We've moved!

Come visit us at our new home: http://clubscrap.com/a/blog/.

Today's the big day!

We are so pleased to announce the move of Club Scrap Creates to our new home at clubscrap.com. We are thrilled to have everything under one roof, and we hope you're as excited as we are to explore the new digs. 

As with any move, there are bound to be a few hiccups, so please pardon our dust as we find a place for everything and get everything put in its place. 

Coming soon: Our beautiful new gallery will go live as soon as we've added the finishing touches. Stay tuned!

Our team appreciates your patience as we complete this transition, and as always we are here to assist you. Should you need anything, we are just an email or phone call away!

Blueprints Lite Layouts

Our Blueprints Lite collection is sure to find a happy home with your pictures! Let's take a look at the pre-assembled pages you can make by following our instructions . . .

Use the zero center of our grid ruler to help with placement of the three mattes in the lower right corner. It will help keep everything nicely aligned and equally spaced.

Layouts 1&2

The layout below uses one of my favorite "oldie but goodie" formulas featuring a 12x12 paper trimmed at 7" in each direction.

Layouts 3&4

The "before, during, after" cutaparts can be used with all sorts of themes. I used this pair of pages to feature an area before, during and after a snowstorm.

Layouts 5&6

The 1.5" brown ombre ribbon is soft, pliable and gorgeous.

Layouts 7&8

The Ledger Washi Tape came in handy when decorating the pages. I have all sorts of plans for the tape remaining on the roll.

I know we have quite a few newbies, so I thought it might be helpful to have a video workshop to help complete your pages. Those with more experience will likely be able to enjoy the workshop without having to press pause!


Thanks for building new memories with us . . .
Tricia

Blueprints Lite Spoiler

Blueprints Lite shipping day is quickly approaching (just like our fall weather here in Wisconsin). It's time for a sneak peek of what's in store for next week. I've been busy photographing this new collection as well as putting together a few layouts. I'm excited to share pictures with you.

Club Scrap Lite Blueprints Kit

The kit features gorgeous papers and designs, cutaparts and goodies. I know you'll enjoy this constructive collaboration!

If you'd like more information about Club Scrap's Lite Kit membership for only $19.95 a month, please check it out HERE.

Thank you for stopping by.
Kay at Club Scrap

Digital Stencil Crackle Paint Technique, Part 1

Recently, Julie published a great blog entry on using crackle paint with stencils. Then, CS Member Norma posted a question in the forum asking if this could be accomplished digitally. Since I love a challenge, I thought I’d try this using Club Scrap’s Blueprints Digital Kit. Like many things digital, there isn’t any one right way, but I’ll show you how I achieved a similar look.

Although this isn’t difficult to do, it does require quite a few steps, so I’m only going to cover two parts today - creating the stencil, and creating a crackle texture. My next post (appearing later this month) will cover how to create a layout similar to Julie’s.

CREATE A STENCIL

1. Open 0914BlueprintsCSD_Overlay7.png.

2. Select the Magic Wand tool in the Tool palette and set the tolerance to 35. Make sure ‘contiguous’ is not checked.

3. Click in an empty area of the overlay. If you’re having trouble distinguishing the blank areas, add a new white layer under the overlay layer.

4. Select -> Inverse to select the letters.

Notice the 'marching ants' - that's what you want to see!

5. Fill with Black.

Voila! You've created a stencil!

6. Delete the white layer you created in step 3.

7. Save this as 0914BlueprintsCSD_Stencil.png so you can use it whenever you’d like.

CREATE A CRACKLE TEXTURE

1. Create a new document about 8 inches by 6 inches, with a white background.

2. Open a texture stamp; I used 0311RakuCSD_StampGraphic04.png.

You can use any image with an interesting texture, but Raku is rather crackly!

3. Using the Marquee Tool, select the portion of the image that you want.

4. Drag that portion of the image to your new document.

5. Duplicate and tile the image, repeating as needed to fill the canvas.

As is, the repeat is quite obvious, but you won't notice it once it's applied.

6. Delete the white layer.

7. Merge the layers together and save the file.

That's all for now. Remember, these digital stencils and textures can be used for a variety of techniques, so if you've got a chance to play with them, you might come up with some neat results!

Visit again later this month, and we'll use the components we made to create a cool crackle stencil layout.

Get crackin', and I'll see you soon!

 -Ron

Blueprints Home Folio Part 2--Tutorial

I was pleasantly surprised by the excellent feedback I received on my Blueprints Home Folio post last week. I used it over the weekend when we were shopping for supplies for the remodel. The handy 6x8" size fit perfectly into my purse, making it easy to tote around.

A few people asked how it was made, so I thought I'd share. It's a pretty quick and easy project, and it could be used for a number of different purposes. It all starts with  12x12" cardstock.

Folio Cover:

1. Score vertically at 6".
2. Rotate 90 degrees and score at 4".



Scoring and cutting diagram.

3. Use scissors to trim approximately 1/8" on the left and right sides of the vertical fold, stopping at the 4" horizontal score line. Remove strip. (This will eliminate extra "bulk" when the folio closes.)

   

   Trim excess from center pocket area.

4. Fold along the 4" score line. Use a punch or Corner Chomper to round the edges of the inside pockets if desired.

   

   Round corners (optional).

5. Add a 8" length of washi tape vertically along the left and right edges of the folio. This seals the edges of the inside pockets. 

Add washi tape to outer edges.

Inside Elements:

1. Trim cardstock to 5.75 x 7.75" to create inside pages. (My folio has one, but you could add up to three.) Fold each inside page in half horizontally. 
   
2. Did you know you can print your own from http://www.printfreegraphpaper.com/? I like the 1/5" Cartesian. Print the desired number of pages onto text weight paper and trim to 5.5 x 7.5". Fold in half horizontally.
3. Nest all pages together into the folio, leaving equal borders around the edges of each layer. 
4. Add an A6 envelope to the center of the nested pages; aligning the flap fold with the center fold of the inside pages. Pierce stitching holes through all layers, 2" from the top and 2" from the bottom edge of the folio cover.
   
5. Use waxed linen thread and needle to pamphlet stitch the folio together. (Place threaded needle into the top hole, from the inside to the outside. Then place the needle into the bottom hole from the outside to the inside. Tie ends together. Trim excess thread.)

   

   Pamphlet stitch.

   

   Tie thread ends together and trim.

6. Decorate cover and inside pockets and pages as desired.

I think these little folios have lots of potential . . . how will you use yours?

Creatively yours,

Karen

Upcycled Instructions

When Aspen Lite was released back in December, Tricia created her super-efficient instructions for the kit and I shared them on the blog HERE.

Tricia's layouts 1&2

Just for fun, I grabbed some papers from my stash and created another double page spread by duplicating the instructions from the layout above.

I set these assembled pages aside waiting for just the right pictures to come along. My husband and I took our daughter Shannon on a whale watch this summer and the photos were the perfect fit.

Don't be afraid to look into your stash and create unique pages using the plethora of assembly line instructions created by Tricia. The possibilities are endless!

Julie

Blueprints Home Folio

In addition to papercrafting, another passion of mine is home improvement. My husband and I enjoy making our home "our own" through remodeling. I bore easily, so I keep things fresh by rearranging rooms from time to time. Early in our marriage (before kids), I rearranged the furniture so much my husband used to tell people he never knew what the house was going to look like when he got home!

My "home improvement project" folio.

When planning a remodeling project, it helps to be organized. We plan to remodel our kids' former "playroom" and to turn it into more of a family reading space/library. Planning and budgeting for this project inspired me to create this folio. Turns out the September Blueprints papers, stamps and cutaparts were perfect!

Inside front cover pocket and stitched booklet insert. The inner pages offer plenty of space for sketching out ideas and making lists of materials and supplies needed for the project.

The inner pages include graph paper for sketches and measurements.
I added an A6 envelope in the center to provide additional storage.

The envelope flap cleverly conceals the pamphlet stitch and keeps the contents from escaping.

The inside back pocket is perfect for holding receipts, gift cards and more.

Thanks to my folio, I'm feeling quite prepared and organized . . . now I just have to work on that budget!

Creatively yours,
Karen

Stencil Crackle Paint Technique

Crackle paint adds so much dimension and texture when paired with the Blueprints masking stencil. Check out these amazing results.

Don't you just love how crisp and clean the edges are and all that wonderful crackled goodness?

Grab some Blueprints papers, the mask and some crackle paint, and I will show you how it's done.

1. Lay the masking stencil down onto brown paper. Paint over the stencil with the crackle paint.

I used a complimentary color of brown - Distress "Vintage Photo" Crackle Paint from Ranger.

2. Swipe over the paint using firm pressure and a scraping motion with an old credit card. This will spread the paint across the stencil and ensure proper coverage.

Note: You don't have to use the entire image when painting on the medium. I chose to highlight certain words.

3. Carefully remove the mask. Allow the crackle paint to dry and reveal the texture.

Run the masking stencil under warm soapy water immediately to remove the excess paint.

Now it's time to use this carefully crafted paper in a layout.

Our daughter Shannon had fun helping us build this dribble sandcastle over the Labor Day weekend. Fits the theme quite nicely, don't you think?

Stamp a gold photo mat, Kay Williamson style!

Add crackle paint to the gold anchor strip, stamp a compass image border, and mat a clever quote to tie the two layouts together.

Let's get cracking on those layouts!

Julie