Tara Chaussee's Blog Posts

06.07.19

Stars & Stripes!

Hi everyone! Tara here with Secretbees Studio The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays; we are celebrating our nations' independence, the weather is sunny and hot and red is my favorite color! Plus, it's another excuse to plan a fun filled get-together with friends and family.

I love making my own paper decorations for the holiday and the 'Let Freedom Ring' paper collection is full of patriotic colors and images that will coordinate with everything red, white and blue! To welcome my guests for the big day will be this star filled wreath that is bursting with fun!

To go along with all of the star shapes, there is a mixture of vibrant pinwheels, rosettes and fringe flowers as well as festive paper curls! I used a combination of Silhouette Studio designs and die cuts for the shapes as well as fussy cutting stars from the patterned paper. It's a good sized wreath too, measuring around 14 inches across.

I covered a wooden circle wreath frame with strips of the patterned paper before layering all of the festive shapes, stacking some higher than others with foam adhesive. I even tucked in a few of the collection stickers as well as a 3x4 journal card commemorating the big day! Although cutting all the shapes took a bit of time, this project was completed in just a few hours and looks amazing. I will look forward to hanging this on my front door for the celebration!

Supplies

05.22.19

Ready To Cruise!

Hi everyone! It’s Tara with Secretbees Studio . Summers are all about vacations and I happen to think vacations in warm, sunny weather are the best! Most cruises take you to beautiful tropical destinations and you know you're going to take a ton of photos while you are there! Here is some adorable inspiration for a vacation cruise mini album you can create and have all ready for those wonderful photos!

I made the suitcase, which measures 5.5" by 7" by 3", from a tutorial I found on YouTube. The base was made with the coordinating Simple Basics paper and then topped with the bright and playful patterned paper of the Cruisin' collection. You can never go wrong with plaids and polka dots!

I added a few travel 'stickers' to the outside of the suitcase along with a shaker luggage tag that is topped with some of the super fun Bits & Pieces and a sweet shell charm!

The inside of the suitcase is just as cute decorated in more of the fun patterned papers. The mini, which is 5" by 6.5", fits perfectly inside and only enhances the cuteness! It too is decked out in the charming patterned papers along with a large journal card and adorable chipboard!

I made a matching latch on the mini to coordinate with the suitcase and added some more ocean charms to the spine. It is a travelers notebook style mini with elastic cord to hold some of the inside components and the fun continues when you open this awesome mini!

On the left side I used all of the 4x4 journal cards to create a photo flip and accented each with small stickers from the collection! On the right side, there is a small travelers notebook and you can see that I used the matching stamps to add color to the pages! There is also a folder to hold more mementos and a insta-pocket photo page too!

You too can make an adorable mini like this and be all ready for your next cruisin' vacation or better yet make it as a wonderful gift for someone! They will love you for it! Check out the walk-through of this super cute suitcase and album on my YouTube channel.

Supplies

05.06.19

Beautiful Botanicals!

Hi everyone! Tara here with Secretbees Studio and I am so excited to share my newest project with you! I made a travel folio mini scrapbook a while back and got so many requests to do a tutorial that I just had to make another. I used a different paper collection and made a few minor changes to the folio and it is stunning!

The paper collection used for this fabulous folio is the Simple Stories 'Simple Vintage Botanicals' paper collection. Oh em gee, this collection is so gorgeous and lush it's like being transported to a breathtaking garden full of beautiful butterflies and birds and all of the most vibrant colors of the earth! Plus this collection has so much to choose from- paper, stickers galore, chipboard, ephemera and more and there is even a clear stamp set to go with it!

This amazing book, which can be filled with photos, mementos or journaling, measures 5.25" by 7.75" when closed but the best part is when you open it up to see all of the pages and pockets inside!The cover of the book opens up to reveal pockets on both sides and another whole center section that has its own surprises. There is even a small notebook that is perfect for writing or drawing!

There are photo flips and frames and even a pocket page waiting to be filled with your favorite memories and there are some hidden pockets too that give you more room for precious mementos. I could go on and on about this amazing folio but the pictures show more detail than I could explain.