Use Your Stash #6 Make Woven Paper Backgrounds with Scraps

Paper weaving is a creative way to use paper scraps and turn them into textured card backgrounds. In this tutorial, I’m sharing how to create a woven paper design using leftover cardstock and patterned paper, along with two handmade card ideas using this technique.

Finding Inspiration for Paper Weaving

For this next challenge in my Use Your Stash – Paper Scraps Edition, I found myself revisiting a technique I’d played with years ago.

Back in early 2021, I shared a project with The Crafty Carrot Co where I wove uniform strips of soft blues, pinks, and white to create a simple, textured background. It was neat, controlled, and very much within my comfort zone.

Recently, while flipping through an old Stampin’ Up! magazine, I came across a woven sample that felt completely different — brighter, busier, and far more playful. The strips varied in size, the colours were bold and mixed, and the overall look felt like the perfect fit for a scraps challenge.

I’ll admit, I wasn’t entirely sure I could pull it off.

So before filming, I had a quiet play.

Choosing Colours from Your Scraps

I started with a single multi-coloured floral paper — filled with pinks, peaches, and soft oranges — and pulled in coordinating tone-on-tone patterns and cardstock scraps. I even added a deeper Concord Crush purple for contrast. Using the same approach I’ve leaned on throughout this series, I let that one piece guide the rest of my colour choices.

And to my surprise… I loved how it came together!

Designing Around a Busy Background

For the card design, I chose a scalloped rectangle from the Stitched So Sweetly dies to create a central panel. This allowed the woven background to frame the design without overwhelming it — adding texture and interest while still letting the focal point shine.

I reached for a unicorn stamp I hadn’t used before, which felt like a perfect nod to the “use your stash” theme. Keeping the colouring soft and minimal — mostly white, with subtle touches of colour in the mane and tail — helped balance the busier background beautifully.

Paper Weaving Card Variations

In the video tutorial, I share the full weaving process along with a second variation. While the colours, image, and orientation change, the formula stays the same: one multi-coloured paper to guide your palette, supported by coordinating scraps, and a lightly coloured focal image to bring it all together.

This time, I used a playful chicken from the Hey Birthday Chick stamp set — proof that this technique can be adapted to suit any style.

Watch the Full Tutorial

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

Explore more scrap cardmaking ideas

If you enjoy stash-busting ideas like this, you can explore the rest of the Use Your Stash – Paper Scraps Edition series [here].