Misted Mini album from recycled products

Welcome to my blog! Click on the title above if you would like to see a short video of the finished project!

 My project for the blog hop is a mini  album made from two recycled gift bags and a couple of envelopes and some misted fabric journaling tags. Make the album tonight, decorate it another day and make the journaling tags another day! Or just make the tags! If you want you can download the instructions for the album here in two parts.

You Will Need:

Two kraft gift bags 11.5" x 9.5"

Two kraft envelopes of different sizes (opening on the long side)

5 sheets of 12 x 12 patterned paper (Studio Calico Home Front available at Bubbly Funk) 

Chipboard sheet (I used a recycled board book)

1 sheet of Bazzill cardstock, any colour

A few journaling cards

2 large brads

7 Gypsies Gaffer tape

A length of twine

Chipboard house embellishments (Maya Road)

Maya Mist

'Black Soot' distress ink

Ink blending tool

To Make The Album
1. Cut off the handles from each gift bag.

2.  Flatten the base of the gift bag neatly and carefully and burnish the creases with a bone folder.

Then turn the bag over..........

 and fold up the base, (along the second crease line in this picture.)

This gives you a larger lower page with the bag opening on the right hand side and a smaller half page on the top. Do exactly the same with the other gift bag. 

Draw around the paper bag page you have made on the chipboard sheet and then measure it exactly to get the correct size for the back page. Cut it out with a craft knife.

3.  (I have turned the paper bag around in this picture, so you can see that there is a hidden gusset down one of the long sides of the page we have made, that we can use to trap our cardboard hinge.)

Measure the size of the narrow rectangle in the hidden gusset of the bag (it was the base) and cut a strip of Bazzill cardstock the same length and twice the narrow width, (about 8"x3" approximately, but your gift bags may be different.) Score down the centre longways and fold on the crease line. This is your cardboard hinge, cut two of these.

Line all the edges of this hidden rectangle with double sided tape. (This is the black gift bag) Place the cardboard hinge on the tape and stick it down.

Put more tape on the top half of the hidden gusset and stick to the top half of the cardboard hinge,

so it is completely hidden and trapped securely.

Here it is from the side.

5. Do exactly the same with the other gift bag.

Here are the two gift bags with the two hinges.

6. Put tape around all the edges of the remaining hinge portion and then lower the chipboard back page down and stick securely.

Now you have a centre back page of chipboard, with a paper bag large page on one side and small page on the other.

7. To create extra pages, use two kraft envelopes with openings down the long side. Turn the self adhesive flap of the envelope right back on itself and add double sided tape ......

then stick it to the back page as a hinge. This will leave the open side of the envelope available to use as a pocket.

These flaps will get hidden when the chipboard is covered in patterned paper.

At this point, you can add double sided tape to the upper and lower edge gussets to make it neater.

Decorate The Album

Now for the fun part, covering all your pages in patterned paper.

• 
  
  Starting at the back page, cover the chipboard in patterned paper, measure it and cut to size on your paper trimmer, then glue in place. Add a pocket on the back page for journaling cards and tags etc 
• 
  
  Cut pieces of patterned paper to cover both sides of the envelopes.

• 
  
  Tuck a small amount of patterned paper inside the opening to each envelope to reveal the pocket inside.
• 
  
  Continue, covering each page with patterned paper.

• 
  
  Make a small pockets out of spare paper on some pages and add a journaling tags. Embellish.

• 
  
  Add two giant brads for a closure, by putting them through one layer of the gift bag and placing your hand inside the bag to flatten out the stems, this way they are hidden from view. Blend all the outer edges with 'blacksoot' distress ink, using an ink blending tool. Embellish the cover and add the title.
• 
  
  Apply 7 Gypsies gaffer tape along each side to add strength to the hinge.

To make the fabric journaling tags

Luggage labels (or cut your own from cardstock)

Cotton Calico fabric
Chipboard houses (Maya Road)
Chipboard Alphabet letters
Maya Mist or Glimmer mist

Sewing machine and neutral thread
Spray Starch
Iron
Instruction document downloadable here called "Fabric tags".

1. 
   
   Cut out some card tags and some fabric tags slightly larger. Place chipboard elements on top of fabric and spray with Maya Mist. Leave to dry. Remove chipboard.
2. 
   
   Turn fabric tag over and spray with Spray Starch, leave to 'soak in' a little, then iron with a hot iron to set the starch.

3. Place the starched fabric inside a Cuttlebug embossing folder and run through your embossing machine. Stitch the fabric to the cardboard tag and trim the edges. Run the tag through your typewriter to add journaling.

I hope you have enjoyed playing along with me. Please leave a comment below to be entered for my RAK.

The next crafty happening is over here at Christianes blog at 3pm! Be sure you hop along there and see what there is to make next, her layouts are awesome!! 

Caroline x