Sunflower Shaped Shaker Boxes

Scrapbooking

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Scrapbooking

Sunflower Shaped Shaker Box

Shaker Boxes in Fun Shapes Using Die Cuts and Foam
By Your Scrapbooking Guide Rebecca Ludens

Shaker boxes have become very popular with scrapbookers and I must admit that I am included in the group that has become enamored of this technique. Until now, however, almost all of the shaker boxes that I have seen have either been squares or rectangles. This limitation has been mostly due to the double-sided foam tape being used to create the shakers. This tape made it very difficult to create intricate shapes without painstakingly piecing the tape around corners and bends. The first time that I had a chance to try out the Sizzix personal die cut machine, I knew that this was going to be the perfect tool to make shaped shakers. My technique is outlined below using the Sunflower Shaker as an example. As you read this article and try out the steps, start thinking of other creative shapes that you could use to enhance your pages with shakers.

Supplies Used for the Sunflower Shaker:

Memory Mount adhesive from API Crafter's Pick
Fibre Craft Flexi-Foam (available at craft stores)
Sizzix Die Cut Machine with Sunflower Die (#38-0210)
Gold and green cardstock from Paper Loft
Seed beads from JewelCraft
Small piece of clear plastic page protector

Procedure:

Using a die cut machine cut the following shapes:
2 - Sunflowers from gold cardstock
1 - Sunflower from green cardstock
1 - Sunflower from yellow Flexi-Foam craft foam
Tip: You will only need the top of the sunflower cut from the foam, and one of the gold cardstock die cuts. You will also only need the stem cut from the green cardstock. To save paper/foam you can align the die in such a way as to only cut the amount you need in each pass. See samples pictured here. The first (light yellow image) is from foam, while the rest are cardstock.
The full sunflower cut from gold cardstock becomes the base for the shaker. Set the base aside for the moment as you remove the center and snip off the stem from the foam sunflower. Carefully apply a thin layer of Memory Mount adhesive to the foam sunflower top and apply it to your base, giving you the image seen here.

Tip: Liquid glue creates a complete seal all the way around the shaker, thus allowing you to put things in the shaker (such as micro beads, glitter, sand, etc.) that might otherwise be able to slip out around other adhesives. Memory Mount is an especially tacky adhesive that works well for adhering the plastic and foam in this project. Use the adhesive sparingly as you do not want any of it to seep into the center of the shaker. I prefer to place a dollop of glue on a paper plate and use a toothpick to spread the glue on the pieces.
By gluing the foam sunflower top to the base, you have create a "well" in the center of the flower that can now be filled with beads. Carefully pour approximately 1/4 teaspoon of seed beads into center of flower.
Cut a circle of page protector just large enough to cover over the center of the sunflower. And using Memory Mount affix it on top of the foam creating a window through which you can see the beads.

Tip: You can use the foam center of the sunflower that you removed in Step 2 as a template for the size of plastic page protector required to cover the hole. Simple cut the plastic approximately 1/4" larger than the foam center all the way around and it will fit over the "well" perfectly.
Snip the stem off of the second gold cardstock sunflower top and remove the center of the flower, leaving a cardstock frame as seen here. Using Memory Mount glue the frame to the top of your sunflower to cover the shaker.
Snip any flower top off of the dark green cardstock sunflower and glue the green stem onto the stem of your shaker box (covering the existing yellow stem) to create a green leaves and a stem on your flower.
Embellish with pen-work and or chalking as desired.

Tip: I prefer to let the shaker boxes completely dry before I do any embellishing. This ensures that my pen-work and chalking will not disturb the glued layers of the shaker. I also allow my shakers to lay completely flat and try not to "shake" them until they are dry so that any glue that may have seeped into the opening does not adhere to the tiny elements inside.