We're getting to know each other pretty well now. It's time I let you in on a dirty secret.
My paper scrap pile is out of control.
There. I feel better now. I really can't help it. I try to throw them away, but the colors are so great and they're still big enough to do something with and I'm the granddaughter of people who grew up during WWII: if something is still useful, you don't just chuck it.
To try to keep it under control, the first thing I’ve done is organized all the scraps by color. This makes it more likely that I’ll actually use them.
I should probably also go ahead and confess that I love the ornate, layered cards, but they aren't necessarily my forte. They take a lot of time and messing around for me, so I opted to go with a simpler aesthetic. And it worked. All four of the cards I made were whipped out in less than an hour (not that everything has to be done in record time, but it is rather nice to have a lot to show for a limited amount of time).
Yes, these two cards are essentially the same, but I feel like a couple of things give them each their own unique feel. The "Dream" card only has inking on the sentiment and reminds me of ocean waves. The blue piece (yep, a scrap. See why I can't toss them? That's a big scrap!) is 3.75" x 3.75" and is a perfect fit for my embossing folder. I thought a chance to dip into the button stash wouldn't be bad either, with a little inking around the sentiment to make it pop. I kept the sentiment for the "Gratitude" card a bit more simple since I ramped the card up with ink. To get the gold on the raised part of the embossing, just lightly brush the ink pad over it. The color will deposit on only the raised surfaces. Then I used a combo of foam squares and glue dots to adhere the metal embellishment. I thought a leaf would be nice since this feels like a fall card and the swirls on brown remind me of wood grain and tree bark.
I wanted to remind myself of how striking a very simple card could be. I decided to just emboss the squares and then kiss the raised edges with ink again. These remind me of the copper ceiling tiles I love.
I will definitely be playing with my scraps some more to make cards. Are you a scrap saver or tosser? If you save them, what projects do you like to make with them?