Whoops! I made a boo-boo on the Wanna Be A Cowboy Scrapkit that amounted to a violation of the terms of use of the clipart that I used. I've pulled the kit for now, but it will return as soon as the corrections are made. Thank you sooooooooo much for the heads up, Lou, I'd have died of embarrassment if you hadn't warned me. The kit should be back in a couple of days. I have a houseful of family today, and appointments tomorrow, so look for the amended kit to be back on Tuesday. My apologies for the inconvenience.

Awards

I'm so tickled...Jill spotlighted my A Is For Apple tutorial on her blog, woohoo, I feel published, pmsl! She also said some very sweet things...I'm still blushing...and then she totally made my day by passing on these two awards to me! Thank you so much, Jill, you big Sweetie! You can find Jill's blog, CreatedByJill (which is full of fun stuff) here.

and this one, which I cherish:

This particular award acknowledges the values that every blogger shows in their effort to transmit cultural, ethical, literary, and personal values every day.

The rules for the awards are simple:
"Post the award on your blog, acknowledge the fabulous person that gave it to you and pass it on to at least 5 other blogs!"

The talented and wonderful ladies that I'm giving these awards probably all already have them, but they are all deserving of receiving them again, with my love and thanks for all of the friendship, teaching, sharing and inspiration they have given me and others:

MayK of MayK's Creations

Butter of
ButterflyFlutterbyCreations

Lou of Simply Devilish Scrapz

Simone of
Scrappy Bit Of Fun

Serina of Stylin' Serina

Tutorial: A Is For Apple

Tube of choice: I'm using the adorable art of Suzanne Woolcott.

You must have a licence to use this or any of her images, which may be obtained here.

PTU Scrapkit Taste of Home by CreatedbyJill.

Thanks for this huge, gorgeous kit, Jill!

Mask: here I don't know where I got this mask.

If it is yours, please let me know so that I can credit you or remove it.

Open a new image 600x600. You can crop the finished tag, if you like.

Open the mask from the supplies and load into your files.

Open paper 3, copy and paste as a new layer. Apply the mask, fit to canvas, source luminance and hide all mask ticked. Merge group.

Open paper 9 and go to the materials pallette and load this paper as a pattern into your background, then set the foreground box to transparent. Using your preset shapes draw a large circle in the center of your canvas. Convert the layer to raster, and add a light drop shadow.

Back in your material palette, set the foreground and background to the same color (any visible color will do) and using the preset shape tool, draw out a narrow rectangle slightly narrower than the width of your tag. Convert to raster layer. Selections, select all, float, defloat. Open paper 8, copy and paste as a new layer. Invert selection, then hit delete. Selections>select none.

Duplicate the layer, resize the new layer by 80% and move down and to the left. See my tag for position. Enhance photo>clarify.

Open the flowergarden element, copy and close the original. Resize by 80%, paste near the bottom of the tag. Add a simple dropshadow.

Click into the smaller rectangle layer and bring to top.

On your materials pallette change your foreground color to a different color, and your background color to transparent. Go to preset shapes, create on vector, line width 10, draw corner to corner over your square to create a border. Convert this layer to raster. Using your magic wand, click inside the border, and copy and paste paper 14 into the selection. Selections>select none. Add an inner bevel at this time, if you like.

Merge visable the two squares. Duplicate the layer two times. Line the squares up on the left side of the tag.

Select your magic wand tool, and holding down the shift key, click into the centers of the top and bottom squares. Open paper 6, copy and past as a new layer. Go to selections>invert, then hit delete. Now click into the center of the middle square with the magic wand, copy and past paper 5 as a new layer, Selections>invert, hit delete.

Open the apple banner element, and paste as a new layer. Resize by 80% and position above the top narrow rectangle. Move this layer below the top square.

Resize the apple basket element by 60% and place at the bottom right of your tag. Resize and place elements of choice into each square, and bows or other embellishments as you please. Add your tube near the center, and add your credits. Add simple drop shadows to all elements, and this drop shadow to the tube: -1, -1, 50, 5, black and then 1, 1, 50, 5, black.

Add your name, merge visable, crop to suit and save as a .png.

Scrapkit-Rainy Days

Available only from The Padded Cell.

There's much more in the kit than shown, 24 papers and 64 elements in all.

Happy Scrapping!

New Layout

Lookie, lookie, I learned how to make my own blog layout! I used the beautiful scrapkit Afternoon Tea by Kristi of Scrappin Divas Designz. Be sure to check out the store, she has some truly beautiful scraps and some nice CU items, too.

I've been MIA with computer issues, grrr...I'm currently working/playing from my DH's laptop, which is proving to be challenging when playing with graphics. But I guess every new challenge is another opportunity to learn something. Yeah, that's it, (wink)...and now, I have to get busy. I'm working on a couple of tagger sized scrapkits, one of which will be available next week only at The Padded Cell. The other will be available here on my blog the same day, so keep your eyes peeled. I also have a couple of new tag tutorials in the works, who knows when I'll get those finished, *snicker*. So many pies, so few fingers!

As Gilda said

...it's always something. I just survived my computer going up in flames last week (yes, actual flames, lol), and as I always try to learn something from my mistakes, heh heh, I upgraded my power source (which is what burst into flames) and a few other things that had to be replaced...because I ruined them hitting the flames with my kitchen fire extinguisher...to make another long story short, yesterday my processer gave up the ghost because it couldn't handle the new hardware. *sigh* So, until Number 1 son can get down here to replace my motherboard, I'm stuck on hubby's laptop. No graphics programs, no access to my files...wah! The silver lining to my personal cloud is that I've had time to catch up on my favorite blogs this morning.
Well, when I can get back here with goodies, I have a treat...my first scrapkit, yay me, lol. It was inspired by a color challenge at The Padded Cell, and I got completely carried away. It was supposed to be a mini-kit, but it went past 75 elements, so it's not so mini after all. I'll have the previews and download linked as soon as possible. *bigger sigh* New tutorials in the works, too, so keep an eye peeled for those. In the meantime, I guess I'm going to get caught up on my ironing or something equally glamorous.
Omg, I almost forgot...that challenge by Jill (CreatedByJill)that was making me so crazy...I tied with Lady Disney so we both got to win Jill's incredibly adorable new scrapkit, Sweet Spring. Omg, what an incredible kit... everything under the sun and the sun itself is in this kit! And if that somehow wasn't enough, she has a freebie addon on her blog, too! If you only buy one scrapkit this Spring, this is the one to get, boys and girls.

Busy, busy, busy!

I'm in the middle of an incredible challenge at the Padded Cell! Jill, of Creations By Jill, has challenged us to make a kit with a grey-scaled kit she's provided using her color pallette, mask and template... and then make tags with it using all of the elements, and then write the tut for the tag! *Phew!* I spent far too much time playing with the overlays, pmsl, and had to play catch-up. I've finished my kit, and the tags, and now I have to write the tut. It will be up here with the links to Jill's mask and template and I'll include my entire kit in the supplies...it's tagger sized, but it's a big kit. I have company coming for the weekend, and the Super Bowl on Sunday, so look for the tutorial on Monday or Tuesday. And, at some point, I've got to finish getting the goodies up on the blog...I'm having "issues" with the chatbox and all of the other sideboard widgets and gadgets, so we'll see how that goes.

First, Last, Best

I'm using the beautiful art of Jennifer Janesko. This tube was part of the wonderful CILM

2008 Christmas present. Do not use her art without the proper licence, which you may
obtain at CILM.

The scrap I'm using is a lovely freebie addon to her First Love PTU kit, from Ali

at Designs By Ali, on her blog HERE.

The template is also by Ali, template number 11, on the same site.

Fonts used are Fortuna Dot and Chopin Script, FTU fonts, just Google to find them.

Open a new canvas 700x400, transparent. You can crop or resize later, if you like. Copy and paste the template (it's only one layer) onto your canvas as a new layer, or you may use preset shapes to create your own, if you prefer: one square with five horizontal narrow rectangles. Delete the copyright layer and the background layers, if using the template. Click into your template, Selections>select all>float>defloat, copy and paste paper#6 into the selection. Selections>select none. Add a drop shadow of -2, -2, 30, 5, black, then 2, 2, 30, 5, black.

Open paper #9, copy and paste as a new layer. Apply mask from disk, Source luminance, fit to canvas and hide all mask ticked. Add the same drop shadow to the mask layer, go to Layers>arrange>move to bottom.

Open Diamond throw 1, copy and paste as a new layer. Image>mirror. Use your raster deform tool to fit it to your canvas. Erase any odd bits or partial stones. Duplicate this layer 3x, then merge these 3 layers together. Add a drop shadow of -2,-2, 30, 5, black. (Only the one shadow on the jewels, please, or they will blur when you animate your tag.)

Open the frame, and resize it by 50%. Copy and paste it on as a new layer, and then move it over the square on the template layer, and use the deform tool to make it fit the square. Add drop shadow of -2, -2, 30, 5, black, then add another of 2, 2, 30, 5, black.

Paste your tube as a new layer, resize to fit the square. Move tube down under the frame layer, and erase any bits that show outside the frame. No need for a drop shadow on the tube layer. Add your copyright and licence info.

Go to Layers>merge visable. Now duplicate this merged layer 3x, for a total of four layers. On the first duplicate layer, type the words FIRST LOVE and place so that it's half in, half out of the frame. See my tag for position. On the second duplicate layer, type out LAST LOVE and position in the right center of your tag, barely overlapping the frame. See my tag for placement. On the third duplicate layer, use a script font (I used Chopin script, a free font) to write your name, place at the top right of your tag. Add the drop shadows to each text layer.

Now to animate! First, copy the original layer to animation shop. Then, back in psp, merge the original layer with your first duplicate layer, copy and paste into animation shop after the first frame. Copy the first frame, and paste it as your third frame in animation shop. Back to psp, undo the merge, and merge the original layer with the second duplicate layer, copy and paste this into animation shop as your fourth frame. Again, copy the first layer, and paste as the fifth frame. Back to psp, undo the merge, and merge the original layer with the third duplicate layer. Copy and paste into animation shop as your sixth frame.

Set your frame properties as follows:

frame 1 @ 40

frame 2 @ 60
frame 3 @ 50
frame 4 @ 60
frame 5 @ 50
frame 6 @ 240

Save as a .gif, and you're finished.

New Layout

Isn't this beautiful? Don't give me any credit, lol, all I did was load one of Shaz's beautiful backgrounds. Want one? Go to the site she shares with Livvy, here. I've never seen more gorgeous backgrounds anywhere, you'll be glad you looked!

I'm fighting a migraine today, so this will be brief. I hope you all have a lovely day....I'm going back to bed, lol.

Tutorial: Friends Are Flowers

This tutorial is dedicated to ButterflyFlutterby, who gave me the courage to write it.

There are no filters used in this tutorial. You will need:

3 tubes from the same artist. I'm using the beautiful art of Caron Vinson. To use her art, you must purchase a licence, which you can do at CILM.

Suz template #12 from her blog HERE

Scrapkit: FTU Matters of the Heart (love it, Lou!) from her blog HERE

Mask: ButterflyFlutterby Mask 8 from her blog HERE

Font: A&S Jiggy Roman. This is a free font, just Google it.

Supplies: my wordart, HERE

Load the mask into your psp files.

Open the template, copy (shift+d) and close the original. Delete the copyright layer. Open paper #3 and paste as a new layer. Layers>load/save mask>load mask from disk, Source Luminance and Hide All Mask ticked. Merge>merge group, send layer to the bottom. Add a drop shadow of -1, -1, 30, 5, black, then add another of 1, 1, 30, 5, black. Use these same settings for all of the shadows on this tag.

Open paper #2. Click onto the rectangles layer of the template, Selections>select all>float>defloat and then copy and paste your paper into the selection. Selections>select none. Add the drop shadows.

Open paper #4. Click into the back 1 layer on the template, selections>select all>float>defloat, copy and paste your paper into the selection. Selections>select none.

While this paper is still copied, go up to the frame 3 layer on your template, and following the same steps, add paper #4 to this layer, too. Add the drop shadows to this frame layer.

Open paper #1. Click into back2 layer, selections>select all>float>defloat, copy and paste your paper into the layer, selections>select none.

Open paper #5. Click into back3 layer, selections>select all>float>defloat, copy and paste the paper into the layer. While this paper is still copied, click into frame1, and repeat the steps to paste the same paper into this layer. Selections>select none, and add the drop shadows.

Open paper #3. Click into frame2, selections>select all>float>defloat, copy and then paste the paper into the selection. Selections>select none. Add the drops shadows.

Now, for each tube, (one at a time, please, lol) copy and paste as a new layer, then position above the frame back and beneath the frame, and then erase any that shows outside the frame. Do this on each circle. Add the same drop shadows to each tube layer.

Open the wordart and paste as a new layer, use the move tool to put into the right position.

Open Flowerpot1, resize by 15 percent, and place on the lower left side of your tag (see mine for position.) Duplicate the flowerpot, mirror, and place to the right side of the tag.

Add your copyright info, and your name, merge all layers and save as a png. file, and you're done!

Do not copy, other than one printable copy for your own personal use.

TWI registration pending.

AngelMade 2009