Principles of Design In Scrapbooking
June 4, 2008 4:37 pm Paper Crafts, Scrapbooking, Techniques and Mediums, Trends
Once you have a grasp of the elements of design you need to apply the elements to your scrapbooking pages. This process is made easier when you understand the principles of design. Don’t let the fancy wording intimidate you. As a child, you learned to tie your shoes by breaking the process down into steps and then using each step to form a finish bow that kept your shoes from falling off. Today, you just tie your shoes without much thought. The principles of design can become that easy too. Four principles that are useful to scrapbooking are
- Contrast
- Proportion
- Balance
- Harmony
Contrast And Proportion
Some contrast must be used on your scrapbook page so that all the parts don’t blend into each other. You are not really emphasizing one part over another, but helping guide the eye through the page so nothing is missed. Often your photo lends to this principal. Let the photo stand out from the title, captions or journaling. The eye first focuses on the photo and then slide down to read the caption. Contrast can be achieved by combining different sizes, shapes, lines or colors. Contrast isn’t meant to distract the eye, but guide it from one element to another on your scrapbook page.
Proportion is the relationship between the size of your photos, memorabilia and journaling and how each is placed on the background paper. Shapes can also play a role. Proportion can be balanced with contrast or unity.
Balance
Balance means to equalize the weight of the elements of design. A formal balance would mean that all the parts of your scrapbook page are of equal weight and are placed symmetrically. Informal balance can be achieved when you vary the value, shape, size and location of your scrapbook parts often creating an asymmetrical design.
Harmony
Harmony or unity gives the sense of all the elements belonging or working together. Your scrapbook page should be viewed or seen, as a whole not just parts thrown on a page. This can be done by not overwhelming a page with too many shapes, lines, colors or textures. Too busy means there is no harmony.
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