the tag.

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To finish the tag, I added some gems to the snowflake centers and a foil Christmas sentiment.  I tied red twine for the tag hanger.

That's it for today's project!  Thanks for stopping by.

Donnasignature

 

 

 

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Sun 06

Inlay Technique with Gypsy Butterflies
by Samantha Pfrimmer

Hello everyone! Today I am featuring a sweet Thank You card featuring the new Gypsy Butterflies Die.

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Background:

To create the background I decided to start with simple pattern paper.  I selected a lavender floral paper from the Anemone Grove paper pack and I cut my pattern paper 3.25” by 5.5”.   Next, I cut a piece of matching lavender cardstock from the Lagoon cardstock pack to mat my pattern paper.  I then adhered my matted pattern paper strip onto the center of a white AS-sized card panel.  

Gypsy Butterfly:  

The Gypsy Butterfly Die Set is perfect for using with an inlay technique.  To begin, I die cut the wing bases from white cardstock.  Next, using the pattern paper as a color guide, I cut the wing details from the dark teal, lighter teal, and lavender cardstock from the Lagoon cardstock pack, and from brushed gold cardstock using my stash. I also cut the butterfly centers from the brushed gold.   Once all of my pieces were cut, I glued the brushed gold wing detailed pieces to the white wing bases and then applied the smaller negative cuts from the other 3 colored cardstocks inlayed within the gold as shown, keeping the darker teal color closest to the body.  I next attached the brushed gold bodies before finishing my card assembly.

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Assembly:

I attached the larger and butterfly to my card panel first using foam tape to pop up the upper wings.   Next, I selected a Thank You sentiment from the Thank You Foil Greetings Black Tabs before applying the smaller butterfly below.   All that was left was to adhere my card panel to a folding A2-sized card-base and my pretty card was complete.

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Sat 05

Bug Life Card
by Sara Cook

Hi everyone.  I have card with beetles in leaves using embossing glaze.  

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Background:

Die cut the Narrow Woodgrain Planks from heavy mixed media paper. Ink blend with light, medium and dark brown Distress inks.  Then heat emboss using Distress embossing glass in Vintage Photo.  Adhere to a 4" x 5 1/4" piece of scrap paper to create a panel.

Leaves:

Die cut the Peony Bud trio and Tender Peony Bud from heavy mixed media paper.  Ink blend the stems with dark brown Distress ink and the leave in light and dark green Distress inks.  Heat embossing the light leaves using Distress embossing glaze in Mowed Lawn and the dark leave in Rustic Wilderness. Form the leaves using your fingers.

 

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Bugs

Die cut the Brilliant Beetles from silver mirror cards stock from the Vintage Pastel Mirror pad.  Use various colored Distress embossing glazes and heat emboss and layered the colors..  I also use a little Scorched Timber on the edges of the beetles to add depth.  For the legs I used Walnut Stain and Scorched Timber. Once complete I adhered them together using the envelope as a guide.  Apply a thick layer of Glossy Accents to the beetle bodies and let dry.

Assembly:

Adhere the wood plank panel to a A2 size mustard color paper from the Sunrise pad using foam tape. Then adhere those an A2 size white card. Adhere the leaves in layers using foam tape to create depth.  Adhere the beetles in the leaves.  Stamp and heat emboss using a dark metallic embossing powder the Thinking of You sentiment from the Sunshine and Wildflowers clear stamp set on a scrap of same muster yellow card from Sunrise pack.  Trim down and adhere above the leaves on the right side.

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Fri 04

Summer Garden Greetings
by Jean Okimoto

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Happy 4th of July to everyone celebrating today!

Hi, Jean here...with a Gypsy Butterflies card in summer farmers market colors - it's quick and easy and ready for any occasion.  Hope it inspires and encourages you to enter July's SUMMER VIBES Challenge - the entry deadline is the end of the day (EST) on July 30th.

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Cut the solid Gypsy Butterflies backgrounds from the citrus-y orange/yellow/green floral print from the Glimmering Gladiola 6x6 pad.  Cut the detailed top layer and the centers from the copper-y Rainbow Reflections 6x6.  

Cut the 2-1/8" wide  and the smallest Heritage Rectangle Frames from Golden Wheat cardstock.  It's easier to attach the butterfly diecuts directly to the rectangle - without pre-assembling the butterflies.  Start with the bottom halves of the background and detailed layer.  Add the top halves - use foam tape for the wing tips - leave some space to insert the greeting. Add the butterfly centers.

Cover a scrap of the medium bright green 6x6 - from the Greenery Collection - with ScorTape.  Cut the adhesive-covered cardstock with Hello Marker Script background die.  Cut the detailed top layer from natural cardstock.  Attach the top layer - slightly offset.  Sprinkle detail clear embossing powder over the exposed adhesive, tap the excess off, then heat-emboss it.  Attach it to the small rectangle.

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Cut a 4-1/4" x 11" piece of natural cardstock.  Score it at 4-3/8".  Attach the diecuts - let the greeting extend about 7/8" beyond the card front.  Add 1/4" punched dots of the gold Glitzy Glitter Pad 6x6 - punch from the reverse side of the 6x6 for crisper edges.  Cut an A2-sized piece of cardstock to protect the card front for mailing.

Thanks for visiting our blog...

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Thu 03

Happy Birthday Card
by Donna Sledzik

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Hi everyone!  Today I have a summer themed birthday card for you!  

I began by embossing a white cardstock panel using the Waves 3D embossing folder.

Next I die cut the Large Ringlets from navy cardstock and glued it to the embossed panel.

I cut the panel in half, and took off 1 1/2" from the bottom piece so I could have room to place the Happy Birthday sentiment on the card.

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I mounted the cut pieces onto red cardstock and used foam tape to adhere them to a white card base. 

I inked a piece of white cardstock with red dye ink, spattered it with plain water and die cut the fish from it.

The words Happy Birthday were die cut from black cardstock and glued to blank area on the card.

I used foam tape to adhere the fish and glued clear fairy drops to look like bubbles.

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I hope you enjoyed today's card and have a great weekend!

Donnasignature



 

Supplies

 

Wed 02

Slimline Vellum Wildflowers
by Jean Okimoto

MemoryBoxWildflowerFieldClingStamp, MemoryBoxChristmasFairyDewdrops, MemoryBoxSlimBasicRectangleLayers, MemoryBoxThankYouFoilGreetingsWhiteTabs, Poppystamps, PoppystampsBirthdayFun6x6, MemoryBoxCo, MemoryBoxDies, Diecutting, DiecutCards, ClingStamps, FloralCards, FloralStamps, ZerbraMildliner, SharpiePens, Vellum, StampingOnVellum, VellumCards, SlimlineCards, Cardmaking, CardDesign, PatternedPaper, 6x6PaperPad, DIYCards, ThankYouCards, JeanOkimoto

Stamping, heat-embossing and reverse-coloring on vellum was so easy on my previous card I decided to try it again!  Here's a slimline vellum thank-you with  the new Wildflower Field Cling Stamp.  There's also a little yard sign in the corner of the wildflower garden.  Hi, Jean here with a more detailed version of that technique.

MemoryBoxWildflowerFieldClingStamp, MemoryBoxChristmasFairyDewdrops, MemoryBoxSlimBasicRectangleLayers, MemoryBoxThankYouFoilGreetingsWhiteTabs, Poppystamps, PoppystampsBirthdayFun6x6, MemoryBoxCo, MemoryBoxDies, Diecutting, DiecutCards, ClingStamps, FloralCards, FloralStamps, ZerbraMildliner, SharpiePens, Vellum, StampingOnVellum, VellumCards, SlimlineCards, Cardmaking, CardDesign, PatternedPaper, 6x6PaperPad, DIYCards, ThankYouCards, JeanOkimoto

Prep white vellum with the embossing powder tool to eliminate specks of powder.  Stamp Wildflower Field using a clean, well-linked VersaMark inkpad. Heat-emboss the image with detail white powder.  Cool the vellum, then trim it with the 2-3/4" wide Slim Basic Rectangle Layers die.  

Cut light gray cardstock with the same die.  Trim both pieces to 6".

MemoryBoxWildflowerFieldClingStamp, MemoryBoxChristmasFairyDewdrops, MemoryBoxSlimBasicRectangleLayers, MemoryBoxThankYouFoilGreetingsWhiteTabs, Poppystamps, PoppystampsBirthdayFun6x6, MemoryBoxCo, MemoryBoxDies, Diecutting, DiecutCards, ClingStamps, FloralCards, FloralStamps, ZerbraMildliner, SharpiePens, Vellum, StampingOnVellum, VellumCards, SlimlineCards, Cardmaking, CardDesign, PatternedPaper, 6x6PaperPad, DIYCards, ThankYouCards, JeanOkimoto

Color the reverse side of the stamped vellum with markers -  Lemon Yellow, Coral Pink Fuchsia and Apricot Zebra Mildliners and a "lime green" Sharpie.  

Punch a hole at the top of the rectangles and tie them together with gold cord.  Curl the ends of the cord with the edge of a bone folder or the flower burnshing tool - follow the curve of the cord for best results.

Cut the coral and white diagonal 6x6 from the Poppystamps Birthday Fun pack with the 1-1/8" wide Slim Basic Rectangle Layers die.

Cut the Birthday Fun print with the second-smallest Slim Basic Rectangle Layers die and trim it to about 1-3/4" long.  Trim the ends of  the Thank You oil Greetings White Tab. Attach it to the background strip.  Tape a flat toothpick behind the greeting - then trim the point to create a little yardsign.

MemoryBoxWildflowerFieldClingStamp, MemoryBoxChristmasFairyDewdrops, MemoryBoxSlimBasicRectangleLayers, MemoryBoxThankYouFoilGreetingsWhiteTabs, Poppystamps, PoppystampsBirthdayFun6x6, MemoryBoxCo, MemoryBoxDies, Diecutting, DiecutCards, ClingStamps, FloralCards, FloralStamps, ZerbraMildliner, SharpiePens, Vellum, StampingOnVellum, VellumCards, SlimlineCards, Cardmaking, CardDesign, PatternedPaper, 6x6PaperPad, DIYCards, ThankYouCards, JeanOkimoto

Attach the diecuts to a white slimline card ( 3-5/8" x 8-1/2") - use foam tape for the sign.  Add green Christmas Fairy Dewdrops.  Cut a slimline-sized piece of of cardstock to protect the card front for mailing.

Thanks for visiting our blog...Happy July 4th to everyone celebrating on Friday!

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Tue 01

Memory Box Challenge #121 Summer Vibes

Challenge icons

Hello July! It is time for a new challenge.  Thanks to everyone who participated in the sympathy challenge.  They are hard cards to make, so inspiration is always appreciated.  The winner of the blog badge was Donna Phelan on the Crafting By the Beach blog. We loved her card layout and design:

Badge

The random winner from the entries who won the prize pack was Vicki from the He"artful" Validation of Vicki blog.

Please contact me at [email protected] with your full name and US address to claim your prize.

Want to play along in this month's challenge?  The rules are simple - just create a project following the theme, use at least one Memory Box stamp or die on your project and link your entry to this blog post.  You can make a card, a scrapbook page, a home decor item, etc..  To encourage participants with various levels of stamping experience, one entry will be selected at random to win a prize. Enter as many times as you want, but your name will only be entered once into the random prize drawing.   In addition, the design team will select their favorite entry to  be highlighted on the Outside the Box blog and that designer will receive our winner badge to proudly display on their blog. 

You don't have to have a blog in order to participate.   You can upload your project to any online gallery and link it to this post.   In fairness to other players, we reserve the right to remove entries that do not use at least one Memory Box product.  You are also welcome to link your design to other challenges.  Feel free to grab our badge to post on your blog post or side bar.

Please note, because of issues with shipping internationally, only domestic entries will be eligible to be shipped prizes. We are so very sorry that we had to add this stipulation.

Monthlythemebadge

I don't know about where you are, but it is sure hot here! It is hard to think about anything other than Summer. With that in mind, we challenge you to make a project with summer vibes. How do you view summer? Is it the beach? BBQ with the neighbors? Baseball games? Ice cream trucks? There are so many themes. What about colors? Do certain colors make you think of the season? There are so many possibilities! We would love to see your take on a summer themed card. All we ask is that your card sends some sort of reference to summer and that you use at least one Memory Box product.  

Here are some samples to help inspire you:

Sample1

Sample2

Sample3

Sample4

Sample5

There are several ways for you to enter the contest:

1.)  Link your finished work below

2.)  Enter on Instagram by tagging your sketch project with the #mbchallenge121 hashtag

You have until the end of the day (EST) on Wednesday, July 30th.   Don't forget, you have to use at least one Memory Box item on your entry and only domestic entries are eligible to be shipped prizes. 

 

 

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