Summer Magic / Paige Evans DT

Happy Friday, friends!  I'm here today with my first layout for the Paige Evans Design Team using Paige’s new Truly Grateful collection…woo hoo! It’s completely gorgeous and it has so many possibilities. I decided to scrap a pool photo and make a summer page. I used Paige’s Fish Background cut file as well as her Polka Dots stencil.

I was instantly inspired by those cute fish so I began by cutting the design on my Silhouette Cameo 3 using textured white cardstock. I used papers from the 6x8 Paper Pad and a few loose sheets to back all the fish. I created the textured background on smooth white cardstock. I coated the entire sheet with clear gesso first. I wanted to create some fishy “bubbles,” and the Polka Dots stencil was perfect for that. I scraped modeling paste over it and let it dry. Then I sprayed a few different shades of blue inks over the entire page. I spritzed it all with water and let the colors run and blend together. To make the bubbles pop even more, I smudged white acrylic paint over them using a foam blending tool. I popped the entire cut file up off the page by adding adhesive foam under it.

I mixed and matched a simple title using the Epoxy Stickers. I wanted something small and white to mix with it, so I pulled out the Pick-Me-Up Mini Foam Thickers. I also fussy cut a few small suns out from Paper 14 and tucked them in around the layout.

I went light on extra embellishments since the fish were plenty beautiful on their own. I added one Sticker below the photo. I also tucked in coordinating colors of thread in a few places for even more texture. For a final detail, I added some sequins from the Mixed Embellishments.

I was so pleased with how the texture turned out here.  I think popping the fish up off the page really makes a big difference.  Another way to add dimension is to overlap things over the edges of the photo, like the fish tail here.

I had a bit of trouble with my journaling.  I didn't really have any smooth area to write...the struggles of a mixed media background (haha).  This spot here was smooth, so I tried using my white jelly pen.  It didn't show up very well, so I used a pink pen instead.

I fussy cut this sentiment from one of the Truly Grateful 2x2 Paper Pads.  I didn't want to use a bunch of die cuts or anything big since the fish were plenty big.  I didn't want to cover up the blue water, either.  So this was perfect since it was small.

I hope this inspires you to get your hands on the Truly Grateful collection! It’s so beautiful and I really loved making a summer layout with it. I have a process video here if you’d like to see all the details of this layout.

Thanks so much for stopping by, and have a great weekend!