Celebrate Scrapbook Day Sale with an Extra 20% Off!

Celebrate National Scrapbook Day  Save an Extra 20% Off All Items Until 12 PM May 7th in our CraftyVintageGirl.com Store.

Plus - extra great FREE Gift(s) included with all orders!  Bigger orders = Bigger Gifts!  Online orders can also add a Free Flowers Printable DPS-11 to their cart during May.

Also DT Member Sheila Rumney has a great Tutorial using Photoshop Elements to add images on different backgrounds to create home decor projects using CD 3 Creating With Vintage Typography.

 
Don't forget this Monday May 5/14 is our Linky Party and DT Challenge and I've seen some of the DT projects and they are amazing , so please come by and check it out!

Wishing you joy and creativity Sandy  Redburn
Crafty Secrets 
 
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2 Digital Scrapbook Page Tutorials, Rooster Card and Spring Projects!

Hi Everyone,

I'm late as usual, it seems like the story of my life, but I just can't post something until I'm happy with it and this week has been full of distractions from a house full of company to a engaged daughter and wedding planning!  I was planning on making an altered box but wasn't happy with it and put it on the shelf and did a digital page for the scrapbook I'm making for my niece and nephew.

They have been coming here weekdays for the past 4 years as my mom (who lives downstairs) babysits them for my brother and we feel so close to them it's almost like they are our grandchildren.

I did a Tutorial Using Photoshop Elements as I've been working on new designs and realized that Paint can lower the quality of a file (Paint.net is better and will save high quality) but I'm trying to improve my skills at Photoshop Elements and I'm amazed at what it can do considering you can find it for  $60.00 on sale.    I love having everything in 1 spot so the first thing I do when I'm starting a digital project is copy all the designs I want to use into 1 folder.  I deleted about 7 items I didn't use but it's nice to have an array to choose from.

I made a smaller page but it's easy to do digitally as you can resize everything.  I used some of our 99 cent papers 222 Red Teal Floral Paper  and our Green Damask.  The recipe cards, hankie, paper clip, flower, cream brad are all from CD #1 Creating With Vintage Patterns.

I also wanted to add drop shadows to my frames and designs and I hope this explains it. You can always hit your un-do button under Edit, so play and try different effects.

I also wanted to show how to add text. Many of you may know how to do this but we also have many people just learning digital.  You can also print all of these papers and designs and do a traditional layered page and use glue, pop dots and all of the traditional techniques.   I'm going to have a hardcover scrapbook printed so I opted for digital.

Here is a cool Tutorial by Sheila Rumney on Using Digital Stamps to add Texture to Paper.

Here's a great rooster card by DT Member Michele Kovack using Farm Chicks Stamp Set and after she colored it with her Copic Markers she also stitched it in multiple layers with her sewing machine. Sewing on paper can get addictive and it doesn't have to be perfect!

We have a new Spring Banner Printable Set and DT Member Kathy Clement created some adorable cards you can see on her blog and this one below.

DT Member Vicki Chrisman also was inspired by the Spring Banner Set and did her own take using the Blank Banners as well with several printable papers from CD #1.

DT Member Darlene Pavlick created some really pretty Easter treat packs with our Mini Boxes and she also used some printable papers to create Hershey Wrappers with Gift Tags for some big chocolate Bars

I have to spill the beans - our youngest daughter and her boyfriend for past 4 years just got engaged! They met at college where they both got their degrees in Theraputic Recreation and I've always said when we get old I want them to run our recreation program! They are a great couple and I'm so excited they are tying the knot this Sept.

 Have a great weekend!

Sandy Redburn

See Our  CraftyVintageGirl.com Store

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This Blog: http://heartwarmingvintage.blogspot.com    

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Local Phone 604 597-8817

Crafty Secrets Head Office

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Tutorial on How to Turn Digital Stamps into Chalkboard Style Designs and Cool DT Samples!

Hi Everyone, I'm so excited that I tried my chalkboard idea and it works!  Now this may be old news to some people but I never tried turning our plain black digital designs into white on a chalkboard background until last night and look how cool it looks!  Imagine these designs from our Photo Studio Digital Stamp Set on the corner of a dark photo or you could make cool photo mats and scrapbook pages. 

/

 I decided to do a tutorial and used our Christmas Wishes Digital Stamp Set.  I made the instructions super basic so anyone can try it. I used Photoshop Elements but Paint.net from www.getpaint.net is a FREE Image Editing Program that supports PNG files and has a INVERT Tab, which you need to be able to invert the designs to change them from black to white. PNG files just means that the lettering or design is cut out and transparent so you can place it on a dark background and invert each design to change them to white. All of our digital stamps are PNG files (which open just like a regular jpg). 

Now we need chalkboard backgrounds - UPDATE: available now with both with black and green 12" x 12" papers for .99 cents for the set in our craftyvintagegirl.com store. The 12" x 12" size offers more versatility so you can crop or shrink the size for cards and tags or create big projects like large signs and scrapbook pages! 

To turn black digital stamp designs into white on dark backgrounds like this chalkboard paper just follow the instructions on these sample shots. Basically you just need to 'invert' each stamp design when you place them as shown below.

It's easy to do and remember - if you make a mistake just go under EDIT and click on the BACK Button. Nothing is permanent until you save it - but be sure to give your project a new name so you don't loose your plain background.

 You can see on this close up shot it really has the chalkboard look

 You don't have to have a chalkboard background, you can use any dark color, or you can do it the opposite way and place all your black images on a white background and simply click on the INVERT Button (located under the FILTER TAB on the top and then the INVERT is on the drop down menu). After you invert it you may want to play with the contrast 

 If you do it using the above method you will get a really black background which may be perfect for some projects but I love the chalkboard look which is so trendy right now. 

 Here's the same Card Front and Back on the Chalkboard background to compare

Then I used some of the PNG designs from our CD 3, Creating With Vintage Typography.  You can see the INVERT Tab on the Drop Down Menu.

   Gee - can you tell I'm excited and want to play? My head is spinning with ideas!

I would really love to know what you think of this idea and if you have ever used this technique?  It seems so much easier and less fool proof than messing around with white ink and getting a perfect stamped image - especially when using large size designs like these.

Now you have to check out DT Member Sheila Rumney's New Tutorial Using Clipping Masks and see how to add a pattern background to lettering!It looks so great and I had no idea you could do this either.

Also, look at this adorable Christmas card by DT Member Vicki Chrisman using an image from CD 6 Vintage Christmas

Plus, here's a cute card by DT Member Cherry Nelson using an image from our Christmas Creative Scraps

PS - If you would like to get updates for this Blog you can add your email address to the Feedburner box on the top right side.

Thanks so much for your support and feedback, it's truly appreciated!
 
Sandy Redburn
Crafty Secrets

Visit Our CraftyVintageGirl.com  Store
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This Blog: http://heartwarmingvintage.blogspot.com
Our Website: http://www.craftysecrets.com
Toll Free Phone or Fax 1-888 597-8898
Local Phone 604 597-8817

Crafty Secrets Head Office
15430 78 A Ave.,
Surrey, BC V3S 8R4

USA Warehouse
250 H. Street, #436
Blaine,WA 98230

Tutorial, Farm Card and Photos from Junk Salvation Show!

Hi Everyone, we are back and recovering from the Junk Salvation Show and I have some photos and a video to share below as well as a great tutorial by Shelia and cute cow card by Elizabeth.

DT Member Sheila Rumney did a great step by step Tutorial on how to digitally ink paper using Photoshop Elements using papers, a frame and angel from CD 6 Vintage Christmas.

I adore the way DT Member Elizabeth Lincoln colored this card with our Down on the Farm Stamps with our cute cow and added the bell.

DT Leader Vicki Chrisman came up from Nebraska to help at the show and back here to stay with us  until Thursday.  She has been making samples and helping me since 2008 and we've become close friends so she is like family now and I don't want her to go home!

The show was fabulous and we sold a bunch of stuff, except for stamp sets which I said on facebook many people didn't even know what Clear Stamps were?   Vicki took a video from the show on her cell phone and darn - I can't get it to post but it's on her facebook page.

I would love to have a vintage bike like this with a basket on the back and ride around to do errands - but I live in suburbia and have to drive everywhere.

There was everything from vintage Christmas decorations, shabby chic decor, upcycled furniture, lighting, retro kitchen, amazing jewelery, dainty victorian items to country farmhouse and it was hard to stay in the booth and not run off looking for treasures but we were too busy to leave the booth much.

I love this idea for stacking old suitcases for storage on a stool base by the booth next to us called The Blue Chair

She also had these jumbo decorations and this one would go perfect over my mantle at Christmas

Lots of funky furniture like these chairs I spotted on a trip to the restroom

This was a cool  booth behind us that was all draped in sheer curtains. Too bad my other photo was blurry as it showed the booth off better. She had some great small framed pieces but was sold out of everything I liked by the time I went back to buy something.

Here I am on Friday night when the show opened from 6 till 9 for early bird shoppers. It soon became packed with people

I brought the rest of my wood letterpress alphabet blocks and they were one of the most popular items in our booth.

This is my hubby Scott with long time customer Sarah who always comes with her aunt Beki and they have been shopping in our booth at many shows in WA for years.

Lastly, I have to share this cute photo Vicki took of my niece and nephew who stayed here with Grandma & Gramps this weekend and came upstairs to help me make scrambled eggs Sunday morning.

 We uncovered a bunch of goodies at the warehouse from brass and glass pendant tiles, bulk card stock, dictionary and sheet music pages and more I will be adding in my next post.

 

Wishing you joy and creativity

Sandy Redburn

See Our  CraftyVintageGirl.com Store

Visit us on Facebook with over 5800 Fans!  

This Blog: http://heartwarmingvintage.blogspot.com 

Our Website: http://www.craftysecrets.com    

Toll Free Phone or Fax 1-888 597-8898

Local Phone 604 597-8817

 

 Crafty Secrets Head Office

15430 78 A Ave.,

Surrey, BC V3S 8R4

USA Warehouse

250 H. Street, #436

Blaine,WA 98230

My Autumn Tree Tutorial, Fall and Halloween Ideas, Linky Winner!

Hi Everyone, 

It’s Thanksgiving here in Canada today, so Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian readers! I always feel like it comes too early as it’s still sunny and I have patio flowers. I wanted more Fall décor so I made a Autumn tree using 2 branches I taped together with hubby’s hockey tape but duct tape would work. 

Now I have something to go with the Luminary Lanterns I made last week. I used a glue gun to add leaves and flowers to the branches from CD 3,Creating With Vintage Topography and have a little tutorial below for you plus more fun samples by our DT Ladies, a great Tutorial by Sheila Rumney and our Linky Winner! 

 Congrats to random.org winner #6 KT Fit Kitty for her lovely bird card, one of 3 she created using our Bird Notes (now a $5.95 digital stamp set) as the clear set has sold out but images are larger!

You can see some great samples entered in our Linky Party and a big thank you to everyone who entered! I must give an honorable mention to Chrissie from Australia who created a fabulous Mini Pocket Album using a mix of our Sewing Ephemera following DT Member Darlene Pavlick's Pocket Album Tutorial - and Chrissie also made a You Tube Album Video showing all of her pages! 

 Okay let me show you how I made my Autumn Tree as it was easy and would work for a wreath, swag or branch over a window. I wanted different size leaves and flowers and remembered we have some on our CD #3. You can see they are a cool design by our designer Cindy van Koll with a mix of text and funky outlines.

 Don't look at the scary pumpkins! I did their faces using a sharpie.

The 2 leaves and flower I used are on CD 3 in the PNG Folder.  Many PNG files look like jpg files but the images are cut out and just have a white background. You can layer PNG Files and this link goes to my post listing the most popular digital programs you can use and many are free.

First you need to open a blank page to add all the images to. I used Photoshop Elements but you can also copy and paste images using Windows

You may as well fill your page with as many leaves and flowers as you can.

                          
Here is my page with the 2 leaves and flower in various sizes. Yep, you do need to cut them out but I did it while I watched Grey's Anatomy.

 I used a jug and wedged a tea towel to hold the branches upright while I glued leaves on. On my  my Halloween lanterns  post I showed the different images for the 4 clear glass sides.  I have the fun Halloween witch ladies page I made on the opposite side of our family photo.

 I also have short Tutorial for you by Sheila Rumney if you want to learn how to add text to a page for a card or scrapbook layout using Photoshop Elements. 

 Here's a fun Halloween card that DT memeber Darlene Pavlick created using our Halloween CD

 I adore the Thanksgiving card and matching lined envelope that DT Member Kathy Clement made with our .75 cent Autumn Cuts and Digital Thanksgiving Download

DT Member Rebekah Faries made place cards for her family dinner using the Halloween CD and she hand stitched little leaves

 I love this Thanksgiving layout and beautiful greeting cards DT Leader Vicki Chrisman created last year using our Thanksgiving Download.

 Lastly I wanted to share this fun pumpkin idea for stuffed peppers by Wing It Vegan. You could also add a baggie with veggie dip to the pepper.   She also has a big list of more fun Halloween theme food.

I will be back later this week with something new! 

Wishing you joy and creativity
Sandy  

See Our  CraftyVintageGirl.com Store
Visit us on Facebook with over 5500 Fans!  
This Blog: http://heartwarmingvintage.blogspot.com 
Our Website: http://www.craftysecrets.com    

Toll Free Phone or Fax 1-888 597-8898
Local Phone 604 597-8817
 
 Crafty Secrets Head Office
15430 78 A Ave.,
Surrey, BC V3S 8R4

USA Warehouse
250 H. Street, #436
Blaine,WA 98230