Two weeks, two blog posts, two math references- are you frightened yet?

Happy Thursday! Tgmousechick Kim here with today’s Hybrid feature! Hybrid scrappers belong to that odd overlap in the Venn Diagram in the scrapbooking world. The overlap of the two circles, digital and paper, is met with myths on both sides. Therefore, for today’s Hybridology 101 post, I’m going to don my beret and do some mythbusting!

Myth #1: I need lots of tools to do hybrid

Sure there are lots of tools that are fun to have, but the list of must-have tools is fairly short.

-Paper trimmer- to make long straight cuts through paper or photos

-Scissors- to trim printed embellishments

-Adhesive- to stick it all down

-Printer- to put all of your digital images on paper

Don’t tell my husband, but that’s really all you need to get started. If you decide you like hybrid and plan to do more with it, you can always add more fun tools gradually as your budget permits.

Myth #2a: I need a wide format printer to do hybrid

There’s selling you the rosy side of hybrid, and then there’s lying, and I’m not going to do the latter. Does a wide format printer make hybrid more fun and flexible? Oh, yes it does! However, $500USD is not a small investment, particularly if you’re not sure you’re going to take to something new. A wide format printer is a luxury item for hybrid scrapping. It’s really more important that you have a good printer that prints sharp, vivid images, and there are plenty of those on the market these days in a much more affordable price range. Truth be told, even though I have wide format printer (and I will sing the praises of my Epson R1800), I still print about 85% of my projects on standard letter-sized paper (close to A4 size). I save my wide format paper for printing 12×12 layouts to add to my albums and my altered lunchbox projects, where the longer paper helps to wrap the box with fewer noticeable seams. Cards, tags, smaller digital printables, most of my photos- mostly printed on various types of letter sized paper.

Myth #2b: Printing for hybrid guzzles ink

If you take a little bit of time to get to know your printer settings, it’s likely you can get a lot more economy out of your ink cartridges. A couple of months ago, I was printing some large format microscopy pictures for my lab, using my ink jet paper and the highest quality (Best Photo) setting, and yes, it was going through a fair amount of ink. I was getting 10-12 13″x19″ prints from a $15 ink cartridge- great quality images, but that was a lot of ink to be reimbursed for. On a whim, I ran a test print using the medium quality (Text and Images) setting. Guess what? Still great quality images (I don’t know if you could tell them apart side by side), and I could get more than 20 printouts from a new cartridge. This held true for the digital pages I printed out.

It’s also worth paying attention to your paper settings when you print. Many printers default to “Plain Paper,” which is fine for printing text documents, but can lead to disappointing results. I discovered this one afternoon when I was working on a card project. I printed out a copy of my layout, but forgot to change the paper type from Plain to Heavyweight Matte Presentation Paper (which was what I was printing on). The result was a little muddy, but it was still presentable, so I continued and assembled my card. I showed it to my husband, who asked me if I was going to “ruin it” by adding a flower embellishment? To satisfy my art critic, I went back and printed a second card layout, this time taking the extra second or two to select the right paper. The marked improvement in print quality was staggering, enough to forever convert me to paying better attention to my paper settings. Seeing is believing!

The card on the left was printed with paper settings to match the paper, the right is using the “Plain Paper” setting- can you tell the difference?

The other solution to cover both myths #2a and #2b is to only print select pieces of your hybrid projects. Consider this hybrid layout I made, using a sketch from Sya’s Blueprint (from her November grab bag), and combining kits from 2 SM designers: Sya’s Blueprints (It’s a Girl’s World) and Scrap It by Briana Cox (Flutter by Me):

(Click to the gallery for credits)

All of the digital pieces were printed using the letter-sized paper format: the photos, the paper strips of the template, and the accompanying tag. I bypassed the need for my wide format paper by using my cardstock stash as the main background paper. Here’s my my print layouts look like:

Myth #3: I need lots of specialized traditional supplies for hybrid

Because scrapbooking has become a mainstream hobby, supplies are available in a number of unexpected places- all-purpose stores like Target and Walmart, the office supply store, and the craft store. Products that were once exclusive to the local scrapbook store are now available to a wider audience. I have a number of fun embellishments, but time and again, I most commonly use the same small cluster of crafting staples: ribbon, brads, and glitter. These can be found almost universally. Acrylic paint and buttons can also be found almost anywhere.

Also take into account that scrappers are a creative bunch, and almost anything these days can become an embellishment to add real-life dimension. Silk flowers, paper clips, and bottle caps have all be incorporated into pages and projects. If you truly are rural enough to not have easy access to a craft aisle or store, digital embellishments can always be printed out and trimmed to add to a project. My page includes basic embellishments- ribbon, brads, a button, and glitter. The rub-ons are a little more exotic, but can still be found in many mainstream craft stores.

Myth #4: I need a die cut machine, but I just can’t afford one

Die cut machines, whether they are the traditional press or rolling variety like the Ellison or Accucut, or an electronic version like a Cricut or a Wishblade/Silhouette/RoboCraft, are a great resource for hybrid scrappers. Shapes and alphabets can be cut out of printed digital paper, as well as a wide assortment of envelopes, cards, and boxes. While it’s certainly most convenient to have one at home, you may have access to resources you didn’t know you had. Many of the local scrapbook stores in Columbus have die cut machines. However, did you know that your local library or school district may have one as well? The main branch of the Columbus Metropolitan Library has an expansive die cut collection in the Children’s section. Many school districts also have them as a teacher resource for displays and bulletin boards.

I also know of several electronic die cutters that are part of “shared custody” agreements within the scrapping sisterhood/brotherhood. Some companies may also have crafting clubs that may have die cutter access. Sometimes it pays to call around.

Hopefully, I’ve managed to bust some of the lingering myths about hybrid scrapping. There’s no rule that says you need to start with a large project. Definitely start small- a set of cards, a mini album of a recent trip or event, a couple of gift bags for the holidays. Playing with paper can be fun! Just ignore the inky fingers and small paper cuts!

Happy Scrapping!