Hello fellow scrap-a-holics! I am happy to bring you September’s “I’ll Pencil You In” challenge here at ScrapMatters! Here are a few ideas for your pages, although you are welcome to create anything you would like for your calendar page.

Summer re-cap, back to school, here comes fall, grandparents, September 11th, labor day, hispanic heritage, library/reading

Let me remind you what the I’ll Pencil You In challenge is about. A personalized calendar makes a great Christmas gift for parents/grandparents, and I know I love seeing my own calendar every time I walk into my kitchen. But who has the time to get a calendar ready in December? That’s why we’re working on our 2010 calendars one page at a time, so by the end of the year we’ll only have to put the pages together! If you haven’t been playing along so far, it’s not too late to join in!

Many of us have been creating calendar toppers or calendar pages only digitally so far, waiting to have them printed or print them ourselves and assemble them at the end of the year. Others have been printing each page as soon as it’s finished. Whatever works for you, is good: as long as you hold your calendar in your hands in time for Christmas!

Here are some samples of pages created to give you some inspiration.

Hi!  This is Liz bringing you my first challenge and this week’s Grand Theft Layout.  For September 16, we are going to lift rxdawg97, one of our newest CT Members.  I am just struck by her color choices and composition.  Lots of creativity there.  Here is the link to her Gallery.  Take a look around and I am sure you will find something amazing to lift!

I lifted Happy Traveler:

And here is mine:

And here are some wonderful entries from the CT ladies:

Here is the original Serenity:

and here is jennamy89′s lift:

cnscrap lifted this beautiful LO, Storybook Land:

and here is her take on it:

Finally, Cristina lifted this gorgeous LO, Captivated:

and came up with this beauty:

The fine print: You will have until the end of September to complete this challenge.  Upload it to the Grand Theft Layout gallery and leave your LO image, rxdawg’s LO image and both links here in this forum.

You will receive one point for completing the challenge. You can earn an additional point for using a NEW product from the SM store! (Please indicate that you used something new with your LO/link in the forum.) And, one lucky winner (random) will receive an ADDITIONAL point!

Remember no double dipping…your layout must be unique to this challenge! Can’t wait to see what you all come up with!

Hey!!! It’s Kathleen here with your weekly installment of the Tuesday Template challenge. I’ve got a really simple (but still awesome) template for you to use this week. I based it off of one of my recent faves and there’s no real rules – you can scrap whatever you want with it, dress it up or down, flip it, whatever. Just have fun!!!

Here’s the template…

and you can pick it up ——>here<——

Here's the LO that I based it off of…

and look at all the cool LOs our creative team did with it –

from Kimbytx

from JenDavey

from Panders77

from JennAmy82

Aren’t these ladies FANTASTIC?!?!?!

And a few little reminders……
-You have until the end of September to post your entry. Be sure to post it to the “Tuesday Template” gallery and link it back to this thread in the forum.
-No double-dipping! This challenge CANNOT be combined with any other ScrapMatters challenge or Speed Scrap. Your layout must be unique to this challenge.
-You can earn an extra point for using any new ScrapMatters product during the first week of its release. Be sure to note the new product in your layout description and your post in the thread on the forum.
-At the end of the month I will randomly select a layout and the winning scrapper will receive a bonus point for their next month’s total.
-You don’t have to use ScrapMatters products, but we sure like it when you do.

I think that’s about it! Happy scrapping!!!! Can’t wait to see what you come up with!

Krisi here (a little late, but here) with this months Hybrid Highlights. Our hybrid gallery has been moving fast lately, I love to see all the fabulous creations. I have selected a few but there are TONS more in the gallery so feel free to go here and see the rest of the inspiration out there.

From KCherrie:

From Casey Krouse:

From AlliJ2008

You can see the details of each page here

From Mary (littlehiccup aka Plum Dumpling Designs):

From Jaime

From Profiler_Mar

From Neetdesigner

and lastly this card from SylivaB

Everything is linked to the gallery so be sure to go leave them some love. Also be sure to check out our hybrid designers in the shop too!

Hey all   Amber here {Stolen Moments}, and I’m so excited to be hosting this week’s Saturday Special!  I love these challenges because they really make me think outside the box sometimes, and aside from that, it’s always fun to learn new tricks..

In last month’s newsletter, Britt reminded us to really strive to make our layouts the very best they can be, and to not let the contents of ONE kit limit our creativity. Your challenge for today’s Saturday Special is to use at least 4 products in the creation of your layout. Really dig through your stash to find the perfect items to compliment your photos and tell your story. Don’t be afraid to recolor if something doesn’t match just perfectly. {See Suzanne’s tutorial here.} This is your time to really shine as an artist!

Here’s my page using the following {several items recolored}:

Life’s a Beach Kit & Snippettes by Sahlin Studio
Enjoy the Moment by Sahlin Studio
Play All Day by Stolen Moments & Scraps by Jenn
Hooligans by Britt-ish Designs
Messy Machine Stitches Vol. 1 by Mira Designs
Color Me Cardboard Alpha by Designs by Tater
Inspired by Christy Templates by Britt-ish Designs

Our awesome CT even got in on the actions.. Check out these fantastic pages..

by mommy22girls – using 16 products!

1. Girls Rock Collab
2. Sisters for Life by Britt-ish Designs and Sya’s Blueprints
3. In Stitches: Wonky by Britt-ish Designs
4. In the City Alpha By Sahlin Studios
5. Pinky Dinky Alpha by Britt-ish Designs
6. Glamorama Papers: Weathered by Britt-ish Designs
7. Very Strawberry by Man in the Moon Designs
8. Pink Lemonade by Chelle’s Creations
9. Yippee Skippee by Britt-ish Designs
10. Tiny Cowgirl Add on by Britt-ish Designs
11. Sweet Summer Days by Juno Designs
12. Stars and Stripes Forever Collab
13. So This is Love by Sahlin Studios
14. Mermaid Lagoon by Britt-ish Designs
15. I’m Yours by Britt-ish Designs and DeCrow Designs
16. JH Geeky Diva by Jeni Hopewell

kimbytx had some fun, too…

Britt-ish Designs: Miss Kitty, Hooligans, Fairchild, Leave the World Behind, She’s Got Curves, Strings n things: Fall
Sahlin Studio Snipettes: Explore.Learn.Grow.

panders77 played along as well…

Brittish Designs: Toy Sherrif, Totally Buggin’, Tiny Cowgirl, Imperial Girl, Edge to Edge Word Art, Strings and Things:Fall, She’s got curves

…and Krisi616 even got in on the action hybrid-style…

Bliss from Andilyn Designs (some papers and the lavender)
All Squared Away Template Pack from Denise Beatty Originals (squares behind everything)
My Tootie Pie from Fluffy Bunny Feet (papers with recoloring)
History Lessons from Chelle’s Creations (stiches)
Foam Stamp Alpha – White from Sahlin Studios
JH Suzanne Font from Jeni Hopewell

And now it’s up to you to show us your mad mix ‘n’ match skills! Once you’ve completed your LO, upload it to the Saturday Special Gallery, and be sure to link us up in the forum so we can leave you LOTS of love..

A few reminders:

• You will receive one point for your entry
• You will receive one extra point for using a NEW product within the first week of its release – PLEASE MAKE A NOTE OF THIS IN YOUR POST
• You have until the end of September to complete your layout
• No double dipping – please keep your layouts unique to each challenge
• HAVE FUN!

Good Morning everyone! Emilee (emileem) here to host Grand Theft Layout this week. This is one of our most popular challenges at ScrapMatters and I’m excited to announce we are going to lift one of our new Creative Team Members: Amanda (panders77). Check out her awesome gallery here where you will find plenty of fun layouts that inspire you. I chose to lift Yep She’s Two: and my version using Sahlin Studios Enter Learn Grow bundle: other inspiration from the ScrapMatters CT: Jen (abcmomof4) lifted Beautiful Calm: and her version using GG Designs Daydream Believer kit, Jennifer Barrette School Girl Rock, Sahlin Studio Blessed, and Britt-ish Designs Paper Shapers: Suzanne (iisuzieii) lifted this fun LO: her version using GG Designs My Boy, Believe in the Magic, Jingle all the Way: Sylvia lifted Cherish This: and made a gorgeous card: Are you still with me?  Ready for another great lift? Kim (kimbytx) lifted Dole Whip: and created Parrots using Britt-ish Designs Pirate Princess, Alphabetical, Glitzy Spills and Thrills and template: Okay, I think you are getting a good idea of the fun gallery we are lifting. Just a quick reminder of the Matter of Scrap guidelines: ** this challenge begins today and ends Sept. 30 ** the LO you create, load in the GTL gallery and post in the GTL forum must be unique to this challenge ** you earn one point for participating in the challenge and two points if you include a *NEW* (within the last seven days) ScrapMatters product. Be inspired with Amanda’s gallery; can’t wait to see what you create!

Hello Melissa (Yzerbear19)  here with this week’s Tuesday Template challenge. I’m so excited to be hosting my first challenge here at ScrapMatters and it is one of my favorite type of challenges. I based the template for this challenge off one of my favorite layouts, “Saving Little Round Top.”

The only requirement for this challenge is to include some journaling. It doesn’t have to be as much as on my layout, but I would like to see at least a few sentences of journaling. There is no other special theme. Just have fun with it!

DOWNLOAD HERE

My original layout:

Click for Credits

And for some inspiration, check out the awesome layouts created by the Creative/Design Team:

By Kim (Kimbytx):

Credits: “Tiny Cowgirl” by Britt-ish Designs and Pea Steele font.

By Stefanie:

Credits: “Exlore. Learn. Grow” by Sahlin Studios and Border Dates by Erica Zane

By Loribear:

Credits: Rose Cottage collab by SM Design Team

By mommy22girls:

Credits: “Holding Out” and “Phrases Framed” by Stolen Moments; “Black Licorice Alpha” by Designs by Tater; and JH With a Marker

By Cyndi146:

Credits: “Fish are Friends” and alpha from “Mermaid Lagoon” by Britt-ish Designs. Fonts are Christina Doodly & Geeky Diva by Jeni Hopewell

By Li14:

Credits: “Punky” by Erica Zane

By jendavey:

Credits: “Punky” by Erica Zane and Krisi font by Jeni Hopewell

Aren’t those layouts FABULOUS? Thank you so much ladies!

Some important reminders:
-Be sure to include some journaling on your layout. It doesn’t have to be a lot, just a few sentences will do.
-You have until the end of September to post your entry. Be sure to post it to the “Tuesday Template” gallery and link it back to the thread in the forum.
-No double-dipping! This challenge CANNOT be combined with any other ScrapMatters challenge or Speed Scrap. Your layout must be unique to this challenge.
-You can earn an extra point for using any new ScrapMatters product during the first week of its release. Be sure to note the new product in your layout description and your post in the thread on the forum
-At the end of the month I will select my favorite layout and the scrapper will get a bonus point for their next month’s total.
-You don’t have to use ScrapMatters products, but we like it when you do.

I can’t wait to see what everyone else does with this template! Have fun!

Hello Henriëtte here with this months hotochallenge.
 
Perhaps the most well know principle of photographic composition is the ‘Rule of Thirds‘.
It’s one of the first things that budding digital photographers learn about in classes on photography and rightly so as it is the basis for well balanced and interesting shots.
I will say right up front however that rules are meant to be broken and ignoring this one doesn’t mean your images are necessarily unbalanced or uninteresting. However a wise person once told me that if you intend to break a rule you should always learn it first to make sure your breaking of it is all the more effective!

What is the Rule of Thirds?
The basic principle behind the rule of thirds is to imagine breaking an image down into thirds (both horizontally and vertically) so that you have 9 parts. As follows:

As you’re taking an image you would have done this in your mind through your viewfinder or in the LCD display that you use to frame your shot.
With this grid in mind the ‘rule of thirds’ now identifies four important parts of the image that you should consider placing points of interest in as you frame your image.

Not only this – but it also gives you four ‘lines’ that are also useful positions for elements in your photo.

 
The theory is that if you place points of interest in the intersections or along the lines that your photo becomes more balanced and will enable a viewer of the image to interact with it more naturally. Studies have shown that when viewing images that people’s eyes usually go to one of the intersection points most naturally rather than the center of the shot – using the rule of thirds works with this natural way of viewing an image rather than working against it.

 
Using the Rule of Thirds comes naturally to some photographers but for many of us takes a little time and practice for it to become second nature.
In learning how to use the rule of thirds (and then to break it) the most important questions to be asking of yourself are:
•   What are the points of interest in this shot?
•   Where am I intentionally placing them?

Once again – remember that breaking the rule can result in some striking shots – so once you’ve learnt it experiment with purposely breaking it to see what you discover.
Lastly – keep the rule of thirds in mind as you edit your photos later on. Post production editing tools today have good tools for cropping and reframing images so that they fit within the rules. Experiment with some of your old shots to see what impact it might have on your photos.

From an article by Darren Rowse (editor and founder of Digital Photography School).

And here are the fabulous entries from abcmomof4; Jen W.,  who explains: I shoot people using this rule, I often try to get the eyes or an eye near an intersection point

Her gorgeous Son Jared:

And her beautiful Daughter Olivia:

Have fun!

Good Morning & Happy Saturday everyone!  I’m so excited to be here as a new member of the SMCT & to be bringing you today’s Saturday Special!

I’ve been noticing a few shadowing questions in the forums lately, so I started digging.  There is a history of shadowing tutorials that SM has had on the blog over the past year or so.  The first one I found was from one of our fearless leaders, Britt on January 21, 2008.  Britt spoke about the basics – mainly thinking through your shadows for each element you add to your page.  The second shadow tutorial came from Tracy, but specifically used CS3 in which you can create a separate layer for a drop shadow & even warp the layer!  Then last November, our first ever Queen of Scrap, Denise wrote up a little ditty she like to refer to as shadows 101.  If you are new to digi-scrapping or to shadowing, I highly suggest studying shadows 101.  Her tutorial was a huge help to me last year as a newer digi-scrapper.

The questions that have come up in the forums have been how to make a great shadow in PSE.  And since I scrap in PSE, I can fully understand ones frustration about not having the option to warp a drop shadow layer. Today I’d like to share a technique I’ve played with to help make my shadows more realistic – to ‘warp’ them, so to speak . . .

It is really pretty simple.  I usually do this with an element that is stitched or stapled down.  In my LO today I’m using a tag.  If you shadow the tag, your shadow will appear even under the stitching.

Notice that it is not very realistic.  Looking at a real life stitched tag, you won’t see shadow where the stitching & tag meet because the tag is held tightly to the paper.  There is an easy way around it.  First duplicate the tag.  Then right click on the uppermost tag layer & select “Clear Layer Style.”  I often will link the two tag layers together just to be safe.

Then select the bottom, shadowed tag layer & using a large round brush, erase just a smidge of the shadowed layer.  You can continue to play with the eraser & drop shadow sizes to get the exact look you want.

And voile!  Here is you more realistic tag!  Notice the shadow is nonexistent by the stitching & gets larger as you move away.

Pretty easy huh?   Here’s my completed LO using Haynay Design’s Pebbles & Butterflies:

Here are some more fabulous examples:
From Fiona (canadianmommy) using Chelle’s Creation new Midnight Crow:

From Andrea (chia) using Jennifer Barette’s Miss Mary Jane

Your challenge is to create a layout that has a “warped” shadow something – don’t forget to tell me what you “warped”! You’ll get one point for posting your competed layout in both the gallery and in the challenge forum thread.
Here are some quick reminders about the Matter of Scrap Challenges:
*You can get one extra point if you use a new release product within one week of it’s release.
*Remember there is no double dipping between challenges- each layout must be unique.
*You can use whatever supplies you want- they don’t have to be from ScrapMatters.
*You  have ALL of September to complete this challenge.

Best wishes & happy shadowing!!

-tuttle

Welcome to this edition of Perfectly Packaged. This month we are going to focus on packaging and I want to focus specifically on creating gift sets that match. This can be two or more of anything that coordinates together.

Here is the gift set I created:

This includes the journal, a magnetic bookmark, and the RSVP pen.  Uses Day Dream Believer from Jennifer Barrette Designs and Angie Kovac

And here are some examples from the CT and the gallery:

From Sylvia:

From kcherry:

A few from Kari’s gallery (and two can also be found in the store — ready to put together):

Available in the store

Available in the store

Here are a couple from Jaime:

Available in the store

And finally we have this notebook and bookmark combo from Cristina:

Some other ideas to get you thinking:
> Card & Gift Bag
> Gift card holder, with coffee mug and wrap around a small coffee packet
> Wrapped can with matching card

As always, here are the guidelines for the challenges at Scrap Matters:
- entries must be posted in the appropriate challenge gallery, and in the corresponding thread in the forum
- you will have until the end of the month (September) to complete your project
- you’ll get 1 point for completing a month of your calendar and posting it. Plus, I’ll select one entry at random for a bonus challenge point.

What are you waiting for… show us some hybrid goodness.