Memory Makers’ newest book Paper + Pixels is hitting store shelves this week! Here, authors Audrey Neal and May Flaum share some insight into hybrid scrapbooking and their own scrapbooking journeys.

SNAPSHOT

What was the first scrapbook you made?
Audrey: A small spiral-bound album for my in-laws. They lived six hours from us, and so it was a Christmas gift that covered my daughter’s first year. That was in 1997, and as expected, it was full of die cuts and sticker sneeze.

May: A big 8x14 spiral-bound book with a very 80's looking lady with "stylish" hair and makeup on the front. It said scrapbook, and I used it to put pictures and notes and stickers about the summer of 1986.


What’s your favorite Photoshop tool?
Audrey: I really love using different blend modes. It allows me to combine different patterned papers, add overlays to my backgrounds, or make large photos fade into my background – there are just so many cool artistic effects you can achieve with these modes. I also love clipping masks. Again, it’s another great way to get the look of hand cut titles or photos with just a few mouse clicks.

May: The blur tool. It can make a blemish blend away, tone down a background to bring focus back to the subject, and you can also use it to de-saturate…I love that blur brush!

What’s in your purse right now?
Audrey: I just changed purses, so I’m sure there’s some stuff I didn’t transfer over. I always have a book in my purse – I actually won’t buy a purse if it’s not big enough to hold a book. Plus there’s my wallet, checkbook, some grape chapstick, two pens, my keys and cell phone, and my planner. Oh…and there are a couple of receipts from lunch and the post office in there

May: If you really must know... receipts, loose dollar bills and change, some jelly bellies, diapers, a rattle, lip gloss, and some stamps. My wallet and cell phone are on the counter-- they're almost never actually in the purse.

THE DEEP STUFF

What is one thing you really want readers to get out of the book? 
Audrey: What I think is great about the book is the fact that you don’t have to spend a lot of money on difficult-to-learn, expensive software programs. You can use simple programs such as Microsoft Word to create some really fun, creative techniques on your pages. The other thing is that with hybrid techniques, you can use a little or a lot--it’s up to you. Even the simplest techniques can really pack a punch on your designs.

May: Anyone can do it, even without a special program. While Photoshop Elements or a comparable program is really nice there is so much you can do with your word processing program! I have a lot of fun with Word, and I know that most traditional scrapbookers are already doing printing out of journaling and titles, so why not kick it up a notch?

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Want to know more about Audrey and May and Paper + Pixels? For the complete interview and for the opportunity to ask your own questions of the authors, check out the forum.

And for a chance to win a copy of Paper + Pixels, leave a comment on Christine's post (click here).  

I’m happy to report that I completed the first resolution on my list: cleaning up my craft space (yay, me!). You’d think I’d be on a roll for completing 2008 resolutions, but I’ve decided to chuck them all in favor of something a lot more doable: Coming up with a list of things to look forward to in 2008.  Inspired by MM Master Caroline Ikeji’s design and Eileen’s Scrap Simple page, I created a digital page to start off 2008:



All paper and elements are from Sande Krieger’s Embrace Life digital kit (perfect for new year’s pages and available for FREE here!). Stamped alphas are from Little Dreamer Designs. My 8 for 2008 list reads: 1. Going to Italy, 2. My first year of marriage, 3. Doing more "fun" things in the city 4. Decorating the house, 5. The opening of IKEA, 6. My family’s visit to Cincinnati, 7. Making new friends at church, 8. Turning 30 (okay, not really, but I had to mention it)

What are you looking forward to this year?  Share your thoughts!

Kristin

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The winner of a copy of 601 Great Scrapbook Ideas is…..Jean Stanonis.  Congratulations!  Click here to read what everyone has planned for 2008.

I’ve never been one to set resolutions, but Eileen and all of those commenting on the post below have really got me to thinking about what I want to do this year. So here’s my list:

1.    Finish this quilt. Well, at least the top. I’ve been working on it for one and a half years already, and I love it and can’t wait for it to be one that I use. So, I just need to finish it.
2.    Do something crafty every week. It’s so easy to not drag out my sewing machine or crafting supplies. But once I do, I’m always happy I did. So, I just need to do it.
3.    Bloom where I’m planted. I saw this post on Gala Darling’s blog (I’ve mentioned her before here), and it really hit home. Instead of waiting for the next thing to happen, I am going to make the effort to make the most of my life now, how it is.

Be sure to share your resolutions at Eileen's post for your chance to win a copy of 601 Great Scrapbook Ideas.

Until next time,
Christine

I’ve been considering myself a fairly recent entrant into the realm of scrapbooking. But over the holidays, I was reminded that I’ve been scrapbooking nearly my whole life, most of it way before the invention of patterned paper and chipboard alphas. There is the fill-in-the-blank “all about me” book I made in second grade, complete with crayon drawings.  And there are the four albums with all my high school memorabilia, plus one I did after college. I discovered patterned paper and journaling a few years back in time to complete an album of my European vacation.  And then there is the album I’d forgotten all about.

While visiting my parents, I pulled out a scrapbook my mom had salvaged from my grandparents’ house. It was an “all about me” scrapbook I made in eighth grade as a Christmas gift for my grandparents.  It was fun looking through and reminiscing about all the hobbies, entertainment, food, school activities that I liked way back when.  And it was also fun realizing that some things never change.

 First of a long list of things to accomplish in 2008 is cleaning up my craft space. And I’d like to get started making some mini albums. Since I already have a blank one sitting on my crafting desk (thanks, Christine!) I’m thinking it would be fun to do another “all about me” album. Author Courtney Walsh has some great gratitude journal ideas that would translate really well to an “about me” mini album. Stay tuned to see if I complete it!

What about you?  Do you have any New Year’s crafting resolutions? Share them here!

Happy New Year!
Kristin

From the minute I opened Scrap Simple I knew it was going to be a favorite of mine.  As evidenced by most of my layouts, I’m a big fan of simple design and few embellishments. I love the way Hillary Heidelberg's layouts are both modern and classic at the same time. I don’t think there’s a single layout in the book I don’t love.

While Scrap Simple features mostly traditional layouts, the principles still apply to digital layouts.  Digital doesn’t necessarily mean quick (with all the resizing, color changing and cropping) and with the number of digital embellishments available, the potential for busy, overwhelming pages is high. So, since I’m on a digital kick recently (mostly because my scrapping table is so messy you can’t actually see the table), I decided to try a digital page (below left) Scrap Simple-style  My inspiration was a layout (below right) from the chapter on incorporating white space.

        

The star patterned paper and scalloped border came from the awesome, free digital kit from Sande Krieger (click here to download).  I loved that the blue and red stars were the perfect fit for a page about my husband’s affinity toward watching the political process unfold on C-SPAN. The journaling reads: “whatever it takes to get you to like cable.” 

Don’t forget to leave a comment on Christine’s post for a chance to win a copy of Scrap Simple.  And check out Hillary’s interview here.

Kristin

It’s the second day of our book giveaway for our latest release, Scrap Simple by Hillary Heidelberg. I found inspiration in a layout Hillary created in which she used a photo from when she was a little girl playing on some rocks on the coast of Japan.




I liked the idea of scrapping a photo from childhood days when my blissful, pink-and-purple world was filled with hearts, flowers, rainbows and all things girly. Flipping through my photo box I came across this little gem of me sitting on my parent’s bed, dressed in pink and donning my dad’s policeman sunglasses. (He’s not a real policeman—I guess back in 1980 he just wanted to look like one...and apparently I did, too!)



This simple page looks like it has a lot going on but was actually really easy to create. The patterned paper has a garden of flowers at the bottom that I easily adorned with a few silk flowers with brad and button centers for a little dimension. I secured the photo with four brads and the remaining embellishments are simply stickers I found in my stash. It couldn’t have been easier! And the thing I love the most is that the photo matched this piece of patterned paper that reminds me of the colors and warmth of spring (I like to keep little reminders close by so I can get through the chill of these next few months).

The simple handwritten journaling reads: Me at 3 years old dressed in Strawberry Shortcake p.j.’s and Daddy’s sunglasses.

Check out Scrap Simple for more ideas on ways to create amazing pages in a flash. Hillary offers a wealth of pages in almost every topic imaginable—from kids to wedding to travel to all-about-me pages. You’ll love her clean, unencumbered look and fresh color schemes. To learn more about Hillary, click here for an interview in which she shares a little insight into her personality and inspirations. And to learn more about her on a regular basis, check out her blog.

So go ahead and scrap simple! You'll be glad you did!
Amy