DIY Journal - Use Your Stash

 

Hi, How are you?

With travel opening up these past few months, more and more of us are going away and making plans.

I've always documented our trips.

I have goodness how many 12x12 albums full of trip memories and then in 2018 I also started making travelers notebooks for my trips, as well as 12x12 albums.

However last year I started something new.

I started making my own journals using Little Golden Books.

I love how I can use these so perfectly along with my scrapbooking paper collections.

I thought I'd share a little with you here today.

  If you'd like to see the process of going from book to journal, there's a video here. 

The idea is that you include the original pages along with scrapbooking papers.

And then you can decorate with your stickers, die cuts and all the fun stuff.

I love creating flip pages too. 

It's such a fun way to create and capture memories.

I love the Simple Stories 'Say Cheese' Collections.

They are so perfect for this kind of project. 

I do love to mix & match paper collections. I'm never afraid to do this.

 

I've used a few paper collections here but they go so well together.

I added a little envelope at the bottom and covered it in scraps of different papers.

I used a glue gun to add 2 buttons and some twine to hold the envelope closed.

 I made a little note card to go inside the envelope using more of the 'Say Cheese 4' papers and created this flip next to it.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing this journal.

I'm having so much fun creating in it and I'm planning to start a new one very soon for our 2022 adventures.

Lots of love

Lisa x

Wet Mixed Media - Shimmerz Paints

Hello, it’s Rebecca with you today sharing my second layout of the month. In my previous blog, I talked about ‘dry mixed media’ - using mixed media products without any water. Today, I’m focusing on ‘wet mixed media’ and getting messy and having fun. Papermaze stock a HUGE range of mixed media products - head over to the shop and take a look here (click the 'Mixed Media' tab at the top!)

I often see people on social media commenting that they are too scared or apprehensive to try mixed media. I was exactly the same a few years ago, until I decided to pick up some scrap cardstock and have a play. And that’s exactly what mixed media is for me - playing and having fun. At the end of the day, it’s only paper! If you create a background and decide you don’t like it, start again! 

There are so many different ways to apply mixed media products to your background, but the most popular way is using the ‘packaging technique’ - which is exactly what it says on the tin! Add your medium to a scrap piece of plastic packaging (the packaging that ephemera or thickers come in is perfect) and add some water. Then turn this packing over onto your layout and ‘smoosh’ it down onto the page. I love this method as it’s quick and simple and I love the watercolour effect it gives on the background. If you’d like to apply your medium with slightly more control, you can apply your medium to some plastic packaging or grease proof paper and mix with a little water, and then apply to your background using a sponge, some scrunched up tin foil or cling film, scrunched up plastic etc - most things will work! You could also use a paintbrush to apply the colour directly to the page, use a brayer, or scrape ink pads across the background and then add water to it! The possibilities are endless and the effect you get will be different depending on how you apply the colour and that’s what makes mixed media so fun!

For me, the key to creating a mixed media background is to build it up in layers; and that’s exactly what I have done with my layout today.

I begun by applying a layer of clear gesso to my white cardstock background. Gesso is a primer, and acts as a barrier between the cardstock and the mixed media products you are using. It prevents the inks/paints from soaking straight into the cardstock and allows you to add plenty of water to blend and mix the colours together. I have two types of gesso in my stash - clear and white. Although it’s called white gesso, I'm yet to find one that is actually white! It usually has an off-white/cream tint to it. Because of this, I only ever use clear gesso on white cardstock and white gesso on patterned papers.

I allowed my layer of gesso to dry, and then using a stencil I made from Premium White Cardstock on my silhouette cameo 4, I added some white Texture Paste to my background.

I love using texture paste on my backgrounds - especially through stencils. I use a plastic spatula to apply the paste and on this occasion, I was going for a ‘rough/messy’ look. I use a white texture paste by Ranger as it’s nice and thick and dries quite quickly.

Once the texture paste was dry, I moved on to the next layer of mixed media - adding some colour! I swiped two Distress Oxide Ink Pads across my texture paste in the shades Chipped Sapphire and Mermaid Lagoon. I decided on a dark blue background to co-ordinate with my son’s clothes in my photo. Using a spray bottle, I added water to my page and tutoring it from side to side, spread the colour around and let it run across the texture paste.

I could tell the colour wasn’t quite what I was after, so I used some kitchen towel to soak a lot of the ink up. This was only possible because of the gesso - if I didn’t have gesso on the page those inks would have soaked through the cardstock and wouldn’t have mopped up.

Next, I moved on to my stash of Shimmerz Paints. I absolutely love Shimmerz products! There are various different products within the Shimmerz Range and they are all available at Papermaze:

Shimmerz - The original Shimmerz product! They are wet paints with tons of shimmer. They will need a quick stir before use just to evenly distribute all the shimmer as over time, it will sit on the bottom of the pot. Blingz are the same as original shimmerz but with much more shimmer!

Inklingz - Are solid pots of paint with intense shimmer that are activated by adding water. 

Creameez - Like Inklingz, these are intensely pigmented, solid watercolours that are activated by adding water to the pot. Creameez tend to have just a hint of shimmer, put are richer in colour.

Vibez - A spray bottle of intense colour, highly saturated with shimmer. They also come in variations of iridescence - gold, silver, bronze, pearl or a mix of these!

Spritz - Pastel coloured iridescent sprays which are pigmented and shimmery.

I added 'Teal The End Of Time' and 'Winters Mist', sprayed more water on my background and tilted the page to move the colour around, being careful to try and keep it to the area of the page with the texture paste on it. I added more using the packaging technique, and also used a paintbrush to help move the colours around. I kept adding more paint in the different shades, and adding more water, until I was happily with the colour and the coverage. At this stage the page looked a bit of a mess… but this is quite normal! Sometimes mixed media looks awful until you add your photo and embellishments on top and then it’s transformed. The key here is to keep going until you are happy and have fun! Once I was happy, I used my heat gun to dry the mixed media. I always dry from the front AND the back of the page as this helps to prevent warping.

On to the next layer! I finished off my background by adding some gold splatters using 'Good As Gold' and again, dried it with my heat gun. Sometimes I will soak up excess paint/water with kitchen towel but I find this often soaks up a lot of the shimmer - using a heat gun might take longer but it means the shimmer remains on the page. I also find that sometimes water can dilute the shimmer in the paints - the more water you add, the less shimmery the background will be, so bear that in mind when adding your water.

I actually added a fair amount of water to this background, but because I also added a lot of paint, it’s kept it’s shimmery appearance.

Mixed media isn’t just for backgrounds - you can add mixed media to lots of things - Cutfiles, chipboard, die cuts, ephemera etc. For this layout, I cut some layered flowers on my Silhouette using a cutfile by Paige Evans. I wanted to paint them yellow and purple to match the flowers in my photo.

I reached for my Shimmerz again, using 'Dandy-Lion' and 'Sun Kissed' Inklingz and 'Mango Tango' Vibez for the yellow and a mix of 'Plum Candy' and 'Beets Me' Inklingz and 'Berry Hot' Creameez for the purple. I also added in a small amount of Distress Oxide to give a bit of variation in the shading and tone. (Fosilized Amber and Dusty Concord). 

I then added the flowers to my layout, along with my photo and embellished lightly with some butterflies from Vicki Boutin's Color Study Collection and some sequins.

I hope you've enjoyed this blog and it's given you some useful information and inspired you to have a play. Just remember - it's only paper! Have a play and try adding ink or paints in different ways, mix your colours and just have fun!

I will have a process layout up on my YouTube channel over the weekend showing how I created this layout and my mixed media. You can find my channel here.

Thanks for reading, see you next time.

Take care,

Rebecca x
@preciouspagespapercraft

Pebbles ~ Kid at Heart ❤️ #2

 Hi all! 

We’re nearly at the end of February already!? This means it’s time for my second blog post with the Pebbles Kid at Heart collection. I have loved using this collection, it’s so bright, cheerful and great for any theme of layout!

Take a look at the whole range in the shop here. 

Here is my second layout…

So, to create this page I started by using a sheet of blue bazzill cardstock from the matchmaker pack. I then used my cameo to cut out a ‘my boy’ title cutfile by Paige Evans.

I backed the cutfile using patterned papers from the collection - ‘party time’, ‘chasing rainbows’ ‘playful’and ‘scatter happiness’

I then printed my photograph and double mounted it, using Bazzill whirlpool cardstock and ‘party time’

I then had a look at my packet of phrase ephemera and chose a few pieces that worked with my layout. I adhered these pieces either side of my photo. The ephemera in this collection are gorgeous, some pieces have a lovely shimmer to them too, there’s also lots in a pack and they are great quality too!

 I fussy cut a few of the florals from the ‘scatter happiness’ paper and punched out some stars from my scraps of patterned paper and cardstock. To finish I added two strips of scalloped boarder from the ‘playful’ paper.

Thanks so much for looking, I’ll see you in March with some more layouts!

x Anna x

Echo Park - Day in the Life - Life is Magical

Hello,

Claire here @scrappysoulmate, sharing my final layout with the beautiful Echo Park Day in the Life collection.

Todays page is quite a minimal layout, but one with lots of layers and elements to bring it all together.

I started with a piece of my favourite - White Premium Cardstock. I applied some Gesso and left to dry. Once it had fully dried, I stitched a circle (well almost - I went a little off course at one point but I'm happy with how it turned out) to act as my anchor for the design. 

I created a small patch of mixed media using Distress Oxide in Tumbled Glass (the Oxide is currently sold out but the Distress ink is still in stock).

Next, I cut some strips of the April, June and October papers, punching the edges of two, to create a nice scalloped edge, and stitching through the third for extra texture.

I placed the strips on foam pads on top of my mixed media, so that the ink could still be seen from either side of the paper.

I mounted my photo on the August paper, using the darker blue to help the photo mat stand out.

To the top left and bottom right of the photo, I created lots of dimension and texture by fussy cutting lots of florals from the January paper and a rainbow from the March paper.

I stuck most on foam pads and left the leaves loose, so I could curl, bend and fold them to create movement.

For my title, I fussy cut one of the phrases from the cut apart cards from the June paper and raised in on foam to sit alongside my photo.

To the bottom left of the photo, I added some Element Stickers, using the pink and yellow colours to match the patterned paper.

At this point, I felt the page was a little too bare - even for me! So I tore some pieces of the pretty floral paper from the August paper. This helped frame the page and tie in the photo mat and some of the darker flowers in my floral clusters.

As a final touch, I sprinkled some Pinkfresh Studio Jewels around the floral clusters for that unbeatable bit of sparkle, and followed the line of the stitched circle to add my journaling.

I hope you've enjoyed the pages made with this collection. You can find them all on the blog and the collection in the store here.

Until next time,

Claire

@scrappysoulmate

P13 There is No Planet B - Below Stairs

Hello, Karen here again and today I'm sharing my third and final project using There is No Planet B from P13. I've really loved using this beautiful collection. P13 isn't a brand I've ever worked with before but I'm really happy with the projects I've created and I'd certainly like to work with a P13 collection again. 

For my layout today I have used three photos taken on a visit to a stately home in Norfolk.

I knew I wanted to create a scene for the background of this layout and so I downloaded from the internet a free colouring page of a staircase. The colouring page was then used to paper-piece the background the old fashioned way using scraps of papers #4 & #5 from the collection as well as some kraft coloured Bazzill cardstock.

I printed sections of the colouring page onto the papers and cardstock and then fussy cut them out before layering them onto some white cardstock. The finished scene was then matted onto Black Bazzill cardstock leaving a border round the outside.

My three photos were double matted onto white and black cardtock and then added to the layout. These were specifically placed so that two of the photos were below the stairs.

Images were fussy cut from paper #7 and placed near the bottom of the layout either side of one of the photos.

I die cut my title lettering from some black self-adhesive fun foam and stuck the letters above and below the top photo.

Finally, I printed my journalling onto cardstock strips using the computer and put these in the top left corner of the layout.

Thank you for stopping by today and I hope this layout has given you some inspiration for using the There is No Planet B collection and also inspired you to get out some of those photos taken on day trips and put them on a scrapbook page.

I'll be back soon but until then Take Care.

Karen x x

February crop

Hopefully storm Eunice won't be putting a stop to us cropping on Saturday!  Our crop kit uses the Simple Stories Simple Vintage Weathered Garden collection, with some distress oxides and fussy cutting...

If you'd like to join us at Otley Village Hall, it's £5 for the day, (10am - 4pm) with tea and coffee and home-made cakes, plus a variety of punches and dies to use - just drop us a message!

February Papermaze Kit - Part 1

Lynn here today to share a new kit from Papermaze. This is the February kit, full of subtle natural colours and here are my first two layouts. You will find the kit in the store from today. 

 

Before looking at the layouts in more detail, this is what you will find included in this month's kit.

Patterned Papers:
Simple Stories - Simple Vintage Weathered Garden - Journal Elements & Fills My Heart
American Crafts - Vicki Boutin - Fernwood - Gather
Carta Bella - Gather At Home - Garden Guru
P13 - There Is No Planet B - #02
American Crafts - Maggie Holmes - Market Square - Home & Garden
Bazzill Basics - Aqua & Cinder

Reverse Side of papers

Embellishments:
P13 Alphabet Stickers, 1/4 sheet Simple Stories Foam Stickers, 2 Simple Stories Chipboard Clusters,49 & Market Chipboard Frame, 2 exclusive wooden fern leaves, 12" linen ribbon and 12 Pinkfresh pearls

Extra Bazzill Pack - Yukon Gold, Twig, White & Avocado

Kool Kiwi - This layout has hidden journalling telling the story of the Kool Kiwi mascot and a special teacher the children had from New Zealand.

The base for this layout is the beautiful 'Gather' paper from Vicki Boutin with a wreath of fern leaves. They reminded me of the All Blacks rugby logo, so set me thinking of this lovely story. All I had to do was build my layout within and around the wreath.

I used the fern leaf stencil from the same collection as the paper to add several large leaves to the centre of the paper using Forest Moss and Brushed Corduroy Distress Oxide Ink.

I made a folder for my journalling which doubled as a mat for the photo. I used the P13 '#02' paper (I gutted this paper first as I wanted it to frame my next layout.) I also cut a tab adding the word 'lift' with stickers (AC Thickers Happy Life foam letter stickers); to indicate there is something to see inside. My journalling was typed and printed onto white paper and placed inside the folder. I glued the folder into place with the photo attached.

I made a large cluster at the base of the wreath with wood slices cut from Kraft Bazzill and the Tim Holtz Tree Rings Mini Bigz die and embossing folder set. I inked the slices with Ground Espresso Distress Oxide Ink to highlight the rings and bark. 

To the cluster I added the two wooden fern leaves and some of the chipboard words from the kit. I added a few small blossoms from my stash, and repeated these in small clusters around the wreath. I cut leaves, wood and flowers from the #2 paper to add too. You can also see a chipboard butterfly at the top of the wreath. I tucked the date in here with more of the foam letter stickers.

For my title I used a Sizzix BigzXL alpha die to cut the letters twice, from Kraft and Yukon Gold Bazzill. I inked Brushed Corduroy Distress Oxide through a Tim Holtz Layering Stencil (Burlap THS007) onto the Kraft letters and offset them over the gold letters.

 

Walking the Walls - The girls and I walked the city walls on our recent trip to York. 

For this page I used the frame of #02 paper I cut earlier, and mounted trimmed and distressed Twig Bazzill over the top.

After working out where the photos would sit and my title would go, I drew a faint pencil semi circle onto the page and stitched over this with two strands of brown DMC embroidery cotton.
Then with a brick stencil and some Distress Texture Paste I created some rough brick work to fill the semi circle. The Distress Paste was unevenly coloured with Distress Oxide Inks. 

Once the paste was dry I was able to add my photos. I placed the cut-off strip from the 'Gather' paper along the base of the photos and finished this area off with a chipboard piece from the kit. 

I cut three butterflies from the 'Journal Elements' paper and after curving these I added them to the stitching. My title was made with the letter stickers from the kit and I created a shadow with a marker pen. In the same way I placed the date at the bottom of the page. 

That's all for today, I will be back with more from this kit soon.
Thanks for looking.
Lynn x