In My World: Close To My Heart ~ Scrapbooking with Fresh Paint Made Easy!

Friday, May 27, 2022

Close To My Heart ~ Scrapbooking with Fresh Paint Made Easy!

Scrapbooking with Fresh Paint Made Easy!

Ever notice that trends tend to repeat themselves, every 20–30 years? Like a blast from the past, the Fresh Paint collection, one of our newest paper collections found in our current catalog, delivers nostalgic 90’s themes that have reclaimed a place in today’s world. As memory keepers, we know all about revisiting the past, so it makes perfect sense to embrace these trends when it comes to designing and creating a place to preserve our memories–old and new!

Let’s take a fresh look at these new “old” designs from the Fresh Paint collection, and look at a few different ways to use them to make timeless scrapbook pages!

As a jumping off point for scrapbook pages, we offer a scrapbooking workshop kit as part of each of our collections. These use the same patterned papers, and often embellishments from the suite, along with additional coordinating exclusive products to create three two-page 12″ x 12″ layouts.

What’s great about these kits, including the Fresh Paint scrapbooking workshop kit, is that they come with everything you need to replicate artwork that was already designed with the themes and patterns of the collection in mind. The included instructions are easy to follow, but loose enough to leave room for your own ideas, too. You can follow them exactly or mix it up by going off-script, re-arranging pieces, and embellishing with stickers and die-cuts as you please. And, if you have more photos than fit in the layout, there are simple solutions for adding them!

The above layout is one of the three layouts from the Fresh Paint scrapbooking workshop. Our Creative Arts Manager, Karen Pedersen, used it to scrapbook one of her recent family gatherings. Karen loves to take photos of her family, so naturally she had more than what was allotted on the pages of the layout. To include all of her photos in her scrapbook and within this layout, Karen added a couple of different sized Pocket Plus™ Memory Protectors™. These extra pockets, combined with a few ready-to-go Picture My Life™ pocket cards (just another coordinating piece of the Fresh Paint collection, of course!), made including the additional photos a cinch!

Going beyond the workshop, you’ll find another Fresh Paint scrapbook layout idea right on the opening page for the collection in our catalog (it’s so full of ideas!). for each collection, this opening page usually features a single 12″ x 12″ scrapbook page. Take inspiration from this page (or copy it entirely) to start another two-page layout. A 12″ x 12″ pocket page put together with the coordinating pocket cards is an easy way to add a second page that fits with a single page design. In addition to coming ready with coordinating designs, Picture My Life™ cards are also ideal for journaling that slips right into a pocket!

Another easy way to create a two-page layout with this collection is with the ready-made designed elements from the Fresh Paint Digital Art Collection. This is a collection of SVG files that can be used in a digital design application, like Cricut Design Space™, where the images can be manipulated to get just the look you want. You can use the design as-is, or you can resize pieces, remove layers, add new elements, etc. If 12″ x 12″ is not your vibe, then SVGs are a great tool because you can even resize the images to fit a different size format. You can then cut the pieces using your personal cutting machine and your choice of papers. The layout below is one that we cut exactly as it was included in the Digital Art collection, making it a perfect home for memories from a fun friends trip to New York City!

If you’re more open to designing your own scrapbook pages, make use of the Fresh Paint—Scrapbooking Stamp + Thin Cuts! The sentiments and icons on this set of stamps and dies work seamlessly with the Fresh Paint papers, stickers, acrylic shapes, and pocket cards!

However you decide to use the Fresh Paint collection, there is so much potential to document your favorite memories using these nostalgic themes! What stories will you tell with this collection? We love hearing from you, so leave us a comment below and let us know!