Notebook Decorating

You know those big ol' books of patterned paper at the craft stores? People use 'em for scrapbooking, mostly, I guess as backgrounds. But recently I've gotten into decoupaging, which is, I guess, the term for sticking stuff to other stuff. You've probably seen some previous examples on my blog. like this board that comes in handy when you have carpet and you want to set your cup on the floor.

Anyway, being the cheapskate that I am, I never let myself actually buy one of those huge pattern packs though I knew I'd use it for things like making cards. For example, these two graduation-type cards from before the summer that I somehow never got around to posting. (there were two others at least but I think I forgot to photograph them)

The theme is exploration and finding your way. n_n

The quote is pretty random.

Anyway, for those I just used wrapping paper, a map, cut out or printed random pictures... just used whatever I had, and mod-podged it all together.

But a few weeks ago, I got my weekly coupons from Hobby Lobby, and wouldn't you know it, scrapbooking paper was half off. Was I going to take advantage of this deal? HECK TO THE YES!

So I got my brother to pick me up and drive me to hobby lobby (and to chipotle) and I got this:

as you can see, it used to be 20 dollars but I got it for 10

It took a while to find one of the sale brands and become confused why 180 sheets was usually only 5 dollars more than 80 sheets, like who would only buy 80 in that case?
Anyway, the only project I've done with it so far is to decorate an old notebook for use in my philosophy class, as I had a notebook with only a few pages used, and I needed a notebook for school.
Here's the results! I like the way the patterns work together.

The front

and the back.

Detail on the lettering, which is admittedly pretty bad.

Well, there's my latest non-drawing project! What creative stuff have you been up to?

Paper Wallet: A Year later.

To be honest, I could have kept using it longer. It was still mostly staying together. (I took it apart to make sure there weren't any cards or sneaky dollars hiding between the folds). However, if you compare the "white" of the ace of hearts panel to the interior panel right above it, you can see how much wear it was getting.
My post from over a year ago when the wallet was new is right here: and it has a link to the pattern in case you want to make one yourself after hearing my rave reviews (you just might!)

This wallet is pretty much perfect for me--It's not any bigger than it needs to be, it holds plenty of dollar bills and a few cards (stacked up together in two interior pockets, so if you're one of those people who needs a separate pocket for each card... good luck on finding anything small.) There are two exterior pockets too, but I only have a gift card and a business card in those--I'd rather not risk having my debit card or drivers' license fall out. Plus, paper wallet means you can decorate it however you want! I still had the template I used before, so...

It pretty much looks the same as the old one...

With one difference...

IT'S SHINY!!!! Fabulous, Kaito!

That's right, I coated it with packing tape in an attempt to keep it nice longer. Because of the added weight of the tape, I didn't use cardstock, just regular paper. But now maybe it won't pick up foreign colors as easily, and be a little more resistant to water. Maybe this one will last two years!

So this is a really good wallet. Yeah, it gets a little beat up, but for something made of paper, it has a GREAT lifespan. And it's really easy to just make a new one. Not to mention cheap!
(Though if you cover it tape like I did, prepare to go through three sheets of paper instead of just one. It's so hard to keep the tape smooth!)

I hope this inspires you or at least amuses you. 

ANOTHER mod podge project!

I've had this plain board for forever that I use to set cups and plates and that manner of thing on so that I have a flat surface on my carpet (who needs tables? Floors for the win) But I've been using Mod Podge so much lately (wait and see), I decided it didn't need to be plain anymore.

The flowers are a painting from a calendar of paintings that I was given, but I made my own calendar, so it went into the craft paper bin. The vine/flower thing is made out of borders from the same calendar.
It's interesting to me how half of it is now traditional painterly and the other half looks more "cute-modern," if that's a thing. However, I think they go together all right. And now I have a pretty place to set my cups.

The Making of Cute Things

Today I made some cute stuff. Or, at least modified things I already had. Now you can see them!

First off, a sewing kit. My iPod came in this clear plastic box that I knew I wouldn't ever put it back in, even for transport, so I had been saving it for the perfect thing (I keep containers because I like containers, ok?). Today I discovered what that perfect thing is.

I won't be able to take a sewing machine with me when I move. No more spur-of-the-moment plushies, I guess. But I didn't want to be stranded with no way to repair a loose seam or something!

Okay, enough talking. Let's look at what I made!

Cute, right?

Inside are a few basics, including a small spool of relatively neutral thread, a seam ripper (I disposed of its cap because it wouldn't fit otherwise and was cracked anyway), some pen shaped mini scissor things, and a gum package I got from Jody at church. It's just the right size for a little bag of spare buttons and a quick repair kit from a hotel, plus an extra needle I took from our extensive stash.
In addition to all that I have safety pins.  A lot of safety pins.

contents

The picture on the gum package

Once everything was in it, I needed a way to keep it shut, as it had no latch or anything, so I velcro-ed a ribbon to the bottom and tied a bow. I need to work on my bow-tying, probably...

What's next? Well, I did a lot of organizing and then decided I needed to label my filing... things. I think they're magazine holders. Whatever.

 It should be obvious what I did there. I glued paper to a thing. I had fun designing them, though.

I was in the labeling mood and wanted to use up some cute paper cups I had, so I also made this:

quarters only!

I don't even chew gum. But the point is saving quarters. c:
Basically what I did there was put a label on one cup and cut another one in half for a sort of matching but easily removable lid.

Next I made a label for a journal I got a while back:

errands and groceries (weekly)

The tall book seemed perfect for lists, and since it has bicycles on it, the use obviously must have something to do with going around town. I don't know at this point whether it will be mainly for me or whether my housemates will want to use it as a sort of collaboration grocery/errand list, but I'm sure it will be used one way or the other.

Bonus: a thing I made a couple weeks ago... a tissue box cover!

I really liked the wrapping paper, and all the cheap tissue boxes are boring. I had a large birthday card from last year made of posterboard that I had on my wall all year, but it was sort of unwieldy and I couldn't keep it forever, so I re-purposed it. I just made a slightly bigger box out of that, wrapped it in the paper, and constructed a way to keep the tissue box from falling out of the bottom. Voila! Bright and pretty (and orange!) tissue dispenser made out of birthday wishes. Instant pick-me-up? Well... wouldn't go that far. But I like it.

Me Bikey

I think I mentioned that I duct-taped up my bike and made it all stripey. Want a picture? (or four?)

There you go. Consider this proof of my ownership if it's ever stolen. (unless the thief removes all those pieces of tape... too much trouble, maybe?
 Now I'm off to organize something and/or surf the web... sigh

So he's done.

For his hair I ended up using a cleaning cloth and craft foam. It's yellower than I wanted, but I also didn't want to wait until I could go to Hobby Lobby or Michaels or somewhere.

For my first plushie, I think it turned out pretty well. The only thing I'm unhappy with is his chin. I tried to make some darts so that his head would be more round, but they ended up making it look all square. XD Oh well. You live and you learn.

My Kaito KID wallet

For those of you hypothetical readers who don't know, one of my favorite characters is Kaito KID from Case Closed/Detective Conan.

I was searching online for Kaito posters, but couldn't find anything (except if he was in the background), so I turned my search to wallets, since I've been wanting to replace my Longhorns wallet for a while.

I still didn't find much, and being a cheap-o, I looked up how to make wallets. I found this tutorial for a wallet made of paper. It wasn't too hard to fold a prototype out of scrap paper, mark the orientation and location of outward-facing sides, unfold it, and use it to design and print a template on heavier paper.

The front is one of my favorite pieces of art featuring Kaito, where he is falling through the sky with cards.

The back is an ace of hearts.

Inside, a lovely picture I found today along with Kaito KID's signature logo thing.

It has your normal billfold, two inside pockets where I put things that I need to easily access, and it also has slots in the ends where I stashed my business cards and library cards. I do like it a lot more than my previous wallet.

I like decorating things with pictures.

In honor of the fact that I'm going to ACen soon, I decorated my latest sketchbook with a printed Ouran picture.

And a picture I drew.

And a stripey patterned gift bag.

And the blue shiny envelope my ACen badge came in.

Recycling!

Crafty.

I cut up some magazines I found when cleaning and organizing my parents' bathroom. Now another boring notebook has a new design.

Crafty things I did on Sunday.

I made my mommy a journal. <3

Oh, and a birthday cake. :33