TRAVEL layout by Denise van Deventer

Start by getting a photo that you want to scrap. My photo is 10x15cm. Cut a 30x30cm patterned paper into half i.e. 15x30cm. Cut a piece of corrugated

board to 20x15cm. For the background I have used Canson Mixed Media Watercolour paper. But you could use a thick white cardstock.

I cut this to 29x29cm.

Hand tear all sides of your patterned paper, by about 1 to 1,5cm off, around all sides. Do the same with the corrugated board but leave the

top edge of your corrugated board straight.

To stick your patterned paper onto the cardstock, use strips of double sides tape. This will help for the paper not to bend and buckle once

you apply the gesso and paints. Stick your patterned paper in the middle of your cardstock and about 3cm down from the top edge.

Choose a stencil for your mixed media and get out your Acrylic Gesso and an old credit card or spatula.

Use the credit card to spread a fairly even layer of gesso around the edges of the patterned paper towards the edges of the cardstock on

the top and sides, but only about 5cm down from the bottom edge of the patterned paper and a bit more (+-7cm), towards the right hand

side bottom.

Allow the gesso to dry naturally or dry off with a heat gun. Make sure the gesso is dry before you start with the paints. Place your layout on

a plastic sheet for the watercolouring. Have your paint to hand (Adirondack Ranger Acrylic Paint Denim Blue), a water spritzer, a

paintbrush and some dabbing up paper.

First spray some water over the gesso areas, so that the gesso and paper is just wet. You will see the paper edges start to curl, but don’t

worry, they will settle down again.

Dab some paint with your paintbrush into the water. You don’t need big dollops, just small amounts. Add more water with your spritzer right into the centre of your paint dabs. You will see the paint runs

into the water. Then spritz water again, in and around the gesso parts of your page.

Pick up your page and tilt it in various directions to allow the water and paint to run into the gesso areas. If it runs to a place you don’t

want it to, just dab it up with your carlton towel or toilet paper. Keep adding more water and paint, until you are happy that it covers the gesso and surrounding cardstock. Allow it to dry naturally or use a

heat gun to dry it off.

Once the paint it dry, hand tear along the top and side edges and then at an angle down towards the right hand side of the page. So

that you have something to the effect of the photo above. Leave some cardstock white space around the watercolour edge, as this is the

attractive part and you don’t want to tear that off.

Once again I use strips of double sided tape to stick this down onto the final background, so that if your page has buckled a bit, the strips pull it straight. When sticking it down, pull off a middle strip to start with, position it on the patterned background and stick. Pull off the remaining strips one at a time from the centre out, smoothing from

the centre outwards each time.

Stick your watercolour feature onto the background, as explained in the previous slide. Position it evenly in the middle. Use a paper

distresser to distress the edges of your final patterned background. (the red written paper)

Use a paper distresser to distress the edges of your final patterned

background.

Now use some white acrylic paint and a paintbrush, to whiten up the edges of

the corrugated board.

Allow some strokes to be longer than others, so that you get an uneven edge, as shown above. Allow the paint to dry

or use a heat gun to dry it.

Now the fun begins! This is where you now start adding your photo and

embelishments! ;-)

Sand the edges of your photo with some sandpaper or a sanding block.

Paste your photo onto the corrugated board. I raised my photo with some

foam to give it dimension. Do not stick the photo right to the edges, as you

might want to still place an embellishment underneath the edges of

your photo.

Add stickers and die-cuts alongside the sides of the photo, with their edges

placed just beneath the photo. I used some foam squares to add dimension to

my layers.

I matted some banner stickers on cardstock and then created this banner, with some twine under the stickers. The stickers

are raised with foam squares. The twine is then just rolled round 2 brads, that I altered to flatten their pins and then stuck down with glue dots. The glue dots hold the twine in

place.

Add some random stamping. The chevrons and bottom right cluster stamps are stamped with an acrylic block to give

solid images, unlike the random stamping. For the random stamping just press the stamp with your fingers onto the

page. This does not give a solid image and is uneven, which is exactly the look you want.

Add some more die-cuts or cut out elements, along with flowers and leaves. Layer these so that some are raised and others flat. I added my title “Travel” and also a little line of

journaling.Voila…you have created your layout and are done! ;-)

The end result!

Supplies List• Teresa Collins Now and Then Collection –

Stickers, Papers, Die-Cuts• Canson Mixed Media Watercolour Paper• Cardstock – Bazzill – Green and Light Blue• Stamps1. Prima Cartographer2. Papermania – All Aboard – Postmark3. 7 Gypsies – Par Avion• Flowers1. Petaloo2. Bazill Basics3. Prima• Twine• Brads – My Minds Eye – Lost and Found 1• Stencil – Prima• Acrylic Gesso – Dala• Acrylic Paint – Adirondack Ranger – Denim

Blue