Welcome to my "ride" at the My Digital Studio blog carnival! For those of you who are unfamiliar with a carnival, it is similar to a blog hop in that you will be visiting several blogs and getting inspiration centered around a theme--in this case, the amazing new My Digital Studio from Stampin' Up. However, it differs from a hop in that a carnival goes for a whole month and the links will stay active the entire time--unlike a blog hop where you must complete the circle in the weekend allotted or you miss out!
The little green badge on the left hand side of my blog will take you to the master list of blogs anytime you want, for one entire month. So we hop you enjoy this carnival by members of Stampin' Addicts, and learn a lot about the versatility and ease of My Digital Studio. And don't forget to check out the CARNIVAL CANDY at the very end of this post!!!
My first project for you is this 12x12 scrapbook page page featuring my adorable baby boy.
The colors in this photo were perfect for a little boy page, so I drew inspiration from that and started with a blank 12x12 page. I used polka dotted Bashful Blue DSP for the background and layered Real Red cardstock on top. I made circles of varying sizes and used elements from the Happy B-Day Simply Scrappin' Kit for embellishments, along with some round buttons and Bashful Blue eyelets. Everything got a drop shadow so it looks realistic for printing. A little zig-zag stitching for some added texture runs down the side of the page, as does a photo corner punch layered in one corner.
I put Dan's name and the journalling in with a text box--MDS has fully functional text editing, using any font you have on your computer--such an awesome capability! I changed thecolor to Whisper White to suit my color scheme. I also changed the color of the Bona Fide "stamp" seal to match my Brocade Blue cardstock circle, and added the "it's all in the details" (which is a rub-on in real life) in white under the title. I just love how EVERYTHING is customizeable with MDS.
Last but not least, I edited the photo right there on the page to zoom in and fix the red eye that mars the actual physical copy of this photo. MDS has really great photo tools built right in, so there's no need for additional photo-editing software.
I had a lot of fun with my second project! First of all, I chose a stamp set that I don't even physically own but have always liked, called True Friend. It is always cool to be able to play with "stamps" you don't have! When I got these cards the way I wanted them, I printed them out on Whisper White cardstock on my home printer (nothing fancy). It did a fine job for this project, since it is not vital that the colors be exact matches. I recommend Stampin' Up's printing services for the pages and albums, of course, but for just fooling around at home, you can still do fun stuff even without using a professional print service.
Next I mounted it on a card base, then added my ribbon and embellishments. This type of project--half computer-generated, half "real life" generated--is called a "hybrid." I also added Crystal Effects to the butterflies and sprinkled them with microbeads. I LOVE the finished look--no one would ever guess that it was not a real stamp under there or that I had printed out that DSP background!
One last tip for ya and then I'll let you go on to the next ride at the carnival--you can open a blank page or card in MDS, add some "stamps" in any color you want, then print it out on cardstock. I love this big heart from the set "Always" which I do not own although it has been on my wish list for ages. The circle "friend" image is another great stamp from "True Friend." I printed out a sheet full, and because they come in to the page "true to size" just like a real life stamp--they fit exactly in the punches for which they were designed, like this 1 & 3/4 inch circle. WOW WOW WOW!!! Love that!
Enjoy the next carnival attraction! Here are the other participants.
DMDezigns
HowManyCats?!)
Yapha
Willysgirl
Hollylogic
Lyssa
Lilysinkpad
JulieA
lovetostampandscrap
Melina Stamps!
BroncoMom
Britney
S1itcher46
Kelli
Scrapbookmamma
Ready for some CARNIVAL CANDY? Last week I had an anniversary blog candy give-away of one of the adorable Stampin' Up reusable shopping totes and it was a hit! Leave a comment on this post naming at least one thing you learned about MDS from this carnival (any of the stops, not just mine) and your name will be entered to win one of the bags! Good luck!