Washi Wednesday Challenge

My name is Elisa, and I am obsessed with washi-tape.  When I had my triumphant return to paper crafting a few years ago (well, maybe not exactly triumphant, but I did start paper crafting again after a break…), I discovered the hottest trend on the market at that time.  Washi tape!  If you are not aware, washi tape, traditionally from Japan, is a paper tape that is easily removable, repositionable, and absolutely gorgeous.  It comes in more colors and patterns than you could ever imagine, and nearly every paper crafting company has lines of washi tape available on the market now.

I have been collecting washi tape for about 3 years, but truthfully don’t use it nearly as much as I should. (Sound familiar?!?)  Even with planning, Bible journaling, and memory keeping, I barely make a dent in my washi stash each month.  While I love buying it, I don’t always reach for it when I am working on a project.  All that changes this week though, because I am participating in the Washi Wednesday Challenge!

What is the Washi Wednesday Challenge?  Well, the challenge is to create one whole paper crafting project using only washi.  I cheated a bit with the addition of a few alpha stickers, but otherwise decided to use only washi tape to create a layout in my traveler’s notebook to document my twins’ 5th birthday.

I began with lining the edge of the double page spread with two rows of bold washi tape to set the tone for the page.  My pictures were printed in black and white, so I was free to go with whatever color scheme I wanted.  I felt like this array of mostly primary colors fit my boys well.

Then, I set out to create a large “5” that I would be able to use as part of the page title.  Washi tape is fabulous for creating your own custom embellishments.  I began by taking two small pieces of wax paper, overlapping them, and then lining up strips of washi across.  It is important that the washi tape itself overlaps so that any shape you cut out will stay together.  I very loosely drew a “5” across the top of the washi tape and cut it out using precision scissors.  It turned out wonderful!  I added a strip of yellow washi to bring out the yellow in the “5” and added the alphas over top to create the title.

Next, I chose a few different patterns of washi to create layers that I could nestle my photos on top of across the two different pages.  I even added a small washi border to the individual pictures of each of my sons in order to make them pop even more.  Lastly, I grabbed more alpha sticks and did a quick bit of journaling.  I really had the desire to add even more embellishments, but since the challenge was to just stick with washi (and I was on a time crunch anyway…) I decided to leave the page as is.  Truthfully, the bold colors make up for any embellishment that might be lacking.

Do you use washi tape in any of your projects?  What is your favorite way to use it?  Let me know in the comments below!

Keep it creative,

-The Scrappy Wife

Supplies Used:

• Recollections Washi Tape from Michaels
• Alpha stickers from By The Well 4 God