I often read complaints on message boards from scrapbookers who are unhappy when they aren’t able to find many layouts to “scraplift” from a particular issue of a magazine.

This criteria for what makes a magazine issue “good” interests me, since I don’t scraplift other people’s layouts. Clearly, I have a different set of criterion for what will make a magazine worth its money. I decided to conduct an activity that would illustrate how you can take inspiration from layouts that have a different style, topic, or number of photos, from what you have.

On Tuesday night for Paperclipping Live I challenged Dedra Long and myself to take inspiration from one of the layouts in the gallery. We chose Iraida’s layout, “Oh No He Di’nt!” which is the second layout down in this posting.

My Layout

I liked how Iraida juxtaposed a circular formation with her horizontal block of photos. I also liked the vertical line on the left. I made these two elements my starting point. I found a photo and a piece of green memorabilia (no longer on the layout) and went to work with the idea of an overall perpendicular structure and a circle of some kind behind it. All of the other elements of my page, such as colors, paper layering, embellishments, title placement/topic, and journaling placement, would come from within myself.

As I worked on my layout, I found that I wasn’t enjoying any of my attempts at a vertical line, so I tossed that idea and focused on the horizontal block with a circle behind it. I also didn’t like how my green piece of memorabilia added an uncomplimentary sixth color to my combination. It was just too much. I decided to save the piece for another layout and stuck with the photo, instead.

Iraida’s Layout

One thing you may have noticed if you watched Paperclipping Live is that Dedra and I never once looked back to the original layout that inspired ours. We studied it once, decided which elements stood out to us that we might use ourselves, and then mashed those ideas with our own way of scrapbooking.

When I look at magazines, I don’t normally specify a layout like this to work from. I do spend a lot of time studying many of the layouts. I study not only the ones that I love, but also the ones I don’t. I ask myself why that layout isn’t working for me. This says nothing about the talent of the original scrap-artist; it just helps me to better understand my own preferences. I also ask myself what about the layout got the editor’s attention. Maybe there is something I can glean from that layout, even if the colors or style or design focus is not me.

All of these observations go into my head to combine with previous ideas and my own way of doing things. When I sit down to scrap it’s my head and feelings I take with me, not my magazines.

Dedra’s Layout

Dedra was also attracted to the circular shape on Iraida’s layout and felt inspired to use a circular piece of paper she had in her stash as the foundation of her page. She also loved that Iraida was willing to use a blurry photo because it supported a story she wanted to tell. Dedra decided to go with one of her own blurry photos, which tells a story about something her daughter regularly does right now.

With just those two pieces of inspiration, Dedra was armed and ready to work her classic Dedra-style into a layout truly her own.

Taking Inspiration vs. Scraplifting

I am not saying people shouldn’t scraplift. I think scraplifting is an important part of learning to scrapbook, either as a beginner, or as veteran who wants to try something new. But if you find yourself dependent on scraplifting for many of your layouts, how can your own personality shine through? And if you require scrapliftable layouts from magazines or online scrapbooking sources, perhaps you’re not getting as much as you could out of them.

More On Style

Over the next week we will spend a lot more time talking about personal style. We’ll talk about discovering it and expanding it. I’ll share the story of my own style journey. And you’ll get to see more from Dedra as we conduct an style-exchange experiment. Stay tuned!

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Journaling on Noell’s page is written to Trinity and reads: Trinity, you often tell me how cute Aiden is. I love how much you adore him; how you play with him; take care of him. Such a doting big sister. What a lucky boy he is.

It goes the other way, too, though. Recently Aiden asked if he can have another girlfriend. “Who’s your first girlfriend? I asked, bewildered. “Trinity.” He answered. He’s got such a wonderful sister, he figured that another one will be double the fun and love. He also asked me once if he could marry you, since Mom’s already taken. Give love and you usually get it back.

Journaling on Dedra’s Layout is written to Ellie and reads: There is no doubt you have the gift for making very silly faces…Silly faces and constant giggling make for a not so perfect photo that I will always cherishl…This picture is the proof…

Dedra Long and I will take inspiration from one of the layouts in the Paperclipping Gallery for the show tonight.

Join us to see how one layout inspires Dedra and I in our own unique ways to make our own layouts. Thanks to Iraida, whose layout we chose for this evening!

Meet us tonight at 6:30pm, PST.

If you’re unsure of the time zone difference, look for your city on this website and then compare it to my city, which is Phoenix.

Remember to register for Skype (it’s free) if you’d like to call into the show to ask a question or share something cool.

Does the amount of digital photos on your computer intimidate you? In today’s episode for the Premium Subscribers, you’ll see my system for getting photos from my camera to my computer and then to print. Maybe I have a few tips you can implement to make the process easier for you.

If you’d like to learn more about the premium membership so you can have access to all of the videos, click here.

On-trend colors tend to change before we’ve even used last season’s products. Do you have items in a color that you loved last fall or winter, but can’t bear to look at now that summer is close?

This week we’ve been altering the actual colors of products. Today let’s talk about how you can alter the feel of a product by surrounding it with a new color scheme. As an example, I’ll use maroon.

Traditional Color Scheme

Above is a very traditional scheme for the color, maroon. While this combination reminds me of Christmas time, it also makes me think of a stuffy and serious corporate office or men’s club. The color feels heavy, not something I want to touch as we flirt with 100 degree weather here in Arizona.

Lighten Up With A Touch Of Whimsy

Notice how this one addition of soft, minty blue adds a whole new tone to that very traditional and serious color scheme. I feel much better about using these colors now.

Non-traditional Color Scheme

We can also take the maroon out of its traditional element and insert it into an overall lighter one. Notice the balance of light to heavy colors in this scheme compared with the heavy pine, dark brown, and maroon of the original one.

My friend, Deb Wisker, picked this grouping of products for me as a surprise and I love that she put that fun shade of blue with those colors. I might not have noticed the colors of paper and flowers on their own, but that blue really calls my attention. This is a grouping I’m excited to play with! (Thanks, Deb!)

Add More Colors to Reflect More Emotions

A characteristic of my own scrapbooking style is my tendency to add one more color part way through my scrapbooking process. Colors represent emotion for me and I often have a number of emotions or tones that I associate with the subjects I scrapbook. Oftentimes while I am working on a layout I sense that the balance of colors doesn’t quite reflect the balance of feelings I have for my story.

In the color scheme above, I added orange. This entire combination now reflects how I feel today as I prepare to pick up my kids from their last day of school. It’s that additional bit of sunny orange whimsy that completes the story of my excitement and energy for a whole new season of fun and relaxation.

If you have a product in a color you’re tired of, try grouping it with fresher colors you’ve never grouped it with before. It could renew your interest in that color and you’ll see it in a whole new way.

As a follow-up from yesterday’s video tutorial, we’re going to look at some more examples using Tim Holtz’s Distress Embossing Powder with products that need a color adjustment or new life.

Felt

First let’s start with a closeup of the felt you saw in the video yesterday.

In the photo above you can see both the original felt piece, along with the altered piece. Click on the photo, then “all sizes” to get a good look at the color variation.

Coasters

I have these coasters that I bought a few years ago; you can see them on the left of the picture below. If we can alter unloved books and bare albums, we can alter a scrapbook coaster, right?

To do this you need:
coaster
paper bag
PVA glue
Sandpaper
a smaller circular design (I used a Maya Road rub-on)
letters (I used Heidi Swapp’s Rub-on letters)
Tim Holt’s Distress Embossing Powder
Versamark Ink
Heat Tool

1) Brush the coaster with PVA. 2) Adhere a piece of the paperbag to coaster and let dry. 3) Cut away excess paper bag and sand edges. 3) Press edges into Versamark Ink and dip into Distress Embossing Powder. 4) Heat with heat tool and then rub with your finger. The powder contains release crystals that will aid in the distressing look. You don’t need to do this on the felt. 5) Add rub-ons after embossing (or you’ll burn away your rub-on’s).

Wings

This is a fun technique where we get to combine the Distress Embossing Powder with another of our favorite products, Stickles, for a magical look.

I had a scrap of paper from My Mind’s Eye with these wings chopped off of a dragon fly. I cut it out, added a dark brown shade of Distress Embossing Powder around the edges for some three-dimensionality. Then added a sparse amount of Diamond Stickles for an iridescent-look you often see in real insect wings.

What can you do with some of your leftover scrapbook pieces? Unless you’ve only just begun scrapbooking, there are probably all kinds of things you can do with your stash to meet all your needs.

Do you have a hard time finding layout examples of the subjects you scrap? One subject we see very little of is that of the adult male human species. Yes, the adult male human does exist, even though you find very little evidence of him in the scrapbooking world. I, myself, am lacking in such evidence. =)

While I will devote a week toward male-dominated pages as we get closer to Father’s Day, I want to focus tonight’s Paperclipping Live on a layout for men. I will tweak the color scheme from last week’s album project as an example of how you can take a layout you like and adjust it to work with your own subject.

Meet me tonight at 6:30pm, PST.

If you’re unsure of the time zone difference, look for your city on this website and then compare it to my city, which is Phoenix.

Remember to register for Skype (it’s free) if you’d like to call into the show to ask a question or share something cool.

Paperclipping 44 - Altering Felt from izzyvideo on Vimeo.

Do you have a lot of felt? If so, I think you’ll love this episode, especially if you also like Tim Holtz.

(Ahem) Yes, I just said, “Tim Holtz.” Did that get your attention? Great, because whether you’re a Premium Subscriber or not, today’s episode is free to everyone and I’ll bet you haven’t seen a demonstration of a Tim Holtz product quite like this.

For the best viewing experience, don’t play that video above the text. Instead, watch the high-quality version. It’s a lot better.

We also have show notes available.

Does the idea of designing a cover scare you? There are at least two factors at play here. Because it is the cover, the first impression, we feel more pressure to make it perfect. We’re so exposed on the cover!

But there are also some differences between a cover and regular album pages. On the covers there are rarely pictures or journaling. That often only leaves us with a title as the starting point. But even if the elements of the design aren’t the same, the principles are. This means we need a focal point to design around, just as we do when we’re putting together a regular page.

What is the focal point on a cover then? It can be the title. It can be a major design element. Or, of course, it can be a photo or group of photos if we protect them with something.

The Title As The Focal Point

Notice how the cover above is almost the same as the cover below, yet I put them into different categories. Because the title in the layout above is bigger and has greater color contrast, it holds your attention longer. Below, the flower-like design element is what gets the attention, again, because of size and contrast of color.

A Design Element As The Focal Point

Photo(s) As The Focal Point

Once you’ve established what your focal point is, all the other applicable design principles come into play: visual triangles, anchoring, the Rule Of Thirds, etc.

If you’ve been needing to make a cover but have been nervous to try it, I hope these examples and explanations make it easier. You can share your creations in the Paperclipping gallery on Flickr.

In today’s episode for the Premium Subscribers I share an album I made to showcase my children’s handmade gifts over the years for Mother’s Day. I share some tricks for including those items that aren’t exactly easy to put into an album.

If you’d like to learn more about the premium membership so you can have access to all of the videos, click here.

Do you have a bare album waiting for you to dress it up? Do you want to cover it while I cover mine?

Join me on Tuesday night for Paperclipping Live and we’ll do it together. You’ll have the example of the album you see above, as well as the one I’ll be covering during the live show.

What you’ll need:

Bare Album (American Crafts Modern or BoBunny both make them)
Patterned paper (one full sheet, plus scraps if desired)
Title (Choose between letter stickers, stamped letters, pre-made titles, etc.)
Focal point item (examples are an over-sized flower, a frame, a metal plate; on the album above I used a ceramic tile piece which also serves as my title; an attractive title can also be the focal point).
Coordinating embellishments (rub-on’s, stickers, stamps, chipboard items, ribbons, flowers, etc).
Optional: Paint, gesso, gel medium.
Sandpaper
PVA adhesive (or whatever you prefer to adhere the patterned paper to the cover; many like Modpodge)
Scissors
Pencil
Brayer or rolling pin

Be here Tuesday night (or Wednesday if you’re in the Australian side of the world) at 6:30 PST. If you’re unsure of the time zone difference, look for your city on this website and then compare it to my city, which is Phoenix.

Register for free at Skype if you’d like to call in with a question. If you have a video camera on your computer you can call toward the end of the show (we’ll go until 8) to show us your cover.