I’m starting to use a teensy bit of patterned paper in my layouts. Working on my wedding scrapbook, I used it to add a bit of definition to my pages.
So what type of papers am I buying? What am I looking for?
I buy by the single sheet and only if I think I’m really going to use it. It doesn’t matter to me if they come from the same collection or not.
I go for clean designs and bold colors. I prefer designs that are “smaller” so I can snip a tiny piece of the paper and include it on the page.
I dislike distressed or vintage-y looking papers. The scrapbook is going to distress over time, I don’t need to give it a head start.
This isn’t just a scrapbook thing for me: I’m a conscientious distress-objector. I dislike sports logo shirts that are pre-distressed. I don’t buy jeans with holes already in them. It’s just one of my lovable quirks.
Anything else? I don’t have a favorite brand, I really just go with what I like. I used to gravitate toward pastels but trying to go for bold. Pastels feel safe to me but when I look at others’ work, I love the bold stuff.
This is all sure to evolve. What types of paper do you buy?
Almost Never Clever 
I don’t do distressed clothes either. I feel like they just look messy! 🙂 However, I do like distressed paper. Why should I do all the work with ripping, tearing and chalking inks if the paper printers can do it for me!! LOL. Though, I don’t do it often. Looks great with truly old photos too! (Pre-1960’s)
But I like ALL the papers!! I use small prints and big prints. Bold and pastel colors. Tone-on-tone and multi-colored papers. I do have my preferences though. Bold, tone-on-tone, small prints are my favorite. And am more likely to buy 10 sheets, rather than just 1. Partly because I “wallpaper” my 12×12 album pages – by far my favorite. I have other tendencies.
Have lots of pics? Tone-on-tone, small prints, are less distracting from the photos. Only a few pics? Multi-colored, large print paper can “fill up” a page that has lots of empty space – and I tend to NOT like lots of empty space. (I must admit, I’ve tried more empty space after seeing some of your pages. LOL)
I tend to discover these “tendencies” when I don’t like something and sit and analyze my pages/albums. Then will sometimes purposely set out to do what I do NOT “like” just to have plenty of unique layouts in my scrapbooks.
Paper to a scrapbooker = fabric to a quilter = paint to a painter. What’s not to love?? 😀
I know, I go on too much. You make me examine my motives though. Yep. That makes it your fault. 😉