Papertrey Ink Blog

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Trim the Tree Challenge

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It is the first of the month and that means another challenge has been issued to the Papertrey Senior Design Team!  This month I challenged them to create an ornament for your holiday tree!  I hope you can utilize these ideas to make special gifts for those you love, or even to hang in your own home!  Enjoy this month's compilation and be sure to stop by and visit all the girls and let them know how much you appreciate their amazing talent!

I whipped up a little something myself this month that I am pretty excited to share with you as well!  When I was a little girl, I was quite interested in miniatures & dollhouses.  Needless to say, I was thrilled to see the trend of scaled down houses all over CHA this year.  While looking at my new Nestabilities Long Rectangles dies, it occurred to me how easy it would be to put together my own version with  the creation of a basic template and a few dies!   SO here's the template that I am providing to you as a FREE download!!!

Download birdhouse_template.pdf

Cutting_template
I printed  my template  directly onto our Classic Kraft cardstock.  I used a ruler and a craft knife to trim out the template using my Scor-Mat. 

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Scoring
I then slid out my Scor-Mat and scored the dotted lines of the template right there on my Scor-Pal.  I love how I was able to go straight from cutting to scoring all on the same tool.  Just awesome!

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Finished_scoring
Since I scored on the side of the template with the printed lines, the *good side* of the cardstock is scored perfectly and all of the printing will be on the inside of the house.

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Punching_hole
I stamped the cardstock with Polka Dot Basics using white ink.  I also punched a circular opening in the front using a 3/4-inch circle punch.

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Nesties
I die-cut a long scalloped rectangle and a scalloped square from Pure Poppy using the Nestabilites I mentioned at the beginning of this post.  (In my photos, I have used red and green to help you to tell the two pieces apart.)

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Pieces_of_house
I scored the long rectangle in half to form the peak of the roof.  The square is left the way it is.  I assembled the house by adhering the side tab together.  I colored & cut out a small leaf & berry image from Believe to mount under the front opening.

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Setting_eyelet
In order to make the house a bit more sturdy, I set an eyelet in the peak of the roof using my Crop-a-dile.

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Ornament_loop
I threaded some hemp twine through the eyelet and knotted it on the underside to prevent it from pulling through.  Notice my little polyshrink tag made with the "Peace on Earth" sentiment from Believe.  I colored & cut out an additional sprig of greenery to attach to the tag after it had been shrunk.  A bit of our new Pure Poppy satin ribbon is tied to a jump ring that was threaded through the tag.  The piece added a nice detail to the top of the ornament.

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Peaceful_birdhouse_2
After assembly, here's the finished project.  I think it makes a really cute little house, quick & easy!  I will be making these for the teachers this year I think.  I made today's sample really simplified, but with all of your creative imagination, the sky is the limit!  You could add windows or chimney.  Add glittery icicles or snow drifts around the bottom.  You can have something climbing or crawling out of your openings.  You could make one for Halloween or any other holiday!  You could cut the basic pieces for the house for several children at once and let them showcase their individual talent.  The results would be a fantastic way to decorate an entire tree!  I challenge you to take this basic concept and make something of your very own!  Have fun and happy stamping!!!

Suppliestools

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Stamps: Believe, Polka Dot Basics
Ink: Noir Black Palette ink, white pigment ink
Paper: Classic Kraft & Pure Poppy
Other: Pure Poppy satin ribbon, Copic markers,hemp twine, translucent polyshrink from Lucky Squirrel

ETA: I'm so glad that many of you are planning on trying this template out for yourselves!  Some of you asked about the dimensions of the roof & base if you do not on the Nestabilities.

Roof: 3.75 x 2 inches (scored in half)

Base: 2 x 2 inches

Also, a few of you inquired about the specific Nestabilities required.  This information is already conveniently located on the template print out, but I have listed it below as well for you…

Roof: Spellbinder's Nestabilities, Long Classic Scalloped Rectangles, Small Set (3rd smallest rectangle)

Base: Spellbinder's Nestabilities, Classic Scalloped Squares, Small Set (3rd smallest square)

Enjoy!  And if you create a project using this template, please be sure to link it in the comments section so I can take a peek at your creativity!!!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  8. Thanks for posting the template for this adorable little bird house. You’re right, it’s perfect for teacher’s gifts this year.

    Reply

  9. Such a terrific idea! And, yes, with all of the great PTI stamps we have to choose from, the possibilities are endless for this little house. Thanks so much for sharing the template!

    Reply

  15. oh I just love to read your blog and wonder at all your creativity. thank you so much for sharing- I think these will be added to my sister gift list- won’t my sisters be surprised! I tried to convince them we need to go on your cruise next year- I sure hope they agree

    Reply

  17. Oh my word – I adore your little birdhouse ornament. Thank you for sharing the free downloadable template. Your artistry and blog are just heartwarming. Thanks SO much!

    Reply

  18. This is so cute! Thank you so much for the template! I can’t wait to make these!
    You are awesome!
    Hugs,

    Reply

  19. Oh my Gosh, this is adorable. I am not even a birdhousey person and I love this! Can’t wait to give it a try. I may use them as name tags for my Christmas packages. How cute would that be!

    Reply

  20. i love it! how do you come up with all of these awesome ideas! oh, birdhouses, let me count the ways. is that one of those fingertip craft knives?

    Reply

  25. I love birdhouses,so thank you for creating such a cute template. You could create one for every season or holiday! Your Christmas ornament is awesome. I can’t wait to play with this template.

    Have a great Labor Day!

    Reply

  29. I love this project, but I am so craft-impaired. I’m still going to try it. If there’s anyone near Grand Rapids who is especially patient, please write because at some point, I will need help (big-time).
    Peggy
    pmosped@aol.com

    Reply

  32. I love miniatures too, that’s just lovely!

    A question for those of us who don’t have the long Nesties.

    What are the dimensions of the rectangle you used for the roof?

    Thanks!

    Reply

  33. OK this freaking ROCKS! How did you ever come up with the template, I think I’d suffer a brain freeze if I even attempt that. I’m so trying this out, too cool, TOO COOL!
    see — *this* is what makes me run to your store and stash up on things that I “missed” to buy. Your generosity of sharing these great ideas need to be returned with loyal customership šŸ™‚ love it.
    CUTE!
    ugh

    LOL….

    Reply

  35. Wow – what a great project!! Thanks so much for sharing the template! I can see so many uses for this already. Thanks again, Nichole!

    Reply

  41. Totally adorable,Nicole. Thanks for sharing the template. I’ve learned so much from you. God has blessed you with an incredible amount of talent. So glad you aren’t hiding it “under a basket”.

    Reply

  43. Wow what an amazing project,i am definetly making this………..Totally awesome,thanks so much for sharing your template with us.

    Jean (Ireland)

    Reply

  52. OMG is that adorable! Been contemplating homemade gifts this year but didn’t know what…now I do!! A bazillion thank you’s!!!

    Reply

  55. Wow!! Great tutorial and thanks for the template! I have a question…I do not have the nestabilities dies, so what size rectangle would the roof and base be?

    Thanks for sharing with all of us!!!

    Reply

  59. I don’t know what to say…this is absolutely one of the most adorable projects I have seen for the Holidays so far this year. Thank you for sharing the template!

    Reply

  61. A “little something?” Are you kidding me?! This is about the cutest thing EVER! As a self proclaimed bird nerd, I’m all smiles right now. Thanks for ending my evening on a happy note!

    Megan, the bird nerd!

    Reply

  62. Love the birdhouse and thanks so much for sharing the template with all of us. What do we do, if we don’t have any nestibilities die cuts? What size rectangle do we need?

    Reply

  64. Oh wow Nichole you blow me away with your creations…this is beautiful, I am so making one of these after you so kindly gave away the template thank you sooooo much šŸ™‚

    Reply

  69. I have had such fun making one of these. I used my smallest oval nestie for the window and because I don’t have the long rectangle nestie, I used two square ones for the roof with pink polka dot paper which gave me a nice scallop for the ridge. I then stamped the walls with the Out on a Limb set. Thank you so much for the lovely template.

    Reply

  82. OMG – you “whipped up a little something”?! You are so creative and your work is so fine, it would take me 3 semesters of design to come up with something like this. It is lovely!

    Reply

  93. I love this little birdhouse. I had come by during the Trim the Tree challenge and fell in love with it. At that same time I had seen where someone made these as an Advent Calendar idea. Hanging all 25 on the tree and lifting the roof each day for the surprise. Did you see this? I can’t find it now ang hoped maybe you knew where it was. Thanks so much for the template. I love your blog and would like to list your blog on mine if that is OK with you?

    Reply

  97. Thanks for the template, this is such an adorable little house…. I just had to make one… though I never thought it is THAT small and I nearly broke my fingers fiddeling – it was FUN!!!

    Reply

  98. Oh gosh this is just so pretty my mom just loves bird houses and this reminds me of an ornament my mom has had since I was a little girl I am in my 40s now, and I have always been fond of the old ornament my self, thank you. I got to learn how to do a tutorial as well on some roses.

    Reply

  102. Hi there, congratulations being so creative.
    Thank you for sharing this tamplate it sure is a nice and cute little birhouse. I already made it, but I still need to embellish it. I’m planning to make several and hang them in the Christmas tree!! How would I make it so the roof be easily opened? what if I want to make it larger? just enlarge the template before printing it? Thanks for yor help and keep working.

    Reply

  105. сŠæŠ°ŃŠøŠ±Š¾! я Š»ŃŽŠ±Š»ŃŽ рŠ°Š±Š¾Ń‚Š°Ń‚ŃŒ ŠæŠ¾ шŠ°Š±Š»Š¾Š½Š°Š¼ Š±Ń‹ŃŃ‚Ń€Š¾ Šø ŠŗрŠ°ŃŠøŠ²Š¾!

    Reply

  106. What a great idea. I can’t afford to buy new ornaments for the tree this year so I was thinking I could make some of these… Thanks for the inspiration.

    Reply

  110. super joli ces petits nichoirs
    j’en ferai bien quelques-un pour noĆ«l prochain
    fƩlicitations

    Reply

  114. The house is the place for you people! With it we are free from sun and wind! You speak very good! It enjoys popular support! Now we all need a house! Thank you for your willingness to share with us

    Reply

  116. After all, we wouldn’t have expected actual jewelry. Well, we were wrong. Inside the cleverly constructed gift box was a classic silver men’s link bracelet, a generous and unexpected surprise.

    Reply

  117. I identify with this article because it says it could be a challenge this is the same for me because I like those patterns but I’m a little bit clumsy.

    Reply

  118. I don’t have a blog, but I will be having a go at these cute little houses, many many thanks for sharing your talents and time with us xx

    Reply

  121. I recently used your pattern at a ladies’ craft night at our church. Instead of plain cardstock, we traced the pattern onto used Christmas cards. The finished birdhouses were wonderful! Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

  126. The natural insitinct is to look for value in tech stocks when you want to capitalize on the tech revolution, right? Wrong. The tech revolution has arguably created the most value in retail, notably the success of Wal-mart and the Walton family fortune.

    Reply

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  138. bonjour

    c est magnifique et merci pour le tuto , j’ai bien envie d essayer d en faire pour les mettre dans la chambre du bebe Ć  venir
    see you later
    Sylvie

    Reply

  143. I love that birdhouse. I actually always wanted to make a bird house but never knew how to. I’m going to try tomorrow. Thank you so much for this.

    Reply

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