What A Beautiful Mess: 49 and Market ARToptions Holiday Wishes Mini Album

Hello Lovelies! Who doesn't think it is never to early to start on your Holiday projects/gifts!! Certainly not me! I have another one finished! This is a Foundations Memory Keeper Quad Folio in white, finished with the brand new beautiful ARToptions Holiday Wishes collection. Breaking with the traditional colors of green and red, it adds teals, light blues, citrus greens with touches of peach, yellow, and pink. It makes for a gorgeous combination. I stained the white album using green ink. I only stained the edges where the paper didn't cover, about one inch all around the edges. I created a frame on the cover using 2 dies from my stash, and papers from the Holiday Wishes 6x8 paper collection. I also die cut corrugated cardboard and adhered the die cuts to it, layered the frames, and it turned out to be a chunky frame that pops right off of the cover. I then used a variety of flowers in a couple of different colors to compliment the colors in the papers. Of course I tucked in the beautiful poinsettia laser cuts in-between the flowers. I tied jute into the laser cut button, and added the laser cut deer. I tucked in some leaves, spattered some white gesso, to match the faux snow in the photo, and called the cover done.

There is plenty of room in the Memory Keeper quad folio. I used the 4x6 paper collection to cover the pages. There are inserts available to add to the inner pages, but I only used portions of the 4x6 Envelope Folio set on some of the pages. This album has so many possibilities. The beauty is the pages do not lie flat. There is about about a 3/4 inch gap between each page so that you can make your pages chunky and it still closes beautifully. The cover flap is magnetized for easy closure. I created a waterfall feature with a magnetized flap to hold it closed, and on all of the pages, and under each flap you can fit a 4x6 photo. I used 1 sheet of 12x12 ARToptions Holiday Wishes paper and cut it into 4x6 pieces to cover the flaps I created using white cardstock. That gave me 6 papers for the flaps. I also created cards and tags to tuck into the Envelope Folio Set pockets, I used white card stock for some of the cards, and just adhered the Holiday Wished paper over it. Layering the ephemera, laser cut and chipboards is so much fun to create the tags. I also used the envelope in the set, and when it is lifted, I tucked in a couple of cards that can hold 4x6 photos on the backs and inside. One has a laser cut frame on the front to add a photo. 2 of the pages in the album I left plain, and can be used to adhere photos, or used for journaling.

The Holiday Wishes Card kit is beautiful. I put together a couple of the cards and envelopes to add to my album. On the back cover of the album, I added the Ephemera Bits snowy house scene to the base, and used it as a pocket to hold a card. I added a cute Washi postage stamp to the envelope. On the inside of the card can hold a 4x6 photo. On every spot that a phot can be added, I used a camera stamp to mark the spots. This album will hold a ton of photos and journaling.

Here is a close up of the spine that I adorned with chipboard, laser cuts and Ephemera. You can see the cards and flaps I created to hold photos.

Here is a closeup of the spine and cover. The cover is pretty dimensional, but I love it that way.

Here is a closeup of the album opened, showing the back, spine and cover. The other flaps to the album are turned in to the inside. There is so much more I can still do to the album, but for mow, I think I like it the way it is. I am gifting this to someone special.

Thank you for joining me this week. I hope that you are inspired to get some holiday gifts done using Artoptions Holiday wishes. This collection is really wonderful! xo