Scrapbooking Design Tip: Creating Themed Designs

Incorporating the theme of the layout into the design has been something I have always turned to when creating layouts. I love finding ways to really enhance the theme and create custom elements to go with that theme.

On this layout about Jackson opening his presents at his first birthday party, I included two different design elements to go with the theme.

The first is the square background piece. Instead of having just a simple square, I turned it into a present by adding some strips and some bakers twine in a bow.

Background pieces like this square can easily turn into themed elements with just a little bit of imagination. Here are a few examples and ideas:

• a TV screen

• an aquarium

• a chalkboard

• a sunburst

• a pumpkin

• a big spider web

• a Christmas present

• a Christmas ornament

• your country's flag

• a large quote

• an exploding firework

You could also turn a background piece into a scene like:

• grass and flowers with clouds and the sun

• mountains along the bottom with the sky at the top

• outer space

• waves and fish at the bottom with the sky at the top

• cars and trucks driving along the bottom with the sky at the top

• cities or house along the bottom with the sky at the top

• Easter eggs hidden in the grass

The second thing I customized to my theme are the strips. Instead of using plain vertical strips, I turned them into birthday candles. Doing this was super easy too! I just added a circle for the flame at the top of each strips. Some of theme have a little stitching too for extra detail and texture.

I love swapping out regular strips for themed strips! There are so many different themes you can play around with for this idea! Here are a few examples:

• surf boards

• flowers with stems

• test tubes

• fireworks shooting into the air

• hanging ornaments

• falling leaves

• falling snowflakes

• arrows

• spiders dropping down from a web

• wooden planks

• a fence

• boat oars

It's easy to use pre-made themed embellishments, but I challenge you to try creating some themed elements that incorporate into your design sometime! It's fun and to me, it's almost like a creative brain exercise, making myself dip into my imagination.

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