August 2016 at The Digital Press | Unite

August 1, 2016

It’s August… and here at The Digital Press, we’ve kicked things into full-gear as we jump right into our bi-annual Pennysaver event!

We’re also really excited about our newest Word of the Month for August 2016 here at TDP… UNITE. The 2016 Summer Olympic Games begin on Friday (in Brazil), and we thought this word really embodied the spirit of what the games represent, and was therefore a great choice for August. We also think it’s a beautiful, timely choice of words… given the social and political unrest that we have been experiencing here in the United States in recent months (which isn’t limited to our country, but can be found worldwide in many forms). Sometimes it’s wise to focus on the things that bring people together, rather than on the things that divide them.

image credits [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]

Looking for ways to incorporate this feeling of unity into your scrapping and crafting this month? Come join us at TDP! We’re jumping into another month of our increasingly-popular Challenge System for August, and there are so many fun new things in store for you throughout the month of August — including a challenge that specifically calls upon our new word of the month — UNITE. 🙂

We have 9 new challenges waiting for you in THE CROSSWORD SECTION — a.k.a. our forum’s challenge section — a fun play on words that we love because (a) #WeAreNerdyThatWay, (b) our challenges have always been loosely connected to our Word of the Month at TDP (get it? “crossword” haha)… and (c) it fits nicely into TDP’s news/press theme.

Here’s a peek at the challenges you’ll find throughout August 2016…

Get more information about our monthly challenge system HERE.

Meanwhile, make sure you check out our newest TDP collaborative collections — and yes, there are TWO this month(!) — One Kit Two Ways, which launched today in the shop. The design team had so much fun with this collection, which uses the same color palette for two very different kits (one for boys, one for girls)… and we think you’ll see/feel how much fun they had designing it when you work with this amazing coordinated collection of scrappy goodness!

The best news of all? Because it’s a Pennysaver month here at TDP, you can buy all of the pieces separately (just $1.00 each!)… or you can even get the entire collection — which is actually made up of TWO full collections — for just $6.00 in August only (that’s less than the regular price of any of our site’s shop collabs… and there are TWO collabs in it!).

Speaking of Pennysaver… don’t forget that it officially launches tomorrow (Tues 8/2) with a batch of fantastic new products that are all JUST $1.00/ea THROUGHOUT AUGUST! We’ll be releasing new items into the shop every Tuesday and Friday all month long, so grab a cup of coffee (or tea, or Mountain Dew… whatever you prefer!) and come browse the August 2016 Pennysaver category in the shop!

We look forward to spending August with you at The Digital Press.

About the Author Laura Passage is the owner of The Digital Press, and also the designer behind Wishing Well Creations by Laura Passage (WWC). She works now as a graphic designer in both the digital and paper scrapbooking industries, but previously spent over a decade working as a college soccer coach. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and two young sons (affectionately referred to as The Tiny Terrorists), and will rationalize eating coffee ice cream for breakfast to anyone who questions it.

Feature Friday | Sahin Designs

July 29, 2016

Today’s Feature Friday is all about Elif Sahin of Sahin Designs. Her design style is minimalist, clean, and simple… while being rooted in the style of the paper-scrapbooking world. Because of this, her products translate amazingly-well into hybrid projects, while also being gorgeous when used digitally. Her collections give a little of everything — brushes, flowers, journaling cards, papers, and alphas in stunning color schemes. All of her products give you the versatility to use them for a traditional scrapbook page, or a pocket page, or even a hybrid page.

This is just a small sampling of the beautiful and elegant designs that can be found in Sahin Design’s store at The Digital Press…

We asked Elif some questions to get to know her a little better…

Where do you live?
I live in Ankara, Turkey.

When you’re not designing, what do you do with your time?
When I am not designing I love to take care of my plants and play with my little nephew.

What are 5 tidbits of trivia we might not know about you?
—My age is 24, it’s a bit young for the digital scrapbook industry.
—I have a degree in International Relations.
—I love web design and I get my hands on it whenever I can.
—I love knitting and anything handmade.
—I love creating moodboards prior to starting on a new design project.

Which of your products is your favorite?
With each new product it changes. So, at the moment my favorite product is the Grad Collection…

Now that we have learned about Elif and seen her beautiful, versatile products… let’s see them in action. Here is a sampling of layouts and projects that were created using her designs…

After seeing all of these inspiring collections, you should be ready to scrap! And with a 30% OFF sale in Elif’s shop here at The Digital Press (sale will end at 11:59pm ET on Thurs 8/4) you can take advantage of a great discount and grab some beautiful new scrapbooking collections.

About the Author Sabrina is married to a hard-working man and has two rambunctious kids, nicknamed Captain and Sunshine. She loves to chase after the kids, clean up their messes, and say “stop that!” 100 times a day. When Sabrina gets a break she loves to scrap, read, or watch an occasional show.

Tutorial Tuesday | Importing Photos into Lightroom

July 26, 2016

How many times have you opened your new Lightroom (LR) software and shut it because you found it too daunting? How many times have you tried to drag images over to LR, like we so easily do in Photoshop (PS), only to realize nothing happens? If you are anything like me, your answer is more than a few times! 🙂

We’ve all heard it time and again — Lightroom is a powerful program. It’s a game changer. And… it truly is. But how do we harness its power if we can’t even complete the initial step of getting started? Well, this post is here to do just that — to help you get your pictures into LR.

The first thing you need to do to get started is open the program. Once you have it open, click on the “Library” button at the top (see image, below). Then, press the “Import” button.

[Please note that my screen (shown above) might look a little different than yours… as I already have pictures in my LR.]

Next, from the left side panel, you will now need to select the photos that you want to import into LR. Photos can be on your hard drive… or on an external hard drive… or on a memory card. Wherever your photo is, you need to browse on this left side panel and select that source (as shown below)…

Using the image above as an example… suppose I were to select “Year 5 — April” as the source. LR will now show me all pictures contained in that folder. This is where you can select the specific photos you want to import. You can choose to select one photo… or a few photos… or even all photos in the folder.

Another thing to note — that top panel (see next image). I shoot in Raw, so I choose the “copy as DNG” option… which is the suggested option for Raw files. For JPEG images, I always choose the “Add” option.

Now we come to the right side panel (again, see next image). Here, there are two steps that I usually complete. First is to select the “Don’t Import suspected duplicates” box. You don’t want to import the same photo twice, right? 🙂

The other step I complete using the right side panel is very important — the destination step. This is where you tell LR where (and how) to save your images. I save my images chronologically… so my files are saved by year and by month. You can organize your files however you like, creating a filing system that works for you.

Now you come to the very last step. You can just press “Import” (as shown below) and tada ….. your photos should start uploading in LR. At that point, once the photos are imported, you are all set and can start playing with the program more! 🙂

Hopefully this “first step” tutorial is helpful in getting you out of the starting blocks, and on your way to using Lightroom. If you have any questions, definitely feel free to reach out to me using the comments on this post, and ask away!

Pallavi About the Author Pallavi resides in Mexico City with her husband and her ever-growing little son, Rajveer. She has previously lived in Calcutta, Pune, San Francisco, Chicago, and London. She reflects all these places in her pages as she captures her everyday stories. She is an alumnus of Northwestern University. Currently, she is learning photography and working towards getting to a healthy weight. Her days are full and she loves it that way!

Feature Friday | Laura Passage

July 22, 2016

This week, we’re excited to feature the designs of Laura Passage (known to many of us as Wishing Well Creations by Laura Passage, or just WWC). Laura is not only a designer at The Digital Press, but is also our fearless leader! As a designer who also works in the paper scrapbooking industry, designing for companies like Echo Park Paper Company and Carta Bella Paper Company, Laura creates digital products that also have a distinctly paper-ish style and feel. You’ll find lots of flat stickers and icons in her kits, mixed with the types of dimensional items you tend to find used on traditional paper scrapbook layouts — stuff like wood veneer, string, staples, paper flowers, etc. Her kits are always bright and colorful and fun to work with.

Here is a look at just a few of my favorite products designed by Laura…

I interviewed Laura so that we could all learn a bit more about her, and here’s what she had to say…

Where are you from?
I live in the Pacific Northwest (about 45 min south of Portland, Oregon in Salem — the state capitol).

When you’re not designing, what do you do with your time? I sort of “unexpectedly inherited” full ownership of The Digital Press this past winter, and for the past few months my design time has been really limited while I have focused most of my time on expanding and updating the site (and there are lots of really fun new things on the way to The Digital Press this year!). When I’m not doing that and/or trying to find time to design fun digital or paper goodies… I like to (in no particular order) go sit on the sidelines and cheer on my kids during their sporting events; cook and bake; read good books; binge-watch my favorite series on Netflix or Hulu with my husband; and sleep (although I really don’t do that very much! haha).

What are 5 tidbits of trivia that we might not know about you?
—Before I had kids, I worked as a college soccer coach for about a decade.
—My favorite place in the world is the mountains of Colorado. I lived there when I was a kid, and nowadays as an adult even just the act of driving through that area calms me and centers me and makes me happy.
—I’m kind of obsessed with rainbow colors. The clothes in my closet are even hanging in rainbow order, because it just seems happier that way.
—My computers are all PC-based (and that isn’t going to change, because I keep buying PCs every time I need to upgrade — which I actually just did a month or two ago)… but I am totally an Apple snob when it comes to phones and devices. So yeah, basically, I am a walking contradiction and I know it makes no sense haha!
—I have had a love affair with paper goods my entire life. When I was 10 or 12, I would save up my allowance and spend it on pretty patterned paper stationary and matching envelopes… and then that stationary would seem too nice to actually use, so I would just hoard it. This info completely and totally explains my craft space in my home office, which is overflowing with patterned paper and other gorgeous crafty stuff. I mean, washi tape, people. Right?! I have a giant collection of it just because it’s so pretty.

Which of your products is your favorite?
Oh man, I cannot choose just one. I’ve done it before, and then I always feel like I am cheating on my other favorite kits, hahaha! I have multiple favorites, depending on the time of year / theme / etc. Right now because it’s summertime here in Oregon, though, I will say that there is something I adore about last year’s Project Twenty Fifteen | July Collection… I love the happy colors, and the combination of travel-themed items and outdoorsy things and girly florals…

And here are some gorgeous layouts and projects featuring some of Laura’s designs from her shop…

If you love fun color and papery goodness, you need to be sure to check out Laura’s products in the shop! My personal favorite item of hers is her Project Twenty Fifteen Template Bundle. These templates are my go-to templates for all my pocket scrapbooking layouts. With real stitching in both black and white, and tons of layout varieties, they are the templates I turn to when I have lots of photos to include on a page. They are a pocket scrapper’s dream come true!

Be sure to head over to Laura’s shop at The Digital Press this week for an amazing 30% OFF SALE on all of her products. (sale runs through 11:59pm ET on Thurs 7/28). You can pick up some of those amazing templates… or anything else that suits your fancy!

About the Author Katie is a member of the creative team here at The Digital Press. She lives in Central Florida with her husband and their four sweet but crazy boys. When she’s not dodging Nerf bullets or trying to dig out from under the never-ending pile of laundry, she enjoys photography, cooking, going to Disney World with her family, and, of course, digital scrapbooking.

Tutorial Tuesday | Expanding Your Digital Toolkit

July 19, 2016

We’ve all had that moment when our creative mojo just escapes us. You’ve been there before, right? You’ve got the time to create… a brand new kit that you really want to work with… and nothing. So what do you do?

Most of us browse galleries for inspiration, of course. Then you find “it” — a layout that has you saying, “wow, I really love that!” Maybe it’s the pictures, the composition/proportions on the page, the kit selection. Oh, hang on a minute… that’s your layout! Wow, that’s a little embarrassing. Actually, it’s not. Most of us are the resident memory-keeper for our family. We should be proud of – and love – the layouts we create. So how about using your own layouts as the inspiration for something new? Yes, I’m talking about expanding your digital toolkit and scraplifting yourself!

I look at scraplifting as one of the sincerest forms of flattery in the digital world. When you scraplift a page, you’re saying to the creator that their page inspired you to create; it struck a chord with you. It’s okay to give yourself a pat on the back for a layout well done… and if you find a formula that you like, why not repeat it? Scraplifting could be duplicating a layout design, or using it as inspiration to build from. I love doing the latter and wanted to show you my process for “lifting” the page shown here…

[credits: Sweet Dreams — a collaboration by Sabrina’s Creations and Designed by Soco]

Where to begin? Open your original file in Photoshop or Photoshop Elements and save a copy to work from. This is so important! You don’t want to make changes to your original file and then accidentally save them and over-write your original! Take it from someone who has “been there, done that” — it’s not pretty. On your duplicate file, start removing any paper or photos layers that you might have clipped to shapes. You want to strip the layout down to the basic design elements, like this:

Now, I like to use my existing layouts as inspiration and not necessarily duplicate an existing design (although that’s a great option, too). With that in mind, now that I have the base design laid out in front of me, it’s time to play around by moving elements (or groups of elements) around to create something new.

I like the vertical paper strip on the left with the scalloped edge peeking out and the stitched top edge. This would really lend itself to being on the bottom of a page. Ah, rotate the layout counter-clockwise (all layers), and then lower that portion of the design just a little…

With that central cluster of elements on the bottom edge, I’m now starting to think a vertical design — right down the center of the layout — might be the way to go. Here’s what the design looks like after I’ve moved and re-sized some of the papers. You’ll see that the overall design of the original page is still there; it’s just been modified enough to make it a little different…

Some of the original element clusters on the sides are now looking… well, “off” for want of a better word. This doesn’t mean they should automatically be deleted, however; they can still be re-purposed in the new design layout. Sometimes simply rotating and moving the elements can breathe new light into them. The cluster on the right-hand side of the page, for example, is one I really like. However, the vertical placement just doesn’t work now. Making it horizontal again (as it was in the original layout) will work. Rotated and moved around a bit, here’s how my page’s composition is shaping up…

You’ll see that I’ve also hidden a few layers, like the element cluster that was originally in the upper left-hand corner of the new design. It was just too much. Also, at this point I haven’t even thought about a kit design, new papers, or new elements. I’ve simply been setting up the foundation on which to build from — and that’s not always easy to do, as I want to jump right in!

Using this scraplifted version of my original layout, I can now start adding all of the new pieces to complete my layout. If I move things around again, that’s fine — it’s my page, my memory. I can do whatever I like with it. I’m a firm believer that there’s no right or wrong way to scraplift a page. Bottom line: have fun with it!

Here’s how my now newly-designed page came out:

[credits: Away by Creashens]

…and just for fun, I did a second variation of the original page, just to show you that you can expand your toolkit and scraplift one page several times with each layout being unique to the memory you wish to record:

[credits: Leelo and Kiwi by Wildheart Designs]

So, if you like what you create… go ahead and give yourself permission to create it again, with a twist! A few things to remember:

Create a copy of your original Photoshop file and work from that. Don’t work on your original file.
If you rotate the design, watch for your shadow angles as they will rotate, too.
If your original layout was based on a template, which you would normally credit a designer for, think about whether you will still give credit when you share your new layout. My own personal rule of thumb: If the new layout still closely resembles the original template, give credit with something like, “Template (modified) by …”

Scraplifting from your own gallery can be a great way to get your mojo going — or even just a fun exercise to do when you’re in a creative rush. It’s an easy way to expand your digital toolkit since you have all the inspiration right there at your fingertips: it’s you! If you would like to give this a try, I’d love to see what you can do with your own layout, so link me up with a before and after!

About the Author Kat Hansen is a creative team member here at The Digital Press. A Director of Human Resources by day, she loves the opportunity to spend a few hours each day being creative. Vacation memories feature pretty heavily in Kat’s scrapbooking pages, as do her son and “daughter” (of the four-legged furry kind). Kat has quite the sense of humor (she “blames” her father for this), which she incorporates into her journaling and memory-keeping.

Hybrid How-To | Custom Composition Books

July 16, 2016

Hello and happy Saturday! Summer is quickly coming to an end. Can you believe it? My kids go back to school in 2 weeks and we’ve been busy getting their supplies. I noticed both kids have composition notebooks on their lists — woohoo! Why have a plain notebook, when you can have a fantabulous notebook? I thought it might be fun to create some personalized covers, and am here today to show you how to use your favorite digital kit to do so!

For my own composition book cover, I included a happy memory from my kids’ previous school year, as well as a little inspirational quote. I even left a blank space to write in the subject. I’m also putting a blank sheet of adhesive on the back, too, so the kids can add their own personal touch! Anything to keep them motivated, right?

Supplies Needed:

Digital kit of your choice (I used Project Twenty Fifteen | August by Laura Passage, shown below)
Full sheet adhesive labels (I used Avery #15265)
Paper trimmer, scissors, pencil, and a ruler
Composition notebook(s) of any size

Directions:

Measure the cover of your notebook.
Create a document in Photoshop that is the exact size of your book’s cover — plus an extra 1/4″ on the top and bottom (this will ensure the design you are about to create will cover the front of the notebook).
Print your design onto the full-sheet adhesive label sheet.
Using the paper trimmer, trim the excess from the left side of your design, the side closest to the binding tape of the book. Don’t peel the backing off yet! First, you will center it and mark where you’ll need to cut the other 3 sides. Trim those before adhering.
Start to peel the backing from the left side, only a half inch or so, and adhere it starting on the left. Then slowly continue to peel back an inch or so at a time, as you adhere it. Doing it this way not only ensures you get it centered, but also eliminates pesky air bubbles!
Using the scissors, trim around the corners.
Optional — If you want it to be just a little more permanent, add clear contact paper on top of your cover.

And that’s it — easy peasy!

Now it’s your turn, make one of these super simple comp books and come share your creation with us in the forum! During July 2016, you can even receive points in TDP’s challenge system if you complete this project and enter it into the July 2016 Hybrid Challenge. 🙂

About the author Arielle H Gordon is a wife and mom of two crazy kiddos, ages 6 & 7. She moved around (a lot!) before returning to settle down in her hometown of Enterprise, Alabama, to marry her sweetheart and start her family. She is an avid crafter — digital, hybrid and otherwise! She LOVES Jesus, family time, camping, gardening, reading cozy mysteries, hot tea, popcorn, and anything on BBC! This time of year, you’ll find her buying school supplies, gearing up for VBS and reading like it’s going out of style (while sipping sweet tea!)…