Thursday, March 26, 2009

Party Time!

Howdy, folks! Sure am sorry 'bout the dry spell... I've been cooking up a lil' something and letting it simmer while I got caught up the "real world" to-do lists, etc. What are ya gonna do...

Oh wait, I know: SCRAP SOMETHING! Hello! Drought over!


My darling friend, Dana, over there at Paperdaydream is leading our little, local 4H crafters this weekend in creating a mini book! Fun, fast and simple (?)! Now, I know that mini books come in and out of vogue and I having been living more out than in.. as it were. But I've just drank from the water... And it was gooooood! Check it:


Don't underestimate the "dollar spot" or whatever they call it at Michael's! This little cutie could be worth its weight in scrappin' GOLD! Dana stalks that isle at Mike's regularly and cooked up this plan to dazzle our little crafters this weekend for very little $. After seeing how easily they dug in and started scrappin' last time we gathered, I thought I'd share this idea with grown ups! Sometimes we need a little MORE encouragement... Lil' books are fun! After attending a couple of back to back CKU's several years back, a lot of us scrappy gals were tired of mini books.. But after a few years of rest, and thinking about keeping it fun for the little crafty kids: this was a nice exercise! Freeing, really! And for a BUCK! Think of all the scrappy stuff you already own: sheesh! Look at all the leftover goodies right there on your workspace! I just cleaned out my tool tote and holy moly: the mother load of embellishments were hiding there!

Here's a quick list to prepare for a quick lil' book:

Choose a small batch of picts from an event or favorite photo subject. Organize them to tell the story you want to share...

Match them to some paper (I stuck to a Basic Grey pack, "euphoria," and matched some S/U! cardstock)...

Then just grab leftover embellishments! (Or make some, stamp some, you get the drill..)

With photos organized and paper selected, just start covering your chipboard. You can trace the shape and cut out, glue to chipboard and sand edges, or even just paint the naked chipboard with acrylic paint! (Yes: I said naked!) Of course it takes some drying time if you paint, but sometimes it's just a great foundation for chipboard. For my book, I was so pleased how well "euphoria" worked with my photos, I just wanted to PLAY with that!



Get CRAZY, friends: no real rules around here! This is a keepsake, but it must be fun and touchable! I used photos that a dear friend gave to me from the little girl's sixth birthday, so these were bonus pictures! I really let myself have fun and didn't worry about not telling the WHOLE story: I told MY fun story!




Bling it up!





Drop some tackle! (See the Tim Holtz fragments with picts of the guests! Yummmy!)

Food tells a nice story! I made a 3-D embellishment with a S.A.B. stamp from Stampin' Up! by stamping then mounting on chipboard! (Don't curse your craft and rubber scissors you don't have to use so much anymore now that S/U! die-cuts their stamps.. Those babies cut most chipboard like "buddah!")

Yes, that's me: a two fisted cwoffee drinking maniac! How else would have I survived the birthday party that started at 9 am and went until 11 pm!




Get interactive: I hid journaling and more picts to really make this a tactile experience!







I threaded some lilac colored ribbon under a well secured picture/embellishment of the backside of the book. There is plenty of ribbon that then is tied into a bow at the front of the album to make a lovely and functional closure....









Do one of these right away! Make it fun and easy and I guarantee you won't want to put it down, even when you're done! My kid is taking it to school for show and tell next week! (I wouldn't send a "mother ship" photo album to school, but this one is perfect!)

Have fun! And thanks for letting me share!

8 comments:

Tracey said...

Very nice Elise.

Kate Riley said...

Hey, I recognize that darling girl. Nice work ! Thanks a latte !

Dana Gustafson said...

Oh girrrl! You smoked that mini book!!! (OK Dane, no PRESSURE or anything!) I can't wait to flip through this in person. A treasure for sure and Callan must be so excited to take this one to school. I KNOW the kids are gonna dive right in and go to town with this. So glad I stalked that Mike's $1 aisle ;)

Karen said...

Dollar aisle, yup, yup!! I can get in som Serious trouble there....at Michael's and Target!! Love how durable it is...chipboard & Fragments...I can see kidlet hands wanting to open this over and over again. Fun stuff!!! :>

tg said...

Cute, mini books are fun. I have some chipboard books at home that need to be made. Thanks for the motivation.

Auntie said...

The book is adorable and I THINK I know the photographer. It is wonderful!

Laurie said...

E-ster...I just want to squeeeeze her! Visiting your new blog is a highlight in each day. Have challenged myself to wipe the grin off my face while reading...NOT happening. XO, Lo

Jenny said...

Aw, sweet Callan is just adorable at 8. Beautiful project, E-ster!