Navigating the world of scrapbooking can be intimidating for newbies, especially since new techniques are being introduced on a regular basis. My advice to beginner scrapbookers is to be patient. There’s no shame in easing into your new hobby. Start of with the basics, and then when you are feeling a bit more confident you can experiment with new trends and possibly combine them to create one-of-a-kind layouts.
Lately, I have been experimenting more with black-and-white photography. I love the way colorless photos give page designs a vintage look. However, they can also make a layout look a little blah if you are not careful. To spice up my black-and-white page designs, I’ve been adding journaling blocks printed on vellum and placing them over collages of black-and-white images. It helps further mute the soft shots and adds an artistic touch to the page.
In addition to creating a vintage look, black-and-white photos can add touches of sophistication and elegance to your layouts. To really enhance the old world theme you can combine the color-free photos with timeless embellishments such as buttons, gems and pressed flowers. Also, think about contrast when you are combining black-and-white photos with other scrapbooking techniques, including flocking.
For example, to make your page really pop, strategically place your black-and-white pictures on the paper, then create a large title that you can flock as the key design element. The color contrast will add a dramatic effect. However, if you want to add just a few hints of color, then add colored flocking powder to raw chipboard frames. Your black-and-white images will really stand-out against the colored frames.
Other ways to combine flocking and black-and-white photos is to cover paper flowers with colorful powder and place them discreetly around your layout. My mom recently made an anniversary scrapbook in which she flocked border strips to make them look like ribbon, and then adhered them to the sides of the page. The contrast between the colorful “ribbons” and the black-and-white pictures is stunning.
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