Susan R. Opel
While Kelly is off gallivanting in the mountains of Idaho with the ladies of the Smith family, I volunteered to fill in for her so she could truly be on vacation. So hello, blog readers!
Remember that blog post on July 27 from Go-to Gal Betsy Veldman where she talked about what she had done with her patterned paper scraps? Wowsers, did that concept change my world! And based on how the concept was pinned and repinned (on Pinterest) and tweeted and retweeted (on Twitter), I was not the only one!
I’m not gonna lie, I’ve got a serious addiction to patterned paper, and with that comes one unhealthy assortment of unloved scraps. Since that blog post, I’ve made a total of 39 card bases using my scraps. I thought I was doing well, but my friend Nicole Maki ‘fessed up to having finished 67 card bases. I better get MOVIN’!
I’ve decided that these scrap cards will make perfect gifts for Christmas, but I already sent a set to my sister-in-law for her birthday. The set below is one that is in progress. I played with angles and had a ball just matching up fun papers. The sentiments will be attached at a later time.
And with the help of my Martha Stewart Scoring Board – I LOVE THAT THING! – I scored lines on the back side of the card front at angles in one inch increments and then used my 7/8” square punch on even smaller scrap pieces. More time intensive, yes, but a fun effect.
Here’s a little tutorial of how you can tame the stash and make some fun cards as stocking stuffers (or you can be greedy and keep them for yourself)!
First, cut a bunch of card bases. If you have 8 1/2” x 11” cardstock, you can trim 10 sheets in half, and have 20 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” card bases.
Next, trim a bunch of scrap strips to 3/4”. I did this while watching a Charlie’s Angels marathon one Saturday. Because I like to work in terms of color, I then sorted my strips into color families and bound them with a rubber band.
Then, I chose a black with white dot strip to give my card set continuity, and off I went coming up with possibilities for all five of my cards.
Once I had a bunch of options, I grabbed one of my card bases and started to lay all of the strips in order to see how they would look. There’s a little section left on the right hand side, so I just put a tiny strip of shimmery white at the end of each card. I was too lazy to figure out the math on that one.
Cover the card base with adhesive and adhere the strips side by side. Grab your scissors and trim the excess once everything is all glued down.
Up next – sentiments! I have a little trick where I create a page full of computer generated sentiments (created in Microsoft Word). They work perfectly with my 2” circle punch. Add a colorful scalloped circle behind the sentiment (you can use cardstock scraps for this), and your sentiment is ready to go. You could definitely stamp the sentiments if you wanted to.
Finally, I added a black ribbon on each and tied it in a bow, and then I adhered the sentiments with foam tape for a little bit of dimension. Note, too, that the black with white dot strips were all placed in the number two position on each card for cohesiveness.
I almost don’t want to give these cards away, but I’m going to! Leave a comment telling me which of the above tips or ideas you found most helpful. I’ll pick one winner to take home my card set pictured above plus 48 sheets of Close To My Heart cardstock (for card bases), the Sizzix Accessory Tool Kit (I use mine all of the time – a $29.99 value), the Fiskars X-Large Lever Circle Punch, and two sheets of my custom thanks sentiments ready to be punched! All comments must be received by midnight (MDT) on Sunday, Sept. 4.
Addicted to patterned paper scraps,
Susan
