Altered Album Cover: 50th Anniversary

 

Supplies: raw chipboard mini album & mini alphabet stickers from October Afternoon; large yellow number stickers from- Simple Stories; stamps by My Mind's Eye; designer paper from Amy Tangerine for American Crafts; canvas trim from Canvas Corp.; key charm from Zeus & Zoe; cog charms from Beadniks; thread from DMC; beads, twine & ribbon scraps from my stash; paint & crackle glaze from Ranger; chalk from Stampin' Up.

Today I'm playing along with The Color Room (using the palette shown above), as well as Shopping Our Stash, where there is an anniversary theme.  I altered the cover of a plain chipboard mini album.  Now it says "Celebrating 50 Years Today."

Whose anniversary is it?  It might be more appropriate to say "Who's anniversary."  Brace yourself for oncoming geekiness...the television show Doctor Who, which first aired in 1963,  will celebrate its fiftieth anniversary later this year.  My husband and I are big fans of the program, and our son is a fan of Doctor Who's kid-friendly spin-off, The Sarah Jane Adventures.  So, I decided to put together this mini book, so that my family can journal a bit about our favorite episodes, favorite characters, etc.

In keeping with the "50 years" theme--and also dovetailing into Doctor Who's time travel theme--I decorated the album with a mix of old-looking and new-looking items.  Some of the new-looking items are the space-aged stamped images.  Above you see a shot of my table as I was planning out the stamps to use.  The foam tape provided temporary "handles," so that I could more easily maneuver my little stamps in the thick, sticky blue paint that I was to use.  

Using older items from one's stash is a requirement at Shopping Our Stash.  I used a slim paper scrap and a variety of beads and ribbon bits from my stash, but the main stash item I used was a bottle of Ranger Liquid Pearls paint in royal blue.  I bought this paint last May (2012) to use on a Memorial Day card, and I've hardly used it since.  As you can imagine, I used up almost the whole bottle on this album cover!  I'd call that successful de-stashing.

Pressing the stamps into the thick paint creates a feeling that I can only describe as "satisfyingly squelchy."  :)  After the paint dried, I rubbed chalk over the stamped areas to add shadow and dimension to the designs.

If I had been smarter, I would have waited until after I had painted the album to add the yellow paper behind the die cut word "TODAY."  Though I pride myself on a steady hand, I did slip once and get some blue paint on the yellow paper at the top of the "T."  Not one to panic, I decided simply to add a dash of blue paint to each of the letters, to make it look as if it's an intentional part of my design.  :)

Crackle glaze (Ranger's Distress Paint in "Clear Rock Candy"), applied to the canvas strips, added to the aged look of the album.  It also sealed the stickers onto the fabric.

With all the crackle glaze and Liquid Pearls, this album gleams, especially when held up to a light source.  It also has a strong, durable finish, as if it had been varnished.

For a finishing touch, I added an eclectic mix of beads, charms, and fibers to the binder rings that came with the album.

Doctor Who's fiftieth anniversary will take place this coming November, so my family and I have plenty of time to add our thoughts and reminiscences to this book.  Who knows, if any of the pages turn out really creative/decorative, maybe I'll post them on my blog later this year.  For now, I want to thank you for stopping by my blog today.  Take care and have a fun day! 

ETA: Yay!  My mini album was featured at The Color Room!  :)