Crafts from gift leftovers – an e-book review

Card. Paper. Ribbon by Kristin Roach crafts to make from gift leftovers ebook review

What to do with leftover Christmas cards, wrapping paper and those shimmering curly ribbons you get year after year? I always collect some each Christmas and birthday, because they are so pretty – but I don?t always know what to do with them? If you?re like me and appreciate good recycle- and craft projects I suggest you get a copy of Kristin Roach?s new e-book. The answer to what to do with the gift leftovers is in her book, and it?s imaginative, fun, green and sometimes surprising!

The e-book has the lovely title Card. Paper. Ribbon. and it is published by Diane Gilleland. This is my first e-book review. Enjoy!

One of my main objections for spending money on any e-book would be that the prettier the e-book design the more ink and paper it would take to print it at home – if you chose to do that. And if you bought an e-book you probably would want to print at least part of it to keep as a handy reference, right? When I started reading this crafty e-book I got a happy surprise: each chapter has a shorter more condensed section made for printing, including the instructions to each project (without background images and photo illustrations). These black and white text pages make it easy and cheap to print, and they are a great way to put together a both pretty and useful e-book if you ask me. I just love that it saves paper/forest as you only need to print the sections that you need in front of you when doing the bigger projects. Other e-books I’ve seen online looks like they would use up all that expensive print color at once, but this one does not! Yay!

Card. Paper. Ribbon by Kristin Roach crafts to make from gift leftovers ebook review

In Card. Paper. Ribbon. there are several great projects that I want to try and experiment with. The first part is a great tutorial on how to make your own mould and deckle for making papers on your own. This is something I remember trying out back in school, and I’m always fascinated with all things paper and paper making! I want to try making my own paper at home, but because it takes a bit of time setting it up I just haven’t done it yet. The first step will be printing these instructions and finding wood for the frames. There are instructions on how to use greeting cards for your pulp, drying the papers and even bind your papers together into small books. I’m thinking this project alone will keep me busy for many many days…

And the wrapping paper project is also very cool – and extremely fun to do I can add. I know because I recently experimented with this paper cloth method before I even got this book. Kristin’s book does not only suggest how to use the wrapping paper but presents fun ways to make projects with that cool material you create once you’ve recycled it! Included are patterns, sewing tips, decorating suggestions and lots of room for your own experimentation which I always appreciate.

I appreciate the nice photos, easy to follow how-to-instructions and the format which makes it easy to navigate projects in this book on screen. I truly recommend this book to anyone who knows that they cringe when used wrapping paper and pretty cards are being tossed into the trash with no second thought. Do you want to yell Nooo! Stop, I can save that paper and take it with me home… when you’re at a birthday party? I know I cry inside when I see this happen. This e-book will just add to the addiction for us “savers”, a.k.a. the Family Trash Lady these days!

If something is being thrown away you can hear my family and friends ask:
– Maybe Hanna wants this [insert random trash] for a project?

My grandmother used to collect wrapping papers that wasn’t too creased-up. She used to reuse them for wrapping new (smaller) gifts, and sometimes even roll up curled ribbon which always looked oh so tedious but kept her hands occupied while we had coffee? And now it’s me (who always mocked her for being “cheap” before) who runs around collecting both ribbons, cards and wrapping paper for recycling projects!

* Buy the e-book – pay and download it at Craftypod Publishing
* A new publishing project – Diane’s blog post about this project
* Craft leftovers blog – Kristin’s very cool blog

What? Not sure you want to buy it yet? You’ll see that we all agree that there is lots of inspiration in there. I know I want to try all of the projects some day.

3 Responses

  1. This makes me want to dash for the bookstore to read a non-school book! I haven’t gotten to get crafty in weeks, and I think it’s beginning to effect my well being. :)

  2. This looks wonderful!
    I wish I had read it before I threw away all my wrapping paper …
    yasmina