Currently, my boys are on "off-track", we are in a year-round district so our track is off until Thanksgiving. However, after we get back, the boys will only be in school for another week before we leave for our family vacation to Hawaii. ALOHA! When we get back, the whole school district shuts down for 3 weeks for Winter Break. It is my tradition to try to give a gift to the teachers at that time. Here is what I made this year.
Ingredients for Notebook #1:
A notebook/composition book to alter. Close to My Heart "Sentiments" Stamp set. Stampabilities "Sentiments" stamp clings. Stampin' Up ink in "Going Grey". Jenni Bowlin ink in "Spice Tin". Tim Holtz Distress ink in: "Antique Linen" and "Weathered Wood". Stickles in "Platinum". Ivory card stock and decorative paper, sorry this is from a collection I bought at Jo-Ann's over 2 years ago and have since thrown away the packaging.
Measure your composition book and cut your decorative paper slightly longer. You don't need it too wide, just make sure to cover the front of the cover, overlapping the binding slightly. Do this for both the front & back covers. (I cut mine at roughly 10" x 7".) Apply adhesive to the cover, ensuring to get the glue as close to the edges as possible, you don't want your paper lifting. Carefully lay the paper on top. Cut off the excess and round the corners of the paper with scissors (Quick tip: don't round before applying the paper, you can't guarantee a perfect match. Cut your ivory card stock at roughly 10" x 3.5", try to line up your card stock evenly to the binding and gently bend/mold the two together. Once you've got a slight crease in the ivory paper, apply adhesive to the interior of the crease, again ensuring to get as close to the edges as possible, you don't want it lifting. To ensure it will stick well, apply adhesive horizontally every inch or so too. Carefully, match up the top or lower edge of the ivory card stock to the book, using your hands, mold the two together, forming a firm bond.
Using the Distress inks and the blending tool, edge the notebook, front and back, as well as the binding. Stamp the "thank you" onto the left over ivory paper with the "going grey" ink. Hand cut the sentiment, excluding the banner edges. Use the Distress inks on the "thank you" to match, use the "spice tin" ink, to give the edge a contrasting color. Apply with pop dots. Stamp "your guiding hand..." sentiment with the "spice tin" ink. Apply Stickles to the tiny dots throughout the cover to give it that little bling.
There you go, simple but pretty.
Notebook #2
Ingredients: dark brown card stock for the rosette and the binding, patterned paper for the front & back covers, "Cinnamon" Stickles, Close To My Heart "Sentiments" stamp set, Stampabilities "Sentiments" stamp set, Stampin' Up ink': "Chocolate Chip", "Groovy Guava" and "Creamy Caramel", Demi-Pearls in the brown collection, glue dots and the Martha Stewart Scoring board.
Prepare the cover as stated above. When inking the edges, I did it directly from the ink pad, no blending tool. Ink up the binding edges as well. For the rosette, cut 2 strips of the brown card stock at 1 1/2" each. Use the MS Score board and score every 1/4". Ink the edges with "Chocolate Chip" and "Groovy Guava". (Quick tip: Make sure you choose the same side of card stock to be the "up" side, textured or non.) Use a strong adhesive to attach the ends together in one big ring/circle. Using a scrap piece of paper, say a 1" x3" rectangle, attach the rosette with glue dots, form into an oval to flow with the shape of the "thank you" sentiment, also adhere with glue dots to the front of the rosette. Stickle the dark brown pattern on the cover. Use 3 different sizes of the pearls and attach to the cover.
Here is a close up of the bottom right, including the sentiment stamped in "chocolate chip" and of the Stickles on the pattern.
Here is the finished project.
Here is another version!
Happy Crafting!
