“Sketchy” Math: Quick Layouts for Busy Moms 
by Julie Jones

One of my favorite things to do before I sit down to scrapbook my photos is to sketch out what I want the layout to look like. I like this for two reasons: (1) it makes my scrapbooking quicker and (2) I can sketch an idea anytime throughout the day, not just when I’m going to sit down and scrapbook. I can just grab a sheet of scratch paper and jot my sketch down. Here, I will show a sketch that makes 6x6 layouts a breeze. I like the smaller size of a 6x6 layout because they make great gift albums and they come together really quickly!

As you can see from the sketch, I have designated a place for a photo, some patterned paper, and an embellishment or two. When I’m doing small albums like this, I like to keep it simple and try to make my embellishment be the title as well. On the sketch, I have reserved one part of the 6x6 sheet for a photo, leaving a 2x6 strip on each layout. This is where I’ll put my patterned paper or cardstock. I also drew in a circle shape to dictate an embellishment and title. (Just because I drew a circle does not mean that my embellishment and title has to be a circle.)

Here is where the math comes in. If you cut a 12x12 piece of cardstock into quarters, you get four 6x6 pieces of cardstock. This is perfect for four layouts, or if you’d like to get even more bang for your buck, you can use the backside of the layout as a base to make another layout. Basically, you can get eight layouts out of one sheet of cardstock. Also, I usually print my photos out at 4x6. They fit perfectly onto a 6x6 layout and I don’t have to spend time cropping my pictures. If you’d like all of your layouts to flow together even more, you can cut 12 strips of patterned paper to a 2x6 size from one 12x12 sheet. Talk about a bargain!

Other things I like about sketching my layouts out in advance, is the fact that I can “flip” them. Notice in the four sample layouts of this sketch, none of them are orientated the same way. I kept the basic sketch the same, yet all of the layouts look a little bit different. On one, I put the strip of paper at the top of the page and put the photo at the bottom. On one, I moved my embellishment/title to the middle of my paper strip, instead of letting it over lap the paper and photo. If you feel like your photo needs cropping, you can fit two 2x6 photos or two 4x3 photos into the spot reserved for photos on the sketch. 

Doing an online search for “scrapbooking sketches” will yield lots of options for you. They make your time scrapbooking quicker and easier, allowing you more time to spend cherishing those wonderful memories you are preserving. Remember, you don’t have a copy a sketch as it is! Have fun making it your own. Flip it around, put a journaling block where a photo is “supposed” to be. Adapt it to fit your needs!! Happy scrapping.

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