Dream

May 9, 2009

I used several different techniques to put this layout together.
I've been doing more masking in my layouts lately and I'm really liking the look of it.

Masking is done by laying a cut out image on your layout and using chalk or ink to rub gently over the cut out. When you lift the image back off, you are left with a white design of the image, almost like a negative. It adds a lot of interest to a layout. You can use all different colors to mask, you can overlap for a whole different effect. Try it sometime!

Another technique I used on this layout was using punches to make the floral design on the right side.

Using a pencil, make a curved line on the edge your paper. Using different sized punches, begin by punching your flowers. Because punches will only go so far into your paper, try keeping your design close to the edge. After punching out your flowers, use a hole punch, in different sizes to finish making the curved line. It makes a really cool addition and a decorative element to your layout.

For the picture frame mat, I cut a piece a piece of paper larger than my photo. Using my medium daisy punch, I went around the edge of the paper , punching various half flowers out. It makes a neat edge for matting photos.

On the photo in this layout, you'll notice an overlay. It is the plastic packaging that came from a set of acrylic stamp I bought. I used the same daisy punch to punch out the edges. Then I used ink to add some color. Alcohol inks would work much better on this project, but I don't have any of those at this time, so I just used regular ink. Make sure to let the ink dry before handling the pieces. I then added a little glitter glue to the edges for some sparkle. Lastly, I used a black permanent marker to go over the edges to help it stand out against the photo. I angled the acrylic piece on my picture to only cover two of the corners. I really liked it the way it turned out.

The punched out flowers on the left are done the same way. I had trouble getting my larger flower punch to work on the acrylic, so try to test your punches on a piece of plastic first to make sure they will work!

I had never really worked with any kind of acrylic before joining Pages In Time. One of the challenges for National Scrapbook Day was to use acrylic on a layout. It was very hard for me to figure out how to use it. But since then, I've been playing around with it a lot more, and I'm kind of liking the way it looks.

Thanks for stopping by and make sure to stop by again! I'd love to hear from you anytime with your ideas or tips!
Carol