The reds and oranges are a warm and inviting layout. Wendy centered the project by using cardstock strip down the middle and framing the photograph with the same color cardstock. Without this base, the colors in the photograph would be too similar to those in the photograph, and the shot would be lost in the busy patterned paper.
Supply Credits Patterned paper; Brown chipboard letters: Heidi Swapp; Velvet letters; Flowers: Prima; Brads; Paint: Making Memories
TIP When bright, vivid colors such as Indian jewel tones are used, it is often best to either ground the colors in a dark neutral such as brown or black or match them with complementary colors to give visual definition to the project.
Detail of Joy by Avina Lim. Avina’s layout features Asian floral motifs and tropically inspired colors to create this “bouquet.”
Scrapping with Asian Motifs
Lions, Dragons and Stars — Oh my!
Living and working in Asia over the past decade has given me an appreciation for indirect methods of communication. I have learned that a subtle nod from a vendor, or the way that he says “This is my best price,” means that our negotiation still has room for movement. I have also noticed that indirect communication, while very common in daily life in Asia, also extends to the art world. Asian cultures often use traditional design elements, motifs and symbols to impart meanings beyond just the simple beauty of the object. Looking closely at Asian artwork, the trained eye recognizes the similarity between Chinese, Korean and Japanese artistic patterns; and over time I have learned that the symbols used in the three cultures often have the same meanings. For example, a picture of a crane with a pine tree, both symbols of longevity by themselves, combine to mean determination, perseverance and power. So, after living in Asia I have started to recognize these symbols and realize that there is much being said through art.
Thinking about motifs and their meanings from the scrapbooking perspective, wouldn’t it be cool to create beautiful layouts that also hold significant meanings based on the design itself? Art in Asia has used symbols—either animals, plants or combinations of them as well as geometric designs—to act as both a visual stimulation and a medium of communication. In this chapter I will introduce you to a number of types of motifs and designs as well as explain the meanings behind them in Asian culture. I will also show how to incorporate these elements into your projects in order to add symbolic meanings to your projects and add a new dimension to your scrapbook pages.
Good Fortune and Luck
Chinese Motifs for Wealth, Health and Love
Let me tell you about Cathay, a fantastic land in China that existed during the eighteenth century. Filled with mystical forests, parks, poets, intellectuals and artists, Cathay caught the attention of the Europeans. In this land, Chinese intellectuals, known as mandarins, lounged or painted in bamboo pavilions and walked in gardens filled with dragons, phoenixes and other mythical beasts. Cathay was overflowing with beautiful women and intelligent men with nothing better to do than create wondrous art and literature. Of course, Cathay was a figment of the imagination, nothing more than the interpretation of stories told by Marco Polo and other adventurers who traveled to the exotic East. But the magical land of Cathay did create Chinoiserie—a revolution in design and style starting as early as the late 1600s and continuing on through the early 1800s in cultured Europe and its colonies.
The term Chinoiserie, meaning “the Chinese style,” was coined by the French royalty in the seventeenth century to describe this new design style. As with many other trends, the court’s adoption of the style and its fascination with the Eastern aesthetic lead to its popularity throughout the rest of Europe. Chinoiserie was so universally accepted from the late 1600s through the end of the 1700s that elements of the style could be found in homes as grand as Louis XV’s Versailles as well as in the average home in colonial America. The Chinoiserie style is generally identified by the use of certain patterns and motifs, including stylized trees with birds and flowers, pavilions, dragons and phoenixes. And of course the use of bamboo as a background is a classic Chinoiserie technique. When these motifs are paired with traditional Chinese colors—combinations such as yellow and blue or yellow and red—the effect becomes even more striking. There are a number of products on the market today that can be used to create Chinoiserie-inspired layouts. By using rubber stamps, preprinted patterned paper and clip art images, you can transform an otherwise plain layout into one that is Chino-chic!
Chinoiserie by Heather Taylor
This card by Heather uses traditional Chinese motifs of butterflies, peonies and chrysanthemums to create a Chinoiserie-themed card. The use of the motifs, combined with the traditional Chinese color blue, is evocative of the wallpapers that epitomized the Chinoiserie style in the royal courts of Europe.
Supply Credits Cardstock; Stamps: About Art Accents; Inks: Ancient Page indigo dye ink
Outdoors by Kristy Harris
Scenes comprised of large peony bushes, flowering trees and birds were common on Chinoiserie-style wall coverings throughout the eighteenth century. In the homes of the European elite, wall panels were hand painted and therefore differed one from the other. These hand-painted patterns were then copied to create mass-produced wallpapers to be sold to the general public. The rub-ons used in this project are a replica of a wallpaper panel that would have been used in a Chinese-inspired home décor during the peak of Chinoiserie style. I distressed the rub-ons for this layout by adding StāzOn ink to make them appear more “antique.”
Supply Credits Patterned paper: Target/Kay, “Marcella,” K&Company/Amy Butler; Cardstock: WorldWin; Rub-ons: Daisy D’s; Flocked stickers: K&Company/Amy Butler; Word sticker: 7gypsies; Journaling spots: Jenni Bowlin Studio; Chipboard letters: Heidi Swapp; Ink: StāzOn (brown), Ranger (distress inks: Milk Can, Vintage Photo); Ink pens: Tsukineko/Impress (green, brown, blue, fuchsia, pink); Cloth-covered brads: K&Company/Amy Butler
Lazy Afternoon
by Jennie Yeo
Trees, branches and other botanical images have long been combined in the mystical lands associated with Chinoiserie. In this project, by hand cutting the trees, flowers and bird elements from the BasicGrey paper, Jennie mimicked a classic example of the use of botanical elements and birds common in the Chinoiserie wallpapers of the 1700s.
Supply Credits Cardstock: Bazzill; Patterned paper: BasicGrey, My Mind’s Eye/Magnolia; Letter stickers: Arctic Frog (red), Junkitz (cream); Tag: Sassafras Lass; Sticker: 7Gypsies; Ink: StāzOn; Other: Inkssentials (crackle accents, sepia accents)
The Bronze Elephant
by Julie Kosolofski-Kuo Julie’s layout uses patterned paper with a bamboo print, which sets the tone for a Chinese-inspired layout. In this layout, Julie’s daughter is riding an elephant, which, according to Chinese folklore, will bring good luck. The bamboo in Chinese culture, when used in art, means strength, perseverance and longevity. As a design element, while using a traditional Asian pattern, Julie was still able to coordinate the colors of the paper and her daughter’s glasses.
Supply Credits Cardstock; Patterned paper: EK Success/ Over the Moon Press; Other: Handmade paper, brads, letter stickers
TIP Jennie used crackle accent on the branches to give the “trees” a more barklike appearance and more depth on the page.
Chahut by Odile Germaneau
Daisy D’s used the Chinoiserie-style tree with flowers as inspiration