Did you know that next week is Geography Awareness Week? Probably not, unless like me, Vivian, you are a geography geek. As a kid, I always had my nose in an atlas of some sort and grew up to be a social studies teacher/curriculum coordinator/instructional coach whose passion has always been in the area of geography. Maps lie at the core of geography, so, as you might imagine, I was thrilled when the trend toward map-themed products started a couple of years ago in the papercrafting industry. We'll be exploring that trend this week, with a different focus each day.
Here's our schedule for the week:
Monday: Maps in the Background
Tuesday: Maps Instead of Photos
Wednesday: Maps as Embellishments
Thursday: Give.Away.Day. (yes, you read that right! :))
Friday: Maps as Home Decor
So...let's dive into our exploration of maps in the background.
Maps in the Background, Part I: Using Maps Literally
One way to use a map in the background is to use it for the specific location(s) depicted, using the map to help tell the location piece of your story.
On this layout, I used the Blue Christmas patterned paper from Crate Paper's new Sleigh Ride collection to help tell the story of our Christmas Eve tradition. (How much fun is that North Pole print?!)
You may have already seen this layout I created a while back, but I still love it and it's a great example of using a map for the specific locations depicted. This layout tells the story of my grandfather's family's journey to the United States.
Another oldie but goodie of mine is this layout, which marks San Francisco on the map:
Katie used a New York map-print patterned paper as the background on her gorgeous black, white, and red layout about her love of New York:
Lisa (Ottosson) used a map to locate all of the connections she's made with people around the world:
Deb's "Bryce Canyon" layout has the journaling pocket/card resting on top of Utah:
Diane's fun "I'll Go Anywhere!" layout is another great example of this type of map use. She added embellishments to show the two locations discussed in her journaling. The space between Los Angeles and Boston on the map was just the right size for her to include her photo there:
Maps in the Background, Part II: Using Maps Figuratively
Another great way to use maps in the background is for layouts about travel in general, journeys, or places you go.
I used a globe-print paper in this way to document my son's obsession with geography:
Francine used a map in the background on a layout about how her son is a good traveler:
Amy (Coose) used a map on a layout about her son's educational journey:
Deb used a map on a layout about a weekend treat destination:
As you can see, maps are very popular with the whole write.click.scrapbook. team! Are you already using maps in the background? If you're using them literally, try using them figuratively. If you're using them figuratively, try using them literally. If you're not yet using maps, give it a try!
Stay tuned for tomorrow's post about using maps instead of photos...
