Faces Of Friendship

formal photos are always fun but when you have pages and pages worth of photos of the same people in the same colours it is easy to grow complacent and use cookie cutter layouts. so when it comes to formal pages I always try and do something new. As soon as I saw these photos i knew exactly what I was going to do with them. our formal had a photo booth and these photos were all taken consecutively while trying to get 1 good shot. By themselves these photos would of been headed for the trash but together they tell a very good story about our friendship. these were taken at yr 12 formal so everything was just about to change but in this moment everything would always be the same

I used this funky black and cream pin striped paper that reminded me of old fashioned movies (not sure why it did but it was perfect) and used some chipboard letters and fabric flowers to give the layout a classic feel while trying something new (for me anyway) by playing around with photo size and allowing the photos to overlap allowing me to fit in all 7 photos without cramping the page.

sometimes the most awful photos tell the best stories (my favourite would have to be the one in the bottom right hand corner) but often we don't even look at them especially if they are professional photos so here is your challenge dig through that box of photos and find those pictures where you are squinting or the wind has completely messed up your hair or that you begged them to delete. And use them to tell a story. Photos with twisted expressions are not just for little kids.

~panda

Using Templates

One of my favourite tools i have used in scrapping is the deceptively simple template using this template making effective layouts is simple. While I wouldn't use them for every layout when you are trying to fit allot of photos into a layout or want to make a bold statement a template is a good starting point.

template

I have used this template for two different layouts with very different results. The trick is editing the template to fit your photos. The first time I used the template I got irritated with it very quickly as it is fiddly at some points. By the end of the layout I was so irritated that I didn't take the care I should of in sticking down my pieces. Despite this however it still turned out well.


Granville school spectacular Spice of Life

 The template was edited quite a bit for this layout to accommodate for the large photos but you can still see the resemblance in the general shapes in the layout. The papers I chose reflect the colours of the costume. The templates simple geometric pattern allowed me to be brave and choose bright contrasting colours that I don't usually use. Another feature of this layout is the use of a photo as the title (in this case a shirt). When taking photos for scrapbooking layouts look around for signs or words that could make a heading for your page. As a first attempt I was very happy with how this turned out.

a few years more experience and i decided to attempt this template again when once again I had more photos then i knew what to do with yet didn't want to make a double page spread

stereotype day

This time the photos allowed me to follow the template better and the extra experience made it simpler and les aggravating to work with. The result in my opinion anyway is a much more effective layout. The opportunity to use so many bright colours on the same layout makes this one of my favourite layouts to date. The vibrant colours really reflect the fun of school spirit weeks and help to brighten the dark photos.
~panda

tackling school photos: year 1

One thing about school photos is that they appear to be endless this is my year 1 layout and as with the kindy i have scrapped both the individual and the class photo. Unlike in the kindy page the teacher is in black which doesn’t inspire other colour choices. However it did give me opportunity to pick something random that contrasts nicely. i have always loved the pink and blue combination so I jumped at the chance to use it for this layout. i kept it fairly simple with a plain block colour as a background and then blue embellishments.  I used blue ribbon to add some shape to the layout placing it over the photos to add some dimension to the page.

I used the cricut paper dolls cartridge to create a school girl wearing a "uniform" in the same colours as mine and even found a hairstyle that matched my bob at the time. i found this served to fill in some of the empty space left by the smaller portrait as well as adding a little bit more interest to the page. Placing it on top of both the ribbon and the corner of the photo adds even more dimension to the page without the need for 3d adhesive blocks. The bow on the ribbon in the top left corner also serves to add both texture and dimension. 

The second page of this layout I kept as a simple mirror image of the first, removing the extra embellishments (bow and school-girl) so the focus will be more drawn to the image. Although the image is bigger the individual elements in the image are smaller so any big embellishments would only serve to crowd the page and remove attention from the image.

~panda

Muddy Play

I know to some of you this may seem strange but this layout came to me in a dream. I have been furiously scrapping for the past few days (and studiously avoiding studying for uni exams) after seeing these photos I had a dream in which i created a mud-splattered heading and first thing the next morning i started the prep work to get this layout done.

I knew I wanted the page to be rustic so I gravitated to the earthy greens and reds and to one of my favourite techniques paper tearing. The big feature was the title so I didn't want to lose it in a bright layout. The mats have been distressed to remove the clean cut lines. All my torn edges have been inked in a red-brown.

for those of you who have not distressed edges before I simply ran the edge of a scissor blade across the edges of the matt do this until you are happy with how "distressed" the edges look if you tear the paper a little bit doesn’t matter it just adds to the effect.

The title is made simply by cutting out the letters on the cricut in scrap paper and using a dry brush and a small amount of paint dapping flecks around the letters. I strongly suggest you experiment before doing this on your actual page as it takes time to get the nack. This is how i learnt to use a dry brush. I also suggest testing the paint colour you plan to use on the page before doing the heading as even soft neutral colours like this creamy beige will change the paint colour since you are applying lightly i tested mine where I knew I was going to place my torn paper.
~panda

tackling school photos: kindy

another older creation
i always find school photos are hard to scrap. they tent to always have the same colour scheme and i like scrapping both the individual and the class photo so i can also remember who was in my class. the addition of the class photo to a layout can be difficult though as this means including the name list as well. even on a double page layout this leaves little room for decoration. this kindy page took me forever as the butterflies came from cricut offcuts i was given and i am fussy but eventually i finished it off. using ink to colour some white butterflies into the colour scheme which i found added a lovely texture to the page. Finished with some kindy glitz to add a little bit more sparkle. Here is the finished product.

to combat the colour scheme in school photos and preventing all your pages becoming monochromatic i find using other colours that have been introduced into the photo (in this case the teachers dress) another technique is to use a bold colour that contrasts the pictures. in this example the warm tones of red brown and yellow contrast with the cool blue of the photos. this means despite the elements on the page the photos are still the focus.

~panda

these boots are made for walking

This page i did a while ago.
i fell in love with this picture of me stealing pop's boots
and the first thing that came into my head was the song.
we had just got the cricut and this was my experimentation page.
used a swirly stamp in a darker pink ink on Boots and Walking to emphasise the title.
fairly simple still quite happy with how it turned out.
~panda

Scrapbooking blogs.
I have been looking at them for a while 
Yet the inspiration only just struck me to start my own.
I am only 18 but have been scrapping
(in one form or another) since i was 10.
This blog if nothing else will track my progress and will act as an incentive to scrap. Even if I don't have much time
~panda