WhiMSy love: Photo Tag Book Tutorial

I want to thank Sue for sending me the instructions to this project. Check out the crafty fun she had on her blog makin' these! I had so much fun teaching this at 2 different occasions & I thought it'd be a perfect simple craft to tute & blog. Original designer of this tag book is Beverley Warwick.

The supplies are pretty simple. You'll need: 2 sheets of coordinating cardstock, matching ribbon, hole punch, adhesive of choice, & scissors. Optional supplies are: paper cutter, 1" hole punch, & decorative scissors.

You'll also want to get all your embellishing bits out to decorate your tag book.

If you use TWO coordinating pieces of 12" x 12" cardstock you can actually make 2 of these photo tag books in a jiffy. Cut one piece of cardstock to 12" x 8".

There will be a strip leftover that measure 12" x 4". If you want your tags to be the EXACT same paper as your book, then use this piece to cut out 4 small rectangles measuring 4" x 2 1/2". If you want a coordinating look, than use a different piece of cardstock to cut out the tags.

Take the 12" x 8" piece & measure up 2 3/4". Fold on this line.

I love using my embossing tool to help make a sharp crease.

Fold this paper in half as shown.

Now fold each flap forward as shown.

Your folded paper should look like this.

A step I forgot to mention while making this particular tag book was that you can use your decorative scissors & hole punch to cut right along the smaller edge on the inside of the book. This photo shows the inside of a completed photo tag book & a detail of what I'm referring to.

You've created the little pockets that your tags will slide into. But the end flaps are still "open", so you'll need to use your adhesive of choice & seal the edges shut.

Use a very thin strip of glue or tape or other adhesive so that your tags will still easily slide into the pockets.

Now we'll move on to those small rectangle pieces you cut out. These will be your tags. Using your scissors, cut the corners.

Punch holes at the top of your tags.

Thread a piece of 6-8" ribbon through each hole.

Now you can tuck your finished tags into their pockets.

Oh, let's attach some photos first! I printed out my photos to a wallet size & then trimmed them down to 3" x 2 1/4". These photo books also look really sweet when black & white photos are used.

NOW you can tuck your tags into your book!

All that's left is the embellishing! I punched out 3 one-inch circles & stuck those foamy stickers to the back.

I love the way it gives the decoration some dimension. I used foamy flower stickers to decorate the one-inch circles.

Another embellishing idea is to gather crepe paper as shown, add a 1" circle with a foamy sticker on the back & attach & a shiny little jewel. Of course you can go wild & crafty decorating the outside, inside & even tags.