Mini Albums: Sketching Your Story

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Mini Albums: Sketching Your Story

If you have some insight into how you sort of sketch out the story I used post it notes and I was like, ok, maybe I'll do this there and maybe I'll do this there but what's your process like when you're thinking about what story you want to tell and what best would house that yeah that's a really good tip our question and tipped with post it notes you know, it depends on the length of the event for me so I know like the hospital say that was four days that's bite size with the many album you kind of think bite size or is many album doesn't have a theme it's just here's a bunch of my cute kid here grandma go brag right? So that would work well so photo count memories documented certainly are going to influence what you use where is her first year of life? I can still do the many but it is far more involved lots and lots of layers lots and lots of sizes and in this case the pocket scrapbooking was a great choice for me because I know I can get more into it also printing collages and not ...

just for by sixes helps that like, you know, to get the three by four size here and there so I know what the first year that's a lot of content I need a bigger book where the hospital is smaller that will help you also kind of you have to ask yourself, do I want this to be my family's? If you're are kind of a jack of all trades and you do both traditional scrapbooking? Well, that's in pockets or not, and many albums is a story or trying something you want to tell twice. I know people who tell and create pages for stories multiple times because they want one for each kid, so it goes in their album in their album in their album, they want for the family archives that goes in the family album they won't want in the mini album for the gift for grandma. So oh, my gosh, it's amazing! And my has all the way off to you, but it's a lot of work, so maybe just think, is this something I would mind not having in my album if I were to do it in a mini album? So you will probably notice there's very little in maggie's first year album about the hospital? I mean this if she's here shot it's like a page, though not, we don't have to eat up a lot of space in here because it's justice photo in this photo all the rest of the maternity and expecting, and then from there we're home after that, we're home. So I'm ok with that because I know I have this backup guy and these photos have their purpose here so it kind of helps you can either no okay, I'm gonna tell us I'm going to scrap a story about these twice but this one's from my perspective this one's from a facebook or social media perspective I'm just going to know that they each have their place and there's no right or wrong there and again it is entry many too many this could be my full on twelve by twelve album and this is my little guy that I keep for maggie and hand off to her and kind of like her hope chest or something so that is a really I hope that kind of helps answer that question of how you know how to tackle it with the project life and planning sketching certainly works pocket scrapbooking because you you will want to kind of know what needs there in front of you and what products you're going to want so I would look at photo quantities if you have a photo sizes if you know that already I have six three by fours and twelve four by six is ok the knees pockets I should be good if you don't know that yet just kind of let it happen organically and this is I can definitely speak better to this because that's my style I'm very what's inspiring me motivated and visually stimulated so it's hard for me to teach I I know how and I do my very best to teach that structured planner but my right hand tendencies adjust put it out there if it's so great that your other creative live instructors becky because she and I would go about that one hundred percent differently and I think that it's perfect she's very organized, very structured she has did just what you said you made pick this tip up from her but the post it notes in the pockets this will live here this will live here like you it sounds like very planned jamari. Yes, most somehow yeah, yeah, you know, the buzz in the hallways, right? Where may I think if she came in here right now, she might just paint because, like it's everywhere, right? The bomb went off and this is my craft room twenty four seven I am not cleaning up of a guest is coming over by doing okay. Hi welcome. You know I don't I can't I can't be that way and they're certainly studies that show creative people. Beckett are both creative very it doesn't mean one's right and one's wrong, but we are motivated and stimulated and different ways all the way to with the way we organize my organization is very out in the open clear canisters like I showed you what this is right from my house, you know, I want to be able to see what I have so is still contained it's organized it's pretty, but I could be inspired. Oh, yeah, I have those cause I remember what's in front of me where I've actually photographed and done articles on becky space. I didn't photograph it, but I've written about becky's face. She has closed cupboards, you know, very tidy need. Becky higgins, I should clarify becky higgins is behind project life and a former colleague of mine. So we have connections and it's fun to be here today because she helped me get here, which I very much appreciate and it's just there's no right or wrong and that's beautiful thing and there's a place for all of us and yeah, it's both in your crafting in your organizing the whole way through the stuff you like, you know, if there's something for everybody this community's very welcoming and that's a great insight too, because as you're going about this process and maybe maybe the scrap booking is something that is meant to loosen up. Some of those tightness is even in the way that you approach things and just to have fun and teo teo not see any of the mismatched or the the you know something's missing here or whatever it's just put a sticker on it yeah it's you know I modify it yeah that make your own and that's that's really interesting insight so I'm glad you think so because like with this hidden comment part that I had and I showed you may not like this I'm guessing this probably isn't your speed to have the genre like that where there's on the side they're going the wrong way because you're pretty linear and plan right that's ok then don't do it you can work around that but that doesn't bother people that think like me though all right but you have your ruler out and you draw your straight lines for your journaling rhymes like me you know and it is long as you enjoy it and those who are in just looking at it appreciate with the work he's done that's the only thing that matters well you know what I did I outsource the writing to my husband who has better handwriting I don't love my handwriting with covers like you elsa one thing I will say to you however is don't shy away from it entirely well your husband's is fine that's fine but don't just print some people print exclusively their journaling they printed up on their printer at home type it up in their word processing program and cut in our printed out and trim around it or whatever. On that's fine there's a time and place where? But if you just rely on that part of you is not there right? This is this is me, this chicken scratch but me and as I mentioned earlier, my box of letters from my grandma in my closet I actually go through fairly often and that's her writing and her penmanship is so beautiful. And I see my mom ten writing in and I even see elements of find however there's this far for cleaner than mine. But I don't want my generation's past me to not have that when I'm not here anymore, you know I mean so do a little at least captions or sign the back that could be your thing. Your backpage gold crown, right? If you sign your name there something so that a piece of you's in there too I would that's my soapbox yet you don't know you've walked into a land mine they're sorry that's always my my, you know, put you in there too. S so, yeah, we do have a question from jammy who says when meghan is making a scrapbook for gift, how does she decide on size and complexity versus simplicity? That's a great question. Well, for me, I gotta be frank time procrastinator so sometimes it's just the parties and three hours you got to get her done. And that's when I tend to go for one of these divided pocket approaches, maybe not this much so but you can put ribbons on without much effort. He's there maggie homes, ribbons by american craft, and they go right on that plastic. So, you know, and because I do so much in mine, um, in the moment with e the aps like this is that instant place app that we looked at yesterday to do that stamp of where we were that kind of date stamp. This is the I think this is rana rana designs app that artwork on there. So the pages, this one is the bouquet full so that's a little tunnel that she got for christmas. This is that heart light um, burst, I guess some burst and then remember which app that was probably rawness have been my guess so because I've done so much of that just enjoying in playing along the way when I print them put them in the book, they kind of look embellished already. So it's a great time saver that work has been done and printing doesn't take that long. Throw it in the book and then thanks also to the different cards like we are memory keeper's I wanted to open these I don't even let everyone at home see how amazing these are we'll do that too but the thanks of these you can just throw him in and it's past where this one there's there's two reasons behind the one I shared with you today my camera album yes it was it took time and I'm sure that's what they're getting out while that took you a long time but when I had it as a teaching point I don't know if you would do all of those I just wanted to be a nice sampling of approaches that we could take to incorporate our journaling are our comments but if it's for somebody you might hate to pham picking and cheese and you know I have my family members versus a friend but that sounds terrible but sometimes you do spend a little bit more time on like a book for grandma then you made for your best friend and these look like they're all fancy and decorated already they look like they've been die cut so let me show you a few you put these in and you look like you spent a long time on it but really just drop him in queen pointless to get some of the way so we have the insta framed this pack includes frames and tad, you can have some little captions right there in your hand reading jari way have these pretty frames here I love this look right now this negative space look is very popular thanks to many or die cutting machines that cricket the silhouette whether you just leave a hollow like that or if you feel it by layering it over something else to change the look in the style it's a huge thing is fun that these air already cut for you because that's the time saver and you get that cool hip looking you're crafting more frames and then this is where phyllis is saying it's spoke spanish in english so you are wonderful and to every simplemente marvel mario so right and fill it probably as well as they could have but it's both sides both languages and that's not again not always the case but I think it's cool that this kid by we are this is called into rose this collection so you know, got tio finally kind of conclude the answer short answer away long um you could get that homey touch and still be quick and fast and drop it in and not feel like your your skimp in the fact that you're doing an album as a gift even if you just do a photo book you know have that uploaded from your phone printed that is awesome there's not a writer wrong from a time intensity point of view, the fact you're sharing your memories, your you win that, I promise if you need a gift that will impress, I assure you, with one hundred percent percent confident many albums will win. They will. People love it. People love is much as you do. You know that sentiment, that aspect of it have going down memory lane. So any help that help answer the question a little bit? Yes, I actually just can't. I thought maybe a long time ago, what I do over the weekend, they came across a little flea market. They were selling a stash of old altoid tins. Yes. And I like how you make an accordion. I've seen an accordion out of it. Yeah. Ten. So I think these would fit in there. There? Yeah. To making an accordion shape to fit. Oh. Glad you asked that. I kind of just had doing according buddy and break it down. Yeah. Let me show you. There are some tricks. First of all, if you're going to use your in stacks ones and you do have to trim them all reiterate for people at home, tio. Cut into the wide part of the white because if you get too close, can you see that seymour and you don't want to hit the then you get it, the ink will start to come out so that's tip number one, because the tin may need to be, those may need to be altered just slightly to fit in. I'm not sure, but I love that you found those by the right. That was a very big thing for a while, people would make their many albums from these little tins for protecting its hard and keeping your purse, like when I had that I was showing you that kind of was getting tourney. That wouldn't happen there on dh it's also fun for people, there's, something called an eighty c or an artist trading card that allows stamp er's used, and they put those they could put those in those tens of like their little, you know, file a fax of all their artist trading cards, so that's an idea, but for the actual accordion itself, the doing of it, if I should just demel anew and I'll show you mine first, I made it tonight, I'll be ample, I'll be enough, this is actually just a piece of paper twelve by twelve from the sheets you have it's double sided so this is one side that pretty floral and then the lines or the backside, and I cut this too was a four by twelve by the time I relearned verify that just slightly larger than my image. So slow you other than you're in stacks in your case. Um, yeah. Four by twelve and then equally every three inches or four inches. Excuse me. That right? She'd written down three. I was right. Three inches. So it's. Evenly spaced, I would score and by two scores, you know, how did have you ever used to scoring tool? No. Okay, that's fine. You don't have to have when there are tools that are made specifically for that. And it's like a big board withhold like slots inner canal then and you run your it comes with a bone fold or some kind of impression tools. And you put your paper over and run it down the those little canals and it's. Nice. Because that keeps you in a straight line. It's helpful with scoring. You can also score with your paper trimmer to create the accordion effect. You could just fold it. I would recommend you. You score it, it's a cleaner fold I didn't score here, you can see what happens look, he gets that. It kind of that white core starts to show through so what I do more than needs my scoring tool if I just take my paper trimmer and it's got that same kind of canal or div it right there were the blade runs and I'm gonna stick my pattern paper in here it's a good trick on the go chief not the hall you're scoring tool with you they're nice to have I gotta have one but this is a big time out and about and I just line up where I want to score in that canal I don't run my blade, but however you can purchase little blades that hook into your tremor that argument for scoring and not cutting so that's really nice or for me I will just take like a blunt usually like a paint brush in this so maybe a little too wide but I think that work a blunt object rub on applicator tool a bone folder I sometimes do to their tips, but I try not to enlist some desperate zahra little sharp and it serves the same purpose I could just run it on there and pulled it and then I have these nice crisp folds and to complete the accordion aspect, I don't want to make sure that that for your case that the base is anchored to the ten so you see how minds anchored to my book and just clued that down that's where you would want to get a really strong and he said, because it's a medal that you're hearing two does not help you good I'm glad you asked that thank you that's a good question any other tips for from your peers about using tins and making many albums with accordions that holly can take away, huh? Gloria you're katie, you're kelly, you're phyllis, you can you want add if you do it too short and you open it yeah yeah, yeah, I think it's long enough if you wanted this like twice as long, I've done that thank you for mentioning that I've done that in my books before where I want more than for you want a little more here, right? So just a second row continue to score it and know that where the scenes are you just said here one to the other like right on top it's like that fear your center point and build upon it and you can do that as much as you want. So something I like to do is take there's a twelve by twelve piece of paper where has all those different three by four journaling cards designed into it? I cut out rows of those score them and gloom together for a big book and it's fast and the in stacks look really cute on their thanks for asking really cool is to see now that the actual making is happening the crafting is an action I see phyllis is showing her stuff off over there. Anybody in any one of our students would like tio maybe show what what they're making that's a great the best part of this hobby is none of yours will have be the same yeah, I'm contagious that it would be great musical get something, eh? Sure show intel times my favorite has chosen a little portion of one of the first phrases and I cut it out oh that's smart for your window that's a great tip so that's a part of a phrase and she put that in there and position in such a way that it works on both the the cover with the window had been also works on the inside so it's a two for one effect that's perfect and how cute heated the doodling the penan stitching that I love this when you do a dash line like that that's referred to his pen sittings that looks like a machine stitched it of great see this cute girls looking as she did I love how bright sunshiny it is too nicely done about you, my dear he got one this year I only want to know I was doodling on a cover you were doing on the cover that's so awesome it's darling and it's kind of like that throwback to when I go to school in on your lockers yeah I went to an older school well all covered in the deals I was being kind of selfish because I always scrapped for other people so this book is going to be my instagram so it's all about me and my you know so that's why I doodled on it because that's kind of who I am I mean that's the reflection that's cool, very cool I think you mean on the inside this is a nice idea and where the windows are you have the corrugated paper for that added texture yes. It's moved the numbers that's what I was just doing but oh yeah very nice and he just punched it yeah, yeah, I know it's just paper corrugated paper and I punched yeah, because you fear cute um e I love it like he said, do you like my notebooks in school? Yeah, I love that exactly. That's what? I still might be coughing hikind I about over you can't, you know, analogy underachiever a ce forest are you put the quote in the window I got that don't don't drop it is this glue and it's not look at this she has the she did the penn stitching, which I love but with the brad card is that when you're brad cards is awesome, she has that in that window so that quote can shine through that is a great idea I never thought of having a quote in the window, you know it's really yes and that's what I wanted to emphasize with both of these two you can see they didn't leave, I'll show you katie's in just a minute they didn't leave the cover there you actually did use a craft night or did you just trade put on paper traced the hole with a rock star hasn't lineup if you looked at well, please outline what kind of work around for that but I know you know, but I'll mention in case others don't is if you put this down on you want to cover chipboard with paper a good idea and that's why I asked creative life friends here and they were so nice to accomodate um they provided you each with the glue stick at home just good old glue stick is the way to go because you can put this just hearing on there'll be shy on the chip board and then put your paper on top and the trick is to start from the center and push out as you would hear the two together not way you will you're less likely to get air bubbles he kind of starting and work that bubbles out to the edges glue sticks are probably the best way to go when you're taking paper to chip board that's one of the only times where I go to a glue stick first and foremost, and then from there, your europe, your normal everybody's going to have a little bit of overhang it's not going to be an exact match because you hand cut it that's incredible. If that's the case, you can take like a nail file, or am I standing block or they actually make when they calm distressing tools and you can run along the edge and just smooth out those edges so it's a little bit more of a fit he's kind of filing it down, and then the final touch. What you've done so nicely is called thinking to have it on the bottom two. Yeah, so once you've finished those edges, if you take a little like your two impacts from close to my heart are perfect for this because they're small and you could hold them in your hand. Now that makes thinking so easy to kind of finish off that edge and go to really polished fill you can just brush directed papers, what is called inc the edges, if you want a less director paper, could be a little bit messy. If you actually get the impact on the paper itself so if you want a softer look and you want to take the edge is take a sponge dauber makeup sponge which did that in your income it gives you more of an airbrushed or a soft cloudy look. So be also some tip to covering chipboard I was thinking about doing that with my book and I didn't and I'm so so glad that you did so I could still share it that's fantastic kind of bones and look what's happening here this is so cool let's see what I want to make sure that people at home can see it you have created a shaker and did you just use one of your page? Protected is one of the whatever they take a flip flap and you sandwiched between the base of your book and the paper you cut out that any filled it with sequins and then it's like mardi gras pin they're right that is so cool really fun really fun to see this is why the show and tell great ideas john greeks we all have such different approaches on things and then I just love that that's so cute did you use a certain kind of it? He said that would be helpful to point out you just use your permanent runner great and then on the balco did use thes um, toe hold down the shakers because I cut it on a big fan of saving your stuff, so I didn't use the whole one eye to cut to size of the night s a field, so she cut part of the flip flop awake shouldn't need the whole thing. Plus, if you do something, it might be a little bulky. We just needed the round part. So to reinforce to make sure that the shaker are the foot flap stayed in place, katie was saying that she just took some washi tape that hagel on rosie ruby tape and secured it down to reinforce and make sure the sequence state where you wanted him. Okay, thanks for the album. I love it so cute, very you know, you know, this is a great example. I would do one more thing if I may, um you want I don't know that I just going to show a side by side on the direct to paper thinking this is you to plan this perfectly, so I said I could get a little bit more messy or exaggerated. He looked around the window, the shaker here that is inking director paper where it's kind of like paint splatter, brushing paint on their where kelly she didn't even do it on the center, but then on the edge, it's very clean very clean so it can go any way you want it to go. We see that over and over again but it's so nice that you two have illustrated that perfectly with your samples. This is very you and this is very you and that's. Wonderful. Well, thank you for sharing those here. One more tip about covering chipboard since we were on topic of that anyway, that might prove helpful is if you are putting your paper down on your chipboard cover and the cover doesn't really count if you're doing the inside pages and you've put some paper on here and you really security in place and then you turn the back the book over and do the next page of paper, make sure before you add your second piece of paper and security in place, you punch your whole again because otherwise, if you cover both sides, is kind of a guessing game where that hole went and you wanna make sure you can I always have that kind of marker that landmark there for you. So I think that is, uh for the minis I'm trying to make sure I'm not forgetting anything or leaving anything out just know that many albums are an awesome option with you want to create a break or like glory so wonderfully stated want to do something about yourself for a change I think that's great uh gift says the online audience has mentioned whether it's for really time consuming gifts like some of mine may have maybe or just a nice thoughtful but not huge investment for you gift they worked that way as well they're wonderful for a couple of days of an event or an entire year it just depends on, you know, it's kind of what you make of it and certainly you can just do an album that's already designed or you can design the cover on your own scrapbooking and crafting and memory keeping should be about keeping your stories living on and being fun, not rules and I have to do that because she did so you can see that here there's something path to take and what we used to go with it there the point of clarification that sunni whisk is saying that they're curious about you know why using something in an album because it's popular now why not go for more timeless designs if you're scrapping with the idea of scrapping for posterity? Well, you're saying your style evolved? Yeah oh he's not using it because it's popular issues that's what you have that's what's available to purchase and it just kind of your style naturally evolves around that product, for example is pocket scrapbooking that is a newer thing it's not brand new but it's certainly newer and so you know that if you're coming upon your timeline of albums when you get to the pockets section oh, that happened from the state on because that's when that became available and was a trend I don't really think pockets crap it's really a trend anymore she's a style we take s oh yeah that's a great point and I'm really glad that clarification was requested cause I don't mean to imply that something has to be done because it's trendy I'm not very trendy myself, but more just because it's fun to try and learn new things in it everyone I encounter and teach and play with in this regard we like tio continue to broaden our skill set and try anything than dabble in play and by trying new techniques and new products available to us it allows us to do that so and then of course they're going to land somewhere don't just do that and throw it away so they land in your books or your they land on your cards and that's what I mean by the supplies used in the decorative edge scissors and the vellum and all that I never throw mine away are just using because they're cool it's just as far as like it's just like any other industry there are things that so well and then they kind of go out of style and they come back in and the same is true with hobbies. This hobbies big and then it's kind of on the back burner and this one's big it's cyclical. It doesn't mean it's, um, bad ty's, decorative it well, they're in, they're in again. But to use something that may not be the anything that's, that's. Not at all. I was just kind of a joke because people think that one was so what for a while and now it's like a big bridge, you never loved it, so it was kind of just illustrate don't throw away your crap because he can craft but your stuff because you want to use it later if you're not using it now. Yeah, yeah, and even those the scrapbooks that we have from, you know, looking back at our childhood memories and in those may not have been a timeless as maybe the person who made it felt they were at the time, but it still holds that time, period. That's what I like that that's. Why I like it. I prefer that and it's a natural. You know a side effect but that's why it's awesome, you know, like me with my name mrs grossman's and this is grossman stickers I say that kind of the punchline but I love back that's so my high school days and that's so how I spent my lunch breaks was pulling out those roles, the stickers and they were on if you aren't familiar with it, you'd go in the scrapbook store, they usually be a hole while of stickers on roles do you need to remember this? And you go and you so like candy shop you need to see all these stickers I'm kind of a well product junkie, especially stickers and pull office and you could just tear they were perforated, they could just tear off the amount you wanted, like the penny candies, right? And so I could say no, yeah, my high school somewhere the stickers that I love that about it and I wouldn't change it in a minute no way do I use them a lot today I've started to again, actually, which is kind of funny, but no, no, I hadn't been before this I just use a different form of sticker and then maybe ten years from now they'll remember the thinkers by american crafts and how we all love that it's this is a natural progression of crafting and supplies

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