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Paper Quilt | Tutorial + Template

7/15/2022

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In this post I'm sharing how I created this hybrid page, inspired by this quilt pattern, featuring the digital papers from the black & white scrapbook kit.  This kit has fourteen incredible classic & modern paper designs that are perfect for accents, backgrounds, and pairing with pops of color.  This is definitely going to be a kit I continue to pull from a lot. ​
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Quote card from the Pieces Kit, Ali Edwards Design Inc.
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​Black & White Digital Scrapbook Kit ​
First...let's talk a little color theory.
According to Adobe, some consider white to be a color, because white light comprises all hues on the visible light spectrum. And many do consider black to be a color, because you combine other pigments to create it on paper. But in a technical sense, black and white are not colors, they're shades. 
Did you know that black has a grounding effect that gives the eye a place to rest? Interior designers use black accents for dramatic results. It enhances the colors that surround it and highlights the negative space surrounding pieces with hints of black.
  Have you ever wondered why colors pop when used with black? Not only does black have depth, it's also versatile and complementary with pretty much every color in the spectrum. 
Using white, as a contrast provides a soothing effect, making other colors stand out, particularly brighter ones.   It's no surprise that when we think of colors that go with everything, most think of the neutral trio: black, white, and gray.​

Making my digital quilt.
In planning out my page, I decided I wanted this to be a page that would live outside of a page protector.  I created a new design in Canva sized at 7 x 8.25 inches.  And then just started playing with triangle "frames" to see how they would fit together to recreate the quilt pattern.   This did take a bit of time to get the sizing correct.  Once I was happy with how it looked on my page, I played around with dropping the digital pattern papers into the design. If I didn't like the placement, I simply dragged & dropped in another paper.  I also added two of the digital prints from the July Stories by the Month kit and loved how they pop with the black & white.
Next I added a second page to my design, then used one of the digital flowers in the kit to make a template for my stitching that would go on top of my quilt. 
​Important tip: remember to allow for space to punch the holes.  I wished I had checked this before I started my stitching.  But good thing that I caught it, as I was able to make some adjustments on the flower closest to the bottom set of holes, otherwise I would have punched right through where my stitch would have been. ​
Scrapbook with Canva Digital Hybrid Kim Hurst
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Once I was happy with the design, I downloaded it from Canva as a .pdf and printed the page on my HP7155 printer then trimmed the pages to size.   
Want to try this template? Find the design here.  ​

Stitching on Paper
Here's a photo tutorial of how I punched the holes for the flower design stitches.​
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I used paperclips to hold my page in place.
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Backside of page to show detail of the punched design.
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Evenly punch holes around each flower.
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White floss cut to approx. 24" and separated in half with 3 strands each.
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Important tip: use a sharp point needle.  The needle I first picked (shown in photo) was too large and had a blunt point.  I quickly discovered that it was making the hole too big when I stitched through the page.   I switched to a thinner, and sharper needle and that worked great. ​
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Flower design created with a simple embroidery backstitch.
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Backside of page.  Ends are secured in place with a thin strip of ​washi tape. 
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If you'd like to incorporate more stitching into your scrapbooks, you should check out this  fun class called Playing with Paper, by Pam Baldwin.  It's awesome! 
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I finished off my page by adding one little chipboard circle from the "Pieces" kit.  ​ I just love how this turned out, and just might become the opening page in a Pieces of Life album I've been wanting to start.  ​

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This page was designed as part of a social hop on Instagram.  You can discover more ideas for the Black & White kit by visiting the links below and showing all my friends a little ❤️. A playlist of process videos can be found here
@aliedwards
@chouxpuffcreations
@nehlan.has.a.plan
@denine2
@adawson816
@peacock.pigments
@kh_papercrush
@elizabethalvite
@kimdocumentslife
@scrapsandsnacks
@rukristin
@jeannemwill
@poshplans
@neelanalam
@kirstenh
@jenny_theriault
@yin_dgs
@mrsscrapandplan
@lindalovescreating
@littlethingsbigdays
@virginiegoujon
@circleplusarrow

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INSD 2022 | FREE Mini Kit

5/5/2022

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According to scrapbook.com May 7th is National Scrapbook Day 2022 (or International Scrapbook Day to include crafters from all over the world).  It began in 1994 and is now celebrated by crafters everywhere!  This year I'm honored to be participating in the Indie Designers iNSD 2022 blog hop along with some amazing independent digital designers!  We have collectively put together some fabulous freebies for you today.  
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If this is your first stop welcome!  If you've arrived here via the link on Kelly's blog at Pixels to Pages, then this is your next stop.  If  you've been blog hopping along, then I'm glad to see you made it here!  Some of you may know me from the Create with Canva class I taught for Ali Edwards Design Inc.  But some of you may be new to this blog, so let me share a little bit with you. 

​I'm a hybrid memory keeper, I like using smaller pocket page albums, and I love using Canva to scrapbook!   I started this blog in 2020 to share my love of Canva, and help others learn how to create better scrapbooks with less effort.  There's lots of great info here and it's my hope that you'll take a peek around my site. You can also find me posting regularly on Instagram.  And I'd love to invite you to join FB our community Scrapbook with Canva if you'd like to explore more about using Canva for scrapbooking. ​​
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BLOG HOP Mini Kit + Try Canva For Free

Keeping with the theme of a free spirited summer, I've designed this mini kit with a pocket full of daisies & a new take on "summery" brights (by adding navy to the mix) along with  B+W modern basics that will let your photos shine.   
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"I'm just a free spirit, with a wild heart and an open road ahead."
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The kit includes five 3x4 pocket-style journal cards which can be download to print, or use digitally.  I've also included two fun digital stamp designs.   But I think the best part is you'll also get a link to three pocket card templates so you can try out Canva right now, on any device; desktop, tablet or phone (iOS or Android) and see how easy it is to use for yourself. 
Canva will also work with any of the .png papers, elements & overlays you have collected from the blog hop today.  How cool is that! 

Watch the video tutorial below as I show you step by step how to use this mini kit in Canva.   
Tutorial shown using mac desktop.  Canva app screens will look slightly different. 
GET Mini KIT
FREE CANVA ACCOUNT
If you don't have a Canva login yet, please use this link above to sign up for your free account.  Note: you do not need to upgrade your account to use this kit.​
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Where will this blog hop take you next? 
Next, head on over to visit Jessica at the Curio Pantry to collect your next digital kit.  It's fresh picked and perfect for summer! 
BLOG HOP HOME
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Visit NEXT BLOG

Canva is free to use, forever. 
See what memory keepers are raving about!​
READ REVIEWS


​Better Scrapbooks.  Less Effort.

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Rainbow Pocket Frames

3/16/2022

1 Comment

 
Tutorial to customize in Canva
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I knew the second I saw these pocket cards released in the Rainbow Scrapbook Kit by Ali Edwards that I had to try making them with some of those amazing digital papers included in the kit.   In this post I'm sharing how I created these pockets using Canva, however the first part of this tutorial would most likely work in any program that you can use .png files in such as word, google docs and others.   I've also included a video tutorial for Canva at the end of this post.​
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Let's get started!   
The first thing I did was create a new page design in Canva at 11" x 8.5" (letter sized) because I wanted to make sure the pocket template included in the kit would fit as the actual size on the page.   Then inserted the digital pocket template and centered it on the page.  I did not resize it.
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Next I downloaded this design as a .pdf for the highest quality print, then printed it on my HP Envy 7155 Photo Printer.  Then I cut out the pocket design, and scored it along the fold lines. (as shown with instructions in the digital kit).  This was essentially my "test run" and good practice to see how it would fold & go together.   But my mind was still spinning with ideas, and I wanted to do more with this pocket design.  So I created another design in Canva this time sized smaller at 5" x 8.5" knowing that the pocket template would still fit.  But the advantage of this size is that it will fit to print on my Epson PM-400 photo printer which I actually hands down prefer to use for everything related to memory keeping when ever I can because it produces the most vibrant colors for the things I print. 
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This time I downloaded my design as a .jpg as it's a smaller file size and still produces great quality on my PM-400 printer.  Also as an added tip, a .png and .pdf will print with a default setting of a white boarder around your design, and I have not found anyway to change this.  So .jpg it is.  Remember this! 
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Note: For this to work, you have to customize your page size settings before printing to tell your printer you have a longer page length. 
​You have to do both steps below:
1. Click on manage custom sizes to add a custom page size to your printer settings
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Screenshots for adding a custom page size to printer settings on a macbook pro.​
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2. Change the paper size setting on your Epson PM-400 to match
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Screenshots for changing page size on Epson PM-400 printer.  Click photo to enlarge.​
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Now that you have completed these steps, you're all set to print.   I've added this photo of the pocket card printed on both printers so you can see the difference.  The top card is most definitely brighter and printed on the PM-400. 
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Top: Epson PM-400  Bottom: HP 7155
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Free Canva Account
How Customize in Canva
​In this next section I'll show you how I customized this pocket card with a digital paper that's in the rainbow kit.  If you're familiar with using "grids" in Canva these photos should help you see how I did it.   Watch the video below to see how I do this with more explanation. ​

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When you're happy with how it looks, download and print the file as per instructions I outline above.  Or on a printer of your choice.   I also cut the letter sized paper down to 5"x8.5" to fit my PM-400 printer. 
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Printed on Epson Premium Presentation Paper - Matte double-sided paper (linked below)
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I traced one of the printed templates on the back of the rainbow page and then used a combination of my paper trimmer and scissors to cut it out.   I also created & printed a separate page with the lined pocket inserts.  To assemble the pocket card, I scored & folded per the template, inserted the lined pocket card and secured with adhesive. 
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I had so much fun playing with the designs of these pocket cards.  Here's one pocket three different ways.  The first pocket card is the file included in the kit, embellished with a little navy chipboard heart.   For the second pocket card I changed the paper design and cut out the entire half circle & replaced the window flip with vellum.  I embellished this one with a denim die cut butterfly and a custom canvas sentiment. And for the last pocket card, I printed the original design on vellum. (on my HP printer, because PM-400 doesn't recognize vellum paper well)  I cut off the top flap, to make it a pocket then punched a hole and added some navy rick rack to the insert so it can slide in from the top. 
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The finished size of these window pocket cards measure approx. 3.75" x 3.75" but now that you know the process, I'm sure you could resize them smaller or larger to fit your project.  I think these turned out super cute and are really fun to make & embellish.  And using Canva to customize with digital papers opens up tons of possibilities for these pretty little pocket cards.   
Rainbow Window Pocket Card Tutorial for Canva
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Links mentioned in this post for your connivence:
Canva free design software
Rainbow Scrapbook Kit (digital)
Epson PM-400 Photo Printer 
Epson Premium Presentation Paper - Matte Double Sided 
Grafix Inkjet Printable Vellum 30#
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You might also like this custom frame to use excessively in Canva.
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    I'm Kim. 
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