Stamper's Dream: Farm Friends Chipboard Book

The Farmyard Friends kit comes with this sweet tabbed chipboard book. This is my first time coverin' one of these & I am in luv. I'm thinkin' it'd make a dream gift [simple to make & fun to give to a stamper or crafter (or any kid.)]

At least it's is my idea of a dream book. (One filled with stamped images, and loads of cute goodies--even stamps & a little organization to boot!) You can turn these pages into anything at all, though, since they're covered with sturdy acetate made from clear card boxes. Which means the book's function can be changed at a whim, while keeping your decorating work intact.

Ideas to Fill the Pages:

Note board pages...which you can write on with an overhead marker for lists like...Birthdays to remember..Cards to make... or Wish lists...

This is too fun to write on! Non-permanent markers with medium or fine tips are perfect with this. The ink rubs right off with a damp paper towel (but it won't scratch off easily like dry-erase.) The strips that make the frame (black textured cardstock pieces which come in the kit) don't show any ink marks that accumulate in time.

Card Candy pages (just stick card candy onto the acetate) Make some with foam mounting tape between layers for extra oomph.

Little bags of Embellishments make cute toppers & stick the goodies onto the acetate with oh so sticky tape

ETA!!!: Barb was kind enough to let me know that "acetate will actually break-down the cling foam on rubber stamps, and cause them to not cling anymore." (That sucks!) So don't try this at home kids: Stamp Storage or gift presentation... this Farm Friend's kit would make the sweetest gift. The stamps could fill the whole book! :O) Just stick the stamps right onto the acetate.

Storage for stamp masks or stencil masks: (make masks or stencils with Eclipse tape roll
& store them on the acetate pages.)

Pockets for Images: Tuck some images into an acetate pocket. (These are WAY too easy to make, see step 15 below for the details.)

Pockets for pens: Tuck the overhead marker into a pocket made from fun foam (stuck on the acetate with oh so sticky tape; if the fun foam wears out, it can be peeled off easily enough.) You can make a mini pocket right on the note board pages. See this tutorial for more info about working with fun foam & acetate pockets.

Covered markers/pens: Wrap pens with patterned papers from the Farm Friends kit & add any specialty pens you like.

One way to Alter the Book:

Supplies:
All in the Paper Garden Projects Farmyard Friends Stamp Kit

Stamps: Farm Friends from the kit! (Designed by Pink Cat Studio)

--The tabbed chipboard Book
--Basic Grey Urban Prairie Papers: Harvest, Hayfield, Weather Vane, Petticoat.
--Wedding White cardstock (cut to 5 3/4 by 4 inches)
--Strips of Bazzill Raven (black) textured cardstock (for frames) cut at 1/2 inch thickness (for each frame you'll want two that are 5 3/4 inches long & two that are 4 inches long)
--Urban Prairie Brads

Other Materials:
(from your stash or Paper Garden Projects)

Clear Card Boxes
Oh So Sticky Tape
Copic markers
Pencil
Extra Brads

And anything you want to fill your book with.



Step 1) Mark the pages. I've marked them as the following for easy covering and assembling: Front cover, Front Cover (Back), Page 2 front, Page 2 back, Page 3 front, Page 3 back, Back cover (front), Back cover.



Step 2) Remove bits from holes & Trace the chipboard onto patterned papers-mark the holes too.



You can fit three onto one 12 x 12 sheet of patterned paper



Step 3) Cut the paper out (marking the patterned paper as you go is a big help)



Step 4) Colour edges of the chipboard (I painted the edges with White Gesso.)



Step 5) Punch holes & adhere the paper (You can use separate pieces of patterned paper too.)



Step 6) Adhere the patterned paper to the chipboard pages. Good old Tombow Monomulti gives excellent adhesion but wiggle room too



Step 7) Sand the edges of the covered pages to even it up with chipboard & to distress, if you like.



Step 8) Add Wedding White cardstock (5 3/4 by 4 inches)



Step 9) Prepare acetate window to cover white cardstock (pieces 5 3/4 by 4 inches) cut from clear card boxes.)



Step 10) Sand acetate to distress it--if you want (one side only)



Step 11) Adhere acetate sanded side down (on white cs)- Making sure there are no particles or smudges



Step 12) Trim over acetate with black cardstock (Raven Bazzill cardstock) [cut to be 1/2 inch thickness (for each frame you'll want two that are 5 3/4 inches long & two that are 4 inches long)]



Step 13) Add Basic Grey brads to the black cardstock strips



Step 14) Adhere black cardstock strips with brads over the Acetate



Step 15) To create a pocket:

A) Cut a piece of acetate 5 3/4 by 4 inches (from clear card boxes.)
B) Punch a shape out of it & edge with a Copic marker/permanent marker, if you like
C) Adhere one side of the acetate only
D) Trim over the place you've adhered with one strip of black cardstock (a 1/2" x 5 and 3/4")

Wooly Wooly Sheep:
(aka Fibre-holder Embellishment aminals)



Step 1) Stamp or emboss sheep



Step 2) Colour sheep any way you like



Step 3) Colour & puff up a sheep up with a white puffy pen, if you like.



Step 4) Cut your sheep out



Step 5) Wind around the whole sheep flock with fibers & adhere them to the acetate

Other Altering Ideas:
(non-stamping themes)

A Card Book: Make pockets on the pages to tuck cards & envelopes into & give as a gift. When the cards are gone it can be used as a...
A photo album: Photos can be stuck into acetate pockets & removed quickly to switch them out for new ones (no adhesive needs to touch the photos.)

Birthday Book / Planner / Tabbed Notebook/ Sketchbook / Journal:

-->The 4 pages & tabs are perfect for dividing into the four seasons. Spring, Summer, Fall, & Winter birthdays (or make planning sheets for other occasions.)

-->To make the book reusable... just cover the chipboard pages with acetate & add sticky note sheets.

-->To make Homemade sticky notes: You can even make your own sticky note sheets by printing them on the computer & adding Tombow Monomulti to the backs of them (let it dry & it is repositionable!)

-->To add extra pages: Trace a Chipboard page onto any paper & cut it out. Best thing about this is you can add any paper: watercolour paper for artists and/or handmade papers for art journallers. Lined paper for a notebook. Recipe cards, Calendar, Address book sheet... anything! :O)

A kids colouring book: Stamp images and/or add colouring pages printed on copy paper to acetate with repositionable adhesive.

A Sticker Album: Stickers will peel right off the acetate pages. Turn the farm friends into vellum/regular/linen stickers with sticky backed products from office supply or craft stores (for kids or us stampers!) ;o)

Hope this had a little inspiration for Ewe. :O) Happy Weekend!

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From Sm'ugly to Snifty? (solid glue pen heat emboss resist)

Kinda Snifty, maybe? well it was mighty S'mugly! See......

This is that loverly stamp from Paper Garden Projects. I know... you're asking yourself "How is it possible to mess up something this pretty???" but I managed. ;o) I was not happy with a green that I added. It was some ugly!




If this happens to you, don't throw your sm'uglies away. Cut 'em up! :O) Cutting might seem time consuming, but images can take quite a while to make (especially when you try a new technique) so it seems worth the time to salvage that image, no? You get added definition to your project from the cut layers too. :O)

The Technique Summary: Solid glue pen emboss resist

This is emboss resist with a twist. It's a line image...which will have a clear outline & it'll be coloured inside with a dark resist background. (You can use a glue pen & clear embossing powder to protect your colouring):

Summary:
(details are described with the pictures)

The twist:
Step 1) Emboss the image in clear & Colour it however you like.
Step 2) Glue pen heat emboss over your colouring
Step 3) Double or Triple emboss it

The Resist:
Step 5) Cover image in black Craft ink
Step 6) Wipe excess ink off
Step 7) Reheat with heat gun to restore the glossiness

Makin' Smugly:



The Twist. Create some Colour in a Clear Outline

Step 1) Emboss the image in clear & Colour however you like. I stamped the Image in Versamark & Embosed with clear embossing powder & coloured using SU markers on Watercolour paper blended with a Niji water brush.)

Step 2) Glue pen heat emboss over your colouring: Just scribble over your coloured area with a Sakura Quickie glue pen & while the glue is wet sprinkle clear embossing powder on it. Heat that with a heat gun.

Step 3) Double/Triple emboss it: While the Embossing Powder is hot, add another layer of E.P. & heat it up. Repeat layered clear embossing until it is solid

Create a Resist Effect:



Step 5) Cover image in black ink



Step 6) Wipe excess ink off



Step 7) reheat to restore the glossiness. Crackle the embossing if you like.

You know you wanna scream it out. "That is Some Ugly!" :O)
But don't let my colouring ruin it for you. The technique is fun, honest!

Salvaging Snifty:



Step 1) Cut the offending part of the image out.

This looks intricate, but since the cuts for this image are straight (just pointy leaves) it actually wasn't all that tricksy at all. I crackled the embossing to try and get more of an antique-y look.



Step 2) If you like you can add some holes for stitching (with a paper piercer)...



Step 3) Knot embroidery thread to make berries.



Step 4) and then the metamorphosis to what I hope is snifty...add a new Flutterby...

For the box template please see this post:

Thank you for taking time out of your busy day, :O)

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Round-Topped Butterfly Box

This is for Cathy's Blog Bash Challenge: to use a flower somewhere in your project. I love the big bursting flower buds in this stamp & it's never seen ink, so here it is. Ta da, LOL. You can play along here & win a sweet prize. (You can still join in the other challenges too!)

This project may look familiar: it's a round topped box template that's super hot right now. Thanks to "hawk" on SCS who was looking for it originally, this ol' SU template saw the light of day & there was an SCS challenge using it too, so now there are a million great ideas for it. This is my better-late-than-never?-springy-jelly-beanie take on it.

Turquoise jelly-bellies. How could I say no!?!

Snookum Stamp Image:

This stamp is the perfect size for this sweet box template. I adore the stamp designs of Leigh Hannan passionately. This Butterfly stamp is one of my very very favourites. It measures 3.2 inches in diameter. You'd think it was was made for this box!

You can find this Butterfly Round Cling Stamp
at Paper Garden Projects here.

The Template:

Click here to go download Template PDFs

This is a Stampin' Up template! & a second one where I took the score lines out, so you can print it directly on cardstock & cut away the ink lines. (Love doin' that!)

The Template Deets:

Measurements: 6 inches tall, 3 1/2 inches wide, 1 6/8 inches deep. (The front basket part is 1 6/8 inches high)

Please Note (for Printing!): This box prints prints the best on borderless printing; otherwise you may lose bits!

Click the pictures above for the JPGs of the templates
(if you have any trouble with sizing, just let me know and I can email you JPGs (melstampz@gmail.com)

Step 1) Print the template, cut, & score the box.

Lil' Tip: I like to cut roughly & score before I cut the box out all the way. It makes seeing where to score easy. I used watercolour paper for the box. I madly lurve the texture of it. :O)



Step 2) Make scallop frame or ring (layer two nesties one inside the other & tape it on so it stays in place.)



Step 3) Stamp & Cut black shadow layer (cut larger than the coloured leaves image so it'll create a shadow when it's all stuck together.)



Step 4) Adhere strips of patterned papers to the box---These are all from the Urban Prairie Basic Grey 6x6 collection. (More of my blahblahblah about those cuties later.) :O)



Step 5) Pierce along patterned paper strips (through the box)

Step 6) Stitch it up (I used a straight stitch, zig zag, & a row of knots for fun) ;o)



Step 7) Adhere the scallop frame/ring to the round section.


Step 8) Stick on the black shadow layer



Step 9) Adhere the leaves onto shadow layer with Black Foam Tape or Dimensionals



Step 10) Pierce a butterfly trail (I temporarily placed the butterfly so it wouldn't get much wear.)


Step 11) Stitch the butterfly trail. These are just knots of varying sizes:

The Patterned Papers:

These papers are all from the Urban Prairie Basic Grey 6x6 collection. (I had a question from JB about it when I used some of the urban prairie on this LPS mushroom bookmark card, but she was "no reply" so I'm answering you here JB.) :O)

............

6 x 6 Basic Grey Paper Packs

I can't get enough of these 6x6 Basic Grey packs. They're insanely economical (6 bucks for so many pieces!) so I thought I'd blab about 'em in case you were curious.

Selection: Love that these let you have loads of patterned papers that are all the rage--without breaking the bank. Having all those options helps you out of colour ruts too (something that happens to me often.)

Scale: One really neat thing for cardmaking--or other small scale work--is that the graphics on Basic Grey's 6x6 papers are smaller than the graphics on their larger ones. (That's a "no duh!" for some of you, but it took me a while to figure it out, since I had never had both the 12x12 & 6x6 of one pattern before.)



P.S. Tomorrow, a tutorial on how this butterfly medallion was done (aka. taking an image from sm'ugly to snifty, LOL.)

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Framed Stamp Storage (Pretty Cheap & Easy): In Sight, In Mind--

Stampin' Storage du-du-done dirt Cheap... Sorry if that song is stuck in your head now, but maybe you'll forgive me when you find a new Stamp Room use for those ol' picture frames or vintage windows in your garage? (Or from garage sales!)

I was really excitipated about this idea since...

...It's sneaky stamp storage (for cling mounted or acrylic stamps.) Handy 'cause it keeps them from being out of sight out of mind; hence, you're less likely to forget what you've got & you're more likely to use it! Who knows, seeing your stamps in one place might even inspire new combinations of different sets.

...Glass is a perfectly safe surface to store your stamps on, BUT wherever you put them, just avoid direct light exposure or extremes in temperature so you can extend the life of your stamps. (That's why, as pretty as a mirror might be, I'd avoid it since it bounces light.)

...It can take seconds & it's so easy for you to personalize to your style: You can make these stamp storage frames in any size in less time than it takes to say Cheap Tricks: just stick stamps on a picture frame that you already have up, et voilà, or hang one you love in your stamping area. Now you have stamp storage, or you can customize it any way you like...

Some Customizing Ideas:

A -->Add a painted, paper-covered or stamped mat. (I altered the one that was in my frame already.)
B -->Be hyper-organized and register the stamps in behind the glass. (Though personally, I like to be able to shift them around to what is current without having to change the picture.)
C-->Cover the cardboard/backing of the frame to put anything you like in the frame: your favourite patterned paper, scrapbooking/photos, decoupaging, decor elements, embellishments...
D -->Decorate a whole wall by hanging a grouping of frames that have different companies or types of stamps on them. Here are some handy Martha tips for hanging multiple frames.
E-->Embellish the frame itself.

and my faves...

A-->Have a hutch or cupboard with glass doors in your workspace? You can use that glass as a storage area instead of a frame, or you could use an old glass top from a coffee table leaned against a wall.
B-->Use one small glass-fronted frame near your workspace as a place to store your dirty acrylic/cling stamps until you can clean them (prevent losing 'em)
C-->Find space you didn't know you had, by using more vertical space (hanging them up on a wall (or lean it on one), or mount it on the back of a door (or closet door) You can even slide it under a desk or dresser.

How this frame was altered:

I wanted an embossed & crackled mat (black on black)

It started life as an old mat combo and a wooden picture frame (that was gold previously) I had already painted the frame with black acrylic paint... Here's the matting process:


Step 1) Painted a raised part of the mat with Distress Crackle Paint ("Black Soot" by Tim Holtz/Ranger)



Step 2) Painted the rest of the mat with black acrylic paint (slightly watered down)



Step 3) Stamped the mat (with Versamark) & this heavenly "Riley Tree" stamp by Leigh Hannan (not just for trees: it makes the loveliest square mats for cards or you can punch it out--gorgeous leafy texture...) :O)



Step 4) Sprinkled the Versamark stamping with Clear embossing powder (working in small sections of 3/4 stamps seemed to be less messy.)



Step 5) Glued old book pages down onto the backing of the frame (and attached it to the back of the mat & stuck it back in the frame.) Your favourite DP would look oh so perty. :O)

Then you can just stick your stamps on it:

You can use the whole glass front or just the area inside the mat. The plastic pieces are still on the front of these stamp sets, keepin' them identifiable & protected.

Hope this was useful to you,

P.S. photo note: "Handwriting" Photoshop brushes (used in the tutorial photos) are created by redheadstock & they can be found here.

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