Craftapalooza! Part II

Bonus craft! I turned some photo albums which were gifted to me over the holidays from this:

to this!

Do you have a journal or photo album you like but don't really love? Is the outside not worthy of what will be inside? It's time for a change, love!

QUICK STATS:

Cost=FREE

Time=4 days, about 30 minutes each day for crafting, then 23.5 hours of drying time...

Difficulty Level=So easy!!! Cut, glue, watch glue dry...

Materials:

-Paper or fabric to cover book/album outside

-Paper of fabric to line inside book/album

-Glue (appropriate for covering medium you are using)

-Water

-Paint brush

-Glue gun

-Scissors

-Pencil

-Clear coat (optional; used for my project to prevent the newsprint from bleeding onto hands)

HOW TO AND OPTIONS:

I used a seed catalogue I had saved from a bye-gone growing season; once I removed the staples in the booklet, each page was long enough to cover the outside of the albums. The albums I happened to have been gifted have some plastic pages to house photos which are fused to one single long strip of plastic along the binding and could easily be removed. If yours can't be removed, they can be left in place. Certainly, do not pull them out if you can't think of a way you can reattach them! This project can be done with them in place.

1. I tore out the inside section along the binding that housed the photo pages and set aside to glue back in later.

2. I spread thinned craft glue (water + glue) with a paintbrush all over the entire outside (front, outer binding and back, almost making it lie flat). I then centered it over the section of the paper I wanted to "showcase" on the front. I used my fingers to smooth out some wrinkles (some remained on mine due to the thin newsprint used).

3. I trimmed the paper about 1/2 inch beyond the album around all sides.

4. I folded the overhang to the inside and glued it down, mitering the corners.

5. Set aside to let dry for a day.

6. Sprayed clear coat on outside of album (I used 3 coats, 10 minutes apart as directed on the can, then let dry 24 hours as directed on can).

7. Sprayed clear coat on inside of album just around edges of paper covering (only 2 coats here, let dry 24 hours again).

8. Cut paper for inside of album to line (I just used plain white card stock but I'm sure you could be much more creative). I used a glue gun to cover the back side of the card stock, then pressed it down. I used one piece for the inner front and one for the back, leaving the binding section bare so as not to impede the folding action of the album.

9. Using glue gun, spread glue over the section you ripped out that housed the photo pages, then press in place.

10. Fill with pictures (or words, or drawings or whatever your book is for), make a label for the outer spine and show off on you mantel (or hide it from prying little siblings if you are 15 and it's your diary).

This could go so many ways! Again, the idea was what do I have lying around that I can repurpose and make these not-so-me albums more ME? Now they fit in with our living room a bit more than they previously did and reflect our Craftsman style. Hmm, I might need to make a little gardening journal from scracth with the leftover seed catalogue pages for the outside cover and maybe some inner details....oh no, here we go again...

Craftapalooza! Part I

Behold-the Mystery Craft revealed!


So what is it? Let's start with the inspiration. Here is one of two jewelry boxes. Looks ok, right?

WRONG! It's a tangled mess of necklaces with many many earrings jumbled in.

This is what you do with the Mystery Craft.

It lifts and separates! Ha ha...

Now, all the details you know you want so you can make one too. I used stuff I happened to have lying around the house so it cost nothing to make. Can you make one using recycled crap too? I think you can!

QUICK STATS:

Cost=Free

Time=1-3 hours. More if you are painting your frame, less if your frame is good to go.

Difficulty level=No real skills required. Can you cut, glue, nail? You got it!

Materials:

-Picture frame (did not use glass or back piece)

-Fabric, paper or some backing material (or none!)

-Acrylic paint (if you want/need to paint your frame)

-Sewing machine (if you use fabric and want to sew it)

-Thread

-Glue gun and glue

-Nails

-Picture hanger for back (if your frame does not have one)

-Beads

-Hammer

-Scissors

-Pencil

HOW TO AND OPTIONS:

The frame is a picture frame Nature Boy bought on the cheap. He used the glass inside the cheap frame to place inside a wooden frame he made himself for a picture for the nursery. So the frame was just hanging around for a while. It was red in color which I would have left as is, except it had a big chip in the paint on one side that more than likely occurred whilst hanging around Knitsburgh. Again, the crimes, they are so frequent and alarming here.

I painted the frame with some acrylic paint I had from bye-gone projects. It took two coats after Ms. Madison Penelope's close inspection (she added a smudge and then left a metallic taupe paw print on the newspaper I had spread under it on the table--what we call evidence. Had it not been for her inspection, one coat would have been enough). If you don't have paint, maybe some decoupage work about the frame (thinned glue with smaller pieces of paper)? After painting, I got out my fabric and found a piece that I liked. You might choose to pick paint and fabric together; I did this step a bit wonky and lucked out with fabric that would match.

Once my fabric was chosen, I turned it wrong-side up, traced around the outside of the frame, then cut it out. I then ironed it, turning the raw edges under and basting the hem so it would not unravel and would look tidy on the back. You could honestly skip sewing and just iron the edges under and glue them with fabric glue if you are not into the whole sewing thing. Or if you are more of a paper person and have paper and not fabric, back it with paper. Even stamping something on a brown paper bag, then wrinkling it up would be cool and rustic-looking. Maybe for your campsite? Or make a collage for the back out of magazines, catalogues, whatever. The point is to use stuff you just happen to have around.

After I hemmed it, I got out the ole' glue gun and just glued the fabric into the frame opening from the back along the innermost edge where the glass would normally rest. I glued one side first, then stretched the fabric a bit and glued the opposite side. To be honest, my first try got it on there a bit wonky but I just pulled it off, pulled off the glue from the fabric (it came right off), then redid it a second time. With thick fabric I think a staple gun could also be employed instead of gluing. I then nailed in a picture hanger (my frame didn't have one cause someone also used the back part) at the top center of the frame. After flipping it to the front, I gathered up some beads and nails. I had some larger-holed beads that fine finishing-type nails would fit through. I put each nail through a bead, then nailed them in. I used 5 nails for the top and two sides of my frame (15 total). You could use more or less; you could also add some to the bottom edge if you like. You could also use longer nails to hold more stuff or say bigger thicker things like bangle bracelets. After the beads and nails were in, the glue gun reappeared and I simultaneously glued some greenish beads to the nail head while gluing the silvery beads to the underside of the nail head (so they sandwich the nail head and will prevent your fine jewels from sliding onto the floor). Don't have beads? Maybe buttons? Macaroni shells that you painted? Old game pieces from that Monopoly game you and your inebriated friends trashed? Pine cones (for that cabin jewelry holder again...)? Stones? Bottle caps? Again whatever you have laying about the place and speaks to you.

And that's it! Oh, except for hanging it and spending your evening untangling all your fine baubles, that is....

If someone makes one for a cabin, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE send me a pic!!! Or if anyone out there makes one at all, really.

Also, this was just my way of doing this; see HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE for some other ideas/inspiration.