Handy Tricks On Scrapbook Mistakes

Every scrapper has been there regardless if you are a beginner or a old-timer. You have  painstakingly worked all day and night just to achieve a perfect layout.  You are proud of your latest creation and excited to show to your family and friends that you are confident that everyone will highly appreciate it with long ooohhhhssssss and aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhssssssss.   And then what happens?  There's a wrong spelling!!!!! What's a scrapper to do? Here are a few of  favorite tried-and-true quick fixes shared to me by a fellow crafter.

Rub-On Placement Mistakes

  • Use a Q-Tip with a small amount of   Un-Do on the tip to rub just the portion of the rub-on you choose to remove. Allow the area to dry thoroughly before placing a new rub-on in the same spot.
  • Use the tip of an Exacto knife to gently scrape the rub-on off the surface of the paper.  Please be gentle on this.
    Use an adhesive eraser found in many craft stores, to gently rub the rub-on off.  It's the kind of eraser that some fine arts students use all the time.
Incomplete Rub-On Transfer

  • Use a matching gel pen to fill in the missing spots.
  • Place an identical rub-on over the surface and add in the missing areas.
Misplaced Stickers

  • Use Un-Du to remove the sticker. Place the sticker adhesive-side-up to dry. Once the adhesive is dry it will become sticky again.
  • Gently peel the sticker up and use an adhesive eraser to remove any residue. This method typically ruins the sticker, but does not damage the layout.
  • Cover the sticker with a larger sticker.
  • Cover the sticker with a square of coordinating paper. The key is to make it look intentional. Use this new area as a mat for new embellishment.
Misspelled Computer-Generated, Hand-Lettered, or Stamped Journaling

  • Retype, letter, or stamp the misspelled word onto a piece of cardstock in a slightly smaller font size. Cut out and mat with coordinating paper, and place over the spelling mistake. Do this to several other words to make it blend smoothly into the layout.
  • Retype, letter, or stamp an entire sentence onto coordinating paper and adhere over the sentence with the mistake.
Small Tears in Pattern Paper or Cardstock
  • Lightly sand the entire piece of paper for a shabby chic look.
  • Place another element over the tear.
  • Ink the entire paper for an aged effect.
Stray Ink Smudges

  • Lightly ink the entire layout for a distressed look.
  • Lightly sand the surface of the paper to remove the ink. Sand the paper in several other places for continuity.
  • Layer an embellishment over the area.
Mis-Cut Paper

  • Trim the same amount off your paper all around and mat it on a coordinating pattern or color.
  • Cut the paper in half and pair it up with another half of coordinating paper. Mount both halves onto a piece of cardstock to create a new full sheet.
  • Cut the remaining paper into strips. Space the strips evenly across a piece of cardstock or behind a photograph as a photo mat.
Partially Stamped Images

  • Re-ink the stamp. Hold the layout on a light box or sunny window. Line the inked stamp up with the partially stamped image and re-stamp.
  • Use a gel pen to fill in the missing areas. Fill in and outline random portions of the image to make it blend nicely.
  • Re-stamp the image onto a coordinating piece of paper and place over the original image.
Excess Adhesive

  • Use an adhesive eraser to gently rub the excess adhesive off.
  • Use a small amount of Un-Du on a Q-tip to remove the excessglue.
  • Scatter small embellishments over the spots to disguise them. Make sure to scatter the embellishments over the entire layout in order to blend it into the layout.
Scratches on Photographs

  • Lightly sand the surface of the photograph for a distressed look.
  • Place a sticker, rub-on, or embellishment over the scratch.
  • Scan the picture into your computer and then use a program such as Photoshop to remove the defect.
Soiled Photographs

  • Use a soft cotton cloth to gently wipe the surface of the photograph.
  • Use Un-Du adhesive remover on a soft cloth to gently wipe the surface of the photograph. Some have personally had remove permanent marker from a photo.
  • Gently clean the surface using the Un-Do Photo Care Kit

Oftentimes when we make mistakes, we have to drop it and breathe for a few minutes or better yet take a walk around the block to avoid panic mode.  This trick helps me a lot on dealing scarp mistakes =)
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