Today we are going talk about wrapping the cover of your
mini album. When you have spent all that time to create a gorgeous mini album
you want to make sure that the cover is just as gorgeous! It is the first thing
that people will notice when they see your mini; your chance to make a good
first impression!!!!
It can also be frustrating – to keep the corners looking
neat and crisp is sooooooo important – but by using a few of the tips and
tricks I have picked up along the way and a little practice you will get a
crisp professional looking album cover.
Before you start it is important to determine the proper
size for your cover. If your cover is too small the inside of your album will
show, but if your cover is too big it will put extra stress on your binding
system and spine.
As a general rule of
thumb I select the chipboard cover height ½” larger than the height of my
largest finished album page and the cover width ¾” larger than the width of the
largest finished page.
*** It is important to consider the height and width of your
finished page including any tags that may extend from the edge of the page***
The height measurement for the chipboard ‘spine’ piece
should always be the same as the height of the cover pieces. To determine the width measurement for the
chipboard piece for the spine of your album count the number of pages that your
mini album will contain and add ½” for each page. So for example if your mini contains
4 completed pages, your spine piece should be 2” wide. Having said that this
calculation is NOT written in stone! If your pages are heavily embellished or
have multiple flaps and pockets you may need to add extra space to allow your
mini to properly close once assembled. While this can sometimes involve some
guesswork, you can place all of your completed, embellished, pages on your work
surface on top of each other to form a stack .Place your finger lightly in the
middle of the stack to hold the pages in place, assuring that they are now
aligned the way they will be in the finished album. Measure the height of the stack and add ¾”.
Once you have cut your chipboard arrange all three pieces on
your work surface leaving approximately 1/8” space between each piece. Measure
the width (distance from end to end).
You will now use this width measurement, along with the
height of your chipboard to determine the measurement for the cardstock or
patterned paper you will use to wrap your cover in. Do this by adding 2” to
both measurements. For example if your chipboard height is 6” and your width
measurement is 10” your cardstock measurement should be 8” x 12”.
Please note that if your dimensions require larger than 12”
of cardstock in either direction you will have to join 2 pieces of cardstock
together using a thin strong adhesive such as Scor Tape.
The next step is one of the most important steps of the
process. Apply adhesive all around the edges of all three pieces of chipboard.
Repeat for both sides of the chipboard. Make sure that you are using a strong
adhesive (I recommend Scor Tape), and that you apply the Scor Tape as close to
the edge of your pieces as possible.
On one side of the chipboard pieces liberally apply adhesive
to fill in the entire center.
Position all 3 pieces of chipboard on your piece of
cardstock, centering both top to bottom and side to side, leaving a 1/8” gap
between the pieces.
Without disturbing the outside pieces, lift the spine piece
and remove the adhesive backing on the side of the chipboard that is covered
completely with adhesive. Adhere down. Remove the adhesive backing from your
remaining pieces and adhere using the spine piece as your guide.
Using your bone folder, gently rub your cardstock up along
all edges of your chipboard.
Fold cardstock up and around the chipboard and continue to
burnish well with your bone folder. It is important to assure that you have
burnished all edges well, forming a nice crisp crease tight up against your
chipboard.
Once you have all the cardstock folded onto the cover unfold the paper. All 4 of the corners should look like the picture below. A square should be folded into your paper.
You are now going to trim away the the square. Cutting at a slight angle, but NOT right to the corner of the chipboard. Leave about an 1/8" space from the corner of the chipboard to the edge of the cardstock. As pictured.
Apply Scor Tape to all the edges of the cardstock and chipboard. This is an important step in keeping the paper secured to your chipboard.
Remove the backing of the Scor Tape from the edges of your chipboard and cardstock and use your bone folder to gently fold the cardstock back up and over the chipboard. Securing it to the chipboard. Use your bone folder to burnish well.
In the corners you will have a slight overhang of paper. You want to take your bone folder and gently fold that piece in before you folder over the side next to it. This will ensure a nice tight corner.
Once you have all your cardstock attached to your cover take your bone folder and gently massage the cardstock into the gap between the spine and covers.
And finally using your bone folder rub all the outside edges of the album cover. This will ensure a good stick and make the edges crisp and professional looking.
There are quiet a few steps in creating and wrapping mini album cover with a spine and binding system, but the outcome is definitely worth all the work.
There are few other ways to wrap the covers of your mini albums that we are going to cover in next Monday's post! See you then!
Thanks for dropping by! If you have any suggestions on what you would like to see let us know...leave a comment here or on our FaceBook page
Happy Scrap'n
Kim
