This is my second mixed media contribution to issue 15 of Crafter’s Inspiration magazine using the free dies and embossing folder.

Altered Notebook Instructions

Difficulty level– moderately experienced

Time for project – approximately 2 1/2 hours

Materials

Blank Kraft notebook

Water colour card and mount board

Tacky glue

Collall glue gel

Dies

CI15 die set

Small nesting square die

Leonie Pujol Letter sets

Embossing folders

CI15 Ornate Lace folder

Darice- Script and Floral Paisley

Stencils

Sheena Douglass –Groovy Flower Power; lattice die cut

Colouring materials

AquaTint inks- Numbers: 58;53;16;34;26;27;03;06

Distress ink-Seedless Preserves; Picked Raspberry; Twisted Citron; Lucky Clover and Mermaid Lagoon

Pastes

Pebeo Deco Creme- Concrete relief paste

Pebeo Deco Creme gold glitter medium

Pebeo Gilding wax- King Gold

Finishing touches

Gems

Ribbons

Patterned paper from Sara Signiture 12 x12 pad- ‘Little Angels’

The Method:

Open the ring-binder on the notebook and remove the front and back hard covers leaving the pages intact.

Emboss 3 sheets of watercolour card using the Script, Paisley and Ornate Lace folders. To add the first layer to the book covers, cut the Paisley and Script embossed card to size and stick down. To disguise the centre join, fussy cut the lace shapes from the magazine folder embossed card and stick on top.

Die cut 3 small squares and all the elements from the magazine die set as follows: 3 watercolour card bird bodies and 3 in mount board along with the wings; 3 sets of flower heads and leaves; the heart and stemmed flowers cut once- (setting these and the birds to one side.) Stick the remaining flower heads and laurel leaves on top of the embossed front cover for added texture. Add the stitched design to the die cut squares using the free die from the set and die cut the letters ‘A’ ‘R’ and ‘T’.

Using the stencils and embossing paste add some additional texture on to the front cover, sticking any leftover flower head die cuts on top. Leave to dry.Paint front and back covers with white gesso inside and out. Leave to dry.

 

Using AquaTints, paint blocks of colour in diagonal sweeps across each cover and when dry, seal with Deco Creme gold glitter.

Take the 3 watercolour card birds and emboss using the Ornate Lace folder, remembering that one bird will face a different direction. Try to line up the pattern with where the bird’s eye is to be placed. Stick each embossed shape to the mountboard. Colour the birds and the stitched squares with AquaTints and inks.

Gild the birds with gilding wax along with the wings, letters and the left over flowers, heart and leaves. Assemble the elements on top of the front cover using tacky glue and Collall gel. Ink around the edges of the covers inside and out with distress ink.

For the finishing touches, cut the patterned paper to size and line the inside of each cover. Put the book back together. Add ribbon to the ring binder and accent the front cover and birds with sparkly gems.

Tips

1. Achieve neat edges by sanding any uneven card.
2. The sticking down of buttons, tissue paper and wooden or metal embellishments also creates texture prior to gesso being applied.
3. If using texture paste the fast drying type is best. The Pebeo relief paste is light and fast drying.
4. Gesso can sometimes dull water based colour mediums so by using sealing mediums the faded colour can be revived.

I hope you like it. x