Teacher Appreciation Gift

Hello, Fellow Paper Crafters!

Tell Your Story Journal Set

One school year of homeschooling and I have gained so much more respect for those amazing teachers who year after year strive to educate our youth.  Today I am sharing the appreciation gift created for my grandson's ELA instructor.  She is simply awesome!

Alert! Alert!  Photo Overload!  

Save those strips at the top of the single 12"x12" papers.  I used those to make the banners on my flower.  The "Daily Junque" is a different collection, but the banner worked for this journal. 

Because Ms. R. Teaches English Language Arts (in my grandson's case, 9th-grade Composition and Literature) I thought a journal would be a perfect gift for her.  I have been holding on to this Theresa Collins "Tell Your Story" Kit for almost three years and finally decided to cut into it.  I was impressed with her ability to get our seventh-grader to do ninth grade ELA work.  His writing is impressive and he has been introduced to Literature that I first encountered as a college freshman.

Sorry about the lousy photo. 

The "Button Hole Stitch" bookbinding method is fun and easy for beginners (like me) to learn.  Sea Lemon has a great tutorial.

I decorated the signature dividers with ephemera from paper collections related to writing, typesetting, etc.  Although I did not create pockets on these dividers, I have done so on others.   

I did, however, include pockets inside the covers.  I added thank you cards, library cards, and a few envelopes.  I also found the perfect Washi Tape in my stash!

Lately, I want to deliver all my crafting gifts in hinged boxes.  

This one was super fun to create!

I created a note holder by lining the lid with business card magnets.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugz,

Chana Malkah

The Red Book of Westmarch - First Attempt

Hello, Crafty Peeples!

I continue my foray into bookbinding.   The Hubster is a HUGE fan of the Hobbit and Lord of The Rings Series.  I recently came across a Long Stitch bookbinding tutorial for creating the Red Book of Westmarch.   I didn't have any red leather and was not inclined to spend that kind of money for a practice project so I decided to use the faux leather fabric that has been propped outside my studio door for exactly one year.

I am so glad I did not invest in red leather.  My first attempt at the long stitching did not go well.  I am posting it here so that I can mark my progress.  I now plan to make three of these books.  One for my hubby, one for my eldest grandson, and one for my son-in-law.   For the real projects, I will order the real leather.  I could not emboss on the faux leather and I really want to add the emblem and Bilbo Baggins initials.

I really don't like this frame.  It probably would have been nicer if I had made it thinner.  Hopefully, I will be able to emboss the books I am working on now.   

The Long Stitch allows you to sew your signatures directly to fabric (or paper,)  The Red Book in the film is Case Bound, but I liked the look of the book in the tutorial.  When properly executed (mine is not) The long stitch makes a beautiful spine.

The inside of the fabric I used is like a moleskin and I decided to leave it in its natural state but stained with Distress Ink

I also used distress ink to age the signature sheets.  I used water color paper to make these signatures.
By the way, my grandson saw this and really liked it, so I let him take it home.  Glad I took pictures.  At least now I know he will like the "real" Red Book of Westmarch once I have it completed.

Thanks for dropping by!
Hugz,
Chana

A Book Of Spells

Hello, Crafty Peeps!

2017 is my year of creative exploration!  So far, I have found two new loves: Gelli Printing and Bookbinding.  A few years ago, I created a small book using Graphic 45's® A Ladies' Diary Collection and wanted to explore bookbinding in more depth.   This is my first effort and I was pretty pleased with the outcome.  I have started a new book and, hopefully,  my techniques have improved 

A STEAMPUNK JOURNAL

I used the Graphic 45® Collections: 

Steampunk Debutant and Steampunk Spells.

The book is composed of 14 signatures and 4 Dividers.  There are two signatures before and after each divider and one signature inside each divider.  

I use these beads sparingly but thought they were perfect for this book.  I wanted to cover the strings from the binding in a fun way.

I added extra stitches across the bottom to draw my strings together because I did not want to put beads on the bottom.

The front and back inside flaps are convenient for tags and other miscellaneous materials.  

I plan to embellish the pages in my journal as I use them!

DIVIDERS

Here are some shots of my dividers and how I used the G45® papers to decorate them.

Tutorials:
Buttonhole Stitch: Sea Lemon
Hardcover: Alexandra M.

Thanks for stopping by! 

HUGZ,

CHANA MALKAH