Verve Project Parade: It's a Guy Thing

It's my day to post over on the Verve Stamps blog for our current Project Parade. This month's theme is "It's a Guy Thing: Celebrating the Men in Our Lives" - just like last month's theme, only it's the guys' turn to be celebrated!

For my project, I decided to pair up a custom photo puzzle with the "I Love You To Pieces" sentiment from Sweet On You to make a Father's Day gift for my daughter to give to her sweet Daddy. For the puzzle, I chose a photo of my husband and daughter on their way to their annual Father-Daughter Valentine's Dance. There are numerous online vendors for these puzzles. You just upload or email your digital photo, then choose your finished size along with the number of pieces. Or, for a smaller, DIY version, you could easily adhere your photo to lightweight chipboard (think cereal box weight) and die-cut it with one of the puzzle dies on the market (Cuttlebug and Spellbinders come to mind).

The one I ordered comes in a drawstring bag, so I've put together a box that will double as gift box and storage box:



I started with an inexpensive 30-piece store-bought child's puzzle from Target that I already had on hand. I covered and decorated the box top with papers from Stampin' Up's Parisian Breeze collection. Then I used the box bottom as a template and made a new bottom out of the same Parisian Breeze dp. To strengthen it a little, I added chipboard panels to the inside, both on the bottom and the four sides, then added some coordinating dp to dress it up a little. (By the way, the reason I did it this way was that I found if I covered both the box bottom and the box top, they fit together so snugly that it was difficult to get the lid off.) This photo shows how the top and bottom fit together:



It's always helpful to have a picture of the puzzle to look at, so I've included the picture in a pocket on the front...



... and again in the bottom of the box, where I also included the sweet sentiment from Dad's Day.



I'm hoping this will be something my husband and daughter will enjoy doing together, and when she outgrows it, they'll both still have a nice keepsake.

[Update: I haven't shown the puzzle today because it's not here yet - bummer! It looks like it's scheduled for delivery today, so I'll post a picture when it comes (if I can hide it from my husband, who is home from work today). Gretchen asked about size and number of pieces. I chose an 8.25" x 11" 30-piece puzzle. There were a lot of options to choose from, everything from a small 4-piece 4x6 puzzle to poster-size puzzles with more than 1,000 pieces.]

Remember, just for playing along with our theme, you'll have a chance to win a Verve stamp set of your choice! Just link your creation to the Mr. Linky form over on the Verve Blog Day 1 post before 8 pm MT on Saturday, June 20. We've also hidden another $25 gift certificate somewhere along the parade for a random commenter. So be sure to check out each day of the parade, and leave lots of comments along the way! Have fun!

[Another update: The puzzle came. I was wrong, though - it didn't come in a drawstring bag, it came in a box after all (I still like mine better, though *grin*). It also came with an index photo, but since it was too big for the box I made, I'm glad I did the little pocket on the front and added the photo to the bottom, too. The moral of all of this is ... order early, especially if you have a deadline you're trying to hit!! The last picture is of the completed puzzle.]







Enjoy your day!



Stamps: Dad's Day, Sweet On You (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Stampin' Up Whisper White and Chocolate Chip card stock, Parisian Breeze dp, lightweight chipboard
Ink: SU Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip craft, Ranger Old Paper Distress
Accessories: SU hardware, buttons, ribbon, and clear embossing powder, Spellbinders Mega Curved Rectangle Nestabilities and Pinking Border Piercabilities, May Arts burlap string, sewing machine, child's puzzle piece and puzzle box