Layout Highlights

Today is the last day of July!!  As we move into August, we start thinking about winding down the summer and getting ready for back to school.  There's still lots of time left for summer vacation but somehow our minds start gearing down and getting ready for a transition.  Well, before you let that happen to you, how about taking a trip to your local zoo, petting farm, animal safari or pet shop.  As I was walking through the Dream Big Designs gallery, all the gorgeous layouts using 'Into The Wild' reminded me that we need to take a trip to our local zoo before the summer ends.

Let's take a closer look at 2 fabulous layouts from gals scrapping some fun at their local zoos.  First up is called National Zoo by PierKiss.  She commented that there's just too many animal photos to scrap so she had to make a 2 page layout.  It's impossible NOT to take tons of pictures at the zoo.  I love how the journaling boxes flank the outer sides and the title is spread across the 2 pages.  I'm a sucker for symmetry so this page really speaks to me with the mirror images of the template on both sides.  Look how she sprinkled the animal elements across the page.  Lots of fun here!

Next up is called A Day At The Zoo by Carrie1977.  Wow!  It looks like her boys are right in the middle of all those elements.  What a wonderful job clustering to make a scene like the front entrance to the zoo.  And you eye trails up the diagonal of the page showing a lovely triangle of white space on the upper left side.  Brilliant, don't you think??

You can find 'Into The Wild' and all of Cheri's Dream Big Designs collections at her ScrapOrchard Store.

Keep those layouts coming and have a great week!

Good Monday morning!  I'm sure you all are busy, like me, preparing for ......SCHOOL!! UGH!  lol
Here's our awesome Monday freebie....created by CT Angie!  Using Splash Zone available in Cheri's store at Scrap Orchard! 
Check it out!:

isn't that totally awesome!

Check out the kit:

and the wordart:

and my personal favorite - the graffiti!

You can pick up the freebie here!  Make sure you leave some love!

Sunday Helper - Photobucket Links

Lots of folks use Photobucket as a storage medium for their sharing their photos, layouts and project images. So when you want to share them, how do you link to these images to display them? There are 4 sets of links below each photo that are used for different purposes so let's talk about each one.  Depending on where you want to display your image, you'll code the copy and paste it into your emails, forums, or blogs.

Eamil & IM:  Use this code if you want to email or instant message the link to the image.  When you click on the link inside the email, it will take you directly to the image in Photobucket.

Direct Link:  This code allows you to display the image in your web browser, forum or blog instead of uploading the physical file.  For posting inside a forum, you'll usually find an "image or picture" button for inserting a photo into your post.  The Direct Link code is what you'll use for pasting into the photo link button.  If you've created a blinkie, you'll paste this code into the Blogger gadget so it can show up as a side bar blinkie.  This link is the one I use most frequently.

HTML Code:  Use this code to display your photo if you are doing detailed HTML coding.  If you are blogging in the COMPOSE mode, you can toggle into HTML mode and see all the gory, cryptic details and see that this is the technical code of how an image is displayed in your blogging language.

IMG Code:  This link is used on bulletin boards and forums to display your layouts and photos. It's very similar to the Direct Link code (except it has [IMG] before and [/IMG] after the code).  Some forums don't have an easy way to insert a layout, so you can paste in this code if there is no "image or picture" button. If you have a blinkie, this is the link code that you will paste into your signature.

Here's an example of posting the IMG Code link for creating my signature image.

It's good to know what each of the code links are used for in case you need them.
Hope you have a great week!

Splat!

I have some more amazing CU for your stash. I made some funky brush splatters for your kits or digital projects. I have also included 6 pngs of the splatters if you do not want to load the brushes.
CU Brushes Splats Vol. 1

I also have an Olympic freebie for you! It is 5 ring brushes that you can use to make your own Olympic rings. Enjoy.

DOWNLOAD HERE

Sneak Peek

Cheri's got more goodies coming out this week that are a must have to fill up that scrapping stash of yours.  Make sure you check back to see what's new this week.

Monday's freebie....take 2

Well I discovered that Monday's freebie didn't come up on Brittany's blog like we had planned - you know- technical issues - got to love them!
So here is the download link for you were hoping to get it!

Click here to download, and enjoy!

Tuesday Layout Highlights

It's summer time and it's HOT!  All I can think about is hanging out by the pool and cooling off.  So as I was browsing Cheri's Dream Big Designs gallery, all I could focus on was pool pictures and fun splashy pool layouts.  It just made me think of all the summer fun by the pool.  My boys love the pool and it's a fabulous way to cool off on a hot sunny day.

Check out this page called Relax by MrsBurgess.   All the vertical paper strips makes your eyes go up and down checking out the flow of the page.  I just love the mix of journal strips, flowers and photos on each paper block.  Such splashy fun!

Here's another page with fabulous vertical focus called Wet-And-Wild by Karen32.  All the brightly colored papers are so festive and summery.  I love the sunshine in the corner and all the word tags.  Looks like both the kids and the adults were enjoying the pool!

Ahhh, don't you feel better already?  Cool and refreshed!  And I'll bet you're ready to grab your swim suit and head off to the pool.  Snap lots of pictures.  When you get back, you can scrap all those pool layouts with 'Splash Zone'.  Just looking at this kit makes me want to jump in the pool!

Hope you can keep cool this week!  Have a great one!

Good morning fellow scrappers!  Hope you are doing well this fine Monday morning!  Today's awesome freebie is brought to us by CT Brittany....check it out!:

Brittany used Tiny Toes~ check out the kit and extras:



and the awesome graffiti:

You can pick up the freebie here on Brittany's blog - make sure you leave her some loooove!

Sunday Helper - To Do Lists

When you look around your work space, what do you see?  For me, it's lots of post-its and note papers with lists on it and notes to myself.  I'm a type-A planner person who thrives and survives with my to-do lists.    Somehow the action of writing things down helps drive me to first remember the task and then to get it done.  Then of course you get to cross it off your list and get that sense of accomplishment.

My tip today is more of an organization tip.  If I can be more organized at home, I can have more time to scrap.  Then of course I need to keep track of all the challenges and scrapping events going on.  I found a great tool to use for centralizing and automating my to-do list.  Last year I started looking for a software tool to help me out.  These were my requirements:

• PC Based.  Since I'm on my computer so much and I feel more comfortable typing on the PC instead of on an iPhone, I wanted an easy to use PC program.
• Categories.  I wanted to have more than 1 list but still see a complete laundry list of everything that's active.
• Simple.  I'm looking for something that replaces my post-its and don't want anything complex to navigate or too hard to enter in my to-dos.
• Sync with iPhone.  I wanted to see the to-do list on my iPhone and check off anything I accomplished.
• Free.  I didn't want to pay for a software program or even an iPhone app.

So I did some online research and narrowed down my selections to 3:  Astrid, Remember The Milk and Wunderlist.  I also looked at List Maker Lite, To Do List Lite and Home And Work Lite but quickly eliminated them.  I chose Astrid because it was so easy to create a list and see all your to-dos.  Choosing a to do list method is very personal, almost like shopping for a purse.  You can be very picky about what works and doesn't work for you.

I have only 2 lists (Home and Scrapbooking) and I can add in a task quickly.  I don't classify them according to due dates (that's too complex and too much extra work).  If there is a critical due date, then I'll put that in the description of the task (for example "SO Template Challenge due 7/20").   I really like the simplicity of having a long laundry list of tasks.  I don't want to spend time looking at a calendar and entering gory details by each date.  Simple works best for me.  This is what the Astrid PC version looks like.

Then you can view the list on your iPhone.  

I'll have to admit that some days I still like my post-it notes, but I do like the flexibility and simplicity of my online to-do list.  So if you're looking to get organized, do some web research and check out all the cool organization tools available.  This one helps me!

Have a great week!

July Giveaway!

Do you love Dream Big Designs? Would you love a $5 gift certificate to her store??? Well it is super easy! Fill out this questionnaire and you will be entered for a chance to win! Random.org will determine the winner. You have until next Friday, July 28! Good luck!

Edit: So sorry for this, but I realized after seeing some of you enter your responses that I had no idea who said what! So I've edited the form to include your name and email address. If you already filled it out, please do so again. I am SOOOOO sorry!! This is my first time doing this so I don't have all the kinks worked out just yet.

New CU for you!

Today I have 2 new CU packs for you. My FAVORITE to create: Paper Flowers and some fun creased Paper Textures. Both are photographed/scanned and extracted by myself. The flowers are in true color and each flower is unique. They are a little smaller than my normal CU flowers. These are only about 2 inches in diameter. But they have a ton of detail and texture. The papers are created from cardstock and are in different shades of grey. Both are 20% off for this week only.
CU Paper Flowers Vol.7

CU Textures Vol.2

Also, I have a freebie CU product on my FB page this month. Make sure to check it out!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Sneak Peek

Looking to add to your scrapping stash?  Cheri's got some new CU products coming out this week.  

Take a closer look....

Tuesday Layout Highlights

I don't know about you, but sometimes I can get caught up with trying out new scrapping techniques, experimenting with a new tool or using a new template that I sometimes forget the central purpose of scrapbooking which is to capture your memories.  So as I was browsing through Cheri's Dream Big Designs gallery, a few layouts popped out at me to remind me of the importance of doing just that.

With a new baby, almost everything in their first two years is a special event.  It's important to keep those cameras out and snap away.  For example, you know how interesting a plain cardboard box can be to a little one.  They can sit and play in it for hours or climb in and out of it over and over again.  I love this layout called What's In The Box by Chippi using 'Mother Duck.  The solid background helps you focus on the photos.  I love the set of 3 flower clusters and the fabulous title.  She captured a great memory.

As your little one starts to get mobile, whether that be crawling or walking, that's another reason to get the camera out.  Look at this page called Ready Go by KalaMae using 'Monster Truck Madness'.  The black and white photo is amazing against the black textured paper.  The stripes, flames and paper strips add so much motion to the page.  Who knew a monster truck kit could be so perfect to scrap your baby crawling!

It's hard sometimes to filter out what do I WANT to scrap verses what do I NEED to scrap.  Remember, it's the everyday memories that are precious.  Can't wait to see your new layouts each week.  Have a good week!

Good Monday morning, fellow scrappers!  Today we are taking a break from a freebie, and having a GAME!  Hooorah!
So, I kind of made this game up.....so we'll just have to see how it goes....- I'm going to list something that I spy....you put the answer of what it was and list something that you spy - the catch?
the things we are spying have to be from Cheri's store at Scrap Orchard!
SO.....
I spy an elephant! 
the first one to respond to what kit has an elephant (ohh sooo easy...) needs to list something they spy from a different kit.....and the next person answers what kit that was.....and lists something they see in another kit...etc. etc.
AND WHY would we play such a crazy game?  Cause one of you lucky responders is going to receive a gift card for a FREE kit from Cheri's store.  so.....LET THE GAME BEGIN!!

Sunday Helper - Copy And Close

Good morning, it's Sunday and it's the middle of July.  It's hot and rainy where I am.  A great day to be sleeping in!  I've got a short tutorial for you today, but one that I think you'll use again and again.

I'm a pretty simple scrapper.  I work on my layouts the same way every time.  I select my photos, load up lots of papers, place my elements, pick a title and then work on my shadows.  I love working with a bunch of different paper types and styles because you never know what they might look like together.  I used to load each one manually into my layout and it seemed to take forever.  Thankfully I found a very helpful action that I use constantly that does all the paper loading for me.  It's a free action created by Christy VanderWall from SpeedScraps called "Copy & Close".  

It's a fabulous utility that takes all your open papers and elements, copies them into your layout and then closes them all.  It may sound simple but it's incredibly powerful and saves you lots of time.  You'll need to have your PSD layout open, then open all the papers you want to play with.  Click on the "Copy & Close" action button and sit back and watch while it takes each paper, loads it into your layout and then closes the papers.  It keeps the file names of each paper so it's easy for crediting which kits the papers came from.  After I've played around with all my papers, I'll open several elements.  Click on "Copy & Close" and now all my elements are loaded into my layout.

You can download her free scripts here:  http://speedscraps.blogspot.com/p/free-scripts.html

And the instructions here: http://speedscraps.blogspot.com/p/instructions.html 

If you don't already have this, make sure you check it out this week.  

Have a fabulous week!

Heroes and Freebie

Chelle and I have teamed up again to bring you one "Super" kit. We decided to create a kit for our local Super Heroes. We created three different kits for our Police, Fire Fighters and EMT/Paramedics. And it turned out Fantastic! I loved creating all the different pieces and the colors all went together so well. But why don't you check it out for yourself and see all the things you can create with it.

It is all on sale and if you buy the bundle, you get the Stacks for free, this week only. You can find it in my shop or in the Fresh Fruit at Scrap Orchard.
Heroes {Super Bundle}

Here are the stacks you get Free with Purchase until 7/20.

The 3 kit Collabs (Police, Fire and EMT) seperate. 

Heroes {Police}

Heroes {Fire}

Heroes {EMT}

Of course I made some funky Graffiti to go with it all: Heroes {Graffiti}

Also, I have a special freebie for you: Heroes {Freebie}

My Dream Team went above and beyond with all the amazing layouts they did. Check them all out:

Thanks for looking! Have a fabulous weekend.