Four Ways Friday #71 - Repurposing Dryer Sheets!

For this week's Four Ways Friday I wanted to show you four ways to take used dryer sheets and repurpose them for your paper crafting projects!

One way you can repurpose used dryer sheets is to get ink on them!  For this card I just took the dryer sheet and then pressed it onto multiple ink pads from lightest color to darkest color (daffodil delight, pumpkin pie, tangerine tango, and real red).  I let the sheet dry (with a light blast from the heat tool) and then I cut it and adhered it to a piece of Very Vanilla card stock using matte gel medium.  I then used the Pennant Parade stamp set to create the banner pieces and adhered them to the card with glue.  The letters are from the Calendar Alphabet & Numbers stamp set.  The scalloped trim was created with the scallop edge punch.  Finally I added two knotted pieces of Early Espresso ribbon with glue dots.

There are many ways to add color to your dryer sheets!  To create this flower I began by spraying a dryer sheet with ink mixed with water (I place a bit of reinker into small spray bottles with water and then spray away!).  For the larger flower layers I used Tempting Turquoise and Rich Razzleberry.  I allowed the sheets to dry and then die cut them in the Big Shot using the Daisies #2 die!  I layered the flowers and used a bit of glue to hold them together and then adhered them to the card with glue.  I punched the leaves from the 2-step bird punch and added them with glue.  Finally, I adhered a button in the center with a pop-up glue dot.  Here is a close-up of the flower:

The greeting was stamped in Basic Black ink using the Sincere Salutations stamp set.  To add a bit of interest to the bottom of the card I scored three scoring lines with my scoring board.

 

Another way to add color and interest to your dryer sheets is to paint them!  To create this butterfly I began by painting a dryer sheet with a mixture of Champagne Shimmer Mist paint and some water.  I allowed the sheet to dry and then die cut the butterfly in the Big Shot with the Beautiful Butterflies die.  I then used a thin piece of wire that I wrapped around the center of the butterfly to create the antennae and body.  Three adhesive pearls were then added.  Here is a close-up of the butterfly - hopefully you can see the sparkle from the shimmer paint!

The greeting was then stamped using Basic Black ink and the Flight Of The Butterfly stamp set on a Naturals Ivory card base.  The butterfly was attached with glue.

If you are a fan of texture, you'll enjoy this last technique!!!  I began by spraying the dryer sheets with Tempting Turquoise and Elegant Eggplant ink.  I allowed them to dry and then cut them into pieces (triangles and rectangles).  Since your dryer sheets are made from synthetic material, they will melt if heated long enough.  I highly recommend doing this in a well-ventilated room or outdoors and be careful!  I held the dryer sheet pieces down with a wooden skewer and then heated them with the heat tool until they started to scrunch up and melt.  I stopped when I like the look I had achieved.  I then sewed the pieces to a piece of Tempting Turquoise card stock using metallic thread and my sewing machine.  I stamped the greeting onto a Whisper White card base with Basic Black ink using the Fabulous Phrases stamp set.  Finally I added the dryer sheet panel with dimensionals.

I hope you've enjoyed this week's Four Ways Friday and I hope it inspires you to resist throwing your dryer sheets in the garbage and instead repurpose them in your crafting projects!!!!  I hope you have a wonderfully creative weekend!!!!! :)