Paisley Petals Journal

Hello, hello! :)  I've been missing in action for a while, because we have been moving into a new (to us) house!  My husband and I have been married almost 15 years, and this is our very FIRST house to purchase, so it is exciting news indeed!  (Note: My husband has been in school for about 13 of those 15 years, and is finally done and working a "real job".)  Anyways,..... that's why I haven't posted for a while.

This beautiful journal is made with the "Paisley Petals" Designer paper that will be in the new catalog coming out July 1st.  It is a lovely collection of papers, and has almost a Basic Grey feel to it, I think.  I love the variety of the papers -- AND it has a stamp set that matches it!!!!!  Woo Hoo!!!

Bryn's kindergarten teacher this year, is indeed one of THE kindest, sweetest people I've ever met, so when I set out to create a gift for her, this sentiment (from the "Define Your Life" stamp set -- retiring June 30th) seemed perfect.  IMPORTANT! the Spiral punch used to punch the paper to slide over the spiral binding, is retiring June 30th, so if you want to re-create this project, get your punch now!  Also, for the dimensions of how to cut the paper to put over your journal, see the previous journals posts on my blog.

 The colors in this designer paper are an interesting combination -- Marina Mist, Baja Breeze, Peach Parfait, and Bravo Burgandy, but they do work together nicely.  I used the Fun Flowers die to make the big flower.  I spritzed the petals with my favorite homemade shimmer mist (Champagne shimmer paint mixed with rubbing alcohol in a spritzer bottle), so it is really sparkly in real life.  The leaves are made using a punched oval, folded in half, and then put through the crimper at an angle.  For the center of the flower, I used a retired Baja Breeze corduroy brad.

For the inside of the journal, I stamped the scrolly image from "Elements of Style" and the itty bitty image from "Tiny Tags" set in Crumb Cake ink.

Finally, I embellished the designs using the Basic Pearls -- I LOVE those things.  They add such a nice touch for so little $. :)
Supplies:
Paisley Petals DSP, Vanilla, Bravo Burgandy, Marina Mist, Baja Breeze, and Pear Pizzazz Card Stock
Decorative Label punch, large oval punch
Fun Flowers die and Big Shot
Crimper
Marina Mist 5/8" satin ribbon
Spiral punch (retiring June 30th)
Basic Pearls

Enjoy, and be inspired!

Journals Extraordinair!

Here are some of the beautiful journals created at my chipboard journals class several weeks ago.  This first journal, was made by a 10 year old -- didn't she do a fantastic job???  She was so very proud of her creation -- a gift for her teacher.  Of course, she used the Blossom Petals punch and Build a Blossom stamp set to make that stunning flower for the front.

A sixteen year old girl made this one.  She wanted lots of color, textures, and her own flair.  I think she accomplished her goal!:)

This journal was created as a baby shower gift.  I liked the modern/artsy feeling she created -- as opposed to the traditional "baby boy blue".  What a unique gift for the mother-to-be -- a one of a kind baby book!

My Attempt at Vintage

Okay, so I really love all the Vintage stuff that people create, but somehow never feel thrilled with how my attempts work out.  I decided to give it another go -- and here is what I came up with.  I was inspired by a beautiful project I saw on Stampin Connection by Andrea Brewster.

The Love Letter Designer paper, paired with the Newsprint DSP, makes for a winning combination, no matter what direction you choose to go.  I love how the Artisic Etchings stamp set matches the paper, so I created this little art journal using stamps and papers that match -- I always love that!  I used the Big Shot adhesive sheets to adhere the paper to the journal -- first cut your paper to the correct size -- for outside of covers, use a 6 x 6" square, and 5 1/8x5 1/8" square for the inside covers.  Apply your adhesive to your designer paper, punch your holes using the spiral border punch, push the paper over the spiral binding, remove the adhesive liner, and adhere to the chipboard -- using a bone folder to smooth it out perfectly, and wrap it around the edges to the inside so that the edges of your chipboard are covered.  Make sure to cut out a little square notch at the corners so it will fold smoothly to the inside of each cover.

 Inside front cover. 

Here is the back of the journal.
We will be making journals such as this one, at my upcoming Journals class on March 20th at 2 pm.  Everyone can choose their own papers, and can make their "journal" into a recipe book, art journal, baby book, Mother's Day gift -- or whatever else strikes their fancy!

Supplies List:
5x5 chipboard art journal
Love Letter and Newsprint DSP
Ink: Ridinghood Red, Black, Crumb Cake
Stamps: Artistic Etchings, Define your life
Decorative Label punch, small oval punch, spiral border punch
Big Shot and Fun Flowers Die
Vintage Brads
Big Shot Adhesive sheets