CP Gal Subject Gallery: Frame It! - Ashley Marcu

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I have a little confession to make. I LOVE Crate Paper's chipboard frames. I really have to restrain myself from using them on every card and project. So, today, I'm sharing why I love them–I'll take you through three cards using the frames from Open Road to give you an idea of how they can shine and to inspire you to stretch your supplies and to try new things!

For my first card, I decided to make a collage of several stickers, die-cuts and a chipboard frame. The chipboard frame is small, but it has a big job of carrying the focal sentiment of the card.

When I'm putting together a card, I select embellishments that appeal to me and exhibit a wide range of colors (I love color!) that coordinate with what I've already chosen. I knew I wanted to use the same chipboard frame to hold my sentiment, so I started there and built around it.

Once the embellishments were set, I looked through the Highway Thickers to create my sentiment using a variety of colors.

Next up, I knew I wanted to create a grid or something 'graphic' from the chipboard frames. Think of the frames as pieces of a puzzle. It took me a few tries, but I was able to lay them out to create an interesting backdrop to my simple sentiment.

Since there was a lot of white space between the frames, I decided to mat the grid on some patterned paper to give it a little interest around the edges.

My final idea was to layer the frames. I chose two square frames that fit into one another to start my card.

To emphasize the layering, I took several die-cut embellishments and placed them under, over and even between the layers. This creates a lot of visual interest and is a fun way to layer.

I hope this inspired you to look at Crate Paper's embellishments, including the chipboard frames, in a new exciting way! Happy Crafting!