Happy iNSD and happy May everyone! Let’s kick off this busy month of fun and amazing challenges and events with something I personally love…white space! Feeling stuck or are you new to white space? Grab a template from the store during the sale, problem solved!!!!

My page using So This is Love by Sahlin Studios:

And here is what the wonderful Creative Team whipped up…

These three ladies rocked Jennifer Barrette’s iNSD Grab Bag and One-derful Start Templates with these pages…
Tanya:

Kim:

Megan:

Cristina used Family Fun and The Longest Date from the 2010 iNSD Grab Bag by Plum Dumpling Designs:

Bonnie used iNSD ’10 Grab Bag & One-derful Start Templates by Jennifer Barrette; Glitzy Spills & Thrills by Britt-ish Designs:

Challenge reminders:
-Post your pages in the “Saturday Special” gallery and link it back to the thread in the forum. You can receive an additional point for using new Scrap Matters products; please make a note of new products in your post. And at the end of May I will choose my favorite layout for a bonus point!

-You have until the end of May to complete your layout for your 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 can’t wait to see your pages!
-Jami

Hello ScrapMatters Friends! Becca (aka becca372) here with you today. So, I totally went back and forth this week on what to do for this Saturday Special. It’s my first challenge and my first blog post as a ScrapMatters Creative Team Member. I thought and thought, and then settled on something I love to do with my layouts! We’ve talked here in the past on the use of color, on color schemes, and on using the color wheel…well, throw that out the window today, because we’re going to keep it simple! One of my favorite things to do when creating a layout is to use a monochromatic scheme.

A monochromatic color scheme focuses on one color, and uses neutrals (black, white, brown, grey) to accent this color. When I do a monochromatic layout, I love to pull a color from my photo to be the main color of my layout. For example, this photo of my DD (today’s her third birthday, by the way!) in her butterfly shirt.

I didn’t want the landscape colors to blend into the layout, so I pulled the color of the blue butterfly out of her shirt, and made that the focus of my layout.

So, I browsed through my kits to find one that went with this color and photo…thanks to ScrapMatters, and a slight kit addiction, I had a lot of choices. Eventually I settled on Erica Zane’s Sweetest Days kit. The next thing I did was pick 2 papers for the background that have different tones of the blue. That’s one of the tricks to use when creating a monochromatic layout-working different tones of your color throughout the layout.

This look is easier to achieve with some kits than others (take a look through our shop and you’ll even find quite a few monochromatic kits to make this challenge a breeze), but sometimes I love to mix and match from kits and element packs to create this style of layout. I also love elements that I can customize to match my layout (if you need some hints on this, check out these two Saturday Special blasts from the past, one and two,  all about recoloring elements!). Check out Alamama and Sarah Bennett’s layouts below for some awesome recoloring, and TanyaH666′s for doing a great job of pulling from TONS of  products-you’ll just have to check out both of their layouts in the gallery to see all that they did to make those gorgeous pages! !

Here’s *my* finished product, using Sweetest Days by Erica Zane, and Stitch Me Up element pack by Chelle’s Creations

Here’s a beautiful layout by Alamama, using Sahlin Studio’s NEW Rejuvenate, Sunshine and Daffodils, Tangie Baxter’s  Explain It,
By Becca Lightness of Being (recolored ribbon), Brittish Desgins Around the World, and NEW Trixie Scraps A Mother’s Love.

here’s a really fun, potluck-style layout by TanyaH666, using tons of Britt-ish Designs products, particularly her brand NEW Collectible Cardboard.

and last, but certainly not least, here’s a bold and bright layout using Erica Zane’s NEW What Say? kit, by Sarah Bennett

What do you think? I know I love a monochromatic layout!
Your task for this Saturday Special is to create your own monochromatic layout, using neutrals as accents only! Have fun, and I hope you like this technique as much as I do!

Here are the rules for this challenge:

* Post your layouts to the Saturday Special gallery. You will also need to link us up here so we can leave you love !
* You will earn one point by participating in this challenge. You can receive an EXTRA point for using a product that has been released in the seven days prior to your post – be sure to make a note of this in your post so you receive proper credit!
* Your layout must be created for this challenge – no double dipping.
* You have the rest of April to complete the layout.

Thanks for playing along with me, I can’t wait to see what you create!

Jen W. (aka abcmomof4) with your Saturday Special Challenge. I’ve got a cool trick on getting rid of those under-eye circles using the patch tool. The patch tool is a cross between a self healing brush and the lasso tool.

The patch tool is exclusive to CS programs. However, not to fret! I came up with a PSE option.

I live in Central California. We are known for our bad air and terrible allergy season. Our entire family gets these terrible dark circles under our eyes in the Spring. So as you can imagine, I use the patch tool often.

So to begin, open your file and create a duplicate layer by using the hot key CTRL j.
Select the patch tool.

Now select source at the top. Choosing source allows you to make a patch from a different source elsewhere on the picture. Draw a circle around the area that needs to be softened. Try not to include the eyelashes or they will get blended away also.

Now hover over the marching ants. The patch tool will change in appearance. Click and drag to the cheek area then release the mouse. The area under the eye will now have a patch over it. Now repeat this process for the other eye.

With the duplicate layer still selected, lighten the opacity. This is important or it may look fakey. I like to preserve some of the natural eye lines.

Here is a before and after using the patch tool:

Now for the PSE version:
Ctrl j for a duplicate layer.
Choose the lasso tool to draw a selection on the cheek.
Ctrl j for duplicate layer of the selection made.
Now with the move tool, move that layer to the are to be softened. Use the eraser tool with a soft brush to erase where the patch is not needed.
Lower the opacity. Remember, we want some of the lines to show through.
You may or may not want to use a blending mode on this layer. Either soft light or overlay in my opinion.
Here is a picture using that method:

Here is a before and after by canadianmommy. Wow!!!

There are many other uses for the patch tool. I use it to get rid of fly away hairs in the face and pimples. I prefer it to the self healing tool as I can control the outcome a little better.

Your challenge is to use this new trick on a photo and to use it in a layout.

Remember…
* Post your layouts to the Saturday Special gallery. Link us up here so we can leave you love !
* You will earn one point by participating in this challenge. You can receive an EXTRA point for using a product that has been released in the seven days prior to your post – be sure to make a note of this in your post so you receive proper credit!
* Your layout must be created for this challenge – no double dipping..
* You have the rest of April to complete the layout.

Happy Scrapping!!!

Today we are going to talk about color correcting scanned photos.

Here is my original photo:

*I scan my photos at 300dpi at a minimum.
*The first thing I do is Auto Color Correction.
*Then I play around with the hues. On this photo I desaturated the yellow and red tones a little more.
*Then I play around with the brightness & contrast.
*The last thing I do is sharpen my photo.

And here is what my edited photo looks like:

Here’s a side-by-side comparison:

Here’s the page I created using The Carrot Patch by Chelle’s Creations:

And here’s what the rest of the team did…
Melissa used My Honey Bunny Collection by Connie Prince:

Wendy used her “Be Inspired – Tanya” template & Bunny Foo Foo by Brittish Designs:

Becca used “Just Call Me Kim” templates by Stolen Moments and Happy Easter Bundle by WM[Squared] Designs:

Challenge reminders:
-Post your pages in the “Saturday Special” gallery and link it back to the thread in the forum, be sure to show us your before and after photos too please! You can receive an additional point for using new Scrap Matters products; please make a note of new products in your post. And at the end of April I will choose my favorite layout for a bonus point!

-You have until the end of March to complete your layout for your points to be counted towards March points. Otherwise post your layout after the first of the month to be counted towards April 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!

So grab a photo and get to scanning!
-Jami

Happy Spring for those in the Northern Hemisphere!
Emilee here for your next Saturday Special.  I thought we could build on what we learned last week with Heidi (scrappurple) and talk more about stitches and shadowing our stitches.  I think stitches are a fun way to make a digital LO look ‘real’ and they add a lot of character to a LO. That being said, stitches can be tricky to shadow. Here are a few tips to remember when shadowing stitches:

**ZOOM IN…Stitches are small and you really need to zoom in close to the stitch to see exactly what you shadow looks like
**LESS IS MORE…think about what stitches look like IRL–they are very close to the paper and therefore have a subtle shadow. Decrease the opacity to lighten the shadow and increase the subtlety.
**SOFTEN the shadow a bit (using ‘Size’ in PSE). Stitches are made from a fiber and won’t cast a ‘hard’ shadow like a piece of paper, but rather a softer shadow. Of course a thicker stitch will require a different shadow than a thinner stitch.

The key is to zoom in and play around with your settings until you have a realistic shadow for your stitching. Or if you don’t want to worry about it at all, you can purchase Jenn Barrette’s Realistic Drop Shadow Styles.

When you are adding stitches to a LO pay attention to what you are ‘stitching’–two pieces of paper, pic to paper, ribbon to paper, etc. Adjust your stitches so that they look like you used your sewing machine. Get creative and duplicate stitches on top of each other to create a messy-look, create grids, use different types of stitches and HAVE FUN!

Here is an example from me, an Easter card using Man in the Moon and Stolen Moments new collab Easter Morning:

and some more examples from our talented Creative Team…

from Courtney using 5 a day by Erica Zane and Circle Stitches, Love Life, Wire Rimmed Alpha, and Film Clipping Masks by Sahlin Studio:

from Becca using Sweetest days by Erica Zane:

from Cyndi using All About Photos Template Pack 2 by Purple Tulip Designs, Stitch Me Up by Chelle’s Creations and the Everyday Grab Bag SM Designer Collab:

You only have 11 days to participate in this Saturday Special so you better get started. You’ll need to upload your LO using stitches to the Saturday Special Gallery and to this forum. You can receive ONE point for participating in the challenge and another point for using a new product from the SM store–please indicate here if you used a new product. At the end of March I’ll choose a LO to receive an additional point towards your April total.  Remember, no double-dipping and this challenge closes March 31.

Emilee (emileem)

Heidi here with a new Saturday special … shadows.  There are so many different directions I could go, but today I am going to show you how to change the color of your shadow.  If you have questions about shadows, you can always check here and here for a wealth of information. Before I get started, I wanted to highlight an amazing product in our store … Get Real – Realistic Drop Shadow Styles by Jennifer Barrette.  Jennifer had made it simple to apply a shadow to almost any element you can imagine.  With my example below, I have used her shadow styles on my layouts. Simple and easy.  Jennifer was kind enough to offer a coupon if you would like to purchase her style :

$1 off
code – getreal_1off
expires – March 20th 2010

O.k., onto the lesson.  Have you ever had an item that you added a shadow to, but it just doesn’t look right?  Sometimes, having a black shadow isn’t natural.  Look around you right now.  Are the items casting shadows black? Maybe they are a soft shade of gray. Maybe the are reflecting the color of the item as the shadow. Keep this mind as you go to shadow today’s layout.

However you add your shadow, go ahead and add it to your paper/element/etc.  Now, I want you to double click on the “fx” on your layer you shadowed.

It should bring up a box that looks like this:
Make sure you that the  “drop shadow” box is highlighted in blue like the #2 shows. If that is not highlighted, you will not see the screen above.  Next, I want you to click in the black box circled in #3.  It should bring up a new box that looks like this:
Notice that your cursor can now choose a new color if you place it over your layout. Next, I want you to click on your paper.  You color box will change to the color of the paper and this is o.k.  Now you want to start moving down on the color box.  I usually go to the gray side of my color.  Watch how the shadow color changes on your element.  Does it now look a little softer and more natural?  Keep playing with it until you get a shadow that looks like it would if it were sitting in front of you right now.  Or, if you have Jennifer’s style, you can keep the color where it is and just move the sliders as shown by the #4 until you get a color you are happy with.

For my layout above, I had white paper under my pics/elements.  With Jennifer’s shadows, she has a brown color for the shadow which give a nice warm natural shadow.  But for this particular layout, I wanted my shadow a little more on the “cool” side, so I changed the shadow color.  I did not, however, change the shadow color of the white paper resting on the bottom brown paper.  It was the perfect color for that paper.

Here is my layout:

Please note that this was using CS4.  I am not familiar with Elements, but I was told by Denise, who is the queen said that the dialog boxes look different, but the concept still works. This also works in Paint Shop Pro.

Happy Saturday Everyone!! Today I am going to talk about something I do all the time and it is fairly simple!  We are going to hang something on our layout that wasn’t meant to be hung.  So the first thing you need to do is “punch” a hole in it so the string can go through it. 

Once you choose what you are going to hang (I choose my part of my title (an Alpha).)  Position your element over the string in a way that looks appropriate and then reduce the opacity so you can see the string underneath.  Then use your elipitical tool to draw a small circle in a layer above the element you want to punch.  Use the string underneath as a guide for how big you want your hole to be. 

Simplify your shape and make sure your shape layer is highlighted.  Then using the magic wand tool and click on the shape.  You will get the marching ants around your shape.  Then select the element layer and cut (control -X).  Bring the opacity up on your element.  Now you can move your shape out of the way and see the hole has been punched. 

Now we need to “hang” it.  Select the string layer and use your magic wand to get the marching ants around the it.  (You can also select the whole string by selecting the magic wand tool and contol clicking on the string layer)  Select the layer of the element you are hanging.  Using the eraser tool, erase part of the element so it looks like it is hanging.  Now you might notice that the shadows look pretty funky…

To fix this first duplicate the string layer and drag it above the element layer.  Select the element layer again and use the magic wand to get the marching ants around it.  Then erase the part of the string that is under the element. (After you finish with the part of the string on top of the element,  deselect and make sure to erase the rest of the string except the part that is overlapping your hanging element so the shadow is not duplicated.)

Just to give you an idea of what this looks like, here is a screen shot before I erased any of the string and had selected the element.

Ta-da!! Your element is hung!  You can now delete your circle shape (or hole punch..lol).  A few pointers for hanging more than one thing (like a title).  Keep the same shape to punch each hole.  That makes it look more realistic.  And just to make it easier on yourself, “hang” all your elements first and then duplicate your string to fix the shadow problem.
Here is my Final LO using Jenn Barrettes NEW Happy Go Lucky, and Date Swirls and Get Real Shadow Styles, Chelle Creations NEW Lucky Me alpha and Sahilin Studios Sorbet Stamped Alpha clipped to Brittish Designs Glamorama Papers. 

Fun and easy!! I can’t wait to see what you hang!!

Here is some more awesome inspiration from our CT:
TanyaH666 used Connie Prince and Bella Gypsy’s I Wuff You.

Becca1976 used Jenn Barrettes NEW Happy go Lucky. (Great minds think alike..lol)

Alansrock used March 2010 templatepalooza by Connie Prince & BellaGypsy and Spring has sprung kit by Jeni Hopewell & MickeyB Designs

Kim21673 used Enjoy by GG Digital Designs and Just Call Me Niki Templates by Stolen Moments

And now for some rules.  No double dipping on challenges. You will not be able to use the same LO for multiple challenges.  You can earn one additional bonus point per challenge when you use a newly released (within the first week/7 days of release) ScrapMatters product. In order to receive the extra point you MUST indicate in your credits that the item you used was a new release.   You will have until the end of March to post your LO and  at the end of the month I will pick a winner and they will get an extra point! 

Have fun using your hole punch!! 

-Amanda (panders77)

Happy early Valentines Day everyone!!  I hope you all are doing something romantic this weekend! For this week’s Saturday Special I am going to talk about rounded corners.  Have you noticed that they have been popping up everywhere lately?  I LOVE the way they look but I have to admit I often used pieces of templates to get the look because I could never get them to look right in my program (I use PSE 6).  Well, now I know and I wanted to share it with you!

There are a few ways to do this – use the rectangular marquee tool or use the shape tool.  Today I am going to talk about using the shape tool.  I like it because the results aren’t permanent and I can change the shape around as I scrap if I want.  (I am a little indecisive!  LOL!)

So first open up the paper or photo you want to crop into a rounded corner shape.  Then..

For the radius setting, feel free to play around with it and see what creates the look you want.  I have it set to 100 here but I ended up wanting my corners more rounded so I settled on 150.

Now you are ready to draw your shape.  Create a new layer by using the menu or holding down Shift-Ctrl-N.   If you want the shape to be square you can hold down the shift key when you draw and it will make it stay symmetrical. 

Next, select and drag your paper layer on top of the shape and reduce the opacity so you can see the shape under the paper.  You can select the shape layer and move it around or even resize it if you want to.  Now we want to group the layers together and “cut” the paper.  You can use the menu (layer-group with previous) or press Ctrl – G. 

Voila!  Now you have your pretty rounded rectangle or square!  You can merge the layers together to make it permanent or if you are like me you can continue with your LO and link them but leave it unmerged so if you decide you want to change the shape again you can!

Here is my LO using lots of rounded corners:

Credits: Yummy Scrummy Love Bundle and Date Go Rounds by Stolen Moments Designs
And here is some awesome inspiration from the CT..
Wendy used “Day By Day – V.3 Templates” by WM[squared] Designs and “Innovation” by Sahlin Studios to create this awesome page!

Amber created this cutie using Underwater Escape by Erica Zane, Vellum Alpha by Sahlin Studio and P365=Everyday Life Template Set 2 by Happy Scrap Girl.

And here’s another cutie from Lori using Connie Prince’s Beary Sweet Boy Kit.

Liz created this LO with Juno’s Dessert, Britt’s White Christmas and In Stitches: Basics, Plum Dumpling’s Alpha-bits, and Jenn Barrette’s Basic Brown Alpha. Check out that fun title!!

Finally, Jenn created this pink beauty with Erica Zane’s Zaney Amy.

I think the Creative Team likes rounded corners as much as I do!!
You have until Feb 28th to complete an LO, upload it in the Saturday Special Gallery and link it back to the forum thread.  You’ll receive an extra point for using a new release in your LO (please remember to put that you used a new release in your post.) I’ll also choose a LO  at the end of the month that will receive one more point!
I can’t wait to see all your creative uses of rounded corners!

-Amanda (panders77)

Hey ladies! I’m continuing on our extraction theme for January and focusing on something I’ve been meaning to try for a long time: silhouettes.  I’ve been meaning to make silhouettes of my kids as a gift for my mom and I got a chance to experiment while working on a project for my kids’ room. I was making a set of alphabet cards and wanted silhouettes of the kids to put on their initial. Here’s the entire set:

And here’s a close-up of my completed silhouette.

So ready to get to it? First up, take a profile pic of your subject. Be sure to shoot in a well-lit room against a light background. here’s mine:

Next: use your favorite extraction method to cut out your subject’s head. I use the polygonal lasso tool, but you can reference this tutorial from earlier this month for additional instructions. Extracting hair can be tricky, but for this project, you want a simple shape, so I just cut off most of the strays. I did keep my son’s cowlick because I thought it added character to his profile.

Last: Select the layer (in PSE hold down the control button while clicking on the extracted layer thumbnail in the layers pallette). Now that the marching ants are surrounding your photo, go to edit, and then fill selection from the drop-down menu. A pop-up box will appear and if you click okay, it will fill the photo with the foreground color. Ta-da! You’re done! Just drag the silhouette onto your project and you’re done!

And check out this page from Amanda (panders77) using Juno’s One of a Kind, Chelles Creations The Cutting Edge Templates, and Brittish Designs Dated Stamped and Doodlie Doo Borders. I love it!

These look great on scrapping pages, but also make great gifts. Just print out your silhouette, frame it and you’ll have the perfect valentine’s gift. Now on to the fine print: complete an extraction and post your project or LO in the gallery. Link up here in the forum to get one MOS point. Earn an additional point by using a new release. Finally, I’ll award a point to my favorite layout or project. You have until the end of February to turn in your entries. I can’t wait to see your creations!

Hello, it’s Liz and I have decided to do a Saturday Special about patterned papers.  I love patterns I would put every patterned paper in a kit on a single page if I could figure out how to do it, but I have gotten the impression that I am in the minority when it comes to patterns.  So hopefully this will give you some tips and tricks to work with patterns like a pro.

1.  Color is crucial. The color of your patterns will define whether your page ends up looking fabulous or like a hot mess.  One way to ensure harmony is to pick the colors from your picture and find patterns in those colors.  If you are colorphobic (which is nothing to be ashamed of!), you could use black and white or other neutrals.  Regardless of your choice, pick a color palette and stick with it!

2. Know the scale of your patterns. Patterns come in 3 basic scale sizes: small, medium and large.  Know the scale of the pattern will help you use pattern to its best advantage.  All of my examples come from “A Spot of Tea” by Erica Zane and Denise Beatty Originals because it was the kit I used for my page. A small scale pattern looks like this:

It is well small.  I like using tone on tone small patterns as backgrounds alot.  It gives interest without being overwhelming.  Small scales can work great for just about anything and can often be interchanged with solids.

Here is a medium scale:

It is larger than the small scale pattern and can give greater impact to a page.  You could use it as a mat for you picture or stack a solid with it for a background.  This pattern will definitely pop on your page!

Finally a large scale:

his paper says “Look at me!  Look at me!” I would suggest using large scale patterns as accent pieces when first starting out.  They can add alot of punch.  These patterns should complement your smaller scale patterns.

3. Mixing it Up Patterns look great as solo acts but mixing them can add a huge wow factor.  Keep in mind the scale and color when mixing.  A green and red stripe is going to clash with blue and brown dots.  Same color families will go together (e.g. blues, browns, pinks, etc.).  If the thought of multiple patterns scares you start out with some softer patterns (i.e. tone on tone flowers/dots, small polka dots or stripes) and then match a wilder pattern with it!

4. Stick to the Rule of Three When working with pattern less is more.  Stick to 3 patterned papers to avoid overwhelming the page.  You could do 4 if one of your patterns is subtle.  More than 4 and your page may start to look clutter.

5.  Have fun and stick with your style. Go with what works for you and have fun!  Patterns are not supposed to break you down into tears.  If you are a minimalistic scrapper, pick patterns that are more subdued.  If you like going crazy, pick some bright multi-colored patterns and really mix it up.  It is up to you to decide how crazy the page gets.

The challenge is to scrap a layout using 3-4 patterned papers on it.

Here is my page:

Using Spot of Tea by Erica Zane and Denise Beatty Originals

And here is some from the CT ladies:

From Courtney:

Great subtle use of patterns.  Adds a pop of color!

From Jen:

There is alot going on this page but because the patterns are just small pieces it totally works!

From Jenn:

She used not only patterned papers but patterned elements as well!  Check out the striped swirl and checked ribbon!

The Rules:
The papers must be visible (no hiding them completely but a hint of sliver is okay, I just need to be able to see them.) Post your LO to the Saturday Special gallery and post it in the thread in the forum before the end of January.  You’ll receive one point towards your January total. If you use a New Release, PLEASE NOTE IT IN BOTH YOUR CREDITS IN THE GALLERY AND YOUR POST TO THE THREAD in order to receive your extra point.  At the end of the month, I will pick a random winner, who will receive a bonus point on February’s total.  Have fun and I can’t wait to see what you all come up with!