Friday, May 27, 2011

Thank You Gifts Compliments of Your Bind-it-All

A quick mini album is a great way to say Thank You to someone! Both of my sons play soccer, my husband coaches my oldest son's team and I am the Team Manager for my youngest son's team. As a Thank You to the coaches who put in so much hard work and the parents who are so positive and caring and the wonderful bunch of kids we have, my son and I made a batch of mini albums with the Bind-it-All!

Each mini album has a photo of the team on the front and I took pictures throughout the years of all the kids and added their name on the photo before printing it out and adding them to the inside of the mini album.

My son helped me put together the mini albums and glue the photos inside the pages. He was so proud when he handed them out. The parents, coaches and kids loved them!


With your Bind-it-All, you can create these simple, personalized minis in a flash.  There isn't a more versatile tool out there for making minis (or big albums too!)

I can't think of a better way to show my appreciation!

Zutter Zister DT Member Fleur Smith

Monday, May 23, 2011

A "Zuper" Zuttery Crafty Weekend

Art-Full Horizons brings you our premier event, the only all-inclusive weekend scrapbooking experience of its kind! Join Jennifer Priest, Laura Miller, and Donna Salazar as we present classes with dynamic instructors, gourmet food, resort accommodations, appearances and deminars from top manufacturers, goodies and prizes from cutting edge companies, and a fun atmosphere to inspire your creativity! Plus, we're pleased to have Zutter as our Platinum Sponsor!!! Nearly every class will feature the Bind-It-All among other Zutter tools!!!
Here are the details:
* May 27, 2011 at 7pm through May 29, 2011 at 5pm
* Palm Springs, CA

* Event Meals
* Classes from Marah Johnson, Stephanie Ackerman, Donna Salazar, Robyn Weatherspoon, and Jennifer Priest
* Deminars from Original Zutter Zister Nan Paturzo, Spellbinders' Paper Arts' Kim Hupke,  Copic Certified Instructor Jennie Lin Black, Heidi Sonboul of GCD Studios and Michelle Hill of Epiphany Crafts
* You'll take 7 classes at the event!!
* Admission to the Grand Garden Tea Boutique (includes make n takes, gourmet appetizers, vendor faire, and more) on Friday Night
* Make N Takes from Zutter, Epiphany Crafts, Paper Trunk, tammyi, and more!

* Full access to all other event activities
* Discounted Resort Parking
* Exclusive Garden Party Welcome Goodies
* And much more!

Here are just two of the classes featuring Zutter goodies:

 Jennifer Priest will lead you through creating one of her signature mini books featuring tags, secret fold-out pages, and exciting details page after page using products from Crate Paper's "Portrait" Collection, American Crafts, and more. "Shop" her exclusive embellie bar during class to gather vintage and other found goodies to create your one-of-a-kind project. Create more custom embellies using the Epiphany Crafts epoxy tools in class. We'll use the Zutter Bind It All to bring it altogether into one unique package and store the book in a cigar style tin we'll decorate in style. Then we'll paint, spray, and ink our way through each page using Clearsnap's Smooch Spritz.

Donna Salazar is teaching a brand new and exclusive class called the "Glittery Garden" Flower Technique Book. We'll have 8 painty pages filled with flowers, glitter, and all things girlie grunge. I'll be using ALL my favorites, Zutter Corrugated Board, with my Zutter Distrezz-it-All and their Bind-it-All, my Artistic Paper, Crafty Chronicle, and Antiquities papers from GCD Studios, my Fanciful Flights, Rose Creation and Carnation Creation dies from Spellbinders, and my Smooch Spritz and Fairy Dust Glitter with various inks from Clearsnap. I am jam packing so much into this 3 hour class. I'm going to do a LOT of prep for these kits so we can spend most of the time PLAYING.
 
We're offering 2 ticket packages to suit your needs:
Local Rate (Provide Your Own Accommodations) * $369 per person
Kits Only Rate (Will be Shipped to you) * $369 per person



Can't take the time to come to the entire event? Attend the Grand Garden Tea for just $20 and make all the make n takes, enjoy gourmet appetizers, shop til you drop, meet the instructors, and more!

For more info visit http://art-fullhorizons.blogspot.com/p/register.htmlhttp://art-fullhorizons.blogspot.com/p/register.html or email us at artfullhorizons@gmail.com. 

Registration is going on now and filling fast
BUT STILL ROOM FOR YOU!

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Remember This...for Father's Day

With Father's Day coming up this is a great time to make something special for Dad, or any special person in your family!

I made this hybrid mini album/home decor item for Father's Day. I always have something homemade on our mantle and it was time for a change so I created this fold out piece that can be stored away as a mini album when you change your decor.

To start I shaped the 6"x6" Zutter Chipboard covers into a house shape and covered them with patterned paper. Then I added 4"x6" Zutter Chipboard cover to each side that will fold in when the album is bound together. Use the color of Zutter Owire that complements your paper and them, and punch and bind!

Add some of your favorite family photos to display on a shelf or like mine, on a mantle. No matter what you decide to do (or who you make one for), it's sure to become a family treasure.

Zutter Zister DT Member Fleur Smith

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Art-Full Horizons Make 'n Take!

I am very exciting to participating in the first Art-Full Horizons event this May in Palm Springs.
 
If you are in Southern California (and even if you are not and want to vacation in this resort town!), you will want to attend this event!  Here's all the details here........  Produced by my friends Donna Salazar, Jennifer Priest and Laura Miller, this is a scrappy, crafty, extraordinary event.


This first evening of the event includes the Grand Garden Tea - an evening of delights and crafty make 'n takes.  I will be featuring this Mini Album in Minutes using the Zutter Bind-it-All, Scor-it-All and this delightful Bo Bunny Mango Luau paper - to get us in the mood for summer time!
Hope you can join us for this fabulous event, as well as stop by and make your own Summery Mini.....in Minutes!

Founding Zutter Zister Nan Paturzo

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

From the Art-Full Horizons Event website.....

It's a Zeminar....

We are so excited to be working with 5 fabulous cutting edge manufacturers to present these tool focused "deminars" to our attendees!! Zutter, our corporate sponsor, has sent their very best representative, Nan Paturzo, to present a "Zeminar" on all thingz Zutter. We're so excited to be working with Nan and Zutter!!

Bind-It-All "Zeminar" with Nan Paturzo
No doubt about it – you need to see the Bind-it-All and Dreamkuts in action to really “get it.” This “Zeminar” is all about getting your Zutter on, and learning the basics of making a fast and fabulous mini book using three core Zutter tools: the Bind-it-All, the Dreamkuts, and the Scor-it-All.

We will be using a 6X6 Zutter Cover-All (makes albums FAST!), ¾” Zutter Owire, embellishments from GCD, and patterned papers from Bo Bunny. Faster than a speeding Bind-it-All, you will be creating this album with pockets, flaps and cards in no time flat!

Students need to bring a paper trimmer, adhesive and fast working hands!
Nan has been scrapbooking for over 16 years, and has been crafting and teaching with the Bind-it-All since it’s beginning in 2007. As a Founding Zutter Zister, she handles marketing, design team activities, blogging and message boarding for Zutter. She is active in local scrapbooking activities in Southern California, and travels on behalf of Zutter. And all that is part-time! Nan also works full-time in marketing (not scrapbooking related), has a busy family life – two daughters Marli (learner’s permit and track team) and Franny (dance team and Girl Scouts), and hubby Peter (starting their own business together!) All that and she is training constantly for her next half marathon. A full marathon isn’t too far in the future.

Are you registered for Art-Full Horizons yet?

Don't miss out on this fabulous deminar plus all of the other classes, gourmet food, and more. Registration is still open so head on over to reserve your ticket to AH.

Monday, May 9, 2011

We're Back With MORE Flowers!!!

Michelle Van Etten and I have developed a fabulous new class, All About Flowers III, online at My Creative Classroom!! Class starts May 11, 2011--don't miss out!

Here's all the info:


Proudly Sponsored by Zutter & Epiphany Crafts


Flower divas Michelle Van Etten and Jennifer Priest will teach you how to create 16 of the most popular, stunning, textural flowers using fabric of all types. Save money and create custom flowers to perfectly compliment any project or any color combination. Michelle and Jennifer can show you how to make designer knock-offs and create stunning looks that are all your own. We'll create a Zutter Spinner Album Technique Book in class that you can add to in subsequent classes as well as show you numerous ways to use these flowers in your crafting. This course is for anyone and everyone who loves crafting with flowers - no pre-requisite required.



By the end of the class series you will have filled the fabulous Zutter Spinner Album with nearly 75 unique handmade flowers!!! Even if you take just one class, you can keep adding your own flower creations to the Zutter Spinner Album to keep them handy as a technique reference guide.


To register go here and sign up. Only $25! See you online in class :)

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Make It Custom with the Bind-it-All: Part 3

This is the last part of my series about making custom books with your Bind-It-All. A few days ago I shared with you a little about why I love the Bind-It-All -- it's the ability to make custom books from just about anything!!! In my classes I am always trying to push the envelope of what the Bind-It-All can do. Today I am sharing a few more of the custom books I've made and a little about how I made them. ANYONE with ANY skill level can make these books!!

This is the fifth book I want to show you, an easy mini you can make for about $2. Thanks to the Bind-It-All. Here is Pretty:



This is a 4x4 mini that is so easy and affordable to create yet packs a creative punch. I taught this as part of a Projects Class using Crate Paper's Emma's Shoppe line. Here are the supplies you need:
  • Two 4x4 Chipboard or Clipboard Wood Covers
  • Two Sheets of Patterned Paper cut to 4x4
  • Two Sheets of another Patterned Paper cut to 4x4
  • One 12x12 Sheet cut to NINE 4x4 pages
  • 6 Loops 1/2" Zutter O-Wire
  • Embellishments for the Cover
 Adhere the Patterned paper to each side of the Covers, one pattern on the front a different pattern on the back. Punch 6 holes across the top of each Cover using the Bind-It-All on the C Setting. Punch holes in all of the pages, again with the Bind-It-All on the C Setting. Set the pages and Covers in order. Flip the back cover to the front so you are seeing the inside of the back cover, Thread the O-Wires through the pages from the back of the book to the front. Close with the Bind-It-All and flip the back cover to the back of the book. Decorate the cover. Here's another version of the same kind of mini book:




For about $48 (24 sheets cardstock @ 60 cents a sheet + 6 Sheets Patterned Paper @ 80 cents each + 1 box 1/2" O-Wires @ $4.49 + 24 packs of 4x4 Chipboard Covers @ 99 cents) you can create 24 mini books to use as gifts. That is just amazing!! Graduations, Mother's Day, Teacher Appreciation Week...all kinds of occasions for which you need a thoughtful yet affordable gift are great times to make a book this.

And here is one more example, this time with 3x4 Chipboard and 3x4 inner pages:








Here's one last idea while I am talking about custom books:
Birthday Party Hat Book


This is a birthday hat shaped book I made using gift cards, an actual greeting card from the birthday and chipboard pages to create a mini book about my son's first birthday. I taught this book as a class after everyone loved my inspiration piece, a birthday hat book using real hats in the Bind It All Around the World Idea Book (which is an awesome resource -- if you have not bought one and you have a Bind-It-All, you NEED this book!).

On this mini I glued photos on the fronts and back of chipboard pages using very little paper. I used stickers to cover some of the chipboard pages as well. After all of the pages were covered with paper, including the backs of gift cards, I was ready to bind the book.




 
 
This book features binding in the center of the party hats with all of the inner pages being smaller than the party hat shaped covers. To punch holes all the way along each page, I used the "eyeball" method. Using the holes printed on the top of the Bind-It-All as a guide, place the page into the Bind-It-All so the edge of the page is between two of the holes. Punch. Slide the page over and insert the peg from the back of the Black Stop Guide Tab into the nearest hole and continue punching until the holes extend the entire height of the page. 




Stack all of the pages in order, placing the back cover onto the front of the book and thread the O-Wires from the back of the book towards the front. Close the wires using the Bind-It-All and flip the back cover to back of the book. Decorate!

I hope these last few posts I have shared have given you some binding ideas and tips that will help you use our Bind-It-All to create your own custom creations unlike anything in any store. Be a binding artist!!

Happy Binding!!!

Posted by Jennifer Priest
Original Zutter Zister

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Congrats, Zutter Zister Fleur!

Congratulations to Zutter Zister Fleur Smith for all her recent publishing achievements.  We LOVE seeing her Bind-it-All projects in print.  See her complete Zutter Zister Gallery archived here.

 Coke Can Notebook - Simply Handmade Mar/Apr 2011



First Aid - Spring Mini Album Idea Book



A Day In The Life Spring Mini Album Idea Book


Congrats again, Fleur!


Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Make It Custom with the Bind-it-All: Part 2

A few days ago I shared with you a little about why I love the Bind-It-All -- it's the ability to make custom books from just about anything!!! In my classes I am always trying to push the envelope of what the Bind-It-All can do. Today I am sharing a few more of the custom books I've made and a little about how I made them. ANYONE with ANY skill level can make these books!!

This is the third book I want to show you, which mixes acrylic pages from Clear Scraps with chipboard page I covered with Echo Park paper and two different types of paper bags. Here is Enjoy Life:

Here you can see that I used treat bags and mini lunch sacks mixed with acrylic pages and some chipboard pages to create this fun and festive custom book.  I used banner pennants from a Clear Scraps Large Acrylic Banner as some of the pages, mounting one towards the bottom of the book and the other page is rather free-floating at the top of the binding.
 

I also only bound 6" worth of the left side of each page regardless of the size of the page (the go up to 8" tall). This is a great way to conserve O-Wire (used 10 loops of O-Wire versus the 14 loops an 8" page would require) and gives the book a playful, Willy Wonka-esque feel. 

To bind like this, set the Bind-It-All to the "C" Setting and insert each page into the Bind-It-All with the bottom of the page (or bag) butted up against the black stop guide tab that you set to "C". Punch 6 holes, then move the stop guide tab to "A" and slide the page over. Insert the peg on the back of the stop guide tab into the 3rd hole from the bottom of the page. Press the handle of the Bind-It-All down and punch another set of holes, 4 this time, for a total of 10. Repeat on every page. Lay the back cover of the book on top of the front cover so that the inside of the back over is facing up and thread the O-Wires through from the back pages to the front. Then close with the Bind-It-All. It's a good idea to use large diameter O-Wire, like 1" or 1 -1/4", on projects like this so that you have room for all of the embellishments on the pages. Here's a look at the back pages in the book so you can view of how the binding looks:




 The binding does not extend continuously up the edge of the page but stops about 2' short. It's just a fun way to make a book and conserve wire.

I am teaching this book in classes at Collective Journey in Redlands, CA (ph: 909-793-2200) on May 1st from 1-4pm and at Scrapbooking Made Simple in Santa Clarita CA (ph: 661-298-1112) on May 21st from 2pm-5pm. Just call the store to sign up.


Another book where I use different sized pages in one book is this Sew Cute Mini Book class I taught:



Here I used 6x8 Pages as a base for the book and sipping tags (about 2.5" wide) and 6x6 Pages. Some of the 6x6 pages are flush right and some are flush left.

  
  
 Here's how I punched the binding holes in each page:
  • 6x8 Pages - Set the Bind-It-All to "C". Punch 6 holes and then move the black stop guide tab to "A". Slide the page over, putting the peg into the 5th holes, and punch another set of holes. Set the Bind it All to "A" again and slide the page over again, this time making sure the left side of the page is flush with the edge of the Bind-It-All. This will give you a 1/2" space between the end of the page and the row of holes. Insert the peg on the back of the black stop guide tab into the nearest hole and punch the last hole needed.
  • 6x6 pages - Flush Right. Set the Bind-It-All to the "C" Setting. Insert the 6x6 page into the machine with the RIGHT hand side flush with the black stop guide tab. Punch 6 holes. Set the Bind-It-All "A" and slide the page to the right. Insert the peg into the nearest hole and punch. There is no need for a 1/2" space between the holes and end of the page on this edge -- the holes will need to go continuously to the end of the page to be able to be bound to the 6x8 book base. On the page above you can see how the holes start 1/2" in from the right edge of the page but continue all the way to the edge of the left side of the page.
  • 6x6 pages - Flush Left. Set the Bind-It-All to the "C" Setting. Insert the 6x6 page into the machine with the LEFT hand side flush with the black stop guide tab. Punch 6 holes. Set the Bind-It-All "A" and slide the page to the right. Insert the peg into the nearest hole and punch. There is no need for a 1/2" space between the holes and end of the page on this edge -- the holes will need to go continuously to the end of the page to be able to be bound to the 6x8 book base. On the page below you can see how the holes start 1/2" in from the left edge of the page but continue all the way to the edge of the right side of the page.
  

For the tags, you will use the "eyeball" method. Use the holes printed on the top of the Bind-It-All as a guide for placement of the tag into the machine. You will only need 5 holes on the bottom of each tag. Make sure the edge of the tag is between the holes -- if the edge of the tag is in the center of where a hole is to be punched, then the Bind-It-All will punch a partial hole there, resulting in what I call a "bite mark".


Another thing I do to make my binding life easier is to put the base of my book together, bind, and then embellish.  Cover all chipboard pages with paper and be sure to punch holes in all tags, bags and so on that you plan to use in the book. This is for two reasons.
  1. If you put embellishments too close to the area where the holes need to be punched, the page won't be able to slip into the Bind It All properly and you will have to punch through them or remove them, possibly damaging the book in the process.
  2.  If you plan to use alot of chunky embellishments in your book, binding it first helps you place those embellies throughout the book evenly so that it does not have the alligator effect (the ends of the pages gapeopen like an alligator mouth). Here are the embellies I used in this book: buttons, twine, and more. I was able to keep the book pretty flat even with all of these bulky embellies because I was able to spread them out across the pages since I had already bound the book.


 
I'll be back to share some more unique binding ideas and tips with you in a few more days :)

Happy Binding!!!

Posted by Jennifer Priest
Original Zutter Zister

Monday, May 2, 2011

For Crafty Moms Everywhere.....

You won't find this posted on the website, but NOW through midnight 5/8/11, FIVE hot Zutter tools are 30% off for Mother's Day Week.  The sale price will automatically appear in your shopping cart.  Take advantage now!  Shop Here.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Make it Custom with the Bind-it-All: Part 1

The beauty of the Zutter Bind-It-All System is the ability to make custom books from just about anything. In my classes I am always trying to push the envelope of what the Bind-It-All can do. I'll share below and over the next few weeks some of the custom books I've made and a little about how I made them. ANYONE with ANY skill level can make these books!!

I often have ladies in my classes who have never used the Bind-It-All before and after the class, they're basically binding pros, ready to buy the machine. Why is that? 

I also have lots of people ask me why I choose Bind It All over any other binding system or method. It's not just because I am on their design team. I am scrapbooker first and I've tried everything else - I want to know what is the best and I only want to use what is the best. The Bind-It-All is the BEST. I come back to the BiBind-It-Alltime and time again because it is superior to everything else I have tried.

Here is what makes the Bind-It-All and Zutter so unique:
  • The Bind-It-All allows you to take a pile of paper, chipboard, cereal boxes, gift cards, license plates, CDs, acrylic, bingo cards, envelopes, shipping tags, postcards, brochures, ticket stubs, greeting cards, clipboard wood, and anything else that will fit into the Bind-It-All and create a custom, one of a kind book with it.
  • AWESOME Customer Service. Zutter stands behind their products with a lifetime warranty.
  • No Maintenance -- empty the "chads" from the collection chamber and that's it. No oiling or sharpening needed EVER. Each of the Bind It Alls I own has bound over 1000 books each and they are still going strong.
  • EXCLUSIVE online support. From Zutter's online "how-to" videos to an exclusive NING Community of users and designers to an updated Facebook Page to online classes to this fabulous blog brimming with ideas, Zutter is here to support your creativity and show you everything you can do with your Bind-It-All.
  • Bind-It-Allgives you ALOT of control with your binding projects. Punch as few as 2 holes or punch a continuous row of binding holes on an 84" book if you wish (you can get even bigger than that!) You can add more O-wires if your project is heavy and needs a lot of strength or conserve wire by binding in the center or on the edges.
  • The Bind-It-All is for so much more than mini books--wall hangings, home decor projects, school projects, office projects....my first project with the Bind-It-All was actually a desk calendar I wanted bound.
  • You will make back the money you spent to purchase it after just 5-10 projects compared to buying books already assembled or getting the projects bound at an office store or using Binder Rings (pricey).
Seriously, I can go on forever. But I'll stop here and share what I really wanted to share with you -- some ideas on ways to make custom books with your Bind-It-All!!!

The first book I want to show you uses LOTS of scrap paper: Postcards from the Heart.

 








This is similar to a book I teach in my online class, Bind It All BEYOND THE BOOK, at My Creative Classroom. This is a great project if you buy paper collection packs and have leftovers or have lots of scrap paper from your other projects. Almost all of the pages are straight paper, no chipboard. The papers are folded and scored to make pockets and surprise openings. 

The beauty is you can use up alot of paper from a collection pack and it all coordinates--in this book, I created 70+ pages from the leftovers from a Crate Paper Collection Pack I had already made 8 layouts with. I also worked in little odds and ends I had laying around like glassine bags, coin envelopes, Maya Road Kraft Envelopes, bingo cards, doilies and more as pages. There's even a page made of felt! Can you name a mini book you can buy that has felt pages in it?! I can't. I love how the sky is the limit with your Bind-It-All--you can bind almost anything!

This book, from my "Among the Butterflies" mini book class, features a double binding style with a set of left turning pages and a set of vertical turning pages. These are attached to the back cover of the book in two places as you can see from the back of the book below. 


In the photo below, the vertical pages are all flipped up and the left pages are flipped left so you can see the inside of the back cover. The way I did this is I treated the back cover as the back cover of two separate books. For the left bound pages, I punch 10 holes along the 6" side of the back cover, just like I did on all the of the pages. I flipped the back cover to the front, threaded on my O-Wires, and then closed them in the Bind-It-All. Then I punch 6 holes only, on the C Setting in the Bind-It-All, on the right side of the top edge of the back cover. This is where my second "book" was going to attach, all of the vertical pages. I punched 6 holes in each page, in the same place, upper right, and then laid the back cover on top, threaded on my O-Wires, and then closed them in the Bind-It-All.

Next I flipped all of the vertical pages down onto the back cover and then flipped all of the left-turning pages down onto the back cover. The pages are meant to flipped alternately -- left then up, left then up. It makes for a very fun, interactive book that you've custom made with your own two hands. Here you can also see that I used shipping tags and a Jillibean Soup Kraft File Folder as pages in the book for extra interest.

Here you see some of the layers of pages as the book is open:



I'm teaching this book in class one more time at Cool Scrapbook Stuff in Poway, CA featuring the Bind It All plus Zutter's Distrezz-It-All on May 15, 2011. Contact the store at 858-679-9100 to sign up.

I'll be back to share some more unique binding ideas with you next week :)

Happy Binding!!!

Posted by Jennifer Priest
Original Zutter Zister