Need More White Space?

Take a deep breath. Ahhh! Feels good, doesn't it! In layout design, as in life, one of the essential elements for balance is the use of white space.

'White' in the design sense is the area left empty of text or graphics. This space is necessary to allow your work to 'breathe'. When a layout is too full it can suffocate much like cramming into a phone booth with a bunch of friends. It may seem like fun at the time, but it isn't a place you'd want to linger in for long!

I know it can be difficult to choose what embellishment to use, what typeface font to employ and how many photos to display. And then after those choices are made, arranging them so that they look pleasing is just as challenging. One trick is to be sure the layouts have some balance with your use of white space. Look at your layout and ask yourself:

1. Where does my eye go first?
2. Does it move around the page?
3. If not, where does it get stuck?

Ideally, your eye should notice everything on the page - but not at once! You will need to decide a hierarchy. What is the main drawing point (what will bring interest to your page - the title, the photos, the colours, the embellishments?). Then arrange and size the elements accordingly until your eye flows easily (like effortless breathing) around the page...lingering the most on the most important things in your design.

Here are some pages I created with Janet Carr's bright pastel colors and strong graphics in her "The Bunny Trail" kit. (These layouts fell together so quickly - it is a delightful kit!) Hopefully you will see that the white space (empty space) in these layouts allow for balance and movement.




Of course the more information your layouts include the trickier this is, so here is a 2page spread I did using the bold colors and patterns of Anne Quade's "Daffodil Dreams" kit from Fishbowl Designs. I hope you can see how the white space not only frames the page but allows movement between the pages. Of course there are other design elements at play, but the white space (especially the margins) helps to keep what could have been a very busy layout more inviting. Or at least that what I hoped to accomplish here! :)



In a similar way, I am realising that my life needs more white space, too! It's too easy to add and add and add. It isn't always tangible 'stuff' either. Some of it is emotional stress stuff. Some is just busyness. So, in addition to scrapping for fun (my last post) I am starting to cut loose from some of the things that have filled my heart and mind too much and have strangled some of the joy.

Like in a layout, it isn't just about emptying, purging, tossing out (although it may involve some of that). It is about adding room so that the chosen elements of life can be arranged and sized to to work together ... making room to breathe.

White space isn't as empty as we might think ... maybe it is where the real creativity happens! Creative White Space - I want more of that.