Welcome to our 16th Birthday Week here on the blog, friends! We are SO excited to kick off this party, which includes birthday project inspiration and a HUGE suite of giveaways from our amazing and generous partners! We’re starting the week with a fantastic Designer Details post—birthday-themed, of course! First, let’s hear from our special guest and see what she has to share with us, then don’t forget to check out today’s giveaways below!

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Hello SCT friends! My name is Suzanna and I’m here today to share with you a birthday layout! SCT is celebrating their 16th birthday, and what better way to celebrate than with cake? This layout of my son’s 19th birthday cake features Therm O Web’s DecoFoil paired with the Simple Stories’ Celebrate collection. When considering the construction of your pages, some key design principles are important to keep in mind. These elements create a cohesive look for your page. Read on to find out more!

Supplies | Therm O Web: DecoFoil Transfer Gel Duo, DecoFoil Transfer Foils (aqua, gold & denim); Simple Stories Celebrate collection: Collection kit, chipboard stickers, bits & pieces, puffy stickers, sticker book, chipboard frames, stencil; American Crafts: ZIG embossing powder (clear); Elle’s Studio: Make a Wish stamp, Make a Wish metal dies

Different parts of your scrapbook layout should have different levels of importance. There should be a focal point, or something that stands out—something that your eye is first drawn to. With so many photos on the page, they become the focal point of this page. If you want to take it a little bit further, this 4 x 6 inch photo with the chipboard frame is the prime focal point, as the depth of the frame adds more emphasis to this particular photo.

Your next consideration will be “flow management,” or movement. This will be your visual triangle; three clusters, matching or not, but with some connection, that guide your eye around the page. However, I have chosen to use a diagonal line as my central design element. With a diagonal slant, there is inherent movement as the line guides your eye across the whole composition. In this case, the strong diagonal line is from the top, right, through the photos, and down to the bottom, left.

Within that line, you will find the repetition of elements that lead your eye down the page. Can you guess what those elements are? Let me give you a hint, I intentionally pulled two more from the Bits and Pieces pack to coordinate with those found on the chipboard frame, my focal element, and used them at the end of the line. Did you guess correctly? The fold paper fan/circles— correct!

Also within this diagonal line are the three main elements; photo, title, and journaling. Your eye is guided by the line through the critical storytelling elements while the rest is “fun,” or support of the principle story.

Separated from the main line by the white space, you find this little party or celebration of foiled confetti and candles. These embellishments are “support.” They play a role in the overall design of the page by adding balance. Had I not put them here, the top, left corner of the page would be top-heavy and unbalanced. This little cluster is the counter-balance with some white space to let your eye rest and not be overstimulated.

Be sure to watch the video below to see how this page came together, and a tutorial on how to add foil to your layouts!

I hope I have inspired you to consider the design of your pages to better tell your story. Remember that lines are the building blocks of design, they give personality to the design. If you are looking for more tips and answers to why my pages look like they do, be sure to check out my YouTube channel!

I’m Suzanna; wife, Mum, Physical Therapist, and memory keeper! You can follow along @SuzLee72 on IG and Suzanna Lee on YouTube.

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What a FUN layout that Suzanna shared with us! We know you will have gotten some great design tips and foiling techniques from her video, too! Thank you so much, Suzanna! Now it’s time for our first day of giveaways!

PRIZE #1

First up, we have a fantastic package of DecoFoil products, just like the ones Suzanna used above, from our friends at Therm O Web!

Happy Sweet 16, SCT! We’re so proud to be part of the wonderful community you’ve created through hard work, creativity, and your focus on connection. We’re excited for your next 16! To celebrate, we’d love to share this colorful, rainbow-themed Deco Foil Prize Pack with one lucky reader. It’s perfect for spring birthday cards!

PRIZE #2

The second prize comes from Simple Stories, and includes the same collection that Suzanna used to create her page!

Cake Anyone? It’s party time! There is always a reason to celebrate and Simple Stories is here to help! Introducing our newest collection, Celebrate! Packed full of banners, balloons, party hats, confetti, and streamers this new collection is here to party! Birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, and more! This new collection has got you covered! So let’s Celebrate!

This prize includes: Celebrate! Collection Kit, Celebrate! 6×12 Chipboard, Celebrate! Journal Bits, Celebrate! Number Bits, Celebrate! Foam Stickers, Celebrate! Decorative Brads, Celebrate! Stencil, Celebrate! Page Pieces

GRAND PRIZE #1

The first of our grand prizes for today comes from one of our newest partners, Ranger, Inc.!

Check out this fantastic card-making bundle featuring supplies from Simon Hurley create. and Wendy Vecchi Make Art line! This prize includes the wonderful Wendy Vecchi Make Art Stay-tion with three of her archival inks (violet, periwinkle, and leaf green), two liquid pearls (sunflower and cornflower blue), a set of stylus tools, and one packet of cardstock. You can design breath-taking cards using the luminous Simon Hurley create. lunar pastes (traffic cone, prom queen, and slippery when wet) and his newest stamps and stencil!

GRAND PRIZE #2

Our second grand prize today also comes from a new partner, LDRS Creative!

LDRS Creative is so excited to celebrate Scrapbook & Cards Today’s ‘Sweet 16th Birthday’!  To mark this special occasion, we have a grand prize giveaway of some of our newest collection items, valued at over $100!  This prize includes many of our most popular crafty goodies that we know you will just love: Finest Blooms Pirouette Stamps, Finest Blooms Pirouette Dies, Easter Pirouette Stamps, Easter Pirouette Dies, Pirouette Pattern Templates, Floral Toner Toppers Paper Pack, and Geometric Toner Toppers Paper Pack.

Four fabulous prizes! Want to know what you have to do to win one of them? Simply leave a comment on this post telling us your happiest birthday memory by midnight ET on Wednesday, March 30th! We will choose four random winners for the prizes above and announce all of our Birthday Week winners on the blog on April 1st! Good luck, and be sure to come back tomorrow for more birthday fun!