Gift-Giving Idea— A Good Book Has No Ending

~R.D. Cumming

For the last year I’ve been on the look-out at yard sales and used book stores for hard back books that would make good photo albums. I’ve found two books with a storyline that fit people on my gift list. For Deb, my scrapbook retreat partner, (who promised not to check my blog for a few days), I found a book called “Things to Do.”

The first page says, “Life is not as complicated as some may say . . . here are a few simple things to do to guide you along the way.”

It then gives encouraging advice like “Strive to grow and challenge yourself each day . . .”

Each saying is on a separate page and accompanied by a primitive illustration. To personalize the book I covered the illustrations with Deb’s photography. (I had Alyson, her daughter, sneak me twenty photographs from Deb’s collection.) I bordered the photos with coordinating paper and lightly embellished each page with a paper flower, curly-q and a small pearl. For the book cover, I mod-podged cardstock, added another photo and light embellishments and then spelled the title of the book in black stickers. I added rickrack to the spine for accent.

I worked on this project at the retreat last week, but came home with it unfinished and fairly disappointed in it; however, I learned back in my craft-booth days not to judge a project until it’s finished. I’m so glad I gave this one a second chance because by the time I finished it this afternoon, I was happy with it—it’s personal and so Deb. (And though it's tacky to talk price and friendship in the same sentence, one of the selling points of this gift idea is it's inexpensive--a couple of dollars inexpensive.)

Today’s tip is

• keep your eye out for good used books (can you imagine how excited I am for the annual city library book sale next week?) that could be easily adapted to photo albums

and

• don’t give up on a project until you have finished it.