* Sharpen punches by punching through aluminum foil several times. Lubricate by using waxed paper.
* Corner punches can be used like a regular punch. Most come with plastic corner guides that are removable. Simply pop out the corner guides using a flat, blunt instrument such as a butternife. Gently slide in the tool where the paper goes until you reach the back, then push it to one side to pop out the guide. Repeat for other side. The guides can be easily reinserted.
* Draw circles using your EK Success Circle Cutter. Just insert a pencil tip instead of the cutting blade. The EK Success Circle Cutter makes 125 differently sized circles.
* Make your own embossed paper with your scrapbooking templates! Using a light source such as a light box or window, place your template design under the paper you have chosen and trace around the edges using an embossing tool (aka stylus). You can pick up an embossing tool for a few bucks or use the end of a knitting needle or anything else with a small, round, blunt tip. You can make your designs anywhere you want, the designs and colors are endless (unlike buying embossed papers), it's cheaper, and they look really nice!!
* I store my punchies in film canisters, with one taped to the lid so I can see what's inside at a glance. I keep the canisters organized in a spice rack I got for 75 cents at a yard sale.
* I use a napkin or piece of fabric to wipe fingerprints off photos. It's also great for sliding your fingers over pictures, die-cuts and such when adhering them to your pages for good contact.
* I organize my scrapbooking papers in hanging files. I sort my patterned papers by theme, such as Christmas, birthday, etc. I sort my solid paper by color. You don't need to separate each shade, just generalize. I have pinks, reds, oranges (this includes peaches), yellows, greens, aquas/teals (since it was hard to decide blue or green), blues, purples, browns, black and greys, and white and creams.
* Organize stickers and die-cuts in trading-card collector sleeves.
* Another tip for organizing stickers and die-cuts: use the 4 by 6 brag books that you get with your developed pictures. These are great for throwing into your travel box.
* For traveling scrappers: use a portable file box with a handle you can get at Wal-Mart for about $10, and some even have extra storage space on top for very small items. Use hanging files for papers and pictures.
* Make borders ahead of time and organize in page protectors. This is great for when you see a border you really like, but not ready to make a page.