Beginners Mixed Media: Texture from Textiles
To some of us, there is nothing more nerve-wracking than attempting a scrapping style out of your comfort zone or more daunting than a blank canvas with infinite possibilities.
(OK, yes, I’m talking about me personally but I’m sure this applies to others as well!)
So in this blog series, I’m attempting to make Mixed Media less daunting by giving you (and me) some jumping off points. Where to begin with digi – mixed media scrapping? Right here for Mixed Media Beginners!
- Recap & Introduction
As a template scrapper and mixed media beginner, since the start of this blog series, I’ve been adding different elements to my more traditional paper-style digital scrapbook pages. In an effort to add more texture and dimension to my pages I’ve previously experimented with texturised paint and torn paper edges
This month, I’m experimenting with all things textile. From fine stitching and messy threads to thicker crocheted pieces, ribbons and laces as well as pieces of denim or woven fabrics can give an instant textured look to a page. In the real world, these might be heavy and bulky but they are as light as air in PNG form so what you can add is limitless but I still tend to think that if I couldn’t and wouldn’t use something on a paper page, it generally won’t make it on to my digi page. Fabric can be a good stand-in for paper and ribbons for paper strips, so in terms of using traditional templates, these are easy swaps if you are new to mixed media scrapping, and you don’t even have to think about what adhesive to use!
So jumping in…
this month I’ve grabbed Paula Kesselring’s Frayed Fabric Pieces 3 and Gina Miller’s Cider Donuts Elements for the crocheted banner as my starting pieces with Fiddle Dee Dee Designs’ Whispers of Fall {Dressed Down} Templates. I’m also dusting off NBK’s artCrush 34 Paper pack, full of knitted style patterns, as well as [Spoiler alert!] then stash diving into Sahlin Studio’s Kitschy Kitchen collab that has some fun crocheted pieces as well and a retired Mommyish’s Be Creative collab.
So here is my starting point, with my photos dropped in and that crocheted banner and black lace of Gina’s and some fabric pieces from Paula’s pack placed. I love those frayed edges! I added in an extra spot for my portrait orientation supporting close-up photo of her French knitting because I couldn’t get it to look right in the square spot at the bottom and liked the banner running across that area anyway.
To give the supporting photo more weight and contrast against the knitted background paper, I added a stroke and gradient layer, making it fit with the other photos in the template. I placed some more of NBK’s knitted patterned papers, instant texture and cosiness! Given how busy the background instantly became, I deleted the top photo cluster and that square photo spot to simplify the design a little.
Now this is where the layering ramps up! After a quick Windows search of my stash, I came across an oldie but goodie, the Kitschy Kitchen collab by Sahlin Studio & Jennifer Barrette. (It’s still available, here’s a quick preview that shows some of it’s textile goodness).
More crochet pieces, a green velvet bow and floral pieces add more tactile goodness and Cheryl’s gradient edges and folds as well as the shadowing add to the depth and magic!
So about now I’m feeling the need to throw some paint on here (it’s a mixed media staple!) and some blingy and scattery bits. It turned out for me to see them better, a different NBK knit patterned background was required. (I love that I can switch backgrounds on a whim like this in digiscrapping and no ‘real’ paper was destroyed at all or really any time lost in the process!) I switched the big circle paper piece too (the green scallop pattern paper is from Kitschy Kitchen) and it definitely brightened things up a little and made the focus the colour in my main photos again and I love the ‘ugly sweater’ design! The paint and newsprint strip are from Cider Donuts.
At this point, while trying to figure out a title and find some wordart, I searched my stash and found a retired Mommyish’s Be Creative collab with Sabrina’s Creations and went on another element adding binge. What better time to add a tassel than with a textile themed page?
The ‘Creativity blooms from within’ wordart from that collab tied the wool and florals all together and the journey that this page became came to a close. Good thing I enjoy the process and it was fun to dig through my stash again. Tucked in some yellow bits because… why not? They picked up the yellow in the Kitschy Kitchen floral sticker and brought the eye down to the title and supporting photo area. I don’t know if it really needed anything else but I threw in some more lace as a border at the top and some more curly thread with the green button too.
So, ta-da! (Oh finally! I hear you thinking). Here’s the final page. See you next month!
