There are several guidelines for selecting paper, and most people try to match the colors in the photo, but that is not your only option. Example: If it is an outdoor photo with lots of green in the photo you may want to draw attention to a person or detail. By using that color either in a small detail near the photo or as the page color you will draw attention to that item.
Knowledge of the location of colors on the color wheel is helpful (if you do not have a color wheel, you can easily locate one on the Internet to print). Taking a look at what the complimentary colors are will open a new world for you. A great source for color combo design is your local paint store, pick up a few paint samples cards and see where they take you.
I selected one large photo and two small photos, and then cropped them to the size that I wanted.
The background paper that I selected is a pale blue dotted paper that came in a Prima packaged collection. I wanted to mat the larger photo in a lime green, so I used a Bo bunny paper that I had in my stash. I trimmed the paper so that the mat extended 1/8" around each side of my larger photo, I then adhered the photo to the green mat.
Once the two smaller photos were trimmed I put strips of foam tape on the back of each photo, use chipboard scraps to create the same effect. You will need to trim the chipboard piece just a little smaller that the photo, and then glue it in place on the back of the photo. This will give the page a little more dimension, and add visual interest. This step can be eliminated if you do not want the bulk added your pages.
I trimmed ½” off two sides of my blue paper to end up with 11 ½” x 11 ½” piece and adhered it to the pink paper. Once I had an approximate idea of my photo placement, I added some pops of color to lead the eye around the page. I added a triangular piece of pink and orange paper to the upper right corner of my main photo. I did not worry about creating exact placement, since I wanted to give this layout a playful edge.
My next step was to attach the large photo to the page and then the two smaller photos around it, and determine the title location and placement of the journal card. I then cut a piece of ribbon a little wider than the width of the two photos. This ribbon was glued down before the smaller photos were adhered to the page. Add the title and start adding embellishments.
Supplies:
• Adhesive: Fabric Tac (Beacon Adhesives)
• Chipboard: Heidi Swapp
• Flowers: Prima Marketing
• Journaling card: Making Memories
• Patterned paper: Prima Marketing and Bo Bunny
To find the products mentioned in this article and shown in these layouts, check with your local scrapbook retailer. Browse our Premier Retail Stores for coupons to a store near you.
