Rhythm & Soul Day 2

I want to start by thanking all of you for your kind comments and enthusiasm over the past several days. Getting to design a stamp set for Papertrey is a dream come true and having it received so warmly has only made the experience all the more meaningful. So thank you all from the bottom of my heart. I'd better move on before I cry on somebody.

How about a little backstory, eh? When I found out I was the winner of the stamp design prize I was immediately flooded with ideas. But the one concept that I couldn't shake was a set of instruments that I could use on cards for the fellas in my life. One of those fellas, specifically, is my dad.

When I was a kid we didn't have a lot of money, but my parents did have a handful of musically talented friends. I fondly remember evenings spent in the dining room with the chairs all pulled into a circle and my dad and his friends playing bluegrass while all the kids danced around like monkeys. As I've gotten older I've come to savor that memory all the more. Now I try to remember to tune in to my local public radio station every Saturday and Sunday evening for their weekend bluegrass program (hey, hey, Bluegrass Ramble, I'm lookin' at you!). I also try and find new favorites by digging through the bluegrass section at my library. So today's project is my little way of sharing that music with the man who introduced me to the fiddle (call it what you want, but to me it will always be the fiddle) and the banjo those years ago.


EDITED TO ADD: The final size of the case is 5" x 5" and was completely contained on one sheet of cardstock. Thanks for the question!
I decided to make a mix CD of some of my favorite songs to give to my dad as part of his Father's Day gift. I started by taking a piece of white cardstock and making a template. When I was happy with the template I took a piece of Kraft cardstock and cut out the basic shape. I did not do any of the scoring until later so I'd have a smooth surface to use for my stamping. I then stamped the front cover with the banjo, fiddle, and guitar images in Fresh Snow ink.


I also stamped the fiddle and the sentiment on the inside pocket at the same time. I think the quote will convey my message to him perfectly. We're not really a "heart on your sleeve" bunch, so I think he'll understand from the gesture just how much I appreciate that we can share this part of our lives (as we are very, very different people in so many other ways).

While that was drying, I die cut the Friendship Jar label from white cardstock and stamped it with the Father's Day sentiment in Dark Chocolate ink. The label still looked a little blah, so I used one of the note images and some Terra Cotta Tile ink to spruce it up a smidge.


Then I took my cover and scored it along the spine and pocket/tabs to make sure I had nice clean folds on everything (especially since I was going to have to fold against the grain on some of the scores). I also took the opportunity to die cut a little bit of a decorative edge on the CD pocket. I did that by cutting the pocket with the edge of the Mat Stack 1 die. It is a subtle dip, but I think it makes the edge look much more clean and finished. Once the pocket was adhered into place I took a piece of Terra Cotta Tile Saddle Stitched Ribbon and did a very simple book binding stitch (that I learned while I was in Boy Scouts - a story for another time) to attach the ribbon to the CD cover spine. I then secured the ribbon closer to the edges of the cover with a little Scor-Tape and mounted the sentiment label with a piece of foam adhesive. I left the ribbon ends a little bit long so it won't be difficult for Dad to tie them when he wants to, but I did trim them with pinking shears so the ribbon won't fray as much as it might with a simple bias cut.


All that was left to do was find a blank CD in a coordinating color (which we luckily had on hand). I plan to type out the playlist and adhere it onto the inside left cover when I have the selection finalized.

I hope you enjoyed today's project and I'll see you tomorrow! For more amazing projects featuring new stamps for this month make sure to check out Nichole, Dawn, Heather, Maile, Melissa's blogs. Ta-ta!

Recipe:
Stamps: Rhythm & Soul (available June 15th) - Papertrey Ink
Cardstock: Kraft - Papertrey Ink; white
Ink: Fresh Snow, Terra Cotta Tile, Dark Chocolate - Papertrey Ink
Other: Terra Cotta Tile Saddle Stitched Ribbon, Friendship Jar Label Die, Mat Stack 1 Die - Papertrey Ink; Foam Adhesive - Scotch; white embroidery floss - DMC; Scor-Tape; CD - Memorex