Snippet Rolls for Junk Journals
So many scraps. When I cut and tear papers or fabric for my journals or for other paper projects, I often have little scrapy bits left over. Do I trash them? Of course NOT! I can’t just throw away those little delicious pieces of paper – so I put them in a bin (ok, let’s be honest, I have 3 bins at the moment!) for later projects.
Sometimes I go through these bins to grab just the right piece for a project, but sometimes I really want to use a bunch of them up – to make room for more! And snippet rolls are a perfect project to learn how to use up a big chunk of those scraps.
What are snippets?
Let’s back it up a bit. What is the “snippet” part of the Snippet Roll? Dictionary.com defines a snippet as: a small piece snipped off; a small bit, scrap, or fragment. So that’s where this fun embellishment got it’s name.
So, what’s a snippet roll?
In a nutshell – it’s taking your scraps (snippets), attaching them to a base and creating a long strip that can be rolled up. Easy, right? These little gems don’t have to be rolls, but sometimes once you start, it’s easy to just keep going and you wind up with a loooooong strip. Rolling is the easy way to store them!
While snippet rolls start with a base and your scraps, there’s always more you can add to a snippet roll. You can start with something pretty plain, but dress it up to match a theme or color in your journal. We’ll be talking more about snippet roll “icing” a little bit later!
What makes them useful in junk journals?
Snippet rolls do what most embellishments do…they add color, texture and a whole boat load of interest. And – I think they are great to have on had when putting a junk journal together to easily decorate your pages or even build some matching ephemera to put into your journal.
The parts of a Snippet Roll
There’s just a few parts of a snippet roll – and while there’s only a few parts – they come together to make a wonderfully unique focal point to any journal.
- The base – this is the part of the snippet roll that holds it all together. You use a base to attach those lovely paper or fabric scraps to. Bases can be made from just about anything. Most of the time your base is covered, so you really can choose anything. The only rule is it has to be strong enough to hold your glue or sewing on top. I’ve used old book pages, scrap paper, packing tape, magazine pages, calculator tapes, scrap fabric, ribbon and even junk mail. Take one look around your house and I’d be willing to bet you have a snippet roll base!
- The scrap top – Here’s the layer where you use as many scraps as possible! Grab those scrap bins and go crazy. And this doesn’t just have to be paper, you can incorporate fabric, ribbon, and other scraps you might have left over from other projects.
- The icing – now this is the layer where it gets fun! Often I’ll just start a snippet roll with the first 2 layers above and then add more to them when I’m working on a specific project. So the icing helps your snippet roll match your journal theme or incorporate colors you’d like to have in your journal. What are some examples of icing? Think: stickers, buttons, slow stitching, pendants, wooden accents, beads and fussy cuts. If you’re like me, you are probably already collecting a lot of these things!
How do you make them?
If you are new to junk journaling and looking for an easy project to start with – this is it. They are really simple to make, and also addictive, so there, I’ve warned you. I have an entire video where I show you step-by-step how to make a snippet roll (see that below), but I’ll run down the basics here.
- Start by collecting your materials. Base materials (see the parts of a snippet roll above) and your scrap bins. I also like to start with a stick glue to tack everything down.
- If you need to create a long strip for your base – do that first. For example, if you are using old book pages, you will need to cut them into strips and then attach them end to end. If you are using a roll of something (calculator tape, for example), you just need to start unrolling it!
- Now grab those scraps and start gluing them down! You might need to tear your scrap paper into smaller scraps so they’ll fit on your base, but it’s not always necessary. Try incorporating different colors or different types of paper at different intervals to create a pattern. You can also glue things down in one direction – or haphazardly – they both make a great base, and you can use the same papers and just gluing them down differently will give you an entirely different feel.
- Once you’re happy with this first layer, you can sew it to really make sure everything is attached. If you don’t want to sew – no problem! Just be sure to use a good adhesive to be sure nothing will start to peel or fall off. Sew in straight lines or just weave back and forth across the stop being sure to catch all your snippets and then the first layer is done!
- You can start using your snippet roll like this – or you can roll it up and save it for your next journal. Either way, you’ll probably want to add some icing!
- Add your icing! You can really get creative here. If you’ve already decided what journal you plan to use some of your snippet roll in, I suggest cutting the roll to size before adding your icing, so you don’t have to cut through something – like a button!
Icing examples…
Not sure what to add to your snippet rolls? Here are some theme examples to get you going:
- Boho theme- add sequins, colorful beads, sari silks and pieces of decorative jacquard ribbon.
- Travel theme: add postage stamps, tickets, and pendants (suitcases, trains, airplanes)
- Botanical theme: green fabric scraps, decorative leaf buttons and some small botanical book plates.
- Butterfly theme: butterfly dangles, stickers or fussy cuts.
I hope this helps you get some ideas!
Be sure to check out my video below to see how to make these fun embellishments step by step! And remember this is a great project to do anywhere. Just grab a bin with your base and scrap top supplies, and you can just open it up and start creating!
Also – I have a freebie for making a stationer themed snippet roll – along with a video that shows you how I put together this fabric and paper snippet roll that I mention in the video. You can get the freebie here.
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