To complete the beginner page, you will need little more than paper, glue, a pen and a pair of scissors. Journaling is hand-written and although snowflake die cuts were used as embellishments, paper snowflakes can be easily made the "old" way by folding and cutting designs in paper. To personalize the page, have your children create the snowflakes for you. When incorporating the snowflakes on your page, use three different sizes and an odd number of snowflakes. These "rules" are based on rudimentary design principles and add variety and interest to your pages. Also, placement of the objects in the design is guided by "visual triangles". A triangle will lead your eye around the page starting at the most dominant object. In the layout pictured, the large snowflake leads the eye to the photos on the left, and the large (dominant) photo leads the eye to the large snowflake and the journaling on the right.
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For the intermediate layout, incorporating more advanced techniques and added embellishments requires a greater level of skill, but skills that can be easily mastered with a little practice. The same background is used as well as the same matted photos. Variety in shape, with the addition of a ripped cardstock banner, provides visual contrast to the straight lines of the photos and draws the eye across the page. The irregular edge and curve of the cardstock introduces movement and suggests the slope of the hill in the photos. With the addition of the tags and stickers, the snowflake pattern is repeated and emphasized. Ground the embellishments by placing them to partially overlap the cardstock. This creates a relationship between the various elements on the page. Addition of the fiber to the tags further grounds the tags to the entire layout as well as introducing texture.
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The advanced layout incorporates an added emphasis through the introduction of three-dimensional elements. The photos remain as the dominant element just by their relative size. Further visual impact is achieved by the illusion of movement created by the curve of the cardstock and vellum border. The metal snowflakes emphasize the snowflake pattern of the vellum and the pattern of the background paper. By repeating the use of metal with the brads and the letters in the title, all elements come together as a unified whole.
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