A Sweet Mini Album Tutorial w/Suzanne Sergi

One of my favorite papercrafts to create are mini albums. There's nothing like holding a chunky book, filled with special memories of your loved ones. I love creating them as gifts, too. Especially when I have family in Texas that miss some of the special moments in our lives. Of course, I love them just because. I have mine sitting on a shelf, and they're accessible to my children to sit, and enjoy!

When I first saw the Random collection, I knew I wanted to create a mini album with photos of my little girl. A few months ago, she was invited to a birthday party, so I took this opportunity to hold a mini photo shoot with her. She does not like to sit still for long, but I was happy to find a few ones that I'll always treasure.

This book measures approximately 6.5" x 6", and is filled with all the gorgeous elements of the Random collection. One of my favorites from the collection are the chipboard pieces. They're so deteailed, and the options are endless! Of course, I mixed brads from some of the past Crate collections, along with random bits here and there! I love to include stamping details where I can, so a few pages have ink. I'll also show you how to add "windows" in your books, by using dies from your scrapbook stash. In my recent Peppermint Album, I used a circle die to make windows on a page, where you can see the elements on the other side. In this mini, I used a rectangle Sizzix die, which I'll admit received it's first use for this book! However, it was the perfect size to create "windows" for wallet size photos.

A closer look at the cover. it's a mixture of the many random chipboard elements that build upon, layer after layer. I do enjoy the premade embellishments that coordinate fabulously with these papers. They're wonderful to stand alone, but do not be afraid to remove some of the layers to instantly have two elements to choose from. The pink flower and pink scallop were originally one element, but I chose to separate them for more added detail.

I love hanging tags on the outside of my mini albums. This time, I decided to do something a bit different. I incorporated a photos of my little girl using the polaroid chipboard element from the collection. A fun pinwheel, border sticker and twine finished this sweet, surprising tag!

One of my go to techniques is using embossings folders in my projects. They add instant texture to the papers, especially ones that have a white core. The one used on this page adds a bit of vintage character that compliments the photo perfectly!

Glassine envelopes are perfect to tuck journaling inside, but they're another way to incoporate more photos in your book! I love when I can add more of my favorite photos in unexpected places!

We've finally reached the tutorial for creating windows in your mini albums.

To create the windows for you photos, you'll need the following: Cardstock/Pattern Paper, Chipboard Pages and a Rectangle Die.

However, don't forget about any basic shapes you have in your inventory! There are so many ways to use them!

You'll need to cut down your paper to fit your chipboard page and you'll adhere the paper to both sides. Now you're ready to send it through the diecut machine.

I made a bare template at the beginning and if you look closely, you can see where I lightly penciled in where I thought the die would cut. This page is a little shorter than 6.5" due to the opening of the machine. Now, it doesn't really matter that this page is going to end up a little shorter than the others, after all, this book is about using Random Items!

Here, I'm getting ready to cut the opening on the lower hand side of the page. The die is placed horizontally as it enters the machine. There really are no hard fast dimensions because where the die will cut is predeterimined. I simply got creative with chipboard and saw that it would be perfect for creating openings in my books!

The result is a finished window in the lower right corner, so the next step is to create the vertical window in the upper left corner.

You'll now have a template that looks like this on both sides. You an add your photos on a separate page so that they peek through, or use it to display some fun embellishments from the next page! The leftover pieces are perfect as embellishments, too!

You can see that I used a wallet sized photos beneath each window. Another idea is to use the windows to bring attention to either a title or personalized journaling!

A couple of more pages of my sweet lil' girl and we'll be almost finished!

Almost the final page and last detail share from the book! The photo was the perfect ending for my book! I loved it so much, I printed it twice specifically for sharing on the very last page of my album!

A simple tag and gorgeous pattern paper represent the end! I hope you've enjoyed what I've created via Random! Thank-you for following along - have a wonderful weekend!

Comments

What a gorgeous album It's so beautiful!

Posted by: Kelly Jean | August 26, 2011 at 05:26 AM

Wowwwwwwwwwwww! This is GORGEOUS!! Thanks for the tips! :):):):):):):):):):):)

Posted by: Julie Tucker-Wolek | August 26, 2011 at 05:31 AM

This is really wonderful! Gorgeous book!!

Posted by: Carol (ScrapMomOf2) | August 26, 2011 at 06:27 AM

Girlee, this is GORGEOUS!!! Not only is your daughter beautiful, but so is every single page. LOVE the layering!

Posted by: Aphra | August 26, 2011 at 06:43 AM

I'm speechless. It's jaw dropping

Posted by: Cheryl Leong | August 26, 2011 at 06:54 AM

Perfect ...

Posted by: Jê Pereira | August 26, 2011 at 07:21 AM

GORGEOUS!!

Posted by: Lisa C. | August 26, 2011 at 07:30 AM

Absolutely stunning, Suzanne!! Your work is magical!!

Posted by: Amy H | August 26, 2011 at 08:34 AM

wow, do I love this!!

Posted by: heathyr | August 26, 2011 at 10:30 AM

Just stunning, Suzanne! Perfection on every page. I love it.

Posted by: NancyD | August 26, 2011 at 11:41 AM

Suzanne this is such a beautiful reflection of your daughter in such a small package. Love the way you've decorated the mini with such delicate pieces and gorgeous layering!!

Posted by: Melinda Spinks | August 27, 2011 at 04:25 AM

I love this album! Especially the colors and layering! :-D

Posted by: Maria | August 27, 2011 at 05:31 AM

Love it! Love it! Love it!!!

Posted by: GloriaH-TheLastOfNine | August 27, 2011 at 07:24 AM

Sorry to repeat...but first word that came to mind...GORGEOUS!! This really is stunning. The products you had to work with are beautiful but you really do wondrous things with them in your mini albums and layouts. This one is no exception! TFS!

Posted by: Becky B. | August 27, 2011 at 08:36 AM