You have a cool and fun loving Nan

A photo I have wanted to scrapbook for ages as it is such a nice photo of Pam and really does capture her cool and fun loving personality.

  Lessons Learnt

1. Black font is definitely my preferred colour for titles. In fact if I had enough black letters I would use these for 99% of my layouts. 
2. Using mixed colour fonts for the title is ok (occasionally) 
3. Where the cardstock is dark then multicoloured fonts would look good. 
4. Mixing font styles in a title does not look bad

Finding Your Way

I have not been able to have proper internet access since this class began so though I have been able to read the message boards I have not been able to post. But I have been busy working through the handouts and prompts given to think about.

Lessons Learnt:

• Photos definitely decide on what I scrapbook. I go through my albums and select a bunch which “speak to me” and then scrapbook from these. 
• A layout is not complete for me unless I have some journaling. This has to be composed and written in draft before I start.
• My scrapbooking desk has to be clear before I can be inspired to scrapbook
• I do not mind scrapbooking in a variety of sizes dependant on what I am scrapbooking. On a regular basis I scrapbook on 12x12, 12x24 and 8.5x11
• I hate doing mini books and cards. They seem to take me far to long to do; I could do at least half a dozen layouts instead.( Instead of mini books to summarise a holiday or day out I use 12x12 page protectors split into 6 6x4 pockets.)
• I pick the colour of my cardstock from the photos. Rarely using white, black or Kraft.I can use a variety of different size photos.
• Normally I send my photos to be developed in 6x4 and if I want smaller photos I normally cut them down from this size. (I only print my photos at home if another size to 6x4 is required).
• I prefer to scrapbook photos in colour.
• Dependant on the story I am comfortable using both single and multiple photos on a layout. Where the multiple photo layouts may be on a single or double page.
• I use sketches to create my layouts.
• My layouts tend to be very geometrical and simple.
• I prefer using black font for my titles.

 Things I would like to change (if that is the right word?):-

• To be able to let the sketches inspire me and for me to “make it my own”. (Though there is nothing wrong with using sketches and doing a straight copy – which is what I do.). 
• To be able to use embellishments with confidence to add that bit “extra” to my layouts (which I think is missing).
• To have the confidence to mix the style of fonts I use for titles. Trying the “sentence” title and not feeling guilty if I do a layout which has not got a title.

 I am so looking forward to continuing to learn about my “style” of scrapbooking through the rest of this course.

Denver Art Museum

Another layout which captures my like for architecture. I wanted to show that though I did not like modern art I appreciated the architecture of the museum. As the topic was modern I wanted to make sure that the layout was not fussy.

The title used large letters from the “stamped” cartridge of my cricut machine with journaling running along the edge of the photos.

The hard part of this layout was the measuring of the photos so that they went across the page, with one photo straddling both pages of the layout, but equal in size. Because of all the measuring involved to get to this finished result this was no quick layout to create.

Leasons Learnt:

1. Must remember to use the "stamped" cricut cartridge again as I like the font.
2. White letters look really effect aginst dark colours, great where you want the title to stand out. 
3. Good layout for multiple photos of one subject and minimum journaling with an impact title 

Architecture

I have wanted to scrapbook my fascination of architecture when I visit somewhere. I used the photos from our visit to Denver to illustrate this as there were so many different types of architecture around the streets we walked.  

I used a 2” square punch and journalled around the photos. I was pleased by the simple clean result this layout has.

Ready to go

One of the problems I have is once I have decided on how to place photos and journaling what embellishments to use. I have a lovely scrapbooking room and am surrounded by containers of scrapbooking items. So much so that I go on over load on what exactly I should be using.

So I have taken the idea I learnt from Darci Dowdle class:-

1. I pick various photos from my albums – if they are an event I may have picked more than I actually use but then they can either go back in the albums, my category drawer or be used to scrapbook a different story I want to tell.
2. I jot down notes/full journaling of the stories I want to tell with the photos.
3. I fill plastic storage containers with a variety of embellishments – (flowers, brads, ribbon etc). I then limit myself to only using these.
4. I have my collection of sketches so I can grab one to use when/if needed.

These all sit on my scrapbooking desk, along with my tools and adhesive so I have everything I need to be able to get scrapbooking. Leaving me only the cardstock and patterned paper to pick (which I normally leave until I have decided on the sketch I am going to use and photos I’m scrapbooking) and lettering for my title.

Homework from Embrace Imperfrction Class

Part of our “homework” for this week from the “Embrace Imperfection” class was to find out what annoyed us or stopped us from scrapbooking – to think of the reasons as we scrapbooked our layouts. From the lessons learnt from recent layouts completed I came up with the following:

• Not having an idea of how to actually place the photos on the paper when it was completely blank.

• Which embellishments should I use, and where the hell should I put them.

• Using the computer for headings and layouts just causes more stress

• Crooked lines when you cut some paper or photo, thus resulting in them getting smaller and smaller while you attempt to get them straight.

• Needing to place items on the layout straight with the same gaps between each piece (particularly in the layout above with all of its straight lines.

Foolish

This layout I completed to see what my “problem” areas were. The first problem was – I have the photos, I know the story I want to tell, but where do I put them all on the cardstock?? I fell at the first hurdle! So I grabbed my container full of sketches that I continue to collect and used a sketch from Becky Higgins Creative Sketches Volume 2 book to come up with this layout.

Ok so it is not my original work but it got the layout created and the story told, and am I really going to mind when I look back at my albums in years to come?

Finishing off The Dragon Dance

I used the layout idea from week three, Friday email sent by May Flaum as part of one of the Big Picture classes she ran.

When I saw this sketch I automatically thought about scrapbooking the photos I took of the dragon dance in Malvern. But I wanted to include some information about the dragon dance and the Year of the Tiger, a more educational layout than a feeling one IYSWIM. Plus I wanted to stretch myself in using colours I would not normally scrap with.

All of this meant researching on the internet, downloading images, creating text boxes etc all of which took time. And then of course I got to the point of not wanting to finish it and moving on to other layouts, this layout in a plastic bag and forgotten about.

Well the start of “Embrace Imperfection” by Karen Grunberg class on BPC and some of the posts on the message board made me go back to this layout and finish it off.

  Lessons Learnt:

1. I do like to scrapbooking with bright colours though still undecided if this is due to the colours in the photos or if I would use bright colours no matter what.
2. Researching items on the computer is a drain on my inspiration.
3. Using the computer for images, journaling and title took me ages. This and researching were the main reason for not finishing the layout. (Maybe need to get smarter if I use this method again?)