Tricks for Fitting Pop-Up Dies to Different Card Formats

Hi friends! Do you make different sized cards? I do - and my latest favorite is the mini slimline format - it's so cute! I'm more comfortable working in smaller formats, so this cute format is my jam.

I wanted to use the Birthday Cake Pop-up Die in this format, but I ran into a bit of a snag. If I position the die at the crease in the card, when the card was closed, the candles would extend past the card, which would require a larger envelope and possibly risk them being bent. But I was undeterred! I noticed that the OPENING for the candles would allow me to put candles - slightly shorter of course - behind the cake and preserve the dimensions of the card - yay! You'll see what I mean in a minute.

But first - the front of the card! I masked off a band on the card front and used Hero Hues Reactive Inks in Lemon Drop and Taffy to ink blend a stripe with Ink Blending Brushes and the Streamer Stencil. The sentiment is from the Color Layering Cupcake set.

Then you open up the card to this amazing 3D cake pop-up!

Here's how it comes together.

• First - trim a mini slim card so it's slightly smaller than the finished card - I took 1/8" off each side. Then, position the Birthday Cake Pop-up Die with the scoring bars on either side of the cake aligned with the crease in the card and run it through your die cutting machine.
• Cut a second cake on a white scrap of cardstock.
• Trim the candles off this second cake AND the first cake.
• Using blending brushes and Pool Party and Lemon Drop Reactive Inks, ink blend three of the candles (I masked them with a post it to color the flame and the candle separately), and the second cake image.
• Ink blend the entire, smaller card with the pop-up cut into it with Lemon Drop ink, and blend Taffy ink through the Streamer Stencil on top of that.
• Glue the second, ink blended cake onto the pop-up cake on the card.
• Put a piece of tape behind the negative space on the card where the candles are, so the sticky side is facing the decorated card.
• Inlay your ink blended candles onto that tape into the candle openings.
• Stamp the sentiment from the Birthday Stamp & Cut XL onto the decorated card.
• Glue card inside your mini slimline card, being careful not to get adhesive on any of the moving cake parts.

I cut the frosting elements from clear glitter paper to the cake as a finishing touch. See how you'd never know those candles are not supposed to look that way? Fun to be able to use this trick to make a smaller than traditional card!

Hope you all have a fabulous weekend.

Click on products to shop:

DI908 Birthday Cake Pop-up (D) - Hero... HA ] SA168 Streamer Stencil - Hero Arts HA ] CM546 Color Layering Cupcake - Hero Arts HA ] DC287 Birthday Stamp & Cut XL - Hero... HA ] AF423 Lemon Drop Reactive Ink - Hero... HA ] AF420 Taffy Reactive Ink - Hero Arts HA ] AF426 Pool Party Reactive Ink - Hero... HA ] MI003 Ink Blending Brushes - Hero Arts HA ] GW101 Precision Glue - Hero Arts HA ]