Going Green - Up Cycled Mini Album

Supplies

Container, we are using a box donated to the library

Envelopes

Wallpaper samples

Paint chips

Tissue box

Brad

White, blue, pink and yellow paper

Burlap

Ribbon

Double stick tape

Glue

7/8" Scallop Circle Punch

2 3/8"Scallop Circle Punch 

Artisan Label Punch

Boho Blossoms Punch

1/2" Circle punch 

To begin the construction of the album we will create an accordian fold spine from a strip of wallpaper cut 8.5” x 3”. Score 1” from either end and ½” increments between.

The one inch on the end is where the first envelope page will be attached. The next ½” space is the flat/valley  spine between pages. The 2^nd and 3^rd  ½” spaces will be folded up in a mountain to create the place to attach the second envelope page. Continue leaving a ½” flat/valley and folding a mountain until you get to other 1” end.  Use double stick tape on the wrong side of the paper to tape the valleys shut. This will give you a patter of 1” flat, score, ½” flat, mountain, ½” flat, mountain, ½”flat, mountain, ½” flat, mountain, ½” flat, score, 1” flat.

 

 

You can now begin adding your envelopes pages. To create the pages the envelopes were sealed and 3” cut from each end making little pocks. Lay your spine vertically and have all the mountains flatten so that they are pointing away from you. Put double stick tape on the 1” flat end at the top. Position the envelope pocket so that it is center on the 1” flat with the closed end lined up with the score line. Add double stick tape to the mountain below on the side that you can see and position your next envelope, lining up the bottom with the score line and the sides with the sides of the envelope above it. Keep adding envelopes to the other mountains.

 

  

 Put double stick tape on the 1” bottom piece and attach the last envelope with the closed side lined up with the score line. The sides even with the other envelope and the opening facing you.

You now have all of your pages attached and are ready to decorate.

 You will be decorating five layouts. Use double stick tape to attach the wallpaper and paint chips to the pages using the pictures below as guides. Attach the flower embellishments with a glue pen.

    

    

 The tabs you can see on the pages are inserts to slip inside the envelope opening. To create these, fold the decorative punched piece in half and use double stick tape to adhere to the white card stock. Glue the two blue tabs on the left, the two yellow in the middle and the pink on the right.  Glue a flower in a different color to the right side of the tab.     

We can now decorate the cover. Use a piece of white card stock to reinforce the spine. Put double stick tape on the white card stock in the middle making sure that it does not extend to the edges.

Set the spine of the album on the tape, making sure it is centered. Fold the ends up and make a nice crease even with the front and back envelope. Add more tape to secure the ends to the envelope pages on each end.  Use tissue box card stock to make the cover. If the tissue box looks good with the pages you can use as is. If the box does not coordinate, cover with wallpaper to match the rest of the album.  Attach with double stick tape. Your album is now ready to go in the file box.

 

  To jazz up the outside to the file box we are going to make a belly band, using burlap, ribbon and paper. Hot glue the ribbon to the burlap. Wrap around the file box and trim so that it just overlaps on the lid. Use Velcro dots to secure the overlapping ends.

To make the flower to decorate the belly band, stack the 5 punched scalloped circles and use the point of a scissors to poke a hole in the center of the stack.

 

 

     

Place a brad through the hole and use that to hold on to.

 Begin with the top punch and pull it up and crunch it. Pull up and crunch each of the next 3 punches and leave the bottom one flat. Spread the prongs of the brad to secure and glue on top of the ribbon on the file box.