I saw an accordion fold book and I thought to myself "I can do this". I took 4 double sided papers, cut them in half (6 inches). I then scored them, lengthwise, every 4 inches. This left 3, 4 inch sections on 2 of the papers. The third paper, I cut into 4 inch sections. I also had 2, 4x6 cardboard pieces for the front and back covers. 2 of the 4 inch cut pieces were glued to the 2 pieces of cardboard, these made the front and back cover. The 3rd 4inch piece was glued to the back of the two scored papers to hold them together accordion style. I then put the front and back covers onto the book. The decorating and embellishing fell into place after that. Because this was my first attempt at the accordion style book, it took me 6 hours to complete.
Supplies:
4 pieces of double sided paper ( will make 2 books)
Stickers, buttons, ribbon, glue, stamps, ink pad, scrap paper, bone folder, paper cutter, flowers and other embellishments.
Tip: If you see something you like, do not be afraid to try it on your own. If you feel it is too complicated, do not be afraid to ask if there is someone available to teach the technique. I am part of a group of women who love to share their ideas and knowledge. There is always a class scheduled for something.
This book was also donated to be auctioned to benefit our local school.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Week 3 / Whimsical Folded Book
I took a class for $25 on how to fold this particular book. The first one turned out a little lopsided and messy, but it is my husbands favorite so far. This one I put together because I fell in love with the fairy riding the turtle and my favorite color is yellow. I used 10 double sided papers, 3 pieces of black card stock and numerous embellishments to be listed at the end. It took me 2 hours of walking around Barb's Little Scrapbook House to decide what I was going to do. I was not sure what accent color I would use until we started talking about color wheels and I saw a sample with the pale yellow, blue and pink accented with black. I went home and started putting the book together. Once I decided on the black tags, everything else fell into place.
This book took me longer than any of the others so far because I put so much detail into each tag and pocket:
2 hours gathering supplies and discussing technique
2 hours scoring and folding
1 hour gluing ( I was being very careful this time)
3 hours cutting and embellishing the tags
3 hours embellishing the book
It is a good thing I will not charge by the hour.
Supplies used: 10 pages double sided paper, 3 pages black card stock, glue, scoring board, bone folder, double sided tape, yarn, stamps and ink pads, rub on's, ivory parchment paper, decorative papers, embellishments, eyelets, color copy machine, paper cutter, eyelet setter.
Tip: On this particular book, I had a 90 cent paper that looked like antique paper that I wanted to use. I only had one page and was scared I would mess up too bad, so I made color and black/white copies on parchment paper. I was then able to experiment with the paper and found that the parchment paper ripped and glued much easier than the double sided paper. I now use this technique on other projects. Plain typing paper also works well.
Where is this book now? It has been donated to an auction to benefit our local school.
This book took me longer than any of the others so far because I put so much detail into each tag and pocket:
2 hours gathering supplies and discussing technique
2 hours scoring and folding
1 hour gluing ( I was being very careful this time)
3 hours cutting and embellishing the tags
3 hours embellishing the book
It is a good thing I will not charge by the hour.
Supplies used: 10 pages double sided paper, 3 pages black card stock, glue, scoring board, bone folder, double sided tape, yarn, stamps and ink pads, rub on's, ivory parchment paper, decorative papers, embellishments, eyelets, color copy machine, paper cutter, eyelet setter.
Tip: On this particular book, I had a 90 cent paper that looked like antique paper that I wanted to use. I only had one page and was scared I would mess up too bad, so I made color and black/white copies on parchment paper. I was then able to experiment with the paper and found that the parchment paper ripped and glued much easier than the double sided paper. I now use this technique on other projects. Plain typing paper also works well.
Where is this book now? It has been donated to an auction to benefit our local school.
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Week 2 /Bound Journal
My daughter needed a journal for an English assignment. I was not sure I had the supplies, but I was determined to make it without buying additional supplies. I had been reading an instructional book on how to bound books using different techniques. My daughter stated the journal needed to be "hippie-ish" and something a man would use. This is what we came up with:
I wanted a leather and natural look, so I took a leather trivet and made 3 color copies of it. I also had some brown packing paper, that I wrinkled very well. I had my daughter rip both sheets into 1 inch strips. We then weaved the two different papers together. I put a paper wrapped pencil in place of one of the strips of paper. I then glued the weaved papers onto the cardboard. The back cover and both inside covers were covered with some of wrinkled brown paper. I used a paint brush to brush on a mixture of glue and water to give the outside cover more stability and a finished look. I then used a hand drill to drill the holes thru the front cover, inside papers and the back paper. I used twine to bind the book.
The back cover was a solid piece of cardboard. The front cover was the same size, but 1-2 inches cut off the end to make the hinge.
Items used: copy machine, ivory parchment paper, twine, pencil, hand drill, elmers glue, paint brush.
It took 3 hours to finish the project.
I wanted a leather and natural look, so I took a leather trivet and made 3 color copies of it. I also had some brown packing paper, that I wrinkled very well. I had my daughter rip both sheets into 1 inch strips. We then weaved the two different papers together. I put a paper wrapped pencil in place of one of the strips of paper. I then glued the weaved papers onto the cardboard. The back cover and both inside covers were covered with some of wrinkled brown paper. I used a paint brush to brush on a mixture of glue and water to give the outside cover more stability and a finished look. I then used a hand drill to drill the holes thru the front cover, inside papers and the back paper. I used twine to bind the book.
The back cover was a solid piece of cardboard. The front cover was the same size, but 1-2 inches cut off the end to make the hinge.
Items used: copy machine, ivory parchment paper, twine, pencil, hand drill, elmers glue, paint brush.
It took 3 hours to finish the project.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Week 1 / Book 1
I am what I consider a Step 2 Scrapbooker: I have graduated from the dining table to a small corner in the guest room. I also have some fun tools and a scrap-paper box. I have learned that every little piece of paper, ribbon, lace or the random button can be useful.
Week 1: Travel Journal (please see pictures below)
Because I have decided to come up with 52 different books, I have been doing a lot of reading on techniques, binding, etc. I read one where the author designed a page and then took a photocopy of the page. They then added journaling to the copied page. I found that intriguing.
I thought a Travel Journal would be the perfect experiment for this technique:
Step 1- I gathered a few pieces of colored copy paper and folded them in half to measure 8.5 x 5.25. Each side will be a different page.
Step 2- Embellish with notebook paper, graph paper, stickers, ribbons and cutouts. Remember you will only be making a copy and these items can be reused.
Step 3- Make a color or black/white copy onto Ivory parchment paper. Fold copy on the previous fold line, printed side out. The ends of the paper should be where the binding will go, and the fold on the outer edge.
Step 4- Cover 2- 8.5 x 5.25 pieces of cardboard with speciality paper (I used the piece of cardboard that keeps the colored copy paper straight in the package, and cut it in half). Stick glue works great for this because it does not cause the paper to bubble. Also be sure to cover both sides of the cardboard, this will be the front and back cover of your journal.
Step 5- Place holes in your cover and pages to place the twine or ribbon. I used a ruler to mark where I wanted the holes and a regular hole punch to make the holes. Remember not to get too close to the edges because this may cause the pages to tear easily and do not tie the twine or ribbon too tightly.
Step 6- It is time to journal and place the permanent stickers or mementos. Because you bound the book with twine or ribbon, this gives you more freedom to add post cards and brochures from memorable places.
*It took me a total of 4 hours.
*Items used: Scissors, glue, cardboard, hole punch, ruler, twine, 4 pieces colored copy paper, 9 pieces Ivory parchment paper, 2 pieces speciality paper, numerous embellishments (ribbon, stickers and papers) and a copy machine.
Week 1: Travel Journal (please see pictures below)
Because I have decided to come up with 52 different books, I have been doing a lot of reading on techniques, binding, etc. I read one where the author designed a page and then took a photocopy of the page. They then added journaling to the copied page. I found that intriguing.
I thought a Travel Journal would be the perfect experiment for this technique:
Step 1- I gathered a few pieces of colored copy paper and folded them in half to measure 8.5 x 5.25. Each side will be a different page.
Step 2- Embellish with notebook paper, graph paper, stickers, ribbons and cutouts. Remember you will only be making a copy and these items can be reused.
Step 3- Make a color or black/white copy onto Ivory parchment paper. Fold copy on the previous fold line, printed side out. The ends of the paper should be where the binding will go, and the fold on the outer edge.
Step 4- Cover 2- 8.5 x 5.25 pieces of cardboard with speciality paper (I used the piece of cardboard that keeps the colored copy paper straight in the package, and cut it in half). Stick glue works great for this because it does not cause the paper to bubble. Also be sure to cover both sides of the cardboard, this will be the front and back cover of your journal.
Step 5- Place holes in your cover and pages to place the twine or ribbon. I used a ruler to mark where I wanted the holes and a regular hole punch to make the holes. Remember not to get too close to the edges because this may cause the pages to tear easily and do not tie the twine or ribbon too tightly.
Step 6- It is time to journal and place the permanent stickers or mementos. Because you bound the book with twine or ribbon, this gives you more freedom to add post cards and brochures from memorable places.
*It took me a total of 4 hours.
*Items used: Scissors, glue, cardboard, hole punch, ruler, twine, 4 pieces colored copy paper, 9 pieces Ivory parchment paper, 2 pieces speciality paper, numerous embellishments (ribbon, stickers and papers) and a copy machine.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Tips
When I started scrapbooking 2 years ago, I had no idea what I was doing. I looked at magazines as I stood in line at the grocery store, flipped thru books at the library and surfed the internet. What I learned from that was, I had no idea where to start. My first attempt was my wedding album. I collected every brochure, map, ticket stub, and visitors guide I could get a hold of. My husband loves our wedding album. Now, whenever we go anywhere... He is the one grabbing 2 or 3 brochures from every place we visit.
Here are a couple of tips if you are just getting started:
Tip 1: Grab at least 2 of everything. You may not use it, but if you mess up at least you have a back up.
Tip 2: Make sure you have a place to work uninterrupted. Dining table is great if you live alone. For the rest of us... I have found that using an old pro board (Science Fair tri-fold board) works great. It protects the table you are working on and when you need to pick things up, just fold and slide under bed or top of closet, etc. I use the guest room to work in, so the pro board works great on the bed as an extra surface.
Tip 3: Large un-used pizza boxes work great to store or transport your 12x12 scrapbook pages and albums. They stack great and are a lot cheaper than the plastic version at your local craft store. My daughter worked at a pizza place, so it was easy to get them. They do sell them for next to nothing.
Tip 4: All old art or craft sets the kids may have at the bottom of their toy box is a great start. I was cleaning their room and found a ton of foam stamps, stencils, stickers and colored pens. I almost threw them away, but realized I could use them for scrapping. (I was still new at it). Also old game pieces and scraps of ribbon or buttons are great. One more thing... before you throw away their broken play jewelry, take off any charms or cute beads.
If you have any ideas or tips for beginners, please respond to my post. I could still use some help. I do want to say a big THANK YOU to all my friends at Barbs Little Scrapbook House. Without them I would still be stuck using only one technique. They are a huge pool of knowledge and inspiration.
Here are a couple of tips if you are just getting started:
Tip 1: Grab at least 2 of everything. You may not use it, but if you mess up at least you have a back up.
Tip 2: Make sure you have a place to work uninterrupted. Dining table is great if you live alone. For the rest of us... I have found that using an old pro board (Science Fair tri-fold board) works great. It protects the table you are working on and when you need to pick things up, just fold and slide under bed or top of closet, etc. I use the guest room to work in, so the pro board works great on the bed as an extra surface.
Tip 3: Large un-used pizza boxes work great to store or transport your 12x12 scrapbook pages and albums. They stack great and are a lot cheaper than the plastic version at your local craft store. My daughter worked at a pizza place, so it was easy to get them. They do sell them for next to nothing.
Tip 4: All old art or craft sets the kids may have at the bottom of their toy box is a great start. I was cleaning their room and found a ton of foam stamps, stencils, stickers and colored pens. I almost threw them away, but realized I could use them for scrapping. (I was still new at it). Also old game pieces and scraps of ribbon or buttons are great. One more thing... before you throw away their broken play jewelry, take off any charms or cute beads.
If you have any ideas or tips for beginners, please respond to my post. I could still use some help. I do want to say a big THANK YOU to all my friends at Barbs Little Scrapbook House. Without them I would still be stuck using only one technique. They are a huge pool of knowledge and inspiration.
Friday, February 25, 2011
How it began
This is my first blog, so bear with me.
I started one day as I was puting together another memory book. I have recently discovered scrapbooking and other paper crafts. I do have to admit I am hooked. It is also very expensive and my husband informed me that I should not be giving them away, I should be selling them. I don't care what I do with them. I just love making them.
A couple of days later, someone asked me how long it took to make one of my books. I didn't have the answer, but it sounded like a challenge to me.
During the past week I have been thinking about it and I have come up with the solution to both problems. I will make one book a week for a year. They will all be different. I will sell each book. And, I will clock my time and materials.
I started one day as I was puting together another memory book. I have recently discovered scrapbooking and other paper crafts. I do have to admit I am hooked. It is also very expensive and my husband informed me that I should not be giving them away, I should be selling them. I don't care what I do with them. I just love making them.
A couple of days later, someone asked me how long it took to make one of my books. I didn't have the answer, but it sounded like a challenge to me.
During the past week I have been thinking about it and I have come up with the solution to both problems. I will make one book a week for a year. They will all be different. I will sell each book. And, I will clock my time and materials.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)