Tara Chaussee's Blog Posts

06.23.18

Hi everyone! Wedding season is upon us and I can't help but be inspired to create with all of the beautiful wedding, flower and bridal photos out there! Simple Stories got in on the action too, with the gorgeous 'Always and Forever' paper collection! 

This soft and romantic collection features a classic black and cream color scheme in lovely stripes, dots and floral patterns. The best part about it though are the gold foil accents that add sparkle and shine to any project! 

To really show off this stunning collection of patterns and embellishments, I made this dimensional album with five stacked pages. I covered each of the pages with a different pattern of the fabulous paper and then made them even prettier with the charming stickers, chipboard and Bits & Pieces of the collection.

I created this album to highlight pictures and mementos of the bride and groom on their big day but this collection is super versatile. It has such a variety of beautiful images and sweet sentiments that it could be used for engagements, bridal showers and more! 

To see all of the inside pages of this beautiful album check out my YouTube video!

Supplies
05.25.18

Hi everyone! Tara here with Secretbees Studio  Babies are definitely the perfect tiny blessing and it is always such a joy picking out the perfect gift to celebrate them. Although there are so many adorable baby gifts available, I want to give you some inspiration to create a sweet handmade present that anyone would love!

The 'Oh Baby' paper collection from Simple Stories is full of soft colors and sweet sentiments perfect for a boy or girl. This mini dresser, cut from an SVGcuts file, is charmingly decorated with the lovely patterned papers of the collection and then further embellished with the sweet stickers, chipboard and Bits & Pieces! 

Both drawers pull out and are large enough for small gifts. I stuffed the top drawer with an adorable teddy bear chipboard sticker and made a gift card holder from more of the beautiful paper, adding a couple of the charming stickers as well. The onesie, part of the Bits & Pieces, has it's own little hanger and hangs perfectly from a knob- too cute!

The top of the dresser is loaded with more of the adorable accessories from the collection. I almost couldn't stop my self from adding more they are so sweet! I dressed it up with a small doily and some miniature diapers embellished with more of the patterned paper.  The framed picture is one of the 4x6 stickers and I mixed chipboard, stickers and Bits & Pieces for a wonderfully jumbled look! The coordinating card was simply created with a couple of the adorable 4x4 element cards and embellished with sweet stickers.

Even though there is plenty of pink and blue mixed in with the other pastel colors, this collection is beautifully gender neutral. There are the most darling animal images in this collection as well a delightful mix of butterflies, hearts, flowers and bows. Everything you need to make a beautiful gift for a beautiful baby!

Supplies
04.29.18

Hi everyone! I love to travel! There is nothing better than seeing another part of this fabulous world and the people in it!  The jolly 'Travel Notes' collection captures the beautiful essence of roaming the globe and is perfect for documenting all the fun a trip can have!

On our vacations, we take a TON of pictures and to document them all would fill a giant scrapbook. I think there is nothing better than to take a small segment or subject of your trip and capture those memories in an adorable mini! I took this colorful, fun collection and created a travel notebook documenting our days spent in Cinque Terre on a trip to Italy last year!

I cut one of the lovely patterned papers to 8x11 inches to use for my cover and embellished it with lots of the playful stickers and Bits & Pieces. I then laminated my cover for extra durability. Holes were punched at the top and bottom for the elastic holders on the inside and on the back page for the closure. There is room for photo pages and a journal that holds notes of our entire trip! I just love the luggage tag charm on the elastic closure- it is part of the Bits & Pieces!

Inside, the book is filled with four folded pages, each one a different pattern of paper. All in all, I have sixteen pages to document my favorite memories. Plus, I made pockets for seven of the pages that are holding flip books or tags for even more photos and mementos! Each of these wonderful pages and pockets have all been delightfully decorated with the bright and playful stickers, chipboard, Bits & Pieces and washi tape of the collection! You will have so much fun with this collection it will be like taking your trip all over again! Please visit my YouTube channel to see a full video of this super cute album!

 

Supplies

Pages