We love the guest posts that we’re sharing this week, and today we want to welcome our third guest, Youngmi An! We love Youngmi’s layouts because they are approachable—easy to recreate, but always beautifully designed. We also love that she uses a mix of new products and ones from her stash. We think you will love the layout she is sharing today, with not only a beautiful design but a sweet story, too! Let it inspire a story about love in your life this week!

Hi everyone! It’s Youngmi here (you might know me as @scrappytoki) and I’m super excited to be today’s guest blogger. For this layout, I was in the mood for something easy breezy which means I turned to some of my go-to techniques and supplies.

Supplies | Crate Paper: patterned paper; Pinkfresh Studio: Days of Splendor patterned paper and ephemera; The Stamp Market: Foliage stamp set and Dies; Scrapbook.com: Typewriter Alphabet Die Set, Magic Mat. Sizzix: Big Shot Foldaway. Concord & 9th: Playful Patterns Stamp Set. Heidi Swapp: 3×4 Destination Alpha Stamp Set. Note&Wish: Rose Pebbles Washi Tape; Altenew: Tranquility Crisp Dye Ink Mini Cube Set, Sugarplums Crisp Dye Ink Mini Cube Set; Tsukineko: VersaColor Laurel Leaf ink pad; Therm O Web: 3D Foam Tape

The story I’m telling is about how growing up, my parents didn’t say “I love you” in words but through actions. I wanted the layout to feel sweet and gentle. Tearing the edges of my patterned paper gave my layout texture and a soft, lovely vibe. Unfortunately, I tore off a little too much of the floral paper and ended up with a too-short strip. No worries! That was easily fixed by adding a strip of washi to the top of the layout.

I wanted my flower embellishment clusters to have dimension. To create them, I did a little stamping directly on my background paper and popped up one die cut in each cluster with foam adhesive. My 12 x 12-inch MISTI comes in handy when I want to get my layered stamping just right. I never know where I want my background stamping to be placed until I have all my layout elements laid out and I can see the empty spots that would be perfect for some subtle stamping. Once I know where I want it to go, I place the stamp exactly where I want it on the layout (on top of all my photos and papers), close my MISTI to pick up the stamp, then I move everything aside, stamp a perfect image and re-layer all my elements.

Time and time again, I reach for my title-making supplies—stamps, ink, and die cuts. They’re so versatile and worth the investment! I can make any title, including super long ones, in any color I want. I mix and match colors, sizes, and styles and never have to worry about running out of letters. I don’t keep a lot of colored cardstock on hand but the Concord and 9th patterns stamp set lets me stamp a swatch of color or pattern that I can cut with my letter dies.  For this layout I used Scrapbook.com alpha dies, a Heidi Swapp stamp set, and Altenew dye ink. These little ink pads are perfect for alpha stamps and they come in so many gorgeous colorways with multiple shades.

To create balance and cohesion on my layouts, I “pull” color down my page. You can see how I did that in this layout with the purple strip of washi at the top of the page, the purple in the flower clusters, and the purple label at the bottom right. To pull the aquas in the patterned paper at the top downwards, I used the lighter shade in my title and the darker shade in the circle die cut embellishment at the bottom of the page. The embellishment cluster at the bottom of the page also helps connect the bottom of the page to the top and box in the journaling so it doesn’t feel like it’s fading off the layout.

What are your go-to techniques for easy breezy layouts? Why not give one of mine a try? Make a mixed-and-matched title using stamps and dies or use color to create cohesion throughout your layout. I’d love to see what you create!

My name is Youngmi and I’m a midwest girl currently living in sunny California with my husband. I’ve been scrapbooking for over 20 years and love making new memories traveling,, eating, and spending time with my favorite people. In the moments when I’m not scrapbooking, you can find me baking, gaming, reading, walking by the beach, watching anime, geeking out at Disney parks and cons, and vibing to K-pop. Check me out on Instagram to see more of my layouts!