Shadow Box - With Love

Gone all 3-D with my card today. I am actually using a cut-file from the Silhouette Studio Store (Design ID #26667) to give me the basis for all my dimension. Accordion folds at the edges to both front & back pieces create a kind of box which is stable enough to stand up on its own but can still squash nice & flat into an envelope for posting. The design already has the 'cut out slot design' at each end but as these line up perfectly on both front & back pieces, in order for me to get the alternate colour to peek through, I added cut strips of card to each end immediately behind the each of the slots. I could have got the effect I wanted a couple of different ways, either by realigning the slots on one piece so that each would automatically show through to the other side without the need for cutting strips or even removing the slots entirely from either the front or back - but then whilst one side would show through the other wouldn't have any at all which I thought would be a shame as I like the effect.

View from the top looking into the card - 3-D & how the folds work.

I chose to add an image to the centre front circle - a cute little mouse from Di's Digis which I am sure you could have guessed if you have visited my blog before, I coloured with Promarkers - but I also gave him a summery t-shirt by paper-piecing it with a paper by Gennifer Bursett. Having used blue card as the background so I had a gorgeous 'blue sky', I added clouds I created using a series of circles & ovals & welding together on my Cameo to give my mouse an uncomplicated summery scene given that it was to be locked away on the inside. The blue card has a woven design on the face for a great bit of added texture for the back but is still flat on the reverse making it ideal for the inside too.

The back -with space to write too.

I continued the circle-theme from the front cut-outs onto the back too. This time I got my Cameo to create a series of circles for my mats based on the size of the one on the front but on the inner-most one (kept white so I can write the 'from' later of course), I used one of my butterfly files (yes, a different one from my Butterfly Birthday card the other week - but I have a few!!!!).  This was welded onto & then 'punched out' from, the mat.  I then popped on a flower design to the opposite side which was actually one of the original 50 free ones which came with the Silhouette cutter - with the small centre circle removed. Layering up this now 'punched out' mat with coloured layers beneath, allows my chosen summery colours to peek through. Both the orange & yellow mats are print & cuts using portions of a circle & hopefully this element gives a kind of dimension too - just flatter.  I then added a bit more dimension again by adding the circular centre of my flower using glue gel & a further circular matted sentiment (from ArtisticWhispers) again added using glue gel for that dimensional effect.

3-D butterfly futtering by.

For the finishing touches, the embellishments were created using the same butterfly design & I layered a couple of versions of it to make it look like it was 'fluttering'.  The top layer is a fully cut design from grey/black stiff-ish  paper with a faint design on it but beneath this is just the outline of the butterfly - coloured with Promarkers from my regular cardstock to peek through the 'holes' of the design on top.  Having glued one on top of the other at the bodies, I then folded up the layers of wings so it was 'fluttering'. So more 3-D which will go flat into that all important envelope if necessary.

Thanks for coming by my blog today & I thank you too for all your comments.

Tine :)

Crafty Friends

Challenges I wish to enter are:
Di's Digis - paper-piecing
Crafty Friends - inspirational picture (colours & clouds)
Silhouette Shape Challenge - 3-D
2CreativeChicks - 3-D
Ink On My Fingers - show some depth
Joanny Sheen - don't be square
Totally Gorjuss - anything goes with circles
ALBC - die-ing for it (Silhouette Cameo cutter)
Cupcake - anything but square
Emerald Faerie - happy birthday
Lia Stampz - birthday
Creative Cutting (NL) - festive event (birthday)
Cutie Pie - cute & cuddly
Tammy's Scrapin' Corner - animals
Country View Crafts Challenges - summer sizzler (sadly as we haven't actually been on holiday for years this is how I intend to spend a couple of hours in the garden whilst the sun is still shining - when I can tear myself away from my crafting that is, LOL)
Digi Sketch - sketch &/or theme of summertime
Oldie But A Goodie - in the garden (+stash item older than 6 months - image & file)
Creative Card Crew - the great outdoors
Dream Valley - make your own embellishment (butterflies)
Paper Makeup - anything goes with a digi (image & cutter).