5 Layouts to Create Cards with Paper you have at Home

I decided to challenge myself to use some of the partially cut designer papers that have been sitting in my drawer. Do you save all your pieces of papers? I bet we all do! I think it’s in every crafter’s nature to save every scrap of paper, fabric, leftover yarn, etc. I have been making lots of cards lately, for nursing homes and hospital nurses, and wanted to use papers I already had for these cards. This is what I came up with – 5 layouts to create cards with paper you have at home. Each card uses a white base and minimal stamping. Very easy for you to duplicate with stamps you already have.

This was my starting point – the papers I had on hand.
Leftovers from last summer’s Paper Share.

Paper Cut with Scissors

Some papers have images you can cut with scissors (or if you’re lucky you have a punch that matches the image). I cut these birds and flowers with scissors and attached them with a dimensional. The paper is Bird Ballad.

Panels Cut with Paper Trimmer

This layout works nicely with almost any patterned paper, one that has the same pattern throughout or one that is more of a painting, like this one. This paper is Perennial Essence. I cut a piece 4″ x 5″ and then divided into 3/4″, 1″, 1-1/2″ and 1-3/4″ segments.

This is a 3 panel layout. Each panel is 1-1/4″ x 5-1/4″. I really like how the white lined edges in the paper work with the white border of the card. This paper is See a Silhouette.

This is the exact same layout as the one above, but different paper. You can see how the paper above is a little more modern and geared towards a younger person and this one more soft and geared towards someone older. Each paper has it’s own mood. This paper is Magnolia Lane.

Paper cut with Punches

Use your punches to create patterns with the papers that come in the pack. Most papers within the paper pack coordinate with each other and all papers are double sided. This paper is Woven Threads. I used the Tailored Tag punch.

This card is a little modern, but fun. I used two circle punches: 1″ and 1/2″. The paper is See a Silhouette. Look at the punches you have and see what patterns you can come up with.

No paper was larger than 4″ x 5-1/4″, so they were all truly scraps. I still have a good amount of my original pile left, so I will have to make some more cards.

I wrote a post a couple weeks ago on using papers a different way. Here is another idea for you, it doesn’t use that much paper – https://mailsomethingpretty.com/great-template-to-use-up-paper-scraps-and-paper-stashes/