Well hello friends of the Make a Page Monday series here on my blog. I know, I know… it's been a coon's age since we've seen its ilk, but like I always say, "Never say never gonna do MAP Mondays, at least not permanently, or maybe on, like, Tuesdays, or something."
Yep. I say that all the time. Shall we begin?
Click on the image to see larger in a new window
SIZE/MODE: 8.5 x 11 digital scrapbook page.
THE STORY: As you may or may not be aware, we are just wrapping up an 8-month remodeling project on our home. While I fully plan to do a simple scrapbook highlighting before and after photos (and yes, I'll be sharing it here when I complete it!) I felt like doing a simple page over the weekend with some recent shots. This project is huge in the scheme of Zielske things. We never thought we could a) afford something like this, or b) afford something like this. True, we did have our kitchen remodeled for almost nothing in 2003 on television show called DYI Kitchen Renovations, but that was a case of being in the right place at the right time. This project took a lot of hard thought and careful planning. Now that we're nearing the end it's pretty exciting stuff. It's also weird that people actually look at our house now. As in, they stop and look at it. Or they look at it when they drive by, which is even weirder. No one noticed our little house before. Now, we stick out…in a good way, hopefully.
Grouped and grounded squares are the core of this design. Let's break it down.
1. Asymmetry: The balance of this layout is decidedly asymmetrical. What you have on one side is slightly different that what you have on the other. The same goes from top to bottom. The core elements (the photo group) are shifted to the right and are balanced out with the journaling block and the headline.
2. Repetition: Here I repeat shape (squares); color (white); and margin spacing around the edges of the page. Everything can be repeated on any given design. When you do find things to repeat, it reinforces the overall tightness of the page.
3. White Space: Anchoring the photo group in the lower right leaves all that glorious white space above. Don't be afraid to invite space into your designs. It creates a welcome visual respite from what our eyes are bombarded with on a daily basis in the world at large. White space also adds a touch of sophistication to any design if used thoughtfully.
4. Grounded design: Both the mat and the position serve to ground the photos so they don't feel like they're floating all willy nilly in scrapbooking space. Mats are good. Use them well.
Here is a basic sketch you can download to keep in your scrapbooking files. The sketches are on 8.5 x 11 paper for easy printing. Click on the PDF below this image to download a printer-ready file.
Layered Template No. 35—Cathy Zielske
Just Linens No. 1—Michelle Martin
Interstate font
Questions? Comments? Leave 'em here and I'll do my best to get back to you.
