When it comes to designing scrapbook layouts, I tend to play it safe. I am not over-the-top matchy-matchy; however, I don’t take a ton of risks either. I stick with shades that are close together on the color wheel and I don’t stray too far from traditional shapes, sizes, patterns, and paper types.
My goal for this holiday season is to be a bit bolder in my page designs. My local scrapbooking supply shop maintains that orange is going to be the “hot” color for 2013. The shop’s owner just returned from a huge scrapbooking convention where gray was proclaimed the new black for fall and winter. Doodle Bug Designs recently unveiled a new line of gray paper, while We R Memory Keepers added a bunch of new gray embellishments and albums to its line-up.
Personally, I don’t plan to trash my black supplies just because the powers that be announced that gray is the new “it” color. If you want to embrace the trend, consider purchasing some gray cardstock and using it to complement the materials you already have. Fortunately, gray is not a hard color to match. It looks good with red, orange, teal, pink, and white. Rather, than give black the boot, why not make gray its friend and find a happy home for them together on a page design.
Mixing and matching different paper is one of the easiest ways to spice up a layout. The trick is to create a look that suits your individual style. For example, I’m a big fan of vellum; however, it’s not a paper type that is conducive to all layout designs. Vellum is delicate, transparent, and adds a soft touch to scrapbook pages. I can’t see using it on a layout celebrating a winning ride at a dirt bike race. Rather, it’s better suited for embellishing a baby shower or wedding album. Still, it can be mixed and matched in a variety of ways. Try placing a piece of vellum over brightly colored cardstock or scrapbook paper with bold patterns to tone down the vibrancy of the colors without completely negating your attempt to include more than one type of paper or shade on your layout.
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