Rozanne Paxman

Muse: To be absorbed in one's thoughts; engage in meditation. Not intended to solve the world's problems, another person's problems, or to cover topics completely. One does not have to agree with musings to enjoy them, just as one does not have to be the same as someone else to appreciate who they are.

Would you like to earn a $20 Gift Certificate? Send your own muse to [email protected]. If it is selected for publication in the Scrap Girls newsletter, you'll get to have fun shopping!

Easter Scrapbooking Pages

Easter is just around the corner, and your camera is ready to capture all those special Easter memories. So many events associated with this holiday make photo-perfect opportunities for digital scrapbookers!

If you haven't thought about it yet, here is an idea list of Easter digital scrapbooking layouts, just waiting for their chance to be put into your albums:

Easter Dresses
Decorating and Dyeing Eggs
Easter Baskets
Easter Egg Hunt
Meeting the Easter Bunny
Religious Ceremonies and Activities
Food and Family Traditions

Scrap Girls has made it easy to find themed product collections in the Boutique. Here's how: After clicking on the Boutique tab on the Scrap Girls home page, locate the header titled "Categories" on the left side on the screen. Click the drop-down arrow and scroll down until you find the list of themed topics. You will notice a list of many different collection themes, including spring and Easter, both of which will be perfect for any of your Easter scrapbooking pages.

After clicking on the word "Easter" you will be directed to a list of some awesome collections, all with an Easter theme in mind. You will find elegant and fun Easter collections, as well as religious and non-religious themed collections. And don't forget the candy!

Go ahead and take a look. I can't wait to see all the Easter scrapbooking pages that will be posted in the Gallery in the next few weeks!

Layout by Jennifer Wight
larger view

Commercial license versions of Eggciting Collection Mini, Dynamic Brush Set: Jelly Candy 6101, ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Jelly Candy 6101 Super Biggie, ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Chocolate Candy 6301 and ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Basic Shadows 6501 are also available.

Article written by Jennifer Wight

Reducing 12x12 Scrapbook Layouts to 4x6

Note: Tutorial created in Photoshop CS3 and Windows Vista.

A lot of times I make layouts that I would really like to share with friends and family. Since almost all of my layouts are 12x12 inches, this presents a few problems for me: I almost never print my own layouts (due to ink costs), and although a digital (electronic) copy is nice, sometimes you want to physically hand a tangible layout to your loved one. I thought it over one day and realized that I could create small-format, 4x6-inch layouts from larger layouts! Now I can share my favorite layouts with friends and family in a handy size.

First, find a completed layout you want to share. Then, open that layout's PSD file

Next, create a new 4x6-inch blank canvas. You will notice in the layout I am working with that most of my photos and embellishments run vertically up and down the page. So I'll begin by creating my new layout with a vertical canvas as opposed to a horizontal one.

Now, start to drag the elements from your original layout to your new 4x6-inch canvas. You may choose to drag one object at a time, or you can click on multiple layers in the Layers Palette by holding the Ctrl key and clicking on more than one layer, then dragging them onto your new canvas. Use Ctrl+T to free-transform items and scale down as needed.

Here are a few things to take into consideration when miniaturizing your layouts:

1. Cut out any lengthy journaling. It won't be legible if you're just sizing it down. If you're gifting it, you can simply add a note on the back with the full journaling. Or replace journaling with an appropriate piece of word art.

2. What did you like most about your full-sized layout - a photo or an embellishment cluster? Make sure you use your favorite part of your "full" layout in your mini layout.

3. Less is more. I cut out a lot of embellishments and some word art for the sized-down version of my giftable layout. The result was mini layouts that have fewer embellishments, but still the same visual "punch" of my larger layouts.

4. Bonus: These layouts will also work for iPhone® wallpapers.

Commercial license versions of ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Antique Effects 6401 are also available.

This particular layout below had more items horizontally across the page, so I went with a new canvas set at 6x4 inches.

Layout by Amanda Fraijo-Tobin
larger view

Commercial license versions of ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: Altered Canvas, ScrapSimple Paper Templates: Watercolor Resist, ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: Messy Mix - Borders, ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Basic Glitter 6401 Super Biggie, ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: Photo Masks - 4x6 Canvas and Sweet Whispers Collection are also available.

Article written by Amanda Fraijo-Tobin

Layout by Shalae Tippetts
larger view

Designer Freebie by Shalae Tippetts coordinates with her ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: Woodland Applique, part of this month's ScrapSimple Club offering!

Commercial license versions of ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: Woodland Applique, Humble Christmas 2 Collection Mini, ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Micro Glitter 6401 Super Biggie and ScrapSimple Tools - Styles: Felt 8201 Super Biggie are also available.

Today's freebie designed by Shalae Tippetts

* 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.

East Coast High Noon Crop
Wednesday, April 20th - 10:00AM MT

Join April (April Showers) each Wednesday at 10am MT for the East Coast High Noon Crop. All coasts and time zones are welcome! These crops are designed to allow you to work on your own photos and themes simply giving participants a one hour goal and a fun, new challenge each week. On April 20th, we'll do a tag challenge! Create a layout using at least one tag as an embellishment! Create your layout and upload it to the special High Noon Crop Gallery. You'll be amazed what you can get done in just one hour, but there is no High Noon Sheriff timing you! Hope to see you in the chat room!

Ad Inspiration Challenge and Chat
Thursday, April 21st - 1:00PM MT

Join Pat (PBarnes) at 1pm MT for an Ad Inspiration Challenge and Chat. A few hours before the chat, a magazine, newspaper or online ad will be posted on the Forum to use as inspiration for a layout. You can use whatever you want to from the ad - the colors, the shapes, the composition. There are no wrong answers!

NSBR Chat - Early Edition
Thursday, April 21st - 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!

Heritage Crop
Thursday, April 21st - 6:00PM MT

Do you have boxes of heritage photos just waiting to be restored and scrapped? Are there family stories just waiting for you to write down and preserve? Then this is the crop for you! Join April (April Showers) and Shannon (tinkerbell11) at 6pm MT for the Heritage Crop and Chat! We'll help you get motivated to scrap those heritage photos and record your family stories for future generations to enjoy.

What's New Chat
Friday, April 22nd - 9:00AM MT

Join April (April Showers) at 9am MT on Friday morning to chat about all the wonderful new products in the Scrap Girls Boutique! What are your favorite new items? Is your shopping basket full? What did you kaboodle? Have you already done layouts or other projects with your new goodies? Come tell the designers how much you love their work. You never know who will show up. There's a thread every Thursday and now there's a chat too!

April Message Board Game: BINGO!

Join us for an exciting game of Springtime BINGO on the Message Board Forum in April! Pick 25 words from the list provided and send them in an email to [email protected] with a subject line that says "BINGO CARD - your Scrap Girls Message Board username" by Saturday, April 2nd at Midnight MST in order to play in the first round. The first round will begin on Monday, April 4th. If you miss the first round deadline, 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.

Each day, a member 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 game thread to win that round. After a winner is called, the boards will be cleared and a new round will begin the following day.

Each winner will receive a $5 Gift Certificate to the Scrap Girls Boutique! We like to see lots of winners, so please remember that each person can only win one round during the month. Have fun!

For complete details, visit the Monthly Message Board Games folder on the Scrap Girls Message Board.

April Monthly Layout Contest: Earth Day was started in the United States in 1970 and it went global in 1990. For April's Monthly Layout Contest, we want you to show us what Earth Day means to you or what you are doing to make our precious world a little greener. Post your layouts in the April Monthly Layout Gallery before Midnight MT on April 30th. 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!

Stop! Before you unsubscribe... Did you know we have a Weekly Round-Up newsletter?

This action-packed newsletter is sent out on Tuesday afternoons and summarizes what has happened in the past week. It's perfect for people who feel that they are too busy to read the daily editions! If you would like to receive our Round Up Newsletter, scroll to the bottom of this email and use the "Update Profile/Email Address" option to join the Round Up list and/or change your subscription options to our newsletters.

Of course, the Weekly Round Up Newsletter contains a fresh, new freebie, so even if you like to get the daily newsletters, you might want to join the Weekly Round-Up Newsletter, too. It's a great way to keep track of all of the fun things you are learning!