Create Forum Discussion: June 22-28: Solid Backgrounds

[Tiff]

Welcome to this week's creative scrapping discussion! This is a place where we can talk about the process of scrapbooking, and share ideas, layouts, suggestions and support. Please note that this is a commercial-free zone. Please do not link or share stores, kits, or websites to promote the purchase of any product. Links to tutorials or helps are welcome, but if they require a subscription or purchase, then they are a no-no.

Feel free to link to a layout, or insert an image. Remember that links take people elsewhere, and sometimes it's hard to get them back, so inserting your images is preferred.

Let's be kind and supportive, but if help is requested, let's share generously. Opinions valued!

[Tiff]

The topic this week is: Solid Backgrounds. I'm particularly interested in white backgrounds, but because that might be a little too restrictive, I thought I'd broaden the topic to all solid papers, including textured cardstock and kraft paper.

Do you tend to use solids as your background papers? If you do, what percentage of your layouts use solid backgrounds (instead of patterns)? Do you think solids are easier to work with, especially as a background paper? Or are solids too boring for you? Do solids work well for decorating a page with paper pieces, or is that more the realm of patterned papers? Are solids, in general, as expressive as patterned papers?

Do you ever use white, or nearly white backgrounds? Have you ever made a layout with a completely solid white background (no texture at all - just a "ffffff" white background)? Do you like the look of such layouts or are they too plain?

Share your thoughts about, and your layouts that use, solid backgrounds!

[JuliaM]

I use solids a good percentage of the time. When I'm looking at kits, I always check to see if there's some good solids and I also have a stash of solid papers to use with kits that don't have them.

I like to blend photos frequently and I find that easiest is when using a solid paper that has a bit of texture to it.

Here are some of my favorite solid background layouts (most with blended photos)

This is a photo of my Dad when he was in the service. It was a smaller photo so, even when I scanned it it was that large. Since I wanted to use it large so that it took up a large part of the layout, that meant blending it in so you couldn't see the flaws when it was enlarged. The solid paper also helped with that as well.


This one uses a nearly white background with a light texture. I then blended one of my photos, that I'd made a monochromatic blue, into it.



This one doesn't use a blended photo but I think that having the solid kraft paper lets the photo stand out.

[stefdesign]

I use either photos for my backgrounds, or a solid color most often. I rarely use patterns, and if I do, it's generally patterns I make myself. I'm away from my computer, so I'll pop back later and add some layouts.

Julia- I adore your layout about your Dad. That would have been a good one for our discussion about texture a few weeks ago!

[DeannaJ]

Julia, I love the layout of your father. It is fantastic.
I love a kit to have solid colored paper. I like to mix the solids with prints. Usually in the backgrounds I'll use a solid or a very small print. If I have any journaling to do, I'll use solid color paper background or a journaling card for the journaling.
well, I just looked through the first 10 pages of my gallery and didn't find any totally white backgrounds. There were a couple of off white ones, but I'm more likely to use color I guess! Lots of time I also use "smudges" in the background-
This layout is one that I used color in my background--but it's plain color.
http://www.digishoptalk.com/gallery/...e=love&cat=500


This is about as WHITE as my backgrounds get!
http://www.digishoptalk.com/gallery/...reamer&cat=500


another one with about as white as I get! http://www.digishoptalk.com/gallery/...racker&cat=500


I do use a lot of BLUE-http://www.digishoptalk.com/gallery/...ch-day&cat=500

Another BLUE background--http://www.digishoptalk.com/gallery/...y-toes&cat=500

[Tiff]

Julia, the blended black and white photo looks so interesting - with the texture of the paper it almost looks transformed into a drawing.

Deanna, I think that's very interesting that you tend to use blue backgrounds. I did find a couple blue backgrounds in my gallery, but they are rare.

On the other hand, I use white a LOT, usually with some texture, like these.




But I also have several with just a plain white background. I think this is a really dramatic technique. I did not think of it myself, but have seen others do it and I have copied. The down-side is that shadows over plain white are often problematic.

[stefdesign]

Here are a few plain backgrounds from me:

This one just uses a burgandy purple background with a little texture:


I use kraft a LOT. I love the way colors look against the brown, and I like the little bit of texture & speckle in the paper.



Here are a couple with pure white backgrounds:

[AliSarah]

I use solids all the time in my scrapping, so yes, I am picky about buying kits that have solids in them. And, I'm careful to always include at least one solid of each color in any kit that I make...

I tend to use solids in journal heavy layouts, it seems.




The only layouts I have that were white or close to white before I started are the ones that end up with the big blended picture in the back, but still sometimes journaling heavy!!




These are the styles of some of my favorite pages though!! I think it's because I don't take a huge volume of pictures very often, but I generally have a lot to say about the pictures I do take!!

Huggles!!
~Sarah~

[msbrad]

I like solids for the bg too. If I use a pattern bg, it will most likely be subtle. I like to blend photos into the background. I like to journal on the bg paper. I'm not a busy bg person.
These are wonderful pages ladies. Deanna, I'm loving your baby pages, since my little one arrives next month.





and this is a subtle bg.


m

[SWJenn]

I use solid backgrounds a lot, I often find that patterns compete with my photos too much. But I will also use very low contrast patterns as you might a solid, so there's some texture without extra colors:


This one, while not technically SOLID, I used as a solid. The grunginess makes it interesting without giving it a pattern to compete, which is why I like it like this.


Love seeing everyone's layouts, especially love all the photo blended into the background layouts!