Using a Single Kit for 14 Scrapbook Pages

When she completed our latest Stash Bash challenge, creative team member Sara Case gave new meaning to “killing a kit.”

Three times a year we host Stash Bash events for Simple Scrapper members. These are four-day virtual retreats with a curated selection of activities to use, cull, and organize your stash of scrapbook supplies.

We’ve been hosting Stash Bash events in one way or another for more than a decade. Our community has come to rely on them for staying organized and getting the most from their purchases.

We tasked our creative team with building a kit that could be used for multiple pages and then making just one. *Cue that exclamation about Alexander Hamilton and the Federalist Papers.* She made fourteen!

Here’s a peek at Sara’s kit and the layouts she created in her signature eclectic style.

How to Stretch a Scrapbook Kit

Sara clearly knows how to stretch a scrapbook kit and it’s easier than you might think! Here are some of our best suggestions for getting the most out of a single kit that you purchased or put together yourself.

As a side note, we have a mini class (called a Member Quest) inside of the membership on how to build a kit from your stash!

1. Have a Personal Formula – You can quickly see from these examples how Sara creates rectangular layouts (instead of square) and adds a grounding, hand-drawn border to every page. Fewer decisions make everything a little easier.

2. Be Clever with Titles – As you start to use up a sheet of letter stickers, you might need to use shorter titles or be more creative with the titles you use for your page. Explore synonyms and other phrases that express the same meaning.

3. Use the Smallest Bits – Notice how Sara uses the branding strips from her patterned paper as well as smaller scraps as part of the layers on her page. When in down you can almost always tuck another layer under.

4. Adhere the Centers – On the topic of tucking layers under, if you make it a policy to focus your adhesive on the centers of photos and patterned paper, you will have more flexibility to add additional layers from your kit.

5. Batch your Pages – While it might be a challenge to do 14 at once, working on 3-5 pages at a time can help you distribute supplies to ensure items get used… and that you don’t run out of certain favorites. (I’m looking at you, floral die cuts!)

6. Journal on Supplies – Sometimes it makes sense to have typed journaling or to write on the background, but you can use more stash by choosing die cut pieces and small bits of paper where your journaling can be added.

7. Embrace Imperfection – When using up a kit is more of a priority, your scrapbook page might not feature the absolutely most perfect items from your stash. And that’s OK! Working with what you have and getting your stories told is more important than using the most thematically-correct embellishment or expertly-coordinated colors. Just let go and make things!

Do you have any additional tips on stretching a scrapbook kit?