Hey there, friends!  Missy back with you today.  I have two fun layouts to share, and I used the Life in Color collection for both of them.  I love the mix of black with all the bright reds, yellows and teals, and my first page shows how using black cardstock as a background really makes those bright colors pop.  I love scrapping everyday moments, and these photos are of my daughter and her Papa.  She has always loved for him to swing her around, and she just laughs and wants him to keep doing it.  These simple things are such a joy to watch!  I began by using an old gift card to smudge some light blue acrylic paint on the black cardstock.  It made a nice base for my photos and paper frames.  It also added another pop of that gorgeous blue!  You can see how the dark background really enhances the colors.

To create the word “snapshots,” I used lots of the Washi Paper Tape.  I adhered strips all the way across a sheet of white cardstock and then ran it through my Cameo.  It cut right through the paper and the tape.  I love how it turned out!  I paired this muli-colored and multi-patterned title with some of the smaller alpha stickers and some fussy cut letters that I cut from patterned paper.  I stitched through them with my sewing machine for added interest and texture.

I also added in lots of tangled thread and used a few die cuts as well.  I fussy cut this cute frame with the camera from patterned paper and added a brad to the center.  The floral die cuts look so cute layered with the paint strokes.

Here you can see how cool the paint looks on the background.  I added a bit more interest with some stitching.  The great thing about using a card to smudge paint is that it dries pretty quickly.  I added some pop dots to this XOXO to create some depth.

Here is the bottom of the page.  I created a cluster using paint, paper, washi tape, fussy cut flowers & leaves and thread.  I wanted to bring all the colors & elements down to the bottom of the page, and creating a cluster like this is a great way to do that.

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One of my favorite techniques is backing a cut file with patterned papers.  I have done this technique before, and I love it so much that I keep coming back to it.  I read this fun quote on one of the patterned papers in this collection, and I decided to make it my title.  I chose a fun font in my Silhouette software and created a really big title that took up most of my page.  I cut it out and backed it with a lot of the 6x6 Paper pad.  I love the variety of smaller patterns, and there are so many fun colors and designs to choose from.  I got such a fun look from doing this!  I smudged some white gesso down over a lot of the page and then came in with a few watercolors to create a messy look.  I love this beautiful yellow & white striped paper, and it made a wonderful light background for all those bold colors.

Here you can see a lot of the detail of the layout.  The watercolor is a fun touch to add, and I had lots of fun getting messy with the paint.  After it dried, I traced each letter with a black pen to make them stand out a little more.  I also used several of the clear stickers on this page.  They are the perfect touches in between my title words.  I also combined some chipboard pieces with stickers and die cuts.  They layer together very well.

Here’s another shot of the background.  This lighter background paper (plus the white gesso) really makes the paints and the papers jump right off the page.  The striped paper is still neutral enough to be a background without being overly busy.  Simple Stories always has such a great variety of papers; they do a great job of mixing solids with patterns.

I used a few Snap! Cards as layers behind my photo as well as some tangled grey thread.  I added some stickers here, too.  I think adding stickers or small die cuts on top of the photo can create a great effect, especially if the photo has white space.  My photo really doesn’t, so I just layered this heart on the edge so it doesn’t cover up anything important.

I think I could use these awesome clear stickers on every layout!  They are so versatile, and they show up so nicely on just about every color paper.  They make great accents.  I finished this layout off with some black in splatters.

Thank you so much for stopping by today!  I hope these projects have given you some fun ideas to try!