HOMETOWN USA SWEET SUMMER MINI ALBUM | with Conny

Hello Crafty Friends,  Conny here from The Daily Life of Creativity, back with another project using Hometown USA . Today I have a fun Sweet Summer mini album. 

Let's get started! To create the covers, I cut two chipboard pieces measuring 5” × 5” each.  Next, I trimmed two pieces of patterned paper to 6½” × 6½”. These larger pieces were cut to wrap around the chipboard to create the front and back covers.

For this album, I used: Cherry Floral Gingham Petite Prints for one cover, and Lily White Dot Stripe Petite Prints for the other cover.  I Centered each 5” × 5” chipboard piece on a 6½” × 6½” patterned paper.

Using a corner guide tool, I trimmed each corner before wrapping the paper around the chipboard. If you don’t have a corner guide tool, simply cut each corner at an angle, leaving approximately 1/8” of space between the corner of the chipboard and the cut edge of the paper. This small gap allows the paper to fold neatly around the corners without adding bulk and ensuring the chipboard is covered at the edge.

Once both covers were wrapped, I cut two pieces  I ❤️ America patterned paper to 4⅞” × 4⅞”. I adhered one piece to the inside of the front cover and the other to the inside of the back cover to finish the interior of the covers.

For the inside pages,  I used the  Bubble Blue Dot/Stripe Petite Prints,  Lily White Buffalo Check/Woodgrain Petite Prints and  Plaid to Be American paper.

I cut each sheet to 5” × 12”, leaving the 12-inch length intact.  I then scored each piece on the 12-inch side at 5” and 10”. The remaining 2-inch section folds over to create a pocket, which is how I made most of the pages in this album.

If you prefer not to include a pocket on every page, simply trim the paper to 5” × 10” and score at 5” to create a standard folded page.  I love adding pockets because they’re perfect for tucking in 3” × 4” journaling cards, tags, extra photos, or handwritten notes. You can also adhere photos to the journaling cards to create interactive elements throughout the album.

To embellish the album, I used the Odds & Ends, the 4th of July Cards & Envelopes  and the coordinating stickers. 

One of my favorite interactive pieces came from the Cards & Envelopes pack. I added the card with the square window and added the Festive Floral Doodle-Pop to the front. It creates a fun dimensional element while still allowing room for photos and journaling.

To assemble the album, I adhered the pages back to back, continuing until all of the pages were connected together.  One thing I discovered while making this album is that you could actually skip lining the inside of the chipboard covers if you prefer. Since the first page adheres directly to the inside front cover and the last page adheres to the inside back cover, those pages naturally cover the chipboard. I still like the finished look of lining the covers first, but this is a great option if you’d like to save a little paper.

This construction method creates a sturdy hard-cover mini album with a beautiful spine—without having to build a separate spine piece.

This album includes room for a variety of photo sizes, including: 4” × 4”,  3” × 4” and 2” × 2”. I also created several flip-up pages using cards from the Cards & Envelopes pack. I trimmed them to approximately 4½ inches, leaving enough room to attach them to the page with adhesive so they flip open and reveal additional space for photos or journaling.

For the front cover, I layered patterned papers from the 6” × 6” Paper Pad to create a focal cluster.

I embellished the cover using pieces from the Hometown USA This & That Cardstock Sticker Sheet, including the “Summer Sweet” circle sticker layered on top of the coordinating scalloped circle sticker.

To finish the cluster, I added the adorable Patriotic Puppy Doodle-Pop, along with one of the scalloped border stickers from the sticker sheet.

The window card from the Cards & Envelopes pack also becomes an interactive flip page. Because the card extends beyond the window section, I adhered it in two places so the remaining panel flips open, creating another hidden area for photos or journaling.

This mini album comes together surprisingly quickly and is such a fun way to document your favorite summer memories.  It’s perfect for preserving your Fourth of July celebrations, family gatherings, backyard barbecues, vacations, or everyday summer moments.

Thank you so much for following along! I hope you enjoy creating this Summer Sweet Mini Album as much as I did, and I can’t wait to see how you fill yours with your own special memories.

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DOODLEBUG PRODUCTS USED

6088 Petite Prints – Cherry Floral Gingham
6129 Petite Prints  – Lily White Dot Stripe 
6123 – Petite Prints Bubble Blue Dot/Stripe
8535 – Plaid to Be American Double Sided Cardstock
8510 – Festive Floral Doodle-Pop
 8528 – 4th of July Assortment Cards & Envelopes
7032 – Petite Prints Lily White Buffalo Check/Woodgrain

8529 Hometown USA 6x8 Paper Pad
8548 Hometown USA Textured Cardstock Assortment 
8525 Hometown USA - Odds & Ends
8526 Hometown USA- Chit Chat

8131 – Hometown USA This & That Cardstock Sticker
8507 – Patriotic Puppy Doodle-Pop

OTHER

Foam Adhesive 
Liquid Glue 
Trim and Score Board
Chipboard 

HOMETOWN USA CALENDAR PAGE | with Traci

Hey everyone! Traci here and today, I'm sharing a 12x12 July calendar page made with the patriotic Hometown USA Collection. It's filled with the cutest images and a festive red, white, and blue color scheme that's perfect for the month. Hang it up to keep track of dates and events, then add it to your scrapbook as the first layout for July!

For the base, I used the blue jean sheet from the Rainbow Day Calendar Kit. This is part of the Day To Day Collection and features the monthly calendar pages, a pack of number stickers, and a pack of month stickers.

Since the July 4th holiday is celebrated with glittery fireworks, I wanted to add a little sparkle. So, I also used a sheet of 12x12 sugar coated cardstock in silver. I added a thin border of it towards the top, then created some photo mats with it and a few 12x12 prints. 

Once the papers were adhered, it was time to decorate. I chose the July title, the Home Sweet Home banner, word bubbles, a few hearts, and some stars from the Chit Chat die cuts. Then, I filled in with lots of adorable mini icon stickers including the tiny fireworks, the dog in Uncle Sam's hat, and that sweet little parade.

I added number stickers to a lot of the days, but not every one since I wanted to make photo mats on some of them. At the bottom, I chose the "proud to be an American" Chit Chat die cuts and they fit perfectly in that narrow space. 

I hope this cute 12x12 July Calendar Page inspires you to create something fun with the Hometown USA Collection and the Rainbow Day Calendar Kit. Have a wonderful day and happy crafting! 😊

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DOODLEBUG PRODUCTS USED

8545 Hometown USA 12x12 Paper Pack

8526 Chit Chat

8513 Mini Icon Stickers 

8062 Day to Day Rainbow Day Calendar Kit

2981 12x12 Sugar Coated Cardstock in Silver

HOMETOWN USA JULY FAMILY FUN LAYOUT | with Inessa

There is something about red, white, and blue that always inspires me to get creative, and the Hometown USA collection was the perfect choice for documenting these patriotic memories! For this layout, I wanted to create a design that had the feel of a quilt—but with a modern scrapbook twist. The result is a fun background full of diagonal patterned paper strips, lots of texture, and plenty of dimension.

I began with the Red, White & Blue patterned paper as my background. The diagonal lines in the design made it easy to use as a guide for cutting each of my patterned paper strips. Instead of measuring everything, I simply placed each paper on top of the background, marked where I wanted the cuts, and trimmed each strip individually.

My first strip came from Land of the Free, starting in the upper right corner. The second strip is Plaid to Be an American, cut to approximately 1½ inches wide. Next came Picnic Plaid, followed by the floral side of that same paper. I finished the design with Polka Dot Pride, creating a colorful patchwork effect across the page.

Before adhering the strips, I distressed all of the edges to add texture. Once everything was in place, I stitched over the entire design using silver thread, which perfectly complements the gorgeous silver foil accents throughout the Hometown USA collection.

For my photos, I printed them at 2×3 inches and matted each one with textured white cardstock. I then layered the photos onto tags from the Bits and Pieces pack before attaching everything to the layout with foam adhesive for extra dimension. I love how the tags help the photos standout while adding another layer of interest.

To finish the page, I tied a variety of ribbons and twine to the tags from my stash before building embellishment clusters around the photos. My title comes from the Chit Chat pack, while the remaining embellishments are a combination of Odds & Ends and Bits and Pieces pieces.

One final detail that really brings everything together is the addition of stars from the July 4th Shaker Pops. I originally planned to use the large shaker embellishment, but I ended up choosing the tiny star accents instead. They were the perfect finishing touch, adding just the right amount of sparkle.

I absolutely love how this layout came together! The diagonal paper strips create the look of a quilt while still feeling fresh and modern, and the layers, stitching, and dimensional embellishments add so much texture and interest. I hope this project inspires you to pull out your Hometown USA collection and create your own patriotic memories. Thanks so much for stopping by, and I'll see you again soon!

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DOODLEBUG PRODUCTS USED

8535 plaid to be an american paper

8536 land of the free paper

8541 polka-dot pride paper

8540 red, white & blue paper

8537 picnic plaid paper

8527 bits & pieces

8526 chit chat

8525 odds & ends 

8506 july 4th shaker-pops

3402 lily white cardstock