Today's Nerd Love feature caters two BRAND NEW layouts and the popular British Television series, Dr.Who - here to entertain the fun topic and grid-inspired layouts is CP Gal, Lisa Dickinson.
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My son has always been a total bookworm, preferring to read over any other playtime activity. He's a great studen as well, and often researches random topics outside of class (like quantum physics and time travel theory) just for fun. He's also obsessed with the BBC television show, Dr.Who. So the topic of Nerd Love was a perfect opportunity for me to document some of his more "nerdy" tendencies with the Boys Rule collection.
My first layout features various photos of my son as we typically see him - with his nose in a book or searching the internet! I also included a photo of him with his many academic awards earned at school. I've incorporated the photos with small scraps of patterned papers and journaling card, all cut into squares and fit together much like a puzzle. Once the biggest pieces were in place, I pulled out some of the many embellishments and accents in the Boys Rule line and used them to fill in some of the remaining spaces.
On several of the squares, I included typed journaling as well as quotes about nerds. Since my son is a self-proclaimed nerd (and proud of it!) I knew he would enjoy reading this little snippets as well as the personal journaling. It's easy to find quotes applicable to your layout with a quick Google search. In my case, I just searched for "nerd quotes" and came up with lots of options.
Because my grid design was constructed of mostly square and rectangle shapes (and other straight lines!) I opted to mix in a few circles to soften all the straight edges just a bit. Punched card stock and some of the circular wooden veneer accents contrast nicely with the squares and keep the design from looking to blocky. They also provided an ideal spot to sprinkle in a few star sequins for just a touch of sparkle.
On several of the chipboard accents, I adhered them with foam adhesive, which adds dimension and helps draw attention to certain focal points of the page. Since the eye is naturally drawn to the popped up elements, they help to guide the viewer through each part of my design.
For my second page, I've used another variation of the grid design, but this time it's a more organized and linear arrangement. To highlight my son's love of Dr.Who, I've chosen some photos of him dressed as the doctor and displaying his favorite Dr.Who book, as well as other photos that reference characters and items in the show.
I first arranged my photos and a tag for my journaling. Then I left space for a die-cut title, which is the logo from the show that I traced and cut out on my Silhouette. Once I had all those crucial elements positioned in my grid, I began filling in the remaining spots with bright patterned papers and chipboard accents that coordinated with the photos.
Even though each block of this grid is different sized, and contains varied colors, patterns, and textures, I've tried to unify them with the same rounded corners and stitched borders. I also kept the margins between each block consistent, which creates an organized design.
All the small accents in the Boys Rule collection provided lots of options for embellishing this page. I layered stickers, chipboard, acrylic shapes, wood veneers, and die cuts to add plenty of texture and detail to the grid. I tried to keep the embellishments related to the base paper by color, so the end result isn't too busy or chaotic.
Thanks for joining me for this little celebration of Nerd Love today! I hope you've been inspired to document a beloved nerd in your life!
AWESOME layouts!!!!
Posted by: Laura Turcotte | April 24, 2014 at 02:45 AM
Love the doctor who layout. Do you have the cut file you can share? I have a similar page in the works!
Posted by: jenny Simon | April 24, 2014 at 04:00 PM
FAbulous pages - love the papers!
Posted by: debbie standard | April 24, 2014 at 04:58 PM
omgosh, fantastic Doctor Who layout and I may have to lift elements. We are huge Whovians. Love the elements and colors you have chosen. The design of the nerd layout is wonderful too and it's a perfect style for the types of photos I have of my guys.
Posted by: susan stringfellow | April 25, 2014 at 07:46 PM
My son's 18th birthday is Wed. Do I have enough time to put together a layout of his favorite movies or TV series? You've so inspired me!
Posted by: Lynda | April 27, 2014 at 10:13 AM