Inspirational Post ~ Let's Get Organised ! ~ Stamp Storage Binder

Hi everybody ! It's Toni here and I'm quite excited about the project I'd like to share with you today. I don't know about you but I am forever trying out new ways of storing my stamps. I've tried plastic boxes, draw trays, ring binders, the list goes on and on and so far I've never really found the perfect storage solution. After this project I think I may be getting a little closer. Pull up chair, make a cuppa and I'll show you what I've been up to.

I've been retired from my teaching job for almost a year and it's only now, that I finally believe, I'm not going to need the collection of ring binders I've been hanging on to, 'just in case' ha ha! So this is how I transformed one..........

After deciding on the size I wanted, I measured in from the top and bottom and drew a couple of cutting guidelines. I used a pair of strong scissors and cut away the excess. I also removed the vinyl cover.......

I then coated the with gesso, before stencilling the font cover with modelling paste. I have just bought a fabulous stencil by Stencil Girl, it's called Tropical Floral and I thought it would be ideal to use for the front cover. What do you think ? nice eh!.........

I left this to dry before stencilling the back. I used a different design, so that when I pick it up I know instantly which is the front. here is the back........

So far, so good! When the moulding paste was completely dry, I sprayed the surfaces with Imagination Crafts Media Ink Sprays. I have three colours, Magenta, Light Green, and Yellow. I also have one called Liquid Gilt which is just gorgeous!.......

and the back...........

I think the array of colours acheived by just using the three colour sprays is amazing. Whilst the inks were drying, I turned my attention to the 'pages'. Sometime ago, I bought some acrylic book covers in a craft sale. They're made by Zutter and are just the right thickness for this project. They were a little bigger than I needed so I cut them to size using a craft knife and a steel rule ......

I also punched two holes along the top edge, to correspond with the rings in the ring binder. I used six sheets altogether. I also cut twelve sheets of acetate to the same size and punched holes in them. I put all of these to one side, and returned to the ring binder. I wasn't too sure what to do with the inside. I wanted to keep it plain but the surface was a bit rough, so I knew I had to cover it with paper rather than just paint it. I decided to use some scrunched up black tissue paper. I think this is effective because, although plain in colour the 'wrinkles' provide an interesting textured surface. I applied a liberal coating of Mod Podge on the inside cover, layered the tissue onto the surface and then painted more Mod Podge over the tissue.

 After some more drying, it was time to add the finishing touches and to sort out some of my stamps. I decided not to use any dimensional embellishments, as the binder will be used frequently and there's always a risk of knocking off raised elements. I did however add a handle by plaiting together some lengths of sari silk ribbon. This is wonderful stuff, so colourful. I punched a couple of holes in the spine, added some rivets for strength, then threaded the ribbon through. I secured it with a knot at either end. It was then time to load up my stamps. I've just used clear stamps, as I find these more difficult to store. I get very irritated by the cellophane wrappers! Here's the inside.........

Well, that's it! I hope you've enjoyed this post. I must say I've loved  this creating this project and I'm very pleased with how my stamp storage, ring binder has turned out. Just as well, as I think I'll need to make a few more if I'm ever going to get my stamps organised! x