Julie Campbell
School is out for the year and I’ve been looking for new ways to document my boys’ summer. I’m realizing more and more how fast time flies by, and I want to capture those memories before it’s too late.
Instead of locking myself in my craft room and scrapbooking the day away (Ha! I wish!) I decided to let my kids fill their own memory books this year. It’s a great way to get kids involved in paper crafting and it’s fun to see things from their point of view. It’s also a fantastic way to use up those paper scraps that you’ve been saving for a rainy day!
I started by collecting scraps of paper that coordinated well with each other and were masculine enough to keep my boys’ interest. For this project, I used Echo Park’s This & That Charming collection and Kaisercraft’s Technologic collection. I also pulled together several parcel tags, library cards, envelopes, and other bits and pieces.
Once I had a good assortment, I scored and trimmed my paper to size. I wanted each page to be a different size to give it additional visual interest. I scored the ends of my tags and envelopes as well and then stacked all of my pieces together, matching them at the center score line. I machine stitched the pages together, using a backstitch on both ends to hold the pages securely together.
The small tag tabs that peeked through the pages became the perfect base for adhering tiny pockets to the memory book.
To give the books a little additional stability, I adhered a Studio Calico FabRip to the binding. I added a few stickers and my son’s memory book was complete!
The great thing about these books is that they can be customized for anyone! After finishing my boys’ books, I decided I needed to make a couple of books of my own. These books can be made in minutes, and they make great gifts as well!
How would you like a jump start on creating your own memory book? One lucky commenter on this blog post will receive the Echo Park This & That Charming collection that I used above.
All comments must be received by Friday, June 1st at 5 pm MDT.
Julie Campbell, Paper Crafts Go-to Gal
I love how this book was made & that paper collection is fantastic.
What a great idea! You do make it sound very easy to put this together. I know my granddaughter (Lily, age 7) would adore adding her touches to something like this!!
So cute. Love the book and the paper is fabulous.
I love the idea of making these yourself.thank you for the great pics and instructions.
Oh My Goodness… these are just TOO cute…. I can’t wait to give them a try.
I was thinking they would be perfect for my little neices… but, I think I will make one for ME, too!!!
I like to use my Zutter for memory book projects. Thanks for the chance to win!!
Wow! Too cool!
fantastic idea! the boys can capture their own memories!
I absolutely LOVE this idea! I was trying to think of what I could mail my grandkids for a “way to go” something for the end of the school year. Wonderful idea!!
Fabulous ideas, love these projects, you make it look so easy though, thanks for sharing!!!
I see some great ideas here and I love the color combo’s in the collection. The library card and pocket was a neat addition to the book.
I see some great ideas here and I love the color combo’s in the collection. The library card and pocket was a neat addition to the book.
Wow, can’t believe the kids are out of school already, time sure does fly!! This is just an adorable book – I love the fab rip on the edge too!
What a cute album. The different size pages made it interesting. Thanks for the tutorial.
This is one of my favorite lines!
This is wonderful! I’ve been wanting to make something like this for quite some time. I’m inspired.
I love this & that collection ..perfect for making my son’s layout~
I just love this paper collection with its amazing designs and colors! great idea to use it for a memory book!
Wow this is a great project and one I would like to try as well. Like you, masculine papers are needed greatly in this house. Finding a way to capture the shcool year without the normal traditional school colours, can always be a challenge. Not that those colours are bad but I have used it so many times. Your colour scheme here and design really fits the theme but really is outside of the box for a school theme album. Thanks for being able to come up with a different and unique way to display school year memories. Thanks for the chance to win.
Really cute idea. Thanks for sharing.
Janet
What a great idea! I think this will be a fantastic keepsake from their point of view worth remembering for sure.
I really like your mini album. So many interesting pages.
Thanks for sharing!
This is a great, personalized alternative to the “smash” books that are out. I like to collect ticket stubs from events I go to and this is a great way to make it more “theme-centric”
Great idea for a gift, whether for a child or a friend – or yourself. Will have to give it a try one day soon (when I find time, after our move I think!) Thanks for a chance to win this collection – one of my fav new releases (that i am saving up to buy!)
I like the varied sized pages of course that paper collection is a WOW!
What a neat book. I think it is great you are giving us a chance to win these papers.
I love, love, love this idea so much I’m off to see what I can put together to make my own. Thanks so much for the inspiration. Of course winning this pack would get me started in a great way. So my fingers are crossed big time.
Wow – what a great idea!! Love the patterns you included!!
What a great memory book!! I love seeing how designers combine tags and envelopes with paper to create some of the most fun things. Beautiful work!!!
Great job on the book. I love a little of this and that!
I’m gonna try this again because I don’t see my comment.
I love this idea and especially using pieces of scraps…seems like my supply of scraps only increases! This is a great way to get that scrap pile to something manageable. Thank you for this awesome idea! Can’t wait to make a few of these!
Love the look of this! And adding FabRips to the binding – brilliant!
The memory book looks so fun: great tutorial and idea!! I could so handle receiving that wonderful paper to get me started!!