Note from Heidi: I love this blog post from Theresa Kavouras. I was a lot like T's girls when I was little. I loved just about anything to do with art - paints, colored pencils, crayons, paper, fabrics, sketch pads, glues... everything! One summer while I was in my early teens, I was really into painting ceramic figurines. Cross-stitch had its place, too, and I impressed my mom's stepbrothers with my "old-fashioned" stitching talents.

One thing I never really did get into was clay design. I think it had to do with the "ickiness" of getting sticky clay drying under my fingernails. I was too much of a priss for that! Art had to have the right "feel" for me to enjoy it - literally! It's too bad. Seems like I have been missing out on a neat way to express myself!

Theresa Kavouras

Claymation

I have two amazing daughters. Each is talented in her own right. And each is a complete individual despite the fact that they are identical twins. They have a natural love of art which somehow shouldn't surprise me. But every project they do enlightens me to the fact that they are so talented. They have such a sense of form, color, and perspective. I try to keep their "art room" loaded with all the essentials. They have an endless supply of markers, pencils, crayons, charcoals, paints, paper, etc. We aren't a television family. The TV is not turned on in this household during the week. And there is not one video game to be found.

Funny, I never gave my girls the pleasure of playing with clay. I mean, Play-Doh® was a staple in this house for years. I always (and still do) have a cabinet full of it because there is nothing like a fresh container of Play-Doh®! But actual clay....

Recently, I signed the girls up for an after-school art class. It wasn't your typical art class because they had the opportunity to work with many different mediums including paint, canvas, fabric, plastics, and yes... clay. I was astonished to pick them up after their clay class and hear the teacher say, "These girls have incredible talent for their age. What they see in their mind's eye is fresh and new. You need to allow them to explore it more."

So, for Christmas, they received pounds of clay. I love seeing what they make every time they pull it out. Want to see what they did to get their teacher's attention? Actually, there's a bit of a warning that it's a little graphic. But you get a real sense of what my girls are all about. I think I may be planning an African safari in my future!

Jenna's Jaguars

Abbie's Lions

Scrap Girls, Etc. is a weekly column pulling bits and pieces from all over Scrap Girls. Stay tuned each week as Scrap Girls' Jane-of-All-Trades Heidi Dillon brings you tutorials, musings, recipes, interviews, design/software tips and tricks, layout walk-throughs, and who knows what else!

SCRAP GIRLS CLUB

Join the Scrap Girls Monthly Club and you can have fun with the newest traditional digital and printable scrapbooking looks while saving! (A $27.94 value for $9.99 or less!)

The Scrap Girls Club contents are released on the 1st day of the month (or the closest business day to the 1st).

With the Scrap Girls Club, you will receive:

1 Collection Biggie
1 Paper Super Mini
1 8.5x11 Sheet of Word Art
1 Embellishment Set
1 Assemble Your Own Zoom Page Set
1 Designer's Choice Item

Layout by Angie Briggs using July's Scrap Girls Club
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Created for you by Angie Briggs

If you prefer not to join a club, the Scrap Girls Club contents are available at regular prices in the Boutique. You can easily find them right now by checking the What's New? section of the Boutique.

Note: The Scrap Girls Club contents are always available for sale elsewhere in the Boutique at their regular prices once the associated club month is released. But all club contents are totally brand new, never seen before product releases for each month!

SCRAPSIMPLE CLUB

Join the ScrapSimple Monthly Club and you can enjoy the newest ScrapSimple looks while saving! (A $13.95 value for $6.99 or less!)

The new ScrapSimple Club contents are released on the 15th day of the month (or the closest business day to the 15th).

With the ScrapSimple Club, you will receive:

1 ScrapSimple Paper Template Set
1 ScrapSimple Embellishment Template
1 Brush Set
2 Designer's Choice Item

A commercially licensed version of the ScrapSimple Club is also available here.

Layout by Kerry Veale using July's ScrapSimple Club
larger view

Created for you by Amanda McGee and Kerry Veale

If you prefer not to join a club, the ScrapSimple Club contents are available at regular prices in the Boutique. You can easily find them right now by checking the What's New? section of the Boutique.

Note: The ScrapSimple Club contents are always available for sale in the Boutique at regular prices once the associated club month is released. But all club contents are totally brand new, never-seen-before product releases for each month!

Scrap Girls is announcing its vacation plans... STAYCATION! The whole team is going to have a STAYcation this year, and we want you to STAYcation with us. Our Product Designers are having a STAYcation, too, and as a change from slaving away making beautiful digital scrapbooking supplies for you to scrap with, they're hosting chats all week! Trust us, you do NOT want to miss these chats. Our designers get out so rarely - this is a real treat!

We've got a schedule full of chats that our Product Designers and Welcoming Committee are hosting, plus our STAYcation Sale, games, freebies, contests, prizes and fun! Come join our family on our STAYcation!

STAYcation Message Board Game

Have you ever tried to win one of those radio contests where you had to call in by a certain time if they called your name and then not heard it when it was called? Now's your chance to play it on the Scrap Girls Message board during STAYcation (July 27th - July 31st)!

Here is all you have to do... Make sure you have logged into the message board in the last year to be eligible to be called. Subscribe to the game thread, directions will be included in the thread on how to do this and then if your name is called, reply in the same game thread in the allotted time and you will win! How will we choose the members to call? We will use a random number generator based on our membership numbers. Log in and come play!

STAYcation Chat Schedule

Thursday, July 29: Camping

11:00AM MT - Camping with Katherine and Cherise
Join Katherine (KatherineW) and Cherise (cherise) at 11 am MT for a "sit around the fire, roastin' smores and swapping stories" kind of camping chat. We will play a couple of games and just have fun. You know, the things we do best at Scrap Girls. Don't forget your bug spray!


2:00PM MT - NSBR Chat - Early Edition
What is NSBR? It's a non-scrapbooking related chat! We talk about everything, including some scrapbooking and usually chocolate. It's a great chance to meet new friends, catch up on what everyone is up to, and just relax! If you have a problem, we'll lend an ear or a shoulder to cry on. Have some great news to share? We'd love to celebrate with you. So join Pat (PBarnes) at 2pm MT in the chat room Lobby! Hope to see you there!


5:00PM MT - Desktop Challenge Crop
Tired of the boring desktop wallpaper backgrounds that your PC or MAC came with? Join Becca and Angela (angelaNussbaum) on on July 29th at 5pm MT for this month's Desktop Challenge Crop. We'll show you how to use your digital scrapbooking supplies to create a personalized desktop wallpaper of your own. Stay tuned for the challenge! We will post it the day of the chat!


7:00PM MT - Speed Scrap Crop
Ever wonder what you can get done when time is tight? Here is your chance to find out! Join Angela (angelaNussbaum) and Carla (CRS) for a Speed Scrap Crop! We'll give you six items, spread out over an hour, for you to include on your layout. It's a challenge that is also a lot of fun! We'll see you in the chat room on Thursday, July 29th at 7pm MT!

Friday, July 30: Picnic

9:00AM MT - What's New Chat
Join April (April Showers) at 9am MT on Friday mornings to chat about all the cool new things in the boutique. You never know who else is going to show up! What are you getting? What did you kaboodle? And most importantly, show us the layouts or other projects you made with your new goodies! There's a thread every Thursday and now there's a chat, too!


12:00Noon MT - Picnic Chat
Picnics are more than just eating sandwiches on a blanket - it's about gathering together to enjoy the season. Come join Ariadna (scrapariadna) and Cheré (cherekaye) to chat about all the things of the season and the fun that is STAYcation at Scrap Girls! We can't wait to see you there.

Saturday, July 31: Luau

12:00Noon MT - Luau Lunch Chat
Throw on your best Hawaiian shirt and put a flower in your hair and come ready to hear "Aloha e komo mai!" as we chat and challenge in the Staycation Luau Lunch at Noon MT on Saturday, July 31st. Join Brandy Murry (BrandyM) and Ang Campbell (AngRoCamp) for an hour of hula dancing, ukulele playing, PRIZES and fun galore. Aloha!


6:00PM MT - Swap Crop Chat
It's time for the Swap Crop Chat! We've done the swapping and created the layouts, now it's time to chat about all the gorgeous layouts! I don't know what it is, but these swaps bring out the best in everyone. This is the time to chat about the theme, the beautiful layouts and learn about the swap crop if you haven't participated before. We'll brainstorm a theme for next month, too! Join us, Carla (CRS) and Angela (angelaNussbaum), for a fun chat at 6pm MT on Saturday, July 31st!

*Schedule is subject to change... keep an eye on the newsletter and message board for the latest STAYcation happenings!

ScrapSimple Tools - Shapes

Custom Shapes are awesome! Have you ever had a digital scrapbooking element that you wanted to make much larger, but it lost detail as you enlarged it? This won't happen if you use custom shapes. They are vector images, so they are essentially redrawn by Photoshop or Photoshop Elements each time you move or change them. This means that your element will never be pixelated, no matter how large or small you make it. It will always have clean crisp edges.

When I use Custom Shapes from Scrap Girls, I like to make sure they retain the original proportion the designer created. To guarantee my shape didn't go wonky (that's a technical term by the way), I clicked on the Custom Shapes Options icon on the Tool Options bar to bring up the Geometry Options menu. I made sure "Defined Proportions" was selected, and then I was ready to click and drag my shape onto my layout.

After I had drawn my shape, I simplified the shape layer so I could add styles to it. This changed my custom shape from a vector image that is redrawn each time it is changed to a raster image that will lose image quality when changed. This process is called rasterizing in Photoshop.

Since the photo I wanted to use was horizontal instead of vertical, I rotated the frame shape by going to Image> Rotate> Layer 90 Degrees Left.

After rotating my layer, I clipped a paper to my shape layer to color it. To add extra texture, I applied a distressing style and a large drop shadow.

Are you new to digital scrapbooking or do you want to take your digital layouts to a new level? Check out the incredible tutorials on Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed and MORE Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed!

Layout by Kelly Favor-Chronister
larger view

Commercial license versions of ScrapSimple Tools - Shapes: Framed 5401, ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: Bits of Mesh, ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Distressed 4901, ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: Curled Edges Plus and ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Basic Shadows 6501 are also available.

Article written by Kelly Favor-Chronister

FREE STARTER KIT

Free eBook "starter kit" turns your dreams of digital scrapbooking into reality today!

This dynamite eBook is 65 pages - packed full of the information, ideas, and help people need when they are about to dive into this great hobby. It answers all of the important questions new digital scrapbookers have. They are all here for you - in one easy to use eBook!

Bonus! Download the free "Warning" Label, too. It was created for you by Valerie Randall as a little bit of extra fun!

Would you like a chance to try digital scrapbooking yourself?

Scrap Girls' Refresh Collection Biggie offers you free samples of some of our most popular product types. Try making a layout, your own paper with a ScrapSimple Paper Template, a fast layout with a ScrapSimple Digital Layout Template, or experiment with a brush.

We know you'll love digital scrapbooking as much as we do, and we have thousands of products to feed your new addiction!

Ready to Take Off? In-depth Tutorials Help You Become a Great Digital Scrapbooker

Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed!

NEWLY UPDATED! Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed for Photoshop
NEWLY UPDATED! Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed for Photoshop Elements
Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed for Paint Shop Pro X (XI)

Find out what tens of thousands of people have already learned: Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed is the fastest way to learn how to create digital scrapbooking layouts. And because this series covers so many topics with one purchase, it is a bargain!

In the tutorials, you'll see Ro working on her computer and hear her talking about why she is doing what she is doing. It's like having Ro come to your home and give you private scrapbooking lessons. You can create digital scrapbooking layouts today!

Download and CD versions available.

Photoshop and Photoshop Elements users receive:

30-31 movie tutorials
Companion eBook(s)
Collections
Other supplies

Paint Shop Pro users receive 31 movie tutorials.

MORE Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed!

MORE Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed! for Adobe Photoshop
MORE Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed! for Adobe Photoshop Elements

Now that you've learned the basics of digital scrapbooking with Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed for Photoshop and Photoshop Elements, you are ready to learn advanced skills for having even more fun while you create digital scrapbooking layouts!

Get a big boost learning how to use ScrapSimple products to make your own backgrounds, embellishments, and alphas with the MORE Scrapbook Software Secrets Revealed for Photoshop Elements movie tutorial series. You'll learn so much that your digital scrapbooking layouts will never be the same!

eBooks

Scrap Girls offers a large catalog of eBooks covering topics that will expand your digital scrapbooking abilities to new heights. Here are just a few samples:

Scrap Girls 2009 Digital Scrap Link Class: Tips and Tricks to Make Quick Albums Fast!

Have you ever received an email offer for a really great deal on a 20-page album? But then you sit at your computer and get overwhelmed. This eBook will cover some great tips and tricks to help you pull it off in a snap! Included with your purchase, you will receive a special digital layout template set of three layouts in both 8.5x11 and 12x12 size, with which you can practice the techniques taught in the eBook.

Artistry eBook by Marnie Adams

Artistry: A Celebration of Digital Design Excellence highlights the best-of-the-best in digital scrapbooking focusing on high quality layout design, imaginative use of products, creative vision, top-notch typography, and artistic expression.

Scrap Girls Tutorials & Way Cool Stuff eBook Set
2009 - 4th Quarter

Subscribers to the Scrap Girls Newsletter have one thing in common: they love to learn new techniques! Each issue shares ideas, tutorials, and new ways to use Scrap Girls quality digital scrapbooking products. Now you can have all those past tutorials and Way Cool Stuff articles of the 4th Quarter of 2009 in one convenient PDF format.

Start to Finish eBooklets

Start to Finish eBooklet - PSE: Patterns, Blends & Filters, Oh My!

Nothing could be simpler than learning to scrapbook digitally with Scrap Girls Start to Finish eBooklets. Step by step written guidelines and detailed screenshots will help you learn new digital scrapbooking skills. Included with the eBooklet are the actual digital files you need to create a finished project!

See more titles

STAYcation: Camping Bonus Freebie!

Layout by Shalae Tippetts
larger view

Designer Freebie by Shalae Tippetts coordinates with her Camp Collection Mini

Commercial license versions of Camp Collection Mini and Promise Collection Biggie are also available.

Layout by Shari Payne
larger view

Designer Freebie by Trish Yochum coordinates with her Campfire 2 Collection

Commercial license versions of Brush Set: Grungelle, Dynamic Brush Set: Paper Piercing 8201, ScrapSimple Digital Layout Album Templates: 12x12 Negative Space and ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Basic Shadows 6501 are also available.

* There is a "free download" button on the details page for each gift. You don't need to put them in your shopping cart unless you are shopping for other items. Also note that if you are slow reading your newsletter, you may find this freebie has already been retired, as the freebies are only available as gifts for about two newsletter cycles.

CROPS AND CHATS

NSBR Chat - Early Edition
Thursday, July 29th - 2:00PM MT

What is NSBR? It's a non-scrapbooking related chat! We talk about everything, including some scrapbooking and usually chocolate. It's a great chance to meet new friends, catch up on what everyone is up to, and just relax! If you have a problem, we'll lend an ear or a shoulder to cry on. Have some great news to share? We'd love to celebrate with you. So join Pat (PBarnes) at 2pm MT in the chat room Lobby! Hope to see you there!

Desktop Challenge Chat
Thursday, July 29th - 5:00PM MT

Tired of the boring desktop wallpaper backgrounds that your PC or MAC came with? Join Becca and Angela (angelaNussbaum) on on July 29th at 5pm MT for this month's Desktop Challenge Crop. We'll show you how to use your digital scrapbooking supplies to create a personalized desktop wallpaper of your own. Stay tuned for the challenge! We will post it the day of the chat!

Speed Scrap Crop
Thursday, July 29th - 7:00PM MT

Ever wonder what you can get done when time is tight? Here is your chance to find out! Join Angela (angelaNussbaum) and Carla (CRS) for a Speed Scrap Crop! We'll give you six items, spread out over an hour, for you to include on your layout. It's a challenge that is also a lot of fun! We'll see you in the chat room on Thursday, July 29th at 7pm MT!

What's New Chat
Friday, July 30th - 9:00AM MT

Join April (April Showers) at 9am MT on Friday mornings to chat about all the cool new things in the boutique. You never know who else is going to show up! What are you getting? What did you kaboodle? And most importantly, show us the layouts or other projects you made with your new goodies! There's a thread every Thursday and now there's a chat, too!

Swap Crop Chat
Saturday, July 31st - 6:00PM MT

It's time for the Swap Crop Chat! We've done the swapping and created the layouts, now it's time to chat about all the gorgeous layouts! I don't know what it is, but these swaps bring out the best in everyone. This is the time to chat about the theme, the beautiful layouts and learn about the swap crop if you haven't participated before. We'll brainstorm a theme for next month, too! Join us, Carla (CRS) and Angela (angelaNussbaum), for a fun chat at 6pm MT on Saturday, July 31st!

NSBR Chat
Monday, August 2nd - 7:00PM MT

What is NSBR? It's a non-scrapbooking related chat! We talk about everything, including some scrapbooking and usually chocolate. It's a great chance to meet new friends, catch up on what everyone is up to, and just relax! If you have a problem, we'll lend an ear or a shoulder to cry on. Have some great news to share? We'd love to celebrate with you. So join Carla (CRS) on August 2nd at 7pm MT!

Project SG Chat
Tuesday, August 3rd - 5:00PM MT

Have you heard about Project SG yet? This challenge is all about creating an album for 2010 and scrapping your most current photos. Join Angela (angelaNussbaum) and April (April Showers) on August 3rd at 5pm MT for this month's Project SG Chat! It isn't too late to start. We'll fill you in on all the details at the chat. Hope to see you there!

Creative Cards Chat
Tuesday, August 3rd - 6:00PM MT

Do you use your digi-supplies to make cards? Do you want to? Instead of going to the store every time you need a card, you can save money and have fun making cards with your digital stash! Make a note of any cards you might need for the upcoming month, and join April (April Showers) for the once-a-month Card Chat on Tuesday, August 3rd at 6pm MT. Can't wait to see you there!

JULY EVENTS

July Message Board Game: BINGO!

It's that time again! Join us for an exciting game of BINGO on the Message Board Forum in July! Pick 25 words from the list provided in the forum and send them in an e-mail to [email protected] with a subject line that says "BINGO CARD - your SG message board username" by Wednesday, June 30th (Midnight MT) in order to play in the first round, which will begin Thursday, July 1st.

Each day, members of the Welcoming Committee will call five random words from the Bingo list. Match just 15 of those words to win a BINGO. You must be first to call bingo in the forum to win that round. After a winner is called, the boards can be cleared and a new round will begin the following day. All winners win a $5 gift certificate to the Boutique! We like to see lots of winners, so please remember that each person can only win one round during the month. Have fun!

If you miss the first round cutoff date, you can still play! Just send in your Bingo card at any time during the month and you'll be eligible to begin playing when the next new round starts. Everyone who sends in a Bingo card will receive a confirmation email that their card has been received. If you do not receive confirmation within 24 hours, please re-send your list of words.

For complete details and examples of game play, visit the Monthly Message Board Games folder on the Scrap Girls message board.

Layout Contests:

July Monthly Layout Contest: Most all countries have a national holiday. The time of the year varies across our wide world but the United States just happens to celebrate Independence Day in July. For this month's layout contest, we want you to create a layout showing us something about what you do to celebrate your nation or show your patriotism. Post your layouts in the July Gallery before Midnight MT on July 31st. Be sure to list your credits in the description or under the EXIF Properties. If your layout is one of the two chosen, you will win a $10 gift certificate to the Scrap Girls Boutique!

Club Concepts Layout Contest: Post your new layout using the current club selection (either the Scrap Girls Club or the ScrapSimple Club) in our Scrap Girls Club Members Gallery or the ScrapSimple Club Members' Gallery. Be sure to list all of the Scrap Girls products you used. If your layout is chosen, it will be showcased as a Club Concepts layout winner, and you will win a $5 Gift Certificate to the Scrap Girls Boutique!

Check our message board calendar if you have any questions about what is happening at Scrap Girls. All event times are given in Mountain Time Zone unless otherwise noted. Need help converting time zones? Check out the World Clock - Time Zone Converter. (Use 'USA-Utah-Salt Lake City' as the location for the Mountain time zone.)

Haven't received your prize as a contest winner? Please send an email to [email protected] and we'll get it out to you right away!