Chalking

Use chalk to highlight a word on a quote or to darken torn edges. I apply it with my finger, using a light touch at first and applying more if needed. If you accidentally apply too much chalk, use a white artist's eraser from Staedtler to remove it.

Distressing Paper & Vellum

Distressing paper is a great way to get a textured look. Simply crumple it into a ball. Uncrumple—you can smooth it out as much or as little as you wish, depending on how much texture you want. I like to uncrumple the paper just a little, then run an inkpad over the paper to highlight the "mountains". Unlike paper, it's best to crumple vellum loosely—don't crumple it into a tight ball or the vellum will tear. Smooth it out and attach to your page with eyelets, brads or glue.

Inkpad Edging

Try edging paper (especially quotes and tags) with an inkpad for a defined edge similar to matting. Simply run your inkpad along each straight edge of your paper piece. Choose a color that contrasts with the paper color for the most definition: for example, use a dark green ink to edge a green tag. Because the sarabooks™ quotes and words are all printed on tan paper or parchment paper, you can use any ink color—so it's easy to coordinate with your paper.

Tearing Paper

When tearing paper, you can opt for a white edge or a non-white edge. To get a white edge, tear the paper toward you. For a non-white edge, tear the paper away from you. The white edge will act as a mat, creating a visual space between papers. A non-white edge will give a subtle, tone-on-tone effect.

Combining Papers

When choosing papers to go together on a page, I generally pick a light and a dark color for contrast—since the papers are all in the same color, the contrast will add definition without distraction. If my page is covered with a light paper, I'll mat my quote or saying on a dark paper—and vice versa.

Using Fibers

Inside your fiber pack you'll have enough fibers to bind the book and decorate some of the inside pages. A good bet is to choose thin, ribbon-like fibers for the inside of your book and save the others for the binding. Use them on tags, wrap them around the page or embellish a quote or saying. Be sure you set aside enough fibers to bind the book together before you start decorating the inside.

Working With Vellum

Vellum looks best when the glue is hidden. First, try hiding the glue under other elements of the page, like a quote or a charm. If you can't find a place to hide the glue, use the smallest amount possible. Remember, you don't need very much glue to hold the vellum in place. I like to avoid the glue issue entirely and attach my vellum with brads or eyelets.

Creasing vellum will leave permanent white marks, so handle it carefully!