Shabby Chic Scrapbook

I am very sorry that I haven't written a post in a few weeks.  My husband was on vacation and we had family in town. 
Anyway, I promise to make it up to you with this amazing post.  I have to start out by explaining that I got my inspiration and initial ideas from my good friend, Kathy McClure.  She is sooo crafty and makes everything she touches look beautiful and warm.  This scrapbook is so unique and no one else will have one like it. 

It is pretty simple and fun to make too:) 

First go to the library and pick out an old book at the resale shop for a quarter.  It doesn't matter what it is about but I am a superstitious person so couldn't get any scary ones to hold all my precious memories. 

Next, you will paint the entire cover with your favorite color in acrylic paint.  Hint ( I matched my books to the room they were going in). 

Then, you staple together smalls groups of pages and tuck ribbons inside (I wouldn't put them on the bottom so it stands up easily.....lesson learned).  I cut all the ribbon strips before I start stapling to make things move more smoothly.  It's fun to mix up the different ribbon styles but you could always use just one type of ribbon.  I really like the different colors and textures. 

Now, it is time to paint all the pages that you will use for your scrapbook.  This is the longest process with the waiting for paint to dry.  I used white acrylic paint but you could use any color you like.  I have even painted it white and then added stripes or polka dots on some pages. 

After it is all painted, you have a blank slate.  You can just treat it like a regular scrapbook.  Simply add scrapbook pages/paper where you might place pictures or quotes.  I even bought some cute embellishments and added those where it was appropriate.  I began looking around the house and found buttons and fabric to add in the book too.  The best part was my Cricket I used to put in some cute pictures. 

I put the flower headband that Bella wore inside the book too:)  Now I will always have that adorable headband right next to the more adorable photos of my little sweetie wearing it. 

This pink book was a gift to my friend for her daughter's birthday.  She really liked Bella's and always talked about wanting to make one for her daughter.  I only put scrapbook paper to set it up for her.  I didn't want to finish it without her choosing what she wanted in it and how she wanted it to turn out. 
Everyone at the party was so impressed and loved seeing a creative gift.

 
Bella's book is the other book I have pictures of as the final product.  I broke down her first year into twelve months and added my favorite pictures to "watch her grow" and change in that quick blurr of time. 

It now sits on her dresser as decoration and will be a beautiful way to keep my memories of those precious days!!!

Watch Me Grow

Creating a Measuring Board

I wanted to make a piece that I could move if I have to and keep with our family.  I love the idea of having a constant reminder of how tiny my children are displayed on the wall in the most popular room in the house.  This board was easy to make and one of my favorite projects. 

I started with a plain white board that was already primed down at the hardware store.  It was less than ten dollars and eight feet long.  I only needed six feet so they even cut it for me while I was there (I didn't know they did that but it was so convenient).  Then, I painted it all white (whatever color matches your space) and began marking the measurement markers (feet and inches).  I began at six inches to allow room for hanging this piece on the wall.  I have trim along the floor and knew it would look funny to have this board standing on the floor. 

Bella wanted to help paint so I let her "paint" on her chalkboard easel.  Cool trick huh?  Just a little bowl of water on the chalkboard. 

Finally, I chose some simple scrapbook numbers to mark each foot.  I could have painted them but wanted them to be formal and uniform.  Plus, it was way easier to stick on these simple numbers.  Bella loved standing tall for us to mark her height. 

We used a pretty purple sharpie to mark her height and age.  I thought it would be fun to use the same color for each child.  Right now we only have one little monster running around, but maybe someday we will need more than one color. 

The final product is so cute and can easily be moved :) 

The only thing you have to remember is to keep it six inches off the floor.