{"id":72181,"date":"2021-11-21T18:31:15","date_gmt":"2021-11-21T23:31:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sweetshoppedesigns.com\/?p=72181"},"modified":"2021-11-21T18:31:15","modified_gmt":"2021-11-21T23:31:15","slug":"sugar-babe-sunday-doodles-11-21","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sweetshoppedesigns.com\/index.php\/2021\/11\/sugar-babe-sunday-doodles-11-21\/","title":{"rendered":"Sugar Babe Sunday – Doodles 11\/21"},"content":{"rendered":"

French artist Henri Matisse said, “Drawing is putting a line around an idea.” And as gorgeous as sketched or hand-drawn elements can be, oftentimes as scrapbookers, it’s the line that can trip us up.<\/p>\n

Welcome to the second post in a series of SugarBabe Sundays where we examine the digital scrapbooking elements that we struggle to use, the ones that frustrate us, and ask the Shoppe’s creative team for ideas. Last month, we looked at four ways feathers can be used on a layout<\/a>. This month, I asked what you wanted us to cover, and one topic clearly came out on top.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

“I struggle with using doodled\/hand-drawn elements,” said Steph, “and also with knowing how to combine them with more realistic elements. I see darling layouts with these kinds of doodley elements, but get intimidated quickly when trying to use them myself.”<\/p>\n

Jo wrote, “Doodles – LOVE them but have a hard time putting them into my layout. I feel like when I try (unless it’s part of the background paper) it looks untethered or something. Like a sticker sneeze.”<\/p>\n

Kellie said, “I really love hand drawn elements, but I don’t know how to use them on my own pages.”<\/p>\n

And Rebecca wrote, “The doodles are hard for me, too! I always want to use them, but struggle to make it look right.”<\/p>\n

\n<\/blockquote>\n

So I reached out to the SugarBabes and asked them to share their layouts with doodles and hand-drawn elements<\/strong>. I learned so much by studying their pages, and I’m excited to share my findings with you! It turns out they use doodles in four distinct ways:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. on their background paper,<\/li>\n
  2. behind a cluster,<\/li>\n
  3. within a journaling block,<\/li>\n
  4. or within a cluster.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    We’ll dig deeper into each of these in a moment, but first, let’s talk about realism<\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n

    Making your doodles look real<\/h1>\n

    When scrapbookers talk about making an element “look right” on their layout, what they’re really referring to is how real<\/span> it looks. The key to getting a realistic look with a doodle lies in giving thought to how you’d apply that same doodle to a paper layout<\/strong>. If you’re trying to give your layout a paper-realistic look, remember that doodles do not float<\/strong>. They need to be drawn on<\/span> something.<\/p>\n

    It might be with pen or marker directly onto the background paper<\/strong>. In that case, the doodle element will sit behind all your other elements and layers, and won’t have a drop shadow – like this layout from Eve:<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    \"believe<\/a><\/p>\n

    It might be a stamp dipped in ink or paint<\/strong>. In that case, think about what you’re stamping it on – your paper or cardstock, maybe across an element or another layer – and depending on the thickness of the paint, it might have a slight bevel and drop shadow, like gesso. See this layout by Mary, and pay close attention to the doodled arrow on the left pointing to the little girl:<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    \"Summertime<\/a><\/p>\n

    The third way to realistically apply a doodle to a layout is by “drawing” it on a piece of paper or cardstock and cutting it out digitally<\/strong>. You’ve essentially turned the doodle into a sticker. This new element can then be shadowed with as much depth as you like. Check out those stars on this layout by designer Laura Wilkerson:<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    \"Oh<\/a><\/p>\n

    That’s how to make sure your doodles look realistic; don’t let them float! Give thought to what they’re doodled on and how, and let that drive your shadows:<\/p>\n