ABC of Life Mini Album

Tinkering Ink is one of the sponsors in May for the Scrapbook Playground design team. (Stop by the Playground to see all the super projects the team has created!) As soon as I received an entire alphabet of large die-cut letters I was instantly inspired to create an ABC album. A while back I recieved the Signals catalog. I never buy anything, but almost always tear out a page or two to potentially inspire a future paper crafts project. One such "ABC" list of how to live came in handy for all those die-cut letters, and I created a cute mini album that would make a perfect graduation or mother's day gift.

This project consumed most of my Sunday. In hind-sight, I would have drove into Madison to purchase coordinating cardstock and skipped the stippling process. Although fun - it really added to my time. Especially since I did it twice- thinking I would only do the edges and cover with patterned paper, but then realized too much patterned paper would be distracting. SO my tip - if you want to create this project start out with cardstock in your preferred choice of color(s)! Alternating colors, versus going with solid white or black, adds a visual appeal when flipping through the book and seeing the same punched border edge take on a new color. Minor, I know, but it is fun!

Still need a quick gift for an upcoming celebration? To help you out I have written instructions. You can alter the size of the album depending upon the size of your die-cut letters. I don't know about you, but I have a hard time using LARGE letters on a layout - I rarely use monograms. I do believe I make a few more of these albums and make use of those large alpha die-cuts sitting in my stash!

ABC of Life Mini Album

Page Supplies:
Cardstock:
- 15 pieces trimmed to 5.75” x 5.25” (adjust size per the size of die-cut alphas chosen for this project)
- 28 4” circles in solid coordinating colors
- White sheet of cardstock to print out words
Patterned paper: (author used Tinkering Ink Al Fresco collection)
- 57 ½” x 5.25” strips of patterned paper in choice of pattern(s)
Sheet of die-cut alphabets
Paint (optional) – solid cardstock in white, black or coordinating color may be used
Ink – black for edging, colored for edging on “word” blocks
Pen – Sarasa .007 tip gel, black
Fonts: Social Animal (stamped look) and Candy Randy (downloaded from the internet)
Cover supplies: 3 large shimmer chipboard letters and brackets by Making Memories and Doodlebug, cut out design from patterned paper
Tools:
– border punch (author used Fiskars “Threading Water” punch
– circle cutting tool
– Binding tool – Use bind-it-all or secure with 2 O-rings

HOW TO:
1. Use border punch to trim long edge of all pieces of trimmed to size cardstock (note: use scrap paper of size being used to determine placement in border punch so that edges finish as desired. Use guide marks on punch to align each piece of cardstock in the same start position so all pages match)
2. use a stipple brush to paint cardstock if desired (eliminate this step if desired by using black, white or mix of solid colored cardstock – if mixing colors you will need 4 of each color)
3. Cut strips of patterned paper ½” wide and trim to height of album page, ink edges, adhere to each page allowing a 3/8”-1/2” margin to allow for binding, and approx. ¾” from edge of border punched design
4. Ink edges of all circles and position to overlap patterned paper strip along inside spine, leaving approximately 1/8” margin at bottom of page and along inside edge of outer patterned paper strip
5. Position all die-cut alphabets as desired – note that you may wish to tuck a “word” printed on white cardstock under an edge
6. Print words on white cardstock. Author used 48 point stamped font style for key alphabet word, and 24 point all caps for subsequent words on a page. Trim words into blocks and ink edges with contrasting color. Adhere to each corresponding letter. (Tip: author printed out a list of all phrases for visual reference to assist in assembling each page).
7. Carefully outline all alphabet letters with a fine-tip black pen.
8. Additional pages may be added to album to allow for photos. Author used black circles to be used as photo mats. Rectangular mats with rounded corners, and placed at an angle would also look nice on this project.
9. Create cover as desired. Utilizing chipboard alphas, or additional die-cut alphabets, allow for a quick design. Usiing foam 3D adhesive squares under the “b” add dimension and add interest to the cover. Print sub-title on same page as “life” words, using same font for consistency.
10. Bind mini-album as desired and enjoy!

Alphabet List:
Accept differences
Be Kind
Count your blessings
Dream
Express thanks
Forgive
Give freely
Harm no one
Imagine more
Jettison anger
Keep confidence
Love truly
Master something
Nurture hope
Open your mind
Pack lightly
Quell rumors
Reciprocate
Seek wisdom
Touch hearts
Understand
Value truth
Win graciously
Xeriscape
Yearn for peace
Zealously support a worthy cause

The Fiskars "Threading Water" border punch used as an edging for the pages in a rainbow of colors adds a very cool visual interest to this project. I hope you give it a try!