Scrapbooking Paper Piecing for the Beginner

Scrapbooking Paper Piecing for the Beginner. 
Simple Tips and Techniques

Paper piecing is one of my favorite embellishments in scrapbooking.  It is one of the most inexpensive ways to add a lot of dimension and emotion to a page.  You can truly create anything with just a couple pieces of paper and imagination.   If you have a pen, paper and a little imagination, you can create a paper piecing.  

The way most people start paper piecing is to use free patterns which are available on the internet or from friends or scrapbooking resources.  This guide is for people who want to move beyond other people's creations, and make their own personal paper piecing patterns.   I have over 50 paper piecing patterns that I have created that I work from.   The joy of using your own creation is indescribable.

Usually, a paper piecing pattern begins with an idea and simple sketch.  The sketch is created in approximately the size i want the finished paper piecing to be.   Then, using a light box, overlay the sketch with a blank piece of white paper.  Look at the sketch and break down the simple sketch into its parts.   Arms, legs, bodies etc.  or wheels, body, windows etc..  Identify each component which makes up an image and trace it individually.   Make sure that you are giving room for pieces to overlap to put your adhesive! Once you have  tracing those pieces from your original sketch, you have a pattern.  

This pattern now can be used to create a paper piecing!  Using your light box,  trace the pieces and cut out. Assemble as you have pictured it.

Congratulations!  You have now created your first original paper piecing!

If you are no good at drawing, you can use coloring pages or simple line drawings.  The paper piecing will not be your original work, but will still be great for your scrapbooking pages!!
If you just want a finished paper piecing, feel free to visit my store or contact me for the paper piecing you are looking for!

Thrifty Scrapbooking Ideas

Thrifty Scrapbooking Ideas

There are lots of products out there to aid us in our scrapping pursuits. There are stickers, metal pet tags, commercial 3D embellishments, patterned paper and vellum quote books, decorative scissors, much more. If you can imagine it, it probably is out there!

The problem with most commercial scrapbooking embellishments is price. It is not uncommon to pay $1-5 for just a couple of embellishments. Especially with these economic times, it can be difficult to justify spending that much. We can still enjoy scrapbooking while not spending much or any money! There are simple ways to embellish your pages for pennies on the dollar! Here are just a few.



Rubber Stamping
Pull out those rubber stamps! You know, the cute one with the paw print you bought a while ago. That chicken you couldn't live without. What about that butterfly one that was too cute to resist? Dust them off and start decorating. The possibilities are endless. You can take a plain background page and stamp, stamp, stamp your way to a festive background. Use a little embossing powder on cardstock and you have instant custom embossed paper. Or stamp your image on scrap paper and cut out, adhere to the page with a pop dot for a fun dimensional embellishment! Create borders with stamped images. Create picture frames with stamping an image into a square and cutting it out. Ink, Paper, Scissors and a good stamp or three will leave you with endless possibilities.

Paper Piecing
Ah, my favorite. Paper piecing is one of the most inexpensive ways to add a lot of wow for pennies. Find a pattern that you like, or create your own, cut and assemble. Many times you can create a paper piecing with scrap paper! Add embellishments to your paper piecing such as ribbon, gems, glitter, pen lining, inking, or fiber for that extra flair. Again, most of the time you only need a small amount of the embellishment, so you can use a scrap!

Acrylic Paint
Most of us have bottles of craft paint around the house. Mostly gathering dust since our current obsession is scrapbooking. Pull out those paints and get stroking! Create dazzling custom colored pages with just a few brush strokes. If you take the time to learn Donna Dewberrys One Stroke Painting Technique, it will make your creations even more brilliant with much less time (or talent!) required! When your paper has dried, you can die cut it, cut it into frames, use as background paper, cut into strips and use as a boarder and anything else your imagination can come up with.

Found Items
Open your eyes and look around your world. Onion bags can be used as mesh or net; a fake credit card that come in the mail can be altered for amazing embellishments; hinges from old jewelry boxes or the hardware store can make books or hidden journaling on your page; The possibilities are endless.



Scrapbooking is only limited by your creativity. Just about anything can be put into a scrapbook or be used in a way never intended by its original creator. You just need a little creativity, patience and an open eye to the world around you.

Happy Scrapping!

Kim