WRMK :: Gift Wrap + the Mini Evolution

No, no, it's not an April Fool's trick--I really am posting for the second day in a row!!!  I do a lot of die cutting when I'm crafting.  I also have a very small workspace so I don't have room to keep a large cutting machine on my desk; I have to lug it out for each and every craft session.  Admittedly, it makes me not even want to bother sometimes.  That's why I was so excited to start using the Mini Evolution from We R Memory Keepers.  It's small enough to keep out, and it comes with all kinds of fun things to whip up some cute and quick projects--read on!

The Mini Evolution comes with 8 stitched circle dies nested together, as well as 2 embossing folders; one is polka dots and the other is a herringbone-type design.  The plates are included to make the proper "sandwiches" for cutting or embossing, and there's even a pack of 50 white and cream cardstock sheets that are already cut down to the perfect size for this machine!  When I set out to decorate a birthday gift box duo for a friend, the ME was the tool I went to to create the tags.

With papers by Heidi Swapp and Pebbles, I made 2 gift boxes with the 1-2-3 Punchboard.  The floral print size is 4" x 4" and the navy blue pattern is 3 1/4" x 3 1/4."  After assembling the boxes, I die cut a bunch of circles from the white and cream stock, some patterned paper, and even some vellum.  The machine and included tools cut and embossed all of them with ease.

For the plain paper and vellum, I used the embossing folders to dress them up and add texture.

I also used a sentiment die I already had to cut out "happy" and "birthday" after stamping them.  The Mini cut them just perfectly, and due to the size of the dies I used, it was so convenient not having to use my bigger cutting machine on such small dies.  It's such a time-saver!

After arranging all of my circles to my liking, I punched 1/8" holes in them with my Crop-a-Dile, then strung them onto each box with white twine.

*Tip:  To get the 'fanned' look of the circles, I punched most of the holes off-center.  If I wanted the tag to peek out from the right, I punched the hole on the left, and vice versa.

I also made a couple of tassels for each package with thread and the Tassel Loom, which I strung on under the top-most tags.  The final touch is a string of navy blue sequin trim.

You might be surprised by how much you can do with the Mini Evolution, and it's size, for me, is the best thing about it.  I'm excited to have a quick go-to machine I can leave out in my small workspace.  It comes with a set of great dies embossing folders, and also works with the wafer thin dies I already own, so die cutting projects just got a little less time consuming for me--and that is always a great thing!


Supplies:

We R Memory Keepers:
Mini Evolution Machine and Tools
1-2-3 Punchboard
Tassel Loom
Crop-a-Dile

Other:
"Happy Birthday" stamps and dies