My cousin asked me the other day to make her husband a memory album of sorts for Valentine's Day. She wanted it to reflect all his passions: Harley Davidson motorcycles, hot rods, license plates and antique guns. She also wanted me to make it look vintage and leave her room enough to add her own writings and mementos of their special times together; such as pictures and memorabilia. This is what I came up with:
The cover is from a Colorbok journal that I took apart. I covered it with postal paper to hide the design underneath (love to recycle!) and Crafty Secrets Vintage paper, vintage printed images, DCWV Mainstreet paper, Oriental Trading Company gaffer tape, ribbon sentiment, and photo turns, Joann's vintage alpha tag and square paper clip, Hero Arts long writing stamp, Tsukinek pigment ink in Coffee Bean and from my stash: twine and brads.
Pages 1 &2: I carried most of the supplies throughout. On these pages, I gave her a few spots to write in and a place for storage.
Pages 3&4: Again, used the Mainstreet paper from DCWV (love it!) and some vintage images. If you haven't noticed, I've been spelling out his name with the round vintage tags.
Pages 5&6: These pages are covered in one of my favorites; Making Memories Passport paper.
Pages 7&8: I made a little book using the cover of a vintage printed image (of a gun catalog from the early 1900s)...another place for her to write. The opposite page has a stitched pocket with a distressed tag and a couple of other little items.
Pages 9&10: I used masking tape and OTC photo turns to hold the vintage images of Harley Davidson's.
Pages 11&12: Some vintage images of hot rods. The black glitter chipboard is from Making Memories.
I love this license plate paper that I downloaded from the Internet. I can't remember where I found it, but I thought it was cool. The rest of the album has about 30 lined pages that I cut down to size for her to use. I also stamped each one.
On the inside of the back cover, I attached a large envelope and some paper scraps to give her some more storage.
The end result was a new journal/memory album that I think will fill all her needs.
Remember that Valentine's day is just around the corner. I think it best to customize your gifts to fit the recipient rather than just going with the standard flowers and candy. We may not understand the concept or the vision, but to each his own....
Thanks for spending some time with me. Have a wonderful day!
Hugs,
M.
I have to admit that this next card was my way of taking a break from all the "mushy" love stuff (as my nephew puts it). In the end, it became a birthday card (since Marilyn Monroe was so famous for her rendition). The inside is stamped: "Happy Birthday to you..." 
This next card was made for my parents. I hand cut the hearts, painted and then embossed and glittered them. I like the way it turned out.
And finally, a card for my DH. I made him a shadow box to go along with it for Valentine's Day. Maybe I'll share it with you in a later post.
I certainly hope you find some precious time to spend with loved ones this weekend. Take some time for yourself as well.
