Graphic 45 2020 Brand Ambassador Audition

One of my favorite paper companies has always been Graphic 45. When they put out the call for Brand Ambassadors, I decided to give it a try. The requirement is to create something you love and to make a step-by-step tutorial. I hope you enjoy my audition and that you try my project.

I chose the fabulous new Farmhouse collection for my audition project. I love making cards using the ephemera and the fantastic new die cuts so I created a set of six cards. The regular size matchbox was the perfect choice for storage. It looks a little plain on the outside, but the real treasure lies within....

Let's begin by cutting the paper.

Cardstock (I used black linen cardstock) - label them with the number from the list

1. 2 7/8" x 6 1/8", cut 2 (inner box)
2. 2 7/8" x 8 3/8", cut 2 (inner box)
3. 3 1/8" x 8 3/8", cut 2 (outer box)
4. 6 3/8" x 8 3/8", cut 2 (outer box)
5. 7" x 10", cut 6 (card base)
6. 5" x 7", cut 6 (for die cut frame)

Set aside numbers 5 and 6 until later. Using the adhesive of choice, glue the #1 pieces to the sides and the #2 pieces to the ends on the outside of the inner sliding box. Glue the #3 pieces to the sides and one of the #4 pieces to the bottom on the outside of the outer box sleeve. Save the remaining #4 piece for later.

To mat the box, I chose the gorgeous plaid from the Gather Together page. Most crafters like either a 1/16" or 1/8" border when matting but I am partial to the border that lies between the two.

1. 2 15/16" x 8 3/16", cut 2
2. 2 11/16" x 5 15/16", cut 2

I inked the edges of all of the patterned paper with black ink to cover the white edges and to give the project a vintage theme. And this paper just has to be vintage! I glued the #1 pieces to the sides of the outer sleeve  and the #2 pieces to the ends of the inner box. I did not add patterned paper to the sides of the inner box. I cut one piece 6 3/16" x 8 3/16" from the B side of the Locally Grown page for the bottom of the outer sleeve.

I chose not to mat the patterned paper on the inside of the box. I used the gold sheet with the words on it from the Patterns and Solids pack.

1.  2 7/8" x 8 1/4", cut 2 from the A side
2.  2 7/8" x 6", cut 2 from the A side
3.  6" x 8 1/4", cut 1 from the B side

Again, I inked the edges with black ink. Before gluing the pieces to the inside of the box, I added a Graphic 45 Drawer Pull to one end. I marked the holes for the brads and used a paper piercing tool to make the holes. I glued the drawer pull with a strong glue because no matter how hard I try, I cannot get these to hold tight with just the brads. Adding the drawer pull first allows you to cover the brad ends on the inside of the box.

In keeping with the country theme of the paper, I decided to add some barn doors as my decoration for the top of the box. I started with pieces cut from Graphic 45 Black Chipboard.

1.  3 1/8" x 8 1/2", cut 2
2.  5/16" x 3 1/8", cut 8
3.  5/16" x  7 7/8", cut 8
4.  5/16" x  2 9/16", cut 2
5.  5/16" x  5", cut 4 ( these are for the cross pieces on the doors)

I chose the red side of a sheet from the Patterns and Solids pack for the "barnwood." 

1.  3 1/16" x 8 7/16", cut 4
2.  cut enough strips just between the 1/4" and 5/16" mark on your cutter to cover the remaining chipboard strips

I used a sharpie marker to draw lines about 3/8" apart to form the boards. Then I used a fine-tip felt marker to draw lines for the wood grain on all the pieces of red cardstock and glued them to the chipboard pieces. I inked the edges of the narrow strips only because they will cover the edges of the larger pieces.

Then I assembled the doors. I glued the 3 1/8" pieces to the top and bottom of each door and then 7 7/8" strips in between them along the sides. Do this on the inside of the door as well. The smaller 2 9/16" pieces is glued across the center of the doors on the front side. To make the cross pieces, I laid a chipboard strip where it needed to lay on the door and marked it.

I cut those pieces, inked the edges, and glued them to the doors. Make sure to angle them the opposite way on the doors to create the "X" in the center.  This also gave me some extra room to glue the latch pieces for the drawer closure.

To attach the doors to the top of the box, I created hinges. Cut 2 pieces of black cardstock 1 7/8" x 8 3/8". With the narrow end along the top of your score board, score at 7/8" and 1". Fold and burnish the scorelines. TIP: to burnish small score sections, lay a straight edge along the scoreline and fold the paper up along the edge. 

Glue the doors to the hinges along one of the score lines, making sure that the scored section is not covered. The hinge should extend out to the left on the left door and to the right on the right door.

I glued the latch pieces while hooked together using a strong glue. I trimmed the prongs from the brads and just glued to ends into the holes on the latch pieces. I left a very short stem of the prongs to go into the hole without raising the brad end up. This allows the inside of the door to have a flat finish like the front. Then I folded the hinges under the door sides and glued them to the outer edges of the outside box sleeve. (be careful to only put glue on the 7/8" part of the hinge so the gusset remains free)

To decorate the "inside" of my barn, I first added the #4 piece of black that I had set aside at the beginning. Then I cut a piece 6 3/16" x 8 3/16" from the Rise and Shine page. I inked the edges and glued that to the black mat. I chose the Life on the Farm large ephemera piece and matted it with black cardstock and attached it in the center using pop dots to give it some dimension. Then I cut the stacked animals from the Farmhouse page of the 8 x 8 pad and attached them using glue dots. I chose two of the smaller ephemera pieces and trimmed them along the inner borders around the pictures to make them fit into the doors.

To fill the barn, I created six 5" x 7" cards. Fold the six pieces of 7" x 10" cardstock to form the 5" x 7" bases.  I chose the cute plaid pages from the Patterns and Solids pack in red and gold and used two of the General Store pages from the 8 x 8 pad for the black. (the black plaid in the 12 x 12 pack is larger than the plaids in the Patterns and Solids but the 8 x8 is the same.) I used 2 sheets of random pages that have the light gold for the mats on the insides of the cards.

1. 4 13/16" x 6 13/16", cut 2 from each color of plaid
2.  3/8" x 6 13/16", cut 2 form each color of plaid
3.  4 13/16" x 6 13/16", cut 6 from the light gold solid

I inked the edges with black ink before gluing the paper to the card base. I glued the large plaid layers to the fronts of the cards. I used the 5" x 7" pieces of black cardstock to cut a frame using a die that I have in my stash.  After gluing the gold layer to the inside right, I glued the narrow strips of coordinating plaid to left edge of the layer. On each card, I used a bud from the Graphic 45 Black and the Ivory flower packages tied together with black ribbon. I attached them along with a piece from the leaves using hot glue. I added elements cut from the pages, die cuts from the Die Cut Assortment pack, ephemera pack, and chipboard elements. I tied waxed baker's twine to the tags and die cuts that had holes to attach it in.

Card #1

Welcome Friends Ephemera card trimmed down to 2 5/8" x 3 5/8" then matted with black cardstock, Life on the Farm die cut matted with black cardstock, and a chipboard element. The ephemera piece and chipboard are popped up.

Card #2

Bless The Farm chipboard element, Milk element from the General Store page of the 8 x 8 pad matted with black cardstock, Happy Place die cut matted with black cardstock. The chipboard and die cut are popped up.

Card #3

Live, Laugh, Love die cut, Blessed cut apart from the Rise and Shine 8 x 8 page matted with black cardstock, animals chipboard element. Only the die cut is popped up.

Card #4

Life is Better cut apart from the General Store 8 x 8 page matted with black cardstock, Happiness is Homemade die cut matted with black cardstock, Welcome chipboard element. The cut apart and chipboard element are popped up.

Card #5

Stacked animals die cut, Farmhouse cut apart from the Rise and Shine 8 x 8 page matted with black cardstock, Farmyard Friends chipboard element. The die cut and chipboard element are popped up.

Card #6

Life on the Farm cut apart from the General Store 8 x 8 page matted with black cardstock, Farmhouse die cut tag matted with black cardstock, Make Hay chipboard element. The cut apart and the chipboard element are popped up.

On the inside of each card, I attached a small sticker to the lower right corner just so it would have a little character. This step is really optional and up to you. 

This project was so much fun to create! Keeping my fingers crossed for the opportunity to represent Graphic 45 for the next year. Either way, I hope it has inspired you to create a unique set of cards and a fun package to store them in.

If you have any questions, please feel free to leave a comment. I love to hear from visitors! 

'til next time.....

Happy Crafting, 

Laurie

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