How to go from LAME to FAME with your Scrapbooks.
May 13, 2009 by Cijaye
Filed under Digital Scrapbooking Layouts, Quick Scrapbooking Articles
It is true…when you first start scrapbooking you are just getting your feet wet. You don’t know what you are doing other than trying to give your photo’s a new purpose or enhance their memories.
Really that’s what scrapbooking was all about in its earliest days. In fact…if you look back historically – a scrapbook was merely a collection of photographs and memoires.
They weren’t placed on the page in just the right place to give the paper behind it some glory. They weren’t covered on the corners or all around the edges to make them look cooler. They were simply images placed on a page along with some newspaper clippings or ticket stubs or pennants etc.
It was a collection of stuff with no rhyme or reason – but collected and keepsaked nonetheless.
Now if YOUR early scrapbooks feel that way too…like mine did… (okay this one is a LITTLE better than some of my beginning ones – but it’s still not a page I would call GREAT today)…you would want to redesign them OR know how to do BETTER than this next time. Right? Who doesn’t want to improve their work. All artists go through transitions and WANT to make changes to their skills as time progresses…so I am going to help you do that. Here’s what you need to do in order of progression.
From LAME to FAME in 5 Simple Steps!
- Discover the amazing gift of Scrapbook Page Layouts! Even if you don’t intend to do EVERYTHING as done in a layout you like – having a layout design in mind can make everything come together in ways you may have never imagined previously. It also speeds up the process of completing a scrapbook page by leaps and bounds.
- Learn how / when / where to use those pretty patterned papers you see everywhere. For the life of me (as a beginner) I could not figure out how to use them properly. As a full background page they took up the spotlight in all of the wrong ways…yet – when I cut them I felt like I was ruining them altogether. NOW however…just the right pattern in just the right places is all I need. Usually it’s a thin strip across the page or a matt behind a photo. Sometimes is a square or circle placed around other squares or circles. Occasional my patterned papers are other unique shapes (punched or diecut) – and they are simply used like embellishments. The best trick however is to cut the original shapes / designs OUT of the patterned paper and adhering them to cardstock and 3D pop dots to make them stand out from the page.
- Explore embellishments BEYOND the sticker and button isles! Go to the hardware sections of EVERY STORE that has one. Shopping with your DIY Fixer Upper Husband will finally take on a PURPOSE for you! It’s amazing what you can do with widgets, fasteners, hinges, hooks and clasps. You can even visit the local fabric stores now and buy up their bagfuls of buttons, ribbons and cut offs. You can even add zippers and straps, cords and tape. The sky is now your limit…litterally. (You just have to find a place to organize it all) You can stretch beyond the normal imagination now and become an adventurer with your scrapbook pages. Embellishing will definitely take on new meaning for you!
- Allow BORDERS to take on a new meaning! Not every page or photo needs a border; but if there is a call for it…don’t just FRAME it; that’s simply too basic. Run a row of stitches with your hand or a sewing machine; pierce a row of holes; distress with paint or ink; scratch with sand paper, scissors or even needles; create a mosiac with beads, tiles, paper pieces etc. Go beyond the ordinary! As you are going though…don’t forget that not all borders are 4 sided! You can border anywhere from 1-4 sides … or even border your shapes (like circles, flowers, photo corners and such). Also remember that your borders don’t need to start or finish on the image / shape being bordered. Try starting a few centimeters or even INCHES before – and then add some staples, buttons or flowers half way before your shape starts. Don’t be afraid to place those embellishments halfway through the shape either. AND furthermore…if you can avoid the straight and perfect lines that one would normally expect from a border…you will do yourself a favor.
See Imperfections as Opportunities! So what if your photo isn’t perfectly square. So what if it’s not squared in the matt either. So what if your flower has a curled up or chopped up petal. SO WHAT? Use those imperfections as opportunities. Add something else to the imperfect spaces or edges. Cover them up or even EMPHASIZE them. Make them appear INTENTIONAL! You will love the fact that you don’t have to do them over! You will love the fact that you can be FREE and avoid CONFINEMENT and perfection if you want to! You can be a rebel and it’s okay!
Lets start there! I am sure that give you a TON to think about. But I hope you are now newly inspired to be MORE! Be better. You can now take your scrapbook pages to the next level!
And have fun with it!
