Welcome to Discovery Drive! I’m going to resist the urge to say “down under” more than once, so let’s sit down and get to know our next discovery, Jane Smith – from Australia!

If I just had to describe Jane’s scrapbooking style, I’d first say modern vintage. Sounds rather oxymoronic, doesn’t it? But look closely, if you imagine aged-old yellowed photos in lots of beige and browns, you’d see the vintage in her work. (Here, I have to admit that I actually did take her layout “My Little Girl” and put it through my OptikVerve PhotoShop ‘Old Newspaper’ filter. Totally nostalgic!) Yet, if her pages are inspired by olden days, you might say she’s vintage that’s not afraid of color. And somehow that works.

While writing this very article, I caught her blog title: ‘Joyful Retrospect’. Now I think this is Jane’s scrapbooking style, don’t you?!

Then I saw her return ‘Peace on Earth and Goodwill to all’ and thought, “Uh oh! Christmas in May?!” But I’d hang this work of art on my wall all year round. She’s found seasonal longevity in her art, folks.

Her work continues on into other categories. I’ve seen a wild one full of color and energy, I’ve seen a plain paper that draws you into her photo and I also got to see a really a beautiful wedding picture and layout, full of her finest vintage supply. I’m hoping she’ll post these up on her blog so you can all see!

Congratulations, Jane. I find your work intriguing and timeless. I wish you the best of luck and many, many more scrapping days ahead!

My Little Girl by Jane Smith

Supplies: Papers: Making Memories, Chipboard: Autumn Leaves, Rub-Ons: BasicGrey, American Crafts, Die Cuts: Bella Paper Crafts, Other: beads, lace, ribbon, alphabet. Tools: Punches: EK Success.

Design Notes: I made these little roses after searching the net for paper flower tutorials. There were so many on U-Tube and personal blogs I spent hours searching through all the tutorials for my favorite flowers. I love using vintage items in my scrapbooking. Here I have used a vintage lace collar to help frame the photo. There are so many vintage scrapbook supply sites now and I have a lot of fun flitting through all the sites.

Editor's Notes: The internet is your friend. Don’t have the supply you want? Search and create one yourself!

Tiny Angel by Jane Smith

Supplies: Paper: Sassafras Lass, Francheville, Die Cuts: Making Memories, Other: alphabet, ribbon, buckle, flowers.

Design Notes: When you can't pick a favorite photo, print out several so you can enjoy all the expressions captured. If I am stumped or feeling a lack of inspiration, I look for a color combination I really love and search my stash for suitable products. If I am lacking the detail I would like sometimes I can find it in a patterned paper and I cut out the image to use as my embellishment.

Editor's Notes: Scrapping multi-photo pages is definitely back in. Use multi’s to tell a story, capture mini-moments or, as Jane did: lots of different expressions.

Peace on Earth and Goodwill to all Men by Jane Smith

Supplies: Paper: K & Company, Rub-Ons: 7Gypsies, Flowers, Ribbon: My2Angels, Glitter: Making Memories, Other: image, ink. Tools: Other: stamps.

Design Notes: I love playing with vintage style layouts. I like to collect embellishments from the same era or the same theme, for example loads of different roses or loads of different clocks. I will then check my stash for any forgotten stamps or rubons matching the theme and I use them to cluster and layer everything. It’s a great way to use stamps and other bits in the bottom of your stash. I am always so satisfied with the outcome. Here I have the roses and flowers in the patterned papers, cutouts from vintage card images and flower embellishments. I feel a little less guilty for hanging on to so much. All the layering in this layout makes it firm enough to be displayed on a nice little stand.

Journaling: Peace on Earth and Goodwill to all Men.