This is my last project as a member of the Creative Expressions Design Team – and I thought I’d go out with a bang! For some reason the inspiration came at 3am in the morning, and then again at 5am, so 12 hours later, here it is! It also happens to be my first ever exploding box.

The exterior is decorated with heat embossed baubles, coloured with Cosmic Shimmer Mists used as paints as well as the Cosmic Shimmer Acrylic Inks and Sparkle PVA, embellished with Cosmic Shimmer White PVA and topped off with a grosgrain ribbon bow.

An all white interior shows the die cut filigree baubles beautifully, whilst the centre bauble seems magically suspended (if only acetate wasn’t quite so reflective!). Here’s a short slow-mo video of the ‘explosion’:

You will need:
Creative Expressions Stamps to Die For: Snowflake Bauble / Christmas Night Bauble
Creative Expressions Craft Dies Festive Collection: Vintage Bauble
Cosmic Shimmer Specialist Acrylic Glue
Cosmic Shimmer Embossing Powder: Blue Watercress Blaze / True White Detail
Cosmic Shimmer Acrylic Ink Sets: Jewels / Soft Velvet
Cosmic Shimmer Vintage Mist: Tarnished Gold
Cosmic Shimmer Mist: Silver
Cosmic Shimmer Pearlescent PVA: Cobalt Blue
Cosmic Shimmer Specialist PVA: Cosmic White
Cosmic Shimmer Sparkle Pearl PVA: Crystal / Golden
Creative Expressions Blue/Ivory Striped Grosgrain Ribbon
Foundations A4 Card: Coconut White / Cobalt
Ranger Perfect Medium Ink Pad: Clear

1. Make an exploding box 4″ square and 6¼” high out of heavy weight white card.
2. Make the lid 1″ deep.
3. Decorate the panels using the Foundations Card and add dots of White/Cobalt Blue PVA and set aside to dry.
4. Next, print four images of the Christmas Night Bauble onto Coconut White card using the Perfect Medium and then cover with the Blue Watercress Blaze embossing powder. Tap off the excess and then heat set.
5. Agitate the two mist sprays to fully suspend the mica shimmer and then remove the spray nozzle – use a paintbrush to add gold and silver to the bauble – the embossed areas will resist the water based colour.
6. Add the night sky using the Lilac Blue from the Jewels Acrylic Ink Set. Add an extra layer to the horizon for shading.
7. Add some shadows onto the snow covered areas using the Blue Lace ink. Water down a little of the Crystal Sparkle PVA and paint over all the snow areas.
8. Add lines of Golden Sparkle PVA around the image on the baubles and set them aside to dry.
9. Die cut four of the filigree baubles using the largest two dies and the Cobalt card. Add drops of Cobalt Blue PVA to embellish and set aside to dry.
10. Die cut the decorated baubles once they are dry, and add to the side panels of the exterior, remembering where the bottom of the box is (bottom of the baubles point to the centre), using foam pads. If you run a double thickness of foam pads down the middle of each bauble, they will curve slightly.
11. Add the filigree baubles to the interior sides.
12. Stamp and heat emboss six of the Snowflake Baubles using the True White embossing powder on Cobalt card. Use the smaller outline die to cut them out.
13. Fold them in half and glue back to back in turn to make the hanging bauble. This can be suspended from acetate strips (8″x½”) glued to the corners of the base and supported on triangular pylons of card.
14. Decorate the top with a ribbon bow.