10 ways to jazz up a boring notebook

Super simple ways to jazz up a plain boring notebook. Nobody wants to start the new term with boring stationery. So why not take half an hour to turn your basic jotter into something fabulous. These are my top 10 DIYs for decorating notebooks. Or, if you're really not that creative, why not check out the selection of notebooks I've already made for you!

Craft DIY: How to print on scraps of card

I often use my printer when I'm crafting. I'm useless at drawing or writing artistically, so I tend to print rather than do it by hand. But it seems a waste to use a new piece of A4 card every time you want one little sentiment or number, and you can't feed little bits of card through the printer even if you trim them neatly (it eats them, I've tried!).

I have a huge pile of scraps that I am determined to use up somehow, so I've been investigating how I could print on them. I was a bit nervous the first time I tried this, as my printer loves chewing things up, but it worked perfectly.

Making cards for pennies

I make cards out of all sorts of things. My husband thinks I'm mad when he's about to throw something away and I jump in and rescue it from the bin with a sheepish "I might be able to use that!" comment. When you look at how much crafting supplies cost, especially fancy papers, it makes sense to use the resources you have around you for free. The rule in my house now though is that if it's still lying around after a few weeks and I've not found a use for it, then my husband gets to put it back in the bin!

I thought I'd share with you a few ideas for recycling everyday materials to make lovely cards that cost pennies.

Brown paper

Brown paper or other similar types of packaging make great backgrounds on cards. The sort of stuff you get loosely wrapped around your items in the over-sized amazon box is perfect. If it doesn't look particularly arty, try scrunching, tearing or layering it to create different effects. You could also use inks to decorate it or stamp patterns over it.

The bits of packaging in between layers in a box of chocolates

Do these have a name?! I have no idea why they are strictly necessary, but most boxes of chocolates seem to have them. And they come in lovely colours! It creates a nice 3D effect and provides an interesting texture. I've just acquired a pink one which I can't wait to use.

Ribbon and stringy things

When you start looking for ribbon and string you'll be amazed at how much you would ordinarily throw away. A couple of weekends ago we were having a family celebration and I was given the ribbon off of the cake. And I got some raffia from a bunch of flowers (the flowers weren't mine, I just riffled through the rubbish!). My family now save me bits of ribbon and I often get presented with a little pile when I go and visit.

Beads

Beads look great on cards. If you have any old beaded jewellery don't throw it out, cut the thread and save the beads. Or look for cheap bead jewellery in charity shops that you can rescue the beads from. Some particularly hideous bracelets may actually yield some very nice beads. You could make them into shapes using wire or nylon thread, or simply run a string of beads down the side of the card.

Tissue paper

Often used as packaging or wrapping, tissue paper is really easy to salvage. If it's creased you could scrunch it up even more, or use a slow drying glue and smooth the tissue out over your card. You can create some wonderful effects by tearing and layering.

Jewellery making supplies

Following on from my post back in January about card making supplies, here are my favourite places to buy beads and other bits and pieces for making jewellery.

First up has to be Beads 4 Crafts. They have a fantastic range of beads, threads, findings and bags/boxes for the finished items. And you get a free pen with every order (my husband has finally twigged that the number of beads 4 crafts pens around the house demonstrates how many orders for beads I've made!!). They are great for cheap beads, especially if you like to buy in bulk - you can get 100g of seed beads for £2.49 which are fine for stringing, but not regular enough for bead weaving. The website is easy to navigate and find what you're looking for, and postage is only 99p.

The Bead Merchant is a bit more expensive, but you get what you pay for. They are great for when you want regularly sized seed beads. Prices range from around £1.30 - £2.90 for 10g of Miyuki seed beads, and £1.70 - £.3.25 for 5g of top quality Delicas. They also sell Nymo, which is the thread I like to use, as well as Fireline and other stringing materials. Postage starts at £2 for orders under £20. 

EJR Beads are great for extra special feature beads. They have lampwork beads, polymer clay beads and ceramic beads in many wonderful colours and shapes, but some are very expensive (usually the ones I like best!). The Charlatan Collection is my favourite for affordability, with packs of 10 beads costing around £1.30. There's also a wide variety of stringing materials. Postage starts at £1.75 and rises with the weight of your order. And you get a free gift for every £15 you spend :-)

And if you live near Cambridge (which sadly I don't any more and I miss this shop very much) there's a wonderful treasure trove of beads at The Beaderie. The owners are very friendly, and always willing to chat and offer advice. Unfortunately they don't sell online yet, but if you're ever in Cambridge it's definitely worth a visit. 

Tutorial: How to feather the edges of tissue paper

I cannot remember who taught me how to do this, but it has been one of the most valuable crafting tips I've received, so I thought I would share it.

Rather than cutting handmade tissue paper into neat squares, you can tear it by hand to create a wonderful feathered edge. The slightly surprising, but very effective, tip is to first 'draw' with water the shape you want to tear out. You can use a paintbrush or just your finger. Don't get the paper too soggy, but use enough water to create a clear line.

Then simply pull the paper apart along the lines and it comes away with a feathered edge. And amazingly it doesn't tear anywhere other than the water lines you drew, so you don't have to worry about tearing it in a straight line. So easy, yet so effective.

I'm linking into handmade monday again. Click here to see all the other handmade monday blogs - happy reading :-)

How to fray a ribbon

Following on from last week's tutorial about tying ribbon around cards, I thought I'd also share with you my tips for how to fray ribbon. Sometimes a frayed end can be a bit softer and slightly more interesting than a dead straight end.

When I first tried to fray the ends of ribbon, I started off like I would if I were fraying the edges of fabric. I attempted to pull at the end threads, but although some came off more often than not it would all gather up into a tangled knot and I'd have to chop the end off and start again. The problem is that, unlike material, the edges along the length of the ribbon are designed NOT to fray. So whilst you may pull a few threads off the end, the edge stays in place.

After a bit of frustrated grumbling, I discovered a really easy way to fray the ribbon in seconds.

1. Cut the desired length of ribbon.

2. Cut a very small slit either side, where you want the fraying to end. You just need to cut through the edging of the ribbon, so it's only a millimeter or two.

3. Pull off the end of the ribbon. It should all come away as one piece. You may need to trim a thread or two, but you should otherwise have a perfect frayed end.

How to tie a ribbon round a card

So far over the last two weeks I've tied around 60 bows. I spent a long time trying different techniques and combining bits of advice I could find across the internet to get the best method for tying a ribbon vertically around a card with a horizontal bow. Like this:

So, here goes. I'll try and explain how to tie a ribbon like this.

1. Cut a piece of ribbon long enough to wrap all the way around your card roughly two times. For the A6 card I used, I cut a piece of ribbon about 70cm long. You need plenty of extra to tie the bow, and then you trim the ends.

2. Take your card and cut two horizontal slits where you want the bow to be. They need to be wide enough to fit the ribbon through, and about 3mm apart.

3. Lay your ribbon over the front of the card where you want it to go then, holding it in place, turn the card over. Wrap the ribbon over the edges of the card and poke the ends through the slits. The back of your card should then look like this:

4. Turn the card back over and adjust the lengths of the ends of the ribbon so they are about equal.

5.Tuck one end under the ribbon running down the front of the card so that you have a ribbon on either side. Adjust the ribbon so that it sits where you want and it is lying flat.

6. Tie a knot around the ribbon running down the front of the card. Just a single knot is fine.

6. Turn the card upside down, so that you have the bottom edge of your card at the top of your work surface (the bows always come out upside down). Make each end of the ribbon into a loop, with the loose ends on the top.

7. Tie a knot with these two loops. I find it works best if you put the left loop over the top of the right one and tuck it round and through. Try to keep the ribbon straight and flat. Pull tight and you will have an upside down bow. 

8. Turn the card back round so that it is the right way up. Now you can adjust the bow so that it is the size and shape you want. Pull the ends of the ribbon to make the loops smaller and loosen the knot. Adjust the ribbon, then pull the loops to tighten the knot. 

9. Loosen and tighten the bow a couple of times until it is just how you want it. If it's not working, sometimes it's easier to pull it out and tie the bow again. 

10. Trim the end of the ribbon to the desired length. Cut either a diagonal or a v shape, to stop the ribbon fraying. There you go, a perfect bow tied round your card and held securely in place. 

Card making supplies

I've been meaning to do a post about the shops I buy my card making supplies from for quite a while, but it's one of those things I've never got round to. Then I was talking to a friend yesterday who asked me where I buy my coloured card, and she prompted me to get on and finally write this post.

So here are the places where I get my card making supplies. I try to source shops that sell items that are sufficient quality for card making, at reasonable prices. I hope this list is helpful. Feel free to share other shops you use in the comments.

Card blanks & Envelopes

When I first got into card making many years ago a friend said to me "never pay more than 10p for a card blank plus envelope". Craftwork cards have a great back2basics range of plain card blanks, £5 for 50.

Coloured card & Double sided tape

Great quality card starting at 10 sheets for £1. And by far the cheapest double sided tape I have seen - I got 240m in my last order ! You often pay a fortune for a small roll of tape in shops, and with using over 20m a week on average I needed to find somewhere that sold it in larger quantities at a much more affordable price.

Cello bags 

A slightly random find, but Wilkinson sells cello card bags at very reasonable prices. One of the advantages of living in the north :-)

Stickers & Embellishments

My mother-in-law told me about The Range. A similar shop to Wilkinson, but they have a huge craft department. You can get pretty much anything here, but they sell a a good variety of peel offs, stickers and embellishments.

Ink & Fimo

Rather bizarrely, this site is the best I've found for both ink and fimo. They have a huge range of colours of both. 

Ribbon

Ribbon can be very expensive, especially if you pay per metre. This site is excellent value, starting at 99p for 40m. It might not be quite up to dressmaking standards, but it is more than good enough for cards.

Threading beads

Ever wondered how to thread beads onto a string/cord/ribbon that's too big to thread through a needle, but not stiff enough to push through the beads by hand? After spending ages trying to poke ribbon through tiny beads this morning I decided there must be an easier way!

And there is! Armed with a collection of possible helpful items I returned to my necklace. Larger needles - no good because they wouldn't fit through the beads. Blunt pokey objects - ran out of patience. Needle threaders - perfect once I'd taken the end off!

So, if you ever need to thread beads onto ribbon (or other such stringing materials that don't fit through needles) here's my no.1 tip:

Get yourself a needle threader and take the end bit off so you're left with the wire (or just use a little piece of strong thin wire I guess!). Put the ribbon in the middle of the folded piece of wire, trapping it a bit like a needle. Poke both ends of the wire through the bead, and give it a good pull. It's quite fiddly, so I used pliers to hold the wire.

It worked a treat, and I had my ribbon necklace strung in no time :-)