Polly! Guest Designer - Stretch your stash with Gypsy

Hello! It's Gypsy here again. This time around I wanted to share a whole bunch of pages that I have made using the January Pocket Page Kit Raspberry Shortcake. I'm a relatively simple scrapper and don't tend to use a whole lot of product on my pages. One of the reasons that I love using Kits to scrapbook is that they represent serious value for money- something that is pretty important to me as my scrapping budget is fairly limited. The fact that I get to use a whole bunch of product without having to buy a full pack or paper pad is great for me. I get to use a variety of products on my pages and I get to try some things I might not otherwise buy. And I don't end up with a bunch of leftover product that I am not inspired to use again (and again).

That said I still like to stretch my kits as far as I can and today I have a few tips to share for doing this. The 7 pages made below are all made almost exclusively from one Raspberry shortcake kit. I've added 12x12 cardstock, a few lettering stickers, some bits left over from a previous Polly Kit.

Tip #3 Use Washi tape in place of ribbon. I love this because I find I can make the washi tape to go where I want to- but ribbon sometimes has a mind of it's own.



Tip #4 Cut a 3x4 card and use it across your pockets to give your design a cohesive feel. I totally loved this confetti 3x4 card so was keen to make  it a feature on my page. I cut it into 3 so I could spread it over my layout and help to lead the eye around my page.



Tip #6 Give it a facelift- this card originally said what a wonderful day but that didn't work for me- so I covered the word 'day' with a small piece of paper and used the letter stickers in the kit to make a more appropriate title.


 Tip #7 PL Cards are not just for pockets. When I saw the card above I know it would make a great title for my non-pocket LO.

Tip #8 Punch or cut your own shaped border stickers from washi tape. The great thing about washi is that it is easy to pull up and stick down again. For the piece under the word 'everyday' I taped the washi to some scrap card and then used fancy scissors to cut the zig-zag edge. Then I just pulled it up of the card and applied it to my page. I did the same thing on the bath page with a scalloped border punch.


Tip #9 Use the packaging- The yellow washi tape on this page was originally used to seal some of the little bags that my kit came in- I carefully lifted the tape so I could use the tape on my LO... and also the bags at a later date.

Tip #10 Don't forget your stamps. The little sun stamps on either side of my "Perth wa" are from the Polly November kit- I think the sunny motif is perfect for our new home town. I love that Polly Scrap Kits come with stamps- they are a great tool you can use over and over again, adding even more value to the kit.


Tip #11 Make it smaller and hide it away. One of the concerns that people sometimes have about kits is that they won't like some of the items. The pink and green PL Cards above were pretty bright as far as I was concerned and not something I'd normally choose. But cut down and used in small pieces like this I don't have a problem with them at all- in fact I think they're perfect with these photos.



Tip #12 Make it work. I couldn't find a way that suited me to use these very cool wine glass paper-clips as they were. But once I cut off the clip part with a pair of pliers I was easily able to put them right where I wanted with a little rolled up glue dot. I love how they look with the additional starry fizz.  

Tip #13 Cover it up. This journalling card was absolutely perfect for this page about my word for 2013 'Story'. But the bird on the card wasn't working at all- so I covered it with a heart from the November kit which I mounted on some patterned paper and trimmed around.

Tip #14 Chop up your stickers. I used one end of this lovely label sticker for my title and added the other shorter end for the date.I've done the same with another of the stickers behind my journalling card.

Tip # 15 Have a small stash of quality consumables. I have a small set of spray inks, and twinkling H2O's that I use on my pages to add in some extra details. With these things, a little goes a long way- they allow you to add less to your page so you can stretch your kit even further. On the page above I have used the twinkling H2O's. They have mica in them which gives this lovely shimmery effect.


Tip #16 Use paper instead of ribbon. I've simply cut a v in the end of a small strip of left over patterned paper to make some 'ribbon' for my page.

Looking at what I still have left over the Raspberry Shortcake kit I think I could make another 3 pages or so when I have the time. And that's the other thing I love about kit scrapping- all the gear is already sorted for me- making my scrapbooking much faster and productive than ever.

Thanks for reading! And thanks to Ruth and the team at Polly! Scrap Kits for the opportunity to have a play with the Raspberry Shortcake Kit and share it with you.

Gypsy