03/52 Bite-sized books...

Hello

Week 3 of #52bitesizedbooks ... this week's book is predominately made of kraft pages - I love a bit of kraft as a substrate! 

Here are the first 3 books stacked - its great how thick they look and all those lovely threads and bits and pieces poking out! Gorgeous!

Here is book 3/52

Thanks for popping in...

 

Colour puddle card....

... I reeeally like painting 'colour puddles' and usually use them as the base to stamp flowers. I'm always thinking and looking for other ways to use them... when I saw a post on Instagram (linking to the Sizzix blog) where they had used these (very lovely) flower dies as a stencil on cards I had a lightbulb moment... and this card is the result...

I posted this photo on Instagram and said I would put simple instructions here on my blog - 'simple' because it is reeaally simple..

Step 1.  Paint a colour puddle... this is done by painting a circle of paint (going round and round and round until the paint on your brush runs out..) then adding another circle/ring of paint in a second colour and painting round and round and round and round until your paint runs out again - blending the colours as you go...  its very relaxing! 
NB. The photo below shows the colour puddle cut to size to fit the card.

Step 2. Die cut the chosen flower in the bottom right hand corner of the card blank (mine is 12.5x12.5cm)

Step 3. Attach 3d foam pads around the edges of the colour puddle panel.

Step 4.  Attach the colour puddle panel to the inside of the card.

I really liked the clean and simple look of this card... but realised it was a bit too clean and simple! I mean there is such a thing as too much white space surely! lol

Step 5. Cut the white card blank in half and cut the front panel down to fit a 12.5x12.5cm kraft card blank - this will warm the card up and give a frame all around.

Add a strip of coordinating washi tape, a small tag and tiny die cut heart. Still clean and simple but not quite so much.

I wasn't kidding was I when I said it was a simple card - simple but lovely (in my humble opinion! lol)


Thanks for popping by!

ALBOTAT: Happy Fathers' Day

Yesterday was Father's day here in the UK,  here is the card I made for my Dad... 

If you look closely you notice something unusual for me.. NO stamping!!  The lovely blue/brown splat (for want of a better word) on the back ground is PaperArtsy's new Infusions - I'm liking those very much!!

 (wood strip is Washi tape, 'happy' is die cut, sentiment banners are computer generated, stag head is from stash)

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All nice things come in little packages...

... and little packages are what I created for the PaperArtsy blog this evening - click on the photo below to visit the blog..

The boxes I made for the blog post were all christmas themed.. so here I thought I'd show you a more general themed box... I really enjoyed making these.  On the tag I stamped a flower from JOFY22, on the box I used mini JM14.  The pink strip around the lid is washi tape, the green ribbon is from my stash.

Thanks for stopping by..

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All wrapped up....

... and ready to go...

This is the mini journal I took on holiday with me (you've seen several pages already in a blog post over on the PaperArtsy site HERE).. but when I created those pages it was only one book and as I didn't think that would be enough 'space' for creating while I was on holiday I attached a second book by sewing their back pages together..  In the book I used tipped-in pages, photos, pocket-scrapbooking size journaling cards, stamping, pockets.. anything I could think of really! {and pack in a suitcase of course :o) }  its a play book..

On the original front page I attached a panel of masterboard left over from a previous project, stamped a scallop edge & sewed a loop of calico to hold a pen, rubber, or pencil....
(I felt that the covers needed to be covered so that they were more resilient to wear&tear on holiday and against finger marks (kraft can be easily marked))

On the other 'front page I attached another piece of the materboard and sewed on 2 lengths of calico that I would use to tie the books closed - I thought it was going to be necessary to tie them shut because when all the pages were altered and additional pages tipped-in the books would be difficult to close :o)  I tipped in pages by sewing them using my sewing machine - I positioned them so that they overhung the original pages of the book.

The plan for the book was a journal, holiday 'diary', sketchbook... and to use my stamps (especially the alphabet) and to just play...

The pages of the first book:

A delivery label re-purposed on the inside of the front page- an 'if found' page where the JOFY alphabet is combined with a simple stamp alphabet

When travelling we seem to be identified as much by barcodes as by our names.. I attached a small luggage bar code with another piece of the masterboard, stamping across the background onto the panel to 'tie' the two pages together (I like doing this).

On this page I used one of the prints created with my Instax camera printer (love!!) nice size prints - allows space on the pages for journaling & other decoration, here I used the photo as a flap to create a hidden space for journaling.

Another doodling page - I'd doodled on the white panel and so glued it on to the page and doodled, stamped over the edges and onto the page until the space was filled.. (the green page is another tipped in)

Tiles with journaling, brief notes on the holiday - bite size pieces.

Every-so-often its nice to have a really simple page.

This page makes me smile - its a dress cut from one of the magazines I took on holiday with me and I doodled a person (and her pet) around it - I've given her the most Scottish name I could think of inspired by her tartan dress (and her scottie dog - yes that is a scottie dog! lol)


Pages in the second book:

Another print this time teamed with some of the book words/phrases, and extra paper that I took with me.

... contained in the pockets I created by sewing together the last two pages of each book, and punching a scoop out of the top to make it easier to take items in and out of the pocket.

I read a book on holiday that really inspired me and so I created a page using one of phrases from the book.

The spread below has a tipped-in page gingham page that has a olive green reverse and folds over right to left, & left to right to reveal different layers.... 

... easiest way to show you is in a little video (please excuse my video-ing skills! lol)...

A pretty page using JOFY flowers to hold the photo on to the page.. I like the way the pink page behind frames the flower page.

That's most of the pages - still a few pages waiting to be filled - it was a fun book to work in - and a nice size - just 6x4inches.... & I like how the size has been extended by the jutting out tipped-in pages.

And here is the little book making the most of the Grecian sun.. a sun lounger makes a useful desk!  lol

This photo also shows the basic kit I take away with me (or at least some of it - the cocktail menu is optional lol) - alphabet stamps, scissor, metal ruler, a5 craft mat, doublesided tape, kraft knie, pens and pencils...
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