Vacation photos are special events. However, you don't necessarily need special materials to document them. As someone who has seen the inside of many a theme park, I can tell you that the clues for the right materials are all around you. Just peak inside your photos and remember the sights and sounds of each of the themed areas.
These are photos of my son in the Land of the Dragons. It's part of a themed area for small kids in Busch Gardens, Tampa, Florida. This could have been a great opportunity to use some dragon themed stickers or patterned paper. Instead, I went a bit further and looked for ways to incorporate additional aspects of the area's theme into the layout.
I did pull the nautical motif directly from the ride itself. I also wanted to capture the fun bright colors found throughout the area. Everything in the Land of the Dragons is a bright cacophony of color. The colors I used represent the little dragons and their homes. As a subtle nod to the dragons, I included a blue patterned paper that reminded me of dragon scales. The tape reminds me of all the bubbles. There is a cave with a river running though it. As you splash your way along, bubbles fill the air.
I tend to group the photos from my theme park trips into sections. There are other rides in the Land of the Dragons. I will use bright colors, just as I did here, but motifs and patterns will tell the story of each event within that area separately. We spent a lot of time in this one particular area, but many theme parks consist of several " lands". If we visited a themed zone of the park and didn't spend much time there, the photos can be grouped onto one layout. An example would be the roller coasters. My son was too young to ride, so there are less stories to tell from those "lands".
As you pull your theme parks photos together, you must first decide what story to tell. Which areas did you visit the most and why? Are there particular colors, sounds, smells or sights you remember? How did the weather effect the outing? How were the lines? Try to jog your memory and choose your supplies, not just by theme, but by the things that triggered your memories. Don't just rely on your thoughts. Interview a family member to see what parts were most memorable for them.
For more ideas to document your family theme park adventures, stop by Get It Scrapped.
Love the bright colors with your photos Christy, and I think the anchor was a perfect embellishment choice to go on the layout!
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