Card making and scrapbooking has come a long way from even 5 years ago. There are new and fun embellishments, creative techniques, but a stitch or two on a scrapbook page marries the nostalgic with the modern.

Stitching adds a softness and almost a warmth to your cards or pages. It lets the recipient of your card know that you took the time to add a special touch to the card.

I think one of my favorite reasons to sew on my project is the savings. It is such an inexpensive embellishment to add to your scrapping. With very basic tools you can add texture, dimension and interest. You can use a machine to stitch, or a simple thread or floss and a needle. They now make some fun and very different threads. Anything from rayon, to a metallic thread with many different colors and textures.

For machine sewing, make sure you use a leather or denim needle for card stock. This way you can sew through not just one piece of card stock, but you can actually sew through layers. The needle actually "cuts" or "pierces" the paper. You can also sew a piece of fabric to your card stock for a fresh look. I would also suggest that you practice your sewing on scrap card stock before you sew on your scrap book page. Remember that short stitches tend to weaken your card stock with all of the perforations, and your card or page could tear.

Don't worry that your lines are straight. A little off centering can add some whimsy and a home made effect. Some of my fellow scrapbookers are a bit more careful, though, and they use a light pencil line to follow. Zig Zag stitches and some of the decorator stitches can really add a special touch to your projects. Just make sure you use a bigger stitch setting.

Hand sewing is just as exciting. You get the primitive, home-spun feel with these. I use embroidery floss the most, but you can stitch with pearl cotton, rayon floss, metallic threads and even dental floss, jute and raffia. Use your imagination. You can stitch elaborate designs, starting with a sketched design, or you can use simple straight, large stitches to stitch a torn heart on your paper, to stitch around the edges of a large flower, or stitch a word onto your scrap book page. You can also stitch around the border of a card, or around a picture to make a great border.

Here are some fun ideas to add stitching to your projects. You can Dampen and crumple your paper, flatten and dry, then stitch. This adds to the vintage feel of the card or page, and almost gives an "old quilt" feel. You can also create a pocket by stitching a piece of patterned paper or card stock or even some denim to your card. You can use a dry emboss template to trace a pattern onto your paper, then you can stitch this pattern into your piece.

The stitching ideas are endless. All you need is a good imagination and a sewing machine or a needle and thread.