Articles : Creative Team Digi Reveals

Monochromatic

Just One Color - Baby!!

A monochromatic layout utilizes one main color and its various hues.

You ask:  "Why in the world would anyone scrapbook with a monochromatic color scheme?  Isn't the result overly simple and rather boring?? "

Oh Contraire!

A monochromatic color scheme can help draw attention to one or two key details in pictures or elements, it can help emphasize the mood of the layout, it can anchor a busy picture, and it can offer a minimalistic approach.  However, working with one color can present quite a challenge.  A few ideas to remember are:

• Use several hues of the color to create contrast
• Be sure  text does not blend making it hard to read
• Break up the color by using neutral colors like black and white
• Don't forget that texture and patterns can add contrast too
• It is okay to add a smidgen of another color

The digi CT had a fun time making a "rainbow" with our different color choices!!

Jessa (JustJessa), September's guest CT Member, is too cute and clever!!  She not only made a monochromatic layout but a matching title to go with it!  She says, "I really liked this kit with the cream colors so I altered my photos to fit the page. I colored the photos a light brown color."

Karin (mayerkt) says "I decided to go with a monochromatic green scheme in order to make the main subject of the photos (Liam, in his adorable little hat) pop out more against the green grass."  Matching the color scheme to the background of the picture(s) is a technique called negative emphasis.

Jennifer (sarahwithers) creatively repeated the color arrangement in her pictures with the black border behind the dominant blue.  A very impressive way to add depth to a two-dimensional page!

" Why Orange?" Sara (Keling) says.  "Don't ask me - I just thought I'd challenge myself! But it seems to work well with the greens of the photo."  Notice how, with the corrugated cardboard and the metal star, she adds bits of neutral color to break up the orange.

 "It's all about monochromatic LO's for this week's reveal...well I choose pink because...well it is my FAVORITE color and it just so happened Abby and I were wearing pink on this day!!!" Angie (nun69) says.  The texture of the crocheted doily and the ribbon draw the eye right to the picture cluster.

 Sarah (davsar) says, "Usually with a monochromatic page, I find the perfect element but in the wrong color. So I do a lot of re-coloring - one of the sweet things about digi scrapbooking !"  Making the text red ensured its readability.

 Remember how Karin used negative emphasis on her layout; here, Laura (Art_Teacher) uses the opposite technique, positive emphasis.  She matches her color with the subject of her pictures to create harmony throughout the page.  She says, "I chose red for my favorite OSU Buckeyes, and it was perfect for photos of my dh picking buckeyes off our tree."

 Ronny (Smiley-Scrap8) explains her approach: "This weeks reveal is all about using a monochromatic color scheme your layouts, which really lends itself well to digital scrapbooking because it is so easy to re-color paper and elements. I chose purple for my color because other than my dh's shirt there was not much purple in my photos so it really helped them pop off the page. The purple also helped with the feeling of the page, "peaceful.""

"It was fun to do, and I stretched my skills because, for me, working with grey isn't easy " says Annelies (annelies1972).  She made her picture b/w to make an overall monochromatic page.

Janell (janello) shows us how a monochromatic color scheme heightens the feel of the layout - in this case - happiness!  "I chose to scrap my monochromatic layout in yellow to bring out the fun bright fall flowers. I recolored many of the elements and most of the alphabet letters to get the perfect shade of yellow that I was looking for."

 Using red, Shannon (-Shannon-) creates a romantic background for this beautiful wedding picture.  A combination of the textural paper and the blended hues, along with the larger picture, makes this simple page stunning!

"I choose to use purple because not only is it my favorite color, it is a color not often seen on layouts, especially all by itself. It was a challenge working with all one color but I think using a monochromatic theme allows the viewer to really spend some time taking in every part of the layout, without the eyes being distracted by contrasting colors across a layout," states Kristi (MamaK321).

"This week's digital reveal for ACOT's Digital Creative Team was to use MONOCHROMATIC color schemes.  I took this on as a challenge to myself as I normally do not scrap using this style.  It was great being able to mix and match different papers and elements from different designers' kits to come up with this layout.  The frog on the right hand side of the layout is one that is from the water garden in my back yard.  Everything else is digital (elements and papers)!  I did a take on kissing a frog and turning into a prince and using the lyrics from Walt Disney's Snow White, Some Day My Prince Will Come," says Egle (FairyMouseMom).

 Here are a few of the kits used in the showcased layouts:

About the author ...
Sarah (davsar) started scrapbooking in 2005 and shortly thereafter found A Cherry on Top, her scrapbooking haven. In May of 2007, during a crop, she discovered digital scrapbooking which took her obsession to a whole new level. Challenges and new techniques drive her hobby while her family inspires her work. She is in love with David, her husband of seven years, and her two boys, Brennan and Connor.

Published on 09/25/2009.