I love my double sided patterned paper prints but I hate having to spend money on two sheets of paper so that I can utilize both sides. You don’t have to buy two sheets of paper to use both prints. Block designs are perfect for enabling you to cut apart your paper in such a way that both sides can be visible. Let’s take a look.
Step One You need to choose the right sheet of patterned paper.Look for prints in which you won’t mind cutting through parts of the design. Continuous or repeating designs are good choices. I chose a paper that had a bold chevron style print on one side and a small floral print on the other. Often, the B side of a sheet of paper is meant to contrast nicely with the A side. My selection gives me both color contrast and a step toward a good print mix. I like to try to have one organic design mixed with a stripe and/ or dot pattern.
Step Two Having a sketch or design in mind can be helpful when planning how to cut the paper. Scrapbook Challenges sketch #440 is a good candidate for using two sides of one paper. Think of the polka dot print as side A and the chevron print as side B. Looking at the design, I can see that I will need to cut a block out of the center and towards the left side of the patterned paper.
Step Three Using an 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper as a template, lightly draw the size box you wish to cut. If you are working on a cutting mat, you can use the rulers and/or grid to align the template and your piece of patterned paper.
Step Four Cut the block out and flip it over. The alignment might not be perfect. That’s ok. We can hide that when we matte the block.
Step Five Cutting the paper apart can weaken it a bit. Add scrap pieces of cardstock to the back of the larger paper for reinforcement. Matte the smaller block and glue it into the gap. The matte will hide any uneven cutting. It adds another layer while also defining the smaller block just a bit.
Step Six (optional) If your layout still feels a little flimsy, you can add further reinforcement with hand or machine stitching.
Step Seven Now that you have the base for the page, finish building the rest of the layout with photos and embellishments.
Just a Little Bit of History by Christy Strickler |Supplies Patterned Paper: Fancy Pants, Cocoa Daisy; Letters: Alison Kreft, American Crafts; Watercolor: Yasutomo; Enamel Dots, Chipboard: My Mind’s Eye; Die Cuts: Elle’s Studio; Based on Scrapbook Challenges Sketch # 440
You don’t always have to compromise by choosing just one of the patterns on a double sided piece of scrapbook paper. With the right design and a little creative cutting, it’s easy to use both sides. I very rarely buy more than one sheet of paper now. I know I can make more use out of one kit or choose to spend my budget on a wider range of papers. How about you? Do you choose just one side or do you find yourself buying more than one sheet of a certain paper?
Looking for other budget scrapbooking ideas for double sided patterned paper? Try one of these posts:
Budget Scrapbooking with Double Sided Papers
Budget Scrapbooking with Double Sided Papers, Part 2
you might think this is odd, but i often scrapbook on both pages of the double sided paper. i create my first layout, then the B side or back of the layout is my starting point for the next page. i like your idea too christy. you continue to amaze me with all you create, & the magnitude of your content on this website. i admire what you do. 🙂
I don’t think that’s odd at all, Teddi! It’s pretty awesome you can do that. I could try that method but then, I might have to give up some of my machine stitching. The backs of my pages tend to look very messy which is probably why I don’t do what you do. Thank you for the compliment! It means a lot to me! 😀 I put a lot of work into the website but then, I also enjoy sharing the information too.