Come on, you know you have icky, cheapo supplies, and you would best serve the world by pitching them in a trash or recycling bin. Even kindergartners deserve better than some of the stuff I've bought over the years.
Anyway, a fourth option is actually to use the supplies that have been languishing in our copious storage drawers and containers.
And yes, I wanted to type to actually use, but that's splitting an infinitive, and I just couldn't do it today. I'm feeling a bit too precise. Perhaps I need a massage to loosen up.
Yesterday, I decided actually to use some of my brad collection. Brads were all the rage years ago, and of course I had to buy them in every color known to God and man, so despite the fact that I've donated or sold a huge number of the pronged fasteners, very, very many languish in cute little bead storage boxes in my embellishment drawers.
I had visions of coming up with a truly creative and mind-blowing use for them, but alas, no such luck. But by golly, I used a lot of them, so I'll share the cards over the next few days.
Today, we're going to look at paper piercing and brads, a match made in heaven. If you
Here are my two pierced and bradded cards. Notice that they are two-layer cards because brad butts left visible on the inside of the card bother me. If they don't bother you, feel free to stick to one layer. I want those butts covered, though. They are not sexy.
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| 4.25" square card |
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| standard 4.25" x 5.5" card |
Poking holes in lines or a square grid is pretty straightforward, but I still managed to mess the second one up...it was originally supposed to be landscape oriented. But that's okay. I just didn't use as many brads.
Why not poke around in your supplies for something that you can use up?
Well, there I go, ending a question with a preposition. What is the world coming to?
Supplies
stamps: Papertrey Ink (Think Big set, not sure which)
ink: SU green galore
paper: Papertrey white
accessories: assorted brads, dimensionals, SU mat pack, awl, corner rounder
You're too funny! Have you been secretly peeking at my crafting supplies?!
ReplyDeleteI think we both have brads on the brain: I used them as faux enamel dots on my card today! I really like the grid pattern of your brad placement - must try that out to use some more up! :)
Love it - I always have to buy every colour of something JUST IN CASE I might need it some day! I'm trying to work on that! Love both of these - your precision is amazing! And I apologize that although I am aware of the concept of the split infinitive and that it is bad, I'm sure I use them all the time. Grammar seems to be like food - if they taste (sound) good, they're probably bad for you (wrong). And this is why I'm an accountant and not an English major.
ReplyDeleteGreat way to use brads. I don't have a lot, you almost make me want some more :) Both cards are cute. The second especially reminds me of candy dots on paper that we used to eat when I was a kid. Your advice to purge by using is excellent.
ReplyDeleteGreat post again, Susan. Being dyslexic, if my grammar usage is incorrect, I just blame it on my brain. I have been using the occasional brad as of late, but hate poking holes in my work unless it's necessary. I've learned to bend the "legs" off, and use them with a glue dot instead. (or glue bot, as my scrap and stamp friends are wont to say...) You've inspired me to go and grab the tray of brad and play with them on some up coming cards. You, Susan, are the bomb! Bev
ReplyDeleteThanks for the ideas. I was just looking at my stash of brads and wondering why I thought I needed so many colours, shapes, etc.
ReplyDeleteI will never use them all and will try to donate some. Do older children in middle school still have art classes?
I love both cards, Susan. They are so pretty. Such great ideas to use up all the gazillion brads I own. I think I need to make a card like your second one so I can use up more brads. TFS!
ReplyDeleteBTW, would one really say "... for something up with which you can use"?
ReplyDeleteJust curious. ;-)
"use up (transitive verb)" (Merriam-Webster)
"use up something also use something up
to use all of something so that none of it is left"
(Cambridge Dictionary of American Idioms, 2003)
Oh, no! One would never say that unless one wanted to sound silly (which I often want to do!). Use up is definitely an exception to the rule, Diana. But there are sticklers out there. Oh, there ARE sticklers who would call me out.
ReplyDeleteLove your blog, Susan, for so many reasons. LOL
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness, I'm so doing this, I also have a random assortment of brads I got on sale and have never used!
ReplyDeleteLove these cards, I'm still way behind the trends and am still buying brads!! I love the idea of using the piercing mat (I recently bought the one you mentioned as it looked so versatile) to create a grid for placing the brads, that is so clever!
ReplyDeleteI cover the butts with tape and use a paper insert taped down to hide them. I do like your double layer though :) Cathy x
these are great. I love all that bright color. I found a large amount of embroidery thread in my mom's stuff. So now I have to find a way to use it or give it away. It is way too much for cardmaking. May be I'll take up embroidery!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post! I'm in the throws of downsizing. I still stamp now and again but not the way I did a few years ago. So much stuff HAS to go. I'm never going to get 1/4 of the $ back that I shelled out so my main plan has been to USE stuff up! Looking forward to more posts on this! Next up...eyelets! ;) Great cards, too.
ReplyDeleteMy SIL showed me, years ago, a neat trick for lining up brads by using a piece of "plastic canvas". Perfect spacing every time. I'm definitely pinning this post as I am guilty of having loads of unused brads languishing in my stash....AND eyelets!
ReplyDeleteWell now, you know trends repeat themselves... I believe I read a trend now is GOLD - really? I'll stick with brads :) [Oh I'll use my GOLD ones LOL] I love what you did -- you are so clever!
ReplyDeleteI have some brads as well, and some hardware that needs to be used up! LOVE your creative cards using them!!
ReplyDeleteThese are just fabulous and such a great idea-you totally inspired me to make a card today and I gave you shout on my blog as before I saw you post today I thought my creativity has taken a rest-so thank you. Here is my post
ReplyDeletehttp://sandiesandie16.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/chevrons-and-flowers.html
What a great idea! Love the look.
ReplyDeleteOh, how clever! My wee brain wonders why it wouldn't have thought to use my very idle mat pack for exactly this purpose! I too have brads for every reason and every season!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the grammar check! I giggled when I read it....guilty!
You must be reading my mind. I have been trying to 'clean' my craft room and found all these small craft cases filled with every colour, size, and shape of brads. I was wondering what to do with them. I really like the square one. Must try this.
ReplyDeleteSO funny AND clever :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for deciding not to split the infinitive! (I feel fortunate to know a good bit of grammar, but that also means my age is showing. They certainly don't teach it as they used to!) Now, I'm off to check my brad box and use as many as possible. I appreciate the nudge!
ReplyDeleteGreat idea, cute cards.
ReplyDeleteGreat cards .... I sometimes keep the one layer on the front, but stick card on the inside to cover the brad butts.
ReplyDeleteI'm another one with a box full of brads of different colours!! I love what you did with yours - such fun cards! I have many things that fall into the "should be purged" category - dp, old stamps, bits and pieces that never got turned into cards - I was thinking of a goal like "for every five cards I made, one of them has to use up something old". A lofty ideal but would I be able to stick to it?!!
ReplyDeleteCute cards!
ReplyDeleteI will blame the fact that I've heard of splitting an infinitive, but have never known what it means on my poor English instruction. I can still see my Freshman English teacher's face even though I can't remember her name. And I will never forget the gigantic notebook we had to have for that class filled with more dividers than I think I've used in total since then. She filled the chalkboard with grammatical terms and definitions every morning and we had to copy them into our notebooks every day. But, she never actually "taught" anything. Then, when I got to college, I was allowed to skip Freshman English because the department head read one of my high school term papers and apparently felt that I didn't need whatever was taught in that class and I went directly to English Literature. A lousy professor in that class made it one of my worst memories from college. My writing may not be grammatically perfect, and I really do wish my education had been better in that area, but when I see how terrible the spelling, grammar and English usage seem to be on so many blogs and elsewhere these days I don't feel so bad. At least I know the difference between "then" and "than", "have" and "of", "your" and "you're" and "peek" and peak", etc. I had to throw in that last one because I'm really tired of stamp companies offing me a sneak "peak"! So, as nice as it would be if we all knew and followed every grammatical rule, I'd rather see a few split infinitives than the overabundance of mistakes that, to me seem like a lack of basic knowledge. And what is even worse than the poor writing that is everywhere is the attitude by most that it doesn't matter. Our society continues to sink to new lows on a daily basis and people's writing skills is just one small example!
OK... getting off the soap box and going to get out all the brads I've never used! I really need to get some cards made today, so maybe figuring out how to use some of those brads will inspire me. But, more likely looking at them will just make me feel bad for buying something I haven't used. At least I can tell myself that I haven't been influenced by other trends like washi tape and baker's twine... at least not yet, anyway! LOL!
I'm with you because I don't think brad butts are sexy either. Love your uses for brads I've also been hoarding and not even sure why.
ReplyDeleteI was going to say brad butts are as bad as split infinitives, but I'm not exactly sure I'd recognize most split infinitives--unless you're on hand to point them out to me and give me some time to ponder and review the concept. I also don't like seeing Washi tape just wrapped around to the inside of the card, nor do I like the ugly and smashed underbellies of eyelets showing when I open a card. A second layer is easy and makes all the difference in the world. Well, maybe not in the world, but in my world of esthetic cardmaking. I really enjoy your side comments on proper use of our overly hacked up language. I'm somewhere along the continuum of you and those who text all the time with abbreviations because they can't spell. My mother and father are closer to your end of the continuum. Dad is dead, but my 92-year old mother still corrects me, for which I am thankful.
ReplyDeleteIt's so fun to read your blog! I mean, seriously...how many people care about splitting infinitives and prepositions, not to mention brad butts? It's so educational and the 'eye candy' is AMAZING!
ReplyDeleteI love how you played with your brads, Susan! Your cards are perfectly CAS and colorful! What more could a girl ask for?
I don't like brad butts either. I usually end up putting a liner in the card to cover them up. Or if there are only a few; I may put another die cut on the inside to cover them up. It all depends on the placement and how weird it looks on the inside. I love the look of the brads in the grid. Very clever.
ReplyDeleteI keep telling myself; buy nothing more till you've used up some of what you have! Since there is no time lately to use stuff up; my JoAnn's and Michaels coupons just waste away. LOL