April 2012 – The Daily Digi

April 30, 2012November 27, 2013

Never Disappointed and SEVEN Will Win

TDF40Reveal

Today is the LAST day you can grab all of these goodies at such a LOW price! These goodies go back to their designers’ stores for full retail value starting tomorrow! HURRY because once they are gone, they are gone!

Can you believe you get ALL of this PLUS a Playbook (in PDF and iBooks for iPad format), PLUS bonus exclusive kits for only $7.50!?!? It’s so shocking, I know! As a member of The Digi Game, you get:

To Try new-to-you designers with a very low risk.
Stock up on high quality products at an extremely low price.
Get layout ideas for the products included (in the Playbook).
Learn the latest digital scrapbooking techniques in the Playbook.
Products are automatically added to your account each month, no checkout or PayPal login required.

Here’s what some of our members are saying:

“This month rocked…as does every month! Loved all the kits/designers and love getting a mix of styles to change things up. My favorite thing is always the Playbook. I have a thirst for learning any new digiscrap tip/technique, and the playbook and this site always deliver…” – Lisa

“I have never been disappointed in the monthly contents!! I always look forward to the new month to see what treasures I will be collecting! Thank you for an awesome club.” – Betty

“I’ve been with you since your launch and there has not been one single month that I have ever been disappointed by the wonderful offerings…” – Cindy J

Here’s a closer look at what you can find inside this month:

Mari Koegelenberg: My Current Love

Christine Chodil: Mostly Good

Queen of Quirk: Tragically Been Missing

Krystal Hartley: A New Chapter In My Life

Jeanye Labaya: A Puddle of Tears At My Feet

Dunia: In Love With Project Life

Tickled Pink: I Am A Font Addict

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In this month’s Playbook, we talk about:

Alphas
Element Tricks and Techniques
Layout Design
Papers
Photoshop and Photoshop Elements Tricks
Photos
Supplies (Tricks and Techniques)
Template Tricks

The Playbook is available in PDF and iBooks for iPad!

NOW…for the FUN part! Leave us a comment sharing one thing you enjoyed about The Daily Digi, The Digi Files, or The Digi Game this month! We will randomly select SEVEN people from the comments below to win $10 in product from one of this month’s contributors.

April 29, 2012November 27, 2013

A clean desktop is a happy desktop

Mini Figure from Simple Desktops

When I shared simpledesktops.com as my pick of the week on episode 29 of The Digi Show, I admitted that I’m quite fanatical about having a clean computer desktop. When I’m practicing what I preach, my computer desktop is clean and inspiring. However, I do fall off the wagon at times and it seems that by the end of the month I can end up with a lot of “stuff” on my desktop and it looks like this:

I immediately feel jumbled and unable to concentrate on what I’m doing when I’m greeted with a screen filled with icons, folders, and random images. I really prefer Leo Babauta’s (the zen habits guy) approach to a clutter-free desktop. I file everything into folders on my system that don’t show up on my desktop. Everything is easily accessible from my start menu button or by opening a folder and I don’t have all the distractions to deal with. I feel so much happier when my screen looks like this!

Elitism from Simple Desktops

I like to change my wallpaper every month or so to keep it fresh and fun. Here are some of my other favorite desktop wallpapers from simple desktops. (All images are linked)

Memories

Steve (look inside the apple)

cupcake

Today’s a great day to evaluate what your computer desktop space looks like. Is it overwhelming and cluttered? Or simple and serene? I challenge you to do some spring cleaning and tidy it up a bit. You’ll feel more productive and inspired if you start your computer experience off with a clean slate!

katie big

April 28, 2012February 4, 2014

Full Pages

Title supplies from The Daily Digi member exclusive kit My Life At Play.

Every now and then, a page I am scrapping takes on a life of its own and ends up in a completely different direction than the one I had intended. Originally, this was going to be a simple page with lots of white space:

Clearly something happened! I really enjoy the “fullness” of the page though and it was very fun to scrap. It made me start to look for examples of other “full” pages.

Bronx Zoo by Gina

BronxZooPAD

Gina used a blocked design to fit in 10 photos and lots of journaling. There is so much to see on this page! It shows that a page with “less” papers and elements can still be a very full page.

Attack of the Tiger by HeatherB

There is patterned paper, solid paper, trim, buttons, paper flowers, word art, journaling and more on this page! The bold solid yellow paper grounds the design and the white frames and white journaling mat make the photos and journaling easily visible.

Grandma’s House by YepBrook

The large central photo catches the eye first and then you start to notice the many smaller photos and lush layers of papers and trim. The flower accents and tucked-in date and location tags just add to the fullness of the page. I love how the title is on the negative space in the photo. Perfection!

The 5th Month by Aurian

What an amazing double-page spread! I love the mix of large, medium and small photos. The use of frames create focal points and the whimsical elements keep you looking around the page. The patterned paper, like the black polka-dots, is skilfully used to add punch to visual clusters.

Stuff My Mama Said by Diamndprincz

Each text spot on this page creates a visual cluster and there is just enough of the softly polka-dotted background paper poking through to gives the reader’s eyes places to rest. The gently faded and toned photos work with the soft colours on the page, allowing the brighter colours, like the reds, to pop.

Designing “edge to edge” is a bit intimidating. Part of the challenge is keeping the journaling and photos prominent on such full pages. I learned a lot by studying the work of the great scrappers highlighted above. I’m definitely going to try out this style again!

April 27, 2012November 27, 2013

Funtastic Finds, Deals, and Freebies on Friday

We are winding up another month here at The Daily Digi and have finished revealing the contents of The Digi Files. Be sure them by becoming a member, if you aren’t already. If you are a member, and haven’t downloaded, you will want to do that before your downloads expire at the end of the month!

Each week, Katie, Peppermint, and I get together with a guest and discuss a topic related to digital scrapbooking on The Digi Show. This week, Heather Hess joined us to discuss if Pinterest really is a form of digital scrapbooking? How has Pinterest influenced and changed the digital scrapbooking industry? How has Pinterest changed the layouts we create? All of that and more in this episode!

We also get great comments from our listeners, when the discussion continues in the comments of each show.

What’s going on in digital scrapbooking this week? Let’s take a look and find out:

Birds of a Feather this kit is 20% off. When you purchase the kit you get a cardstock paper pack free. Or purchase the Bundle and save 45%:

Mye De Leon is having a Spring Cleaning sale! Don’t miss this opportunity to grab 14 of her full kits along with their add on packs for only $1 until May 4! Check them at her Gotta Pixel store

Traci Reed has this coming soon:

Did you go on a tropical vacation this winter? Or have a stash of vacation photos that you have been wanting to make an album with or scrap a few pages? You might even be one of the lucky ones that live in such dreamy places. If so I have the perfect kit for you!

This weekend at SSD, Studio Basic has:

WMsquared has a new travel kit, for Chicago this time, 20% off for a week:

Dunia has a new set of templates:

New e-book from SuzyQ Scraps! 53 ideas for creating clever & captivating titles on your scrapbook pages — these simple suggestions will take your storytelling from ordinary to extraordinary. Includes 4 bonus quick pages.

En Plein Air is the Impressionist technique that Monet employed of not having an atelier and working out in the open air and painting the nature around him. It made for a more natural looking painting that still strike chords in people today. Here is ViVa’s version of his art, fresh and clean, for the spring, with a touch of lace and linen.

Whether you are putting around on the big or small course, Chelle has something for you with her release this week. Buy the bundle and get the word art free. On sale until May 2nd.

Elisa has a big sale AND a free with purchase going on:

Yin has a GREAT deal for us! Save 30% off at Yin Designs store. Offer valid through May 6, 2012. She also has a free template on her blog to share!

Colorful new Collab from Studio Vivarant & Studio Jen D:

Here’s a new collection from Dani and it’s on sale:

The Spring 2012 sale is now on and will run until the end of the day Saturday April 28, 2012. Come and see our newest release as well, The Bees Knees Collection!

I can’t wait to hit the stores this weekend, so many great deals and fun finds!

P.S. The random winner selected from the comments on Mari’s feature Monday was Stefanie. She won $10 in product from Mari!

April 26, 2012June 5, 2014

What’s That Little Line Thingy?

If you listen to The Digi Show you heard Steph describe learning to shoot in manual mode. Did you hear her mention that little line thingy at the bottom of her viewfinder?

Yes. It has a name. And a lot of information.

Let me introduce you to your Internal Light Meter!

Yep. That’s it’s name. Reading light is its game.

It is always on. It reads the light reflected off of your subject, whatever subject you point it toward.

Pick up your camera and give it a try.

Start by placing your camera in Manual Mode! (Leave your lens on Auto Focus. It’s M is something different).
Point your lens toward different colors with different intensities of light, you’ll notice it bounce toward the + side and then -.
Point it at a bright light. It goes to the + side. It’s reading a lot of light reflecting off your subject, telling you, “I’ve got too much light for this exposure!”
Point it at a dark subject. It goes to the – side. It’s reading low light from your subject, shouting, “I don’t have enough light for this exposure!”

Understanding how those numbers are moving is the first step to shooting in manual mode.

Simply put, you want the indicator to be right in the middle for a “correct” exposure.

But what do you do if you point it at your subject and it’s not? Say it looks like this.

It’s giving you a lot of information. The indicator on the 1 tells you that you have “one stop” too much light. The 100 on the left is your shutter speed. The 1.4 is your aperture. The 100 on the right is your ISO. Your viewfinder, of course, may look just a bit different.

So how do you get rid of light?

You have three choices:

Close your aperture one stop, reducing the light one stop.
Speed your shutter speed one stop, reducing the light one stop. (The curtain opens faster, less light comes in! Thanks Vivre for finding my typo!)
Decrease your ISO one stop, reducing the light one stop.

Three choices all to get you to a correct exposure. Well, kind of.

If you are pointing your camera at neutral gray, the indicator in the middle shows you a correct exposure.

If you are pointing your lens toward skin, then go to the plus side 2/3 stops. What the heck is that? And how do you remember? Think of it as two clicks from the middle or two of those little hash lines? How do you get there? Those same three choices I mentioned. Adjust your aperture, shutter speed, or ISO. Those three are always working together.

But what happens after you’ve adjusted your light meter to “the spot” you want it and it continues to bounce around? Once you’ve dialed it in you ignore your light meter until your subject or the light changes!

Give it a try and see what you find! For even more fun figuring out how all of your settings work together, try the SLR Camera Simulator. Or heck, just grab your camera and see what happens!

Now you know what Steph does! Have fun.

Now your creative photography begins.

P.S. It’s Steph here, I couldn’t resist popping in just to say that THIS amazing little trick Katrina shared today, is what FINALLY put me on manual mode, after 8 years!! I’ve been shooting in manual since Digiscrapapalooza… and that class I took with Katrina and it all started to make sense…and I cried. I had given up hope that I would ever move to manual mode. I’ve now shot over 1000 photos with the dial on the M for MANUAL! It still makes me a little giddy!

April 25, 2012November 27, 2013

Decoding a Digi Scrap Preview

Flergs_FamilyArchives_Frame7 copy copy

Flergs Family Archives, Christine Chodil On this Day, Carbon Block font

Have you ever wondered how to decode a preview image for digital scrapbooking supplies? It can be overwhelming at times to look at all the fun goodies that come in a digi kit so it helps to have few pointers to use.

I’m going to use the previews from all the collections included in this month’s Digi Files as examples. Can you believe you get all of these great products for a total price of only $7.50? (Less for annual members) Wow! The proceeds from THE DIGI FILES keep THE DAILY DIGI running!!

I love this kit by Tickled Pink and as soon as I saw the preview I could tell that it was filled with all sorts of designs I could use on my creations. The layer of papers in the background is a great preview of the patterns and colors that come in the kit. The embellishments are layered to show the variety of items included. It is a standard practice for the designer to include the name of the product and their own design name as part of the labeling.

Many scrappers focus on the element items included in a kit and just need a glimpse of the papers. Some designers use more than 1 preview image in a pop up window so you can see previews of each part of the kit (embellishments, patterned papers, solid papers, etc.) Dunia also included some paper previews inside her kit this month.

Krystal Hartley illustrates some ways to use the included items in combination with the arrangement of her preview image. When I saw the flowers clustered together with the leaves, ribbon, and branch, I knew I would want to use them that way on a page of my own.

With careful layering, you can see the intricacies of patterned papers and added elements on the Queen of Quirk preview here.

Christine Chodil uses a banner across the middle of her preview image to help visually separate the papers from the elements while still showing how they coordinate together. Most previews are shadowed to give definition to each piece pictured, but that does not mean that the individual embellishments come shadowed in the kit.

Whenever I look at digi scrap previews, I pay special attention to the layouts made using the product. Many stores will include some team layouts as alternate images on the preview. At The Daily Digi, we include them in the feature posts and even more in the Team Inspiration section. I like to save these layout images to my hard drive and file them right in with the kit to use for ideas when it comes time to scrap. It’s also fun to pin them on Pinterest for later scraplifts.

Most of all, I find that looking at the layouts created with the kit give me a much more in-depth look at how the designs look in action. I often find that I *have* to get that kit because of a certain paper or a piece of word art I have seen on a layout. I already completely adored this kit by Mari Koegelenberg, but when I saw this layout by Kimberly, I knew I needed to go back and use some of that fun Washi-style tape in the kit!

Previews are important for templates also. I love how Jeanye Labaya uses bright colors to show what her template designs will look like when I bring them to life with my own digi ingredients. I really look for layout examples when I’m exploring template previews so I can see how they look in action!

If you want to understand what comes with a digital scrapbooking purchase, look over the preview and pay attention to the type of items that are pictured. Be sure to check out any sample layouts or additional preview images as well. When you are shopping in a digi store, read the product description to see a listing of the included items. That is especially important for really large kits and collections.

I’m going to use the BIG collaborative kit My Life in Print as an example. This is the kit our members receive as a free gift after their 16th month of the Digi Game. Here’s the preview image:

It’s pretty much impossible to include everything on a preview for a kit this size. This is just a small sampling to give you an idea of the colors, theme, and overall design feel of the kit. It really helps to read the description.

This kit includes:

105 papers
over 280 elements
2 layered templates
1 brush set
6 alphas (1 in 3 colors)
2 printable art posters
6 quick pages

This amazing collection was created by 30 of the top digital scrapbooking designers (all of whom are previous contributors to THE DIGI FILES) and two Daily Digi team members.

That listing is important so you can really understand what you get with this particular kit. I’m sure you’ll find that as you read the descriptions, study the preview, and explore additional images, that you will find many digital collections that are longing to become a part of your own stash!

katie big

April 24, 2012November 27, 2013

My Secret Weapon for Using Alphas

I love the look of alphas on a layout, but placing them can be time consuming and monotonous! I have a secret weapon for placing alphas that has changed my scrapping life! It’s the Title Builder Scripts by Anna Forrest (for PSE and PSCS).

These scripts work similarly to actions. You install them differently (Anna includes instructions), and run them from a different menu, but once you select them, they do their thing (see the video below). Actions can only include menu commands in Photoshop, Scripts can actually include more. I can’t imagine the brain power needed to make these babies work!

Once the script is installed, I go to Edit> Scripts> AFD Title Builder:

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The following dialogue box opens up:

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I type the word in the title box, navigate to the folder that contains the alpha in the Image Folder box. Then, in the lowercase box, I just deleted the a so only the part of the file name visible is the filename that will be the exact same on each letter. If I would have used capitals and or numbers, I would have changed those as well. Then, I clicked OK and the script did it’s thing. Watch the video below to see the script in action.

Here are a few layouts I’ve used this script on:

Template by Little Green Frog and Michelle Batton; elements and papers by Sarah Jones (Girls Rule); font is Printing Primer by Fontologie.

Supplies by SaraJ, template by Little Green Frog and Michelle Batton, font is Printing Primer by Fontologie

CousinCampPage9ab

Supplies by Chelle’s Creations, font is Printing Primer by Fontologie

Swim

Supplies by Zoe Pearn

CVW_SupplyTracker Layer 1 Layer 10 Layer 11 Layer 12 Layer 2 Layer 2 copy Layer 4 Layer 6 Layer 8 Layer 9 MessyBessy Font Sahlin Studio Paper e #6# g #4# it’s a j #1# l #5# n #3# out there! sahlinstudio_fieldtrip_measuringtape u #2#

Supplies by Sahlin Studio, font by Fontologie

If you have an alpha aversion, give these scripts a try and you will be using alphas on every layout from here on out (I’m not kidding)! Smile

April 23, 2012November 27, 2013

Mari Koegelenberg: My Current Love

DesignersStudio

I am SO happy to welcome back Mari Koegelenberg to The Digi Files again! It is always fun for me to watch a designer’s style evolve through the years. I have always loved Mari’s designs, but have found over the past year or so that I really can’t resist them. Chances are, if Mari has something new out, it will be added to my collection. I love her great use of color, patterns, doodles, type, and theming to create cohesive and fun collections! Let’s take a closer look at “Daydreamer” that is included in The Digi Files this month:

celebrate

This is ONE of SEVEN collections you get when you become a member of The Digi Game this month. You also get an interactive Playbook (in PDF and iBooks formats) that has lots of ideas for using the supplies including techniques, tips, and tricks! All of that, including access to exclusive collaborations every four months you are a member, for only $7.50 total per month!

Here are some layouts created using Mari Koegelenberg ’s contribution:

Layout by Kimberly. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg ; Fonts: Another Typewriter.

Layout by Tara. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg .

Layout by Jacki. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg .

Layout by Katie. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg ; Apple Tree (template, modified) by Sara Gleason.

Layout by Kim. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg ; Template by Cathy Zielske; Font is DJB Mousekteer Kim.

You can see more layouts created with this kit on our “Team Inspiration” page.

InTheStudioWith
I am a South African Expat living in California. I am blessed with 2 kids a loving husband and an amazing job. Design is my passion and my love. I feel so lucky to wake up each day and get to make pretty things.

STORE

BLOG

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

designerscanvas3
Project Life has appealed to me on so many levels and this year I decided to take the plunge. I am really loving the fact that I am documenting my families everyday moments. I have only been doing this for a few months and the satisfaction of viewing my pages completed is just the best thing ever. The kids are just as excited about this project and love to contribute. The sense of accomplishment really motivates me and ensures that this project will stay viable for a long time. If you do something for long enough it becomes a force of habit and I think you will agree this is a great habit to have. 😉

howitallstarted3
When my eldest was born in 2004 I wanted to document her everyday little moments and was very much intrigued with Scrapbooking. Digital Scrapbooking was just starting out and it was the perfect solution. As with most designers from that period you had to make a lot of stuff for yourself and well I started getting good at it and loved it too…lol. So I ventured into the world of designer-dom. It was such a proud moment when I was accepted as one of the new designers at Sweet Shoppe Designs and I am so excited and happy to start this new chapter.

As a converted paper scrapper I love using my computer to not only create Hybrid Products which can be found under my Cutting Files brand (also available at Sweet Shoppe Designs) but I also create Paper Products for My Minds Eye.

inspirestocreate3
I love color…it speaks to me and has a very unique personality. Certain colors evoke certain feelings and moods. As a paper/hybrid scrapper I also get inspired by certain trends in the paper craft world and want to incorporate them into Digital Scrapbooking. I can use as an example my current love for Confetti and Subway Art.

toolbox3
Computer: I have a Mac OS X Lion, Memory: 4GB 1333 MHz RAM, 500 GB HD with 500GB EHD, 21.5′ Monitor, and daily/continous backup to Back Blaze.

Program: I mainly work in Photoshop CS 5 and Illustrator CS 5. Just a note when I upgraded my OS to Lion Photoshop started to behave erratically after a friend suggested I switch it from 64 bit to 32 bit the problem was solved.

Camera: I have a Nikon D40 with a Standard Lens and a 35mm Prime Lens. I also use my iPhone for everyday moments.

Anything Else: Wacom Bamboo Fun Touch Tablet, Silhouette SD Digital Die-Cutting Machine, Epson Workforce NX415 Printer and Epson Scanner V300.

tipstricks
I love to scrap with Smart Objects. Especially when you love to resize things on your layout (at least down and not up…not recommended!). You will not lose detail and sharpness and can always reset to the original size, which is great for photos. You can also apply certain filters non-destructively.

favoriteproduct3
Hello Sunshine just represents Summer to me. It all started with the Colors…they were so fun and bright and I loved the bright cheery yellow in the palette. It is packed with fun elements and patterned papers.

popularproduct3
My vision for Thrifty Finds was a kit that could be used over and over again for almost any type of page…hence the name. It has a vintage flair with beautiful floral motifs and everyday basic patterns.

stephpicks

Here are some of my favorite products by Mari Koegelenberg :

layouts

Here are some more inspirational layouts using Mari Koegelenberg ’s products. All of the layouts are linked to the originals with credits.

Save 30% offMari Koegelenberg’s store now through 05/01/2012 with coupon code daydreamer30off.

Go have a look in Mari Koegelenberg’s store! We will randomly select a winner from the comments to win $10.00 in product from her store! (Comments must be posted before midnight EST to qualify)!

April 23, 2012November 27, 2013

Inspired by Mari Koegelenberg

The following layouts were created using “Daydreamer” by Mari Koegelenberg and included in The Digi Files during April, 2012:

Layout by Amanda

Layout by SharonS, additional supplies: Template: Jenn Lindsey, Font: CK Evolution

Layout by Kim, additional supplies: Tuesday Template 5 by Megan Turnidge

Layout by Kimberly. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg ; Fonts: Another Typewriter.

Layout by Tara. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg .

Layout by Jacki. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg .

Layout by Katie. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg ; Apple Tree (template, modified) by Sara Gleason.

Layout by Kim. Supplies: Daydreamer by Mari Koegelenberg ; Template by Cathy Zielske; Font is DJB Mousekteer Kim.

April 22, 2012November 27, 2013

Meet Kimberly M.

BIO: My name is Kimberly Morris. I live in the beautiful mountains of East Tennessee with my wonderful husband Derrick and our precious little boy Aiden. I spend most of my time working as a domestic Goddess for my little family, Digital Scrapbooking, taking photos and giving my Kindle a good work out.

5 PRODUCTS I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT:

Shadow Like Me by One Little Bird
Markerific by CD Muckosky
Gonna Share My Story by Darcy Baldwin
Blissful Stitching – Straight by Traci Reed
Simply Vintange Action by the Coffee Shop Blog

MY STYLE: My style is very eclectic. Depending on the photos I am using I can go anywhere from Vintage with a lot of flowers and greenery to a clean and simple, minimalist layout.

MY SCRAPPING IDOL(S): Elsie Flannigan. She is a paper layout artist but I find so much inspiration in her use of bright colors and whimsical designs.

WHY I AM EXCITED TO BE ON THE TEAM: I am so excited to work with all of the talented people here as well as discovering new designers.

MY FAVORITE LAYOUT:
Why? Because it combines my love of clean lines with a more embellished worked. It took me a long time to find that balance!

SUPPLIES: Note to Self by Kristin Cronin-Barrow and Jenn Barrette; Scruffy Angel font by Darcy Baldwin; Poppyseed font by Darcy Baldwin; Once upon a Boy Alpha by SSD; Fabric Date Tags by Shawna Clingerman; Font: Times New Roman.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND ME:
Gallery • Facebook • Blog