Hi everyone, it's Amy here today with Day 7 of our "It's A Guy Thing" Project Parade. I'm so excited to share my project because it's been rattling around in my brain begging to get out for weeks!
Before I share my project details, I'll confess that when I first saw Sweet on You, I completely missed the whole candy connection: Thanks 100,000 Times Over = 100,000 Grand candy bar, I Love You to Pieces = Reese's Pieces, etc. Rather than blame it on my ditziness (I certainly wouldn't want to offend all the other Divas who also missed the connection - there were a few of us smacking our heads - you know who you are, ladies! *giggle*), I'm blaming it on the fact that I was totally distracted by the idea of doing something puzzle-related as a play on the "I Love You to Pieces" sentiment.
So that's what I have to share today - a custom photo puzzle for my daughter to give to her sweet Daddy for Father's Day. To start, I chose a photo of them together as they were heading out to their annual Father-Daughter Valentine's Dance, and ordered a custom photo puzzle online. There are numerous online vendors for these puzzles. You just upload or email your digital photo, then choose from some different options for size and number of pieces. For a smaller, DIY version, you could easily adhere your photo to lightweight chipboard (think cereal box weight) and die-cut it with one of the puzzle dies on the market (Cuttlebug and Spellbinders both come to mind).
The one I ordered comes in a drawstring bag, so I've put together a box that will double as a gift box and storage box:
For the box, I started with an inexpensive 30-piece store-bought child's puzzle from Target that I already had on hand. I covered and decorated the box top with papers from Stampin' Up's Parisian Breeze collection. Then I used the box bottom as a template and made a new bottom out of the same Parisian Breeze dp. To strengthen it a little, I added white chipboard panels to the inside, both on the bottom and the four sides, then layered on some coordinating dp to dress up the chipboard a little. (In case you're wondering, the reason I did it this way was that I found if I covered both the box bottom and the box top, they fit together so snugly that it was difficult to get the lid off.) This photo shows how the top and bottom fit together:
It's always helpful to have a picture of the puzzle to look at, rather than doing it blind, so I've included the picture in a pocket on the front...
... and again in the bottom of the box, where I also included a sweet sentiment from Dad's Day.
I'm hoping this will be something my husband and daughter will enjoy doing together, and when she outgrows it, it will still be a wonderful keepsake.
Remember, just for playing along with our theme, you'll have a chance to win a Verve stamp set of your choice! Just link your creation to the Mr. Linky form on the Verve Blog Day 1 post before 8 pm MT on Saturday, June 20. We've also hidden another $25 gift certificate somewhere along the parade for a random commenter. So be sure to check out each day of the parade, and leave lots of comments along the way! Have fun and good luck!
