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Monday, August 8, 2016

Hidden Book Box Tutorial


Hello friends! Did you have a good weekend? We are still in summer mode here and I am waiting for our blackberries to ripen. We have been walking, swimming and had friends over. This week at the Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge Blog we have a Try to Contain Yourself challenge. 

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
I love to make containers of various kinds and this week I made a container for a hidden little treasure. My Mom has a very old photo album and we don't know who a lot of the people in it are, which is such a pity. If only someone would have written down names and dates. I hope we can figure it out since we knew who it belonged to and therefore I made a little book to document family history details and photos, which is being kept inside this box. 

I scanned one of the photos in the album and you can see it here on the cover. The box itself was made by Tim Holtz Vignette Box and Panel.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Start by coating a Vignette Box and the corresponding Panel with gesso. You can do this with any of the four Vignette Boxes. I used the second biggest one (3.3 x 4.7 in). 

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Next, I drilled holes for the hinges. You might want to wait with this step. If I redid the project, I would drill the holes later.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Paint with Bundled Sage, and add a little Shabby Shutters and Peeled Paint. I wanted the box to have the colour of an old faded green book.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Stamp with the Linen background and Fern Green ink. This gives the box the look of fabric. 

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Stamp the box on the inside cover, on all the sides, and on the inside. I used a mix of sentiment, postal and image stamps. 

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Smear Distress Collage Medium Crazing all over the box and cover. You want to coat everything with the medium, but don't make it equally thick everywhere. The thicker the medium, the larger the cracks. I used a palette knife first, to make sure everything was covered, and then added thicker patches with my finger. Let dry.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
When the crazing medium is dry, add colour to the cracks by rubbing Distress Crayon into them. Start with the white one and then continue with Peeled Paint and Vintage Photo. Remove excess with a slightly moist cloth. 

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Ink the card and the ink will stick to the sanded parts. 

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
This is the little book that you'll find inside the box. Isn't it cute? You can customize it to work with any theme. My cover comes from a Tim Holtz ephemera card.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Use a paper trimmer to cut pages. The ATC sized panels from Tim's paper pads work really well for this, you just need to cut each panel a little thinner. The pages are 2.6 x 3.9 in.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Punch holes with a Crop-a-Dile. I love my Crop-a-Dile and I have had it for about nine years now. 

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
I also inked some manila cardstock and stamped with the ledger stamp from the School Desk set, for extra pages mainly for journaling. I use that same stamp for my December Daily tags. Some ephemera pieces were sanded and added to the book too.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Sand the edges and ink as many as you feel like (I didn't ink quite all of them).

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
I stamped some sentiments from the Simple Sayings set on the inside pages, using Fern Green ink.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
The papers come from the Dapper, Correspondence and Wallflower paper pads.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
There will be a combination of photos and words in the book, once it is filled.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
The Cabinet cards are quite thick, and my pre-drilled holes weren't completely right because of that. It is better to drill the holes after you have glued the cabinet card to the cover.

I really like her expression in this photo and I liked using this photo of a still unknown relative of mine on the cover. The pretty Baroque Frame was given patina with Bundled Sage and Peacock Feathers Distress Paint.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
I added some gold rub-ons to the cabinet cards. They come from a Christmas set, but the words I used, worked very well here. There are also some Chit Chat stickers.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
The combined textures of the box and the cabinet card adds a lot of interest.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
The Heirloom Roses were coloured by dropping first a drop of Mountain Rose alcohol ink on them, followed by a smaller drop of Mushroom.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
I stamped all the sides of the box.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
On the spine, I used one of my favourite sentiments.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Here's what the box looks like when it is open, with the book inside. The book was bound with Mini Book Ring Fasteners.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
The white Distress Crayon adds a great effect to the crackles, as you can see over clock.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
And a hand for writing down details, which will otherwise be forgotten.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
On the inside, I used postal stamps from the Postcards and Correspondence sets. Use any stamps that fit with your theme. As you can see, I added the crazing medium to the thin edges of the box too.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
The inside sides are stamped too.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
Here's the box from the top.

Layers of ink - Hidden Book Box Tutorial by Anna-Karin with Tim Holtz idea-ology vignette box.
You could make this project for any theme, by using different papers, stamps and embellishments. If you don't want to make a book, use the box for a small gift, or for a small family heirloom or important keepsake.

I hope you will join us in our Try to Contain Yourself challenge. A random participant will win a $50 gift voucher from Simon Says Stamp. You have until Monday 8am Ohio time. 1pm UK time, 2 pm CET to join in.


If you want to, follow Simon Says Stamp on Instagram, they post great stuff daily. 

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Do you use Instagram ? If so please add#sssmchallenge so we can see your entries there too.




Thank you so much for stopping by today!

Happy crafting!

Anna-Karin

Supplies:


18 comments:

  1. This is so beautiful! I love how you have made this treasure of a box to store your treasured photos in. The lid is gorgeous with that fabulous photo of an unknown member of your family. Hugs, Chris

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  2. Your box is gorgeous, Anna-Karin! It's a perfect place to store treasured keepsakes and I love all the fine details you put into it. Beautiful!

    Cathie ♥

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  3. what a great idea! The box looks really nice, I love the colors and the old photograph!

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  4. Fabulous box Anna-Karin, the details and vintage photo are gorgeous and I love the little booklet inside, the whole design is stunning! LOVE it :-) ❤️

    luv
    Lols x x x

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  5. Anna-Karin, this is absolutely perfect! Each detail is so thoughtful and in its place. Love the distress of the box with Medium Collage and Crayons. Perfect result. Great stamps mix, I am especially amazed by the effect which gives the linen stamp, I didn't expect that. Fabulous project! Hugs, Marzena

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  6. Your project is amazing! The linen stamp is perfect for what you intended showing some stamps have multiple uses. Love the colors and your "lost" relatives. They are best kind as they don't know your secrets. lol! A great keepsake box and now you have my mind thinking about a project for each of my grandchildren.

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  7. The detail of this album and box is so stunning! WOW!


    *mwah*
    Steph
    Simon Says Stamp!

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  8. Your box is beautiful, so love the colors you chose! So many layers, love how vintage it really looks. Amazing!

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  9. I absolutely love this project Anna-Karin, it is brilliant. Love the crackle effect that the crazing medium creates and the photo on the front is beautiful. Like you, I have pictures left by my mum and don't know who they are, it is so sad.... Hugs, Anne xx

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  10. I bet you had so much fun making this--it turned out just crackly-good and amazing! I really like the black cabinet cards and would like to get some. I'm surprised I haven't seen more of them in use. It's also the first project I've seen using the hinges with the vignette boxes and the addition of the baroque frame really pulls it together. Thanks for sharing all the steps to complete it!

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  11. this is stunning Anna-Karin...love the idea of putting a lid on the box and love your little hidden book hugs kath xxx

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  12. Anna-Karin, just let me pick up my jaw from the floor! This is amazing, from the textures to images to the idea. Your creative brain is amazing!! hugs, maura

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  13. Speechless! love this work, it's one of my favourite of yours! The idea to hid a book inside the vignette box it's amazing! Colors and design are stunning as always! barbara

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  14. This is stunning Anna-Karin ~ there is so much beautiful work in this project and so much wonderful detail, it's fabulous!! :)

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  15. Wow! This is incredible and what a treat to see so many detail shots! This is gorgeous from every angle and I especially love how you stamped the box. What a great idea to build a box out of these pieces! LOVE this hinged beauty!

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  16. This is such a stunning creation Anna-Karin. Love all those beautiful details on the box, and the book is awesome. :)

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  17. This is fabulous Anna-Karin! Love that it holds a lovely album. So much details! Great tutorial too! It's really amazing! Hugs, Sandra

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  18. This is fabulous! You have made it look like an heirloom with the sanding and use of crackle medium. And of course, you are the queen of using stamps so effectively. I love this!

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Thank you so much for leaving a comment! Happy Crafting!