A New Year Gift (which lasts the whole year!) by Jennie

Hello and welcome! I hope you all had a wonderful festive time and are perhaps thinking about the New Year which is now only a few days away. I always like to have a couple of small new year gifts ready for when we get invited over the New Year to visit friends for supper or drinks. It is always nice when that gift lasts through the year as well.

Additionally with this project I have a particular friend in mind who asked me recently for some ideas for creating a book/box with scrapbook papers and Calico Craft Parts embellishments rather than mixed media products. Hopefully this project will appeal to those of you who might want to use up some of those scrapbook papers we all undoubtedly have (in my case more than I could possibly need in a lifetime!)

I have used the smallest of the vintage book/box kits and have used a single piece of 12 x 12 scrapbook paper which also had a little sheet of tags and flowers with it as well.

It was very easy to measure out the covers and then trace around the corners. I am using the smallest of the book/box kits and my page measured 4 3/8" by 3 1/4".

Before glueing the pages down I edged them with a little brown ink and once dry sanded the edges to reveal the white core of the paper. This also helps to even out any of the cutting.

I stuck the box together as I had decided to leave the inside as wood. Then I cut some 3/4" strips of patterned paper which I then cut to size to fit the edges of the box. Again I blended some ink around the edges before glueing them down. The box comes with a little notch which "clicks" into the book cover when shut. I found though that using papers instead of paints this little notch could not get through the hole, so I cut it off roughly and then sanded it down and made a different closure for the book (see below).

As this is a New Year's gift I wanted to put a timepiece on the front and what better than this fabulous steampunk clock (as you know one of my favourite CCP pieces!). I used a little bit of white paint dabbing it on with a stipple brush so that some of the brown of the mdf showed through. I did the same for the little butterfly as well.

I thought I would use some letters too on the front and painted the mini copperplate letters with a little more paint. These can be a bit fiddly to paint but I always put them on some masking tape to hold them still while I dab away at them with the paint. The masking tape had a done a walkabout here in the craft room, so this is a bit of double sided tape I stuck to my mat!

Finally a few embellishments for the front cover - some vintage ribbon and lace, muslin and some flowers. The little tag is beautiful but in the end I didn't use it.

As I explained earlier I had to think of another way of closing the book, so I have added ribbon as a closure. On the back of the book I cut two small pieces both for decoration and to hide the well stuck down ribbon.

On the front my ribbon is held securely under the clock.

A few close ups of the added CCP pieces.

I decorated the inside of the box with some more layered pieces from this gorgeous paper.

And added a little clustered sentiment on the inside front cover.

And the gift ......

The little box holds three votive candles - these are scented Vanilla and Cranberry, the scent of which I hope will last when the box is used through the year.  I have no idea whether this will be needed at the New Year, but if not then I am sure it will make a lovely birthday gift as well.

I really enjoy working with these little book/box kits and what I love the most is the beautiful spine which I never want to cover up!

I hope this has given you some ideas for using these fabulous little box/book kits and perhaps using up some of your scrapbook papers.

Thank you for joining me today and I wish you all a very happy and creative New Year when it comes!

Jennie x

Live The Dream

Calico Craft Parts used:

MDF Plain Cover Book Box Kit - Small

Steampunk Clock (Small)

Mini Butterfly Shapes Style 1

Mini Copperplate Gothic Alphabet Letters