When I started my craft journey, I began as a rubber art stamper. I love getting messy and trying new techniques. There’s something about trying to achieve a certain look visually that’s so rewarding. When I started scrapbooking, I brought that love with me. But at the time, techniques were not very popular in the scrapbooking world. Paper piecing, yes. Alcohol inks on embossing? Not so much.
Alcohol ink on clear embossing. Ahead of my time!
Nowadays, scrapbooking trends have embraced the technique laden page. Misting? A must-have. Paint? Sure, why not? Stencils and masks? Yes, please! Turning scrapbooks into Art Journals? Simply inspiring.
Sometimes, these techniques can also be intimidating. Once again that fear of “ruining” a page rears its ugly head. The thing is, it’s only paper that gets ruined. The memory, the story? You still have that inside you, ready to be told.
There are some great classes out there to help you get over the fear, and help you embrace your creative side. I’ve taken some wonderful classes through Lain Ehmann’s True Scrap events, and they have definitely helped me broaden my horizons, technique wise.
Nic Howard’s Touch Me! All About Texture was so much fun! Nic is the master at layering, clustering, and adding interesting textures, both physically and visually. Her class gave me the confidence to create pages outside my comfort zone, with lots of embellishments and techniques.
Julie Fei-Fan Balzer’s Dirty Fingers, Clean Design class is a treasure trove of messy techniques. Paint, misting, stencils, and hand carved stamps all make their way into her class, and onto the pages she creates. I have had so much fun making pages using these techniques.
Erin Basset’s Art Journaling 101 class is a visual treat, with a ramble through her art journals, and a demonstration of how she creates a page. I haven’t finished the art project she inspired, but as soon as I find a book or two that I won’t feel guilty about destroying, I’ll be playing with the techniques she demonstrates.
Still nervous about techniques? I’ll show you some of the pages I made based on these classes later this week.
These classes will help you find the confidence to play with art supplies. Want to check out the quality of the classes before buying any? There’s a new technique class coming up this week, and it’s free!
Lain Ehmann dug out her templates, masks and stencils, and made them work triple duty! I’ll be taking this class on Thursday, and adding the techniques Lain demonstrates to my repertoire. Join me? It’s free, and will be a great way for you to test drive the True Scrap class environment.