As a scrapbooker, is there anything better than pretty paper?! How pretty tapes to adhere and decorate those pretty papers?!!
Have you joined the washi tape craze that is happening in the scrapbook world? I'll admit, I'm usually a couple of days late and several dollars short of trends in general and that definitely goes for scrapbooking too. I join in about the time that all those things are going on clearance and everyone else has moved on to the next phase. This one, though, I've actually dabbled in and joined in the party (on time). Plus I figure I'm in the land of all things washi over here in Japan so I should jump in and put all those pretty tapes to work on my pages and cards.
I'm definitely not one that is associated with cutting edge and inovative, so I also asked my fellow WCS washi lovers to show me some of their cool washi tape pages.
As most first timers, my washi tape experience started off like this, with just a little dab at the bottom for added color:
I've seen a lot of layouts with just a bit of washi along the edges of photos, paper or embellishments as if to adhere them together (kind of is too!). Some scrappers choose to keep the somewhat torn/jagged edges, or if you are a bit too linear like me, then those strips can be cut with scissors.
To stay with the holiday theme, I took my washi one step further and used it as edging on my (still unfinished) December Daily album. For this project it served as strips to enhance the book, rather than adhere a photo or paper together:
Teka took her mini album one step further with washi tape and used it to bind the album together:
Teka, Francine and Katie forgot about the patterned paper altogether in these layouts and used their assortment of washi tapes to serve as faux paper instead. I absolutely love this effect on pages and am amazed how different it looks with all the various colors and patterns. Francine and Katie chose to leave their washi ripped at the edges, whereas Teka went a clean and linear route on her layout for a fantastic look.
Francine:
Katie:
Teka:
Francine has also used her washi tapes to create a chevron embellishment and journaling spot on this layout. A totally different look, but still using those washi tapes:
I created this small embellishment on a layout recently to hold a flair button within a title. Unfortunately I can't share the entire layout since it's being published, but can at least share this small piece of it!
Another great use of washi tapes are with cut outs or your Silhouette die cutting machine. Teka used her Silhouette to cut arrows for her layout then backed those cut arrows with some of her washi tape for added patterns and textures:
I used my Studio Calico Ampersand Mask as a base for this card featuring some of my favorite washi tapes. I adhered the tape diagonally (I cheated a bit and used additional adhesive on the back-shh), then layed the ampersand down and cut around with a craft knife. The bonus is that I now have a decorative ampersand for another page/project:
And finally, one more creative and clever idea on how to use washi tape from our very own Jennifer Larson. She went a step further and PRINTED on her washi tape! Genius I tell you!
Jennifer also included some helpful hints for printing on washi:
