In this tutorial Hybrid Team Member Lori Blair’s takes you through creating templates to decorating and assembling this cute hybrid purse box! I think you will agree that it’s a super cute and clever! In her next tutorial she will be showing you how to make an awesome heart shaped mini album to put inside this purse box!
Supplies used:
Scissors
Cutting mat
Scoring mat and bone-folder
Double sided tape
Scrapbooking adhesive
Thin Velcro dots
Brads
The following steps assume basic knowledge of digital scrapbooking and Photoshop Elements.
Let’s get started!
Step 1- Create a new page – 8.5” x 11” ***Note all dimensions are in inches, width x height
Step 2- Create a square – 8.5” x 8.5”. This will be the template for the body of the purse. I used a dark grey color. Place the template so that the top and bottom align with the page and the left edge is at the .25 in mark [I’ve used a vertical guide at .25 to help me line up the left edge.]
Step 3- Set guides at the following:
Vertical: 0.25, 2.75” and 6.25”
Horizontal: 0.5”, 3.5”, 5” and 8”
If you do not have the ability to set guides, then create lines on a different layer at those locations.
Step 4- To help see what will be visible when the purse is completed – create the following blocks and set into position as shown in the photo. I’ve used a light grey color. I’ve merged my pieces into 1 layer:
Front and Back: 3.5” x 3”
2 Sides: 2.5” x 1.5”
Bottom: 3.5” x 1.5”
Now I’ve done an additional step to make sure that when the purse is folded I only see the “visible section”. You can skip this if you want.
Make sure the light grey is the foreground color in the color chips. Select the visible pieces layer in the layers panel. CTRL click on the thumbnail of the layer to get a selection outline [those persnickety marching ants should be all around the layer!]. Go up to the menu bar and select Select, Modify, Expand – and I’ve used 15 pixels, Select OK. Fill the selection with the light grey by pressing the ALT-Backspace keys. The visible template should now extend just slightly beyond the guidelines.
Step 5- Open Sweet Love Solid Berry Paper by Keri Schueller and drag onto purse template page. Set above the base template (8.5×8.5) layer and clip it to the base layer. To clip the paper to the base layer – activate the base layer in the layers palette. Hold the ALT key and place your cursor between the base layer and the paper layer. The cursor should change from a “hand” to something that looks like two vertical circles on top of each other. Click the mouse and the paper should clip to the template.
Step 6 – Open Sweet Love Vines N Dots paper and drag to the purse template and position directly above the visible pieces layer. Clip this whimsical paper to the visible pieces layer as above. I’ve resized the paper down so that more of the pattern is visible. To do this, have the paper layer selected, press CTRL+ T keys to get the transform outline and then press CTRL+ 0 keys so that all of the paper is shown.
Put the cursor on a corner and drag inwards and reposition the paper until the pattern is to your liking. Press the green checkmark when you are all done to accept the changes. Note – I did a lot of adjusting shrinking, and I actually put a separate piece of the pattern paper on what will be the back of the purse, remember, anything on the back needs to be upside down.
Step 7 – The Handles. Create 1 rectangle – 0.55” x 7.5”. I’ve clipped the Solid Berry paper to handle. This will be folded in half after printing and cutting. Note : You can be super creative on the handles and not necessarily use paper. You can use yarn, ribbon, wire; but for this example I am going to use paper.
*** Don’t forget to save your work often! ***
Step 8 – Have fun embellishing!! This is where creativity goes off the scale. You can do all digital embellishments and/or mix it up with some from your scrapping stash after it is printed. I’ve added a new horizontal guide at 1.5”. This is where the cover will come down over the front of the purse and will help with placement of digital embellishments.
Step 9 – Top of Purse. You will need to create a new page since there is no more room on the purse body. There are lots of options here depending on the look you would like to go for. Create a new 11”x8.5” page. Set guides at the following locations:
Vertical guides: 1”, 1.75”, 2”, 2.5”, 2.75”, 3.5”
Horizontal guides: 1”, 2.75”, 4.5”
Create a rectangle: 2.5”x3.5” and set the upper left corner at the intersection of the 1”:1” guide lines. This is the basic template for the purse top.
Step 10 – There are so many options here. You can leave the part that is attached to the back with a straight edge and the front can be curved in so many ways.
To make a curvy lid for the purse, you will use two Photoshop Elements custom shapes; the lips and the heart. So fitting for Valentine’s Day! Make Sure you select the “Heart” shape, not the heart card ;they are close together in the drop down menu.
Create a new layer in the layers panel. Select the custom shape tool. On the menu bar, select the Shape drop down menu. Click on the double headed arrow and select All Elements Shapes. Scroll down and select the lips shape. Select the Custom Shapes drop down menu and select Fixed Size and enter 4.5” for the width and 2.5” for the height. Click on the page and a set of lips will appear. Simplify the image and rotate to the right. Change colors slightly and create another layer in the layers panel. Select the custom shape tool and find the Heart shape. The options should be the same setting as for the lips. Click on the page and the heart will appear. Simplify this image and rotate to the right.
Position the two shapes so that the middle is centered on the 2.75 horizontal guide line.
Step 11- Nudge the heart until the right side edges of the heart and lips line up. The only part that will be kept is the gentle curve between the most curved part of the lips.
One way to get that gentle curve part is to select the area with the polygonal lasso tool and click CTRL+ J keys to cut this part out and put on a new layer. You can then delete the heart layer since it is not needed any more. Merge the gentle curve with the lips and I then made the entire shape the same grey color. Align the lips so that the most right hand side matches the right hand side of the lid template.
If you want the part that attaches to the back of the purse to be straight, select the lips layer in the layers panel. Use the Rectangular Marquee Tool and draw a selection outline starting in the upper most left corner of the Purse Top Template. Create a rectangle selection that is 1.25”x3.5”. Fill with the same grey color as the lips shape. Select CTRL+D to deselect.
Step 12 – This is now the new Purse Top Template; ready for adding paper and embellishments. I suggest adding a 15 pixel stroke outline around the final Purse Top to provide a margin when cutting. It’s also a good idea to put in a few marks to guide scoring after printing.
For my purse top I wanted both sides to be curvy so I duplicated the curve on the right for the left and merged the layers into 1 layer.
Step 13 – Inside the purse. It is always a bit tricky when creating layouts that need to print on both sides of the same piece of paper. I always seem to put in in the printer backwards when printing the second side! The inside is basically the same 8.5×8.5″ square that we started with. I’ve left the sides the solid Berry paper and only put embellishments on the bottom. This can be done digitally, or again with real embellishments after printing. It’s easier for me to do this digitally.
Step 14 – Printing Time! A little bit about printing. Color laser printers are great because the product can withstand water spills. But these are usually expensive. My next favorite is the Epson Stylus Photo 1400. The heavier the paper means the paper will be thicker and a little harder to bend. I use 2 different weight Epson papers for craft projects:
- Presentation Paper Matte – 27 lb, 4.9 mil – just a tiny bit thicker than typing paper. I usually use this for making everyday projects. Be sure to print your main product on the “white” side. I’ll use this for the purse.
- Ultra Premium Presentation Paper Matte – 51lb, 10.3 mil – Great material for making cards, supports pop-up structures very well, ink/paper stands up to folding without deteriorating after folding several times. Very close to standard cardstock thickness. The feel of the paper is very smooth and the quality of the “ultra” side [the really white side] is excellent. This may be too thick for this type of project but I may try it anyway!
Step 15 – Scoring. I always score before cutting, if possible. The Presentation paper is a little on the thin side – so care is needed in order to not tear the paper. There are several tools on the market for scoring. Special blades for cutters, bone-folder and a ruler works well. I am using the Martha Stewart scoring pad and bone-folder.
For the top of the purse: use the score guides. If you didn’t include these when printing, cut out the purse top. Measuring from the left most edge, score the length of the top at 1” and 1.5”. Fold along the score lines. Then cut out.
For the handle: Eyeball the center lengthwise, score, fold and cut out. I like crisp edges and so I usually run the bone-folder over the fold a few times.
For the purse body: go ahead on cut the white of the sides of the purse body. My printer doesn’t print to the very edge on the top or bottom – but we need that length so that the finished body is 8.5×8.5″. The white on the front and back sides will not show after the purse body is folded. Measuring from the upper left corner, make the following score lines and then fold and burnish with the bone-folder:
Vertical: 2.5”, 6”
Horizontal: 0.5”, 3.5”, 5” and 8”
Step 16 – ASSEMBLY! Let’s start with the easiest – attaching the handle to the purse top.
Run scrapbooking tape, or your favorite adhesive method, down the back of the handle. Fold in half and burnish with bone-folder if needed.
To secure to the top of the purse, you can use any type of adhesive. I like to combine with a brad for a strong bond. Attach the ends of the handle about ½ inch from the edges of the center of the purse top.
For the purse body, fold on the vertical 2/5” score line. This will put one of the sides in front of you. Put one of your fingers where the bone-folder is pointing (at the base of left bottom corner of the side). Take the corresponding edge at the top of the paper and fold down towards the closest corner of the paper. The paper between should fold towards the inside of the purse body. Make sure when the edge reaches the bottom that the edges line up. Use the bone-folder to smooth flat the part that folded towards the inside of the purse. Repeat with the 3 other sides. This should look like a box when you are done.
I like to use really sticky double sided tape to adhere the sides of the purse. This will help keep the purse stable when the recipient opens the purse. Use the photo to identify the areas to be taped on the inside and outside of the purse body. Sticky double sided tape works well, the kind that has the protective cover that you peel off. Tape all areas and then remove the protective cover one corner at a time as each fold is set into place.
Fold each side back along the score lines. Use the tape to secure the sides down. The purse should look like a box when you are done. The front and back sides will be taller than the two sides.
On the top of the front and back sides, trim the corners. This will help make a nice fold at the top of the purse. Place adhesive on the layers and fold towards the inside of the purse. Burnish with that trusty bone-folder once again!
Holding the purse with the front towards you, align the tops of the front and back. Holding these together, gently press in on each side. Slowly and gently pinch down the edges of the sides towards the bottom of the purse. This will give the purse it’s “purse-look” rather than just a box.
Assemble the purse body and top. Place double sided tape on the back side of the purse top. Attach this to the back of the purse body. Use the score lines as a guide for placement.
There are lots of closure mechanisms. Velcro is my fav! Craft stores have very very thin Velcro dots. Hint, put the Velcro pieces together with the adhesive sides out. Place the “soft” Velcro piece on the underside of the purse top. Using your finger on the inside of the purse for support, gently close the purse top and adhere the loopy side of the Velcro to the front of the purse. Since the purse is made out of paper, be a little gentle when opening the purse the first couple of times.
And you are done!! This little bit of Love Purse is ready to be filled with creative expressions of thankfulness, peace and love for that special someone!
Digital scrapbooking products used:
Sweet Love Collection Mini
ScrapSimple Tools – Styles: Vellum 11201
ScrapSimple Tools – Styles: Fanciful 6401
Tutorial written by Lori Blair