Article Of The Month
July 2006 - Creating A Vintage Look
I love anything old, like antique furniture or curiosities or vintage fabrics and trimmings. My house is filled with wonderful, unique old treasures!
That’s probably why I love the vintage look in scrapbooking. It appeals to me: The papers that look like antique fabrics, the buttons and flower embellishments. And I love showing people how easy it is to get a vintage look on their pages!
A perfect example of the vintage look, this 8”x8” layout features a contemporary photo turned black and white. Papers from 8”x8” Vintage Papers.
What Do I Mean By “Vintage”?
First, I think it’s important to differentiate between “vintage” and “heritage” pages. Heritage pages always have heritage photos on them—you know, pictures of your great-grandparents, for example. Vintage pages are more versatile. They can either have heritage photos or contemporary ones.
About Vintage Materials
For vintage layout embellishments, think Grandma’s sewing box, like buttons, ribbons and (my favorite) silk flowers, along with tried-and-true embellishments like brads.
Don’t think you have to scour antique stores or flea markets for vintage-era fabrics or embellishments, though! I take the easy route and use supplies that are designed to look vintage instead. The new Flea Market Fabrics sarapapers™ collection and matching Flea Market Fabrics Embellish-abilities™ is a favorite because the papers look like old fabrics, but I know they’re acid-free and photo-safe. The Embellish-abilities™ set gives me silk flowers, buttons, ribbons and gorgeous brads—and the best part is that they perfectly coordinate with the papers. Another favorite is Vintage sarapapers™ and Vintage Embellish-abilities™.
Flea Market Fabrics sarapapers™ and matching Flea Market Fabrics Embellish-abilities™ are two of my newest favorites.
For 8”x8” pages, I love the 8”x8” Vintage Papers—they look great with the Vintage Embellish-abilities™ and they have a gorgeous matching album. Easy!
The papers look like vintage fabrics, soft and well-loved, and the ribbons, buttons, brads and silk flowers add to the vintage feel. Papers from Flea Market Fabrics sarapapers; the embellishments are in the Flea Market Fabrics Embellish-abilities™.
Vintage Techniques
I’ve got some favorite techniques to use to create vintage pages. The best part? They’re all really easy to do. Let’s use my “Samantha” page as an example.
Embellish with flowers & ribbon. Big silk flowers are the perfect embellishment for the vintage trend. Secure them with Glue Dots™ or brads. On the “Samantha” page, I placed a small flower on top of a larger one, then glued them to my page.
Add buttons. I love buttons! They’re flat, colorful and add just the right touch of dimension to my page. Now, you might assume you have to stitch these buttons on, but I never do. Instead, I’ll borrow a trick from my friend Susan and cut a really thin strip of paper, thread it through the buttonholes, then use a Glue Dot™ to attach the button to the page. On this page, I used a Glue Dot™ to attach the button on top of the flowers.
Accent with ribbon. Ribbon is another favorite—grosgrain and sheer ribbons are my favorites. Use them as borders, tie them in bows or wrap them around photos. On my “Samantha” page, I tied a knot in a piece of sheer ribbon, then wrapped it around the upper right corner of the photo, securing the ends around the backside of the photograph. Another piece of sheer ribbon accents the top of my tag.
Accent with brads. Brads come in all sizes nowadays--and they do much more than just attach elements to a page! I love using brads as decorative elements. On this page I used a brad at the top of my tag and two on either side of Samantha’s name. My tip for using brads: I make a small hole through the paper with a 1/16” hole punch or other sharp object, then insert the brad and open up the prongs on the back of the paper. Making the hole first just makes it easier.
My final tip? Because the vintage look features so many different patterns and textures, I usually choose photographs that are clear—not those photos from a crowded birthday party with lots of people and colors, since they tend to have a lot of “visual noise”. Instead, I choose clean, close-up shots or enlarge my photos. If there’s a photo I really want to use but the colors are clashing, I’ll turn it into black and white.
The best reason for experimenting with a vintage style? One of the great things about a creative hobby like scrapbooking is how you can learn and grow and play and experiment. There’s no right or wrong look—the only goal is to enjoy yourself!