A conventional scrapbook page uses paper, photographs, and embellishments. A mixed media page uses all of those and then keeps going — adding gesso and paint, texture paste, fabric, found materials, walnut ink, and anything else that contributes to the story being told. The result is something that feels genuinely made rather than assembled.
Mixed media scrapbooking sits at the intersection of traditional scrapbooking and art journaling. It borrows the storytelling instinct of scrapbooking and the expressive freedom of art journaling. The approach suits crafters who want their pages to look and feel unlike anything produced from a kit alone.
What makes a page mixed media
Any page that incorporates materials beyond paper, photos, and standard embellishments can be considered mixed media. In practice, mixed media scrapbooking usually involves at least one of: a painted or gessoed background, applied texture, stamping with non-standard inks, collage elements from non-scrapbooking sources, or dimensional texture created with pastes or molding compounds.
The defining quality of mixed media work is layering. Each material interacts with the ones beneath it. Gesso over patterned paper softens the pattern to a ghost. Ink spray over dried texture paste pools in the hollows. The page develops depth that flat paper simply cannot achieve.
Gesso: the mixed media foundation
Gesso is a primer traditionally used to prepare canvas for painting. In mixed media scrapbooking, it serves a different purpose: it partially or completely obscures backgrounds, unifies disparate elements, creates a receptive surface for other media, and adds a chalky matte quality that makes everything applied over it look considered.
- White gesso applied over patterned paper creates a distressed, ghost-pattern effect where the original design shows faintly through. Heavy application produces a near-solid white ground.
- Black gesso creates dramatic dark foundations that make bright colours and metallic accents pop.
- Clear gesso provides a painting primer without changing the colour beneath — useful when you want to add paint to a surface that would otherwise resist it.
- Gesso applied with a palette knife leaves texture marks and ridges that add physical dimension to the background.
Texture pastes and modelling compounds
Texture paste — also called modelling paste or structure paste — is applied through stencils or directly with a palette knife to create raised physical texture on a page. Once dry, it holds its shape permanently and accepts paint, ink, and wax beautifully.
Apply through a stencil for crisp, repeated patterns. Apply freehand with a palette knife for organic, gestural marks. Combine both approaches on the same page. White texture paste painted over after drying creates dimensional pattern with subtle colour variation in the raised areas.
Paint on scrapbook pages
Acrylic craft paint is the most practical choice for mixed media scrapbooking — it dries quickly, is water-soluble while wet, and comes in an enormous range of colours. Watercolour creates softer, more transparent washes. Acrylic ink gives intense concentrated colour that flows into texture beautifully.
- Dry brushing: Load a brush with paint, wipe most of it off, then drag across the surface. Catches raised texture and paper edges without filling in the recesses. Creates aged, worn effects.
- Blending: Apply two or three colours while still wet and blend the edges together. Works particularly well as a background wash beneath photos.
- Spraying: Diluted acrylic or dedicated ink sprays can be misted across a page for soft colour transitions and splatters.
- Stamping with paint: Applying paint directly to a stamp (rather than using an ink pad) gives a slightly different impression — thicker, slightly more textured, with brushstroke variation.
Collage and found materials
Mixed media scrapbooking embraces materials that standard scrapbooking leaves out: sheet music, dictionary pages, tissue paper, fabric scraps, packaging, maps, and anything else with an interesting surface. These are used as background elements, torn and layered beneath photographs, or cut into shapes and incorporated into the design.
Tissue paper applied with gel medium is particularly effective — it creates a translucent, wrinkled layer that adds texture without significant bulk. Dictionary pages or book text give a literary quality to heritage and reflective layouts.
Art journaling techniques adapted for scrapbooking
Art journaling is a practice in which journals are treated as mixed media artworks rather than written records. Many of its techniques translate directly to scrapbooking: working with layered backgrounds, embedding meaningful found objects, treating text as visual element rather than functional information, and allowing process to be visible in the finished work.
The key difference is that scrapbooking retains a documentary purpose. Mixed media scrapbookers use expressive techniques in service of memory-keeping — the messy painted background supports the photograph rather than replacing it.
"Mixed media work asks what the page feels like, not just what it contains. When those two questions have the same answer, you have made something worth keeping."
Getting started without overcomplicating it
Begin with one technique at a time. A layout with a gessoed background and nothing else is already mixed media. Add texture paste through a stencil once you are comfortable with gesso. Add a paint wash once texture feels natural. Build your material vocabulary gradually rather than attempting everything at once.
Protect your workspace. Gesso, texture paste, and paint are significantly messier than standard scrapbooking. A silicone mat, old palette knives, and a dedicated set of brushes kept separate from other tools makes working in mixed media much more manageable.