Use Your Stash: Challenge #3 Leftover Die Cuts

When I spread my scrap stash out over my desk, I noticed I’d accumulated small piles of leftover die-cut shapes. You cut a few extra “just in case,” set them aside for later… and before long there’s a little stack of shapes that never quite made it onto a finished project.

For the third challenge in my Use Your Stash – Season 1: Paper Scraps Edition, I decided to focus on some of these pieces. Instead of treating those leftover shapes as scraps, I turned them into a repeated die-cut background.

I reached for a group of blue circles that had already been cut and placed them inside the Tin Tile embossing folder, running them through the Big Shot to give them this lovely pattern.

I suspect the particular shade of blue was actually from a recycled manila folder rather than a Stampin’ Up! colour, so I couldn’t do an exact match with the background panel I adhered them to. After testing a few blues from my collection as substitutes, I settled on Pacific Point.

Because the colour was quite bold — and I had a sympathy theme in mind — I decided to keep the overall design simple.

When I sat down to film the tutorial, I decided to explore a sea-inspired variation. The blues already lent themselves beautifully to an ocean palette.

I kept the same layout and colours, but switched the embossing folder to Swirls and Curls. The white leafy element became a die-cut net from the Under the Sea framelits, and the orange florals were replaced with a tiny school of fish.

Those small changes shifted the mood of the card, turning the repeated shapes into something a little more playful and thematic.

You can see the design choices and craft along with me in the full video tutorial below.

While filming this challenge, another idea emerged.

I still had the Under the Sea framelits on my desk, and a sand dollar shape caught my eye. With a stack of light blue leftover circles sitting in front of me, it felt like the perfect opportunity to create one more variation.

For this version I used the Sand Dollar die to cut the shapes and leaned into a beach-inspired theme.

The lighter palette and delicate shapes gave the card a completely different feeling, even though the underlying idea remained the same. Because the repeated background already added plenty of visual interest, I kept the sentiment banner simple with a few stamped details.

It’s a good reminder that a single layout can evolve in very different directions depending on the supplies you choose.

Starting with a simple goal — use up die-cut circles — led to three very different cards: a soft sympathy design and two sea-inspired variations.

Using your stash well isn’t just about finishing leftover pieces. It’s about looking at what you already have and asking:What design could this become?

If you’d like to see the full process and how each version came together, you can watch the tutorial below.

If you enjoy stash-busting ideas like this, you can find the other projects in the Use Your Stash – Paper Scraps Edition series HERE.