A Matter of Memories: :REVIEW: Get Creative with Type by Brian Tippetts

Brian Tippetts is one of the few 'known names' when it comes to men in the scrapbooking industry and boy is he talented.

It doesn't take long after flipping through a few issues of Creating Keepsakes magazine to realize this editor-in-chief's primary passion when it comes to crafting - TYPE!

In his recent book, Get Creative with Type: Fun Typography Ideas and Tips for Scrapbooking, Brian shares his passion for and immense knowledge of type so that we can step up our own use of type and, in turn, greatly enhance our own creations.

In his opening remarks, Tippetts states:

"Scrapbooking and design go hand in hand. As designers and scrapbookers, we use color, pattern, texture, repitiion, focus, context, shape, proportion, photography and type to convey our message."

Learning about and using the elements of good design is a big part of what has personally made me fall so much in love with scrapbooking and, after reading Brian's book, I understand even more how much a part of design that type can be!

Tippetts divided his book into 3 sections:

Section 1 - Design

Explains key terms in the realm of typography
Shows how typography can be used as a design element
Gives examples of how type can be enhances by use of color, punctuation and more

Section 2 - Style

Discusses the use of specific typefaces for themed pages and projects including birthdays, weddings, babies, holidays, travel and heritage
Contributing artists name their favorite typefaces for these types of themed projects and where to find them (many are available for free download online)
Gives examples of places to look for type inspiration and how to incorporate that inspiration into your own crafting such as brochures, logos, art, product packaging and more
Offers interesting ways to use text as a major design element on a page or proect using shape
Explores unique and different mediums for adding type to your pages and projects

Section 3 - Cool Techniques

Shows several examples of amazing typography projects and how they can be translated to a scrapbook layout
Offers creative digital techniques such as creating your own text patterned paper to journaling along a path
Explores hybrid techniques (combining digital and traditioanl techniques for creating stunning text effects)
Shows that 'traditional' type techniques don't need to be boring
Gives samples of numerous beautiful home decor projects using type as the main design element

The book contains over 100 stunning layouts, cards, home decor projects and more created by Brian himself as well as the following well-known artists: Ali Edwards, Elizabeth Kartchner, Laura Kurz, Amanda Probst, Heidi Swapp, Maggie Holmes, Amy Martin, Jessica Sprague, Mou Saha, Deena Wuest, Kelly Purkey, and Nicole LaRue.

The book also comes with a CD packed with great elements - fonts, templates, text paths, screen saves, and some of the great designs found in the book that you can print and use for your own creations!!

WANT TO READ MORE OR PURCHASE?
Visit the Get Creative with Type page at Amazon.com. You can also read more of my reviews for other recommendations.