The Secret Garden Altered Book by Tracey Cooley

#couturecreationsaus

Hi Everyone

It is my great pleasure to have one of my projects featured on the cover of Issue 4 of Couture Creations Creative Inspirations Magazine.

You can see it is a large project and so we at Couture Creations thought a blog post would be best to give you all the step by steps for it.
You can grab a copy of Creative Inspirations Magazine from your Local Couture Creations Stockist which you can find here, or you can view it online along with previous issues here.

For the base of this project I used an old book that I had lying around the house that I had read once and not really enjoyed. So what better to do with a book that you did not really enjoy, but repurpose it!

1. I started by painting the outside cover and also the edges of the inside cover.

2. Using texture paste mixed with your choice of colour and Couture Creations Glitzin Glamour Crystalina add some texture to both outside covers of your book and let dry

3. Cut a window from matching cardstock using the Couture Creations The Metricon Light Box Frame and adhere with Couture Creations Foam Dots leaving the inside of the frame adhered flat against the book

4. Cut from white cardstock a Couture Creations The Metricon Gate to Eden die. Cut the ornate top of the gate off to form a fence and age with inks, tear of one corner of the die cut and adhere to book cover below Light Box Frame

5. Cut 2 Couture Creations The Metricon Roses from green cardstock and then cut the actual flowers from the die in a matching colour. **do not flatten out the die cut after removing it from the die use its curves to give a 3D effect. Adhere the coloured flowers over the green die cut to form a two tone die cut. adhere your new Roses vine to the front of your book where desired.

6. Cut a few Couture Creations The Metricon Swirl Die Cuts and add to the front to frame the design.

7. add a couple of butterflies including one cut from book paper using the Couture Creation Van Roe Beautiful Butterfly Die.

8. repeat steps 3 - 7 for back cover but use a Couture Creations The Metricon Picture Frame instead of the Light Box Frame and add a title to the middle.

9. Cover the spine with a die cut from matching cardstock using the Metricon Art Deco Border. ** you may have to join it if your book is tall.

10. add some more of your Roses vines by repeating step 5 and adhere them up the spine of your book.

11. add Couture Creations Glitzin Glamour Crystalina to all flowers on the Roses vines and let dry.

12. leaving a few pages in the middle of your book, adhered all the pages together by flicking through the pages whilst spraying a good spray adhesive into them...leaving a few pages on each side and the middle of the book open and free of adhesive. adhere first and last pages to inside covers.. colour edge of pages with ink

13. Cut 2 pieces of acetate slightly thinner that your book pages but much taller and adhere to your bottom book page on each side.

(done in cardstock for better imaging)

14. cut another piece of acetate approx. 3 inches wide and fold as above and insert into the pages at the bottom of your book. this will help keep your book open.

15. Cut a die cut from matching cardstock using the Couture Creations The Treasures Ornamental Lace Die Art Deco Lace Frame.

16. Cut another piece of acetate the same height as your die cut but slightly wider.. adhere lace frame to acetate and bend the overlap on each side back. adhere this inline with the top of your book so that it fits across the front of the open book.

17. repeat this process of acetate and die cut with the Gate to Eden Die. ** to make your gate wider add some fence either side by cutting the ornate top off another gate die cut.

18. Pearce holes in the acetate either side of the middle of the gate and thread some small chain through and add a small lock charm for effect...adhere gate to the front of the open book so that there is a gap between the lace frame and gate

18. Make some more two tone Roses to add amongst the lace frame and gate as desired, placing a large butterfly behind the lace frame to form the start of your butterfly kaleidoscope.

19. add die cuts from the

Metricon Swirl amongst the Roses for added foliage, along with some butterflies in varying sizes

20. fold back a couple of page corners adhering with Couture Creations Glue spots and add a Metricon swirl to finish off. Add some sparkle by adding Couture Creations Glitzin Glamour Crystalina to the flowers and the odd Swirl.

21. Using random butterflies and in addition to the Couture Creations Van Roe Beautiful Butterfly create a Kaleidoscope of butterflies escaping from the inside of your book on the acetate protruding from the top of your book. Adhere the exact same butterfly in the same spot on each side of the acetate, this will hide the adhesive.

I hope that you like this project as much as I do and if you do try it please post it on the Couture Creations Facebook page as I would dearly love to see it.