Scrapbooking

'I Am A Dreamer' Scrapbook Page

on January 24, 2009

I made this scrapbook layout for a challenge that required participants to use pink and orange together, along with incorporating fabric into your design. In honestly this was something new for me, as I don’t think I had ever used pink and orange together before. The colour scheme reminded me of those gastly 60s home decor large print curtains that make you squirm with disgust. The fact that I was so repelled by the color combination made me want to participate even more, as I think it is healthy to push my creative limits. And in fact, I really like the end result.

The process
After pulling out all my pinks and orange patterned papers, I spotted the green argyll print paper from Imaginisce which had both pink diamonds and orange stripes throughout and I decided to use this as the starting point for the layout. As this paper was quite intense in colour, I thought that it would be best to use a white background to compliment the strong bold colours of pink, orange and green, as too much colour would be too overwhelming.

Picking Photos
With a colour theme in mind, I needed to chose a subject for my layout, and to further challenge myself, I wanted to focus on someone who I rarely scrapbook about…me! I’m not sure if it is because I don’t have many photos of me (because I’m usually the one holding the camera) or if it is because it is more difficult to self reflect and expose the thoughts you have about yourself. Either way, my friend Sarah had borrowed me for a photo shoot one day, and I had a selection of professional quality photos that really exposed my true nature as a dreamer – hence, were begging to be scrapped. Subject…check! Colour scheme… check! Next stop – design.

Word Collage
Before long I had assembled the top half of the layout, incorporating some fabric, some word tags by K & Co, some stitching effect rub ons, and the ever essential elements, some ribbon and brads. Suddenly the bottom half seemed empty and bare, but I didn’t want to cover it completely with patterned paper, but I needed something to make my layout look less ‘top-heavy’. So I had the idea of creating a word collage using rub ons and stickers – words that described me, or to which I felt connected. Add a little bit of hidden journaling and my masterpiece was complete. I hope you like it!

'Explore' Using 8"x8" For Your Scrapbook Layouts

on January 11, 2009

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Sometimes when I am demonstrating at craft shops people say to me that they would like to make more scrapbook pages but find it hard to get the inspiration. Those days when you take out a piece of 12 x 12 scrapbook paper to start a project, and you suddenly realise that all you have done is stare at a piece of paper for 20 minutes. A blank 12 x 12 piece of paper can be pretty daunting at times, especially if you are more familiar with card making, and often I find it easier to find inspiration if I reduce the size of my ‘canvas’. If you haven’t already tried working with 8×8 paper, you should give it a try, and here are some more reasons why I like working with this size.

The best things come in small packages

As a demonstrator I need to carry numerous samples with me everywhere I go, as people like to see a variety of different layouts. Carrying an 8×8 album or two takes up a lot less room both in my craft tote, and on my demo table… which means more room for showing off other crafting goodies. Another great factor is that these albums weigh less than 12 x 12 ones – obvious I know, yet a highly significant factor especially when I arrive at a train station and realise that there aren’t any lifts or escalators.

Being smaller in size also means that I can display them better on shelves or bookcases, as not all of my shelves are large enough to hold the 12 x 12 albums upright. I tend to keep one out on display, and change it every now and again with mini books and other projects. They are easily seen and visitors can browse through them quickly and easily.

Using A4 paper

If you buy craft magazines, you will be familiar with the fact that sometimes there will be free papers included. If you are primarily a 12 x 12 scrapper, this can be slightly annoying, as the papers are more often then not A4 in size (8.5 x 11) and therefore your design can be limited as A4 paper will not cover the whole background. This is not a problem when making 8×8 pages, and as soon as I started scrapping in 8×8 I used up a lot of A4 printed paper that I had lying around for years.

Using a printer

Of course if you are using A4 paper, this also gives you the bonus option of being able to run it though the printer. The layout above is a page about my husband and his little brother Steven and I purposely used the printer for my journaling to show that you do not have to own the latest die cutting machine or a mountain of letter stickers and rub ons to make a great layout. Anyone who has a home computer and a printer can easily make a title or journaling for their scrapbook page.

So if you haven’t already experimented with scrapbooking in 8×8, I hope that perhaps you will be open to the idea and maybe give it a try, as I’m certain you will love it.

Same Mould – Father & Son Scrapbook layout

on January 3, 2009

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If you are anything like me, then you may go through phases when you feel that you need to take more photographs for the soul purpose of having something to scrap. I admit I do this from time to time, but when I do, I sometimes have to suppress a tiny kernel of guilt as a little voice in my head questions the authenticity of the moments that I am trying to capture. I guess there are some people out there that who may argue that I am forcing a fake moment to take place in order to take the photo. Of course, I usually don’t let this bother me, as scrapbooking is fun all the same. Nevertheless there is no doubt about the fact that I get the best feeling whenever a photograph jumps right out at me, and I automatically think ‘ wow, this is screaming out to be scrapbooked!‘. For me, these rare and special photographs always are the easiest to scrap as inspiration just flows into my head from all directions.

This is exactly what happened with this photo. This perfect shot is of my friend’s husband Jeremy and their adorable son Randolph, and as soon as I spied it on her facebook account I knew that it needed to be scrapped, and what is more, I knew exactly which papers I would use for the layout. So I started digging through my patterned paper to find what was left of my Basic Grey Archaic stash.

I first saw the Basic Grey Archaic range on a video podcast from nth degree creative, where the Creativexpress team visited the CHA Expo last February. At that stage I knew two things: [1] I wanted to buy every single item from the Archaic range, and [2] I really really need to go to America and visit CHA.

If you struggle with scrapbook layouts or with making cards for boys or men, then the Basic Grey Archaic range is a must for your supply stash. With a mixture of greys, green, oranges and browns; the rustic palate suits boys of all ages. Many of the papers have a distressed feel, which is perfect for all those messy boys out there and the Dinosaur print paper is extremely popular for layouts about your little monsters. Visit the Basic Grey website to see the whole range.

As soon as I found the papers I had in mind, I was disappointed that I had already cut most of them in half with the notion of making a 6×6 mini book, but this didn’t stop me. It just meant that I had more of a challenge in front of me as I had to come up with a design to make it all fit.

The design

Because the photograph was so perfect, I wanted it to be the main focal point, and therefore I kept it as big as I could. I then cut some patterned paper to the exact same size to mirror and complement the photo, and placed these side by side in the middle of the page. Next I cut along the zig-zag pattern of the blue paper to make a border strip to edge the bottom of the photo and rock paper. I was pleased with the way this looked, however I felt that the design needed balancing along the upper edge. This I achieved by placing a thin ribbon parallel to the top edge of the layout. Because the ribbon was not connected to the other features on the page, it seemed to me that it was floating on the layout. This can sometimes cause a distraction away from the focal point, so to anchor the ribbon to the page, I bridged this gap with a fancy chipboard frame from Bisous, with monogram cut out letters mounted on top. My intention was for these letters to represent the initials of father and son: J for Jeremy and R for Randolph. It wasn’t until I had these cut out and placed on the page that I realised that it looked like Jr for Junior -What a perfect and happy accident as my layout focused on how alike this pair are!

I hope you like this example of a father and son layout, and perhaps you may be able to adapt it so as to make your own scrapbook layout for the men in your life. Thanks for looking and don’t forget to Leave a comment.

Other products used on this layout include: Hambly Studio rub ons, Anna Griffin rubber stamp, Basic Grey fabric tag, Laura Ashley fabric brad from Trimcraft, Brenda Walton Chipboard to go from K & Co, Making Memories Alphabet stickers, Glossy Accents from Ranger.

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