Did you see Shirley Toogood’s family history album in the June issue? She made the album to celebrate five generations of men in her family. The mini album is based on a simple accordion book, which Shirley adapted to suit her subjects. The whole book is shaped like a folded man’s shirt, and Shirley made pockets to hold journaling cards. If you want to make your own pocket mini book here’s what you need to do.
Supplies
* Two sheets of cardstock for basic book plus extra for the binding, journaling cards and decoration
* Paper trimmer or craft knife and cutting mat
* Patterned paper
* Sticky ribbon, buttons to embellish
* Leather cord for the binding
* Double-sided tape and glue stick or roll
* Ruler, scissors, pencil
1. Cut four pieces of cardstock each measuring 30x14.5cm. Score and fold each to make three 9.5x14.5cm sections, with an extra 1.5 cm piece at one end - this will act as a tab.
2. Cut the tops to make the shirt shape.
3. Stick the strips together, overlapping the tabs to create a long accordion.
4. To make the pockets stick double-sided tape along the bottom and two outside fold edges of two sections at intervals along the accordion.
5. Cut strips of cardstock to measure 12x3cm.
6. Sandwich one of the 12x3cm strips between the two sections when sticking them together, leaving the card sticking out 2cm like a handle.
7. This section will be used to bind the book together. Repeat this to make five pockets in total (Shirley didn’t make a pocket on the front or back covers). Punch two holes 5cm apart in the centres of the 12x3cm strips. Fold the book so the strips line up and tie cord or ribbon through the holes to bind.
8. The journaling cards slot into the pockets made in step four. To make, cut five pieces of cardstock (8x12cm). You can cut them down into shirt shapes if you like.
9. Add journaling or extra photos to each of the journaling cards. This is one of Shirley's finished cards. To make pull tabs for the journaling cards cut a slot as wide your sticky ribbon at the top of each card. Cut a strip of ribbon around 6cm long and thread it through the slot. Fold the ribbon up and back on itself to form a tab.
10. Decorate each of the pages - it's easier to do this when the book is unbound so you can lie it flat. Here's one of Shirley's finished pages:
Ta da! Here's Shirley's finished book. To read the full article and see more of Shirley's book make sure you get hold of the June issue of Scrapbook Inspirations, on sale 25th May.
