Friday, October 16, 2009

May I Have Your Autograph? + GIVEAWAY!



Back in grade school, we didn’t have yearbooks. What can I say, we were twelve. We did however have a penchant for autograph books (and those hideous stuffed wiener dogs that were made of itchy white fabric and stuffed to the gills with so much sawdust that after three swipes of an inky pen they started to leak said sawdust all over the place). How lovely those autograph books were. With their pastel pages folded to alternate points, they were happy little bound bits of memories.

Often, as I encounter those that brighten my day, I wish for an autograph book to appear so that I may treasure that moment. Just last week I was at an author event and while I had oodles of kids books signed and garnished, I wished I had an autograph book along as well. And then I thought; what am I waiting for? I should make one for myself and so I did.

Using the Dill Blossom collection, I was able to create an autograph book that not only was useful but pretty to boot. Here’s how I did it.

First, I swept through the tiny casa in search of blank pages I could add to the book. Forgoing the buttermint look, I culled from my paper collection of newsprint, copy paper, vintage books and other fun pages. I thought that I could add business cards and other accoutrements to the printed pages while signatures could camp out on the blank pages.

Next, I sized my pages using a regular old sheet of notebook paper as my guide. I folded it in half width wise and tore along the fold so that I had two strips of paper measuring 4 ¼ by 11 ½ inches. I cut up the remaining pieces of paper to follow suit and stacked them all up on top of each other and then folded them in half.



Here’s the fun part. After you have folded all your sheets, play around with the ordering and layering. Once you turn all the pages into a book, the bulk of your pages are going to be folded into partial triangles so you will want a fun collection of solids and prints to shine through with plenty of accent pages in between.

Once you are set, stack all your pages up and cut yourself a slightly bigger strip from a sturdier paper, cardstock or thin cardboard. This will be your cover. Add your cover on the bottom of the stack and stitch or staple your binding. I like the way sewn paper looks so I stitched mine up using the longest stitch on my machine, which is a four. I had to make two signatures though as my pages were thick. (Oh, and yes, that is a lunch sack poking out just after the cover. I thought it would be neat to add a place to hold cards and other momentos).



Because I had to stitch up two signatures, I needed to glue those together. I uses a line of tacky glue as it is pretty pliable and I held the pages in place using two clothespins.



Decorate your cover as you see fit and once everything dries, go through your book and fold your pages into that classic autograph fold. Starting with the second or third page, fold down the corner so that it lines up with the edge of the paper and crease. This makes a triangle point. For the next page, fold down the opposite corner and continue on. Leave a few pages flat and add photo corners or brackets for future photos or cards.



My book ended up being quite fat so I hand stitched a strip of ribbon from the collection along with a button directly onto the front and back covers. Now I had a pretty way to keep my book closed and all its goodies inside. You can even scrap up a few of the pages to help you remember the event where you collected all your autographs or make a special book exclusively for a party you are attending. It’s like a wee mini collaborative scrapbook and it fits in your bag!



Now, if only we could throw a party right now and swap autographs. How nifty would that be?

Thank you, Jessica! Doesn't she have such lovely photos and creative ideas? She makes me want to get up, make the bed pretty, have some special oatmeal, and get baking and crafting. Lucky for you we are having a give away with the products Jessica used to make this autograph book so you can do just that! Just leave a comment by Sunday October 18th at midnight telling us which post was your favorite. We will announce the winner Monday. Be sure to check back next week to see if you are the winner because if we don't hear from the winner by October 26th we will pick a new winner!

49 comments:

Ashleigh said...

I really enjoyed the week but my favorite post of the week was the one about making the bed pretty. Thanks for sharing all of the inspiration :)

Shirley said...

another pretty bed person here!

Monika Wright | I Love It All said...

I have to say...the autograph book. I am a mini-album junkie! I love to look at them, I love to find new ideas used by someone else, I love to design them, I love to give them...

But, if I like oatmeal, that would be at the top. It looked yummy!

BethW said...

I am going with the pumpkin cupcakes-sweet treat for the mouth and the eyes!

Christy said...

My favorite post was the pumpkin chocolate chip mini cakes! In fact, I loved them so much that I made them that night... and they were amazing!

Colleen said...

I love mini books, so my favorite is today's autograph book. The cover alone made me drool I loved it so much

Lost Star said...

my favorite was the making the bed. It makes me desperate to be able to find some pretty linens like those used! :)

cindy said...

i have to say, i loved the macaroons post, but this post is my fav! :)

cindyascott{at}yahoo.com

Dawn said...

My favorite post was about the macarons. My husband and I went to Paris this summer, and those cookies are fabulous! Not only are they delicious, but they are so beautiful to just look at!

Blaize said...

Anything that involves sewing paper is right up my alley, so the autograph book is my favorite.

Digital Misfit said...

The whole week has been wonderful. I love this autograph book tutorial ( I ♥ papercrafts!), but my favorite was the Making the Bed post with the adorable pinwheel garland.
Totally inspiring!
heidig@gmail.com

Melinda AKA medialady said...

I have loved checking out the whole week and my favorite is the pumpkin cupcakes because I love pumpkins.

Anonymous said...

The whole week was great but I'd have to say I loved the Oatmeal post best :)followed closely by the pumpkin cupcakes...what can I say?! I love food. x

Shawninaz said...

The post about her bed. Luv that she redoes the look every month. How cool is that!

Lynn said...

I always love seeing JEK'a beautiful color photographs. She is one creative crafty gal.

Laura Stewart said...

love the autograph book !!

missprufrock said...

The post about French macarons was absolutely lovely, but I have to say that the bed post was my favorite as well. Bed linens are my weakness, a mix of vintage thrifted and new, and I love to pile on patterns and colors. All of Jek's photos were inspiring. Thanks

Anonymous said...

I love the current post on the creation of an autograph book. I love idea like this that doesn't cost a lot of money. Thanks for the idea and a chance to win some products to make this book.

Brenda Lubrant said...

My favorite post is the current one about making an autograph book. I really enjoy the tips on making one.

Emily said...

What a cute little book! Well, this project was fun, but I really loved the photos of the colorful macaroons, too!

Jenny McGee said...

I liked her making the bed post and her mad macaroons post. What a fun week. Thanks for a chance to win.

Brianna said...

This autograph book project was my favorite

Bonnie said...

Fun ideas!

Michelle said...

I love the making the bed post!

Unknown said...

I love the autograph book, Dill Blossoms is my favorite. Making the Bed was also a fun post...do I have to pick just one??

gracie said...

i love mini albums so my fave post is the autograph book. thanks for all the great inspiration!

Laura Mae said...

I liked the bit of sweetness post, those cupcakes look delicious! I totally want to try them.

ScrapAddict21 said...

I'm digging the autograph book! Such a cute idea.

Christine said...

There were so many great things but I loved the bed day because I've always wanted to make the French macroons but didn't even know what they were called. I can't wait!!!

Blessings,
Christine

Unknown said...

Each day I said"This my favorite". Having said that, today's is my favorite. But the message behind all this is most meaningful. I have started to look at things in a much different way. Thank you!
Sharon L

dawn said...

My favorite post of the week was making the bed pretty. So pretty and unique. I also liked the autograph book because I love new ideas for mini albums

Unknown said...

I really loved those toothpick toppers. So cute and creative.

Janette said...

Loved the making the bed post... how creative to switch things up all the time.

jenny said...

I loved the pumpkin cakes and Dill Blossom toppers - baked goods and papercrafting in one place = my idea of heaven!

Barbi Defazio said...

I really liked the Autograph book post. I love learning how to make some of my projects from "scratch" if you will.

Michelle said...

I love seeing a prettily made bed...but since I never - ever make my own, I will say the yummy goodies have my mouth a watering.

The Mize of Texas said...

I really loved the garland. The rest of the week was great as well.

Heather said...

I loved the autograph book!! Clever!

Dana said...

The oatmeal post is my favorite. Hmmm...well it is late and I am hungry. I am just really thankful for people who are really creative and can think outside the box. It helps me to make my box more pretty! Thanks for the great week.

Amanda said...

my fave was the autograph book. such a great idea!

Shirley said...

I am a sweet girl ;-p
so I liked the sweet pumpkin cakes the best!
And I really lov lov lov ur beautiful paper dessins!

LG said...

WOW that project is awesome. Thank you so much for sharing that step by step guide.

Flagstaff said...

The autograph book was also my favorite - love the paper and the mini album idea.

Melissa Kaye said...

I loved her post about making her bed pretty! I loved the creativity she used with it!

M.S. said...

I love "Making the Bed". I think that is great to hang things like she did across the bed post. I reminded me how I need to do that with my kids pictures!

Unknown said...

I love the making the bed post! It's so fun and bright! x x

Dacia said...

I liked the pictures of the macaroons! They are so colorful and oh so yummy!

Sue said...

I love he autograph book...all the pretty papers...

Unknown said...

I loved the macaron post and was inspired to find a bakery nearby, rather than order online (also for me, the usual go-to whenever inspired by blog pictures). I have a visit on the to-do list, to look forward to now. Thank you!

 

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