My project today involved a simple school composition book. I thought this would be a great project to use up some of my retired designer paper that I love.
Many of you have asked for instructions so I put together just a really simple tutorial. I will also say... do as I say not as I did! Measure, measure, measure EACH book. Even though I knew better, I measured one and cut all of my designer paper to the same measurements for each of my books. Shame on me, but there are no mistakes in crafting right? Right, so instead you make a border to cover the short side. I will say, that's what I did on my first one but ended up liking the pattern being broken up so I just continued it for the rest of my designs whether it needed it or not. Also, be prepared to sacrifice 3 to 4, 12 x 12 sheets of designer paper if you are using the full size books like I did.
I used tombow liquid glue to adhere my papers to the covers of the book. I did not go the mod podge route because I was afraid to get a gummy crunchy cover. I don't know if that would happen but I wasn't taking any chances. I also chose the liquid glue over using a tape runner because I wanted the extra play time to make sure I was lined up properly. When gluing make sure you use thin lines and get to the edge for a nice seamless covering. My tombow worked like a charm. I rounded my corners after I glued the paper down so I could just follow the line that was already there.
I used a nail file to smooth the edges and trimmed any other overhang following my scissors along the edge.
I covered the inside of the book as well with coordinating paper. I like to leave a small gap at the inside. Assuming that if the product is in use, the cover would be opened and closed regularly. I didn't want it to be jammed into the crease and bunch up.
I had all of these pieces of designer paper left after I cut the covers so I put them to use.
I made a pocket for the inside cover. It measures 6 x 4.5 inches. I certainly had enough pieces I could have added more pockets, I just chose to keep it clean. If you add a pocket it can be really any size you want it to be. Perfect way to use up cut papers. This pocket was perfect for holding the bookmark I made next.
Then I took a 2 x 6 inch piece and cut some scrap card stock to the same size to make a coordinating bookmark. This
vinyl bookmark sleeve is just fantastic, it gives a really nice finish to a simple bookmark and it makes it durable and long lasting. I have been making quite a few lately but I do have a product share on them. Unfortunately you have to generally buy them in bulk, and not everyone wants to make 100 bookmarks, so I try to break it down to smaller lots for my customers. You can check them out on the
product share page.
The final thing I did with some of the leftover paper was to make a matching pen. I only use Pentel RSVP pens because they open up so nicely to slip in the pretty paper. I cut my paper strips to 3.75 by .75 inches. Really then it's just a matter of breaking down the fibers enough to get it to roll. I use my bone folder to help break it down and when I have a thicker paper I will also mist it to get it more pliable. Once I get it rolled I like to glue the edge. It is totally not necessary, I'm just OCD about it slightly unwinding once you put it in the barrel and then all I can see is an uneven seam. I'm pretty sure that I am the only one in the world to see it though.
At this point it's just a matter of embellish away! I can't say this is entirely a quick craft, but it certainly is easy enough. There are so many ways to design the covers and make other alterations. I think it turned out super cute. I love when I have a good pack of designer paper that has coordinating double sided sheets like I had for this project. I got 4 designs from 2 pages that were all the same colors so it made designing easy. My hardest choice was the darn sentiment.
I hope this was helpful for you but now here is my personal dilemma, I plan an bringing these with me to this year's craft fair but I have no clue how I'm going to package them. They do measure in total 9.75 x 7.5 inches. If anyone has any crafty ideas on how I can package these please leave me a comment below. The struggle is real people!
Happy crafting,
-Sherry
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Wonderful. I could see maybe putting them in a cello bag with a ribbon but that might be more of a hassle than it is worth. If you left them just sitting out someone would walk away with the pen or the bookmark. A flat sealed bag would look sort of crummy unless maybe a topper could be made to conceal the seal strip of the baggie. Maybe just a coordinated paper folded over the seal? Easy to get into and protected. How did you play to display them. Maybe in the baggie you could put them in a basket? Just trying to think outside the box. I have a bunch of this paper left. Thanks for the vinyl bookmark holder link.
ReplyDeleteChris R. from Iowa
Thanks for the suggestions Chris. I was worried about the set getting separated. I looked for flat cello bags large enough to fit the books but as usual you have to buy 100. I had some gusseted bags that would fit but they looked horrible. I think I am going to lay them flat on the table but you gave me a thought, if I use the flat cello bag (even though I will have 97 left over!) I could then tie a bow around the whole package. I like to use tulle for larger items to make my bows, and then tie on a little tag for the price. Downside, buying 100 9x12 bags to get just a few.
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