Mixing patterned paper is one of my favorite things to do when scrapbooking. For this page I "cheeted" and used paper already coordinated by the manufacturer - but it's fun to go through my stash and find papers in similar tints, tones and shades and use them all on the same layout... in fact - I offer a class to my local customers called "Mixing Patterned Paper" where we review color theory and tips for doing what I just described - using papers from different manufacturers and mixing them together!
The other technique I used on this layout were the Journaling Strips - they are basically "bullet points" that tell the story of Todge.
The last thing of interest I ddi on this layout was to "make my own brads" - you can see I used the pink polka dot paper inside a Stampin' Up make a brad as a center to the foam flowers. I have no idea where the name Todge came from - according to Megan - "that's just his name"...
