Sizzix Triple Play Blog Hop, week 6: YOU Mini Album (Tutorial)

Week 6 of the Blog Hop is here! I can't believe 6 weeks have already passed and the hop is almost over. I love mini albums, so I was very excited to play around with Brenda Pinnick's Album, Brackets XL Die. I got paper and canvas pieces which made it even more fun. What made my happy feeling complete was the fact that the idea I had for the mini album solved a problem for me. When I put photos of my kids in my purse they always get lost and if I put them in a mini album it doesn't stay whole for a long time because of all the stuff I have in the purse. This mini is perfect for that because it has a bag of its own!

I took the two large canvas pieces, sewed them together and made a little special bag to put my mini album in. then I made the pages of the mini from the smaller canvas and paper pieces. I used a lot of fun techniques in this project, so I included a tutorial in the post so you can try them too.

Materials I used:

Sizzix Bigz XL Die - Album, Brackets, by Brenda Pinnick
Acrylic paint: plaid
Gesso: Ranger
Gloss Multi-Medium: Ranger
Foam stamp
Fabric letters: Prima
Ink: Ranger
Threads
Patterned paper: Graphic 45, Fancy Pants, MME
Letters: My Little Shoe Box
Buttons
Chipboard embellishment: American Crafts
Rhinestones, pearls: Queen & Co.
Lace
Eyelets

Bag:

1. Faux Batik on Canvas technique: spread Gloss Multi-Medium onto non-stick craft sheet. Stamp with the foam stamp into the multi-medium and then stamp the canvas. Let dry. Brush a watery paint mixture on top. After the canvas is dry add more colors to the stamp.

2. Sew the two pieces of the bag together leaving the top open. You can extend the sewing on the top side, but only on the front piece.

3. Color Change technique (optional): I changed the color of the chipboard bird to match the color scheme. Paint embellishment with Gesso. Let dry. Paint over the gesso with acrylic paint. Let dry.

4. Add fabric letters and embellishments.

Mini album pages:

1. Wash paint technique: brush a watery mixture of two colors on the fabric pieces. Let dry. Ink the edges.

2. Shaped pages technique: trace the shape of the canvas pieces onto patterned paper. Cut accordingly.

3. Add photo to each page.

4. Add title to each page.

5. Cut outs technique: create your own cut outs by cutting patterns and shapes from patterned papers.

6. Embellish the pages with buttons, rhinestones and lace.

7. Add eyelets to all the pages and tie with strings.

Keep hopping to see all the wonderful creations made by the other designers in the blog Hop.

See you next time!

Einat