As much as I hate to admit it, I’m still not done with the scrapbook for the trip to Sanibel that my family and Jo’s family took last year. I’m almost done, though, and made some good progress last week. One of my favorite layouts was made with simple chipboard shapes that I decorated with photographs. I just love how it came out!

I started with a really fun pack of chipboard cutouts from Inque Boutique, but you can also find some great cutouts from your local scrapbook store or from Oriental Trading Company. Use any designs you like, and pick where you want them to go on the page.

Now rather than painting or decorating these pieces like you might usually do, you’re going to cover them with photos instead!

To line up the photo, hold it up to the light with the chipboard piece behind it, and move the chipboard back and forth until it’s in a position that uses the best parts of the photo. Then, keeping the photo and chipboard together, carefully set them down on the table. Trace around the chipboard with a pencil and cut it out.

Glue the photo onto the chipboard, then place it on your page. The result is a really fun, dimensional way to display your photos, and it will really make the page pop.

Here’s an example of a sandcastle cutout that I covered with a photograph I had taken of sand. I used letter stickers to put “Sanibel” on it, and it made for a great badge for the page.

For this example, I covered a half-sun shape with several pictures of my friends. I had been really struggling with a way to get all these photos onto the page in a small space, and this sun was the perfect solution. I just love how it came out.

The next time you’re looking for inspiration on how to display photos on a page, raid that chipboard stash!