Easy Tag Ideas Using a Single Sheet of Paper

December 22, 2016

Journaling card patterned paper is some of my favorite. It's the paper with the various cards on it that can be cut out and used in any number of ways. Take this Christmas sheet from Simple Stories...

I used it to make quick and easy tags. 12 tags in about 10 minutes, to be exact. Hooray for quick crafts!

Step 1: Cut. It. Out.

Step 2: Use an existing tag as a template to cut the cards into tag shapes.

Step 3: Color (or not) tag reinforcement stickers (you can get a bunch of these at The Dollar Store--score!).

Step 4: Punch tags and add stickers. Badda bing. Badda boom. Tags are done!

Step 5: Dress up those gifts. I used ours on our neighbor gifts. It added a small handmade touch, which is always nice, even if I am short on time this year.

TIP: Many sheets of paper like this (including this one) are double-sided, which means you'll have a two-sided tag, just right for decorating and writing.

Step 6: Send your cutest elf and most handsome Santa Man out to make merry.

A SPECIAL THANKS to Chocolate Covered Wagon at Gardner Village for providing the tasty treats. They were a huge hit.

BONUS IDEA

Another tag idea is to take scraps of cardstock to make mini card bases. Dress them up with a single accent (I used a piece from my Rudolph book) and you have a bitty card tag--great for gift cards!

Cheers!

Turn a Favorite Storybook into a Cherished Holiday Scrapbook

December 2, 2016

Bookies, you may want to avert your eyes. I know the idea of gutting an old book can knot the stomach. And this book was printed in 1984, making it nearly as old as me. Eeep! Oldie but a goodie, eh?

I will add that I got the idea of scrapbooking within a story book from my crazy-talented librarian friend, so I feel a bit better about the whole thing. I mean, if a librarian can do it, it must be okay, right? (Thanks for always inspiring me, Kim Jackson!) Let's look at it as a way to give the book new life and a new story to tell.

So, for starters, I gutted a book that I picked up an at antique store for $4. Doing so was a process of carefully removing the staples in the spine and removing the pages. I tore some of the spine, so I can't stress the "carefully" aspect of this step enough.

Once the pages were out, I used one as a template to cut pages for my album. I cut from cardstock and patterned paper, scoring each sheet thoroughly as I went. You want the page to turn with ease.

From Storybook to Scrapbook

Once my pages were cut, I set to decorating them. If you aren't familiar with a "December Daily" album, it's one that focuses on telling a single story each day in December, a time when there's much going on. To do this and still have plenty of time to enjoy the season, people often create the foundation of their albums ahead of time. The key is keeping it relatively simple so you're left with room to still be creative with the photo(s) you want to use each day and the amount of writing you want to do. With this in mind, I left my pages pretty basic. Take a look!

Title Page

I left much of the inside cover as it was. I love iconic artwork of the Little Golden Book. I added a holiday photo of our family to help make those spirits bright.

Pages 1 & 2

DESIGN TIP: If you're going the storybook route, design your pages before binding them into the book's cover. It makes it easier to work with the paper and helps protect your fragile book. Fragile if you're using an "antique," that is. (Still hate that something younger than me is considered an antique. *sob)

Pages 3 & 4

I made a pocket on page three. Nice to have a spot to tuck in extra photos and/or memorabilia. Let's hope something happy happens this Saturday. :)

Pages 5 & 6

Pages 7 & 8

Another pocket page. This time, I punched a half circle in the pocket to help identify it as an opening.

Pages 9 & 10

Pages 11 & 12

Pages 13 & 14

DESIGN TIP: When creating your pages, only put glue towards the center of each page, this way, you can lift up edges and tuck things beneath when the time comes to dress the page up.

Pages 15 & 16

Another pocket! Vertical this time. Let the tucking continue.

Pages 17 & 18

Pretty Plain Jane this time. I must have been getting tired. ;) Good thing I can go back and add to it when the days arrive.

Pages 19 & 20

I intentionally left the tag dangling free so it would offer more real estate on the back, should i want to add an additional photo or more journaling here.

Pages 21 & 22

That little enamel Christmas tree sticker! Does it get any cuter?

Pages 23 & 24

DESIGN TIP: When making a full album like this, it's easiest to work with a coordinating package of paper and embellishments. It makes matching colors simple and takes the guesswork out of coordinating the accents. This adorable collection is from October Afternoon. A VERY special thanks to Brooke Mathewson at CK Events for hooking me up. The girl knows what I like!

Drum roll, please...

Page 25--Christmas Day!

I adhered a small envelope to the back cover as a place to contain tickets and other memorabilia we might collect this month. I can't wait to see what ends up inside.

If you want to see more about the book and ways its original artwork can be repurposed, I invite you to check out my latest Studio 5 TV segment below (or at link to the left).

Thanks for your interest! I'll share the occasional finished page of my December Daily book on my Instagram account. I hope to see you there sometime soon. In the meantime, I hope your December days are merry and bright. <3

Create & Celebrate! It's World Card Making Day 2016! (giveaway)

October 1, 2016

Hello and happy World Card Making Day! A creative holiday near and dear to my heart. Did you know I was part of the team who actually MADE this day? Yup! You can make nationally recognized - or internationally, in this case - holidays! When I first started working for Paper Crafts magazine in 2006, we put this holiday in motion. It's SO AWESOME to see how much it's grown over the years!

The original purpose behind WCMD was to kick off the holiday card-making season. Those who make their holiday cards know this is a giant task. As fun as it is, it's one you want to start on early. The first Saturday in October, to be exact. ;)

And the first Saturday in October, it is! So I'm here with a holiday gift card-holding card idea. It's a companion card to the one I created for Scrapbook & Cards Today magazine, where I now work as the editor-in-chief. You can see all of the BRILLIANT business going on there with a little click here. BUT, before you go, I hope you'll take a moment to check out this little number.

Do It To It: how to make this card

To create this card, I started with a gorgeous piece of patterned paper from My Mind's Eye's new Sugar Plum collection. LOVE! Here's how to turn the sheet into two cards:

1. Fold the pretty paper in half and remove an inch along the bottom using a trimmer.

2. Slice the folded sheet at a place that feels like a good cut-off point for creating two cards. Machine stitch (or glue with strong adhesive along the bottom ONLY) the one-inch strip to the back of the card to create a matchbook effect (a placethe front of the card can tuck into).

NOTE: For this card, I tucked a vellum treat bag between the card base and the strip before stitching to secure it in place.

3. Add a mellow pattern to the back, inside panel of the card, offering a place to add a sentiment or handwritten note.

4. Dress up a basic shipping tag with patterned paper and stitch a small strip of paper to the bottom to create a pocket that a gift card can be tucked behind.

We'll pretend this is a gift card to your very favorite shop instead of a poorly written note on the back of a business card. ;)

5. Pretend this is a gift card. ;) Add the card to the pocket on your tag and tuck it in the bitty bag.

6. Final step: Cut a small slit at the card's fold that you can then pull the twine of the tag through. This way, the card doubles as either a gift tag or a tree ornament. I just adore cards that can be used in various ways.

IDEA: Create this card, add an itunes card, and wrap up a cool set of headphones (if they even call them that anymore). Add this card as the tag on the gift for a little extra jam.

Card #2

To see how I created the second card in only 20 minutes, check out my specific post on the Scrapbook & Cards Today blog. There's a giveaway in it for ya. Woot!

WCMD Giveaway

Since World Card Making Day was originally thought up as a way to kick off the holiday card making season, how about I throw a giveaway into the mix? You know, in the spirit of the season and all? I'll select a winner to receive my 10 Festive Christmas Cards for the Busy Crafter class from Annie's Online Classes.

I'll also throw in a card stash goodie box, filled with fun things you can use to craft your own card cuties. I'm doing a major home purge at the moment, so the box promises to be full. I can't swear all items in it will be the latest releases or even holiday themed, but they'll be goodies. I can promise you that.

How to Enter

Simply leave a comment on this post or email me at meghoeppner @ gmail with WCMD16 in the subject line between now and next Saturday, Oct. 8. I'll randomly select a lucky lady or gent from the notes received.

Thanks for being a part of my World Card Making Day today. I actually made this card TODAY so I could create a card ON the actual holiday. It was an awesome way to celebrate. I hope you're having a great time, too.