Smile and Cherry Blossoms

I was inspired by the annual Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C. to create this going-away present for a friend.  This project is very easy on supplies.  Just a few sheets of paper, ink, covers and bits of ribbon, to make a book of pockets and tags.  Instead of directing the canvas to the outside of the book, I chose to ink the canvas and use on the inside.

Steps I took to create this project:

- Ink the canvas side of each cover with your choice of colors to match your project.  Lay aside to let dry.  When dry, adhere paper to the smooth side.

- Make five pockets using 6 ½” x 12” pieces of paper.  Measure so that the width is just a smidge smaller than the 5” width of the covers.  No need to adhere the short end of the pocket shut as the wire binding will serve the same purpose.  Punch small arcs into one side of each pocket edge.

- Make five tags by layering patterned paper on cardstock that is slightly smaller in width than the pockets.  I made the tags a little long so that they would stick out of the pockets.  Round the edges and add jumbo eyelets.  

- Braid four lengths of twine to make loops for the tags.

- Punch the covers and pockets.  A tip for those times when you don’t have a ruler – to be sure that you are consistently punching so that your covers or your inside pages all match up, use the wire guide on the side of the Bind-it-All.  My intent was to center the cover for punching without the use of a ruler.  I eyeballed how much of the cover stuck out from each side of the Bind-it All, trying to get it as even as I could and then used the little wire guide to mark the end of the cover.  I punched the cover and without moving the wire marker, added the second cover up to the wire guide and punched.  I did the same process with the pockets.

- Bind the project.  Make sure to put the back cover on top of the front cover before binding so that the closure after binding will be on the inside of the back cover.

- Add additional embellishments to the cover and put the tags in the pockets.

Supplies:

• Zutter Tools/Materials:  Bind-it-All, Canvas Art Board Covers:  5” x 7”, 1 ¼” white O-wire, Corner Rounder
• SEI – patterned paper, cardstock
• Stampin’ Up! – jumbo eyelets, ink
• Timeless Twine - twine
• Doodlebug – gems
• ColorBok – clear sticker
• lace, burlap, flowered ribbon

May the fairer months bring you inspiration to make beautiful gifts with your Bind-it-All!

OZZ Lea Sanders

http://leasanders.wordpress.com