It wasn’t easy. She was afraid of the paper cutter and resisted my efforts to show her how to use a grid ruler (even though her day job involves high level mathematics). She insisted that getting stickers off the backing sheet was tedious, that she had no sense of color (a ridiculous notion, she’s the best dressed person I know). But I knew just what to do. I played my trump card. I brought out an ancient photo of her now-grown son when he was about four. I told her I’d make her a print of the photo and she could use it for her first scrapbook page. We talked about the day when I took the photo, we laughed at his curly hair and chubby cheeks. The stress disappeared from her shoulders. The proverbial light bulb flashed mega-watt bright, and her eyes went from glazed with distress to crinkling with happy memories. I won! She made her first page.
Like most beginners she’d been afraid of making mistakes (the stakes are higher at her day job) or wasting materials (even though she could see a lifetime of paper in front of her), of not being talented or creative. Once those notions are tossed aside like weeds, the rest was easy. She was my guinea pig for this article, happily arranging and re-arranging pieces of cardstock and learning how to make a layout work.
*Get Started
Today is MOVING DAY! The only thing you have to do is move pieces of paper around till you like the way they look. That’s your ONLY task.
Start by choosing two pieces of 8.5” x 11” cardstock in two colors. Use black and white if you want a lot of contrast and don’t want to worry about what colors go together. Use two shades of the same color, try school colors, pretend that it’s Christmas and go for red and green, or use the first two colors you reach for even if they don’t go together at all - it doesn’t matter. I picked rust and gold because I’m getting ready for fall, but the process is the same no matter what colors you pick.
*Be a Cut-Up
Trim one piece of cardstock at a time as follows:
Cut .5” from the long side so you have an 8” x 11” piece remaining. Cut 3” from that piece so you have an 8” x 8” square and a 3” x 8” rectangle. Now cut an 8” long piece from the .5” strip you cut away first. Cut the lighter 3” x 8” strip into thirds (you will have three small rectangles). Hold onto your scraps. The two 8” squares will be the background for your layouts.
*Temporary Layouts
Place both squares on a work surface. Move the strips and rectangles around. Don’t glue anything in place. Keep moving things around. Add something, take something away, keep moving the elements. See if you can make forty arrangements or more. If you want to remember some of them, trace the arrangements onto lightweight paper or take digital photos.
It’s not yet time for a decision. You’re giving your eye a workout, and like a workout at the gym, you’ve got to keep at it longer than you think you can.
Make big changes. Turn an arrangement upside down. Keep all the elements lined up on a horizontal or vertical axis. Use a ruler with grid markings to help you keep things straight. Or go for the diagonals - Let some of the elements dance this way and that.
*Visual Balance
You are learning how to create visual balance, how to make decisions and trust your own eye!
Okay, NOW you can decide which ones you like best. But it’s not yet time to glue things in place! Leave your layouts alone for at least an hour. Come back after a break, or the next morning, and look at them with fresh eyes to see if you still like the look.
NOTICE that you have not yet added a photo, journaling, or any embellishments. Those come next.
NOTICE that you have been working with solid colors. Consider these very simple layouts to be a sketchbook, a starting point. If you made tracings or photos of some of your temporary layouts, put them into a journal so you can use them for future projects. Later - make that SOON - you can move on to two or more patterned and printed papers, but for now, don’t confuse your eye.
*Time to Glue
You’re ready to make a commitment. Get out your low moisture glue stick, paper glue, or adhesive runner and glue your layout in place. Use the grid pattern ruler to help you align the pieces. If you don’t own one, make light pencil marks to help you measure and position the elements.
*What’s Next?
I’m glad you asked! The next step is to create a headline and set the tone for the page. I selected alphabet stickers that have a random look because they are so easy to use. No need to worry about being precise - not even when you want all the letters to look like they’re lined up.
The white text on Layout #1, Autumn Days, is more formal. NOTICE that “Back to School” hangs from one of the bands on the layout (all letters touch the rust color strip at the top). “Fall 2007” lines up with the bottom edge of the gold rectangle that awaits a photo. The final “l” in the word “School” is aligned with the right edge of the gold rectangle. I worked backward so the words would end exactly where I wanted, but they do not align at the left (the more common way to use lettering). This is called “flush right” - the end points match, the starting points do not.
The black text on Layout #2, Harvest Time, is informal. The letters and words dance. NOTICE that I used some of the largest letters on the sheet to spell “School” - this was done for visual emphasis. Even if you are using a sheet of stickers called “Scatterbrain” you can still make careful decisions.
*But These Layouts are Boring!
Good! You NOTICED. Even after I added a few decorative stickers, these layouts remain bland. They’re like pieces of toast with a bit of jelly when what you really want is a club sandwich with chipotle mayonnaise!
*Stay Tuned
Tune in next month to see the layouts with photos, journaling, and other additions.
Meanwhile, what would YOU add or remove?
Where would you put it?
Would you change some of the colors?
Do you think white type would have looked better against the dark rust background?
Would you alter the white type in some way, or use larger or smaller lettering?
Would you prefer black type instead of white type spelling “Back to School” on the “Autumn Days” layout?
Do the pages need something dimensional or should they stay flat?
Or is a photo all that’s needed? Like adding peanut butter to that toast with jelly - would one simple addition make it the perfect sandwich, or in this case, layout?
One thing is for sure, no matter what I decide to do, there is no right or wrong. My choices may match yours, or we can be polar opposites. Your choices, your layouts, are always entirely in your hands.
Now, go cut up two pieces of cardstock - it’s MOVING DAY.
Supplies:
Rust and gold cardstock
Scatterbrain Alphabet stickers #10642 - Black (Karen Foster Design)
Scatterbrain Alphabet stickers #10771 - White (Karen Foster Design)
Autumn stickers #10661 (Karen Foster Design)
Craft knife (X-acto)
Ruler with grid (Omnigrid) or other ruler
Self-healing cutting mat
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.
