More Pages from INSD...

Sorry, small break in blogging due to, well, I just wasn't feeling very good with the sudden upsurge in temp and humidity here and husband was on a "we are not running the air conditioning already" kick.  Yuk.  I don't do heat and humidity well.

But I'm back with the last of my pages to share from INSD weekend!  Below is a page that I did for the using up old stuff challenge "One More Time."  Papers are ancient Echo Park, Amy Tangerine, and Authentique.  Found and used a couple of old stickers from Basic Grey, chipboard pieces from MAMBI, as well as leftovers from past kit clubs.  I had tried for some time to use various gray-toned and printed papers... wasn't working for me, so I switched and went with blues! 

The next page was the second one for the Mood Board Challenge and I used the colors from the balloon print paper as my inspiration.   

I particularly loved the blue-y aqua in that first paper, along with a touch of pink and red!   Raided my stash again, even though that was not required for the challenge, it was great to put more older product to good use---love that!

This page was created specifically for the One More Time Challenge again, using old MME glittery papers from their Laundry Line collection and a piece from the very first Fancy Pants release!  Stamping, some sequins, wood veneer hearts, wound up thread, tags and a journaling spot cut in half completed the page. 

This last page is the only entry I did for another FB group over INSD weekend.  I got so wrapped up and was enjoying the challenges from the first group I was playing along with that I kind of never made it back to this group.  But I did so enjoy getting this page done.  I had struggled with the page due to the photo's bright pink background.  It would have been much easier to scrap if the photographer had used a soft white background.   I am happy with the results, and happy for the challenge of working with "brights!" 

There are a couple more pages from the weekend, but I think I will use them within the context of another topic...fixing or do-overs for pages.   Yeah, not so happy with a couple of pages, so I'll let them sit and go back to them in a bit.  I did take photos, so I can show a before and after of the make-overs.  That should be fun!! 

Glad to be back in the blog-o-sphere and back to playin' with paper!! 

best,
Cheryl

Making a Page With Kit Leftovers

How about a page that came together because of an embellishment? 

The little acetate pieces were the impetus for the entire page!  Their shape mimicked the windmill blades in my mind.  The colors of those little acetate pieces dictated the colors to be used for the page.  Pastel, soft and quiet. 

The little pink tabs came in the kit, each printed with a word or two...but none really fit with my travel photos, however I did like the pale pink color. So they just got tucked in such that the words didn't show. 

In this case I used one of the papers in the kit for the background since it was mostly white, with a bit of printing at the left edge.  The branding strips were trimmed into long skinny banners and the one or two larger chunks of printed paper that were left got layered under the photo.  There is nothing hugely striking about the page---it is calming and still, allowing the photo to be center stage. 

The only add from outside the kit was a scrap of green (cut into two short banners) and the chipboard heart. 

Next up is a page using strips of paper at the edge of the page. 

Another page showing the use of watercolor on the white background to help unify the page and tie the colors and photo together rather than the use of printed papers. 

Looking through these page samples, the one common denominator leaving a good amount of white space.  (White space = open space, it could have been a colored background---I just happened to use white.)

This open space could be less, if you were working with more than one photo--but it would be more difficult to have enough papers left for layering.  In that case your leftovers could be used in small strips under your photos or along one edge of your page, depending upon the size and shape of your leftover pieces. 

The point is, a technique for getting the most from my kit(s), before relegating things to my stash, is to gather those little pieces and parts together and see if there is enough to either surround a photo, layer underneath a photo, or line up along the edge of a page.  Now I am not always successful at this.  In fact I have a layout that I am going to take apart, cuz it's    just.  not.  happening.  When I get that one put together again in a happier arrangement, well that can/will be a whole other conversation.   And I'll have that conversation, it's ok to me to shows one of my "yuck" pages ... and compare it to one that I find more pleasing to look at. 

But for today, try and use all those little "schnibblets" left lying about your workspace to make just one more page before you call a kit done.  It can't hurt, you can always take it apart, but if you are successful, you'll have one more page done AND finish off a kit feeling that you have spent your money on that kit wisely! 

best to all,
Cheryl