Polly Picks: Scrap like Angela Toucan Challenge

Welcome to the next edition of our newly revamped Polly Picks series, where each month we will chat with one of our Pollys about their scrapbooking style and fave things and give you the chance to win a $5 code for the store just by scrapping like them.

Before we jump into the October Challenge, let me announce the random winner from our September challenge – big congrats to mmbstaley (You’re prize will be sent shortly through conversations so watch out for that this week!)

This month we are featuring AngelaToucan. Angela is well known around the Pad for her family centric pages, creativity in Art Journalling, her personal shopper and gallery comment prowess, on top of useful advice and tutorials using Affinity software. Her full gallery is here but I’ll link some specific pages below when we get to the challenge part She is prolific in many styles from photo heavy, grid style pages through to freestyle photoless pages that always artistic an feel full of meaning and memory.

Let’s get find out more about Angela’s scrapping from her with an interview. Here’s my Scrap Like A Polly Q&A with AngelaToucan.

Your digiscrapping history and style:
1. How long have you been digiscrapping and has your style changed since then?

I’ve been digiscrapping for about 19 years. I started out fairly graphical with basic simple page design and very few elements. Since then I have learnt a heck of a lot. My earliest pages didn’t even have any shadows and now I’m using shadows all the time and even advanced shadows on some occasions. I’m still learning new skills thanks to being part of this amazing community. I’m regularly experimenting and trying new things. I use many different techniques depending on the story I want to tell. It’s all about the story after all.

Your page focus and process:
2.What do your layouts usually focus on and how do you usually start a page?
My focus is nearly always the story I want to tell. If I don’t have any photos I like to start with a notebook to make it look like a diary entry. If I have photos I start but selecting a template with the right number of photo spots, and then I search out my kit(s). When I’m choosing titles for pages for my children I like to think about their personality and character. I keep a little note of quotes with things they said that struck me as funny or were particularly representative of them. Sometimes those quotes become my page titles, or the inspiration for the way I scrap a family adventure page.

Your must-have products:
3. Is there a specific type or category of element you must have on a layout?
I am particularly fond of buttons. If a kit doesn’t contain any I have all of Lynn’s simply button packs and choose some of those the match with my colour scheme.
I also like to have coloured frames, or coloured photo mats. I like that much better than a white outline.

4. Are you most drawn to patterned papers or solids for backgrounds?
I love to use patterned backgrounds when I can. For fuller pages I’ll wither pick a fine print or a textured solid.

Examples of your gallery faves:
5. Can you share 3 fave pages with us and tell us a bit about why you love them? Only 3 – this is going to be tricky.

I love how pretty this one turned out and it always makes me smile bringing back fond memories. I forget how many times we revisited these gardens so the children could water them. My youngest would continue for ages after the others got bored and went to play in the trees with daddy.

This page uses my daughter’s words as the title and tells a story around how special that moment was.

This is just one of my absolute favourite photos.

Thanks Angela.

Now it’s your turn to Scrap Like A Polly!

Just scrap a new page using the ingredients listed below that channel the featured Polly’s style and upload your page to the TLP gallery, (remember to use the PollyPicks tag in the tag field) and come back here and post the link to your page in the comments please.

These pages helped me come up with the ingredient list below and my own AngelaToucan style layout.

Angela can work within multiple styles. She is both a maximalist fill the page pocket scrapper and a more minimalist and artsy scrapper but given last month’s more pocket style feature was Lynnette, I’ve pulled more of the artsy pages here but they still represent Angela’s more eclectic style. There are some more linear, boxy looking pages but also many that have more organic lines and flow. Some include dominant wordart and some have small wordstrips and no obvious title work. They do share the artsy look, using mostly muted and mottled tones with textures, brushwork or masking and small elements to support the images on the page that generally include people or activities.

Following on from that, these are the ingredients you need to scrap like Angela:

• Start with an artsy or patterned background paper
  • Mottled colours rather than straight solids, pre-painted papers and textured finishes or small patterns are all good choices
• The focal point or photos on your page should include at least one animal or person
  • this can be in the form of photo/s or an artdoll or sketch so it could be a photoless or Art Journal layout
• Use muted colours or pastel tones to let the photos or sketch stand out in contrast
• Use a frame or mat for at least 1 photo/ sketch on your layout
• Include a mask or stamping/brush work
• Decorate with small elements and include flower/s or foliage

Let me show you some currently available goodies that suit scrapping in Angela’s style

This is the page I created in Angela’s style. I’ve used an artsy template initially called The Lens by Lynn Grieveson and used the frames and brushwork as the basis for my page, enlarging it and shifting the cluster to add a panorama shot at the bottom. I used the white painted horizontal section on an artsy purpley background paper from Lynn’s Feuilles paper pack (that I blended with a red-dish solid) to create a selection and mask the photo and the blue paint layers from the template to blend and manipulate colour in that photo. I’ve used a more intense pop of colour in the brushwork & flower placement to highlight the photo that includes me and my son. I have extras from ninigoesdigi’s City Strolls elements and the TLP collab, Lost to bring in extra subtle stamped foliage on the edges.

Now it’s your turn! You have from now until the next Polly Picks post in the last week of November to scrap like AngelaToucan using the ingredient list above. Feel free to use products from any designer currently selling in the TLP store and add anything extra to the ingredients to make your layout. Don’t forget to link me to your page in the comments or in the October Scrap Like a Polly forum thread for your chance to go in the random draw to win.

The deadline is 24 November. Can’t wait to see what you create.