How to Use Bazzill in Stitch'z Templates: Stitch on Scrapbook Pages

One of the latest trends in scrapbooking is stitching or sewing on your pages. This gives your page a homemade touch, adds a new media and gives your pages additional dimension. Some scrapbookers haul out the sewing machine to stitch on their pages, while others do hand-stitch. Hauling out the sewing machine is kind of a pain (especially if you have it in a storage closet or basement) and just adds to the clutter in your scrapbook area. Or, if you're like me, you might not know how to use a sewing machine!

Bazzill In Stitch'z templates give sewing-challenged scrapbookers and cardmakers an easy way to add stitching to their layouts without lugging out the sewing machine! These templates are made of transparent plastic with lots of little holes. Dozens of designs are available; from simple circles and squares, to pretty flourishes and flowers, to alphabets. You can find these templates at Archivers, eBay, scrapbooking online stores or your local scrapbook store. Joann's and Michaels DO NOT sell these templates in their stores. Joann's does sell them online.

To use Bazzill In Stitch'z Templates, you will need:

Bazzill In Stitch'z Template

Tape

Paper Piercer

Embroidery floss

Needle

Cardstock

Piercing mat or mousepad

Using Bazzill In Stitch'z Templates Step 1: Place the template over your paper.

Set the paper over the area you'd like to stitch. Secure the template with tape. Don't worry about placing tape over some holes; you'll still be able to punch through them with your paper pierces. Place the piercing mat under the cardstock. I don't own a piercing mat, so I just use the backside of an old mousepad-it works great!

Using Bazzill In Stitch'z Templates Step 2: Pierce the paper

Using your paper piercer, punch the holes in the template by following the design. Make sure your mousepad or piercing mat is underneath your piercing area! If oyu don't have a paper piercer, you can use a needle, but BEWARE! This can really hurt your hands after a while.

Using Bazzill In Stitch'z Templates Step 3: Remove the template.

When finishing punching holes, slowly peel off the tape and remove the template.

Using Bazzill In Stitch'z Templates Step 4: Begin stitching

Select the color of embroidery floss you'd like to use, thread the needle, and start stitching. Begin your design by going from the back to the front. I use either DMC or the cheap Wal-Mart brand, because frankly, this is a scrapbook page-it isn't beautiful cross-stitching or needlework. Bazzill sells embroidery floss in packets that "go" with these templates, but I think they're overpriced. Really, it's JUST embroidery floss. $5 for 3 different colors is ridiculous!

Back-stitching: Some of the more complicated designs require you to backstitch. The alphabets, flourishes, doggie bones, etc will need backstitching, otherwise your designs will come out wonky. To do this, bring the needle up the hole, go back down on the next hole. On the back side, skip the next hole and go up. On the front side, go back down the hole you skip. Continue doing this until your design is finished. Simple squares and circles will not need backstitching. If this confuses you, try searching YouTube for tutorials.

Price: These templates typically sell between $4.99 - $5.99. Joann.com often has them on sale (30%-40% off), or you can use a coupon at Archivers and get a discount that way.

Have fun adding stitching to your scrapbook pages and cards!

References: Personal crafting experience