This 11 photo sketch allows not just for lots of photos, but for a variety of patterned papers, too.  The blocky collage style is softened by the addition of the circles.  Embellishments could work just as well in place of the circles.

The layout uses only 3 patterns and 2 solids. Instead of journaling, the title is carried across the page on the circles.

I’m a day late with the new sketch, but I think was worth the wait.  Let me know if you agree (or not!).
Another circle-iscious layout!  This 10 photo layout is fairly easy, if you don’t get too caught up in the exact placement of the embellishments and flourishes (easier said than done, for me!).  The sketch was inspired by a layout done by my friend Robin S. (aka “The Queen of Doo-dahs”).

Here’s Robin’s layout.  She used more than 5 patterned papers, but since the set was double-sided, she was able to get the most bang-for-her buck based on how she used them.  Popping some of the circles up is an important part of the design.

But wait, there’s more!  You will notice that the right side of the Robin’s layout really differs somewhat from the sketch.  That’s because the sketch is created from already-created layouts, and the right side is from my scraplift of Robin’s layout.  The papers are the same, the general idea is the same, but you can see how I made it my own.  Notice I didn’t use as many little circles, and my flourishes are different… and that’s okay!

After creating the layout above, I was working in a different album, and decided to use the sketch again (yes, I use & re-use my own sketches!)  Even fewer little circles, but it all still works.  (Just a note, I discovered the fun of making my own patterned paper on this layout, as I needed another pattern.  So I foam stamped the yellow cardstock and voila!)

So often I see 1 page layouts with 1 large photo, but what do us 2-pager-multi-photo gals do with that?  How about something like this 6 photo layout?

I cropped my photos a little more than called for in the sketch, because I had an extra photo and wanted to add some embellishments.  I didn’t need to journal, so replaced the journaling block with another embellishment.  There are 4 patterns and 2 solids used in this layout, all from the Basic Gray Granola collection.

This 12 photo sketch would be perfect if you have scraps left from another layout, since the photos cover most of the layout.  It is also an easy one for using fewer photos than called for, or for doing very little cropping of your 4×6 photos.

The layout here is the sketch, exactly.  There are 3 patterns and 3 solids.

This 8 photo sketch uses somewhat larger blocks of background papers, which make it easy to put together.  If you are working from scraps, try to piece it instead, though you may have to move your photos around some.

This layout uses 9 photos, arranged just a little differently, but still recognizable as the sketch.  There are 5 patterns and 0 solids.

This 18 photo sketch is not something you may need often, but when you do…  The 3 photos that are the focus of the left page could easily be replaced with a single large photo, or 2 photos.  Matting them on the title block is what helps them be the focus.

The layout uses just 3 patterns and 3 solids.  It would be easy to create from  scraps of patterns, if you have some to use up from another layout.

This 6 photo layout is another that is friendly to those who don’t want to crop their photos, or to those who are fans of the zoom button on their camera, and just can’t cut or they’ll lose something!

The layout, using BasicGrey Marrakech, does have cropped photos on it, because I wanted to show the paper a little more, and add some journaling and embellishments.

This 5 photo sketch is especially for those of you who don’t like to crop your photos.  The 3.5 inch circle can be replaced with a large embellishment, if you like.  And if you use a plain piece of cardstock as a base for the strips on the right page, you can save on the more expensive patterned paper.

It feels like I cheated with this 4 photo layout, because the strips on the right page were already printed on the page!  Since doing this layout, I look for lines that have a sheet like that, as it makes it very easy to scrap!

This 5 photo layout could be put together fairly quickly.  If you don’t have a 5×7, you could use 2 horizontal 3.5×5 inch, instead.  The photo hanging off the mat on the right page helps break the lines of all that vertical paper, giving your eye a rest.

The layout uses 5 patterns and 1 solid, but only 3 photos. I had never done a 3 photo layout before, but this time  I didn’t have much choice.  I’m very pleased with the result, though!  And while I didn’t have a photo to hang off the mat, the over-sized numbers work just the same way.

This 10 photo sketch has lots of photos, but even more circles.  Is there such a thing as too many circles?  The collage of the photos helps keep that from being so.

The layout, using 4 patterns (even those that look like a solid here have a slight pattern), is one of my all-time favorites.  You know those layouts that you do, and then you can’t stop looking at them?  This is one of those, for me.

This 7 photo sketch is great for when you have some strong photos that you not only don’t want to crop much, but you want them bigger!   If you don’t want to add a sub-title, you could add even more photos there, instead. There is more visual white space than in most of my sketches, so if that bothers you, add more photos or stuff!

The layout uses 7 photos, though one of them is tucked into the title.  There is no journaling, just a quote, because the pictures and title say it all.  I don’t usually leave so much space that doesn’t have photos in it, but the busy word paper made me okay with the idea.  As it turned out, this is one of my favorite layouts I’ve ever done.

With this 7 photo sketch, you could easily replace the focal photo on the left page with a larger photo.

The layout uses 11 photos by grouping three 2×4 photos in each of the spaces designated for a 4×6 photo on the right page. Turning those photos black & white added some visual interest, but was done mainly because the photos weren’t very good quality and b&w is more forgiving.  The 6 patterns and 1 solid are from the BoBunny “It’s My Party” collection, as are the embellishments. To save paper, I cut out from behind the large red square and used the flip-side for the large square on the left.

This 12 photo sketch makes good use of the photo-collage technique.  The title is on a 4 inch circle.

The layout almost doubles the number of photos on the sketch, using 21.  The photos on the bottom of the left page are either 1.5 inch square or 1.5 x 3 inch, created with a photo-editing program.  And yes, I know it is a very busy layout with so many busy patterns… but they are also very busy kittens!  There are 4 patterns and 2 solids, from the BoBunny Mango Luau collection.

This 18 photo sketch is all about telling the story, using as many photos as possible, without being too cluttered or completely covering up your pretty paper.

The layout uses 20 photos, 4 patterns, and 2 solids.  The papers are from Scenic Route, but as they are going out of business, I can’t link you to them.

This 8 photo sketch is another with a “big circle”, but this time the big circle is a photo instead of patterned paper.  To successfully do this, you will have to put a little bit of forethought into what photo you want to enlarge, and if it will be “crop-able” into this shape.

The layout is exactly like the sketch, with 2 patterns and 3 solids.. With the size you see here, you can’t see the fuzziness of my large photo, but I want to point it out to you.  Why point out a “flaw”?  Because I believe that it is okay to use a less-than-perfect photo as your enlargement/focus.  If it is the only photo that you have, and important to the story, use it!