A Trip to the Desert: Southwest Style

We all have lists of things we want to do before our time on earth is up. In spite of extensive travel, one of the things on my list is to experience the southwestern corner of the United States. What could be more different from my midwestern, snow-covered roots than desert, endless sun and cacti?

Surprisingly, those same elements translate into something known in the decorating world as "southwest style," and though I haven't traveled there in body, my layouts and projects can use those elements to go there in spirit. You can make the trip, too.

Desert Equals Pattern

Think of those desert and mesa vistas. The Native Americans who have lived there for centuries certainly did. Look at their magnificent rugs and blankets, the colorful pottery and other artifacts typical of their art. You'll see strong geometric patterns that reflect the contrast between flat vistas and mountains and rock formations. When planning your layouts, you can draw inspiration in similar fashion. These are some of the elements of pattern to consider.

• Bold zig-zag designs
• Strong geometrics, perhaps with a central field surrounded by smaller repeating blocks
• Stylized characters representing creatures of the desert, such as the howling coyote or curved lizard

In this layout, the patterned paper itself fits the mood with the bold contrasting zigzags. Although the design was actually inspired by the Ho-Chunk of Wisconsin, the patterns fit the southwest look as well.

Endless Sun Equals Strong Color

A hallmark of the southwest style is its use of color. For inspiration, take a look at any coffee table book that features the incredible rock formations or cactus landscapes typical of this region. You'll see intense earth tones such as terra-cotta reds or sage greens, accented with the turquoise and jade colors of the jewelry in the region. Keep in mind, too, the sagebrush country with the infinite variety of sand colors to temper such intense shades.

This layout is based on one published in a very early issue of Creating Keepsakes. The design was a perfect fit for these photos of my sons and their cousins enjoying a local playground in the summer sun. Note the sand-colored background with the punches of sunny orange, green and turquoise.

Cactus Equals Texture

Finally, think of the prickly cactus that is a symbol of this area. Couple that with the windblown landscape and you can't help but think texture.

The desert southwest isn't all about sand and cactus, however. Other textures spring to mind, and they all can be incorporated into your layouts and projects.

• Sand textures can be replicated with stamped designs that make use of sand powders. You can also obtain this effect by using textured cardstock or even by using sandpaper to rough up your photos or layout elements.

• Leather can be recreated with Fun Foam that has been heated and stamped to look like tooled leather. Crumpling, sanding and inking heavy cardstock repeatedly creates page elements that become very leather-like in appearance. Instructions for creating leather-like accents are available in this article by Tiffany Roberts.

• Metals are another element. Think of all the beautiful silver and turquoise jewelry. You can use silver and pewter embellishments, or create the look yourself. Scrapjazz also has instructions for creationg faux metal.

• Basketry is another common element, and you can add that texture easily with hemp accents. Just a couple strands of it across a photo or corner of the layout adds a bit of earthy texture.

This layout combines all the aspects of southwest style mentioned here -color scheme, geometric pattern and texture-- and adds the punch of stamped accents based on the ancient rock art designs seen throughout the region.

Escape to the desert

As I write this, we are firmly within the grip of a nasty midwestern cold snap, but I can warm up symbolically by heading to my scrap space and scrapping southwest style. Take a break from the winter blahs yourself. Put a little bit of desert, endless sun and cactus on your next layout! Create your own Southwestern Layout with Southwest Scrapbook Supplies from Scrapjazz.com's huge theme store.