Archives for September 2021

Tutorial Tuesday (Photoshop Elements)

How Did They Do That? (Outlining a Title with Paper Cuts)

Are the kids all back to school now? Are you able to just sit in silence for a while? I remember how that feels! This week’s tutorial is a short snapper, not too complicated, since I don’t want to distract you from your relaxation. Sherry (spenny) messaged me a couple of weeks back, asking for some help. She’d seen some really interesting titles in the Gallery where the scrapper had lined her title up so it overlapped a series of paper/photo strips. Then she cut some of the paper strips away, leaving a background paper border visible around the alpha she used. Sherry wanted some input on how it’s done. This is what I’ve come up with. Now remember, you don’t have to follow my instructions to the letter; do what looks good to your eyes. I’m offering guidance only!

This technique can be used at any angle. Vertical, horizontal, diagonal… all the same steps. If you want a crisp look, choose a sans-serif (no extensions on the terminal strokes) alpha with some substance and clean lines. I went with a bit more of a fun alpha from the GingerBread Ladies‘ collab Happiness Is. My papers are also from this collab. Here you can see I have 8 paper strips, one for each letter in my title. I’ve resized the alpha so each letter is the same height as the paper strip. If you want to, you could double up some of the letters to a single strip for a really unique look. To make the steps easier, I’ve sandwiched the letters between the paper strip layers.

I decided how far over I wanted to move my letters so that they sit on top of the paper then I dragged out a Guideline to snug them up against. Guidelines are really useful for precision. All you need to do is ensure the Rulers are active [View>Rulers] then with your cursor inside one of them, click-hold and drag the cursor to the place where you want the Guideline. The actual Guideline won’t be this obvious. I’ve enhanced it for better visibility.

Next, I nudged the first letter over so it’s just touching my Guideline, and then I CTRL/CMD>clicked inside the LETTER‘s layer thumbnail in the Layers Panel to Select the edges of the letter. See the marching ants?

I need to make the area inside the marching ants a bit bigger. Otherwise there won’t be a border around the letter later, right? Select>Modify>Expand will make the Selection grow.

Here’s where personal preference comes into play. There’s no hard-and-fast rule for this step, and it may take some experimentation to find the right number of pixels to go with. I ended up at 15 pixels, but 20 or 25 might have worked well too.

Here you can see where the new line of marching ants, the new Selection, is.

Now, with the turquoise paper layer active, I Cut some of the paper away. Edit>Cut or CTRL/CMD>X will work for that.

I followed the same process with each of the letters in the title. Where there are little bits of paper completely disconnected from the paper strip, I used the Eraser tool and got rid of them.

Where the paper bits are still attached, like inside the C, the S and the E, I left them there.

Then I shadowed up each layer and my title is done!

The layouts Sherry showed me as examples can be seen here, here and here.

If you try this tip, let me know so I can leave you some Gallery love!!

PDF Tutorial: https://bit.ly/3kYGNyg

Designer Spotlight: September 2121

It’s HeartMade Scrapbook!

Today I’d like to introduce you to one of our newest designers, HeartMade Scrapbook – who is also known as Ngoc! She very graciously agreed to let me pick her brain, and now I get to share what I’ve learned about her with all of you.

J: So tell me, how long have you been designing?

N: I’ve been designing since May last year (2020).

J: Ah, another CoVid convert! Welcome to GingerScraps!! What made you decide it was time to hang up your Creative Team hat and jump into designing?

N: In 2020, the CoVid-19 epidemic broke out, I have more time and I want to try a whole new field. And there’s really a lot to learn, but I’m very happy with the design.

J: I think all of us would be thrilled to have more time. What tools do you use in your design process?

N: I use Photoshop and Illustrator.

J: Well, you’re way ahead of me. I’m still plodding along with Elements. What’s your design motivation/inspiration ?

N: My main motivation and inspiration are my kids and the life around me. I want to be a memory keeper!

J: Most of us would say the same. It’s pretty much the whole purpose of our community. Now I’d like to know which of your kits currently in the GingerScraps shop is your favourite, and why.

N: Cool Summer: Because I like pastel colors and summer is my favorite season!

J: Abrupt subject change!! What would you do if you won the lottery today?

N: I will buy a farm in the countryside to grow vegetables and flowers.

J: That sounds like a LOT of work! Are you more likely to sing, or to dance, in the shower?

N: Yes, I will sing sometimes, even though I’m not very good at it.

J: Everybody is a star in the shower! Weird question… If time travel was possible, would you go forward in time or back, and why?

N: I would go to the future, I want to know when covid-19 will end.

J: You and all the rest of us! 🙂 It has really turned the world upside down, hasn’t it? Design-y question again. What colours do you love, or NOT love?

N: My most favorite colors are pastel & bright colors. My least favorite colors are dark and heavy colors.

J: I love jewel tones most. And I’m so happy there are designers who do too. Last question, another one about favourites. If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?

N: It’s PHO Vietnam, widely known as Vietnamese noodle soup, is a highlight of Vietnamese cuisine. I can eat it everyday and never get bored – Vietnamese people love eating PHO for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Despite looking simple outside, PHO has the fascinating complexity of textures and flavors. Normally, PHO Vietnam is made of rice soft noodles called “banh pho”, some slices of meat, traditional herbs and is served with consommé which is made by the simmering bone of the chicken, pork or beef.

J: I’m missing out, clearly! I’ve never had pho. But to do it justice, I think I’ll wait until my CoVid-damaged sense of taste goes back to normal (if it ever does…) since all of a sudden I’ve developed an extreme distaste for anything containing onions.

Now, before we go, Ngoc has a gift for us! She’s got a 50% off coupon for her store. Thank you so much for visiting with us, sharing your talent, and for the gift!

 

 

 

 

The coupon code is HMS-SPOTLIGHT and it’s valid until midnight September 30th.

September 3, 2021: IT’S BIRTHDAY PARTY TIME!

I do not even know where to start this week. There is SO much going on in this post. Should I just start with the biggest?

HAPPY 13TH BIRTHDAY GINGERSCRAPS!! 

Yep – we’ve hit the “teenage years”.

And you know Ginger when it comes to celebrations. She doesn’t do them small. So we’re having a HUGE party!!

Have you participated in one of the Scavenger hunts? They are so much fun and I always find kits I “need” while I’m looking for that crazy Gingerbread Man (he’s a little sneaky).

And our designers have some fun games going on in the Forum as well!

Don’t forget this great Free With Purchase kit you get with any $10 spent in the store!

On top of all that fun, we have some great kits and other special sales!

POLKA DOT CHICKS

MEMORY MOSAIC

And to wrap it all up, have you seen the September Challenge Reward? This is perfect for those pics of the grandkids (or grandparents). It’s a reward for completing any 10 challenges.

Fresh Baked: SEPT 1, 2021, NEW Guest, NEW Free With Purchase, Monthly Mix, and More

Welcome to September! There is a lot going on this month. The Buffet colors are just amazing and make sure to read all the way to the end for a sneak peek at some Forum Fun coming this weekend.

Don’t forget to check out the Buffet Bundles. One easy click to add bundles of Buffet goodies to your cart.

Look at these gorgeous colors. There is a great mix of themes from the designers.

Remember any $10 spent in the store gets you this great collab. Are you ready for a {fall festival}?

Back to school colors are usually so bright. I love these muted colors.

Now to the September Daily Download Sneak Peek. This month’s Daily Download is from Heartmade Scrapbook.

https://gingerscraps.net/gsblog/2021/09/dd-sept-1-2/

We have a two guest designers for September!

Elizabeth’s Market Cross

Bio:
Hi! I’m Elizabeth! I grew up in Florida and I’ve lived in Georgia for many years, but I feel like I belong in England (and my DNA results agree). My store name – Market Cross – comes from the historical structures that served as trading markers, usually in a town centre. People would buy and sell wares at the designated market cross – such as the ‘Poultry Cross’ or the ‘Butter Cross’ – you get the idea!
I’ll always be a dog lover, but my favorite non-pet animals are crocodiles and alligators. I am also passionate about decluttering and organizing and I’m a certified organizing specialist!
One of my favorite design elements would be edge overlays; I use them on most of my layouts. You can stack them, recolor them, reverse or flip them – so many options! I have plenty to choose from in my shop, but I really love the ones called Gold Rush because the metallic shine really stands out against dark backgrounds.
Be sure and visit my challenges in the Gingerscraps Forum, and check my facebook page occasionally for freebies:
https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethsMarketCross/
Thanks for stopping by to read about me – I know your time is precious!

Studio Liv

Bio:
Hi! I’m Olivia, designer behind Studio Liv. You may know be better as LivyBug in the scrapbooking community. I opened my shop in 2021 after scrapbooking since 2008 and graduating with a degree in graphic design in 2018. I design digital and printable products, including digital scrapbook kits and planner print and cut files. When I’m not designing or scrapbooking, I love video games, TV, reading, and cross-stitching. I can’t wait to get to know the GingerScraps community, and I hope that you love creating happy things with my products.

Take a look at the new challenge reward kit. If you complete any 10 challenges this month, you get this gorgeous collab as a reward!

And now a sneak peek of things to come this weekend!!