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bckwml
PeaWee
PeaNut 477,578
August 2010
Posts: 2
Layouts: 0
Loc: Vancouver, Canada
 |  Posted: 3/27/2012 10:34:39 AM
One of my scrapbooking problems is I don't have embellishments to put on the empty spaces of my layouts. Actually, I don't have many embellishments at home. But I've noticed most layouts out there are nicely embellished with border stickers, chipboards, fancy brads etc... things that I don't have...  I have some very basic embellishments like alphabet stickers, plain brads, buttons and I have a lot of leftover pattern paper too...but I don't know how to make use of these leftover to create embellishments for my pages. Do you have any good suggestions? And what are the general embellishments that you'd buy and that will go well with most layouts? Coz' I just don't want to buy a bunch of embellishments and end up using only a few of them...  | |
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EllenPea
Pea with a Pen
PeaNut 70,644
February 2003
Posts: 19,335
Layouts: 783
Loc: Southern California
 | Posted: 3/27/2012 10:45:33 AM
Welcome to Two Peas! While your question sounds like a perfect one for Glitter Girl, only she knows which one of the board posts she will turn into her next video, so I thought I'd be the first of the regular Peas to chime in and help if I can.
Only my help is going to be some questions. What things would you most likely put on your layout if you had them? Would it be flowers? More masculine things?
Also, why don't you have a lot of embellishments? Are you a new scrapbooker and not sure what to buy? Study the Gallery and look at what the layouts that catch your eye used. Is it the money? Look in the dollar bins ($1.50 at M's)and see if any of those appeal to you.
Also, you brought up that you have leftover pattern paper you could use to make embellishments. That is a very creative idea. I bet if you googled "embellishments made from pattern paper" you would find some blogs with good ideas.
Hope this helps! |
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ScrappyJac
BucketHead
PeaNut 433,506
August 2009
Posts: 650
Layouts: 2
 | Posted: 3/27/2012 10:52:37 AM
Great question! I would love to hear Glitter Girl's response to this. I have found that when I buy the "specialty" embellishments that I rarely use them...probably because I am buying the wrong ones. I also have tons of the basics and patterned paper. I would love to hear how others stretch those basics to create embellishments in their layouts.
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Lesleyanne~
PeaNut
PeaNut 459,121
March 2010
Posts: 362
Layouts: 7
Loc: Calgary, Canada
| Posted: 3/27/2012 11:38:07 AM
While it takes more time than using a die cutting machine, you can always cut with an exacto knife just about anything that a machine can do. It just takes time, patience, and a sharp knife! I used to print out webdings and other black/white images from the internet on the back of my patterned paper, then cut it out. |
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Lesleyanne~
PeaNut
PeaNut 459,121
March 2010
Posts: 362
Layouts: 7
Loc: Calgary, Canada
| Posted: 3/27/2012 11:39:07 AM
Oh, and you might look into going to a "crop night" at Michaels. it's $5 for a few hours, and you can bring a whole bunch of paper and use their cricut machines and cartridges, and spend that time pre-cutting out embellishments. |
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JamieH
AncestralPea
PeaNut 39,057
May 2002
Posts: 4,586
Layouts: 0
Loc: Texas
| Posted: 3/27/2012 11:44:43 AM
Sorry, I am not Glitter Girl, but I thought I would offer a few ideas:
1. paper flowers--tons of ideas on You tube. Easy ones to make are cuttng various sizes of circles, mist, crumple, let dry, fluff-done. This works great with patterend paper, dictionary paper, card stock.
2. flags/banners--cut strips of various lengths and widths. Gently fold the bottom of the paper and cut a out a "V"! Use string, rope, ribbon, etc. to make a banner. Stick individual flags behind photos,etc.
3. buttons--mix some and group together.
4. tags--I make a lot of tags in Tim Holtz' style. Tags can be painted, inked, embossed, etc. Use for journaling or to stick somewhere. Group some together!
Hope this helps!
JamieH | |
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Loydene
PeaFixture
PeaNut 997
July 1999
Posts: 3,870
Layouts: 7
Loc: Kansas City, MO
 | Posted: 3/27/2012 12:11:09 PM
Another thing you can make -- journaling cards
Look at your word processing program -- make a text box (any size, your choice!), put a border on it (there are, likely, many choices as to border styles), add a "word" at the top in a "fancy" font and/or lines -- adjust the size, placement,wording as you wish, print (or copy, paste and print .. to make lots) on cardstock (color or neutral - your choice), cut it out and use it how you wish.
You do not have to **buy** embellishments to **have** embellishments -- bits of lace and ribbon from other crafts, buttons, fussy cuts from pattern papers | |
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Bonscraps
PeaFixture
PeaNut 167,510
September 2004
Posts: 3,781
Layouts: 191
Loc: Quebec, Canada
 | Posted: 3/27/2012 12:19:10 PM
Welcome to 2Peas !!
I agree with the above posts, you can always make your own embellishments from your patterned paper, using a cricut, sillouette, die cutter, or by hand. You can always find great embellishments at the Dollar store as well, gems, bling, buttons, flowers etc...
I think the trick is know what your style is...and what look you are going for, I love to look through the gallery here at 2Peas, there are some amazingly talented gals here, especially the Garden Girls!! Check it out, and see what you like that they are using and go from there.
 Bon |
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MerryMom937
PeaFixture
PeaNut 472,567
June 2010
Posts: 3,096
Layouts: 0
| Posted: 3/27/2012 12:40:35 PM
Like you, I use embellishments (other than stickers) sparingly--just have some buttons (30 total), 2 packages of metal brads, and 2 ft of ribbon.
That's it. No flowers, no bling, no washi tape, no chipboard, no die cuts, etc. Mostly paper, stickers, and journaling cards.
I use paper strips, squares, rectangles, to make borders or grid along the sides of my larger piece of paper. My background paper is usually kraft, gray, or cream so the patterned or different color paper accent helps make the pictures "pop" a bit more. Sometimes I tear the paper or lightly ink the edges.
When I attended my one and only crop (which I posted about under "Crop Nightmare Stories" ), a lady commented that my pages were "boring" and "blah".
To each his/her own.
I guess my style is quite sparse, but I like the clean look.
To me, the empty space is a design element. | |
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outsidechic
PeaNut
PeaNut 329,392
July 2007
Posts: 184
Layouts: 23
Loc: San Diego
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ScrapperCandy
PeaAddict
PeaNut 238,559
December 2005
Posts: 1,525
Layouts: 30
Loc: Off in Neverland!
 | Posted: 3/27/2012 3:29:41 PM
Great ideas already. A couple I've thought of too.
I've seen those paper clips with buttons on the top for sale, but you could easily make your own with a glue gun. You could also put flowers, paper circles, punched shapes, etc. on the paper clips.
Also, I make my own "labels" but cutting a small rectangular piece of cardstock and rounding the corners. You can even layer 2 pieces of cardstock; colored on the outside, white, cream or kraft on the inside. Stamp the date/a sentiment, stick it behind your PP or photo and you are good to go.
There are tons of free printable journaling boxes/shapes on the internet. Check out that pin site for some. You can print and cut your own to your hearts content! |
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scrappycass
You Wanna Peas of Me?
PeaNut 413,587
February 2009
Posts: 5,638
Layouts: 43
Loc: Western New York
 | Posted: 3/27/2012 5:41:27 PM
You can make your own. Flowers are easy to make yourself, circles, squares and shapes like that too. Use strips of paper for a border, buttons, string or yarn...it's amazing what you can do with a few things you probably already have around the house. |
Chocolate......who needs a reason?!
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bckwml
PeaWee
PeaNut 477,578
August 2010
Posts: 2
Layouts: 0
Loc: Vancouver, Canada
| Posted: 3/27/2012 9:22:11 PM
Thank you so much for all the suggestions! I'm amazed! 
The reason why I don't have many embellishment is that I don't know what to buy. There are just way too many out there!  Many embellishments are designed to coordinate with their own collections. I don't want them to be used only for that specific collection, especially I got my paper from various companies, I just can't buy all of them, right?!?! I don't want to waste them and don't want to buy them only hoping they may fit into my other projects in the future. Like awhile ago, I bought a BG monthly page kit and it came with a few embellishments. But I found the colors and the theme of those embellishment were so specific that I could hardly use them on other projects. Does this happen to you girls too? And how do you decide on what to buy?
It'd be nice if anyone can share their example layouts here...  Thank you so much for all your kind help!!! | |
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