Something old, something new!

Who has a craft room that has more product than your local scrapbook store? I'm not saying that I do, but sometimes I wonder when I'm ever going to use everything I have purchased over the years? So that's why I think it's important to really use what we have in the most efficient way possible... to get the most out of our 'stash'. Mixing and matching is a perfect way to use up product that has been left from a previous collection(s) and add it to a new collection so we still feel as though we are playing with new supplies.

Doodlebug have a base palette of 12 colours with which they create all their collections so everything from one range of product to the next will match perfectly. Every now and again an extra colour or two are added to a certain range but never fear, it is always perfectly in sync with the rest of the line so you never have to worry about colour clashing. That's why you can grab those old papers you've been holding onto and marry them with your latest purchase and they will always blend to perfection. And to give you an example... this layout was created using product from the Spring, Summer, Autumn, Valentine's and Easter collections.

One of the easiest designs to create using Doodlebug products are... of course... rainbows! This particular rainbow was very simple to make and it was done without using an electronic cutting machine so a perfect design for those of you who still like to do things by hand. I dusted off my old Martha Stewart circle cutting tool and cut six circles in varying sizes from the Petite Prints - Swiss Dot papers.

I didn't bother going all the way around as it was easier to just do one sweep with the cutting tool rather than having to stop half way and change hands. I will the be the first to admit I never get that right and always end up with a rather odd shaped circle.

Once I had positioned my rainbow pieces in their correct order I laid a ruler over the half way mark and cut through each piece to give a straight line at the bottom. However, this takes a bit of effort as you need to hold the ruler down firmly so the pieces don't slip. An easier way to do this would be to draw a line across your pieces and then cut using a pair of scissors.

When assembling the rainbow onto my layout I started with the outermost piece first so that I could position it exactly where I wanted it to sit. If you start from the smallest piece you may find that your rainbow is sitting further to one side than the other or perhaps too close to the top of your paper.

And now for the fun stuff... adding the embellishments!

I simply layered my pieces using foam pop dots to create a fun and colourful landscape for my photos. Now I wonder if you can pick all the different collections I've used?