Then and Now, Mother’s Day Exploding Box!

Hey y’all, Ali here, it is Fuse It Fun Day, yippee! Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mom’s out there! I have a super fun project to share and a Mother’s Day gift for you all!

Recently I made my very first exploding box, and now I am kind of addicted! If you have ever made one, or watched a tutorial, you know they are a bit labor intensive…especially with all of the measuring! I like measuring almost as much as I like liquid adhesive…and that is not very much at all! No matter how hard I try I can never get exact measurements and I end up wasting a lot of really great cardstock! So I had an idea, why not make a cut file so I don’t have to measure? Then I will have an exploding box template for whenever I want to make one! I know…Silhouette has one in the store, but I like to be difficult (and cheap) and make my own, that way it is exactly to my liking! Anywho…that is exactly what I did! And I want to share that file with you for free, so follow this link and you can download the cut file! Happy Mother’s Day!

So you are probably wondering…where the sequins at, lady? This is Fuse It Fun Day, bring on the bling! So…. I thought it would be really fun if some of the flaps on the exploding box were shakers! I absolutely love how this idea turned out! Everything is better with sequins, after all!

I used a super springy (totally a word) and fun paper pad from imaginisce, it’s super old, it has been pretty much untouched in my stash for AGES! This paper paired so well with the You Are My Sunshine and What’s Up Buttercup sequin mixes, the sequins add that special touch! This is not your everyday exploding box! LOL!

Other than the really fun shaker flaps, I kept this box relatively simple because I am giving it to my mom and she might be intimidated by something really involved, she also has a tendency to break things (sorry mom!). Here is a video if you would like to see the entire box completed!

I used photos from when I was very young and then I also added some recent family photos, so I am calling this the “Then and Now” exploding box. I think my mom is really going to love it! These little boxes make perfect gifts, so why not make one for someone you love…don’t forget the sequins!!!