One Paper Pumpkin Kit, Three Ways to Create
Hello!
I really enjoy opening a new Paper Pumpkin kit.
Before I do anything else, I look at the stamp set and the ink spot. Then I turn the instruction sheet over and check out the coordinating colours.
That’s it.
I don’t start by looking through my entire craft room for something to add. I don’t pull out every colour of cardstock or every embellishment I own. I simply start with what is right in front of me.
And I’ve discovered that this little bit of focus makes a big difference.
Starting with the stamps and colours, I’m part of a design group where we challenge ourselves to create a card featuring the stamp set from the month’s Paper Pumpkin kit.
I love this challenge because it gives me a starting point.
I have my stamps.
I have my coordinating colours.
Now I just need to create.
Instead of being distracted by all the possibilities sitting on my shelves, I can focus on the small collection of supplies in front of me. I can play with the images, try different layouts, and see what I can come up with using those colours.
I was currently working with the beautiful Autumn Opulence paper for a card class, and since it had similar coordinating colours, it was easy to bring it into this card.
It’s a great reminder that creativity doesn’t require endless choices.
Sometimes fewer choices actually make it easier to create.
Once I’ve finished my design-group card, I turn my attention back to the kit itself.
Now I have another challenge:
What can I create using the supplies that came in the kit?
This is where I start looking at the pieces a little differently. (I love using the printed envelopes for extra pretty paper!)
Maybe I use the same stamp set in a different way. Maybe I change the layout. Maybe the layout I used on my first card becomes the starting point for the second.
I’m not trying to make the original project better. I’m simply using what I have and seeing where it takes me. And that’s exactly what I love about Choose It AND Use It.
Choose the supplies. Use the supplies. See what happens.
And Then… Go a Little Further
For my final project, I decided to take the design one step further and create a slimline card for an Instagram Hop challenge.
A slimline card is such a fun way to change up a familiar design. The longer canvas gives me more room to play with the stamps and arrange the elements differently.
And once again, I didn’t need a whole new collection of supplies.
I already had everything I needed in the kit.
Three cards. One stamp set. One colour palette. One small collection of supplies. And three opportunities to create something a little different.
One of the things I appreciate most about working with a Paper Pumpkin kit is that it gives me boundaries.
When I walk into my craft room and see all the stamps, Designer Series Paper, cardstock, embellishments and tools I could possibly use, it can be easy to get distracted.
What colour should I use? Which Designer Series Paper would work? Maybe I should use those embellishments…
And suddenly I’m spending more time choosing than creating.
A kit gives me a starting point. It lets me say, “These are the supplies I’m choosing today.”
Then I can stop looking at everything else and simply make something.
And sometimes that’s exactly what I need.
Choose It AND Use It.
Not perfectly.
Not with a plan to use every single piece immediately.
Just choose a few supplies, start creating, and see where they take you.
That’s where the fun begins.
Keep Creating,
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