Add Some Summer to Your Scrapbooks

This post is from design team member and contributing writer Jean Manis.

Scrapbook stores offer a wide selection of fun and colorful accents for summer-themed layouts to both traditional and digital scrappers. This article focuses on three specific accents that have caught my attention while looking for supplies and for inspiration in online galleries and magazines: yellow alpha for titles, bunting (aka pennants), and bicycles.

Some kits offer both bunting and bicycles, but I’ve yet to find a kit that offers all three. Similarly, I found layouts with two of the three elements but not all. Maybe that’s a challenge I’ll give myself  – to include all three in a layout!

Summer-themed layouts are almost synonymous with color, in large part because the photos often feature outdoor photos with colorful clothing or colorful toys, so it’s important to balance your layout in some manner.

• Consider a kraft paper background paper to provide a little quiet for colorful photos and patterned papers.
• Use a photo editing program to convert color photos to black and white or desaturate them so that the photos don’t compete with the brightly colored papers and accents.
• Remember that a few accents can provide a powerful punch, especially if those accents are brightly colored.

Traditional Products

Yellow Macaw Glitter Margarita Thicker Stickers by American Crafts
Upper-case, glitter, dimensional letter stickers.

Lemon Expressions Cushies Foam Alphabets By Pink Paislee
Italicized, lower-case foam dimensional letter stickers.

Fundamentals 100 Days Of Summer 12X12 Cardstock Stickers by Simple Stories
Sticker set includes banner pieces, tickets, borders, a bike and other summer-themed elements.

5 & Dime Collection 8×12 Printed Chipboard Shapes by October Afternoon
Chipboard sticker set includes rounded banner sections, a bike and other summer items.

Cruising Through Life Clear Stamps by Lawn Fawn
Clear stamp set includes a bike, several sentiments and additional summer elements.

Blossom Soup Collection – 12 x 12 Double Sided Paper – Anejo Cheese by Jillibean Soup
Patterned paper features a repeating pattern of bikes in several colors on one side and a red, polka-dot pattern on the back.

Digital Products

Love Punch Drunk: Alphabet by Tickled Pink Studio
Digital alpha set features lower-case, italicized letters and numbers in six colors.

For the Love of Banners by Dani Mogstad
Digital banner template makes it possible to create a banner out of any digital papers.

Simple Starts Kit 1 – The Elements by Jen Martakis
Digital element set includes rounded and pointed banners, as well as labels, frames and alphas.

Posie Bunting by Michelle Underwood
Digital banner set includes multiple shapes, colors and patterns.

Bikes and Trikes – Elements by Dream Big Designs
Element set with bike, trike and skateboard well-suited for boy layouts.

Bike Season Full Kit By Baersgarten
Multi-colored, digital kit includes solid and patterned papers, an alpha, as well as bikes, banners, labels, pinwheels and more.

Traditional Layouts

Story Time by gluestickgirl

Girly As It Gets by stidwell

Happy Feet by MandyMK

This is Me Right Now by hyperstarre

Beautiful Day by reneezwirek

Digital Layouts

New Wheels by js_74

Fresh by mrsski07

TT7 – Easy Rider by LinAlexHag

Never Forget – 3 Kits 3 Ways by mymalloryboys

das erste Fahrrad by Marlen