Look What’s New at ScrapMatters.com 9/30/2011!!

Welcome to the Hybrid Corner!  Fall is my favorite season of the year – the changing of the leaves, children back to school, the kick-off to the holiday season.  Lets do a quick run through – Thanksgiving in Canada, Halloween, my birthday (yes, everyone should be celebrating that), Thanksgiving in the USA, then the onslaught of Christmas parties.  And no it doesn’t end there – we have New Year’s parties, Chinese Christmas, Ukrainian Christmas – I digress.  With all this parties, festivities and gatherings, that’s a huge opportunity for decorating!  In July, Melanie did a fabulous tutorial on banners; if your party requires a banner (and what party doesn’t) check out this thread.  So lets get creating.

There are some fabulous templates in the store- my favorite is Lets Party by Krisi’s Kreations.  Lets Party is a fantastic template package because it takes the guess work out of what scale items should be.  Also, Krisi creates complete templates – just by simply clipping your papers to her templates and printing you will end up with a beautiful finished project.  I’ll show you some minor changes that will let you add your personal touch to your parties decorations.  I’ll be using my birthday as a theme for my decorations.

I’m a big fan of napkin rings as they can also double as place cards.  In the kit, there are 2 sizes of napkin rings, but I chose to add a little flair with some ribbon.  Instead of trying to stuff my napkin into the ring, I’m going to center the ribbon on the back of the name tag and tie the loose ends in a bow to affix the napkin ring to the napkin. To stiffen the name tag, I’ve added a small piece of cardboard.  Since it’s on the underside, I didn’t feel the need to embellish is further.

There is nothing worse than grabbing someone else’s drink at a party.  Help your guests avoid that awkward situation by providing them with straw decorators.  These also come in handy to help remember the names of the other guests!

If your party has drinks that don’t require straws, check out the wine glass labels in Label Me Up: Bottles and More.

Finally, when I head to a party, I worry about what food is going to be served – will I recognize the dishes?  Help ease this anxiety for your guests by adding food tags to your dishes.  To make my food labels re-useable, I plan on laminating them.  This way I can make any last minute changes to the menu using a dry erase maker.  How you incorporate the food tags into your menu is dependant on the style of serving dishes you’ll be using.  I’ve taken some tags and punch 2 holes in them and weaved a straw through the holes.  Or you could also punch a hole in the corner and using ribbon tied the food tag to the serving spoon handle.

Thanks for tuning in.  Check out next weeks Getting Hybrid Challenge where we complete our party decorations with party favors.  Today’s projects were made using Celebrate by Elise’s Pieces.

It’s time for another Grand Theft Layout Challenge! Are you excited about the double points this month? WOOT! This week I chose to lift Trina, aka tjscraps in the forum. Check out her fantastic gallery and leave her some lovies while you are there. The challenge is simple; browse through her gallery and choose a layout that inspires you. Once you have completed a layout upload it to the Grand Theft Layout Gallery. Then come back here and post your layout as well as the layout you lifted from her gallery.

I lifted Cute Sweet Monster from Trina’s gallery.

Here is my lift using Forget Me Not Bundle from Andilynn Designs.

For more details and some great inspiration head on over to the Grand Theft Layout challenge thread.

**Challenge Reminders**

- Don’t forget to include the lifting details in your credits.

- You will receive TWO POINTS for posting your layout in the forum thread and in the Grand Theft Layout Gallery. You will receive FOUR POINTS for using new ScrapMatters products. Please make a note of new products in your post in the forum. At the end of September, you will be entered into a drawing to win a bonus point!

- You have until the end of September to complete this challenge for DOUBLE September MOS points. If you wait to post in October you will receive credit for October MOS points at the regular point rate (One point for completed challenge and two points for using new releases)!

- No double dipping. Your layout must be unique to this challenge.

- You don’t have to use Scrap Matters products, but remember your SM gallery must contain at least 50% SM product beginning July 8, 2011

It’s “just another Manic Monday” at ScrapMatters.com!!! Monday ONLY!! Select items for $2 or 50% off!! Visit theScrapMatters Shop for more details!!

*Manic Monday sales go into the shop early Monday morning and will “disappear” around midnight! HURRY! What are you waiting for!?! *

Cover Me Up: Paint Bucket – Gallon by Krisi’s Kreations

Brothers & Sisters – Paper Pack by WM squared Designs:

Family Reunion by Jady Day Studio & Suzy Q Scraps

Basically Elegant by geniaBeana

Newness by Inspirations from Day

Road Maps Vol. 1

1. Your screen name?  ZachandAvasmom Your real name? Sarah

2. What is your main job/career? Speech Language Pathologist (therapist for short)

3. Are you married/children/pets? I am married (almost 6 years), I have two children (Zach- 5 on Sept 15th and Ava-3) I also have one little dog and some adopted pets since we are staying at my parents since we moved from CA to NH.

4. Where is home for you? I am from NH and just moved back after being in CA for 10 years

5. What are your 3 favorite foods? Anything with sugar!  Pasta and pizza.  I reserve these things for special occasions but wish I could eat them all the time

6. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream? Rocky Road!

7. Snacks…Salty or Sweet? Sweet, see question #5!

8. Beverage of choice? Coke zero cherry

9. What’s your least favorite food? fish or any kind of seafood

10. PC or Mac? What program do you use?  PC/CS5

11. How long have you been digi-scrapping? How did you get started?  I have been digi since 2008 because I had two small children and didn’t get any traditional done anymore.  I started getting serious and expanding my knowledge in early 2010

12. What was your 1st LO about?  Oh geez!  How about my first at ScrapMatters,

13. Do you have any other hobbies besides digi-scrapping (are there other hobbies)? I don’t have time for other hobbies right now.  I have two kids, a husband and a full time job so they detract enough from my scrap time

14. What is the most challenging part of scrapbooking for you? Not using templates.  I never used them until the last year or so and now I am addicted.

15. What would you like to learn to do (or do better) not related to scrapbooking? There are tons of things I would like to explore-photography, learn an instrument, lyrical dancing haha (I am a bit old now at 34!)

16. What are your favorite movies/TV shows? True Blood, So You Think You Can Dance, all the Harry Potter and Twilight movies.

17. Describe your “scrapping” environment. Music? TV in the background? Drinks? Snacks? Where? I scrap on the couch with the TV on and usually kids or other people making tons of noise.  I like to stay up way to late so I get an hour or two of scrapping in almost silence.

18. If you only had 2 elements to use on a LO, what would they be? Flowers and string
19. Would you like to share a little known fact about you…? Little known?  Hmmm….I went skydiving twice and lived in a castle in Europe in 1996 for college.

20. Can you tell us a little about your scrappin’ style? I love kits based on their elements so I try to use the ones I like the most and then add the papers.  A bit backwards but it usually works for me.   Unless there are some bold patterned papers then I drool and have to use them!

21. Favorite LOs that you have done?

Thanks, Sarah, for sharing more about you with us!!  Images are linked to comment on her layouts! =)

Melissa (missi_me)

Here is my pick for LOTW.

It’s by Ramona the Pest. I love how she used the lyrics of the song “Fix You” and created the fabulous word arts. The picture is an amazing addition to this wonderful expression of a mother’s love.

To leave love on this amazing layout click the image above!

Melissa (missi_me)

Here is my pick for POTW.

It’s by SandyPie. I love this star shaped box. It would be perfect for a special gift or just filling with something sweet to sit on your desk.

To leave love on this fantastic project click the image above!

Melissa (missi_me)

Hi everyone! Welcome to this week’s Saturday Special. Have you ever had a picture that you wished was black & white? Maybe you have the perfect kit for your picture but the colors just don’t seem to work together. Or maybe you are looking for the elegant look that black & white pictures give. There are many ways that you can convert your color picture to black & white. One of the most common ways to convert it is to change the color mode to grayscale under the image menu. This tends to leave your picture fairly bland though. Today I’m going to show you a way to convert your picture without losing the contrast and making you picture look flat. (The screenshots and directions are in Photoshop Elements 5.0.) First open up the picture that you want to convert to black & white. Duplicate the picture by right clicking on the thumbnail in the Photo Bin and selecting Duplicate. This is so you are not working on the original and accidently save over top of it. Press D to set your foreground and background to the default black and white. Make sure that the black is in the top box. If it isn’t press X to switch them. Now go to the top of the Layers Palette and choose Levels from the Adjustment Layers menu. When the box pops up don’t change anything on it right now, just click ok. This will add a layer to your Layers palette named Levels 1. Go back to the Layers Adjustment menu and this time chose Gradient Map. Check to make sure the Gradient map is set on black to white. If it is not click on the arrow next to the gradient map and choose the correct gradient from the popup menu. Click ok. This will give you a layer in the Layers Palette named Gradient Map 1. Just going this far will already give you a better black & white picture, but we are not done yet. In the Layers palette, double-click on the Levels thumbnail in the Levels 1 layer. This will popup the Levels box. From here we are going to edit the individual colors, starting with red. So go ahead and choose the Red channel from the drop down menu. Grab the black (shadow) arrow under the Input Levels and slide it right. This will increase the shadows in the red channel. [IMG]http://i299.photobucket.com/albums/mm313/p_a_sandbulte/red.jpg[/IMG] When you think you are satisfied with this edit, go back up to the drop down menu and choose the Green channel. On this one we are going to slide the white (highlights) arrow to the left. Again when you are satisfied with this edit, go back up to the drop down menu. This time we are going to work in the Blue channel. Go ahead and move the highlights arrow to the quite a bit to the left. Move the shadows arrow just a little bit to the right. Not every picture you convert will have the same settings, play around with the sliders a bit until you get the effect you are looking for. When you are happy with how your picture looks go ahead and click OK. One last step and then we are done. Go to the Layers palette, click on More. From that menu choose Flatten Image. This will flatten the adjustment layers into your picture. You can also use ctrl+Shift+E to do this. Check out the pictures side by side. The one on the left I just used the grayscale mode to convert the picture. Look how much of a difference there is in the one on the right. Here is my page with my new black & white picture using LDrag’s Blessings of Life and Stolen Moments & Rosy Posy’s Here and Now. Check out these great pages by the ScrapMatters’ CT. Kayla made this cute page using WM Squared’s Inspired by Fran templates and Full of Joy and Add-on by Band Geek Designs. Here is a sweet one by Chel. This one by Ophelia uses Jennifer Labre’s Full of Life and True Blue Studio’s Summer Garden Templates. Here is one from Tamara using Amy Stoffel’s Make a Move. Challenge reminders: -For the month of September you will receive two points for posting in this thread & in the Saturday Special gallery. You can receive an additional two points for using new Scrap Matters products; please make a note of new products in your post. And at the end of the month you’ll be entered into a random drawing that could earn you some bonus points! -You have until the end of September to complete this challenge for September MOS points or wait to post in October for October MOS points! -Remember no double dipping… layout must be unique to this challenge. -You don’t have to use Scrap Matters products, but remember your SM gallery must contain at least 50% SM product beginning July 8, 2011.

Look What’s New at ScrapMatters.com 9/23/2011!!

Hello, It’s Cathy here to host the It’s In The Cards Challenge for 09/22/2011. I’ve got a fairly simple card template that you can dress up to your liking! I took this template and created a gatefold card as my sample. Here’s a preview of the template and sample:

Download the template here or on the linked image above.

And here’s a close up look at my sample:

My sample card was made using Chocolate Frosted Snowflakes by Stolen Moments.  Here are some great samples made up by our awesome creative team.

Tracy made this adorable daisy card using Denim and Daisies - Papers and Elements by Jenn Labre.

Sarah used My Magical Place Add-On Kit and My Magical Place: Add On Alpha by Haynay Designs to make this magical birthday card.  The Mickey silhouettes were a participation prize that she got at another site.

Tamara used  Funky Lane by Sugary Fancy and the all over bracket punch by Martha Stewart to create her cute card.

OK here’s a review of the challenge rules:

Remember that September is double points month!!

-You will receive two points for posting in the “It’s in the Cards Challenge 9/22/2011″ thread and in the “It’s in the Cards” gallery
-You can receive an additional 2 points for using new Scrap Matters products; please make a note of new products in your post. So I can give you the correct credits!
-You have until the end of September to complete this challenge for MOS points.
-Remember no double dipping – your layout must be unique to this challenge.
-You don’t have to use Scrap Matters products, but we love it when you do!

I hope you’ll join us for this challenge! Happy creating!

~Cathy~