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Friday, 3 May 2013

The War on Scraps!!

Hi All

Warning ... This is a picture heavy post! As most of you know January of this year, I began " Mission Impossible" .... to use up all my scraps, I have been faithfully crafting from my bag of scraps ( a large bag for life, from Tesco ) ... If I have afforded myself the luxury of cutting into a nice fresh piece of paper, then I have made sure that I have used up every last little bit, so I did not add to the scrap pile. However after months and months, I realized that I could craft for a hundred years and the scraps would never be gone!! I would never be able to move onto the Mahoosive pile of DP's that also need tackled, so I have to admit that I have resorted to some underhand dealings!!

I have asked some of my friends if their children would would appreciate and use a collection of patterned paper, so I have gone through my scraps, found usable pieces and squared them off, I found a few unloved peel offs and stickers, and stamped some images, and created these gift bags:


Even though if I had crafted for a month of Sundays I would never have been able to use all of those papers up ... I was still left with this:


I decided to do some die cutting, and thought I would create a little box of die cut shapes so they are to hand to use as embellishments at any time, In my head this would maybe take an hour or so to do, my scraps would disappear, and then I would do some crafting ....

5 days later, I had to stop at 1500 die cuts as my little box was full:


 Look what I did to my poor big shot:



P.S I didn't count all the punched flowers, decided life was to short for that!!

As the die cutting did not successfully conquer the scraps, I had to think again!! I have done art journal pages in the past, I decided to make an entire art Journal, using some old business cards and covering them with DP :

I think I will get some large jump rings for it, but for the moment I have tied it together with some fibers, from my stash:




Here are a couple of my Fav pages from the Journal, I wont show them all ... think there have already been far too many pictures in this post .... these are the raw product, they are yet to be covered with Gesso, paint and all things inky:

Lessons Learned:

I have descovered that even papers I dont like, when cut into lovey shapes, actually look really cute ... so I need to learn to see things differently. Also with the pages, I was putting papers on that I really had didnt like, the picture behind, I thought that orange paper was cheap looking and hideous, however by just keeping going and adding other things its turned into one of my fav pages ... so it will be good to challange myself to make things with some of my unloved stash and see what I can do with it !!

I have put in so much work, I know that I HAVE to have created a dent in my scraps, however it is not yet visable to the naked eye!! My loft floor is still full of scraps so I will see what I can come up with next time I venture up there.

This is my entry to Pixies Snippit Playground

Thanks for putting up with me and my waffle!!
Hugs Juls

31 comments:

  1. What a scrap fest you are having, looks like you have put some to very good use though, the pages will sure to come in useful at some point. Note to Juls - my local school has an after school craft club and is always looking for crafty bits for the chn to use. That could be another way to get rid if some lol.
    Hugs Brenda xox

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  2. Looks like a very productive time you've been having Juls, but isn't it satisfying to use up some of those scraps.

    B x

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  3. loved reading your blogpost, no wonder your die cutting machine wasn't feeling well :-)

    have a great weekend,
    Peggy

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  4. I really enjoyed this post! I too have vowed to work from my scrap pile and to restrain myself from buying more product until the scraps disappear. Well, I'm TRYING not to buy more :) Your poor big shot cutting plate looks much like mine! It's definitely well-loved :)
    Keep up the great work. We should introduce our scrap bins to one another and perhaps they'll run away together? :)

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  5. teeeheeeeheeeee
    I have done similar undertakings in the past! Sadly my pile barely looks disturbed!

    My most successful ways that I really did use up afterwards were cutting into card stock leftover pieces. I cut tags in various sizes and a zillion spellbinder dies. I then file them in dollar store 2 up photo albums. Half of the full books go over to my grandaughters and the other half live in a corner of my room.

    Patterned paper was cut down into 6x6 or 8x8 or mat sized for scrapbooking.

    All that work and I keep producing even more card making scraps every time I create a scrapbook layout...

    teeeheee It is just never ending isn't it? Fun...but
    neverending!

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  6. Fabulous Juls - my gosh you've been busy, those journal pages are super.

    I did laugh at Carol's suggestion of introducing your scrap bins to one another in the hope they'll run away together - priceless!

    Hugs. Di xx

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  7. You make me smile, so nice post !
    Oh your journal looks fantastic with these colors !
    Have a nice week-end !
    xxx

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  8. Very entertaining post. You've had a magnificent scrapfest and must feel better for it Juls! Keep up the good work. I think you deserve a medal and several whirls on the roundabout!

    Hugs
    Sarn xxx

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  9. Great post, great idea and I am not surprised you didn't count up the flowers, what a lot of hard you have done already. I have to say that I got fed up of saving scraps and just keep the larger ones now.
    Thanks for your comment.

    Kath x

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  10. Gah! I've got the mission impossible tune in my head!!! lol - great idea getting loads of die cuts ready - hmmm guess what I'll be doing over the weekend xx

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  11. Wow Juls, I'm worn out just reading your post and well done you for being so incredibly organised...errrrm...I think you need a new plate for your Bigshot lol! x

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  12. I highly commend you Juls lol - I don't think I'd have the patience.

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  13. Wow! Juls, you have been busy. I gave in and passed my HUGE bag of scraps to my Grandsons childminder. It's great when Bradley brings pictures home with bits I recognise.

    Donna x

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  14. Oh my, so many great ideas. If only there were 213957 hours in the day I could use up my scraps too!

    Liz x

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  15. Think we all have unending piles of scraps but you were definitely the queen at using them up. I give a great big bag full now and then to my friend who runs and creche.

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  16. I have to admire your efforts Juls, you've done really well so far with your scraps. I have to admit that I get to the stage where I feel like binning the lot. To make it worse I'm so much into CAS cards that I'm not using much DP. At least I'm not adding to the scrap pile!

    Have a lovely weekend.

    Kat xx

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  17. Fab journal. Excellent use of scraps and snippets! My scrap hoarding is getting a bit close to having an OCD!! LOL Cathy x

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  18. Bloomin' 'eck. That lot must have taken you ages to do. Well done though. I think you could say mission accomplished - for now anyways.
    Beryl xx

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  19. Oh my goodness, Juls! You make my love of paper and scraps even more crazy great!!!

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  20. Wow! I am so inspired! I really like the scrap give away idea to children! One man's trash.....!

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  21. WOW Juls, what a great way to use up all of your scraps... 1500 die cuts ready to go, fantastic idea! Your journal looks fabulous, I love it!
    Hugs, Tammy

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  22. your journal looks fabulous juls and really pretty papers.
    great way to use up your scraps , i bet you had arm ache after all that die cutting too.

    xx coops xx

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  23. How cool, Juls, what an achievement. Thanks for the inspiration!

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  24. You were a very busy & organizing lady! I chuckled all through reading this. Snippets GROW, did you know that???Grinned at your warped plate too (bad me!) I broke one,so don't feel badly. Loved your journal with the collaged pages too, reminded me of quilts. Interesting wisdom about re-seeing even papers that you don't especially love, until you see them in bits & smaller pieces. TFS such an entertaining & insightful post.

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  25. I think I should send you a bag of scraps around to play with as you are doing wonders with them all. I love the bits and bobs you've created for the kids to craft with but I think your bigshot is needing new plates, whoops.
    Great to see you recently, loving your mini book too.
    Hugs Erika.

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  26. Oh my goodness, Juls, you are to be commended and admired for all that work and effort and persistence. Using up all one's scraps is, indeed, too monumental for one lifetime. Just remembering to grab at least one thing from them (IMHO)is doing a good, green thing. As you say (and I preach, ha!) "life is too short." Your bags for the kids are genius and those die cuts, WOW!!

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  27. Hi Juls, wow you have been busy! What a lovely idea to use your scraps, and hopefully encourage some budding crafters too. your journal is so pretty, love it
    Claire xx

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  28. It always make me happy if I am able to used up some scraps, well done gal!!!! What a beautiful result!

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  29. Hi Juls

    What a brilliant post.

    Great to see what you have done with your scraps. You have certainly been one very busy girlie!!

    But even making little gift bags of pieces for passing on is better than just throwing it away .. .. which I fear is what happens to most people's scraps .. .. and that is a shame.

    Had to smile at your big shot plate - and it looks like it is smiling back at me!!

    Hope you have a good week and enjoyed the bank holiday break.

    Love Jules xx

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  30. Your poor Big Shot! I have never got my plates to bend like that as I keep turning them over!
    Lovely mini album in the making there!
    Hugs
    xx

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  31. This is a fantastic idea and a great way to use all my scraps i have stored...yes i keep them too lol
    hugs and xxx
    Gemma

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