Sometimes all it takes it the right accent for a project to come together. The layout above is a perfect example.
I had put the majority of the layout together several weeks ago, but I felt that there was something missing. So I put it aside on my desk where I could still see it as I went along working on other things. Often times something I’m using in one project will spark an idea for another. I was hoping to have that happen with this one.
As luck would have it, I had a pile of stencils that I’d used waiting to be put away. Somehow they ended up tossed onto this layout and it was like a lightbulb went off in my head. That’s exactly what I needed — something to the left of the photo block with a round shape to balance out the other elements.
Looking through my cut files, I’d found a circular target shape I thought would work – but what color should it be? Black is the color I usually reach for, but this layout was grey, cream and gold. Not to mention the darkest part of the patterned paper was more of a deep navy. In the birds there was a bit of a lighter blue, yellow and orange.
How do you pick the right accent color?
A good way is to try small pieces of the paper or color with your layout. Since I wanted to test out the shape, I cut both a black and a blue one and tried them out by sliding them underneath the photo blocks. The black wasn’t right. I didn’t like the blue because I’d already had three big colors in the layout.
My next choice was something more neutral. I recut the shapes from a manilla and kraft tag. The kraft tag really didn’t work with the gold accents, however I already had a small manilla accent on the layout — an arrow. Repeating this paper was the optimal choice.
Now, to adhere my accent I grabbed my trusty and well-loved bottle of the Best Glue Ever and applied a few very small drops of glue – two in the middle and one on the end of each spoke.
Notice how I cut the edge? Since I was tucking this accent behind something else I could trim off the part that was going to hidden and now I’ve got an accent for another project.
