I picked up the new Autumn Leaves publication, "The Designing with Recipe Book", about a week ago at my local scrapbook store. I'm a big fan of Autumn Leaves publications. I love the photography and all the colorful imagery that goes into their books. They're always beautiful and inspiring. I think most of the credit though has to go to their designers. They've always had a very talented design team on board. Some of my faves include Margie Scherschligt (p.91 in the new book, showcases the layout that inspired me to create the layout above), Danielle Thompson, Ashley Calder, and so many more. I'm all about the details. The more, the better. I'm constantly looking for new ways to "create details" on my layouts. Every time I refer to my Autumn Leaves book collection, I always run across a small something I didn't see before...whether it be a handmade flower made of pattern paper or a rippled border made with stitching and glue, I'm all over it. These are the sorts of things I usually seek out when I buy a scrapbook publication. Not all publications focus on details, but Autumn Leaves does and that's what I love about their books. Now if only they would release Rhonna Farrer's new book, "Enjoy the Process". It was suppose to be released in December of '07...give or take 6 Months. Smile.
Here's a few close-ups along with a few new ideas:
I have a knack for cutting up small pieces of paper and recombining them to create something new. A mini collage sort of obsession. It's all part of that "detail" habit I can't seem to shed. One of the things I really liked about creating this layout was having these "mini palettes" to play around with. Irregular Rectangular spaces to turn into mini works of art. These are the light green border areas. There are four of them. Note how different each one of them looks. At the same time, to keep them feeling connected, I used the same paper and color combination with each one. I then embellished each one differently with stickers, die-cuts, rub-ons, etc. It provided me opportunity to experiment and try new ideas. I didn't feel like I was risking "ruining a layout" by trying something new, which I know all of us worry about when we're creating a layout. I would create the mini collage before adhering it to my layout. I really enjoyed the process. No pressure. Here's a few more of those "mini collages" from the above layout:
Of course, I can't create a layout without some doodling. It's the ol'quilter in me...I used to make these funky, eclectic hand dyed contemporary wall quilts. I would draw a quilt design before implementing it on fabric. I was into scenic imagery; birds, trees, houses, small towns, etc. I've carried this over into my scrapbooking. I'll take a few pics of my quilts to show you what I was doing two years ago...they're very me. Lot's of color and detail, but with fabric.
Have a good night everyone. Take care.
