How To: Mix Patterned Papers

Let's mix it up in today's video ... 

Mixing patterns can be such fun if you understand a few tricks. The same guidelines apply to clothes, decorating your home and art. And the tips aren't hard. 

1. Find your inspiration paper with color and a large pattern
2. Isolate the colors
3. Find papers with those colors and smaller or geometric prints
4. To build out further, find another inspiration piece that contains another color (or two)
5. Repeat steps 2 and 3!

Use the papers for art journal pages. I love using them as borders around a page or box that will contain some writing. You can use these papers for layers on cards. Sew or weave the scraps together and create tags or ATC's. Include some hand painted papers in the mix for a more personal look.

If you don't have paper pads, you may have a failed painting (or at least I do ;) Cut it up and use it as your inspiration. Pull old book pages, gelli prints, leftover stencils bits. Use What You Have this weekend and play with paper. 

Comments

[Mary W.]

Love this and the experimentation and the build on the hand painted sumi-e is beautiful . And this palette speaks to me right now - enjoying summer and yet also looking ahead to gold, tomato, olive and green so dark it's almost black. Something just feels so expressive about this palette and has me thinking of late summer, walking the dog in barely starry evenings and crunching just a few gold leaves under our feet while there are still bright green leaves on the trees.

I know I would never have had the wheels in my head thinking about how to create metallic yellow and green leaves using paper a year ago - I'm so glad you are my teacher. Thanks again as always for the inspiration and encouragement, Diana!

[Sharon Field]

Even though I have an arsenal of patterned paper to use when I make my cards, I still struggle to pick "just the right ones". Thanks for the video....it gave me some different ways to look at how I combine my papers (not so matchy matchy, if youknow what I mean. Keep these videos coming...........I so enjoy them!

[Diana Trout]

Wow. You are wonderful writer! Beautiful to read. and thank you, as always. Inspiration circles :)

[Diana Trout]

Thanks Sharon. This is an area that gives a lot of folks trouble. Plus, we hoard our favorites :)