So. I will show you how I braved shaped albums and eventually became addicted to it! Trust me, it is very easy and simple. Did I mention addictive too?

Supplies:

• Shaped chipboard album. I used Kaisercraft Train Album
• Digital kit of your choice – I used the awesome Owen’s Room Kit by Wishing Well Creations
• PVA glue or Mod Podge
• Brush or sponge brush
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Hole puncher
• Binder ring
• Ribbons
• Foam tape
• Colored corrugated cardboard

Let’s do this!

First of all, print out the papers and elements you’d like to use and then trace the shape of your album face down to the back side of your printed paper. You can do it the other way around but sometimes busy patterns make the line not visible enough.

Cut out the traced shape of your chipboard album page and also punch holes on them.

Apply a generous amount of PVA glue but be sure to even it out. This is why using a brush or sponge brush is important.

Adhere your cut out shape of patterned paper. A good tip is to adhere it while the glue is half way to drying so it’s tacky and prevent bubbles especially when your paper is thin (like mine). Not to worry if bubbles appear though, simply peel back the paper and adhere it again. If the glue is too tacky to peel back the paper then simply even out the bubbles using an atm/credit card or your hands.

Lastly embellish your finished pages with embellishment and photos. Assemble the album by putting on binder rings and tie colorful ribbons to the rings.

See how easy that was?

I promise you it won’t take more than a few hours to complete this. This is also a great gift for anyone. Simply leave it embellished but don’t put photos on it so that the receiver can put it themselves.

This time I thought it would be fun to show you a little toilet paper roll album. I got this idea from my friend Cheryl Walker. She really makes the most amazing little TPR albums and I always wanted to try one, but never did, so now it was time to create one.

Mother’s day is coming and I think it is the perfect gift for my mother in law. She adores all my papercreations and has a large collection . She shows them off everywhere and, in this album, she can add her own little pictures and notes. She can carry it easily with her where ever she goes as it is small and it doesn’t weight alot.

Materials you need:

• 3 toilet paper rolls
• Printed design papers
• Silhouette cutting machine or other brand
• Ruler,scissors,cuttingmat, folding bone
• Ribbons and Lace
• Double sided tape, glue dots or whatever you want to use
• Martha Steward Doily Lace punch or any other border punch
• Eyelet tools to punch the holes

First, you print off the papers that you want to use. For this album, I used the Water Color Blossoms kit by Paper Garden Projects. I wrapped the paper around the toilet roll and glued it together with double sided tape. Then, push the toilet roll together as shown below. You can use a folding bone, but I used my nails to make a nice looking fold.

Here are the 3 rolls all covered. I used eyelet tools to hammer some holes in the corners. We need the holes to keep the album together with ribbon.

I used the cut and print action from the Silhouette Cameo. If you have never used it, it really is very easy. Open the Silhouette software and load the cutting/printfiles. Print the items you want from the silhouette software and add it to the silhouette cameo. The cameo will recognize the print marks and it will cut out your elements. It even cuts the doily’s to perfection. Add the elements to the paper rolls or as you can see in this picture you can use border punches to create the fancy borders.

For those of you that don’t own a silhouette or other electronic cutting machine, you can do this by hand too. You can use a hole making tool like this in the picture that is normally used to punch extra holes in belts etc.

When you add the elements to the paper rolls make sure you only glue them on the outer edges as you want to stick little tags and other fun elements in between the rolls and the borders/lace/ribbons.

You also add the tags to the sides so they slide into the toiletroll. Just add a large and sturdy ribbon to it so it will stay goodlooking.

This is the back view of my little album unfinished.

And here is my finished project.

For the last finishing touch, I used the Silhouette cut and print tool again to cut the delicate flowers that are in the Water Color Blossom kit. You can add as much or as little as you want. I can tell you it is easy to go overboard with the last decoration so be aware!!

The back view but now all finished with the flower elements.

I hope you enjoyed my project. I have never created something like this before and it is something I will definitely do again for a special occasion.

hugs Ria

Here are Melissa’s top three favorite peeps (in no particular order) from our last challenge:

• Allisa
• Maria
• Manderly

Congratulations!!  Please grab our badge and display it on your blog!!

Now on to Card Caravan #19. Can you believe that it is already the month of May?  May is “Flower Month” so of course we just had to use that as our theme for this go-round of the Card Caravan.  We would like to see your creations that use at least 1 flower.  You can create cards or projects to share with us.  Here is some inspiration from our team to help get you motivated:

Melissa created this sunny wonderful card using Summer Wildflowers Paper Pack by Wishing Well Creations.

Jen created this beautiful card using Heart You by Sherwood Studio:

I created two cards using Water Color Blossom Kit by Paper Garden Project:

This month’s card template is inspired by my love of paper blocking. One of the things I like to do a lot, both in digital and hybrid card projects, is to use multiple blocks or strips of paper.

When I download a new scrap kit, I can never decide what papers I like most, so finding a layout or template to show off LOTS of pretty papers always makes me happy. All those little bits of perfectly coordinated paper! Love it!

Whether you are a digital scrapper or hybrid artist or purely paper creator, we’d love to have you join along in this month’s challenge. Here is the blocked paper card design I’ve put together for the May challenge. If you are a paper creator, please feel free to use this as a sketch to inspire your card making!

For you digital and hybrid crafters, here is your template download. (Just click on the large image below to visit box.com to download the template.)

*A note about the A2 card size* I’m in the U.S. and I know A2 as card size of 4.25″ x 5.5″ – a standard letter size sheet of paper folded in quarters – but someone mentioned to me that the A2 means a different size elsewhere. Sorry about the confusion! A2 in this template is 4.25″ x 5.5″.

This is my card using the template and Bee Happy by Danielle and Mari from Danielle Engebretson:

Ready to play along? Here’s everything you need to know to participate in the challenge!

This year is a special Mother’s Day in our family, as both my husband and I lost grandmothers in the past year—so each of our mothers will be marking this first Mother’s Day after the loss of their moms. Because of that, I wanted to send them something more personal than a gift card or a pretty scarf, so I turned to my computer and got to work! Digital tools are a fantastic resource when you need to make two identical (or nearly identical!) gifts, like these.

I wanted this gift to include two parts: a remembrance journal and a keepsake to display. I used The Digichick’s Boutique Collab Emporium to create both the journal and a gift box.

There are many options out there for online printing. For this journal project, I used Blurb.com, where there is a template for a 6×9 “notebook” with lined pages (you can also choose unlined or gridded pages and you can opt for a soft- or hardbound book). My softcover journals have 40 pages; eight of the pages are simple layouts with old family pictures of our grandmothers. On each of the remaining pages I typed a journaling prompt in the header box that was part of the Blurb template. I used questions that were “mother”-specific; I want to give my mom and mother-in-law a chance to write down specific memories of their mothers, to recall old family stories and to record lessons they learned from their moms.

For the layout pages, I created one basic 6×9 layout template, then rotated and flipped it to give the impression of variety! I filled in the papers and embellishments to make “quick pages,” so I could easily add the photos. This allowed me to make the pages just once, and then simply drop in the appropriate photos for my mom and my mom-in-law (Another awesome thing about digi!!). I found some favorite quotations on quotegarden.com and added them to a few of the photo pages.

In the Blurb software, I created the covers and journaling pages first because they’re identical in each book. Then, I duplicated the book and added the correct photo pages to each copy.

One quick tip: for continuity, choose just one or two fonts to work with throughout your project. I used Times and Times Again for the journaling prompts and for the quotations on the layout pages, with Susie’s Hand to emphasize a few words here and there. I kept the same fonts for the journal cover, gift tag, and box label too.

Note: if you use Blurb, be sure to Google “Blurb coupon code”; there are often discounts to be had!

For the “keepsake” part of my gift, I did some online shopping and ordered a personalized pewter heart ornament—handstamped metal jewelry and decor are very popular right now, and there are many good online companies, as well as a great selection on Etsy.com.

I used the Emporium collab to make a tag to attach to the heart itself, and paired it with Kelleigh Ratzlaff’s Correspondence Box template to create a perfectly-sized gift box with a matching label on the flap of the box. The template and tags fit, with room to spare, on a 12×12 photo print.

Because I was using the box to hold a fairly heavy ornament, I cut up the thin cardboard sheet that came with my photo prints and adhered it to the inside of the box to add a bit of stability.

After assembling the box itself, I added one tag to the flap of the box and dressed it up a bit with a tiny knot of lace around the “hook” of the birdcage and tied the matching tag to the gift itself.

I hope you’ll be inspired to take a look at your digi stash when planning your gifts for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, birthdays or other summertime celebrations! Be sure to share your gift and giftwrap creations with us in the hybrid gallery at The Digichick!

Supplies:

• Picket Fences by Wishing Well Creations
• Tootsie Box by Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs
• Rose in Bloom by Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs
• Scissors
• Adhesive
• Scoring Tools

After printing out each template, the first thing you’ll do is cut and score the box.

Next, I bent all the lines and glued the edges. Once the box is glued on the edges, it will look like this.

You will then take each side and pinch and twist to secure it. This box is nice because you can add your treat and twist the side to close it.

Once my box was done, I made the rose. I printed the template on one side and flipped it over and printed the same patterned paper on the other. There are three petals and when you cut them out you will end up with five pieces to create your rose.

The next step is to take the six petal flower and glue it. Then do the same to the five petal flower and the four petal flower. The two petals you will roll loosely and glue. Then the final part is to take the one petal and roll it tightly.

Once all the petals are glued, you can lightly roll the edge of each petal to give it a more genuine look. Add some glue and begin layering your flower until you’ve made your rose.

And here is your completed project:

To celebrate, the AMAZING designers at The Digichick have teamed up yet again to create another amazing kit to celebrate National Scrapbooking Day 2012. Collab after collab, our fantastic designers at TDC continue to out-do themselves. This kit is simply beautiful and perfect for using to document all of your family stories!

To get this kit, you will need to visit all of the Designer Facebook Fan pages.

Here’s what you can collect when you do!

There’s actually more in the kit than the preview shows. The preview doesn’t include the templates included in this kit!

You can start on anyone’s Facebook Fan Page. Each one will link you to the next one, and when you get to the end, it will cycle back up to the top. So you don’t have to start at Laura’s to get the whole kit.

Have fun and be prepared to drool!!!

Here are the Facebook Pages, in case you end up lost!
1. Wishing Well Creations –
http://www.facebook.com/wishingwellcreations
2. Elise’s Pieces –
http://www.facebook.com/ElisesPiecesDesigns
3. Just Jaimee –
http://www.facebook.com/justjaimee
4. Stolen Moments Design –
https://www.facebook.com/StolenMomentsDesign
5. Sarah J Designs –
http://www.facebook.com/SarahJDesigns
6. Alamama’s Pressed Petals –
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Alamam…s/151002412646
7. Dawn by Design –
http://www.facebook.com/dawnbydesign
8. Sherwood Studio –
http://www.facebook.com/SherwoodStudio
9. Wendy Page Designs –
http://www.facebook.com/WendyPageDesigns
10. Kimeric Kreations –
http://www.facebook.com/by.KimericKreations
11. Designs by Megan Turnidge –
https://www.facebook.com/DesignsbyMeganTurnidge
12. Paper Garden Projects –
http://www.facebook.com/PaperGardenProjects
13. Etc. by Danyale –
http://www.facebook.com/Etc.byDanyaleDesigns
14. Girl Boy Girl Designs –
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Girl-B…13186302038084
15. geniaBeana Scraps –
http://www.facebook.com/pages/geniaB…s/232696840794
16. Cluster Queen Creations –
http://www.facebook.com/ClusterQueen
17. enKay Design –
http://www.facebook.com/enkaydesign
18. Truman Studio –
http://www.facebook.com/TrumanStudio
19. Quirky Twerp –
http://www.facebook.com/quirkytwerp
20. Michelle Batton Designs –
http://www.facebook.com/MichelleBattonDesigns
21. Bella Gypsy –
http://www.facebook.com/bellagypsydesigns
22. Kelleigh Ratzlaff –
http://www.facebook.com/KelleighRatzlaffDesigns
23. Charm Box Studios –
http://www.facebook.com/CharmBoxStudios

And don’t worry…if you start partway through the list, the last one will take you to the first one. It’s really a loop!

Also, in addition to the kit, there are some amazing NSD specials in the Shop and a little birdie told me there are some coupons in the Facebook downloads too!!

Have fun! And as always, if you create anything with the collab, we’d love to see it so post your creation in The Digichick Gallery or come back here and link us up in the comment section of this post!

First, I cut some cute cupcake wrappers using my Silhouette Cameo. This lovely paper from Elise’s Piece A Walk In The Park has one of my favorite color combinations, so it was perfect for my birthday celebration.

I followed the tips Joana1n shared in her Spring Umbrella Tutorial for adding patterned paper to cutting files in the Silhouette Studio software and quickly and simply cut out a dozen of these wrappers.

Next, I made some small rolled paper roses. These are SO easy to make! Just cut a spiral shape from your paper, roll it up from the outside edge in, and add a dab of glue to the bottom. Once dry, I turned the petals down here and there and then added some tiny green leaves.

Finally, assemble your wrappers, add your topper, and get ready to par-tay! Happy celebrating!

Today I decided to make some little treat pockets….I popped in some little sweeties but I also thought these would be great to slide in a pack of those collection cards/sticker packs that the kiddos love to collect!! :)

Supplies needed:

• Kelleigh Ratzlaff’s Seed Packet
• Wishing Well Creations Brady’s Everyday Life
• Bakers Twine
• Velcro dots (optional)
• Clear bag for treats
• Treats to put inside your bag
• Adhesive, foam dimensional pads
• Small shaped die for the window on the treat packet (optional, you could use a punch or go without the window)

1. Gather your supplies and print out papers, I used Photoshop Elements to print out my papers. I then used my cutting machine to cut out the seed packet in colored card and then in the designer paper.  Adhere designer paper to the card seed packet and assemble with adhesive.

2. Add sticky velcro dots to the inside.

3. Pop some treats into a see through bag and put them inside the pocket.

4. Punch out a tag, write name on tag and tie with bakers twine aroud the flap of the packet.

That’s it! Enjoy!
Hugs, Bonnie x

Today is the start of our eighteenth Card Caravan Challenge!! Before we get to that, we’d like to say thank you to all of our participants of our last challenge! Lots of beautiful projects!

Before we announce this week’s challenge, I’d like to announce Jen’s Top three Favorite Peeps (in random order):
1. Wendy Coffman
2. Shelby
3. Eva

Congratulations to you! Feel free to grab our badge for your blog.

Our next challenge is inspired by nature. Feel free to include anything from nature–clouds, sun, flowers, trees, birds or butterflies–pretty wide open!

Ready to see how our team intrepreted the challenge?! Here is some inspiration from our card caravan team:

Jen made this adorable card using Stitches and Blooms by Michelle Batton and Card Sentiments 2 Digital Stamps by Arty Pants Digital Stamps.

Cathy created a beautiful and detailed card! She used Picket Fences by Wishing Well Creations.

LuAnn created this wood-sy, outdoor card using wood papers from the Absentminded Kit and her coordinating Facebook freebie by Etc. by Danyale and Elise Hansen’s Whooo Loves Ya? kit.

I used Elise and Nicole’s A Walk in the Park to make my nature-inspired card.



Thanks for coming by and we can't wait to see your nature-inspired projects!
Melissa and the Card Caravan team