I recently wrote a blog post for Alison Day Designs with my top 10 ways to bash your scrapbooking stash. The funny thing is… I didn’t even THINK of selling my supplies.  (Maybe I AM a hoarder!)
Thankfully, to bring you the rest of the story on what you can do with those scrappy supplies my friend Dawn Stegall agreed to share her 12 ways to clear out your stash.

Add this to Pinterest! Don’t miss the pinable image at the end of this post!

EDIT: In this fast-paced world of the internet things are constantly changing. This post has been updated to reflect that.

Let’s meet Dawn…

Dawn Stegall 

Hello my name is Dawn Stegall and I’m a stamper, scrapbooker, and busy mom of four girls. I also previously owned a Christian scrapbooking site. After 8 years I decided to let the blog and store go and change my business to be more of a ministry. However, I was left with two questions. One, what do I do now? Two, what about all that stuff in my basement?

While there are several avenues for selling your excess scrapbooking supplies, I couldn’t find the “perfect” solution for me.  In the meantime, I continued to look for a new business venture to pursue. Between my research and the need to find a good place online to sell my excess inventory (not to mention I love a good bargain) I stumbled upon an answer.

Why not start a site just for buying and selling rubberstamping and scrapbooking supplies?

And so StampScrapSold was born! ***edit: This site no longer exists, I wish Dawn all the best with her new endeavours.

While the main focus is bringing buyers and sellers together, I will also be sharing rubberstamping/scrapbooking resources including: articles, videos, product reviews and more as I stumble across something fun worth sharing.

12 Ways to Clear Out Your Stash of Scrapbooking Supplies

Do you have too many scrapbooking supplies? Perhaps you can relate to one of the following situations with your scrapbooking supplies:

• Simply purchased too much
• Your style/taste has changed over the years
• You used to be in business and have excess inventory
• You just aren’t interesting in scrapbooking anymore (gasp)

If any of the above sound like you, then here are twelve ways to clear out your overflowing stash of scrapbooking supplies. You can either give them away or sell them. First, let’s cover GIVING your supplies away.

1. RAK

You could always put together a small package and RAK a fellow scrapbooker. RAK stands for Random Act of Kindness. Similarly, if you regularly get together with other scrapbookers, let them look through your unwanted stash.

2. Secret Sister Swap

There are several secret sister swaps or something similar around the internet. Perhaps you could send something as part of their monthly package. Of course you don’t just want to unload your unwanted items, but if there is something that fall into their likes, why not?

3. Donate

You can always donate to a shelter, schools, hospitals, girl scouts, etc.

4. Your kids

And finally, let your kids create their own scrapbooks. I enjoy it when my girls scrap with me, but honestly sometimes I don’t want them using my “good” stuff. Now they can create right along side of you.

Now let’s discuss ways to SELL your unwanted or unneeded scrapbooking supplies.

5. Ebay

Ebay is a popular choice for selling excess of anything. One downside is the cost of listing fees. Add to that the cost to relist if your item doesn’t sell and it can add up. However, they now have 50 free listings per month. Keep in mind if you have to relist and if you do 7 day auctions, you can list 12 items throughout the month. Another downside is having to wait for the auction to end. The upside is Ebay’s popularity. Most people think of Ebay first when wanting to buy and sell.

6. Etsy

Etsy is a place for buying and selling hand crafted items. They also allow the selling of craft supplies. There is a small listing fee of .20 good for four months and a final value fee as well.  You still need to drive traffic to your listing as yours could get lost quickly in all the listings.

7. Craigslist

Craigslist is great because it is free and you don’t have to deal with shipping (most of the time). However, you are limited to your local area. I’m also not sure what kind of exposure your ad will get.

8. Garage sale

You can always have a garage sale and sell your unwanted items. The downside is you probably won’t get what they are worth. Garage sales tend to price pretty cheap. If you are more interested in getting rid of the supplies, then this is a good option.

9. Facebook/Yahoo groups

There are several groups on the internet more specifically on Facebook and Yahoo created just for selling scrapbooking supplies. I personally found it difficult to keep up with Facebook. If there are several ads, yours can get lost quickly and possibly not even seen. The upside is it is free and targeted.

10. Forums

Some forums allow you to post ads or have special forums just for buying and selling. Two that come to mind are Two Peas in a Bucket and Split Coast Stampers. Be sure to read the rules before posting. The downside is your ad being seen by many buyers. The upside is it is free and targeted.

11. Local scrapbook stores

Many local scrapbooking stores hold sidewalk sales or something similar a couple times a year. Check with your local store and ask if they have anything. Most pay in store credit. If you are looking to get rid of the old to make room for the new, this would be a great situation for you. However, if you are no longer interested in scrapbooking, this wouldn’t be a good option.

12. Stamp Scrap Sold ***edit: this site no longer exists

StampScrapSold is a website just for buying and selling rubberstamping and scrapbooking supplies. As a seller, you can list free as many items as you would like. There are social media icons to easily promote your listing throughout your networks. StampScrapSold even promotes for you throughout their social media network.

I hope these 12 ideas will get your juices flowing and come up with a way to clear out your stash. Whether you decide to sell or give away your items, the extra space from clearing out will not only give you more room but energy to be creative!

Dawn

Pin Me!

Dawn created a great info-graphic to help remember the various ways to deal with our scrapbook supplies. Feel free to Pin this on your scrapbooking Pinterest board!

Thank you Dawn for sharing your wonderful stash busting tips.  I know exactly what she means when she says that clearing out some extra space doesn’t just give you space but the energy to be creative! I hope you will check out StampScrapSold to find some inspiring new scrapbooking treasures or to list the ones you are ready to part with.

Don’t forget to check out my guest post at AlisonDayDesigns.com/10-ways-to-bust-your-stash/

Now that you have cleared out your stash of scrapbooking supplies it’s time to ORGANIZE the supplies you are keeping! Aby Garvey is the co-founder of Simplify 101. She spends her time helping people around the world get organized. If your scrapbooking supplies could use a little organization you’ll want to check out her Organize, Energize class!
Click here to view more details

Don’t forget! For more practical and useful tips to help you create scrapbooks you love join the Scrapbook Wonderland mailing list by filling out the pink and blue box below!

Stash Bash Guest Post!

I have exciting news! I have a guest post over on Alison Day Designs sharing 10 Ways to Bust your Stash! If you have a few goodies but oldies in your scrapbook stash these ideas are for you!

Scrapbook Layout Inspired by a Card Sketch

When I create a beautiful card, I like to think about how I could use that card to inspire a scrapbook layout. If I can use one source of inspiration to make several projects that’s a huge bonus!

Recently I shared a congratulations card and a variation and sketch of this card.

First I showed how you could create a card using a different colour scheme.

When you break the card down into its basic elements you have this basic sketch.

Use a Card Sketch to Design a Layout

With only a few minor adjustments this card sketch can be used to create a layout.

Look at the main elements of the card design. Decide how you can adapt those to a layout. For this sketch I kept these 3  main design features:

1. Embellishments.
2. The rectangle of patterned paper.
3. The strip across the page.

To make the layout work I had to alter the design by:

1. Moving the greeting/title.
2. Adding space for journaling.
3. Adding a few extra embellishments.

Design Elements to Keep

1. Keep the main embellishments in their location. For this sketch the flowers are running down the left side.

2. Find a place to insert your photos. I like the idea of replacing the rectangle of patterned paper with my photos.

3. For the strip across the page I used a few layers of washi tape. Having an element that reaches across the whole page draws your eye across and breaks up the page. (The chevron patterned washi tape is especially great for drawing your eye across the page!)

Alter the Design

1. Check the location of the title. Will it still work now that you have placed your photos? If my title was a single word it would have fit nicely in between the two photos, but with two words I shifted one above and one below the photos.

2. One of the most important things on a scrapbook page is the journaling. (Do you disagree? Read THIS post!) I like to keep the journaling as a part of the design process. By planning for journaling you are more likely to include it.  On this page I planned for the journaling to be a part of the floral embellishment along the side of the layout.

3. With a 12×12 scrapbook page I had much more space for embellishment than I would with a card. Although I could have kept the floral embellishment solely along the left hand side I added a few more flowers and some wood veneer caption bubbles along the right side.

I hope this will help you take a card design that you love and create a stunning scrapbook layout. Don’t forget to pop over to Alison Day Designs to see the guest post I shared with 10 Ways to Bust your Stash!

Click the photo to comment on Facebook!

I’d love to scrapbook but…

I’ve heard this phrase so many times! Let’s get rid of the ‘but’ and find ways to conquer those pesky reasons that make you avoid scrapbooking!

Lets tackle the three main battlegrounds to so you can start LOVING scrapbooking again!

A. I don’t have enough time

The complaint I hear the most is that people don’t have enough time.

I’ve addressed this in great detail in the post: 10 ways to fit more scrapbooking into your busy life.

Some of the highlights are:

1. Make scrapbooking a priority. If you have time for tv you have time to scrap.

2. Schedule a time to scrap. It is much easier to accomplish anything we make time for. Carve out small segments of time just for your scrapbooking.

3.Keep it handy. If your scrapbooking supplies are buried and hard to access you won’t scrapbook.  Find a way to make your supplies accessible.

For more ways to fit scrapbooking into your busy life read THIS blog post!

B. I’m not creative enough

Scrapbooking doesn’t have to be a crafting competition! Scrapbooking is to record your stories and join them with your photos. If you’ve been distracted by all the pretty, shiny, embellishments I can’t blame you, but that is not truly what scrapbooking is about! Read THIS blog post to remember what scrapbooking is really all about!

C. Scrapbooking is too expensive

Scrapbooking CAN be an expensive hobby, that doesn’t mean it HAS to be! Scrapbooking, even very crafty and artistic scrapbooking, can be achieved with very few resources.  I blogged about the essentials of scrapbooking in my post about what to pack to a crop. “But, I’m not going to a crop!” You say. That’s okay, you need the same basic supplies to scrapbook at home too!  Get the list of essentials HERE.

D. What’s stopping YOU?

I’d love to hear your pain point on why you would love to scrapbook, but…  Come on over to the Scrapbook Wonderland Facebook Page and share your biggest scrapbooking complaint!

I really hope that you will be inspired to start sharing your stories in your scrapbooks!

Happy scrappin!

Don’t you love it when you have a great idea? The best thing to do now is to USE IT AGAIN!

Design Tip!

Make your scrapbooking easier by scraplifting from your own great ideas!

In a recent post I shared a classic and elegant, but super simple wedding congratulations card. (See the post HERE.)

Classic and Elegant Wedding Congratulations Card

I mentioned that it would be easy to customize this card to add some colour. Since it was so quick and easy, I made one with some red!

Black, White, and Red Wedding Congratulations Card

Sketches are super handy for creating. By looking at the basic elements of the card it is easy to see how it can be adapted to a different style or used for a different purpose.

This sketch works for a variety of greeting cards. Try it for:

• Thank You cards
• Birthday cards
• Thinking of You cards
• Sympathy cards
• Friendship cards
• Invitation cards
• Christmas cards
• Graduation cards
• New baby cards
• Retirement cards

Get creative!  The flowers can easily be replaced by clusters of other items. Instead of flowers try one of these:

• Gears
• Circles
• Buttons
• Decorative brads
• Poinsettias
• Graduation caps
• Geometric shapes
• Happy faces
• Leaves
• Baby rattles
• Race Cars
• Princess crowns and tiaras
• Monsters
• Butterflies

I’d love to hear how you would use this sketch to make a card! Leave a comment to share your variation!