Rustic Basswood Plank Heritage Album

My collection of vintage family photographs is slowly growing as I receive them from family members. I wanted to create a durable heritage album that could be easily added to and passed down through the generations. I used two beautiful Rustic Basswood Planks for the album covers and altered them with some fun mixed media techniques to add subtle pattern and color. The wood grain, knots, and bark edge adds character to make this album even more special.

Supplies:
2 – Small Rustic Basswood Planks
Digital Patterned Paper
Wax Paper
Double-Sided Scrapbook Paper
Mod Podge
Embellishments
Ribbon
Ink Jet Printer
Power Drill
Sanding Block
Foam Brush

To preserve the gorgeous natural look of the basswood for the album cover I added a subtle floral print pattern to the wood using a wax paper transfer technique, which allowed the properties of the wood that I love so much to shine through.

Step One: Apply water to the Basswood Plank using a foam brush. Note: Wetting the wood will help draw the ink into the surface.

Step Two: Using an ink jet printer, print a digital floral patterned paper onto a piece of wax paper. Tip: Tape a piece of wax paper cut to size onto a piece of standard copy paper and run it through the printer as normal. The ink does not soak into the wax paper and is still wet after printing. Note: I used the Pretty Maids Digital Patterned Paper from the Gecko Galz Pocket Full of Poseys Digital Paper Pack.

Step Three: Carefully press the wax paper onto the wet basswood plank and press down to transfer the ink to the wood. Let dry. Note: In order to add the print to the entire plank I needed to print two copies of the digital paper.

Step Four: Apply a coat of Mod Podge, or other clear sealer, over the wood plank. Let dry.

Step Five (Option A): Repeat the wax paper transfer technique (Step One – Step Four) for the remaining sides of the planks.

I absolutely love the results of the wax paper transfer technique, but I wanted to experiment a bit more. I chose to alter the inside of the album covers with distressed patterned paper to try to achieve the look of aged wallpaper.

Step Five (Option B): Glue a piece of double-sided patterned paper to the basswood plank and let dry (shown above left). Distress the patterned paper with a sanding block to various degrees ranging from slight removal of the top layer, to the exposure of the b-side of the patterned paper, all the way down to exposure of the wood plank (shown above right). Seal the distressed paper with two coats of Mod Podge.

Step Six: Use a power drill to drill holes along the left side of the planks. Bind and embellish the album cover. Note: I chose to use a long length of ribbon for the album binding so that I can easily untie the ribbon to add more pages when needed.

Here’s a peek inside my album.

I chose to go with a shabby design for this album as I think it pairs well with vintage photos. If this style isn’t for you, try using a bold digital print and trendy scrapbook papers.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Make sure you visit the Walnut Hollow online shop to see all the other pieces in the rustic pallet program.

 

Dana Tatar I’m currently living in Virginia with my husband and two daughters. I started paper crafting about 9 years ago and have expanded from scrapbooking and now create a little of everything; including cards, tags, ATCs, arches and small gift and home decor items. I frequently find inspiration in music, poetry and pop culture. I’m an active blogger and I like to share my tips and ideas. When I’m not creating art, I enjoy baking, reading, listening to music and spending time outdoors with my family.