Announcing a New Series on Simplicity: Get Inspired by...

Many of my readers have said they feel lost and intimidated when faced with inspiration challenges. How in the world can that purse or pillow or a photo of the Grand Canyon be the springboard for a card?!?! My hope is that this new series of posts on Simplicity will help replace those lost and intimidated feelings with confidence!

The first in the series is Get Inspired by Packaging. For the next few days, I'm going to post cards inspired by the cover of Take Ten Winter 2011, which shows some simply gorgeous packaging designs by Vanessa Spencer.

My goal was to convert these fabulous examples of clean-and-simple packaging into cards. The results are a variety of different layouts, some of which echo the packaging very straightforwardly and some of which go veering off in slightly different directions.

My point in showcasing this particular Take Ten cover is to demonstrate how one type of papercrafting project can inspire others. Plus, it's a pretty easy CAS inspiration to start with. We'll move onto more challenging inspirations (such as modern art and the Nabisco logo and that really cool table cloth at Target) as we go!

My first example hearkens to the packaging in the very back of the cover photo...the one with the baker's twine crossed in the center with an oval label covering the intersection.

Design Thoughts: It would be tough to thread the baker's twine through the fold in the card (not impossible, just tough), so I took a rectangle of kraft and wrapped it like the inspiration package and popped it up on a kraft card base. Instead of using an image on the oval as the packaging does, I added a sentiment, which allows me to give a distinct purpose and focus to the card.

Those of you who have die-cut machines and some fab label dies (and stamps to match!) will find this particular design quite easy. I just used one of my SU oval punches and to keep it simple, didn't mat it with the larger oval punch. The white card stock pops right off the kraft and allows a tiny little sentiment to be the main focal point of the card. Your eye can't NOT look at the sentiment, can it?

Here's a beautiful example of using a great design fairly literally. Tomorrow, we'll take a look at an example of varying a layout a bit more!

Note: I have family visiting from out of state this week, so postings after today may be a bit sporadic, as will be replies to questions. If I don't answer a question by the end of next week, please ask me again...it will have just fallen off my radar scope!!!!