3Quarter Designs - Autumn Whispers Collection - Design Team Share

There’s something about the Autumn Whispers Collection from 3Quarter Designs that completely captures the feeling of the season. This collection is such a beautiful example of how thoughtfully designed their ranges are — everything coordinates effortlessly, making it so easy to create cohesive layouts without overthinking it.

The colour palette is just stunning with warm ochres, soft browns, muted oranges and those deeper rust tones, all layered across gorgeous textures like woodgrain, soft washes and detailed Autumn elements. What I love most is how versatile the collection is. Whether you’re working with multiple photos or a single feature image, there are so many options with the papers and cutaparts embellishments to fussycut to build your page exactly how you want it.

These photos of Paige and Bronte were taken during our first real Autumn here in Canberra, and they could not have been more perfect for this collection. The girls had so much fun throwing leaves at each other… and of course, it quickly turned into them throwing leaves at me while I was trying to take photos.

That sense of fun, movement and those beautiful Autumn colours are exactly what Autumn Whispers brings to life — it’s a collection that doesn’t just complement your photos, it enhances the story behind them.

And of all the 12x12 woodgrain choices in the Autumn Whispers collection, the white woodgrain has to be my favourite. It’s the perfect balance of clean and fresh, but still full of texture, making it an ideal background that lets the photos and embellishments really shine.

This layout actually came together after I had already made a few others, but I still had so many Autumn photos to scrap and just had to keep playing with the wonderfully beautiful Autumn Whispers Collection from 3Quarter Designs. I still have a lot of the Autumn Whispers collection let, which just goes to show how jammed pack of product they are.

I started with my favourite white woodgrain paper from the collection. I love this one as a background because it has that lovely soft white tone, but it is not flat or plain. The woodgrain gives it beautiful texture and interest without taking over the page. Even though the paper was already perfect, I still felt the need to add some splatters. The overhead lighting in my process photos has washed them out a little, but the splatters are actually a mix of browns and oranges, concentrated through the centre of the 12x12.

Next, I cut three paper strips in different colours and sizes, then trimmed “V” shapes into the bottoms to create a banner effect. To add even more texture, I distressed all the edges and inked them up. I layered these roughly in the centre of the woodgrain paper, knowing they would become the grounding element for my photos, so I made sure not to make them too small.

Then I matted my main photo piece, leaving about a 5mm border around the edge, and again distressed and inked it to keep that texture and consistency going across the layout. For this section, I used two 2x3 photos side by side on the one photo mat. The 6x12 matting strips included in the 3Quarter Designs 12x12 collections are so handy for this. They are perfect for matting photos or adding extra layers of colour to a page.

Once that was in place, I added two more photos either side of the main photo cluster. From there, I started building with the die-cut leaves. I really wanted the leaves to look like they were flying through the air, almost as if the girls were throwing them and they were bursting out from around the photos.

At this stage I also added some smaller details, including the hand-drawn faux stitching around the edge of the 12x12 background, and a twine bow tied around two of the banner pieces. That bow did not make it into the final design though. As I kept working, it started to feel a little out of place, so I changed direction and unraveled the twine instead to give it a thinner, rougher and more worn look, which suited the page much better.

A lot of my scrapbooking happens like that — one idea leads to another, and sometimes what I thought would stay ends up changing completely. That is one of the things I love most about scrapbooking. It is creative, flexible, and often the page evolves as you go. You never quite know where it will end up, but somehow the finished result usually comes together in a way that feels just right.

I did not take step-by-step photos of the very final finishing touches, but I will share some close-ups and talk through the details I added to complete the layout.

Here you can see how I created my title cluster. I used some of the words cut from the cut-apart sheet in the collection and layered them with a strip of the woodgrain paper to anchor the title. The word “FUN” is actually made from wood veneer letters from my own stash, but the colour and texture worked perfectly with the collection, it blended in so naturally. I had a little rummage through my (slightly excessive) stash of wood veneer pieces and came across these tiny little hearts… they were just too cute not to include and tied in beautifully with the overall feel of the layout.

You can also see what I ended up doing with the twine from earlier. Instead of keeping the original bow, I unravelled the strands to make them thinner and softer, then tied it back into a loose, slightly messy bow. It gives a much more relaxed, worn texture which suits the page so much better.

Using more of the unravelled twine, I added a small brown pearl bead to the ends, tying it off to keep everything in place now that the strands were much finer. I then positioned the twine so it would naturally fall and added a few extra loose strands, allowing them to dangle underneath the left cluster. This adds a soft sense of movement and just a little extra texture without overpowering the design.

 

I am a big believer in using everything I can in my scrapbooking, so for these small leaves I actually fussy cut them from the packaging sheet of the 12x12 Autumn Whispers Collection. They were just too perfect not to use and added those little finishing touches that tie everything together beautifully.

In these close-ups you can see I added a few more of those tiny wood veneer hearts, just sprinkling them around the page to create little moments of interest without overwhelming the design. They are such a simple addition but work so well with the natural tones of the collection. You can also see my signature splashes and splatters peeking out from behind the photos — I love how they add that extra layer of texture and movement, helping to tie all the elements together while keeping the layout feeling soft and cohesive.

I absolutely loved creating this layout with the Autumn Whispers Collection from 3Quarter Designs. It is such a beautifully put together range, full of rich colours, gorgeous textures and so many usable elements that make creating easy while still allowing you to add your own personal touch. This collection was perfect for capturing these fun Autumn moments with Paige and Bronte, and I know I will be reaching for it again with the rest of my photos.

If you have not already, make sure you head over to the 3Quarter Designs Facebook Page to check out what the rest of the Design Team has been creating. There is so much inspiration there and so many different ways to use this stunning collection.