Story Time with the IHP DT

This month’s i {heart} papers design team challenge is to create a project inspired by a story. As a kindergarten teacher, I have an extensive collection of children’s picture books and quite a few favorites. I decided to take my inspiration from the book If You Give a Cat a Cupcake by Laura Numeroff, one of a series of fun pictures books with a circular story pattern. In this installment, the fun starts with giving a cat a cupcake. Following a mishap with some sprinkles to decorate it, chaos ensues, and the story's events eventually circle back to end with yet another cupcake and some more sprinkles.

Here’s my project inspired by the story. I made a little box, sized perfectly for giving a cupcake already decorated with some sprinkles. To get started, I went to the grocery store and bought a ready-made cupcake (you didn’t think I’d actually bake one myself, did you?? If you know me, you’d know that would pretty much never happen—LOL!). I used the treat to plan out the size of the box. I used a square of dotted paper from Echo Park's A Walk in the Park Collection Kit for the box’s base. With a few scores (done with the ScorPal) and a few cuts, plus some redline tape, the box was quickly assembled.

I made a coordinating lid from a square of solid cardstock. I used a Nestabilities circle die to cut a circle from the center of the lid so that the recipient could see the cupcake inside the box. To tie the box base and lid together, I ran the lid through my Big Shot with a polka dotted embossing folder. The dotted texture adds interest and is a perfect match for the paper. A piece of acetate is attached to the inside of the lid to cover the window opening and protect the cupcake.

I dressed up the box with a little pink satin ribbon wrapped around the lid. I added a bow to the ribbon and used it to secure a little circle tag decorated with a cupcake from Unity’s Sweet Birthday Celebration kit stamped on it. I replaced the stamped cherry with a sparkly self-adhesive crystal one, colored with a red Copic marker, and added some Stickles to the cupcake for even more sparkle.

Be sure to check out what the rest of the IHP DT has created for this month’s challenge. Here’s where to find them:

• Carolyn
• Cathleen
• Deb
• Gretchen
• Kendra
• Loretta
• Lori --you're here!
• Lynn
• Megan
• Tracy
• Kate

Materials Used:
from i {heart} papers: Echo Park A Walk in the Park Collection Kit, i {stick} papers redline tape, ScorPal, Spellbinders circle dies, QuicKutz Polka Dots embossing folder, May Arts pink/light pink reversible satin ribbon, Unity Stamp Co. Sweet Birthday Celebration kit, Memento Rich Cocoa ink, Zva Creative self-adhesive clear crystal lines, Copic marker (R35), Bow Easy, Cotton Candy Stickles

other: Pink Pirouette cardstock (Stampin’ Up!); acetate