Bo Bunny Learning Curve Album

Hello again friends!

I hope you have all had a fantastic weekend! 

Let's jump right into the crafting shall we!?  Today I'm here to share with you an album I made using the gorgeous new Bo Bunny Learning Curve collection. Given our fantastic giveaway we have running right now, I thought it appropriate!

My children are still much too young to be at school (let alone "Back to School") so I was feeling a bit left out of the current seasonal celebrations and stamp sets. (boohoo!) HOWEVER!! I had a brain wave and decided to turn the usual "Back to School" style on it's head!  WE'VE all been to school, so why not use these collections and stamps in a Reunion or a Memory Lane style?!

Why not indeed!!  Now I've never been to a reunion but I do have some old photos of myself at school that I thought would fit perfectly--although, before you all go wild with the thought of getting to see embarrassing photos of me with my giant hair and teeth in braces, I must tell you that my computer was on the fritz (playing up) this week and had to be shipped off to be repaired.  This means that my super duper special printer (which is set up on aforementioned laptop) that prints pictures is a no-go zone.  Sorry to disappoint you!! lol

I also thought leaving this album free of pictures and jounalling so that you can imagine your own versions would be better.

On to the photos!!  (There are 16 photos in total so you can see the whole album, with a short description or explanation below each) 
**a quick side note: most people make their albums and then bind them. I do it backwards. I choose all the papers I wanted on each page, cut them to size and adhered them to chipboard and then used my Cinch to cut the binding holes and put the 'rings' through.  I find this easier then to ensure I don't put stickers/chipboard elements etc where the binding will go.

The apple is covered with Glossy Accents for some added interest!  I made the 'file tabs' by hand with some of the Learning Curve paper but using a Tim Holtz edge die wouldve been much easier!! (Where is the mailman with mine?!)

I thought this piece of 'notebook paper' would be perfect to do an introduction about your schooling years/name of the schools or even your friends names.  I used an  EK Success punch for the edge and Antique Linen Distress Ink to make the page, before stamping it with Hero Arts Quotes Background Stamp.

The banner is handmade. I just inked up some paper and stamped on them using various Hero Arts stamps, cut out the triangles to make pennants and used Glossy Accents to adhere to some twine.  The letter 'discs' are from the Chipboard sticker page from the collection. I used an Ek Success edger punch on the edge of the tag.

This is the tag which was being held up by the "paperclips".  On it is a list of names of a few of my teachers and the grades they taught me.  I used Mustard Seed Distress Ink to colour the page to replicate legal pad paper.  (The apple is stamped in Fired Brick Distress Ink)

 

A very simple page based on 'the library'.  I used the Hero Arts Just a Note clear stamp set to make the notepage and paperclip.

Here you can see the two tags that were inside the small envelope.  The 'date due' tag is from the collection but the dates stamped on were using an old fashioned date stamp to replicate those used in libraries when I was young.  The other tag is supposed to look like a bookmark made by a child (for his/her reading books from the library)

 

This is the back side of the bookmark.  I used Hero Arts Printer's Type Lowercase Alphabet to stamp the wording and a Papertrey Ink stamp for the writing lines.  I then used my left hand to write my name (I'm right handed), so it looked like a young child's writing. 

 

 

Using the Hero Arts Printer's Type Alphabet Stamps I stamped the numbers on paper I'd inked yellow with Tim Holtz Distress Ink in Mustard Seed.  I then used a 1/2" circle punch to punch out the numbers and adhered them to string/twine using Glossy Accents.  I stamped the paperclips from Hero Arts Just a Note clear set and heat embossed with Stampendous Sterling Silver Embossing Powder (to make them look like real paperclips.)

Then I used Stayz-on white ink to stamp "Today is May 1st" and a Signio White Gel Pen to write the messages from the teacher and the math equations on the blackboard. 

 

 

I left this page very simple.  The paper background is just a section of the 12 x12.  The addition tiles and the little girl image are both chipboard stickers and the little '123' sticker is also part of the collection, as are the brads.

  

This is another relatively simple page just made to look complex.  I used my Crop-a-dile to punch 4 holes and set 4 brass-colored eyelets, then I strung twine through the four to create a 'belt' of sorts.  I then used Bo Bunny stickers and chipboard pieces to decorate the page and the two tags I handcut.  I've only removed half of the adhesive paper backing on the chipboard swirls so that the tag will sit behind them without getting stuck.

 

 These are two tags I hand cut out.  One uses the ruler stamp from the Hero Arts Just a Note stamp set, the other I ran through my Big Shot using the Cuttlebug numbers embossing folder the Tim Holtz Collage die would be perfect.  

I gently ran a foam blending tool over the top to make the embossed image stand out more.

SUCH an easy page to recreate--everything here is from the Learning Curve Collection.  The math sum and date due card are both from the chipboard sticker set, as is the little crossword in the corner (I cut it up and wrote words in the grid to give it extra interest).  The apple punch on the background is from the Learning Curve Stamp set.  I tried to recreate an old-style worksheet look by adding the dashed line and scissors image on the edge of the page. (Oops!! The scissors are from Hero Arts Just a Note stamp set--I lied, just that one thing wasn't from the Learning Curve Series!!)

This was a VERY easy page to make. I used three chipboard stickers from the Learning Curve Chipboard and created my own Bus Pass using Hero Arts Graph Background Stamp, Peeled Paint and Black Soot Distress Inks, Hero Arts Printer's Type Alphabet Stamps and Papertrey Ink "School Time" and "It's Official" sets.

 To make it look as though this Bus Pass had been thrown into backpacks and stuffed in pockets, I folded it several times, spritzed it with water to soften it, distressed the edges and smudged ink over it.  I also ripped small sections and used a stapler or sticky tape to put it back together again (as I think a child would have!)

The other side of the Bus Pass-perfect for journalling.  This is one of the cut outs from the Learning Curve set.  As you can see, I made it look REALLY abused with folding, ink and sticky-tape (cellotape).

 

This back page is SO simple but I think it's probably one of my favourites.  This paper collection is really vintagey, so I thought it would be cute to make it look as though the books were being held together by a belt or string, as was common "back in the day" :) 

The tag was hand cut, with the "This Book Belongs to" from the Learning Curve Stamp Set.  I used an old Dymo labler to make the name sticker.

Well that's it!! I hope you liked it. I had so much fun working on this album.  It's amazing how easily everything comes together when you have coordinating papers and embellishments to work with!!

As always, please feel free to leave comments-I'd love to hear what you think!

I'll be back on Wednesday with a special Guest Blogger-Virginia Lu!! I'm so excited to have her here on the blog with some truly GORGEOUS cards to show you :)

Talk to you soon lovelies!! 

Linda