Thrifty Thursday #4 + Tutorial

Recently I bought this box of kraft envelopes second hand for 50 cents. I never pass up an opportunity to buy cheap office supplies! Here's a project that I made using them. (You don't have to buy envelopes second hand to make this project- even a box of envelopes at full price will make a cute project!)

I needed a gift for my brother, so I decided to use the envelopes to make a mini album from a trip he took to San Antonio with the boys and I. The envelopes were #10 and too long for my project, so I cut them down to 6 inches. This way, I could place my 4x6 photos on a page without cropping them (my photo developer actually crops them to a digital image size which is slightly smaller than 4x6).

As I was working on the pages, I put the cut side to the left so when I bound the album , the pages would not be open on the end. If you chose to do an album where you wanted pockets, you would bind it with the open edges to the right side.

On the right side of each layout, I placed a photo. On the left side, I used a strip of pattern paper  (between 1 1/2-2 1/2 inches x 4 inches) from my scrap papers and a sticker strip which I laid along one edge of the pattern paper. I had cut papers for journaling squares to place in the center of the paper- I used things like graph paper, note cards, ledger paper, and lined handwriting paper. Throughout the album I added little stickers for embellishments.

On each photo, I added a tab of some sort because I love the look of  tabs sticking out of my album. I used tickets, stickers, and little tabs.

I used my Zutter Bind It All to bind it, but if you don't have one, you could use binder rings (found in the office supply section of most stores). This is an incredibly easy album to make-you can personalize it for any theme. And you sure can't beat the price!


This post is linked to Show and Tell Saturday, Craft-O-Maniac, Brassy Apple, and Today's Creative Blog and Sundae Scoop