Hybrid Valentine Paper Bag Album

Hello! Trista here and today I am sharing with all of you a quick and easy hybrid paper bag album that would make a great Valentine’s Gift for a loved one.

Supplies:

• Diamond Cut FilesBy Hand Diamond Brushes and Cut Files
• Every Little Bit Bloom Bundle
• Every Little Bit Smitten Bundle
• Odl-Lay-Hee
• Roots and Wings
• 3 to 5 small paper bags
• cardstock (metallic silver)
• glue
• ribbon
• scissors
• sewing machine
• stapler
• thread
• various small embellishments (optional)
• washi tape (optional)

Step 1: Glue the bottom flap and the folded edges along the length of each bag to create a sturdy foundation. Set aside to dry.

Step 2: Fold a paper bag in half and record the length and width measurements of the folded bag. Subtract 1/4 inch from the width measurement to leave room for the binding.

Step 3: Using photo editing software, create a new document using the measurements from the folded bag. Fill the background with a solid color.

Step 4: Create a new letter size document.

Step 5: Click and drag the solid background from the previous document to the letter size document.

Step 6: Duplicate the layer and then move each layer separately towards the left edge, leaving room for print margins. This will be the paper template.

Step 7: Place papers from various digital kits above the paper template layers and clip them (Ctrl + G) onto the corresponding layers.

Step 8: Add some journal cards or small embellishments to the side and along the bottom to fill the page, then print.

Step 9: Repeat steps 6 and 7 until enough paper has been printed to fill the paper bag album.

Step 10: Use a paper trimmer and scissors to cut out the paper and embellishments for the album.

Step 11: Stack the paper bags on top of each other alternating the direction of every other one in the stack. The top of one bag should touch the bottom of the next.

Step 12: Glue each of the printed papers to the outside edge of each bag leaving a gap in the center for binding.

Step 13: Stitch down the center of the stacked bags with a wide stitch to bind all of the bags together.

Step 14: Wrap the spine of the paper bag album with decorative ribbon and washi tape.

Step 15: Staple ribbon tabs to the journal cards and tuck them into the album pockets.

Step 16: Decorate the album with a variety of embellishments and photos.

Notes:
** Stitch a decorative edge on each page of the album. This adds texture and strength to the album pages.
** Instead of stitching the pages together, punching holes is a great alternative binding method.
** Use a circle punch to cut out a notch on the pocket pages. This makes it grab things that are tucked into pockets.