Tutorial - Wire notebook

I love to make little wire notebooks.  They are really handy to carry to take quick notes, and are also great for travel journals.  Start by gathering the paper you'd like to use inside the journal, some thin cardboard, a utility knife, paint, a brush, and a ruler.

I like to use leftover cardboard from packaging to make the covers. I think came from an order for postage stamps.  Cut the cardboard one-quarter inch wider and one-eighth inch longer than the inside pages. Paint the front, sides, and back of the cardboard. I squirt the paint right on the cardboard, and spread it with a brush.

The left piece below shows the back after painting, and the right shows the front after painting.

I chose to decorate each of my inside pages with some stamps.

To decorate the cover, I'm going to use some stickers that are cut to look like postage stamps.  Since the stickers are light in color, and the paint is light, I use a colorbox stylus to apply some ink to the edges of each sticker.  The colorbox stylus gives a nice soft application of ink.  The stickers are no longer available; they were from Club Scrap's "To You with Love" kit.

Apply the stickers in a random pattern, making sure to go over the edges.  This will give a more natural appearance to the collage.

After all of the stickers have been applied, wrap the stickers around the edge of the cardboard.  Cover the back with a piece of coordinating cardstock.

Here are the "outsides" of the covers after placing all of the stickers. This is a great way to use up stickers!  I added a few more stickers after I covered both covers and knew how many extras I would have to work with.

I'm using the Zutter Bind-it-All to bind my book.  I use wire cutter to clip the appropriate length of coil.  I'm using six loops.

Use the Bind-it-all to punch holes in each cover and each inside page.  This is why I use thinner cardboard and coverings - there is a limit to how thick the material can be to punch holes in it!  For this book, I'm centering six holes in each page, so it makes the project very easy.

After all of the holes are punched, hold the book as it will be assembled.  Wrap the back cover around to the front, and insert the coil.

Use the slot in the front of the Bind-it-all to crimp the coil closed.

The finished book!  I added a little quote to the cover, and it's now ready for my next adventure!

Wedding cards with origami dresses

For some reason, I was really taken with Ann Martin's blog posting on the new Klutz book, Fashion Origami.  Although the patterned papers didn't really match my style, I could see a lot of possibilities with these origami designs.  When I didn't win the book, I literally ran to my local (online) bookstore and ordered my own copy.

I had white origami paper, and immediately thought the party dress would make a fabulous wedding dress.

These cards are the result!  Hope you enjoy the inspiration to use these great patterns in a different way.

Supply list:

• Papers from various Club Scrap kits (Asian Artisan, Textiles and Notions, Body and Soul)
• Swirl stamp from Club Scrap - Be Still (no longer available)
• Queen Anne's Lace stamp from Club Scrap - Natural Resources (no longer available)
• Wedding definition stamp from Catslife Press
• 1st Corinithians verse from Rosebud Rubber Stamps
• White flowers, ribbons, and fiber from my stash

Sunny Card with Alcohol Inks

Sometimes when I'm stamping, I have a goal in mind (make a card featuring orange for a dear friend who is retiring from work).

These goals generate a few ideas (alcohol inks - since I don't have much orange paper, pick a great Club Scrap stamp, find a good sentiment).

I settled on the sentiment right away, but couldn't decide on the image.  The mosaic card I made earlier this week was a "reject."  I loved the colors, but wasn't quite as happy with the image - I wanted more black on the image to contrast with the bright colors. Check out this video from Ranger to learn more about the technique and materials to make the orange panels.

Besides the alcohol ink background here, nothing fancy.  Just a lot of layering of some great papers, a little rick rack for some added interest, and some great stamps in black ink.

Materials list:

• Card stock from Club Scrap (Gimme a Ring) and Stampin' Up (glossy cardstock)
• Alcohol inks from Jacquard (Sunbright Yellow, and Calabaza Orange)
• Stamps from Club Scrap (Fossils - old friend, Perfect 10 - collage image)

Tutorial - Mosaic Card

A while ago, somebody asked me how I use up my card scraps, and I thought back to another card I had posted.  I thought I would share my process for making this card.

First, start with an image.  In my case, this is piece of glossy cardstock that I pounced on with alcohol inks and then stamped with an image (check out this video from Ranger to learn more about this).  You could use patterned paper, a cut out from a magazine, or anything that strikes your fancy.

Next, cut the image into pieces.  I like to make mine around 1" square (these are 7/8" square).  This is a nice size to work with (not too big, not too small) and can easily fit onto a variety of card sizes.  Those rectangular pieces are discarded.  Not all sizes of images will work perfectly to the size that you want to cut.

I thought I still needed more black on my squares, so I stamped a little more on them with a coordinating stamp.  I used a color wheel to pick a teal color to mat the squares, and then just layered some other interesting scraps to finish the card.  I did rotate and mix up the pieces for a more abstract look.

This is a great technique that I use quite frequently.  Because of my engineering background, I like things to line up, but they don't have to!  It can also be used with circles or other geometric shapes.

Experiment and have fun!  I hope you share what you create!

Materials list:

• Card stock from Club Scrap and Stampin' Up (So Saffron - yellow, glossy cardstock)
• Alcohol inks from Jacquard (Sunbright Yellow, and Calabaza Orange)
• "Happy Birthday" from Stampin' Up (Teeny Tiny Wishes)
• Word window and modern label punch from Stampin' Up
• Time and Space stamps from Club Scrap

Easter Basket from a French Fry Container!

I was very happy to receive one of the new Tim Holtz Sizzix dies (Tattered Florals) in the mail last week, and couldn't wait to use it on a project.  I adore the vintage look of his new dies, and I'm going to have a lot of fun creating with them.

I took the Sizzix french fry box to make this sweet and non-traditional Easter basket.  It was easiest to decorate this before assembling.  For easy assembly (I made 16 in one night!) try this:

• Die cut all of the pieces
• Stamp all of the pieces as desired (I used the Ivory Elegance stamp from Club Scrap to create a nice scroll work; this particular stamp is no longer available)
• Punch holes in all of the sides (the Crop-a-dile made this easy work, since I could punch about 8 pieces of card stock at a time)
• Pierce hole in center of flowers and front of french fry box
• Attach flowers with a brad (I chose an initial from the recipient's name)
• Fold all of the pieces and reinforce with bone folder
• Put adhesive on all of the flaps
• Assemble the box (Sizzix has a great pdf that shows all of the steps)
• Put eyelets in the holes on the side pieces
• Tie ribbon (15 inches was a nice length)
• Fill with grass and candy
• Sit back and admire your handy work!

I made these for my co-workers to thank them for everything they do to make my job easier.  I couldn't do my job without their help.  I hope they enjoy the sweet treat!