If you've ever wished someone would sit down and walk you through every clever shortcut, workaround, and hard-won habit they've picked up across years of journal making and paper crafting — this is that video. I'm sharing 50 tips covering everything from applying contact paper without bubbles to preventing bookboard warping, reviving dried ink pads, foiling with embossing folders, binding single pages with bulldog clips, and making your own washi tape from napkins and fabric scraps. Some of these you'll know. But I'd be surprised if you know all of them.
What we cover
This is a wide-ranging roundup of crafting and journal-making tips — no single project, just fifty practical techniques and hacks across materials handling, tools, paper, binding, embellishment, and workflow. Topics include working with contact paper, transparent stickers, paper grain, bookboard, embossing folders, foiling, corrugated cardboard, ink pads, sewing machine guides, bulldog clip binding, washi tape, charms, fabric, ribbon, hot glue texture, napkin decoupage, and more.
What you'll learn
How to apply contact paper without bubbles — peel only about an inch of backing, anchor that strip to your work surface and your project simultaneously, then use a rounded ruler to smooth the sheet down as you gradually peel the rest of the backing away. Smooth from the anchored end outward before you start pulling, because any bubble at the base will travel through the whole piece.
How to position transparent stickers cleanly, including:
- Using a sticky surface (like a reusable phone mount) to hold the backing down while you peel
- Peeling only part of the backing so one side stays non-sticky for positioning
- Sliding a ruler under the lifted portion to press down once you're happy with placement
How to identify paper grain and fold with it — test by gently bending the paper in both directions; one way will feel easy, the other resistant. Fold with the grain and you get a clean crease; fold against it and the paper cracks. If you must fold against the grain, score the fold line first to break the fibers and you'll get a clean result.
Why bookboard orientation prevents warping — test which direction your board bends more easily, then orient it so that bend runs across the narrow measurement of the cover. The stiffest direction runs top to bottom. Getting this wrong is why covers bow after you glue and wrap them; getting it right costs nothing.
How to get a deeper embossing impression, including:
- Feeding the embossing folder hinge-first through the roller so it grabs evenly
- Lightly misting your card stock before embossing for a noticeably deeper impression
- Placing the embossed piece under a book for a few minutes to flatten any curl from the moisture
- Using misting on fine papers that might otherwise crack under the folder
Foiling and ink-inking directly onto embossing folders, including:
- Placing foil sheet inside the closed folder before running it through — produces a beautiful raised foil effect on card stock
- Applying ink directly to the raised surface of the folder before closing it over your card — skips the step of inking after embossing and gives more even color on the raised areas
How to peel corrugated cardboard cleanly — spritz the surface generously with water and let it sit for ten minutes. The moisture gets into the grooves and the top layer peels off in satisfying large pieces rather than frustrating little scraps. Good for stamps, jelly plate texture work, and thinning down pieces for journal covers.
How to sew straight (or embrace wiggly) — pick a single notch or guide mark on your sewing machine bed and keep your eye on the edge of your paper aligning with that one point the entire time. Don't watch your hands or the needle. If your line wanders anyway, a wiggly zigzag stitch with the wiggly edge then cut and inked looks genuinely beautiful on journal pages.
Re-sticking rubber stamps that have lost their grip — a small amount of glue stick on the back of the stamp holds it to the acrylic block through inking and stamping. When you're done, it peels off cleanly. Simpler than washing stamps after every session.
Storing drying ink pads upside down overnight — whatever moisture is left in the pad seeps toward the surface. Worth doing every evening once a pad starts giving thin coverage.
Bulldog clip binding for single pages — remove the wire handles from a bulldog clip (takes about ten seconds), slip the clip body over a stack of pages, and you have a simple, clean binding. Layer two or three for thicker stacks. Can be wrapped in washi tape or threaded for decoration.
DIY washi tape from napkins and fabric scraps, including:
- Separating napkin layers, applying double-sided tape to the single top layer, then tearing the edge with a wet brush for a natural deckled finish
- Applying double-sided tape to leftover fabric or wrapping paper and cutting to width — no deckled edge but works beautifully as double-sided decorative tape for journals
DIY hitch post for journal closures — push a brad through an upside-down eyelet, then through a hole in your cover and fold the feet down. Smaller is better; a tall hitch post sits in the way of writing. If you want more height, just use a taller eyelet.
Using starch spray to stiffen fabric — spray and let dry (ironing optional) and lightweight quilting fabric becomes noticeably firmer and easier to handle. Works beautifully on fabric doilies too; paper doilies less so.
How to punch clean holes in fine or handmade paper — place one or two sheets of regular paper underneath as support before punching. The support prevents the ragged "hairy" edge you get when punching fine paper unsupported, and you get the support scraps as usable offcuts.
Using sequins as faux bead caps — if you're making charms and don't have bead caps, a sequin on either side of a bead gives the same visual effect for almost nothing.
How to close a jump ring loop properly — instead of simply squeezing the loop shut, bend the wire down to an L shape first, then form the loop back in the opposite direction. The result sits straight rather than pointing sideways — the difference between handmade-looking and purchased-jewelry-looking.
Using a lighter on ribbon ends and paper edges, including:
- A quick pass on synthetic ribbon or cord ends to stop fraying — works on most ribbon but avoid anything with elastic or plastic backing
- Burning paper edges for a distressed look: rip the edge first, work in small sections, keep a bowl of water nearby
Hot glue for surface texture — draw swirlies and patterns directly onto card stock with the glue gun, layer tissue paper over the top, then paint. The tissue paper picks up the texture and the result looks nothing like card stock.
Using a hair straightener for small fabric and ribbon pieces — quick, no iron to pull out. Works on lace, fabric scraps, and plain ribbon. Avoid anything with elastic, plastic backing, or synthetic coatings that will melt.
Tips & gotchas
When applying contact paper, the most common mistake is peeling the whole backing at once — the sheet folds onto itself and you're dealing with bubbles before you've even started. Peel an inch, anchor it, then work slowly with a ruler. A slightly rounded ruler (wooden rulers tend to work well) is gentler on the surface than a sharp metal edge.
With the paper grain tip: most papers it won't matter, and I don't think about it much unless I'm making covers or working with coated or glossy card stock. Those are the papers that crack visibly and keep cracking as the journal opens and closes. If you're scoring, you're breaking the fibers that are resisting you — so even a fold against the grain becomes clean.
For embossing: the misting doesn't need to be heavy — a light, even mist is enough. The curl you sometimes get after is not a problem; a minute or two under a book sorts it out. The misting is especially important with very fine embossing folders on delicate paper, where the pressure alone can crack the surface.
The corrugated cardboard spritz tip works better as a batch process. Spritz several pieces at once, let them sit, peel them all. Trying to peel dry corrugated cardboard is one of those things that looks like it's working and then very much isn't.
With the lighter on paper edges: rip first, work in small sections, don't linger. The edge stays lit for a moment after you pull the flame away, so check before you move on. This is genuinely not something to do frequently — smoke inhalation is a real consideration, and doing it outside if you do it at all is the sensible call.
On the hair straightener: the melting-ribbon incident in the video was a good demonstration of what not to do. Anything with elastic, any synthetic fabric with a plasticky backing, anything you're not certain about — skip it. For plain fabric offcuts and natural-fiber ribbon it's genuinely useful, especially for tiny pieces going onto a spine or a charm.
When punching fine or handmade paper, even a sharp punch will give you a hairier edge than you want without support underneath. It takes two seconds to slide a scrap sheet under and the difference in edge quality is significant.
I genuinely have more where these came from — fifty felt like a lot to commit to, and I probably should have done twenty. But if a follow-up list of another twenty would be useful, I'm happy to keep going.
