Bella Blvd Studio Blog: Guest Designer

Hey there Bella fans! I'm Nancy Damiano, married mom to one boy named Nico and favorite Aunt to a little troop of nieces and nephews. They are a huge part of our lives and scrapbooks. I love a good story (listening to one, telling one, or reading one), traveling and anything aqua.I've been working with color and creating handmade things most of my life. Scrapbooking took center stage as my favorite hobby 15 years ago. I've been mixing paper goods and stories ever since. Currently I design for American Crafts, Elle's Studio, Felicity Jane and Studio Calico. I believe in living a creative life and 'making' is a huge part of who I am.

Let's take a closer look at the Popsicles and Pandas collection. I have to admit, it was the first one I reached for when I got my designer box. The bright color palette and patterns are so much fun to design with. I loved the patterns so much, I used almost every single one! NancyDamiano_Farm3
"Summer Family" by Nancy Damiano

To create a cohesive design with so many patterns, I chose one basic shape to work with. The hearts tie the design together and keep it from looking chaotic. I kept the photos simple in black and white so that they would really stand out from all of the color. NancyDamiano_Farm3
This clean yellow alpha sticker is just bold enough to anchor the journaling strips just underneath. I added a navy epoxy sticker and the script "summer" subtitle for a punch of contrast. Using different alphabet sizes and fonts makes for interesting titles.

Next, we have the Barnyard collection with it's charming farm motif. It immediately reminded me of this old photo that I have of my son at a local farm. I wanted to tell the story of this very urban kid and his love of all things farm. NancyDamiano_Farm3
"Farm Boy" by Nancy Damiano

I love this cow print patterned paper and what better way to set off it's boldness than with a splash of yellow! That bold design choice led to the next - lining everything up along the center of the page.
I was determined to use as many of the cute shapes and embellishments in this collection as I could. Making clusters to surround the photo, was a great way to showcase both the photo and the embellishments. I didn't want to take away from the vertical line of embellishments, so the title is very small and tucked just above the journaling. The story is told in strips that cascade down the page. It's the words that complete the design! NancyDamiano_Farm3

Last, we have another favorite - Secrets of the Sea! I love the boldness of navy, aqua and orange so I decided to go with a minimalist design and divide the page into six sections. NancyDamiano_Farm3
"Splash" by Nancy Damiano

Each rectangle is filled with journaling, stickers, and patterned paper. The square photos are embellished with the waves and fish stickers in the collection to give them some weight and draw the eye to the focal point.
The design is divided in half with the Secrets of the Sea wide washi tape in the center. It adds a nice splash of navy to the layout. The journaling card is very simple with just a puffy title sticker in bold colors and a few clear enamel dots. It's clean and simple just like the rest of the design. Minimalist doesn't have to mean boring! NancyDamiano_Farm3
That wraps up my guest design post. I hope that you've enjoyed it and have gleaned a few new ideas you'd like to try. Check out all of the Bella Blvd collections - they are perfect for telling all of your life stories!