creative and colorful
Ugh, sometimes I hate WordPress because it cuts off my images… Grrr. Anyway, hey! I’m here today with a free double 8 1/2 x 11 scrapbooking sketch. Measurements included on the pic, everything is a nice round number. :) Hope you can use it! Here is the video to go with it.
Minimal use of paper, a great way to use leftover cut-aparts.
A circle scallop punch for the rind, a circle punch for the flesh, and tiny hearts for the seeds. So many variations possible with this! And I love the sentiment. :)
Some sweet little watermelon slices, courtesy paper scraps, a scalloped circle punch, a slightly smaller circle punch, and a tiny heart punch. We’re doing this as a free make and take at our booth this week, come see us this afternoon in Raymore!
Frugality and sustainability often work together. Reducing our consumerism and reusing items can help save money and the planet! Interested? Here are a few ideas I hope you’ll consider! (If you’re new to frugal and green scrapbooking, or looking for easy ways to start, check out my first post about this, here.)
*Use free electronic resources like printables, digi scrapbooking products, free cut files and journaling cards, etc. A bonus of using printables or digital files is that there is no plastic involved in getting the items to you, and they are flat elements which will help your books stay sleek and help your pages remain undamanged. You will need a printer or can send your items to a local print shop. For digital cut files, you can cut them out by hand with scissors or an exacto–but if you already own one or snag an electronic cutter secondhand, there are free SVGs everywhere! Just try a quick search! There are so many freebies out there, here are a few I’ve enjoyed:
*Make your own 3×4 and 4×6 cards. Speaking of that last link (100+ Free Printable Cards!)–you could also just use your stash to make your own. These are easy to do with scraps, stamps, die-cuts, stickers…just cut a scrap to 3×4 or 4×6, gather supplies related to a theme, and start playing! I will often find a cutapart sheet I like and try to make my own version of it, using my supplies, instead of buying the sheet. Yes, it will take longer, but I enjoy that type of creating.
*Save packaging. Re-use to package card candy to give to others, as fronts for shaker cards, or for use in a variety of mixed media techniques. You can also reuse packaging in your art, and if you are worried about acid-free and lignin issues, be sure to use them for cards!
*If you’re a cardmaker, you can re-use any paper as envelopes! Use catalog pages, newspaper, sturdy gift wrap, etc. You can easily do this with an envelope punch board, but there are a ton of envelope-making templates out there! I am planning on saving up a bunch then sitting and making my most commonly used sizes of envies using my punch board sometime. In general, 8 ½” x 8 ½” pieces or bigger should work.
*Make your own embellishments. If you take using your scraps to the next level, you can full-on make your own embellishments. There are SO MANY WAYS to do this, using your scraps, yes, but also using found and repurposed items like clothing tags, buttons, notions, etc., and with or without special tools (many of which can be found secondhand!). Here is one of my Pinterest boards to inspire you to make your own scrapbooking embellishments.
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But no, really.
Last year, I decided I was on a mission to use up my scraps. I have YET to realize this goal. :) But I found a process I have really enjoyed, and wanted to share. First, I was inspired by this article by Rockester. (It’s an older article, and the pictures are missing, but you can get the idea by reading it.) I liked the idea of monochromatic layouts–I typically struggle with these, but like the simple look of them. Around the same time, some online scrappy friends were discussing The Perfect Collection concept by Shimelle Laine. Basically, it’s taking a collection pack and chopping it up into commonly used sizes, then creating backgrounds with the pieces. Shimelle also used to do a series called Starting Points on her blog, where she would create a background, and challenge her readers to make a layout on top of that background design.
SO. A big soup of ideas coalesced in my head, and this is what came out of it! Scrappy Backgrounds. My goal was to only make backgrounds, a la Starting Points. I was not going to be creating layouts from start to finish. I would keep these backgrounds for quick scrapping later on down the road. This allowed me to use my scraps and be creative, without pressure to find the perfect photos RIGHT NOW.
First, I sorted my scraps by color family.
Then, I chopped up my scraps into commonly used pieces, a la The Perfect Collection. If I had specific ideas, I paired punches or other items with the trimmed scrap piles.
Then I put them together. First as monochromatic, colorblocked layouts, a la Rockester.
And eventually, I began scraplifting looks I liked from Scrapbook Generation, or just ideas that popped into my head that I wanted to try out. Again, all with scraps.
I have a whole range of colors, and while most of these ended up as one pagers, I made sure to do a couple of 2 page backgrounds, too.
In a later post, I’ll share how I go from one of these to a finished layout! TFV!
VexedAngel 