10 Tips for Scrapbooking on a Budget

 

It can be easy to be overwhelmed by the huge number of available scrapbooking materials and to spend a huge amount of money. Here are some ways that I avoid breaking the bank on scrapbooking supplies:

 1. Research materials before you purchase them:

When I started scrapbooking I was unfamiliar with scrapbooking products. A lot of blogs and websites speak about scrapbooking tools like embossing folders as though everybody should know what they are. I found it helpful to go to a specialist scrapbook store Scrapadoodles, although they have an extensive online store I found this a bit overwhelming and wanted to see the products. The best part of this trip was that the woman in the shop was incredibly friendly and helpful about explaining how to use any tool that I mentioned

I also found watching online tutorials and reading posts on tips for beginners really helpful. This particularly applies to stamps and stamp ink. From one tutorial I learnt that certain inks hold more colour and are better for scrapbooking. I now understood why my dandelion stamp was producing faint images. I found this really helpful and also this tutorial on clear stamps.

2. Plan
Have an idea of the overall feel and theme of your whole album before you start. This way you are less likely to unnecessarily spend on items that you will not end up using. Planning your pages also means that you can use your supplies wisely. I've found these page maps very helpful for this.

3. Look at the same product at different stores for price comparison:

This seems obvious but is quite important. I was shopping for washi tape the other day and the same pack of 3 was R30 more expensive at Cardies than CNA.

4. The first time that you buy a brand of product only buy one:

On the above mentioned shopping trip I purchased a pretty Washi Tape at CNA. This washi tape doesn't adhere properly and I have to stick double sided tape to it whenever I want to use it. Trial and error is a necessary part of scrapbooking but keeping costs down is good too.

5. The craft store is not the only place to buy scrapbooking materials

More and more stores are stocking scrapbooking materials or materials that can be used for scrapbooking. Often these stores can be a little cheaper than the traditional craft store. For example, at Typo recently there was a 10 cardstock for R20 deal (that's about $1.60), there wasn't a huge variety but I stocked up on some of the nicest designs.

 

Takealot.com which basically sells everything, don't have a huge variety of supplies but they keep plain American Crafts cardstock which you can buy cheaply in packs of ten. As you can see, buying in bulk definitely pays off.

 

 

6. Dress up plain cardstocks rather than buying expensive ones:

Plain coloured cardstock are significantly cheaper than the fancy, decorated ones. You will need to acquire some tools for doing this such as stamps, washi tape (click here for some ideas about designing backgrounds using washi tape) and distress ink.

7. Wrapping paper is your friend:

Wrapping paper is a cheap way to buy lots of pretty paper. It's thinner than cardstock but you do get a large amount for your money. This is very useful for dressing up plain cardstocks and for adding embellishments and layers to your projects.

8. Make your own embellishments:

Embellishments can easily eat a huge portion of your scrapbooking budget. Making your own is generally easy and fun. See my previous post here. I have a whole pinterest board dedicated to this.

9. Use Free Printables

Free printables are the best. You can search for the perfect one and customize their size. All you pay for is the colour printing.

10. Recycle
If you see a pretty picture in a magazine, keep it. I have a whole file-box filled with images from magazines that I use for scrapbooking and other craft projects. If you happen to buy or be given a product with pretty packaging, save it for a scrapbooking project. Below is a card a made using a soap box and a champagne box:

 

Upcycled Cassette Tape Box Storage

I'm trying to provide myself with a more efficient and tidy space to do crafts. The difficult thing about organizing craft supplies is the large number of small items which are difficult to store. I've seen a couple of posts on Pinterest where old cassette tape boxes are used for storage. None of this storage has looked particularly appealing. I thought that this storage solution could be both neat and pretty.

I found some old blank cassette tapes and boxes at home. They needed a good clean but were soon ready for storage. The only slightly annoying thing about this storage is the plastic spokes attached to the box can get in the way.

Items needed:

Washi Tape

Letter Stickers

Cassette Tape Boxes

Scissors

I wanted to be able know what exactly was in each box. The paper covers inside the tape boxes were perfect for this.

For each cover I cut a piece of washi tape slightly longer than necessary. I neatly stuck the washi tape along the spine and trimmed off the edges. I wanted mine to look uniform so I used the same washi tape for all of them, but you could have some fun this. I quite like the idea of different styles in the same colour or organize your boxes in rainbow hued awesomeness.

For the writing, I chose to stick letter stickers along each spine describing my items. You need to check that your letter stickers are the correct length before you do this so that they fit neatly along the spine. I chose to use letter stickers because I really wanted the writing to be bold and easily legible. If, unlike me, you can write attractively you could very easily write on the spine. Alternatively, use this tutorial to put words on your washi tape.

 

Then slip the cover back into the box, add your items and you are done. You can also always change the label description or washi tape that you used at a later date.

 

 

 

 

All that remains to do is make something with the cassette tapes.
Enjoy!

Book Cover

This book covering was a very quick and easy project. It looked so pretty when I made it that I had to share it.

 

I've been wanting to cover the book that I use to write notes during my teaching practical in something pretty. I decided after all off my Pinterest browsing that it would be nice to upcycle some old magazines. I went through the magazines looking for blue images, patterns and backgrounds. I then cut these into rough blocks (the washi tape covers the messy edges later) and arranged, then stuck them onto the book in my pattern. I then covered all the borders between pictures with washi tape. I stuck down the vertical pieces of washi tape first and then the horizontal pieces.

 

I think that this might look better if the main image (seahorse) was in the center of the page.

 

Enjoy!