Things that make me - Paperilla Magazine

I created this page for Paperilla magazine's blog. There's a series of introductions going on there - the future editorial staff is presenting themselves! I was really honoured and happy, that Minna asked me to join the magazine! Thank you! The magazine will specialize in paper crafts and ways to use paper in many ways. I'm positive that the first issue is going to be amazing! The blog and the magazine is available only in Finnish, but even the international readers will surely appreciate the photos! 

As the blog post holds a few words about me and how I started scrapping, I freely translated the text here for you: 

"Hello! 

I'm Riikka Kovasin, a mixed media style scrapbooker. I live in Helsinki together with my husband and our two daughters. I started scrapbooking at autumn 2009, when my older daughter was about 6 months old. My style has evolved from using ust paper to more mixed media and nowadays I'm happiest when I can create my own hand print in bought supplies with mists, inks and paints. 

Scrapbooking and paper crafts are the way I relax. I try to create something everyday - if nothing else, I spray a little mist to my art journal. I love to express myself and doument the everyday and record memories at the same time!

At first I created pages only for myself or my family, but nowadays I publish most of my pages - either in my blog or in magazines. I started writing my blog in Finnish and in English some time ago and changed English to my mail language a little less than a year ago. Today it's not unusual for me to write a whole post in English first and then translate it to my mother tongue, Finnish. 

My starting point is usually the photo. Based to it I then decide my colors and papers. Then I choose the media to go with the story. Usually my pages include gesso, mists, stamping and pencil doodling. On top of this mixe media influenced background I then make the paper layers, add the photo(s) and the embellishments. My usual topic is my daughters, but I also make pages about the everyday, myself or even about food."

I put together a mood board for the introduction and chose inspirational products there. The first idea came from this pin from my Pinterest board: "The things that make me different are the things that make me". I tried to gather products that I usually use while working on a project or products that I'm really into this moment. On top of photos, also the products inspire new pages. 

The mood board below has a patterned paper by ColorConspiracy, a stencil by Studio Calicon, mist from Tattered Angels and some embellishments. Paper clips make great embellishments and they go to almost every page as well as flair buttons. Pencil doodling is the thing for me at the moment - maybe you have noticed it? 

For the page I used gesso, a few pieces of patterned paper, balck mist and thin alphas on top of the products show in the mood board. The inspiring quote is at the same time the title and the journaling. I made a video about the making of the page. You can see it, if you scroll down a bit or from my own YouTube chanel.

Tässä on sivu, jonka tein Paperilla-lehden blogiin. Lehden blogissa on menossa sarja, jossa toimitus esittäytyy. Olin erittäin otettu, kun Minna pyysi minua mukaan! Kiitos! Lehti keskittyy paperiaskarteluun ja paperiin monissa eri muodoissaan. Ensimmäisestä lehdestä tulee ihan varmasti huippu! Blogipostauksesta löytyy hieman juttua minusta ja siitä, miten olen skräppäyksen aloittanut ja miten sivuja työstän. 

Esittelyä varten kokosin "mood boardin", johon keräsin tällä hetkellä minua inspiroivia tuotteita. Alkuinspiraationa oli tämä Pinterest-taululta löytyvä lainaus: "The things that make me different are the things that make me". Pyrin keräämään sellaisia tuotteita, joita löytyy useimmista töistäni tai joihin olen tällä hetkellä hyvin ihastunut. Kuvien lisäksi myös skräppituotteet inspiroivat uusiin sivuihin.

Yllä olevassa kuvassa ColorConspiracyn vaalean kuviopaperin päältä löytyy niin Studio Calicon sabluna, Tattered Angels misti kuin sekalainen seurakunta erilaisia koristeitakin. Paperiliittimet ovat mukavia, moneen sivuun sopivia koristeita, samoin kuin flair-napit. Lyijykynä riipustelut taustalla ovat tällä hetkellä must sivuissani.

Sivuun lisäsin mood boardin tuotteiden lisäksi lisäsin joukkoon gessoa, muutamia kuviopapereita, mustan mistin ja ohuet mustat aakkoset. Inspiraation pohjana ollut lainaus löytyy sivun nurkasta. Se tavallaan korvaa niin otsikon kuin tarinoinninkin. Kuvasin sivun luomisesta videon, joka löytyy tuosta ylempää ja toki myös YouTube-kanavaltani.

Materials: ColorConspiracy, americab Crafts, Echo Park, Stash Panache, Freckled Fawn, Tattered Angels, Studio Calico, CocoaDaisy, Garn und Mehr, MT Masking Tape, Basic Grey