A PS Fan fan recently wrote in about a 4″ x 6″ booklet idea she was working on and, like many of us, the final execution of her project was unanswered – How was she going to secure the pages of her booklet?

Would it be snaps?

Could it be eyelets?

Or should it be brads?

Decisions, decision, decisions…

Sure, they seem too small for the fuss. But, take it from me, these embellishments add charm and function in their own unique way. To help her and others understand how and when to use each I created this quick-step guide.

Feel free to comment with other questions. I’ve tackled a lot of projects and have plenty of tips and tricks to offer the inquiring crafty mind.

Cheers!

–Linda
PS colors: paper bag & persimmon
Latest fave: Academic Great Big Calendar

No? Well, you’re free to laugh when I tell you PVA is my duct tape.

Flip flops with a loose sole? Slap a little PVA on there.

A loose arm on your wooden chair? Polyvinyl acetate to the rescue.

Detached roller on the office furniture? Grab that handy tub of goo.

Hey, it works! And, those of us who have limited crafting activity, have plenty to spare.

Given the creative spirit that fuels this blog, I suspect many of you have quirky alternatives for your crafting supplies. From spot drying a shirt with your heat tool (careful with this one!) to tacks or starch for apartment wall coverings (courtesy of Apartment Therapy readers), share your unexpected moments of brilliance.

– Liz
PS colors: night & curry
Latest fave: Cavallini Wrapping Paper

I used my newfound labeling skills to spruce up the envelopes for a friend’s bridal shower invitations. The wrap-around address labels were the finishing touch that the invitations needed to make them look complete and professionally crafted. It was all courtesy of my Xyron, a little imagination, and other crafting essentials (awesome postage stamps never hurt either!).

Here’s how to create these lovely envelopes:
1. Using this editable address labels template PDF I created, fill in names and addresses. Print the labels on 8 1/2 x 11 text weight paper in superfine soft white.
2. For straight edges, cut out the individual labels with the Guillotine Trimmer.
3. Run each label through the Xyron Create A Sticker!
4. Fold each label where it will wrap around the envelope using a bone folder.
5. Separate the label from the Xyron paper and place on envelope.

Voila! Your labels are done! If you want to add a bit more pizzazz, use the handy dandy envelope liner template kit to trace and cut out liners. For my project, I used Paper Source wrapping paper, but any print wrap will do. Use double-sided tape to adhere the liner to the envelopes. You can also cut out one-inch circles with a hole punch and run them through the Xyron to create envelope seals. Put it all together and you get something simple and beautiful, just like those old sticker books.

–Mary Vasquez – PS customer
PS colors: paper bag & moss
Latest fave: 2011 Paper Source Wall Art Calendar

Two lovely cards made by Olivia and Lacey from our new Houston store, opening soon!

Custom decals for a moped and helmet made by Nicolas in our Cambridge store – vrooomm!

A charming save the date with coordinating enclosure made by Martha in our Atlanta store.

We introduced the Silhouette into our stores a few months ago, and as I have been traveling around the country opening our new Paper Source locations, I have been training our employees how to use it. Most haven’t heard of this crafting machine, so I get to be the first to tell them! As I explain how it works and what kind of results you can get, I get a three stage reaction:

Stage One: The Understanding
The “oh, I get it” moment when they understand how it works. Simple – just like a printer, but instead of printing, it cuts!

Stage Two: The Dawning
Usually happens about three seconds after stage one – the moment when the potential of the Silhouette dawns on them. Here at Paper Source, we love a good project, and during “The Dawning” stage PS employees come up with 15 projects that they MUST do. Which leads us to…

Stage Three: Gimme
No explanation necessary.

Having experienced all three stages myself, I want to spread the love! If you really want to be impressed, stop into a store and ask for a demo…or sign up for the Crafting Studio – Featuring Silhouette on Wednesday, June 30 from 6:30-7:30pm. For just $15 you’ll experience a live demo of the machine, then have time to play with some of the cut outs for card making (featuring some of our new PS colors!).

Why not treat your creativity to a new power tool? See you soon!

– Rebecca
PS colors: papaya & cement
Latest fave: Silhouette SD Digital Cutting Tool

If you’re on our blog, you’re probably already familiar with Paper Source’s elegant letterpress stationery, wedding invitations, and greeting cards. (For those of you who aren’t familiar see the definition from our website above). Letterpress products are artisan crafted in a centuries-old print method and, until now, there really wasn’t an option for the average Joe to experience this art form at home.

Enter the Letterpress Machine Combo Kit! This all-in-one kit contains everything for the home crafter to create beautiful handmade cards, stationery, gift tags, and prints. Now, this kit is not a vintage Chandler and Price press, but it’s not 4,000 pounds either. It’s not a Vandercook, but you also don’t have to apprentice with anyone to use it! Bottom line…you can set up shop on your kitchen table and crank out some lovingly made, beautiful cards that 99% of recipients won’t believe you made yourself.

The Letterpress Machine Combo Kit contains everything you need to get started from paper to ink and of course, plates of images and text. I recommend playing at first and doing some test runs before you leap head first into your wedding invitations. Although this kit is small and good for home use, you still want to get a feel for how to move the ink over the plate with the brayer, and figure out exactly what techniques work best to get the impression you desire. One thing is for certain – you’re sure to have fun throughout the whole process, and you’ll be so proud of yourself when you create cards that have the tactile, elegant quality of fine letterpress printing.

p.s. See this Letterpress Machine video for a quick demo!

–Gretchen, PS Buying Team
PS colors: fuchsia & moss
Latest fave: Poppies Flower Kit

Our text weight paper works the best, and our cover weight paper and entire line of note cards can be cut with a little tweaking of the settings. It definitely takes a few practice rounds to perfect the art of placing the media in the right spot on the mat and finding the perfect the blade settings, but if you love card making, scrapbooking or just general crafting, this tool is a must have!

The tool comes pre-loaded with 50 shapes, and can cut almost any font you already have loaded on your computer. Additional images are available for download (iTunes style) on the Silhouette website. The samples shown here were created using Silhouette shapes. A patterned background and layered message (all cut out of text weight paper) make for a fun thank you card.

Floral cutouts xyroned to a brightly wrapped package with coordinating card create a fun gift presentation any girl would love! For those of you who want to take it to the next level, the Silhouette can also be used to cut your own designs, which is the feature I use the most. I have been creating hand-cut designs for years and now use my Silhouette to do the work for me.

I start by hand-cutting my design, then scan the final piece and import the file into the Silhouette software. I follow the easy step-by-steps to create the outline, and I’m off to cutting pieces that would normally take hours upon hours to cut. Several steps, but I promise it’s easy to do! With our entire line of colorful papers and cards to work with, projects with the Silhouette have so many possibilities and are so much fun!

– Stephanie
PS colors: fuchsia & night
Latest fave: Silhouette SD Digital Cutting Tool, of course, and Fingertip Swivel Craft Knife for those extra special projects needing a hand-cut touch!

Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at how we created the cover of our most recent Paper Source catalog. Valentine’s Day is all about taking the time to show love, so we really wanted something handmade on our Valentine’s Day catalog cover. What we came up with was simple and lovely – a paper heart hand-stitched with the word “love.”

Create your own hand-stitched sentiment by following the easy steps below!

– Karen
PS colors: moss & papaya
Latest fave: India Calico File Folders

1. Choose the note card onto which you want to stitch (in this case our heart shape card). Next create a template of the note card from scrap paper or copy paper. Using your note card as a guide, trace its shape onto scrap paper.

2. Choose a word or phrase to stitch and decide how you want it to look. We tried a few different writing styles – some handwritten and a few fonts from the computer. Eventually we settled on the handwritten one shown. Print or handwrite your word onto your template making sure the placement is appropriate within the shape. Cut out your template shape.

3. Place your template on top of your shape card. Use an awl (aww…so cute!) to pre-punch stitching holes about 1/8” apart along the letters of the word. Punch through both the template and the shape card.

3. Now you’re ready to stitch! Remove your template and use ribbon, string or thread to stitch through the holes in your shape card. We used linen thread to stitch our little “love” onto the card.

When lining Paper Source envelopes, the trick is to use our Envelope Liner Template Kit, which comes with traceable plastic templates in 7 envelope sizes. Check out our How-to Video where our beloved founder Sue will show you how to make envelope liners, and keep you entertained along the way.

Enjoy, and, as Sue will remind you, Do Something Creative Every Day!

– Cindy
PS colors: pool & red
Latest fave: Dutch Woodcut Floral Wrapping Paper

Xyron Create-a-Sticker, paper punches

A Xyron is a machine that applies an adhesive to the backside of any paper you run through it. Besides being super easy, what makes this adhesive so useful is that it is dry — ever tried using a glue stick and noticed everything you glued began to curl? This happens to most surfaces, but especially paper, when introduced to the moisture of wet glue. With the Xyron machine, you create a dry adhesive akin to a sticker– no wet, no curl, no mess. All in all, a smooth, clean and fast way to add creativity to any project.

Xyron machines come in many sizes, each appropriate for different kinds of projects. The 510 machine, which takes paper up to 5” wide by 10’ long (hence the name), is ideal for adding paper strips to programs, photos to scrapbook pages or decorated cards. Not to mention all those lovely invites we feature on our signature “idea boards” in our stores.

The Xyron Create-a-Sticker (affectionately known as the Baby-X) offers a really easy way to make your own stickers — a great creative project for kids. The Create-a-Sticker comes with a cartridge that’s 1 1/2″ wide and allows for 20 feet of adhesive.

Here are some simple steps for making stickers with the Baby-X:

1. Use one of our paper punches to create a few shapes with any decorative paper (used here: 5-Point Shape Hole Punch).
2. Drop the paper shapes facing up into the top opening on the X of the Baby-X.
3. Pull the tape as you drop the punches, and tear off at serrated edge.
4. Smooth down the reverse side of these little punches to get good adhesion (we like using a bone folder for this).
5. Once removed, the plastic carrier film can act as a clean-up tool in picking up any leftover remnants of gummy adhesive. Ball it up and gently run it along the edges of your paper.
6. Use your stickers to accent anything — cards, paper, envelopes, invitations, you name it!

Have fun!

–Linda
PS colors: chartreuse & pool
Latest fave: Saddle Stitch Notebooks

So what’s all the fuss about bone folders? Simply put, this basic craft tool is the “multi-tasker” of tools. It does it ALL. Bone folders are ideal for making cards with great folds, invitations with perfect smoothed liners, stationery with clean creases, scrap booking scores for recessing photos, and virtually anything in the realm of bookbinding. A bone folder makes anything you create look more professional. Spend some time around our demo table or at one of our workshops, and you’ll be a bone folder expert in short order!

There are two types of bone folders:

1. The old tried-and-true “basic” bone folder (traditionally made of animal bone –the way old fashioned bookbinders have been for using them for centuries) has two ends with specific purposes. One end is narrowed to a softer point, which makes them great for deep scoring of heavy-weight paper and indenting for marking on book board. The tip can be sanded to the desired roundness depending on the project.

2. The second version is the newer Teflon folder. Teflon bone folders are more flexible than regular bone folders and won’t leave a sheen or scuff paper or book cloth. The great thing about the Teflon finish: glue will not adhere to it.

–Linda
PS colors: chartreuse & pool
Latest fave: Saddle Stitch Notebooks