Sometimes I just love to follow a sketch when scrapbooking because I still get to choose the photos, pretty papers and embellishments and don't have to worry about design issues like 'balance' 'flow' or 'focal point'. I used this fab sketch (140) (scroll down a bit) by Valerie Salmon on the site 'Got Sketch?'
The 'Got Sketch?' site is full of great sketches which you can see here and there are some inspiring designer layouts on the blog too. This sketch blog gives permission to use their sketches for personal use. I had originally intended to post this LO as a DT project for the crafty blog IACW but didn't hear back when I asked for permission, so am only allowed to post it here on my personal blog. This post is very step-by-step trying to show my process for following a sketch and hopefully encouraging other crafters to try a sketch if they've never used one before because when I'm in the right mood I find it very satisfying. I know some people end up with a LO very different to the sketch, but you'll see that I followed it quite closely.
I like to have the sketch close by on my i-pad and began by choosing the background pp (from a collection called Portobello Road by Papermania). I chose to use three photos instead of four like the sketch, and matted them onto blue pp with a very thin mat. Then I cut a long piece of pp in red and white (by Cosmo Cricket 'Odds and Ends') just wider than the blue photo mat. I liked the rounded corners on the sketch so rounded my corners too...
Next, I punched a strip of pp in the same blue as the photo mat and cut a length of red and white baker's twine...
I used glittered cardstock to make the pennants. On the sketch there are 5 pennants which is better design wise (to use an odd number) but my line of pennants looked strange so I cut two of each colour which gave me 6 in total but that looked more balanced than 5. These were raised up on foam pads to add dimension.
I usually ink edges of my LOs in brown but chose blue chalk ink to ink the diecut from the Portabello Road collection...
The title 'Jubilee Tea' isn't the most creative but it is to the point(!) I nearly always stick my title letters onto a see-through plastic ruler so that I can move the title about and check the position I want, then when I'm happy with it I glue the letters down. I positioned my title in a different place than it was on the sketch as I didn't have space up above the line of pennants.
I used Hi-Tack wet glue to make sure the pennants stayed put on the twine...
I do like a bit of stitching on a LO but sometimes using rub-on (fake) stitching is called for ...
I cut a Cosmo Cricket frame sticker in half and cut around it on the front page of the pp collection (as the pattern was a cute, small version of the background pp). This was for the date. It's the same brackety shape as the large Union Jack die-cut.
Some pretty ribbon (bought locally) was raised up on foam pads, directly under the date...
I used a standard tag to cut around for the title to go on (again pp from the front page)...
I embellished the LO with some little silver charms hung from the title on blue twine and a diamond and gold brad to dot the 'i' in Jubilee.
At this point I decided to add some more fake stitching..
A small photo of the outside of the Teashop went onto the journalling tag, which is hidden on the LO behind the photo mat.
The finished LO (and yep we did wear those colours on purpose... sad I know!!?!)
A close up...
I made this LO in the Summer. It seems so long ago now. Also, I just want to mention that I stepped down from being a designer over on the It's A Creative World blog. I really like the variety of crafts offered on that blog and will miss being a designer. Over the last nearly two years I have made and posted about crochet toys (Amigurumi) crochet motifs and trim, scrapbooking, yarn-storming, quilting, beading, messy mixed-media and probably other things I can't remember :) it was a fun season for me but I decided that it is time to move over and let others bring their fresh ideas and talents to the blog.
