Saving the Scraps: Making the Most Out of Your Beautiful Colors of Scrap Cardstock

Every scrapbooker has had that moment — the moment when they look around their supplies and see the bits-and-pieces of extra scraps of cardstock and not the foggiest idea what to do with it.  You know the feeling: there are pieces that won’t necessarily work in the scrapbook, either because they are too small or have already been featured heavily enough, but that are far too great to throw away.  

We know the feeling all too well and before you know it your scrap bin is overflowing.

Instead of letting that beautiful card stock collect dust and clutter up your craft room, or even worse, throwing it away into your recycling, allow us to give you a handful of crafty, clever, and cute alternatives for the cardstock you just don’t want to give up on.

Homemade Cards and Envelopes

Why not take your skills for creating big scrapbooks pages and fashion some beautiful greeting cards.  The concept is the same, just on a much smaller scale, and everyone adores a personalized card. 

Gift Tags or Pins

Whether you’ve got some glorious glitter cardstock, some cute patterns, or just plain-colored cardstock, a couple of quick snips, a hole punch, and some ribbon is all you need to make beautiful custom-made gift tags.

Pinwheels

This is one of the cutest (and easiest) cardstock crafts to do, and with a variety of cardstock options, you can make a wide assortment of pinwheels of different sizes and color schemes.  Grab a pencil, a sewing pin, some cardstock, and if you feel like an extra decorative flair, a little button to place in the middle of the pinwheel.

Paper Baskets

Depending on the size of your scraps, you could make cute little May Day baskets and leave them on your neighbors porches, just like we used to do when we were children. There are several great tutorials on YouTube or Pinterest to help you get started.

 Paper Flower Bouquet

Love flowers but suffer from allergies? Adore looking at a vase of buds but hate how quickly they die?  You can use your extra scraps of cardstock, along with some crafting wire, and create a colorful set of beautiful faux blooms that will thrill the eye with none of the sniffles.

 Mini-Scrapbooks

Using nothing more than a pair of scissors, a variety of cardstock, stickers, and adhesive you can make a mini-scrapbook to either get a younger person started with the hobby or as a mini-brag book for you.  

With a little creativity, there is no reason to let beautiful cardstock go to waste. Don’t let these beautiful pieces go un-crafted in a pile, left to fade and be forgotten.  Clear your space while creating cuteness with your cardstock  scraps!