Naturals and neutrals have come a long way in the world of creativity. Art generally is not the place for neutrals and yet we use them each and every day without maybe even realising it.

I was so pleased when Studio Calico brought out the natural range “Classic Calico” of scrapping goodies and the wholesaler was quick to pounce onto it. I had the perfect project in mind to incorporate the beautiful naturals into – a little writing gift set and journal combo. It incorporates a decorated journal, handmade writing paper, some quick and easy notecards and a few simply decorated envelopes. But the centre stage really belongs to the cover that the writing paper fits into and its matching partner the journal. Both the cover and the journal were decorated in a really girly way incorporating beautiful ribbon, Petaloo’s new range of beautiful blooms, Prima flowers and my new favourite ink in the form of Mister Huey’s Colour Mists.

The process of creating

To colour the spine of my journal I placed the black journal with its red spine onto my craft sheet and added a layer of white acrylic gesso. The gesso has a two part function – first to cover some of the red book binding tape and second to make the ink adhere to the tape a lot better. Then I used a combination of two colours of Mister Huey’s to mist the spine area. I left it to dry for a while and took a dry cloth and wiped it down to make sure there are no wet spots of ink remaining and to cover areas that I might have missed. Much better in the end than that unsightly red tape – well at least it matched my natural paper range a lot better now. The scalloped circle was die-cut using a Couture Creations Nesting die set on my Cuttlebug machine and then coloured using the same Mister Huey’s colour mists. I lightly blotted the edges dry with a roller towel to create lighter and darker effects to add interest.

Colouring and decorating your journal

 

Step 1

Place the journal onto the craft sheet. Cover the spine in a layer of white gesso or acrylic paint. This step can be done quite roughly as the front and back will be covered in paper.

Step 2

Lightly mist the spine area in Mister Huey’s colour mists. I first added some black in a thin layer and then a layer of classic tan on top. Remember that the ink is very concentrated so a little ink goes a really long way. Lightly mist the ink layer with a light misting of water to mix things up and leave to dry.

• TIP – To avoid misting the edges of your inside pages fold a piece of scrap paper over the sides of the journal and tuck them inside the covers.

Step 3

Cover the journal in patterned paper, flowers, die-cuts and other elements to personalize the journal. These journals are great for keeping everyday thoughts organised and making to-do lists – or simply jot down your next crafty supply purchase.

Let me know what you think of this naturally beautiful writing set. How about creating your own or even great for gifts!

 

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Products Used

• Studio Calico – Classic Calico Double Sided Paper – Letterset (AC 101242)
• Studio Calico – Classic Calico Double Sided Paper – Plano (AC 101243)
• Studio Calico – Classic Calico Paper Pad (AC 330031)
• Mister Huey’s Colour Mist – Inky Black (AC 331064)
• Mister Huey’s Colour Mist – Classic Tan (AC 101102)
• Petaloo Flowers – Ruffled Roses – Brownie (C1833-303)
• Prima Flowers – Bretton Vines Collection – Chronicle (PM 552671)
• Prima Flowers – Lady Godivas – Nougat (PM 557034)
• American Crafts – WOW! Glitter White (AC 27326)
• Anita’s 3D Clear Gloss Finish (59 ml) (D25401)
• Kaisercraft – Timeless Double Sided Paper – Butterflies (KCP855)
• Glue Dots Pop Up (GD12296-75)
• Purple Turtle Double Sided Tape
• Versamagic Dew Drops
• Tombow Adhesive

Post by The Wholesaler’s Designer Jowilna Nolte.

We are very proud to introduce you to our first designer, Jowilna Nolte. Jowilna is a true creative and she will be sharing some of her passion and creativity with you.

Read more about Jowilna here.