Staying Home 2020 Tag Book

Hello everyone,

I don't know about you but I've been doing even more recycling than usual over the last few months.  I have been setting myself a challenge to use as much as possible to avoid sending it all to the recycling centre, or having it pile up in the house, since the recycling centre was actually closed for a few months, but has now reopened with restrictions.  So this project is all about using some recycled elements and to make a record of life during lockdown.

Today I will be using elements from these two COVID-19 art sets to make a mini tag book.

And I will also be using some toilet paper tubes!

And part of this cereal box.

The first step is to flatten the toilet roll tubes using a bone folder.

To make the hinge that will hold the TP pages together, cut a piece of cardboard from the cereal box that is just a tiny bit shorter than the tube, so that it will be able to slide inside the tube.  The hinge I am making is an old technique which, from memory, I think is called stack the deck.  I can't really give any measurements because they are all based on the size of your toilet roll tubes and every brand is different.  My tube when flattened measures approximately 4 x 3 inches, but yours might be different so make sure to measure everything before cutting.

Pieces to cut:  

- Three pieces for the hinge, each one wider than the previous one as these will sit inside each other and "stack". The middle of the small one should be 1/4 inch, the middle one should be 3/4 inch and the larger one should be 1 3/4 inch.  Then allow 1/2 - 3/4 inch on either side of that for the flaps.

- One piece for the cover.  The size is up to you, depending on how you want your tag book to look.  I made my covers 4.5 inches square so I have a lot of space around my tube, top, bottom and sides, but you could make yours the same size as the tube if you like - just remember to account for the tags that will be sticking out of the tubes!

Making the cover

I covered both sides of my cover with black gesso.

Then I used a combination of brown metallic acrylic and brown fluid acrylic to paint around the edges of the outside of the cover.  This is because I plan to add my papers to the middle only as I wanted a border around the outside, but you could cut your paper to the same size as the cover and cover the whole thing.

Paper selection.  I decided to use the Tim Holtz Abandoned paper stash from my collection. I chose three papers for the tubes and one paper for the outside and inside covers.  

This is an 8 inch paper, so I cut my covers into 4 x 4 inch squares, so I could get both inside and outside covers from one piece of paper.  I like to round the corners to make it neater and to stop them getting dog-eared.

Cut the papers to cover the tubes.  I cut them as one long piece so I could wrap it around both sides and fold it over the other side.

When they are all covered they look like this:

Now it's time to slide all the tubes on to the hinge.  This hinge has space for six tubes, but you can always make it larger and add more tubes.

A funny thing happened when it came time to glue the papers to the outside and inside covers.  I turned them over and decided I liked the reverse side better!  The colours really stand out against the brown acrylic so I decided to keep them that way up.  Edge all the papers with Archival ink to hide the white cut edges and then glue them in place.

Once all the papers are glued on to the covers, glue the hinge onto the spine.

Decoration time!

Choose your elements and cover them with white gesso.

Once the gesso is dry paint them with the color of your choice.  I painted mine this bright lime green using Paperartsy Limelight chalk paint.  As this is a tag book, I also cut some tags to fit inside my tubes and printed out some photos I took during lockdown - mostly shopping trips, queuing, social distancing, empty shelves etc.   I printed them on watercolour paper and then distressed the edges with my scissors.

For my cover I chose the Staying Home 2020 elements.

For the inside cover I used the lockdown and virus elements, and below is how it looks with the tag and photo included.

On another page I used the Wash your hands and hand sanitiser elements, and you can see another one of the tags and photos.

Here's another one of the tags and photos, this time showing the empty shelves in the supermarket.

Here's a look at the inside back cover which uses the COVID-19 element.

I used the biological hazard element on the spine of the book.

As a final touch I outlined all the letters on the cover using an Stabilo pencil, you can see the different it makes between the 20 on the left and the 20 on the right which has been outlined.

Finished Book

And that's the finished tag book!  

This could be used to record messages, journal entries, photos or just your thoughts of this time. I have added my photos to the tags but I still have some "empty" pages, so I could also add some photos or journaling on them.

Hope you enjoyed this eco-friendly, recycling tutorial.  Let me know in the comments!

Bye for now,

Elle

Empire of the Cat

Project Recipe

GSL:  Covid-19 art
toilet paper tubes
cereal box
gesso - white, black
Paperartsy Fresco Chalk paint
metallic paint
fluid acrylic paint
Tim Holtz Abandoned paper stash
Archival ink
Adhesive
Corner rounder or corner punch (optional)
Tags to fit inside tubes (or make your own)
Photos to fit on tags or tubes
Bone folder to flatten tubes (optional)

a creepy collective

In our house, the arrival of September means that Halloween planning is fully underway.
To get into the spirit, as well as create a fun place to tuck mementos and pictures from the many spooky celebrations, I have created an extra large tag book I am calling "a creepy collective".
This is the first of a two part post. In this post I will explain how I assemble the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts tag book, and in part two, I will be sharing all of the decorated interior pages, loaded with fun Halloween chipboard pieces from Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts.

There are many different ways that this book can be assembled. It arrives flat in nineteen pieces, providing copious, varied surfaces for you to finish in your own style. Although I believe the traditional assembly would be to hinge along the short flat side of the cover tags and pages, I decided to hinge my book at the angled side. This leaves me added space for embellishments. Because the tag book is not pre-cut for any particular binding method, it allows you, the end user, the option to bind in any method of your choosing. As you can see, I have used a ring binding method.

So let's begin...

Here you can see all the wonderful pieces that are included in the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts Tag Book set: covers, 6 pages, 6 inserts, 3 accent tags, and 3 belly bands. The covers are heavier weight chipboard to accommodate many mediums.

Each of the interior "pages" are pre-scored and have a small flap along one side. To assemble these pages, fold along the crease line and then use a bone folder across the fold for a crisp edge. Add a line of adhesive (double-sided tape or quick dry glue along the edge of the flap that folds in, and secure. All of the pages are assembled in this manner, allowing for them to be used as "sleeves" to tuck tags or papers inside. This will make it super easy if you want to include any brads or fasteners that may need to go through the page, later on.

I often tend to have elements on my pages that overhang the edges, with this in mind, I decide that it would be fun to stagger the lengths of my interior pages. Once I have secured all of my pages, I determine the differing lengths for staggering. I cut down each page as necessary.  Knowing that I want a halloween theme for my tag book, I pull out all of my halloween papers to find the perfect pieces.

When selecting the papers for each page, it is important that you determine how you will be hinging the book, as well as the direction that you intend for the book to be "read." Since "a creepy collective" is going to be a flip book, I adhere the pages with any patterns/graphic in the appropriate direction. To reinforce the folded edge, I add washi tape to each side, prior to adding any decorative papers. This is not a required step; however, if you intend to create a more interactive book, it is always a good idea to reinforce.
Using the staggered pages as guides, I trace the outlines and cut the shapes from my decorative papers. The edges of the page, as well as the decorative paper, are inked, and then using double sided adhesive tape, I attach the papers.

Now it is time to work on the front and back covers. Since I anticipate this book being handled a lot, I use distress collage medium to adhere the papers to the covers. The collage medium adds a protective coating that will withstand much use. Once the first layer of paper is attached, I add torn pieces of worn wallpaper. I hope to achieve the look of a gallery wall in an old haunted mansion. The wall paper peeling and a collection of family portraits hanging. When the collage medium has dried completely, I add crackle finish to random areas, concentrating on the wall area. the resulting crackle is accentuated with a rubbing of walnut stain distress crayon.

 Once all of the pages have been covered and the front and back cover finishes are dry, I determine the best location for my binding holes.The first step is to determine the onset of the interior pages, be sure that wherever you decide to place your binding will incorporate the pages. I decide to use 3/16" eyelets to accommodate the binding rings. The holes are set an appropriate distance in to allow for a border around the eyelet. Using a crop-a-dial I punch my holes and set the eyelets. The next page is aligned, and the hole locations are marked then punched and eyelets set.

This ensures that all of the holes will be lined up and the pages will be easily flipped.

Gothic die cut letters spelling "a creepy collective" give title to my tag book. Framed found relatives, some wearing jeweled die cut masks or Gypsy Soul Laser Cut little crowns, hanging on the wall complete the front cover.

The rear cover is finished in a similar way to the front; lacking the relatives, this cover is stamped and reads "and then there were none." A rodent from the Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts creepy critters set is inked black, covered with collage medium, and attached to the bottom corner, trying to take a peek inside.

I hope you are inspired to create your own tag book,
I can envision this being made in many different themes, for any holiday or special occasion.
I look forward to sharing the completed interior pages in my next blog post.
I have really enjoyed working on this project
 and appreciate you taking the time to stop by the blog.
~Ann

Gypsy Soul Laser Cuts used:
Tag Book (coming soon)
Creepy Critters
Little Crowns

other supplies used:
supplies:
Distress Archival Ink: black soot
Distress Collage Medium: matte, vintage
Distress Crayon: black soot, ground expresso
Distress Ink:
 black soot, carved pumpkin, antique linen, ground expresso, walnut stain
Distress Marker: carved pumpkin
Distress Oxide Ink:black soot
Tim Holtz Ideaology:
adornments art deco fames, adornments halloween, halloween paper stash, foundry frames, halloween story sticks, hinge clips large, remnant rubs, worn wallpaper
Tim Holtz / Sizzix Alterations:
masquerade, spooktacular alphabet (retired), stitched ovals, stitched rectangles
Tim Holtz / Stampers Anonymous: Mr. Bones