Design Threads: Keeping a Scrapbook

Turn the page, what do you see? Are you half way through a novel that you haven’t been able to put down? Perhaps you’re flicking through a recipe book for some culinary inspiration. Or perhaps you are just like us and you’re opening your scrapbook, ready to bring a page to life with sketches, inspirations and collages.

Whether it’s new products for Shop Kit Kemp, bespoke wallpapers, or a new collaboration, there’s a constant need for new ideas at our design studio. One of the most important tools for this is our sketch books and scrapbooks. Some of our best ideas started on scrapbooks.

We’ve gathered together some tips and ideas to help you with your scrapbook creations.

Save everything…
One of our greatest joys is saving beautiful exhibition postcards, scraps of paper and fabric, ticket stubs and images torn from magazines. Such ephemera spills from the pages of my sketchbook. Be sure to make keepsakes of everything. They are great material for a layered and personal scrapbook. 

Paper collages…
Creating little art pieces can bring an extremely personal and joyful element to a scrapbook. Sometimes we like to think of ours as journals or diaries. They are little windows into what we want most, or what we are feeling. Creating scenes or characters with collected papers brings life to any page.

We love the work of Jo Waterhouse. Her folding, weaving and embellishing techniques are so whimsical and textural. We love to take inspiration from her beautiful artwork.

What’s on your pinboard?
If you work in a creative field, it’s likely you use a pinboard to develop schemes, ideas and concepts. When it’s time for a new project, phase or season, the inspiration from our pinboards often ends up as material for our scrapbooks. Of course, the content needs to be edited and made into a smaller scale for a book. We are often mining our pinboards for treasures and cuttings that can make for a beautiful page in a scrapbook. This is a fun and interactive way to support the creative process behind your ideas.

Creative ways to display…
Making pockets like this woven checkerboard is a great way to bunch together a collection of memories.

When you save more precious ephemera and memories like old tickets or flowers, creating a laminated page adds texture and keeps precious memories safe.

Envelopes also make for easy pockets and are a perfect solution on the days when your sketchbook can’t be a top priority.

Use a medium that works for you…
Sticking, gluing and working with a physical sketch book isn’t for everyone. With an abundance of visual resources online such as Pinterest and Instagram, sometimes building a digital scrapbook can be just as rewarding. We love using tools like Photoshop and Canva. Creating online sketch books is a great way to quickly and neatly organise ideas and inspirations.

Hunt down the best spots for materials…
Collecting wonderful papers and special materials for your scrapbook is really important. We love Shepherds London store for the wonderful collection of printed and handmade papers available.

Scrapbooks are a wonderful way to develop ideas organically. Often when you turn the pages, the beginning of an idea might jump out at you! They can deliver a thread of visual language that you might not have noticed before.

If you’re an avid ‘scrapbooker’ share your tips and ideas with us using our Instagram tag @KitKempDesignThread. We love to see and share your ideas too!