There’s nothing quite like a gorgeous pocket card! Our Picture My Life™ Cards were originally designed for pocket scrapbooking, but I love using them for card bases, photo mats, journaling, and embellishments. When our Pocket… More
Week Three: Reinventing a Scrapbook Kit
Our Creative Design Team is chipping away at our stash this month. So far, we have tackled paper, pocket cards, embellishments, and, this week, we are using up some kits in our collection. I have so many kits stashed away that need using, so I was happy to pull one out and use it to create a Fall Fun scrapbook layout. If you would like to join the Love Your Stash challenge, you can share your creations with us by using the hashtag below.
A few years back, I chose to return to scrapbooking. I started in 1996 but had to take a 15-year break after a death in the family. I was facing unresolved grief making it too difficult to look at photos. A year ago, I started recording family memories again. Now I am REALLY behind (says every scrapbooker ever). I decided to treat myself to a Craft with Heart subscription to help me get ahead, but, unfortunately, I have spent more time packing away the kits than I have using them.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with the kits – they are beautifully designed and easy to put together. I just haven’t taken any time for myself to scrapbook. When our design team decided to take on the Love Your Stash challenge, I was excited to see kits on the list. It “forced” me to go through my stash and make a scrapbook page of my kids
If you also subscribe to Craft with Heart, you are probably wondering where I got this kit. I believe this kit is from October 2020, but it does not look a thing like the original. Recently someone told me that they dislike subscription kits because they can’t make any changes. They are stuck with photo configuration, background papers, and layout themes they will never use. Well…hold on to your hat because you CAN MAKE CHANGES. There are no rules when it comes to creating.
Before I show you the changes I made to the original layout, take a look at how it all came together.
If you watched the video, you saw what the original layout looked like. I was able to use items from the kit and pair them with items from my stash to fit my photos. The photo orientation, sizes of the photos, and the theme of the photos were nothing like the original design. Just because the design showed horizontal photos, flags, and a different title did not mean that the kit was unusable.
There are no kit rules – You don’t have to follow the instructions – No stones will fall from the sky
If you want to understand where I am coming from, let’s take a look at my thought process as I created the layout. Here is a side-by-side of the original kit design and my completed pages.
My creating process always begins with the photos – which ones will I use, what theme I am going for, and how will I tell the story. I never use all my photos. This day I took about twenty photos – all were great but having too many photos on a layout can be overbearing and some are best kept for another story.
Whether I choose a kit or pattern paper, I work with the background I have before me. This pattern paper had a preprinted circles and journaling lines. I wanted both to show on my layout, so I arranged the photos to take advantage of these features.
To fit the theme and the story I was telling, I added some additional elements – pattern paper, embellishments, and preprinted sentiments. These were all items that matched components from the kit.
I also added a Cricut cut title. The kit was chosen because of the word “fun” and the child-like elements. I added to that title by creating a new title “Fall Fun” and picked embellishments that pair well with the childish icons. I truly enjoyed using this kit and finding treasures from my stash to add to it. I feel like all the stickers, die cuts, and patterns play well together and convey a story of children playing outside on a warm September day.
So….for those of you struggling with kits, feeling like you have to play by the rules – it’s time to grab a kit from your stash and see it in a different light. You have the bones of the page laying before you. All you need to do is dress it up and make it your own.
I hope that this inspired you to Love Your Stash and that you learned a few new tips you can use on your next scrapbook page. Make sure to visit all of the Creative Design Team’s channels so that you can get some more ideas for using up your craft stash during the month of February.
Some of the links on this page are affiliate links. By clicking on those links and making a purchase, you are helping to support my small business. This is at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support.
here is a list of the supplies I used today (View All My Supplies Here)
Give Yourself Some Happy Mail
Have you treated yourself to some happy mail lately? This year, I gifted myself to our cardmaking and scrapbooking Craft with Heart kits and I am truly enjoying how they cut down on the time it takes to create. Each quarter, new kits are designed with pre-printed bases, coordinating stickers, and die-cuts. All I need is adhesive and a pen!
With the scrapbooking subscription, I get one kit for every month of the year. Each of my kits has all the materials I need to create two coordinating 12″ x 12″ two-page layouts. I like to call these “slap & stick” kits because they are so each to slap together. I don’t need to cut anything out or stamp any images. If I feel like a layout needs a change, I can do that easily or add a few embellishments from my stash. I just like that I can quickly put together a layout – it saves me so much time.
You have multiple subscription options. Your best deal comes with the 12-month subscription where you receive FREE shipping as well as a coupon for free photo prints from Persnickety Prints. Here is a look at all the new layouts you will get in your subscription kit.
My cardmaking subscription kits arrive once every four months. They include an exclusive stamp set and all the materials I need to create a set of beautiful, handmade cards. No cutting or additional purchases need. All the die cuts are easy to punch out and I get envelopes, embellishments, inks, foam tape, and a stamping block all in one box. I can literally just grab this box, run out the door, and make my cards just about anywhere. The only thing I need to grab from my stash is adhesive.
With the January-April card kit, you’ll receive everything you need to make two of each of these cards. The stamp set that comes in the current cardmaking kit cannot be purchased anywhere else AND can be used on several of your future projects. Who wouldn’t want a stamp set full of sentiments??
There are multiple subscription options available on my website for you to choose from and you can cancel at any time. You even get reminder emails notifying you that that your subscription is on the way and before you are billed. I need little reminders like this in my life. If you would like to treat yourself to one or both of these kits, you can head on over to my website to learn more. They also make great gifts.
I hope you are having a wonderful week!
Some of the links on this page are affiliate links. By clicking on those links and making a purchase, you are helping to support my small business. This is at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support.
Week Two: Tackling the Embellishments
Did you have fun viewing all of the Love Your Stash ideas last week? Our Creative Design Team is challenging you to use your stash throughout February. Each week, we have a new element in our craft stash that we are using in our videos, and we are asking you to join the challenge.
This week, our goal was to use up some of our bits and bobbles we have collected in our embellishment stash. I had fun rummaging through my collection to find elements for this page. How many of them do you recognize?
I was amazed at how many little treasures I found in my craft space even after de-stashing last October. I swear some of these items multiply overnight.
As you can see, I was able to gather up some adorable little pieces for this page to match the personalities in the photos. I especially love that little banner below the photos. I was inspired by Andrea Sherman’s video last week and wanted to make one for this page.
I have only made banners for my home décor pieces and have not attempted one for a scrapbook page. This is fun to make and it like how it helps to frame the photos in a whimsical way.
Most of the banner pieces and background papers are Mix-Ins. These patterns are my favorite to use and I tend to hoard them each season. I adore the subtle patterns and colors. This page also has few leftover pieces from Stitched Together and Brushed. All of the colors played so well together.
To break up the patterns and bring focus to the photos, I used a black cardstock background and a few black pattern papers. Whenever I have black and white photos, I like to use black frames, matting, or stitching to draw your eye to the image on the page.
Once the papers had been selected, I started digging through the embellishments. WOW! I did not realize how many flowers I had collected. In my process video, you will be able to see how I layered all the elements together and get a peek into how I organize my embellishments.
As I create a page, I often take a step back or walkaway to allow my mind to clear so I can see what might be needed. While I was making this page, I had to refocus a few times. I don’t usually add this many elements and I worried that it wouldn’t all come together.
Each time I came back to the project, I remembered what I have been learning in my classes and all the little tricks I have learned through the years. I reminded myself to stick to specific colors, added texture and checked for a visual triangle.
One of my favorite additions was the wood leaves and title. It was those elements that pulled everything together. By adding some natural elements to the page, I was able to soften the bright colors and ground a few of the elements.
This page turned out so much better than I had hoped – I honestly surprised myself. All of these little embellishments worked together perfectly and reflected the personality of the girls in the photos.
Make sure to check out all of the Creative Design Team creations this week and learn a few new was to Love Your Stash. If you choose to join the challenge, make sure to use the #cdtloveyourstash so that we can see what you created.
I hope you have a wonderful week!
Some of the links on this page are affiliate links. By clicking on those links and making a purchase, you are helping to support my small business. This is at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support.
