| Amongst the many tools available to the scrapbook | | | | statement on a page, and looks great in 3D. Stamp the |
| maker, rubber stamps are the most versatile. They are | | | | butterfly three times on your chosen card and emboss |
| commonly used in scrapbooking to create | | | | to bring out the details. You can color the wings, add |
| backgrounds, but did you know that in addition to their | | | | beads or leave it plain at this point, but it's easier to |
| use as a secondary decoration on frames and mats, | | | | decorate the butterfly now, rather than later. Fill in the |
| stamps can be used to create killer embellishments? | | | | wings with chalk or pens, another time use glitter or |
| The simplest way to do this is to stamp onto card, cut | | | | beads. There are so many different ways to decorate |
| out and embellish the result. Add ribbons, beads and | | | | your butterfly! Cut out each butterfly and glue the |
| the occasional bit of bling, and you'll have something | | | | wings together as follows; the inside right of the first to |
| completely unique for use in your layout. This is an | | | | the inside left of the second, the inside right of the |
| excellent way to develop your own themes, designed | | | | second to the inside left of the third. Add some wire to |
| to harmonize with your photographs, and a way to | | | | represent the butterfly's antenna with a couple of |
| make a theme run throughout a scrapbook without | | | | beads and you'll have a really beautiful 3D butterfly |
| going stale as a result of duplication. | | | | embellishment; you can use it on several pages without |
| So where do you start? My introduction to this came | | | | appearing repetitious because it will quite different |
| when I wanted to develop a butterfly theme for a | | | | every time you make it. |
| scrapbook about my mother. All her life she has been | | | | Of course there's no need to stop there. Butterfly tags |
| surrounded by butterflies, she loves them on clothes, | | | | are easy to make. Stamp your butterfly (don't emboss |
| bedding, even the walls and I've lost count of how | | | | this time) and cut it out. Turn it over and you have a |
| many ornamental butterflies she has, so when it came | | | | plain butterfly shape you can use as a tag. Make a |
| to creating a scrapbook for her, the choice of theme | | | | small hole in the top right or left and add ribbon or |
| was obvious. Immediately though, I had a problem. I | | | | fibers. For a different effect you could cut a tag shape |
| found only a couple of butterfly themed background | | | | from card and cover it with tiny butterflies (from the |
| papers; to use those throughout a whole album | | | | same stamp set). Layer on a smaller rectangle of plain |
| seemed lacking in creativity. I created a layout anyway, | | | | card which you can write on, and don't forget some |
| using the paper I had found and then another where I | | | | decorative ribbons or fibers to finish the tag idea. Cut |
| cut out the butterflies, and then it hit me, I could make | | | | frames from card and stamp all over with tiny |
| my own. | | | | butterflies or bugs, these look really good embossed in |
| Using my favorite stamp set, patterned bugs from | | | | glossy black, and use the same technique as with the |
| inkadinkadoo, and a variety of inks, I created | | | | large butterfly (you may want to use only the wings) |
| backgrounds for the other pages. So far so good, but | | | | to create a small 3D dragonfly to sit on the edge of |
| what about embellishments? Patterned bugs has a | | | | your frames. |
| lovely 3 inch butterfly which makes a wonderful | | | | |