Colors have meaning. Paired with certain colors, they jog specific memories. Bright green reminds us of St. Patrick’s Day mischief while red paired with green brings visions of Christmases past. The trick with any color is to use it in such a way that it compliments your story. Sometimes, you have to find a way to get around color stereotypes.
Let’s explore how we can break one of the color stereotypes. We’ll use red and green, however, once we are through, no one will ever think to associate the layout with the holidays.
Supplies
Scrapbooking paper and embellishments
Photos
Adhesive
Cardstock
Step One Choose your photos and then base your color palette around them. I chose photos of my son feeding birds at the zoo. I used red and green plus other colors present in the bird feathers.
Step Two Create a mini kit based on your color palette. Choose motifs, patterns or textures to support your story. When my son fed these birds, some were nice to him while other were naughty. This gives me the opportunity to perhaps use some holiday themed embellishments in a non-traditional manner. When it comes to using supplies by color, any embellishment can be fair game. It may simply be a manner of slightly altering it to fit a particular set of photos.
As you create your layout, be open to adding or removing from the mini kit that you have created. You may find that some selections work while others do not. Remember not to get hung up on having to use the exact shade of each color in the palette.
Step Three Most layouts begin by determining photo placement. Once that is done, you can get an idea as to where the other elements can be placed. Select which quantities of each color you will be using. When using color combinations that tends to have an associated meaning, use them in smaller quantities. Referring to the gallon, quart, pint rule, I chose to use a gallon of blue, a quart of red/green and a pint of yellow-green.
Pay attention to the flow of your layout. The bag and the red feather create a diagonal movement, reminding me of feathers floating to the ground. I can continue this by adding more elements to support the diagonal movement across the layout.
I used UTEE, Versmark Ink and a stamp to create the first layer on my layout. In some cases, colorful embellishing might become distracting. Using tone on tone effects is a subtle way to add texture to any layout without overwhelming it.
Step Four Begin layering upward. Adhere your photos and base papers.
Step Five Polish your layout with finishing touches. Don’t be afraid to tuck items partially over or under other elements. Pay attention to where you are placing each color of object. Look for opportunities to create visual triangles using the smaller portions of color. I created two visual triangles with the neutral brown elements and the light green elements. Neutral elements are always easy to use. They can add dimension without making the layout too busy.
It’s easy to alter an embellishment to suit your needs. Use paint, stickers, jewels or any small embellishments to alter the look of the object. In this case I chose to alter this “No Peeking” sticker.
I trimmed some tiny type letters and covered up specific letters to change the saying to “No Pecking.” If you don’t have tiny type letters, you can make your own using scrap cardstock and a pen.
I was able to use some of the holiday gift tag stickers as flags for my handmade feathers. They were perfect just as they were for the theme of my layout.
Breaking a color stereotype is easier than you think. Add some unexpected colors to the palette to break the traditional color associations. Use the traditional colors in smaller amounts. Add embellishments or pattern papers that support your story rather than the traditional color association. Breaking color associations can also help you use seasonal items in new ways. Once you stat breaking color stereotypes, you may never look at your supplies the same way ever again.
Some Birds Were Nice, Others Not so Much! By Christy Strickler Supplies Cardstock: Colorbok; Patterned Paper, Tape,Transparency, Bag: Webster’s Pages; Letters: Sassafrass, My Little Shoebox; Buttons: Basic Grey; Stickers: Crate Paper, October Afternoon; Microbeads: American Crafts; Stick Pin: My Mind’s Eye; Embossing Powder: Ranger/UTEE; Stamp: handcarved; Stencil: JBS Mercantile; Other: glass beads, quilt pins
Related articles
