Friday Favorites | Anita Designs

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Hello and welcome to another edition of our designer feature series on The Digital Press blog in 2019 — Friday Favorites! This year, as you know, we’ve been learning a bit more about each of our amazingly-talented designers by having them share some of their favorite things with us each week.

This week, the spotlight is on Anita vanStraeten of Anita Designs. This is Anita’s sixth feature here on The Digital Press blog (you can find her first feature from December 2014 HERE, another from November 2016 HERE, and another from June 2017 HERE, her Foodie Friday post from September 2017 HERE, and her most recent feature from March 2018 HERE).

We asked Anita, who’s had a store at The Digital Press since it opened in 2014, to share some of her favorite things with us, and here’s what she had to say…

“I have a lot of things that I classify or call one of my fave things, but my number one fave is absolutely my kids, husband, and family.

I am a family person and I love hanging out with them. We have lost so many precious loved ones lately, and that really makes it important to enjoy and love the people that are still among us. My husband’s father died 3 years ago, and since then, my second mom comes to eat with us every Sunday, and sometimes through the week also. On Monday evenings we have game night for the ladies. We mostly play card games, while my husband, his brother, and both our sons watch Game of Thrones or some other show or movie they like. On Wednesday evenings we usually go visit our daughter who lives on her own; she is 23 years old. And Friday evenings my mom-in-law and I go shopping. And I love it all!

My second fave thing is cooking, as most people probably know. I love to cook and experiment with all kinds of foods and dishes, making each one taste and look perfect. But I also love going out for dinner, like a good stir fry with Irma (of Designed by Irma, another TDP designer!), or my daughter and mom-in-law. And I am also a fan of the Hard Rock Cafe. They have really great food, and I enjoy their side menu mac and cheese or one of their ”Legendary Burgers” like the Barbecue Bacon Cheeseburger with parmesan-romano fries and chipotle aioli. My absolute fave cocktail to drink at the Hard Rock Cafe is… Electric Blues. So far I have visited Hard Rock Cafe in Poland and Tenerife!

Another fave thing that I just love to do is going to Kelly Family concerts. I love their music, and I listen to it while designing. Next to that I love musicals. Recently for Mother’s Day my daughter took me to see Mamma Mia, which was amazing and such a lovely gift from her. I love the movie and music as well!”

If you’re not already familiar with Anita’s product offerings at The Digital Press, she has nearly 700 products in her shop at TDP — including everything from paper and element packs, layered templates, album sets, journaling cards, alphas, and traveler’s notebook inserts and templates. Anita’s designs have a delicate feel, and often include gorgeous floral papers and handy elements such as flowers, buttons, bows, labels, and word art bits that come in paper, stamp and sticker formats. Her album template sets make quick work of finishing a cohesive album, and can also be used for stand-alone scrapbook pages.

Here’s a look at some of my favorite products from the Anita Designs store at TDP:

And here’s a handful of examples of projects that use Anita’s products, so you can see how lovely and versatile her designs are…

 

Hopefully, today’s edition of Friday Favorites has revealed a little more about Anita, while also introducing you to some new products that you might not have seen in her store before.

Additionally, we’ve saved some exciting news for last… because during Anita’s upcoming feature week here at The Digital Press, you can enjoy the chance to score an amazing deal in her shop if you use the following coupon code(s) when purchasing her digital goodies (this code/sale will be valid through 11:59pm ET on Thursday 5/30). Don’t miss it!

[ if you have trouble seeing the coupon image, above, the codes are as follows: “save $2 off any purchase of $5+” by using code = 4N1TA-SAVE2 . . . or “save $5 off any purchase of $10+” by using code = 4N1TA-SAVE5 ]

caliten About the Author  Carrie is a creative team member here at The Digital Press. She and her family enjoy spending time outdoors, year-round, near their home in Colorado. In addition to scrapbooking and the occasional hybrid home decor project, Carrie also reads voraciously, accumulates fabric, makes soap, brews beer, grows hops, and tries to keep indoor plants alive.

Tutorial Tuesday | Scrapbooking With Dingbats

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Hello, and welcome to another edition of our Tutorial Tuesday series here on The Digital Press blog! Today I’ll share with you some of my favorite ways to use dingbat fonts on your pages and projects.

Just what is a dingbat? Even though dingbats fall in the “font” category because they are associated with keyboard keys, they are not characters that will make a legible text. Instead, they are fonts that have shapes, symbols, or designs of various kinds in place of what would normally be letters and numbers.

Where can you find dingbats? Start by looking at your favorite free font download sources. Watch out, though… because you might get sucked in like I did while looking at all of them and addicted as you imagine all of the possibilities of things you can use them for.

1. CREATE YOUR OWN CARDS

In the first example shown here, I will share with you some journaling cards I created using dingbats. Creating your own cards can be really handy if you have something very specific in mind for your particular project, and the cards that come with your digital collection of choice don’t have that very specific thing you need. Custom-created dingbat cards to the rescue!

Here’s a look at what you can do…

As you can see, I used a paper pack designed by ninigoesdigi, and then added my own dingbats to create a few card images.

Below, you will see a listing of the dingbats I used to create my cards… as well as some dingbats you will see featured in the next example (below) for clipping masks.

2. CREATE CLIPPING MASK SHAPES

In this next example, you can see the result when dingbat shapes are used as clipping masks. I was able to create arrows, banners, tags, and heart accents to dress up my pages. If you are unfamiliar with how to use clipping masks, The Digital Press has a wonderful tutorial HERE.

For this clipping mask example, I used a paper pack designed by Cornelia Designs (from the May 2019 Special Edition collection, so it actually coordinates perfectly with the cards I showed you up above). As you can see, you can clip papers straight to the dingbat shapes in order to create “die-cut” paper pieces to use as embellishments. Fun, right?

3. CREATE ALPHAS AND TITLES

In this next example, I have used dingbats in place of some letters in my titles. This technique reminds me of the pre-made titles I used to purchase in my paper scrapbooking days. Word art has always been a fun way to add visual interest to scrapbooking pages.

As you can see, I mixed some of the dingbats with an alpha that was designed by Dawn by Design (you can find it in her shop here at The Digital Press).

Here, you will see a listing of the dingbats I used to create the page titles shown above, as well as some dingbats you will see featured in the following example in which I used dingbats as page accents (see below)…

4. CREATE PAGE ACCENTS AND STAMPS

Finally, in my last example, you will see how I added the dingbats just as they are, to my pages — as page accents and stamps. I really liked the way they dressed up my projects and filled in some of the spaces.

For this example, I used some pocket cards designed by Little Lamm Paper Co. and I added some dingbats to my page as accents.

As you were reading through this tutorial, I bet you came up with some ideas of your own about how you might want to use dingbats! I’m pretty certain that I only just scratched the surface of all the things you could do. Endless possibilities!

If you have your own fantastic ideas, we would love it if you shared your ideas — either here in the comments, or in the TDP forum. We’ll keep our eyes open for projects using dingbats posted in our gallery and will hope to see yours soon!

About the Author  Tiffany is a creative team member at The Digital Press and has been scrapping for over 25 years. She resides with her family in Idaho, but dreams of warmer climates. Family will likely keep her in Idaho, so vacations will have to do. Her scrapbook subjects include her husband, four children, one grandson and two dogs – as well as whoever and whatever will stay put for the snap of the camera. Other things that keep her busy include teaching fitness classes at the gym and working as a hospice/home health nurse.

Friday Favorites | Designed by Irma

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Hello everyone, and welcome to another edition of our designer feature series on The Digital Press blog in 2019 — Friday Favorites! This year, as you know, we’ve been learning a bit more about each of our amazingly-talented designers by having them share some of their favorite things with us each week.

This week, the spotlight is on Irma Omland of Designed by Irma. This is actually Irma’s first-ever feature here on The Digital Press blog, so I was really excited to learn a little about her!

To learn about Irma, we asked her to share some of her favorite things with us, and here’s what she had to say…

“I live in Holland, and I enjoy doing a variety of things that all add up to keeping busy and enjoying spending time with family and friends. My top 4 favorite things to do are…

  1. Eating stir fry in a Chinese restaurant.
  2. Watching my children play their sports (one child plays badminton and the youngest 2 are soccer players, so I am always busy on the weekends)!
  3. Driving a taxi to bring children with minor disabilities to school; I love doing this!
  4. Scrapping / designing together in real life with fellow TDP designer Anita vanStraeten (of Anita Designs), and we drink a lot of coffee together!

As for Irma’s designs… if you aren’t yet familiar with the Designed by Irma shop at TDP, you’ll find that she creates a wonderful collection of kits, journal cards, templates, word art, and even photo masks. Some are fun, bold, and bright… while others are sweet and soft. The masks perfect for blending an arty style and realistic elements for a more realistic feel; word strips and journal cards are great for pocket scrappers ; whatever you are looking for, you can likely find in her shop!

Here are a few of my favorite items from the Designed by Irma shop at TDP…

And here are just a handful of project examples that show off some of Irma’s gorgeous designs…

Hopefully, today’s Friday Favorites article has given you even more insight into who Irma is, and more information about her day-to-day life as well as perhaps introducing you to some new products that you might not have seen in the store before.

And the best news of all?! …during Irma’s upcoming feature week here at The Digital Press, you can enjoy the chance to score an amazing deal in her shop if you use the following coupon code(s) when purchasing her digital goodies (this code/sale will be valid through 11:59pm ET on Thursday 5/23). Don’t miss it!

[ if you have trouble seeing the coupon image, above, the codes are as follows: “save $2 off any purchase of $5+” by using code = 2OFF5-1RM4 . . . or “save $5 off any purchase of $10+” by using code = 5OFF10-1RM4 ]

CorrinAbout the Author Corrin is a member of the creative team here at The Digital Press. She is a fan of the Big Bang Theory and a lover of cozy pajamas or flip flops when the sun finally shines! She lives in the breezy South of England with her husband and 4 crazy kids, who regularly discover & plunder her secret chocolate stashes, and hopes that maybe this will be the year she reaches the bottom of the laundry pile!

Tutorial Tuesday | PART 1: The Exposure Triangle

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Hello, and welcome to another edition of our Tutorial Tuesday series here on The Digital Press blog! This week, we’re beginning a really awesome 4-part series that will run every other week for the next couple of months to help you with your photography!

As scrapbookers, you may have read photography tutorials in the past (including the great ones we have here on The Digital Press blog)… and in doing so, you may have seen the term “exposure triangle.” That’s the concept we’ll explore with this 4-part tutorial that will, I hope, help you better understand the notion and use it in your own photography!

First of all, let’s see what happens in the camera when we take a picture. Basically a “hole” opens to let the light come in and hit the sensor that will capture it. Exposure is the amount of light in a photograph. An OVERexposed picture is too bright (details are lost in the highlights, the brighter areas of the image) and an UNDERexposed picture is too dark (details are lost in the shadows). To expose a picture, three settings come into play, that’s the famous “exposure triangle”. Those three settings are ISO, aperture and shutter speed. 

ISO is the sensitivity of the sensor. In the film days, each film had a set sensitivity, but today we can change it on most cameras. A high ISO means that the sensor will take more light in, a lower ISO means it will take less light in. ISO go usually from 100, sometimes 50, up to 12800 or more.

Aperture is the size of the “hole” that opens in the lens to let the light come it and hit the sensor. Let me get math-y for a minute here. This number is expressed as a fraction: f/2 for example. It means that the diameter of the hole equals the focal length of the lens (f) divided by the aperture numbre (2 in my example). That’s the reason behind the fact that the SMALLER the number, the BIGGER the aperture (the hole) and hence the MORE light entering. With a 50mm, for example, an aperture of f/2 will give a 25mm (50/2) diameter of the hole, when an aperture of f/10 will give a 5mm diameter (50/10). So, in short: big number = small aperture = small hole = less light in, small number = big aperture = big hole = more light in.

Shutter speed is for how long the “hole” remains open and let the light in. On my camera, it can go from 30 seconds to 1/4000th of a second. The longer it remains open, the more light goes in.

Here is a simple analogy: if taking a picture is like filling a bucket with water. ISO is the size of the bucket (that is meant to hold more or less water), aperture is how much water comes out of the faucet (is it wide open or is it just dripping?) and shutter speed is how long the faucet remains open.

We talk about the exposure TRIANGLE because all three setting are dependent on each other. If you let less light in through one setting, you will have to let more light in with another one (or both) in order to have a properly exposed photo. Let’s see some examples.

First, here is a photo where each setting is “average”. It is correctly exposed (even if totally boring, I admit, but at least those subjects are easy to work with! LOL).

Here is a representation of the exposure triangle for this image with each setting:

As I said before, if you change only ONE of the setting, the photo become under or overexposed. In this second image I decreased the aperture (increased the number) and as a consequence the image is underexposed, much darker than the first one. To have a properly exposed image, I should have let more light in through either a longer shutter speed, a higher ISO, or both.

The different combinations of those three setting can be almost infinite while the result remains very similar. Here are three other examples, each followed by the settings.

First, I kept the aperture at f/8 (like in the previous photo) but I bumped the ISO (more light) and decreased the shutter speed (less light) so that the image would be properly exposed.

Then I chose to use the lowest ISO possible (less light) and hence I used the widest aperture possible on my lens (much more light) and the “average” shutter speed we had in the first photo.

Last but not least, I chose the highest ISO possible on my camera (much more light) and the smallest aperture on my lens (way less light).

If you observe carefully the images above you can see that changing the settings doesn’t only influence the exposure, it also has other consequences. Each setting has a “side effect” that we will explore in the next posts in this series, as well as how to choose and change our settings depending on the results we are looking for.

In the meantime, I hope the overall concept of “exposure triangle” is clearer to you. Don’t hesitate to ask (here in the comments or in the forums) if you have any questions! I’ll be back in 2 weeks with PART 2 of this series.

ChloéAbout the author  Chloé is in charge of PR and communication for her small town by day, is a digiscrapper “by night,” and a photographer whenever the light is beautiful. She recently became a very happy mom to an adorable little boy and is enjoying the last weeks of her maternity leave.

Hybrid How-To | Graduation Centerpiece

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Hello everyone! It’s Tanya here, and I’m excited to bring another edition of our Hybrid How-To series to you here on The Digital Press blog! Today I’m going to show you how to use your digital supplies to make a really cute graduation centerpiece.

My niece is graduating from high school in May, so I thought it would be a great time do this project. I can’t wait to package it, up along with some gift money (of course… LOL), and send it to her. I’m so proud of myself… first, because I actually made a gift… and also because I’m getting it mailed off early! All of my family knows that I’m often super late on cards and birthday gifts; I have great intentions, but it never fails — I usually send things off 3 months later (or maybe 5 or 6 months? …that’s probably more accurate!).

This project idea can be used for any type of party… graduations, birthdays, showers… just to name a few. I used my Silhouette Cameo to do all of the designing and cutting, but it can also all be done with any photo editing program and a pair of scissors and/or punches.

SUPPLIES NEEDED:

  1. digital kits that go with the theme of your party (I chose graduation & party kits for my project)
  2. cardstock in different colors (I used white, black, and gold)
  3. double-sided tape
  4. paper cutter
  5. scissors
  6. wooden skewers (I found mine in the housewares section at Wal-Mart)
  7. tissue
  8. shredded tissue paper
  9. vase, bucket, or other container (I recycled a vase that came with flowers I received for my birthday; I saw the same vase at the Dollar Tree this weekend)

Here’s a look at the digital products I chose to use for my project…

[ Midnight Elements by Anita Designs, Graduation Bits and Anytime Alphas by Akizo Designs, and Commencement by Sherry Ferguson Designs (item retired since the time I created this project) ]

First, I opened the folder where my images were saved and dragged them to my work area. I continued to do this for all the images I wanted to use in this project…

After opening the images in my work area, I chose one (the graduation cap, shown below) and traced the image so that it would have cut marks.

Additionally, the tassel was blue and I wanted it to be one of my niece’s school colors, instead… so I did a trace-by-color and pulled it off to the side. I recolored it (green), and then moved it back to the original spot. This sort of thing can also be achieved in Photoshop and other photo editing programs; I like to do it right in my Silhouette software to simplify things…

Continue to open and trace all of the images you want to use for your project, to create cut-marks.

Here is what my page looked like before sending to my Cameo…

Later, I also created another page with stars and her school logo (the logo brought back many high school memories; I graduated at the same high school over 30 years ago… I’m telling my age here! LOL).

After arranging all of the images to maximize print and cut space, and making sure that I had the registration marks on (you can see the little black box and black lines in the image just above this)… the next step is to print and cut. To do this, send the file to your printer and then add your cutting mat and send through the Silhouette…

I did a second cut with just black cardstock (see above) in order to have a second layer to back each image that I cut out (if you do this, though, be sure to turn off registration marks for this particular cut). I find this extra step gives it all a more finished look.

After all of the elements were cut out, I added double-sided tape to the back piece. To ensure that my skewer would stick between the two pieces, I twisted double-sided tape around the skewer tip (see lower-right corner image, above); then, I sandwiched the skewer between the top and bottom pieces. TIP: be sure to press it firmly all the way around so that it looks finished.

And finally… it’s time to put it all together!  🙂  This was definitely the fun part!

As you can see, above, I put shredded paper in the bottom of the vase and then put some in the middle of the tissue paper, as well. This gave it some substance to ensure the skewers stayed in place. After finishing the project, however, I noticed that it probably wasn’t necessary to put the shredded paper in the bottom (it is a decision that probably just comes down to personal preference).

Next… just add the pieces. I started with the photo, front and center, and then arranged the other pieces around it. I also figured out that the point part of the skewer is best to go towards the bottom; it’s easier to stab it into the tissue that way.

Here’s a look at the final result…

I loooove how it came out! I can’t wait until she sees it, and I hope she loves it as much as I do and will use it at her graduation party (I know that she will; she is such a beautiful, sweet, caring, loving, smart girl!). She got a full scholarship for college. I’m so proud of her!

I have so many ideas running around in my head for more of these cute centerpieces. There are kits in the store at TDP for every occasion… and I’m off to do some ‘window shopping!’  🙂

I hope that you have enjoyed this tutorial and that I have inspired you to create some of your own centerpieces. If you do, we would love to see them posted in the hybrid gallery here at TDP!

Tanya

About the Author  Tanya is a member of the hybrid creative team here at The Digital Press. She has been paper and hybrid crafting for at least 18 years now, and loves creating and sharing those creations with others. Her all-time favorite tool is her Silhouette Cameo. She has been married for 30 years to her high school sweetheart, Richard, and has two sons: Chris, 27 and Chance, 23. She also enjoys crocheting, photography, and woodworking.

 

Friday Favorites | Mari Koegelenberg

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Hello everyone, and welcome to another edition of our designer feature series on The Digital Press blog in 2019 — Friday Favorites! This year, as you know, we’ve been learning a bit more about each of our amazingly-talented designers by having them share some of their favorite things with us each week.

This week, the spotlight is on the creative designer Mari Koegelenberg. This is actually Mari’s fifth feature here on the blog (you can find her first feature from October 2016 HERE, another from January 2017 HERE, her Foodie Friday post from October 2017 HERE, and her most recent feature from April 2018 HERE).

This time around, in order to learn even more about Mari, we asked her to share some of her favorite things with us, and here’s what she had to say…

“Hi there! If you have followed me for a while. I bet you already know by now that I love to create paper projects… uhm, dare we say ‘addiction’? …there are some serious repercussions (hoarding… *cough cough*).

Over the years, I have collected more scrapbooking stuff than I know what to do with! One of my favorite ways to de-stash (and/or get inspired to use it all up) is with all of the great videos on YouTube! It’s also a wonderful way to unwind after a crazy week at work, and do something creative.

I am subscribed to soooo many creative YouTubers that are absolutely amazing… but the following 3 ladies are my all-out favorites… 😉

1. Dani @ PopFizzPaper
Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSXHr4OfdKbJxVT9UXIvb-w
Her videos cover a bunch of crafts including Happy Mail, DIY Embellishments & Scrap your stash projects.

 

2. Adelle @ Inkie Quill
Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3SBSfhhz7K7e9qxAlK3n3g
Love her quirky sense of humor and obsession with Heidi Swapp’s Gold Shine. She does Project Life shares, ‘Kill a Kit’ challenges, Mixed Media and Scrapbook pages.

 

3. Kristina @ K Werner Designs
Link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW6F7pbVdCeTj6WRZoZJ1TQ

Cards are a fun way to do small creative projects just to get the juices flowing, and Kristina is the Queen of Card making! She does a series of Holiday Cards… 1 each day for a month to get you prepped and ready for the festive season. She also covers watercoloring and copic coloring; this is another recent addiction for me, but let’s not go there yet, LOL!”

I had fun checking out Mari’s favorites! It’s amazing to see how scrapbooking supplies and digital kits can be used in so many ways! I really love that. And YouTube is really an awesome source of inspiration.

If you’re not already familiar with Mari’s designs, you’ll love browsing through all of the eye candy in her store at TDP. Here’s a peek at just some of the fabulous products you’ll find in her shop…

Also, here’s a look at just a small sampling of the gorgeous projects that can be made using Mari’s products…

Hopefully, today’s Friday Favorites article has given you even more insight into Mari’s personal style (and again, if you want to know even more about her — scroll up and use the links to her previous features here on TDP’s blog, where’s there’s lots of good stuff!).

And the best news of all ?! …during Mari’s upcoming feature week here at The Digital Press, you can enjoy the chance to score an amazing deal in her shop if you use the following coupon code(s) when purchasing her digital goodies (this sale and the corresponding codes will be valid through 11:59pm EST on Thursday 5/16). Don’t miss out on these discounts!

[ if you have trouble seeing the coupon image, above, the codes are as follows: “save $2 off any purchase of $5+” by using code = S4V3-2-MKC . . . or “save $5 off any purchase of $10+” by using code = H4LF-OFF-MKC ]

About the author  Gaelle is a member of the creative team here at The Digital Press. She lives in France with her hubby, her two sons and her 3 kitties. She loves digiscrap and discovered this activity in 2012, since she’s totally addict and scrap to keep memory her everyday life. Her family is definitively her principal source of inspiration.