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Originally posted 1/16/07
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I'm on a roll! Here's another tutorial back up for everyone.
Rotating Photos and Elements (The Transform Tool) - tutorial and .pdf under Course 1
Here's just a few of the Photoshop Elements tips you will find within this tutorial:
Keep proportions: Shift + drag
Distort: Control + drag
Skew: Control + Shift + drag
Perspective: Control + Alt + Shift
Wow! I am surprised by all of the comments on my recent repost about Control J and Control G! This is such a basic skill that every digital scrapbooker should know. How can you scrap without them? Maybe you are doing them, but not using the keyboard shortcuts?
I often wonder why people who do not know these basics are not taking my classes? How can I get it across to everyone how much you can learn if you take the time to go through all of my tutorials.
Read more about the Subscriber Area here.
As an overview of Control J and Control G, I will bullet some points.
CONTROL J
Originally posted: 10/9/06
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Hey all,
I thought I would start a section on the sidebar to add my favorite e-mail subscriptions. Maybe you will be interested in some of them too.
First, I am starting with my favorite comic by e-mail. At comics.com, you can subscribe for free to one comic by e-mail daily. I believe you have to pay to receive more than one, but it's been a while since I've checked it out. You can even go to their page and see the past comics rather than get them by e-mail.
I subscribe to the Frank and Ernest comic. I love it!
My second choice would be Ziggy, but I'm not about to pay! I can see Ziggy on my MyYahoo page, so that is satisfactory for me.
What is your favorite comic?
Originally posted 10/14/06
It is fun to rewatch of of these old things on my blog and to make sure links are still working.
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Oh my! Niki shared this and since I just learned how to put them on the blog, I had to share! How funny. Enjoy!
First posted 1/9/07
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Once again, just when I think people who have been with me the entire time as I've written tutorials must surely have read and know what I've taught, I am surprised someone did not grasp a concept. [coughcoughMaggiecoughcough] [giggle]
So, here it goes for those blog readers here!
If you do not know Control J and Control G, it is a MUST learn! It will open up whole new worlds for you.
Many tutorials and scrapping sites simply share the Control G method with ladies to teach them how to use all of these fabulous layout templates that are so popular. However, do not stop there! Step out of the box and use your imagination!
Control J and Control G can be used to cut aaaannnything! Make your own templates and cut paper out of them. To make a template, make a selection and fill it in in black! How easy is that?
Think out of the box......
Make tag templates.
Make border templates.
Make mat templates.
Make ribbon templates.
Make button templates.
Make text templates.
Make brad templates.
Make paper templates.
Make....well...you do the thinking!
So, look what I did in only a few minutes. I took the first black template, along with a paper I made, and used the Control G method to create something new. I added an inner drop shadow.
First posted 5/24/07
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It has been a while since I have shared a recipe, so I thought I would share dinner last night!
Videlia onions are in season! They are only in season for a short while and I miss them when they are gone. I love the sweet onions!
It inspired me to make something I had made and enjoyed before. I am not sure where I got the recipe, but I made it from memory and my own amounts this time. It is supposed to be like Philly Cheese Steak.
Place 4 boullion cubes in the pan (don't worry, they will dissolve in the liquid from the steak and onions on their own later).
Chop up 2 Videlia onions in small pieces and throw them in the pan to cook on medium heat. Break up one big box of Steak-umm (they break up frozen just as well as tearing them thawed) and throw them in the pan. Continue cooking and occassionally stirring until the meat is done and the onions are well done. Add 2 cups of shredded mozzerella cheese and be prepared for it to melt fast, stirring into the meet and onions. Drain fat if desired.
Place onto your favorite specialty bread!
Since this is SO good, I am sure it must be fattening. Add some fresh fruit as a quick side and that should make everything seem justified.
I am going through withdrawals just wanting to scrap! I did make a few layouts earlier in the week, but I was focusing on giving warm fuzzies and trying to get certain things into the layout that others had shared. To me, that is the same as doing a CT layout -- the focus is more on the kit and not on getting your creative outlet out and not focusing on the photos. I just wasn't very pleased with them.
So, last night I set out to tap into my creative outlet and come up with a new technique for the technique challenges in Course 2. Goodness, does this one feel good!
There is a new video in the subscriber area for this course. Remember, the subscriber area is only $5.50 a month for access to everything that is there.
Although the techniques for this layout are actually very simple, there are a few snags you should be aware of when creating this layout. I am anxious to see what others do after watching the video.
Yesterday I shared with you a bit about my "ladies man." So, what do you think of him?
Originally posted January 7, 2007.
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For instance, I made this snowman shape very quickly using this tool. I drew three circle shapes overlapping each other to obtain the snowman shape. To get the texture on my snowman, I filled a new layer above the snowman shape with a pattern (edit drop down menu, fill layer, use: pattern, wax crayon) and then reduced the opacity to almost nil
I quickly added two buttons and drew the smile and the nose with a hard brush. So easy! (but I think he needs twig arms)
Have fun! I would love to read comments regarding other shapes that you have made with the "add to selection" feature.
I seem to be so frustrated all of the time lately. I get frustrated when I am not productive and these MEN of mine are giving me troubles.
Now that one is in college, his morning time has changed and it interupts with mine. I usually get up between 5:30 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. and work on my site until 7:30 a.m when I get ready for work. I can get a lot done in that time, but not any more! It is frustrating.
Hubby's schedule has changed and he is home much earlier. I used to work from 5:30 until 8 or 9 p.m. on the site each night, provided I did not have somewhere to go, at which time he was cleaned up from work and then we would have time together watching tv. Not anymore! Now that he is home earlier he is refusing to leave me alone! No matter how many times I tell him that he just cannot keep talking to me, he does anyway! He does not appreciate or have any concept of what it is I need to do.
Then there is all the stress that my high school senior is causing me. It's going to be a long school year just trying to get him to do his homework and get to school on time, much less getting him home in the evenings and keeping him away from the girls. Have you seen photos of him lately? He's a ladies' man! And it's still only September!
I am just so frustrated with these MEN.
There. I've complained.
Originally posted January 6, 2007
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So, here is my first PSE tip for digital scrapbookers!
Sometimes when you make a selection, the marching ants make it hard to see what is underneath the selection to see what you are doing. Did you know you could keep the selection active and yet hide it? Yep, just try hitting Control and H on the keyboard. Easy enough to remember, huh? In PSE, H is for hide!
My blog seems to be a bit lacking, mostly because I just do not seem to have the time any more.
In addition, I'm not sure what to blog about and continue to think that I need to get back to blogging more about the basics. There are so many brand new digital scrapbookers around and I have so much information here that I am sure it is overwhelming to them.
I have thought about wiping out all of my blog posts and starting fresh, but instead I may resurrect and repost some of the older, informative posts, for new scrappers to find. Be looking for those to come soon.
In addition, I'm opening up my blog to questions. Answering your questions may be the best way to write content pertinent to your questions and interests. So, feel free to send me a question to hummdingertub@yahoo.com and I will try to answer it on my blog. I promise to keep your name confidential and only use your first name.
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I decided that I would share a list of my top digital scrapbooking sites. New digital scrapbookers are, quite validly, learning about shopping at a site without knowing its reputation.
For me, I tend to stay away from sites if I do not get the feeling that they are safe to purchase from. You can never be too safe with internet safety.
Did you know that I maintain a page listing digital scrapbooking sites?
It is here: http://www.hummiesworld.com/LinksDigiSites.html
I have watched and continue to watch sites and designers and come go. I cannot keep up with my list and, in fact, need to get it updated now.
As I have created the list, I have kept the sites in groups of 100 as they have been added. In fact, I just today added a 4th "part" to begin the next section. As sites close, I merely remove them from the list, leaving that "part" less than the original 100.
There are 73 sites in Part 1; 92 sites in Part 2; 100 in Part 3; and 3 in Part 4 at the current moment.
Therefore, the sites that are listed in Part 1 are the oldest digital scrapbooking sites and, of course, with length of business comes hand in hand with reputation. The longer a site has been around, the more likely it is to have had a good reputation and a dedicated owner.
However, just because a site is not in the top list/part, that does not mean there are not other awesome sites listed in the other sections.
In addition, over time digital scrapbookers will become to recognize quality designs. Not only is the reputation of the store with regard to safety and good customer service important, but also the designs in which they sell.
I wanted to share with you a list of my top sites and recommendations. Feel free to leave a comment and enable us with your favorite sites.
1. Scrapbook Graphics
http://www.scrapbookgraphics.com/
This site is the site which gets the most of my digital scrapbooking budget. Maya has a great reputation for taking on only the best quality designers. Although their gallery is not the most inspiring for me as the scrapping styles are different than mine, you can never go wrong with any of the products purchased at SBG.
2. Designer Digitals
http://www.designerdigitals.com/
Surprisingly, this site would get the 2nd slot on my top site list because the designs here are simple and simply useful. The inspiration at this site and the practical use of the products provided keep me watching them all of the time. I am not sure why I never go there to purchase anything, which is the surprising fact about this choice. I feel as if the designers here have set themselves apart from the rest of the digital scrapbooking world, rarely being a part of the community as a whole. Nonetheless, they get the second slot on my list.
3. Digishop Talk
http://www.digishoptalk.com/
This is the hub of all digital scrapbooking. This is the most active site in the digital scrapbooking world. Although I feel the site is very cliquish, it is also a place where you can get the fastest answers to any questions. There is a lot of marketing going on at this site, but on the other hand, it is because of the marketing that there are so many designers hanging around just hopping to help you just so that they can be noticed by you. If you want to keep up with what is going on in the digital scrapbooking world, this is the place.
4. Digiscrap Addicts
http://digiscrapaddicts.com/
This is the newest site that is really hopping. There are some well known designers gathered at this site with no store. The concept of this site is similar to that of Digishop Talk as a place for people of many various sites to gather, but with a warmer feel to it. The marketing is not as open as at DST with the use of "sponsors," but it is certainly the most rapidly upcoming site around.
5. Atomic Cupcake
http://atomiccupcake.com/
Brianna's site for digital scrapbooking actions is always on the top of my list. Although there is no community at this site, the products are excellent and useful.
6. Scrap Matters
http://scrapmatters.com/
This site gets on my top list because of their community and inspiration. If you are looking to be inspired by challenges, this would be the place to hang out.
7. Scrapbook Elements
http://www.scrapbook-elements.com/sbe/
This site was the 2nd digital scrapbooking site in history and was the most active and popular when I first began digital scrapbooking in 2005. My favorite designer, Jeri Ingalls, is at this site and, therefore, I tend to spend a lot of money here on her kits. Although the activity level here had dwindled over the years, it is still a site I recommend checking out.
8. Scrapbook Bytes
http://www.scrapbook-bytes.com/
This site holds the place in digital scrapbooking for the very first digital scrapbooking site. Shelle had been with this site from the beginning and was instrumental in providing many of the initial digital scrapbooking tutorials in the digiworld. She has only in the past week left SBE, and moved to ACOT, although her tutorials remain at SBB.
9. Natural Designs in Scrapbooking
http://www.ndisb.com/
This site is the home of the ever popular Amazing Digital Scrapbooking Race. Theresa runs a top notch site.
10. Digitals
http://www.digitalscrapbookpages.com/
Stacey is one of the sweetest shop owners out there. She runs a welcoming site. I must say that I feel that not all of the designers are top notch and, therefore, choose carefully at her store. However, there are still many well respected designers here and a wonderful community.
11. Scrap Girls
http://www.scrapgirls.com/
The reason I like this site so much is that it was the first site to branch out and offer tools to make your own things for your pages. Back in the day there was an unspoken taboo about showing others how to do things on their own because then one might see how easy it is to create and not buy. Scrap Girls is a site dedicated to making things possible and inspiring you. If you do not get their newsletter, you must sign up now. Ro is a one-of-a-kind awesome gal.
12. Shabby Princess
http://www.shabbyprincess.com/
If you have girls to scrap, this site is A-1 the place to be! I would certainly hang out here more if I had girls. Their free kits are top-of-the-line and generous.
13. Elemental Scraps
http://www.elementalscraps.com/
Although this site had a rough road at one point, it has held strong with a great community.
14. Scrap Artist
http://www.scrapartist.com/
This site's name says it all. If you are in need of artistic inspiration, this is the place to be.
15. Pickleberry Pop
http://www.pickleberrypop.com/
These pickleheads will keep you smiling and inspired.
16. A Cherry on Top
http://www.acherryontop.com/
This site started out for paper scrapbookers, but has embraced digital scrapbookers.
17. Digital Scrapbook Place
http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/
This site deserves a big thanks for all of the free tutorials it offers. It is a very active place. At one time, it had built a reputation as an only 200 ppi site and, therefore, I could not recommend them. However, it is my understanding that now they are offering kits in both 200 ppi and 300 ppi. I have not always felt welcome there personally, but that has been due to me being a site owner. I am certain that they will make you feel welcome.
18. OScraps
http://www.oscraps.com/shop/home.php
This site is certainly an active site of quality worth recommending.
19. Scrap Orchard
http://scraporchard.com/
This is another awesome, active site of quality worth recommending.
20. The DigiChick
http://www.thedigichick.com/
This is a warm, friendly community sure to welcome you in.
Thanks for all of the comments on my last post. I read each and every one of them and smiled. I appreciate everyone who takes the time to share their thoughts.
I did this video days ago, but have been so busy and stressed that I have not had time to get it up to share it with you. I'm having problems with my Windows Updates installing for Outlook and the time it is taking me to work with it to no avail is very frustrating. Even a Microsoft employee by remote was stumped. I'm loosing sleep over it, as well as not keeping up with other things I should be doing.
In addition, there is a setting in the forum I cannot seem to get changed nor get help to do so and the time I am taking with it to no avail is frustrating. Some days I just want to give up. I shouldn't have to work so hard and so many hours just to get computer things to work right.
Here's the shortcuts in speaks about:
Double click on the Zoom Tool or Alt+Ctrl+0 for 100% (actual pixels)
Pressing Ctrl++ will increase the size and Ctrl+- will decrease.
This is a screen shot from months ago. I've been SO busy that I do not blog like I used to. Do you miss my posts or are you here reading this blog for my freebies and free tutorials? Do you really care about me? Sometimes I feel like people are just here in this world to take from me and do not really care about me. I can only give so much.
This comment to me really caught my eye.
When people tell you that you are "interesting" what does that really mean?
Is that a good thing?
Is that an odd thing?
Is that a weird thing?
Something that is interesting "holds your attention." That hold does not necessarily mean that it holds your attention because you are doing great and wonderful things.
Sometimes people say "That's interesting" because they are being kind and do not really want to tell you that you are actually kind of weird. Even I have said this phrase the that very reason.
Something that is "interesting" can be factual and boring. Rarely is something that is "interesting" holding our attention because it is grand and awe-inspiring. Nope. if is were grand and awe-inspiring, our exclamations would be so much more than "hey, that was interesting!" Am I right?
Take my word for it. People know and understand that when something is "interesting" that you don't really mean it was outstanding and often their feelings are hurt. So just don't say it.
Why not try telling the truth the next time? Maybe you would say "I don't really know what to think about you."
Do you want to know something interesting about me.
Many of you do not fully understand my low self-esteem, but yet read about it often on this blog.
In fact,, when I comment about God and me when it relates to my low self-esteem, that is when I seem to get the most comments.
Why is that?
Maybe there are many people out there in the world just like me that can identify with me.
Maybe God has a purpose in my babbling here on the blog. Maybe God wants me to be transparent so that others can be helped by it. Maybe.
So, do you want to know a small tidbit about me. Maybe a small "coming out." Maybe a small glimpse that I have never shared before that makes me who I am?
........picture a young, impressionable little girl being admonished because she did not wipe the fingerprints from the backside of the refrigerator door handle.
That's enough for now.
That's enough sharing for a very long time.
That's enough to bring tears to my eyes.
Oh, and God does love me as much as He loves you
Double click on the Hand Tool or Ctrl+0 to fit the screen,
Move tool and Ctrl+0 to zoom out to include grey areas.
Watch how to use these shortcuts in the video below.
This video will share how to keep track of credits in digital scrapbooking layouts utilizing Windows Folders, Windows Live Photo Gallery, and Photoshop Elements in conjunction.
I'm so excited to finally choose a method to utilize and I am anxious to put it into place. Let me know your thoughts.
I am excited about this great inspiration that Lori found for us!
Join us in the forum to create a layout using the MTF Doodle Font by creating a Doodle Cluster that was inspired by this post by Katie "The Scrapbook Lady."
I look forward to seeing what everyone comes up with! There's enough doodles for different layout themes that this challenge should fit any layout! Whoo hoooo!
I made this new template from an older layout of mine.
Everything created by me! The background is a photo of dirt at the race track. I used the same photo and made it darker for the overlay.
I also cut the text from the dirt for the title and just applyed a drop shadow to it. There may be a drop shadow or change of color on the title also.
As always, the template is free here on my blog for 24 hours and then permanently in the Subscriber Area for only $5.50 a month, along with the other 59 templates! Download
It seems I am busier and busier with life and unable to post much personal stuff on my blog. I hope that changes soon! I know how much the readers here enjoy my personal posts.
I thought I would share this new "conversations with teenage sons" post which occurred last week as I thought it was pretty funny!
Photo Attribution
My son (I won't tell you wish one!) needed car repairs last week. There were two things wrong with his car. I want my boys to do things on their own in order to learn, so I encouraged him to go to the car repair shop on his own.
He comes home telling me what the problem was with his car, but yet he did not leave it at the repair place to be fixed! Why? Because he is a tightwad! Yep! He did not want to spend the money! It was a less expensive repair, but expensive to him nonetheless. He figured that as long as his car was still running, he could wait.
So, I explained to him how much less stress it would be to simply have it repaired now rather than the car being disabled somewhere in the middle of anywhere and going through the stress of it being towed and the inconveniences of travel delays. Where was his common sense? I am thinking he inherited hubby's common sense (um, that would be next to none!).
The second problem could not be solved because the check engine light was going off and on and every time it was on, he could not make it to the repair shop to have it tested. They said it could not be tested if the light was not on. So we waited.
Finally, the light came on and he took it to the shop and paid the $60 to find out what was wrong with it on his own accord! Yipppee! He did something without being told! Oh, but don't get excited too soon.
Apparently, Déjà vu, he did not want to fork out the next $87 to actually have it fixed, so he drove it away!
Shortly thereafter, my phone rings:
"Mom, my car is stalled in the middle of an intersection."
Now seriously, didn't I just tell him this was going to happen?
Why don't ny men EVER listen to me? I twittered, "First life's lesson: Always listen to Mom." You may have read that twitter and wondered. Now you know the rest of the story!
So, I joked with some ladies at work about how it seemed no matter how hard I tried, I just could not teach my men common sense (not even the old one).
How ironic and surprised was I when I asked my son:
"Why did you not listen to me when I taught you about having common sense last week?"
His reply:
"Mom, don't you know you cannot teach anyone common sense?"
Ha! He shot my own words right back at me (without having heard them)! I had to laugh out loud.
Well, where he lacks in common sense, he makes up for in smart brains. Maybe he'll be alright. Just maybe.
P.S. I bribed him into buying himself a university parking pass for himself by offering to pay for his car repair. He took me up on the deal, but I'm betting my young tightwad won't buy that parking pass! He'd rather walk long distances!
P.S.S. I won't dare blog what happened with another son. I'd love to share, but alas, some things should be made public. My men are always making my life interesting!
Hey all, I just wanted to share with you what I've been working on this weekend!
All this behind the scene stuff takes so long to do and I have to stop all other activity by me at the site to buckle down and get it done.
There are some new pages and some moved pages at the site.
First, I moved the Course 1, Self-Guided Tour through the Subscriber Area from a blog to the site.
It took me a while to do it especially because I had to learn first what a "library" was in Dreamweaver! It took me a while to get it working just right, but after I did, it wasn't as hard because it was just a lot of copying, pasting, and relinking images and threads.
You can find the start page of it here:
COURSE 1 GUIDE
I had fun reading all the warm fuzzies I gathered for it again.
Second, I created four new pages for the self-paced guide through the templates in the Subscriber Area!
People have been asking me for this for a very long time and I finally was able to squeeze it in and get it done!
Templates 1 - 20
Templates 21 - 40
Templates 41 - 60
Tempate by Number
There are icons for each template, as well as a page to find one to use by number of photos in the layout! I hope that you like it and that it is useful to you.
I worked on all of these new pages from 6:30 a.m. until 4 p.m. yesterday, Saturday, until my hubby came and told me I needed to take a break and not work so hard! It only took me another hour today to finish it up and I'm glad it is done and I'm excited!
My next goal is to get Template 60 created and then I can move back on to making some more videos for you.
I am so excited! I purchased this font creating software for commercial use probably a year and a half ago and am just now finding the time to play with it to figure out how to utilize it! The instructions are not very helpful and there are not many tutorials or videos out there for it, so it did take a lot of playing around to figure it out. After about 7 hours worth of my time today, I finally have my own handwriting in my own font created all by me! Whoooo hoooooo!
I wrote the letters out on paper, brought them into Photoshop Elements, and then copied and imported each one into the software program.
Thereafter, each letter had to be resized, tweaked, and kerned! Wow! This gives me a whole new appreciation for those who share free fonts. What tedious work it is to edit all of those little nodes that create the path of each letter, number, or symbol.
My font seems to be a bit small. It does work, but must be utilized as a larger size. I need to learn more about the various parts of letters and where each part must fall on the lines. I will get better with time as I learn more and practice more.
I have realized that utilizing a brush with a wacom table in Photoshop Elements will probably create less of those little nodes. I had to delete so many of them!
I may tweak this font over time, but for now I've got way too much time into it and I'm just ready to share it!
I created a new page at my site where I will host all of the fonts that I create.
You can find them here: http://www.hummiesworld.com/font.html
I actually like my own handwriting much better as a font than in real life. Isn't that funny? I think it is because each letter is the same each time!
My next font is going to be a chunky font of my own handwriting so that I can have something special to create digital scrapbooking alphabets with just for you!
This is a reminder to remember to return to the September Designer Color Palette Challenge! There have been some recent great entries that you may want to grab, but please be sure to leave a thank you to those generous enough to share. The above preview shares some of the things you can download.
Thank you for participating Tina (biz_kid1), Heather (ScrapPony Designs) , Les Creations Digitals Dorys, Cheryl B, Magonlia, Barb (she made a quick page!), Mickilea (Micki Designs), Donna Duncombe Designs, AuddyMay (Faded Memories Designs), Christine Smith, and Dragons Lair Designs. Of course, mine is still available too, but there was not enough room for it in the preview.
That's 11 participants, many of them first time participants! Thank you so much for your time and talent and I look forward to seeing what everyone can do the next round! I hope to get a palette posted soon!
gickr.com
I am loving what Gickr has to offer for free.
You can upload up to 10 images to quickly and easily create an animated gif, as I have made with these previews. Thereafter, you can download the image and upload it to your own hosting as I have done above.
In the alternative, you can grab the BB code for forums or the direct link to the image. I added the file below through Blogger by simply choosing to add a new picture and inserting the url on the right portion of the options.
There are options for size and speed as well.
In addition, there are handy buttons to add the image to many sites, including Blogger, Facebook, Wordpress, MySpace, and many others.
Photos may be added from your hard drive or from Flickr or Picassa. In addition, you can even convert YouTube videos! I did try to convert a video, but continued to get error messages.
I love multi photo templates to scrap those event layouts! I like to include so many of the photos to tell the story. This one has 11 photos!
As always, in rectangle and square formats.
This download is only available for about 24 hours on my blog, then it will go with the other 55 in the Subscriber Area (only $5.50 per month).
Candy made this free template for you to utilize in the next UseIt! challenge! You can find the download and participate in the challenge in this thread in the forum.
Thanks so much, Candy, for continuing to contribute to Hummie's World by putting up challenges to inspire us!
Everyone, please know that anyone can do the same here at Hummie's World. In fact, I'm hopeful that more people do!
