Music and art are my two favorite hobbies. Music, and great lyrics, are a huge inspiration for a lot of my artwork. I had a lot of fun teaming up with my husband for this box guitar build and combining … Continue reading
Keepsake Box Guitar
Tag Archives: basswood box
Wood Burned Tea Box Handmade Gift
Yes it’s only mid-October but it’s time to start thinking about handmade gifts. I have a great gift idea for the tea lover on your list: a wood burned tea box. I’m a tea lover myself, and I’d love to … Continue reading
How to make a charging station cord box
With the new school year season upon us thoughts turn to organizing along with new supplies and books.
We all have electronics as a part of out lives that need to be charged and it’s confession time for me…this is what my electronic charging area looks like:
Can you say, “oy”!? Well Walnut Hollow boxes to the rescue!
If your world looks like mine read on for the tutorial on how to make a charging station cord box.
Supplies and Tools:
Professional Rotary Tool 29637
Drill bits
White Paint
Brush
Circle template
Pencil
Sand paper and sanding bits
Determine the sizes of the holes based on your cord widths and the number of holes you need.
If your cords and electronics are larger choose another size Walnut Hollow Box to accommodate your charging cord needs.
Draw the necessary holes and the cross line marks. Drill holes in the box by aligning the tip of the drill bit on the center of the crossed lines.
Once you have all your holes drilled sand the edges with the Professional Rotary Tool.
For a final touch I painted the box white for a clean tidy look. I sanded the edges again after the paint was dry for a slight “shabby chic” look.
I hope you’ll try making a charging station box to tidy up your world of electronic cable madness.
Thanks for taking time to check out this tutorial and if you’d like to see more of my crafting with a re-purpose and adult coloring pages pop on over to my blog Sweater Surgery.
Stefanie Girard is a crafter with a re-purpose. She has been cutting stuff up since she was old enough to hold a pair of scissors in her tiny hands. She earned her degree in Industrial Design from Pratt Institute and move to Los Angeles to work in the entertainment industry first as a Set Decorator and Prop Master then onto TV Producer specializing in How-To TV shows for HGTV and the DIY Networks. After writing 5 craft books for the Quarto Publishing Group she now spreads the crafty word online through book reviews and original projects with a focus on recycled elements.
How to make a computer lap desk
I mostly work with my computer on my lap sitting on the couch. Why would sit at an uncomfortable desk chair when I can lounge on my couch and get the same work done? But the warmth of the computer can be uncomfortable in the summer heat. (A benefit in the winter though!) And storage….can we ever really have too much? So, if all this sounds like your world why not make yourself a vented computer laptop desk out of a Walnut Hollow Basswood Cornice box.
Materials and Tools
Professional Rotary Tool 29637
Drill bits
Fabric
Batting
Trim
Hot Glue Gun
Pencil
Scrap paper
Scrap wood
Cut two rectangles of batting a bit larger than the box so they will wrap around the edge. Cut one a bit larger than the other and trim the corners to reduce bulk.
Cut a piece of fabric a few inches bigger than the batting. Set these aside for later after you drill the holes in the lid.
Place a piece of paper on the lid and then your laptop to see where the little feet on the computer are. You will want to avoid drilling holes near the feet. Sketch out a pattern of different size holes to use as a rough guide.
Place pieces of scrap wood and paper to fill the interior of the box. This will help reduce splintering on the inside of the lid. You can see in the open photo above I left this step out on the first large hole I drilled and the inside of the wood box split more than the others.
You are now ready to drill the vent holes in the lid that will help keep your laptop cool.
Draw down the drill bit to poke through the paper. This will mark the center spot on the wood lid through the paper.
Drill a variety of holes in the lid starting with the largest size first, then medium, and then fill in spaces with small holes.
Once you have all your holes drilled give them a sanding with the Professional Rotary Tool.
Now would be the time to paint it if you like. I liked the natural wood so I left it as it is.
All that is left to do is to hot glue the fabric to the box.
Trim off the excess fabric and glue a strip of trim around the parameter to hide all the rough edges and glue.
I hope you’ll try making this fun computer lap desk with your favorite fabric.
Thanks for taking time to check out this tutorial and if you’d like to see more of my crafting with a re-purpose and adult coloring pages pop on over to my blog Sweater Surgery.
Stefanie Girard is a crafter with a re-purpose. She has been cutting stuff up since she was old enough to hold a pair of scissors in her tiny hands. She earned her degree in Industrial Design from Pratt Institute and move to Los Angeles to work in the entertainment industry first as a Set Decorator and Prop Master then onto TV Producer specializing in How-To TV shows for HGTV and the DIY Networks. After writing 5 craft books for the Quarto Publishing Group she now spreads the crafty word online through book reviews and original projects with a focus on recycled elements.
Summer Camp Printed Box with Woodburned Stamps
This printed box is made with a card box, woodburned stamps and DecoArt American Acrylic neon paints. The box is meant to hold keepsakes reminiscent of summer camp. I never stayed at a formal summer camp, but I went camping at a … Continue reading
DIY Enid Collins Inspired Wood Box Bag
This wood box bag is inspired by the creations of iconic 1960s design Enid Collins. Her hand painted bag designs are sought after by vintage collectors. Walnut Hollow’s Classic Box is the perfect size for a mini wood bag. I … Continue reading
Tea Box – Handmade Holidays 2014
By Chris Wallace for Walnut Hollow
Welcome to the 4th Annual Handmade Holidays Blog Hop! A few years ago we were looking online for handmade gift ideas and thought it would be great if there was a resource dedicated JUST to handmade gift ideas. Enter the Handmade Holidays hop! We’ve gathered over 100 of our creative blogger friends in the craft industry as well as some of our fellow product manufacturers to bring you a plethora of inspiring gift ideas you can make now to give to your friends, family, and colleagues. Pin and bookmark these ideas for this holiday season and to use throughout the year! Each day of the hop features approximately 30 gift projects and you can “hop” from one blog to another to check them all out.
My daughter loves tea and I love Graphic 45® – so it was just meant to be that I make a tea box for her as a gift using Graphic 45’s Botanical Tea papers (12 x 12 pad and 6 x 6 Patterns and Solids Pad) and accessories. I used the Walnut Hollow Keepsake Box for the Tea Box.
I began the project by using a large flat brush to basecoat the entire box – inside and outside – with DecoArt® Americana® Chalky Finish New Life (green). I also painted 2 white strips of foam core board (1 3/8” x 6 5/8”) with New Life.
While it was drying, I cut the Graphic 45 papers to fit the top, (dots) 10 ½” x 6 ¾”, (Botanical Tea) 6” x 6”, and (Love Note) 4” x 6”. Cut the papers for the sides (4 strips from 6” x 6” stripe) 1 ½” x 6”. Cut paper for the inside (2) 4” x 6” Love Notes and (2) 6” x 6” papers of your choice.
I like Tombow® adhesives. I used Xtreme® to adhere all of the papers to the painted wood. I used MONO Multi Liquid Glue to adhere the trim on the top of the box and around the top 
I used Xtreme adhesive to adhere the papers and MONO Multi Liquid Glue to adhere the painted green foam core dividers for the tea.
The final touch was added with the Graphic 45 Botanical Tea Stickers. I’m sure my daughter will enjoy her Tea Box – made especially for her!
Are you ready for lots more creative handmade gift ideas and projects??
Follow along on our blog hop! Simply click on each of the links below to be taken to that post with additional information and photos on how to create a handmade gift project. Have fun and pin away!
Walnut Hollow <— YOU ARE HERE
Graphic 45 <— GO HERE NEXT!
Cookies for Breakfast- Beth Pingry
Cupcakes and Crinoline – Mary Beth Sharkey
Elizabeth Craft Designs – Frances Byrne
Lazy Mom’s – Joanna Grzeszczak
Homemade Ginger – Megan Kapple
Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L – Asia King
Ellison Educational Equipment – Anna-Karin Evaldsson
The Buckle Boutique – Stephanie Nericcio
Modern Surrealist – Marisa Pawelko
A Little Craft In Your Day – Tanner Bell
Artsy Findings – Cheryl Waters
Enter a Rafflecopter giveaway. Prizes from all of our sponsors will be raffled off!
Follow our Handmade Holidays Gift Ideas Pinterest board for even more inspiration!
A huge thank you to our sponsors for this hop – please visit their blogs below and follow them. And be sure to come back tomorrow for another 30+ amazing Handmade Gift Ideas!
Clearsnap || Ellison Educational Equipment || Walnut Hollow || Graphic45 || Westcott || ICE Resin || Therm O Web || Rowland Industries || Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L || Pink and Main || Elizabeth Craft Designs || The Buckle Boutique || Neat and Tangled
Additional Sponsorship provided to bloggers by:
Sakura || Fairfield Processing
Fabric Flower Card Keeper Box
By Chris Wallace for Walnut Hollow
I have many favorite Walnut Hollow pieces, but I really think that this Card Keeper Box is my all-time-favorite! Love the slide lid, it’s large enough to categorize your cards with dividers, and each Box holds about 50 cards or so depending on the embellishments you add to each card. I like to make cards and store them all year round to give as gifts to friends – and I use some of them too because people really like to receive things in the mail and handmade cards just add to the happiness.
Well, I think I’ve told you that I’m a quilter too. When I found out that several paper companies were working with fabric companies, I knew I was going to have fun playing with matching paper and fabric. I found a charm pack (pre-cut 5” squares) that matched some paper I had and I was ready to make some new cards and a Card Keeper Box. You’ll need to basecoat your Card Keeper Box first to match the fabrics you will be using.
Clover® makes several styles of Kanzaski Flower Makers. I used the Pointed Petal, Large version to create 4 flowers (one for each side and the lid) out of the fabric squares.
Each of the 5 petals used a different fabric just for the front of the Box. The other flowers had all the same petals. Once the petals came together to create the flower, I finished them off with antique black button centers.
Using my sewing machine, I created a small quarter-square triangle unit using 2 different fabric squares. I cut them down to measure 4”. To decorate the sides (excluding the front), choose different 5” charm pieces and adhere them using an iron to 5” squares of fast2fuse® craft interfacing by C&T Publishing.
Press and stitch the quarter square triangle blocks using a decorative onto the 5” fused squares. You can either adhere the squares onto the wood box with an iron or use a liquid adhesive for fabric.
For the front of the box, offset the 5” fabric square and the fused plain fabric square to the printed square. I stitched on only 2 sides that were touching then added the 3 black buttons on the side.
Now that the Card Keeper Box is complete – it’s time to make the cards!
Getting Ready for School
By Chris Wallace for Walnut Hollow
It’s that time again! Seems like summer always flies by too fast. Well, there is still time to make a box with your child to use in a desk or school locker.
It’s fun to personalize crafty projects and so easy to do.
Using this Roomy Box – it measures 3.33” x 8.21” x 5.44” – you’ll have plenty of room for note paper, pencils, pens, markers, etc. Begin the project by spraying the entire outside of the Box with Krylon® Glitter Blast™ Spray Paint. I used Orange Burst. Let dry thoroughly. I used a large flat brush to apply one coat of DecoArt® Americana® Satin Varnish over the Glitter paint to keep the glitter from rubbing off.
Drill a hole in the top of the lid and attach a knob with a screw. I used a Tim Holtz® Classic Knob to open the Box.
DCWV® has some fun decorative paper – The Homeroom Stack® and I found the perfect paper to add around the bottom of the box. You’ll need 2 pieces trimmed to 1 ¾” x 5” and 1 piece trimmed to 1 ¾” x 7 ¾”. Tombow® has a new tape runner – Xtreme Adhesive. It’s perfect for attaching the paper over the Glitter paint because it’s 5 times stronger than standard tape runners so it will stay in place!
There are many styles of adhesive alphabets in the craft stores. Choose a font and style you like to personalize with a name.
Of course, the inside of the Box should be as fun as the outside. I used a large flat brush to paint 2 coats of DecoArt® Americana® Blue Harbor acrylic paint to cover the inside of the Box. After it’s dry, add some more papers, stickers and embellishments using the Xtreme tape runner.
Done! And there is still a little time to enjoy some more summer fun before school begins…
Walnut Hollow and Stencil Girl Blog Hop!
Photo Memory Box
by Sara Shirman
If you are following along with the Walnut Hollow + Stencil Girl Blog Hop then you are in the right place! Be sure to leave comments on all of the blogs to enter to win this prize package!!
This prize consists of Walnut Hollow Mini Crate, Card Box, 12″x12″ Wood Panel, 6″x6″ Basswood Canvas and a Creative Versa-Tool®! (A $70 Value!)
Enter to win by commenting on the Blog projects that are a part of the Walnut Hollow + Stencil Girl Blog Hop. The more blogs you comment on the more chances you have to win! Giveaway will close on Sunday, March 2nd at 11:59PM Central Time.
For my Blog Hop Project I decided to come up with a solution to the hundreds of photos that I have printed but don’t do anything with each year. I love the idea of scrap booking but I never seem to get around to it! I have my photos printed with the intention of doing something with them but they always end up sitting in the box that they came in. It is always nice to look through those boxes. If I had a decorative way to organize these photos by year it would be a lot easier to be proud to store them on my bookshelf!
This is what I came up with:
It was difficult to choose which stencil to use. Stencil Girl has such an AMAZING selection of unique stencils. I finally decided to go with the Chevron stencil because it went with my living room decor.
I started with a Walnut Hollow Classic Box. It is made of basswood and is the perfect size for standard 4″x6″ photos. The first thing that I did to prepare my box was to sand it.
I used a 1″ foam brush to apply the wood sealer. I put on one coat of sealer on the entire box then let the box dry for about 20 minutes. When the box was dry I lightly sanded it again.
I used painters tape to tape off the outside edge of the box so that I could paint the inside of the box and not worry about going over the edge and getting paint on the outside. I used Americana Bahama Blue acrylic paint on the inside.
After the Bahama Blue inside dried I took off the tape and put new tape on the inside edge of the box to protect it while I painted the outside. I mixed 1 part Americana Mississippi Mud acrylic paint with 1 part Americana Staining and Antiquing Medium and used a wide brush to apply the mixture to the outside of the box.
When the paint was dry I lightly sanded the corners and edges of the box to “antique” it a little bit more.
I used Americana Khaki Tan Acrylic Paint to stencil the first Chevron. I firmly held down the stencil with my left hand and used a stencil brush to stipple in the stencil with my right hand.
I used the same technique on the other 2 chevrons but I used the Bahama Blue Acrylic Paint on the middle pattern.
I added another chevron the the side of my box with Americana Tangelo Orange Acrylic Paint.
I used Walnut Hollow 1.5″ numbers to add the year to the box.
Thank you for viewing my project! See the list below for the next blog to hop to!
StencilGirl Talk/Judi Kauffman <http://www.stencilgirltalk.com/>
Walnut Hollow <https://walnuthollowcrafts.wordpress.com/>
Mary Beth Shaw <http://mbshaw.blogspot.com/>
Kirsten Reed <http://bit.ly/1plkRug>
Carolyn Dube <http://acolorfuljourney.com/>
Janet Joehlin <http://jjhappyreminders.blogspot.com/>
Linda Kittmer <http://lindakittmer.blogspot.com/>
Mary C. Nasser <http://www.marycnasser.com/blog.html>
Julie Snidle <http://juliesnidle.blogspot.com/>
Jessica Sporn <http://jessicasporn.blogspot.com/>
Judy Shea <http://thekeytomyart.wordpress.com/>
Maria McGuire <http://www.believedreamcreatewithmaria.com/>
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