Scrapbooking Paper Punches – Giving Your Scrapbook a Little Punch-Two!

Use scrapbooking paper punches to liven up the embellishment background of your scrapbook pages and albums. Ever thought about what kind of papers you should use, what basic technique was involved, and positioning? Learn how to use a scrapbooking punch in a creative manner by moving your scrapbooking punches, layering cutout shapes, reshaping cutout shapes and using the correct punch for the right scrapbooking project.

The principle behind the use of scrapbooking paper punches is the same as with the classic office hole punch, where a metal cutter punches out a paper shape in a single action. The scrapbooking paper punch can come in a wide range of sizes and just a basic tool kit might include motif punches, square punches, regular hole punches, a corner punch and a border punch.

Choosing your Scrapbooking Paper for Paper Punching

The scrapbooking paper punch is generally made of metal and can cope with heavy paper but not cardstock. Thin paper and handmade paper may not cut cleanly with a scrapbooking punch. If you wish to punch vellum, place a thin sheet of paper under the vellum and punch together. Scrapbooking paper punches are a great way of using up miscellaneous scraps of paper that we all acquire and with which we cringe to let go.

Scrapbooking paper punches are popular because they are a quick way of making basic, identical shapes, but this is only one easy application. By using different scrapbook papers, and combining it with other paper crafts, the versatility and creative potential of scrapbook punching will become clear.

Basic Scrapbooking Punches

Slide the paper into the scrapbooking paper punch and place on a hard surface. Apply firm downward pressure to the punch using your fingers on the palm of your hand. Don’t just discard the shape that is punched out of the paper. This cutout can also be used. For instance, the cutout may be used to embellish a design or be the main feature of a card.

Positioning the Scrapbooking Paper Punch

By placing your scrapbooking paper punch upside down, you are able to position your paper exactly in the punch. Some punches have removable plastic covers on the bottom to catch punched pieces. Remove this to see where you are placing the paper.

Watch the video below to learn about one set of scrapbooking paper punches as well as how to care for them.

Creating with Punches

A single scrapbooking paper punch can be applied in several ways, making the punching tool very versatile and a great value for your money. The cutout shapes from the punched design can also be changed to create different effects. Experiment with these further techniques on scrap paper to see how much more you can get out of your punches you have on hand.

Moving Punches

You can punch a rectangular shape using square scrapbooking paper punches simply by punching once, then moving the punch along and punching again. Make sure that there is a slight overlap and that the edges line up exactly. The punch could be moved along several times to create an elongated shape.

Layering Cutout Shapes

Using two sizes of a heart scrapbooking paper punch, you can layer different colors on top of each other for a remarkable effect. Punch one large heart in one color, then punch a smaller heart in a complementary color.

Glue the smaller heart cutout on top of a larger heart. You can also layer squares the same way. Use any shapes you desire to do this. You can also choose to use different shapes for the layering effect. For instance, layer a swirl on top of a square.

Reshaping Cutout Shapes

The cutout shapes can be cut or trimmed to make a new shape. As an example, small square cutouts can be cut in half to make triangles. This is a quick way to make lots of triangles exactly the same way without having to measure each one out. The same idea can be used with a heart scrapbooking paper punch. Cut the heart shape in half and you have petals.

Using the Correct Type of Scrapbooking Paper Punches

Not all scrapbooking paper punches can be used for these craft techniques. For instance, you can’t use border or corner scrapbooking punches for reshaping. However, you could the cutout pieces from these scrapbooking punches for layering.

Of course, if you own a crop-a-dile tool, then you have an 8-1 tool which among other things, allows you to punch through objects. This can be very economical these days.

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