When I shared my paper saving technique two weeks ago, I promised you I would show you how I matted 9 photos with one sheet of 12x12 cardstock! I'm finally get to that post. I know there are only three photos on this layout but I made this page for three different albums! That meant I had 9 photos to mat. I am always running out of dark brown paper so I hate to 'waste' it on matting photos. Here are the steps I took to get all 9 photos matted with just one sheet of cardstock.
The reason this worked so well is that I was using 3x4 and 4x6 photos. Don't be afraid to crop photos either before you print them or after. These were actually 4x6 photos that I trimmed to be 3x4. Removing parts of the photo really put them emphasis on my subject (just don't look at my lovely sweat pants). I first took three of the 3x4 photos and placed them on my cardstock leaving enough room to fit a 4x6 photo over them.
Using my Perfect Layers tool I cut out these photos. You could also use a paper trimmer to do this. The key though is to not cut all the way to the edges! Only trim enough to mat your photo because you will be adding more photos soon. Now you will have three of your photos matted and some holes in your cardstock.
Cover the three holes with your 4x6 photos. There should be just enough space around them to add adhesive and leave room to cut a mat. Also place the three remaining 3x4 photos on the other remaining cardstock. Cut out all photos with a Perfect Layers tool or your trimmer. And there you have it. 9 photos matted with 1 sheet of cardstock!! This does take some preplanning but if you really think and organize you can conserve that paper.
Here is all the cardstock that I had left from that dark brown color. There is enough that I could cut out some embellishments for the three pages if I wanted too!
If you've been following my blog you know that I LOVE the Tim Holtz Distress Ink! I did a card using the inks last week and decided to use them on my title for this layout. I first stamped the title on an ecru color of cardstock. Not bad but it was lacking something.
I got out my ink blending tools (you can see a photo of them here) that my dad made (thanks dad)! Using the same color of ink that I stamped my title in I added ink to the edges of my cardstock. To do this you need a craft mat as well. Get ink on your foam blender and starting on the craft mat use a circular motion to add ink to the cardstock. The result is a beautifully shaded title!! You can add more or less color depending on the look you are going for. I love how the same ink color looks together!! You could also use different colors if you wished to.
Here is a close up of my entire title. I just love how it turned out! So simple too. Just ink, stamps, and some scraps of paper! You could also emboss the title and then do your shading. That would add some interest and dimension. Why didn't I think of that sooner?!
The large scalloped circle was cut on my Cricut and is a fun addition to the page.
I hope you enjoyed this simple page with some fun tips. I'd love to hear how you conserve paper on your layouts and I hope you give my photo matting trick a try! Thanks for stopping!
Supplies:
- cardstock: kraft, Bazzill (Bitter Chocolate), misc
- patterned paper: My Mind's Eye (Where the Heart Is)
- stamps: Close to My Heart
- ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Rusty Hinge)
- Cricut cartridge: Mini Monograms
- tools: Perfect Layers
- pen: Zig Writer (Chocolate)
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