Patterns for Photoshop Elements

Sometimes when I'm bored and just want to play with the filters and plugins in Photoshop, I end up with some really neat stuff!

I've been creating tiles with Xaos' Terrazzo 2 plugin and have come up with quite a number of repeatable tile patterns that I just don't always use. So, I decided that it was time to share them with whoever wants them and whoever enjoys playing around with patterns and textures.

I became a member of deviantART this week and have uploaded the following 3 pattern files for Elements over there.

If you are interested and would like to download these files, please click on the link to the right for My deviantART Gallery under My Other Websites. Or you can click here http://studio64-chicago.deviantart.com/gallery/

I hope you enjoy and them and will be back again soon!

Scatter-brained, easily bored or just busy?

I can't decide which I am. I've been so busy lately that I just don't know where it all starts or ends anymore. I've got several projects going on and only 1 has been completed . . . and that was the last one I started! That being said . . . I got my SNL 53 kit done this AM. I have so many more ideas in the folder yet I decided and settled on these papers and elements:

This was a really fun kit to make and as I said . . . there are many more ideas swirling around in my head, but I really want to continue on with the other projects I've got going as well.

As I mentioned, I feel so scatter-brained . . . it all started when I realized that Michael's doesn't sell the Jacquard fabric paints I wanted to continue on with the art quilt project and had to find a day to go out to Dick Blick. Seems they're the only local store that sells them and I didn't want to have to wait if I ordered them online. Anyway, when I got to the Dick Blick store . . . my mind started racing! With all those art materials, and books and canvas, I just couldn't help but feel the urge to paint, Paint, PAINT!

So instead of continuing with my already "in progress" art quilt and when I came across a roadside vendor who had these lovely sunflowers, I just had to stop and get some. As soon I was at home arranging the flowers, I was setting up a photo shoot and took tons of pictures. I then began sketching in the sketchbook and getting more ideas down. I was really surprised at the sketch I did . . . considering I hadn't done any real sketching for quite some time now. I came up with this . . .

From there I decided to pull out some water color paper and blocked in some color and still, my art quilt was hanging on the design wall just waiting to see what should be done next. But instead, I continued with the sunflowers and blocked-in some color on a 9 X 12 sheet of water color paper and not sure how it was coming out, I decided to get some input and suggestions from the people over at Wet Canvas. We decided that the background was too busy and the coloring of the background just wasn't quite right.

So I was at it again! This time, I went bigger and decided to sketch on an 18 X 24 sheet of water color paper and blocked in the color and here's where I stand . . .

That's how my past 2 weeks or so have gone and I have only 1 real thing to show for it. So now I have to decide whether to continue on with this sunflower project or jump back into the art quilt project. Then again . . . there's my digital scrapbook layouts that I've been neglecting . . . and those weeds accumulating in the garden . . . not to mention all the housework that's been on the back burner too!

Oh well, it will all get done sooner or later.

Trying an Art Quilt

OK . . . so I finally decided to try my hand at an art quilt. I saw the premier issue of Art Quilting Studio magazine on the news stand and have been inspired. Although I still get Quilting Arts magazine every other month and keep telling myself to try some of the techniques . . . I finally started. So far, I did a preliminary sketch in PS and here's what I've come up with . . .

After deciding on a finished size of approximately 40" X 55" and doing the sketch I was pleased with the general idea of where I wanted to go with this. Next, I painted the world on a smaller piece of fabric and figured I could applique it in position at a later time and here's what it looks like . . .

Next, I decided that I should start on the angel and made her wings using water soluble stabilizer and layers of tulle with glitter, snips of fabric and angeline fibers sandwiched in between. After that, I painted her face and body parts on a piece of fabric that would serve as the main background. I figure I could applique her dress on after the background has been decided on. I think the angel's face and wings look great so far . . .

So now I think I have to decide on what to do about the main background and am thinking that I would start with a deep blue at the top and make a gradation into light blue and then to gold at the very bottom. I'm still pondering that idea for now though. I have picked out some fabric for the column piece and should start working on that soon as well.

All in all, I like the way it's coming along and hopefully will seen some real results soon. I'll write again of my progress as soon as I can and have more pictures to show.

Until then . . .

Keeping busy in the garden

I'm still doing alot of work in the garden. I found a climbing rose called "Eden" and I immediately fell in love. I just had to have it!

I decided to dig out the "Henryi" clematis in the front yard since giving it some Miracle Gro a couple of weeks ago didn't do much good. When I dug it up I realized that the Ostrich ferns were choking it even though I thought I had cleared them out of the area. So I decided to take all of the ferns out and basically start from scratch in that area. I put the black heavier trellis there and am hoping this rose will do well there.

I also bought an arbor to help screen the alley and anyone trying to look in the yard. Although my hubby had his doubts and wondered where it was gonna go . . . I think is looks great! I didn't have to even move any plants as the wisteria was in the perfect spot already. All I had to do was redirect it from over the garage windows to over and through the arbor.

All American Page Kit Freebie!

I finished it! I think it turned out really great . . . hope you like it as well!

This kit contains the following:

1 American flag paper
1 Declaration of Independence paper
1 dark blue Lincoln paper
1 dark blue with white stars circular frame
1 American flag chipboard element
1 Declaration of Independence journaling note
1 complete upper case Patriotic alpha set
1 red rope element
1 red rope bow element
1 Red, White & Blue word art element
1 red, white & blue glitter stars element
1 red, white & blue fireworks element
1 star in circle with red ribbon element
1 USA flagged chipboard word art element

You can download this kit here:

Studio64_AllAmericanPageKit.zip

Making progress

I did get the SNL Christmas in July challenge done today. It will be put together with all the other contributors backgrounds and elements. All those goodies will be given away on Saturday, July 25th at 10:00 pm DSP time during our weekly chat. I will say it was a challenge as I am not big on even thinking of anything Christmas until after Thanksgiving. But given that the colors were blues with silver and white, I found it somewhat easier.

Anyway here is a preview of my backgrounds and elements:




















Don't forget to be there on July 25th at 10:00 pm DSP time to get a link for this and other goodies made by the generous gals over at SNL!

I've also been working on something to give away here as well . . . it's not quite finished yet though! I will say that it does have Red, White and Blue in it!

Hope to be back with that real soon.

A new look!

I've been wanting to do this for quite some time now.

I spent the day researching and figuring out how to change the background on my blog. I think I figured it out! This one that you now see is my second attempt. In the first, the elements were way too big and running off the page. I hope this looks better to all of you . . . it looks great to me from my monitor at least!

Anyway, Nicole has a great tutorial on her blog on how to do this which was a tremendous help! So glad I figured this out and now all I want to do is create more!

I do have the Christmas in July PTP for SNL to do and I have been working on another freebie for those who visit here as well. Looks like I've got quite a bit to get accomplished in the next week or so.

Until then . . .

WOW! My SNL kit is done!

I can't believe I finished my SNL kit for this month already! I guess it helped that the winning colors were a give away. Anyway, here's a preview that I just had to post . . . I think it came out really cute! The fairy is darling, the magic tree is too and the moon is terrific . . . if I do say so myself.

I'm gonna wait 'til tomorrow to upload . . . just in case I think of something that is missing or that I could have done better. Besides . . . it's a little scary being the first one to post . . . so if someone else beats me to it I guess that's OK.

Be back again soon!

In a Patriotic Mood

In keeping with the upcoming holiday . . . I thought I would post my interpretation of the Red, White and Blue!

These are all pictures of flowers from my garden! When we moved into this house, there was nothing but grass and a few small evergreen shrubs in the front yard. There was a small vegetable garden that had not been used in years and was over grown with weeds.

I started this garden with the intention of keeping with the red, white and blue color scheme. I do have a bit of yellow though and blue usually includes the purples as well. All in all the garden is coming along nicely and just keeps getting better with each year.

Happy 4th of July, everyone!

Until next time . . .

Summer is officially here

and I've been spending lots of time in the garden . . . weeding and planting and moving things around. We also went to Morton Arboretum recently.

It was a hot and sticky day and being that it was our first time there . . . we weren't sure how things worked and how the park is laid out. We ended up exploring only about 1/3 of the grounds so we'll definitely have to plan another day to go back again! It's a wonderful place and they have really great gardens for kids to explore. There was this pond in one part of the childrens' garden where I manage to get this awesome picture of some waterlilies . . .

We also went through a maze garden and in the middle they had an open tree house where I managed to take this picture . . .

Even though it was really hot, we did manage to hike one of the trails and along the way we encountered this little guy . . .

All in all it was a really fun day! I collected a small bunch of several different pinecones that I happened to find on the ground throughout the day . . .

I hope to be going back again and explore some more real soon!

Morning Glory Kit freebie!

It's been awhile . . . but I managed to finish a freebie kit today! I really like the way this one turned out! Hope you enjoy it too.



This kit contains the following:

1 blue pattern paper
1 green flower pattern paper
1 ivory paper with green blossoms
1 green and blue squares paper
1 green textured frame
1 dark blue ribbon
1 dark blue bow
1 blue gem and silver star bling element
1 trellis element
1 morning glory vine element
1 blue gem, silver star and leave hanging charm element
1 stitched paper patches element

A Terms of Use is included with the download . . . please be sure to read it over prior to uploading any layouts to the web or submitting any layout for publication to a magazine. Thanks!

The kit can be downloaded here . . .
Morning Glory Kit.zip

Gardening galore

I've spent the better part of the past week in the garden and have been taking lots of pictures! I started a new garden blog over at Dave's Garden so that I can keep track of what's going on, what I have and what I'd like to do in my garden. I've been having lots of fun and am also extremeley sore from all the digging and yard work that I have been doing. Since rain is expect the next couple of days, I'll get some rest so that I can plant the new flower bed! I took this picutre of the Pink Oriental Poppy that managed to survive and bloomed yesterday! I looks awesome!






Now that it's the start of a new month, the new SNL challenge will be out so I will have to find some time and pull myself away from the garden for a while. The theme is butterfly garden and the colors are really pretty so I'm sure I'll be able to put a kit together being that I'm really into this gardening mood lately.

I'll put a link to my new garden blog and Dave's Garden website in the side bar for anyone who might be interested. Hope to be back soon! In the meantime, Happy Digi-Scrapping and Gardening!

What a busy month it's been . . .

with Sam's First Communion, Mother's Day, the Spring Band Concert, Ian's birthday and lots of things breaking down and needing repair. And at last . . . I've got my patio furniture too! I'm so happy with the beautiful set we found. Here's a sneak peek at what it looks like . . .






So I've been pretty busy in the garden as well. We moved the fountain closer to the patio so we could hear the water more and even planted a River Birch! I'm expanding the flower beds as well . . . so my whole body is pretty sore from all the digging, tilling and moving of rocks, etc. The garden is really looking great though! Here's a photo of the white iris I planted a couple of years ago . . .




I'm not sure if you can see it . . . but the reflection in the globe looks really cool and if you look hard enough, you can probably even see me all the way in the background with the camera. Those are just some of the photographs I've taken for the Project 365 scrapbook challenge that I haven't been able to scrap just yet.

It's been crazy busy around here

I've been working on my monthly SNL kit and also needed something else for the special chat on the 23rd. I've made 2 kits in the past week . . . well . . . 1 whole new one and 1 that I reworked the elements and papers on for the chat freebie. The color scheme was for a heritage kit from the Designer Finder Contest way back in November or December. Anyway, if you are a member of DSP and come to the chat on May 23rd (10:00 pm DSP time) you'll get a link for the following kit:




I really like the way this one turned out! Hope to see all you DSP'rs on the 23rd!

In the mean time, I need to catch up on some pages and my Project 365 layouts that I've neglected for the past week. I've taken the pictures . . . just need to scrap them!

Another Digital Scrapbooking Freebie for you

I still haven't finished the ladybug and daisy kit, but I have made this new kit. It's called Blue Bird's Nest. I really like the fun colors!

This kit is made at 200 dpi and contains the following:
1 brown flower pattern paper
1 blue hanging flower paper
1 green grid paper
1 brown chicken wire element
1 blue bracket frame
1 brown ribbon
1 brown bow
1 blue bird
1 nest with eggs element
1 branch with leaves element
1 green vellum tag element
1 white flower cluster

You can download it here: Blue Bird's Nest.zip

Enjoy!

Earth Day

I did my part for the Earth Mosaic and uploaded a picture. I actually took quite a few pictures today and made the new avatar that you see for my profile pic. I thought it came out kind of interesting. Anyway, here's the pic I decided on and uploaded for the Earth Mosaic project . . .

I figure it should definitely have some greenery in it and I like that the hens and chicks look great even in the winter here. Many more things are coming up in the garden right now as well. The grape hyacinths have appeared . . . the anemones have little buds all over them and the clematis and alliums are also coming up strong.

And, if you're interested in the Earth Mosaic project . . . here's the link . . . http://earthmosaic.org/index.html

Here we go again

I'm trying to clean up my computer so I can concentrate on creating new kits. I've decided to make available another kit that I made for the designer finder contest. I liked the kit . . . hope you do too!




Here's the download link . . .

August Sunset Kit.zip

Another freebie for you!

I decided to make my Mardi Gras Kit available for download here as well. This is the kit I made for the SNL Fab Five Birthday Bash and gave away at the chat. Hope you enjoy . . .



Download it here:

MrsC_SNLFFB_MardiGrasKit.zip

Another freebie for you!

I just finished this cute kit for you:



The papers and elements are 200 ppi and the kit contains the following:

1 light yellow tiled paper
1 light green paper
1 yellow gingham paper
1 black linen paper
1 bee element
1 "Bzzzzz” word art element
1 drops of honey element
1 black ribbon with brown stitches
1 sunflower
1 yellow gem circular frame
1 bee hive element
1 crown element

It is available for download here:

HoneyBeeKit.zip

Hope you like it! I had a lot of fun creating it and am in the process of finishing up another kit along these same lines . . . featuring ladybugs and daisies. I hope to have that one available soon as well.

In the meantime . . . enjoy this one!

Oh well . . . I'm out of the DET Contest

There were some really awesome LO in the gallery. Mine wasn't one of them . . . I guess I can always try next time. I did finish my March SNL kit and have been playing around with it some more. The colors reminded me of Mardi Gras so I've been making some elements along those lines. Hopefully, I'll have a freebie to post here soon.

Meanwhile, I managed to get a copy of Moonlight on DVD! I was completely enthralled when I realized that I never even seen the very first episode! Since I've been catching it on the SciFi channel, my interest in the show has grown once again. I really wish they would continue this series, but I guess it was just because of the writer's strike or something and they needed fill space. Mick St. John is definitely my favorite vamp!!

I'm managing to create more LO too. Even before the DET Contest, I decided that I needed more practice anyway. Here's my latest . . .




Anyway, I'm off to relax and take in some more episodes of Moonlight! Woo! Hoo!

I'm so excited . . .

I made it to Round 2 of the DET Contest! You can see a copy of my LO by clicking on My DSP Gallery link to the right. It was a really fun kit to work with. The deadline for entries is once again Thursday night . . . and we'll have to wait I think until Saturday night (probably really late once again) to find out the results. I'm a bit more nervous this round although I really like the LO I came up with. But, no matter what happens . . . I'll have yet another LO added to my gallery! I've been telling myself that I really should do more LOs anyway and here I am! I definitely see an improvement and a style (I hope) of my own!

Anyway, I also need to finish my SNL kit for this month. The background papers and bow still need some work. And I'm not sure what to do with the gems, but all in all, I think it's looking pretty good! Here's a preview . . .

So, I'm off to do some more creating . . . IF I can concentrate! I think the contest is distracting me much more this time around!

Lots of things happening here

I'm so excited! I submitted a color swatch (first time) for this month's SNL kit and it won! The theme is wildflowers so I picked colors of spring green and hyacinth purples and daffodil yellows. Here's the color swatch:





Aren't they beautiful?! I can't wait to see what the other SNL'ers create!

I've also entered the DET Contest at DSP and submitted my LO already. I can't upload a copy of it here yet but if you check out my DSP Gallery link to the right you'll find it there. I'm really happy with the way it turned out. Now, I just have to wait until about 11:00 pm on March 5th to find out if I can continue on to the next round. I'll let you know!

I'm off for now to see what else I can come up with for this month's SNL kit!

A new blog banner

The new banner is an assemblage of my February kit for SNL at DSP. I wasn't too sure about the colors when I first saw them as orange is not one of my favorite colors. I did manage to use all the colors in the swatch. This was the first kit I made using PSE. There are certain things that I need to find work arounds for . . . (like not having layer masks!) so its alot different than working with CS2. It took me a long time to figure them out and now that I don't have them, I feel lost!!!

The frame (which looks like tarnished gold to me) was made using certain colors in combination with the render clouds filter and by layering with different blending modes. I really like the way it turned out! I think the rose quartz gems could still use a little more texture or veining in them but I was pretty happy with the way they turned out. I'll continue to try and tweak them as I figure out more on making gems, etc.

This is the preview as shown in the gallery at DSP (just in case and for when I change the banner again)

I also added a slideshow of my LO's in the side bar. I've been trying to step it up and create more LO's. Since it's good practice, I make a LO with my own SNL kit but also with the other SNLer's kits. Since I still had not used some of the kits I purchase from the DSP store I've used them as well and even bought another couple of kits from there as well.

Now if I could just figure out what's going on and why I can't add another animated GIF??? Anyway, I'm off for now, hopefully I'll be able to put together another freebie soon as well.

P.S. I also just entered the DET Contest at DSP . . . so now I have to step it up on the LOs!

Finally . . . a freebie for you!

I know I've been promising a freebie kit and here it is!




This kit contains the following:

1 pink tile paper
1 pink plaid paper
1 pink silk paper
1 light pink silk paper
1 pink folded ribbon
1 pink flower
1 embossed heart vellum note paper
1 white eyelet
1 love stamp
1 “with Love” word art
1 chipboard bracket
1 pearl necklace frame

and here is the link for the download

with Love kit.zip

Once upon a time . . .

This is a LO I did for the monthly Showcase Challenge at DSP for SNL. The elements used are from 15 different SNL'rs and I think I have a total of 18 elements.

Recently, I was able to get a copy of this photo. Mom had it framed and it sat on a side table at the condo along with another photo of Mom (at the age of 3 or 4) with her sisters. I was able to get a copy from my cousin of both photos. The original photo is full length and shows Buki's veil puddling all around in front of them. I cropped the photo for this LO so you could see their faces. The bouquet is huge and truly amazing as well! Rose is still supposed to get back to me on the exact date of their wedding so I'll update the LO when I get that info.

I also obtained a few other older photos and hope to be able to create LO's with those soon. In the mean time, I'm still trying to put together another freebie kit as well. I was just really excited about this LO and how it turned out that I had to post it here too!

The good news and the bad news . . .

Well . . . I have my new computer and it's awesome! I've been very careful about the files that I'm transferring and trying to stay organized with tagging photographs, etc. with Elements Organizer. Unfortunatley, I still haven't found the original disk for CS2 and I think I'm gonna have to give it up. I'll either try to get another one off of eBay or I'll bite the bullet and go straight to CS4. There is one other program (Photo Impact Pro) that I was looking at, but I still haven't made a final decision just yet. For now I'm gonna use Elements to see what I can create in the way of papers and elements. Hopefully I can catch up on doing more pages to add to my gallery as well. I should have another kit available for download very soon and maybe even a mini-kit as well.

I've also been day-dreaming about what to do in my garden this year. The paper whites are blooming right now and their scent just fills the living room. Needless to say, I've got the planting bug already. I've been thinking about starting a Garden Journal (a binder with photos and clippings from the magazines that I have) and I even bought about 10 packets of seeds today . . . lavendar, dill, larkspur, morning glory and zinnia . . . just to name a few. I can't wait! I think I'm gonna go get a grow light tomorrow and set up my indoor greenhouse once again. I had one at the old house and had quite a few surprises and success with starting seeds then so I definitely want to try again!

Anyway, here's a picture of the paper whites . . .

Time sure is flying!

Wow! It's 2009 already! The holidays were a blast and I hate to see them end, but it's back to reality for now with Sam back at school and lots of snow and freezing temps on the way. I've been so busy that my head is spinning. I've been trying to get together pictures and info for setting up my Etsy shop and still have much work to do and info to gather. It's really hard to come up with a price for some of the items so I've been reading up alot on the Etsy site and trying to get tips on pricing, etc. There's quite a variety of items that I have so it's taking more time and thought than initially anticipated.

I've also been trying to put together my SNL kit for January and I'm almost done. Here's a preview . . .




















Hubby and I decided that we're going to get a new computer here so I have to start backing up files and transferring stuff. So for now that's gonna be taking up most of my time in the next week or so. I just hope I'll be able to find the original program disk for PS CS2. I've been searching for 2 days now and can find the disks for all the plug-ins and other goodies from all the books and extras I purchased, but the original program disk is no where in sight. I'll be really sad if I can't find it and not sure what I'll do or what program to use for creating elements and such for scrapbooking. I still have hope that I will find the disk though.

Well . . . I'm off for now and hope to be back soon!

Almost Christmas!

WOW, I can't believe I haven't checked here in a month. I've been busy cleaning, redecorating and decorating for Christmas this whole month. I'll be spending the next couple of days putting the finishing touches on decorations and picking up around the house. But my favorite part of the next couple of days will be cooking! Ham and chicken, potato salad and baked mostaccioli are just some of the things that are on the menu. Mushroom tarts and rouquefort swirls for appetizers and plenty of wine and drink. I may even make a punch too.

I haven't taken that many pictures yet but I took this one that I really like! It's definitely beginning to look alot like Christmas! It's super cold here and we're expecting more snow today as well. I don't really mind the snow, but when the wind blows and it's -35 degrees, it's really tough.

















Well, hopefully after this rush of partying and holiday happenings, I'll be able to get back to some digi scrapping!

First Freebie Kit . . .

OK . . . I have the file uploaded now and we're going to see if this works. First I should tell you that the kit is created in 200 ppi and the download size is about 16MB. If this is too large and/or you're having a problem downloading the file, please let me know by leaving a comment. There will be a Terms of Use text file included indicating how the kit can be used . . . please be sure to read it over before using any of the papers or elements in the kit. Here's a preview of the kit:

It's called Little Boy Blue and contains the following papers and elements:

1 blue/brown plaid paper

1 blue grunge paper

1 blue colored pencil paper

1 light blue paper

1 "sons" word art element

1 leather knotted cord

1 knotted plaid ribbon

1 wood frame

1 riveted "boys will be boys" button

1 rivet corner overlay

1 blue sticky note

1 dark blue straight stitch element

You can download it here: LittleBoyBlueKit.zip

Making progress . . .

I've been working on and trying to find out how to get freebies on this blog for you to download and I think I've almost figured it out. I set up an account at 4 shared and am working on finishing a kit I've had sitting on the computer for a while. The goal is to have a kit a week to give away for free. I'm not saying that's what I'll be able to do, but that is my hope. Here's a LO I've been working on with some of the elements from the kit. Hopefully, in the next day or two, I'll have it ready for download!

A New Banner . . .

I made this great kit for the Designer Finder Contest and I just had to make a new banner for my blog using the papers and elements. I was kind of afraid when I heard that you needed to make at least one metal element for the kit. I ended up making 3 and I think they turned out great! I can't believe how much I'm learning in PS CS2. There were certain things that I didn't understand or didn't take the time to practice with that are now clicking and that I really understand.

Well . . . I'm off for now . . . I have to wait I think until Saturday to see if I am eliminated. If I am . . . I'll be happy with what I have learned and accomplished so far and keep on learning, practicing and CREATING!

Going to the Quilt Expo tomorrow

I love going to the Quilt Shows! There's one in the spring at the Stevenson Center and one in the fall at the Schaumburg Convention Center. Being that it's getting much colder outside, I'm once again thinking of the quilts I need to finish. I also like the fact that they can be displayed as art. Although, I love painting on canvas and have a few pieces displayed throughout the house, my favorite is the art quilt I made from a kit. It's called Moonlit Garden and is hung in my living room. Here are a few photos . . .

I think this quilt is the greatest piece of art I've made . . . even if the design was someone else's. The quilting was done by me on the machine and is very dense throughout the entire quilt. I just love the colors and everything about it! So I'm excited about going to the show tomorrow and looking forward to it! At least it will keep my mind off of the Designer Finder Contest as the week 3 assignment will be posted late tomorrow night and it's making me nervous just thinking about what that will be.

August Sunset

August Sunset
Originally uploaded by ladybug_6

This is the photograph I thought of when I received the colors for the 2nd week challenge of the Designer Finder Contest. That's where the name for the background papers came from.

This photo was taken last year right out my front window. We moved into this house 5 years ago and my husband and I go back and forth about getting a tree in front of our house. I really wanted one and he didn't. For now . . . I've kind of let go of wanting a tree in front. We catch some really awesome sunsets here so I guess if we did have a tree, I wouldn't have got such a great pic.

I try to take pictures as often as possible. Sometimes, especially since I don't use the tripod, they don't come out that great. This one did and I absolutely love it and its one of my faves.

Japanese Anemone

Japanese Anemone
Originally uploaded by ladybug_6

I really just wanted to check this out to see how it works. These are one of my favorite flowers I have in my garden. They're a perennial so they come back year after year and with each year, I get more and more! It would be great to see these in every one of my flower beds in spring time!

BTW, does this flower look familiar? It was the inspiration for the flower in my "with Love" kit.

Learning something new every day

I like that I'm learning new things on PS. Keeps my mind off how nervous I really am about the Designer Finder Contest at DSP. No matter what happens I know I'll be closer to my goal. Even if it may take longer than expected. It's fun to see how things develop and how some ideas just don't work out. Atleast I tried and I'll know better for the next assignment . . . whatever that may be.

The current assignment wasn't too bad. Creating a layout with the previous kit and making some background papers with a certain color palette. Nice colors that's for sure. I don't envy the judges' job though. I'm sure it's gotta be tough going through all the posts and narrowing it down. There are 50 contestants and believe me . . . the competition is stiff!

I like the way my background papers came out . . .

So, I'm awaiting to see what the next assignment will be. I know it will be to create elements to go along with the papers, but none of us know what kind of elements they will be looking for. Until then . . . or maybe later this week . . .

A new challenge . . . both personally and professionally!

Well . . . I managed to place sixth in the contest at DSP. Now . . . I've taken the plunge and entered the Designer Finder Contest. Round One will be over at midnight on Friday. This is my entry . . .





















I actually like it quite a bit. Very girly, girly! Not something I would even considering buying myself since I have 2 boys. I especially like the way the flower and the laced element turned out. The pearls have been sitting in a folder on my computer for a while now so at least they've found a home for now! The papers are really great too! I just love the whole kit! I'm very proud of myself actually . . . and I think I deserve it . . . well at least for my first time shot.


I was really nervous about posting it, and a little apprehensive yesterday right after post it, but the responses have been great so far. Anyway, there's probably about 50 people who entered the contest . . . maybe more. I think the competition will be tough. There are some really great kits in the gallery so far! Most of the contestants have been with DSP for quite a while. As long as I'm learning more and furthering my skills with PS CS2, it will be worth a try!


And now I get to wonder what the next assignment will be. Gosh . . . this is starting to get me nervous all over again!

October's almost over!

Geez, I can't believe October is almost gone! I've been so busy helping Sam adjust to school and I also joined the NKOTB (that's New Kid On The Block) challenge at DSP. I've also been trying to sell some stuff on eBay. Busy, busy, busy . . . and, of course, been playing around in PS as well. I've been trying out patterns to make background papers for digi scrapping and even trying my hand at making blinkies. All very fun to do!

I wonder how long this addiction to digi-scrapping is really gonna last. Yesterday, I was thinking that maybe I was lost before I discovered digi-scrapping. I mean . . . really . . . most of my "hobbies" don't last that long. I do have my favorites, of course, but this is one that really seems to be sticking with me and it's like if I don't try something out in PS at least every day, I feel out of sorts. I've certainly been learning alot and have accumulated quite a bit of tutorials off the internet of things I want to try and things I think I might use one day. (That's in addition to all the magazines and books I already have!)


Anyway, let's see . . . here's a taste of something I recently created . . .

This is the layout I submitted for judging in the challenge at DSP previously mentioned. I really like this one the best of the three layouts that I did for the challenge. My hubby thought this was the best one too.