Ever since I first saw the Snailed It Stamp Set I had a project idea in my head. My regular readers will know I love notebooks. Yes I know I can keep information on my phone or computer and technology does have its place, however a notebook doesn’t need to be charged or plugged in to work. So when I was thinking about “snail mail” I decided to decorate an actual a-z index book.

ACCIDENTAL COORDINATION

I must admit that when it comes to keeping snail mail addresses in an real book, I may be in the minority. I’ve struggled to find an a-z notebook locally, but once again my daughter came to the rescue. She found some UK A6-sized a-z books online and bought three of them for me.

I don’t know if there was a choice of cover, but the ones I have are plain navy blue and hard-backed. So I began by looking for a background paper that would coordinate with it. In the end I chose a Night of Navy plaid pattern from the Neutrals 6″ x 6″ Designer Series Paper (DSP) Assortment.

I measured the front and back covers of the book and cut two pieces of the DSP 1/4″ shorter and narrower. Then I used Multipurpose Liquid Glue (Tombow) to fix the DSP in place. It was only when they were attached that I realised how well the DSP coordinated with the hard-cover. So well in fact, that it looked like that’s how it was meant to be.

HAPPY MAIL

Now I needed to create the “happy mail” decoration for the book.

I began with a Tuxedo Black ink pad and some Basic White Card. Then from the Snailed it Stamp Set I chose the snail carrying the letter.

I stamped the snail onto the card and then started to colour using my Stampin’ Blends alcohol markers. For the snail body I used light and dark Polished Pink, then I coloured the shell with light and dark Fresh Freesia. For the envelope I used light and dark Pale Papaya and finished off the heart with dark Polished Pink.

With the colouring all complete I cut out the image using the coordinating die from the Snail Dies set.

All I needed now was the “Happy mail enclosed” sentiment stamped onto Basic White Card. My plan was to cut out the sentiment (and the envelope that’s part of that stamp) using the coordinating Rectangular Postage Stamp Punch. However I didn’t have access to that so I needed to be creative with the tools I had available.

In the end I chose the square notched-edge die from the Snail Dies set. Obviously the die wasn’t designed to cut out the image so I’d have to cut twice. First I placed the die onto my sentiment piece with the top and left side where I wanted it to cut. Then I ran it through my Mini Stampin’ Cut & Emboss Machine. Next I moved the die to line it up with the right and bottom edges, and cut again. It’ wasn’t perfect, but it certainly wasn’t bad.

So now I could finish decorating my address book. I began by using liquid glue to fix the sentiment to the book. Then I added the die-cut snail over the top, placing it so that it hid the envelope on the sentiment piece and with that my project was complete.

Despite having to wing-it with the sentiment, I’m really happy with how my project turned out. It’s certainly a lot more interesting than my phone. Now all I have to do is add the addresses of friends and family. Then I’ll be all set to send happy mail to those special people both near and far.

PRODUCT LIST

BUNDLE BONUS – I bought the Snailed It Stamp Set and coordinating Snail Dies using a single ‘bundle’ item number. This meant I saved 10% off the cost of buying the two items separately. I’ve included a link to both options so you can compare these if you wish. Just a word of warning… the stamp set and dies do not appear in the Stampin’ Up! 2021/2022 Annual Catalogue, and it’s likely they’ll be retiring in the next few weeks. So if you’ve been thinking about getting the stamp set and/or dies please don’t wait too long to place your order.