September SUSIE-Q FUN TIP–Spooky Mini Book


Well, it’s September already and time for another SUSIE-Q FUN TIP tutorial from me, Susan (susiestampalot).  Something ya’ll may or may not know about me is that I LOVE to make stuff for Halloween AND I LOVE to make little mini books from unlikely items. 

One thing I know about YA’LL is that ya’ll LOVE to get more use out of your dies and use them in different ways other than the obvious.  With that in mind, how about a little tutorial on how ya’ll can use the POCKET DIE SET and CLIP IT DIE SET for the basic “bones” of a little mini book?  If you’re not so much into the Halloween theme, I hope you glean the info about making the book anyway, and you could decorate it to fit any theme!

Ok, off we go….


All we need to get the actual book made are the two die sets mentioned above, some cardstock, Scor-tape (or other tacky tape), and 2 binder rings.

First, die cut the Pocket Die for as many “pages” as you want.  I did 3.  That may not sound like a lot, but once you fill it and decorate it, it’s plenty.  I like big books and I cannot lie.  But it’s up to you, just be sure your binder rings are big enough!  (These look like t-shirts to me at this point…hmmm…another mini book, perhaps?)


Here’s where it starts getting cute (and FUN)!  Use the border dies that come with the POCKET DIE SET to make interesting edges.  This will be the sides to your pages.  Make them all the same, or change it up!  I like the variation!


Don’t forget the little card inserts for your pockets.  Cut these to match the number of pages you made using the rectangle from the CLIP IT DIE SET.  Don’t ya’ll love my spoooooky colors? 


I’ve got a plethora of pockets now.


See how cute these are?  I love the little zig-zag on the kraft pocket the best.  He will now be my first page.  He wins.


LEAVING THE INSERTS OUT OUT and OUT, stack and line up all three pockets along the straight edges and punch two holes for your binder rings using a Cropodile. I just eyeballed it.  I’m fun like that.  Or depending how strong you are, wait and punch these holes after you have all your background papers adhered. 


I’m always too impatient and want to put the basic book together just to see how it will look.  This is when I decided what pages would go in what order and what color inserts I wanted in each to make it most cohesive.  Then I took it all back apart to finish the decorating.  It’s just easier.

So that’s basically how the book comes together!  
Now on to the finishing touches…


Now is when the magic starts to happen.  I wanted to be able to pick and choose what to use on each page, so I just premade a bunch of stamped images and sentiments, and die cut a bunch of doodads from various YOUR NEXT STAMP Halloween stamp sets and dies.  Here’s a few links to some of what I used:

Spooktacular (ghost and sentiment)
Trick or Treat (pumpkin and sentiment)
Happy Haunting (haunted house and sentiment) 
Then I went on and adhered the papers to each of the pockets on the fronts and backs.  
Front measurement:  2 3/8 X 3 1/8
Back measurement:  3 1/8 X 3 1/8
Don’t forget to re-punch your holes as you do each side of your pockets if you already punched them.
Then I went to town and fixed up my book using just about ALL of the stamped stuff I made and a few other embellishments from my stash!  This is the front cover.
Here are the card inserts, ready for pictures!


The finished pages, 2 and 3 (if you count the front as page one!).  I “colored” the witch, pumpkins and the haunted house on the next pages with orange and black Stickles in order to keep up my color scheme.  Neat trick. Or is it a treat?


The finished pages, 4 and 5.  The chipboard frames on the cover and each right side page are some I picked up from Michael’s.  This one was a little large, but I still used it, overlapped my binder ring holes and repunched them with my Cropodile.  No problem!


And the back.  I added a ton of ribbons and twine (maybe too many, the pages don’t lay flat when I open the book) to the binder rings for texture.  It looked great with them off as well, but I really wanted to use that skeleton ribbon!  ACK!  It’s so fun and I’ve hoarded it for a long time but thought it was perfect for this!  And before ya’ll ask (because I know ya’ll will), it’s pretty old, from Cosmo Cricket.

Ok, that concluded today’s episode of my SUSIE-Q FUN TIP tutorial.  Did ya’ll like it?  I can’t wait to hear what you think…


Before ya’ll go, I have a little bit of news.  Unfortunately this will be my last SUSIE-Q FUN TIP unless I just can’t stand it anymore and want to come back to visit ya’ll on occasion!  I’m scaling back on my stamping commitments and having to do some re-arranging of my time, as my kiddos are highly involved in sports and school.  I’ve loved having the opportunity to share what little I know about the craft and give ya’ll a laugh here and there along the way!  This has been a fun ride and Karen has blessed me beyond measure to let me get to do what I do for Your Next Stamp.  She’s a class act.
Until next time, find me on my blog, 

Thanks to ya’ll, my stamping family for listening to me ramble!
HUGS AND LOADS OF LOVE!! 
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33 Comments

  1. 1
    Marsha says:

    We are sorry to see you go but family first so good for you. Will miss all your great tutorials like this fantastic project.

  2. 2
    Julie E says:

    This is FANTASTIC!! Love is Susan :>) I am sad too, but what a way to go out. Now I have to go buy some of those rings…you need to add “enabler” to your title!!!

  3. 3

    This is super AWESOME Susan! I love how you used the pocket die to create this adorable little pocket book!!! Thank you for all your fabulous projects, we have loved having you here at YNS and hope you can’t stay away too long! It would be great to have your return once in awhile with some special projects! Thanks for all the inspiration! Hugs!

  4. 4
    Niki M says:

    Boo-tiful mini album! Sorry to hear that you are scaling back, but kids do come first, & they will be grown up before we want them to !

  5. 5
    Keri Postma says:

    Awesome mini album! Way to go out with a bang! You have inspired me to try a mini album!!

  6. 6
    Creative M says:

    This is SUPER Duper CUTE!! Love it!!

  7. 7

    This is ADORABLE Susie! You make mini books look EASY (I always considered them quite the undertaking). I love all the festive ribbons and touches of sparkle everywhere. Thanks for making such an in-depth tutorial for us with lots of great pictures, I really enjoyed this!

  8. 8

    This is adorable! Love it!

  9. 9
    Josie0602 says:

    I think this is the most adorable mini I have seen in a while! I love those dies too…minis intimidate me but you made it look easy!

  10. 10

    Fantastic album and tutorial!!! I love your halloween album and cant wait to try and recreate it!!! Thanks for the chance to see your creation and maybe win something!!! Good luck with all you do!! Cheers

  11. 11

    What a cute idea. love it. you have some great tutorials along the way. I am sure you will be back in the near future. Hugs.

  12. 12

    Absolutely adorable little album!!! Best wishes in all that you do, Susan! I have loved your YNS projects and hope you return in the future. 🙂

  13. 13

    Wow – that is so amazing! I have never tried a mini album before, but you have given me the ambition and an awesome tutorial to now try it. Love the details in your tutorial – it sure makes it easy to follow along.

  14. 14
    Maureen says:

    Absolutely totally fantastic!! I need to give this a try! Thanks for hanging with us Susan – you are truly inspirational!!

  15. 15
    Mary Allen says:

    Just adorable! I love the way you used the die cuts to make the mini.

  16. 16
    Jenny says:

    OMG Susan- this is SOOOOOOOO awesome!! I love Halloween and I love mini albums, so this has really got the ol’ heart pumping 🙂

  17. 17

    WOW!!! Love Love this sweet mini album with all the fun and cute YNS stamps and die cuts!! Fabulous idea, oh I need these Halloween stamps and dies!! Thanks for sharing your fabulous inspiring mini album!!!

  18. 18
    Shell says:

    That’s just adorable. I think I need to get those dies and do a mini book with my daughter’s horseback riding and such. That would be such fun. Your book is great for inspiring me! Thanks so much for the extra mojo! 🙂

  19. 19
    Mary-Anne V says:

    What a wonderful mini book…love how you used the dies. Im sad to hear we can not see you here on the blog but I will be sure to visit you at your own blog because I love your creativity and tips!

  20. 20
    Patti J says:

    Cute as can be! You are so creative! Thanks for the tutorial, and the chance to win! I don’t have any YNS products, so would LOVE to win!

  21. 21
    KimCreate says:

    Your mini album is adorable! I just love it and it’s small enough to not take years to make!

  22. 22
    Billie A says:

    Great idea on the mini book and love the embellishments you used it’s really a fun book to look at. So much detail. Wonderful colors and the ribbons are awesome. Thanks for the tutorial.

  23. 23

    Awesome mini album! I love Halloween – I will have to make one! Thanks!

  24. 24
    Ruza Rebel says:

    Awesome Mini Album! Thanks for the tutorial …
    Have fun with the kids and sports!

  25. 25
    LuAnn says:

    You make creating a mini-book look so easy! this one is totally adorable!! Sorry to hear that you are leaving but I’ll still be following you on your blog – can’t do without my Susie-Q-tip!

  26. 26
    Julie Ann says:

    What an awesome little book. I love all the details and embellishments.

  27. 27
    Heather says:

    A super fun little book. I am not much into Halloween but can see it for many other occasions as well. I will miss your amazing tips and tricks every month but best of luck as you scale down your commitments. I totally understand that. Hugs!

  28. 28
    Julie Odil says:

    Thanks for the wonderful tutorial! This is super cute!

  29. 29
    Sue D says:

    I am not into Halloween but I like how you used these dies to make this cute mini book.

  30. 30
    mary says:

    This little book is fantastic! I’m sure my granddaughters would just love these..and because I love,love Halloween and all that comes with it, so the more the better……thank you ,thank you sooooo much!!!

  31. 31
  32. 32
    Chark says:

    ps enjoy those kiddos–they grow too fast!

  33. 33
    Jill Norwood says:

    Oh my what a sweet Halloween mini album! I love your creativity! Such a fun and sweet little book and all the info we need to create one ourselves! Thank you! And hope you do come back from time to time if life permits! Hugs – Jill

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