Baby Girl Digital Scrapbook

This is the title page of a digital baby girl scrapbook that I created for a client to give to her husband for Christmas. Click on the layout to see the rest of the book (minus a couple of pages that I felt were a tad too personal to display via the Internet). I hope you'll take a moment to see the rest of the album.

I was really happy with the way the book turned out. My client reported that her husband "loved his book; tears were flowing!" Just what a digital scrapbooker-for-hire wants to hear!

Happy Birthday Digital Layout - for my Dad

Today is my Dad's birthday. Happy Birthday, Dad!!

My dad loves cars, especially VW bugs (in all their many variations), dune buggies for off-road racing, and (of course, he's a guy) fast sports cars. He has owned many cars over the years so for his birthday I decided to make a collage of photos of just some of those cars.

The top left photo is from the 50's and shows my dad holding a jackrabbit that he'd shot while out hunting with a friend. In the background is his VW bug which, if the photo were in color, you see is dark green with with red tires. How awesome is that?? The top right photo is an iStockphoto of a "new" beetle, red, exactly like one he owned some 7 or 8 years ago.

In the middle is a photo of an apple green de Tomaso Mangusta sports car. Although this is a photo I found on the internet (I didn't have one of my dad's own car handy), this is exactly like the car he owned in the 70's. I remember it well. In fact, for all I know, this may be the actual car my dad owned that's now owned by someone else. In my Internet research I found that only 200 Mangusta cars are still out there, and how many could there be that color?

Third row: on the left is a red Classic VW that currently sits in my dad's garage. It's a 1968, and is in close to original condition, including the skinny steering wheel with the horn in the center, and those funny little wing windows that you crank open with a little lever. My dad just this year acquired it from "a little old lady" who only wanted him to give her what she'd originally paid for it in 1968.

The other photo is also from the 70's. My dad was big into off-road racing in those days, along with my brother, Steve, (that's the two of them in the photo). The dune buggies were built on VW chassis, had roll-bars added, and were pushed full-throttle over dirt roads pocked with holes and rocks. A very bumpy ride that required the wearing of kidney belts and left the riders covered in mud, dirt, sweat, and grins. My dad and brother were a tough bandido in those days.

Bottom row, on the right-hand side is my Dad's bright orange VW with flames painted on the side and a souped-up and satisfyingly noisy engine. I got to drive this car for awhile during my first year in college (in the 70's) and enjoyed the attention I got wherever I went.

Finally, bottom left-hand is my dad posing in front of the Brubaker Box, aka the Automecca Sports Van, a vehicle originally dreamed up by a guy named Curt Brubaker, and then taken in hand by my dad who worked to manufacture and sell them either fully built or as a kit. You can read more about it here. And if you scroll down to the photo of the "Volkswagen Greats" magazine article entitled "The Automecca Sports Van . . . or the Brubaker is Back?" you'll see a photo of my dad, Mike Hansen, just to the right of the title.

I guess you could say my dad's had a few cool cars in his day . . . !

Last-Minute Digi Layout for Christmas

I hurried to get this done for a client so he could have it framed and then give it to his wife for Christmas. I can usually get these collages put together pretty quickly, so that wasn't a problem. We did have to scan the bibs that he and his wife wore in the race, and then getting it printed was a slight problem because he wanted it a larger size than I can print here at home.

So I called my dependable source, Scrapbooks to Share, in Florida. Lise assured me she would get it printed and mailed out that very day, so that it would arrive at least two days before Christmas. Yeah! SBtoShare came through yet again.

Scrapbooks to Share specializes in printing digital scrapbook layouts AND will also scan your paper scrapbooks so that you'll have digital copies of them as backups, or to share. Their prices are very reasonable, their service is fast, and you can get personal service (like I did) when you need something printed in a size that is not "standard" (I needed 10 x 13). Plus, you can get your prints on high-quality photo paper, not the glossy cardstock that Kinko's and so many other services automatically give you if you ask for a print larger than 8.5 x 11.

To all my clients, colleagues, friends, and family - have a wonderful and blessed Christmas!

Baby Girl Digital Layout - sans Pink

I am in love with this baby. Just look at that sweet little face. And those eyelashes! Ok, I'm in love with all babies, especially newborns. They are simply irresistible.

This layout was inspired by April Anderton's layout in the most recent (December 08/January 09) issue of Digital Scrapbooking magazine, page 89. Love that magazine, I read it from cover to cover and am always impressed with the quality of the articles, layouts, and technique tips.

The gorgeous background paper in the layout is by the very talented Stacy of Kalo Designs. Visit her store here and her blog here.

Enjoy!

Sneak Peek - Baby Girl Album

I couldn't resist posting this layout. I'm working on a baby girl album for a new client. It's a Christmas gift for her hubby and chronicles the birth of their daughter exactly one year ago (today!). I am having such a wonderful time working with the gorgeous photos she sent to me. I guess I really have a soft spot for baby layouts!

I also just completed a 20-page photobook at KodakGallery.com for another client who requested my photobook-making service (see more details here). It was the first one I'd done at Kodak Gallery and I found their bookmaking process is not as sophiticated (yet) as many others such as Snapfish or Shutterfly. One important thing that's missing is the ability to send people an invitation to view the completed book. What's up with that? I hope the good folks at Kodak Gallery add that particular function. In my opinion, they are missing out on a lot of sales. For example, if my client sent an invitation to relatives and they viewed her book and liked it, they might order their own copy.

Those are just two of the many projects I've been working on over the last couple of weeks. I'm having a wonderful time with it all, and it just adds to the fun knowing that the completed books will be Christmas gifts!

Free Digital Scrapbooking Layout - Christmas

Here's my latest pre-made digital scrapbook page layout. A simple layout, with a classic look, perfect for "busy" photos; that is, photos with a lot of people in them, or with a lot of different colors and/or patterns, where you don't want to highlight any one part of the picture, instead you want the picture to simply stand out nicely from the page, and to be the first thing the eye is drawn to.

This layout is especially suitable for group photos taken at Christmas, like this one. The date on the layout can be modified to any year you like.

If you'd like to see your family Christmas photo in this layout email me at deborah@webajeb.com! This layout is free to you if you mention that you read my blog or that you are a subscriber to my newsletter. (If you are not yet a newsletter subscriber, visit my website and sign up at the bottom of the homepage.)

Just a few mouse-clicks on your part and you'll be the recipient of a digital scrapbook page layout ready to be slipped directly into your family album.

New Clients, New Projects, New Hope!

I had a great time at the fundraiser on Saturday. Above is a photo of my display table. A little crowded; the table was smaller than I expected, and I had a lot of layouts and albums I wanted to share. Still, it worked out fine. I had the opportunity to show my work to a number of people, pass out flyers and business cards, and talk about what digital scrapbooking is. I (still!) often forget that there are so many people who simply don't know what a digital scrapbook layout is, not to mention all the things you can do with them.

AND!!! Several people signed up to receive my newsletter and, even better, I got three new clients! That alone was worth all the work it took to put together the display. One of the new clients has already sent me her photos and I'm so excited about her project. Not just a Baby Book, it's a Labor and Delivery Book! So many ideas are already spinning around in my head and I can't wait to get started on it.

But first - Thanksgiving! I'll be taking this next week off, and enjoying time with my family. In my book, Thanksgiving is the Number One Family Holiday.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, everyone!

New Baby Layout - Digi-Scrapping Style

One of the things I love about digital scrapbooking is the way I can manipulate photos.

I can change them to black-and-white, enlarge, shrink, enhance the color and contrast, crop in creative ways, and much more. I can also apply all kinds of filters, borders, spot coloring, remove blemishes and distracting elements, combine two or more photos to get the best smile on everyone in a large group, add or remove people from a group shot....it just goes on and on.

The layout above used just one photo. I took the photo, enlarged it, changed it to black and white, and used it as the layout background. Then I used the same photo, in a smaller size, cropped it into a circle, and blurred the edges. Then I simply added the text.

It's always been one of my favorites.

Free Stuff - Digital Scrapbook Layouts

I'm giving two of these certificates away at the fundraiser on Saturday, as either door or raffle prizes (whatever the coordinators decide). They are each worth $50. I hope the winners take advantage of them; it would be a shame not to!

My display table items are just about ready. I'll take a photo of it on Saturday and post it as soon as I can.

I'll be taking a bit of a breather after Saturday, for the Thanksgiving holiday.

My first order of business on my return will be the December newsletter and the December free page layout.

Oh, you want a gift certificate, too? Sorry, they are for fundraiser participants only. However! Visit my website; there's a freebie you can pick up. Just click on the Freebies link at the top of the home page (there's a new one every month). But before you leave the home page, be sure to sign up for my monthly newsletter (scroll down to the bottom of the page); the subscribers often get special deals not available to anyone else!

Sponsor/Vendor at Mary Farmar Crafting Fundraiser

I have been wanting to do this for a long time but am only just now able to pull it all together (I hope). I'm going to be a sponsor/vendor at a crafting fundraiser! This is just a small, local event, but it will let me get my feet wet and try out various ways of displaying my products and services. Here are some of the things I'll be using:

I'll be displaying some of my 12x12 digital scrapbook layouts in frames, a framed 8.5 x 11 layout, a photo cube with 6 layouts, a Dangle by Webajeb, a slideshow of my work in a Kodak Digital Picture Frame and, of course, various albums in various sizes from 6x6 to 12x12, and including all-digital and hybrid albums. There's some work to do to get ready, but it should be fun!

This is a baby-step in the world of vendors; I have not done this before, but welcome this opportunity to try out different ways of displaying my products and services, and to learn by doing. My hope is that by next summer I'll be ready to hit some of the bigger Home & Garden shows, Farmer's Markets, Arts & Crafts Faires, etc. I know that I need to move out of my comfort zone in order to grow my business.

I'll also be giving away gift certificates, which the fundraiser staff will give away as doorprizes and drawing prizes. The proceeds of the fundraiser are to benefit Mary Farmar Elementary School in Benicia, CA., so it's well worth the cost to me. Winners of the gift certificates would simply email me one to three digital photos and I'll create a custom digital scrapbook layout suitable for framing (any size they want up to 12x12) OR they could slip it straight into whatever album or scrapbook they have.

I'm excited! If you live in or around Benicia, and would like to attend the Mary Farmar Crafting Fundraiser (for scrapbookers, sewers, quilters, beaders, knitters, etc., etc.), simply email Barbara Kephart at bkephart@comcast.net. But don't delay; space is limited!

November Means Family Photo Opps

Happy November!

I'm always excited with this month rolls around. Halloween is over, Fall has Fell, and my favorite family holidays are just around the corner.

Here is a layout I created for a Family Reunion, but that would also work GREAT for all the family photos you're sure to capture this Thanksgiving.The large spot in the middle is perfect for a group shot. Then in the smaller spots you would place individual photos of family members or friends. Here is the layout with photos included:

Of course, you could use this for any event you wish. A child's birthday party, a sporting event, weekend trip, the possibilities are endless.

I have offered this layout FREE to my newsletter subscribers (as of today) and am now also offering it to my blog readers. Just send me 9 photos and I'll pop them into the layout. Use my Webajeb Photo Dropbox (powered by yousendit.com) to easily send your photos. If you have never used my photo dropbox before please click here for detailed instructions.

I can even modify the color of the background paper to match your photos. You'll receive back (in about 4 weeks) two digital files, one suitable for printing, the other for e-mailing or uploading to the web. I can also print the layout for you at a minimal charge (see my prices here).

Don't miss this great (and FREE!) opportunity!

Halloween Layout - One of my Faves

Happy Halloween to everyone! If you like this layout, send me your favorite Halloween photo and I'll pop it in here for you (with the correct date, of course)! You pay only $4.00 postage and handling!

Photo Collages California Style

I've been going to town with the collages!

I'm working with a podiatrist to design some photo collages for his patient waiting room. Since his office is in northern California, I thought collages of some of the local sights and places of interest would be appropriate and fun for the patients to look at.

I've got ten made, and more planned. I don't think he'll use all of them, but I just can't seem to stop! I'm using my own photos, almost exclusively, so in addition to creating these for my client, I am also scrapbooking my own photos from trips that my hubby and I have taken. I can't wait to see these framed and hanging in the doctor's office, as well as smaller versions slipped into my own family album.

I'd love to know what you think. If you'd like to see more collages click here: www.webajeb.com/DigitalScrapbookPages-CollagesByWebajeb.html.

Here's another one that I like a lot:

I can make collages of places you have visited (and these look GREAT framed and hanging on the wall), so just let me know if I can create one for you. What wonderful memories.

They make great gifts, too.

Digital Scrapbooking New Baby Photos

One of my favorite scrapbooking subjects has to be new babies. I just love photos of the little beings so newly arrived from Heaven that they probably still remember what it's like. I think that's why newborn babies often look so wise, almost as though they are old instead of brand-new. They know stuff we can only imagine.

My niece recently had a baby girl and has been emailing photos. Each time a new batch arrives I quickly pop them into a collage and print the pages out for my album. I don't have a lot of time for my own scrapbooking right now so the collage templates have been working out great.

I'll be sharing more collages, with totally different photo subjects, in the next day or so. Stay tuned!

Hybrid Albums - Mixing Paper and Digital Scrapbook Layouts

If you've been hesitant to try digital layouts because you still have uncompleted traditional (paper) scrapbooks, this post is for you.

Paper scrapbook pages and digital scrapbook pages mix very nicely within the same album.

The album pictured above shows two pages from my own personal "Book of Me" album. The page on the left is made with paper supplies, the one on the right is completely digital, and they look great together!

When I switched from traditional to digital scrapbooking about two years ago I still had a dozen albums in various stages of completion. Yep, that many. Scary, I know. So, anyway, I hung on to all my paper supplies because I thought that I would eventually go back (ha ha) and finish those albums, and I thought only paper layouts would be appropriate for those albums.

Wrong. I quickly realized that because every scrapbook page stands on its own (or with its companion page, in the case of a two-page layout), it doesn't matter whether a layout is created with paper, or designed in Photoshop, they can co-exist (and get along just fine) in the same album.

So even if you are a paper scrapbooker, I can help you get caught up in your albums with custom-designed digital layouts. In any size. I can even create 11.5" by 12" layouts to fit the old-style Creative Memories album pages; you won't have to trim the edges.

What size album are you struggling to keep current? Let me help by providing custom-designed digital layouts that will fit perfectly and look great!

Digital Photo Books - Bookmaking Services by Webajeb

As mentioned in last month's newsletter (sign up here if you don't already receive it), Bookmaking Services by Webajeb is coming!

If you'd love to have one of the many different soft- or hardbound photobooks now being offered by such websites as Snapfish, Shutterfly, Ofoto, Kodak, or MyPublisher, just to name a few, but don't have the time or inclination to work your way through the creation process yourself, we'll do it for you!

We have experience in working with the various photobook services and can save you the time and frustration of learning a new program or process, not to mention the hassle of downloading yet another software program onto your computer.

However, Bookmaking Services by Webajeb needs your help. We are having trouble trying to set a reasonable price for this new service. This is where you come in.

We need volunteers to provide photos and let us go through the creation process at some of the more well-known bookmaking sites. We will create your photo book completely free, then let you know it's out there to view. Whether or not you purchase the book is totally up to you. Here are the sites you may choose from:

Snapfish.com
Picasa.com
Shutterfly.com
MyPublisher.com
KodakGallery.com
Lulu.com
Smilebooks.com
PhotobookMemories.com
Blurb.com

But, hurry and contact us with your choice, because we will create only one book at each site. Once you have chosen your site we will call you to discuss how many photos to send, and other pertinent details.

This is gonna be FUN!

The Postman Doesn't Ring Anymore

Remember these? Different colored envelopes (and any size except business #10), hand-written addresses, real stamps & postmarks? All the signs of a personal letter (or a card!) from a friend or family member.

I miss them!

I do still get a few, now and then, especially around my birthday, and I feel the same thrill as always, knowing someone cared enough to sit down and compose a note or letter to me, put it into an envelope, address and stamp it, and send it off.

What a welcome change from the junk mail, grocery store ads, and bills that normally crowd my mailbox.

I also love to send letters, but the ease of e-mail has lulled me into thinking I can stay in touch with everyone in that faster, more instant way. It's much too easy to forget the friends and family who are not "connected" via the internet. My contact with them has sadly gone downhill, and they are the very people in my life who most enjoy receiving letters! My in-laws, some of my aunts and uncles, even a few of my friends who just are not "in" to computers, still are not "plugged in."

If your situation is similar, consider eLetters by Webajeb.

Simply put, eLetters by Webajeb are your email messages transformed into actual letters delivered by the U.S. postal system.

With eLetters by Webajeb you don't have to do anything more than write an email message, include your recipient's full name and mailing address, and send it off to us at deborah@webajeb.com.

We then print your message onto stationary, fold it up, insert it into an envelope, address it (by hand!), stamp it, and take it to the post office for delivery to your recipient.

All for just $2.00 per 1- to 2-page letter (each additional page is 50 cents), including postage!

Not only that, but because this is a brand-new service, and most people may have never considered using such a service (it really is kinda out there!), I'm offering two free eLetters to each of my blog readers. This offer is good until September 30, 2008.

So, hurry, get out your address book and dust if off! Dash off an email to your loved ones and send it to us. Within just a few days your real, postal-carrier-delivered letter will be in the hands of Grandma, Uncle George, Aunt Joy, or whomever hasn't heard from you in much too long.

Simply email me at deborah@webajeb.com and include Free eLetter by Webajeb in the subject line.

Cool Collages

I've been creating collages today, with the Quick Collage Templates by Scrapbooks Etc. Here are a few.

Ocean Beach at Golden Gate State Park , California:
The historic Fisher-Hanlon House in Benicia, CA.:
The Solano County Fair in California:
Queen Wilhelmina Garden at Golden Gate Park, California:
Aren't these cool and fun? I'll be making more. I'm finding collages are perfect when I have a bunch of "general" photos of an outing or event. You know...those photos that you love, but really don't require a caption, and sometimes not even a title, because they pretty much tell the "story" on their own?

Gather up a handful of your own photos and send them off to me. I'll make you one of these lickity-split!

Variation on a Cool Digital Scrapbooking Technique

Today I worked on a two-page layout for one of my customers. Her husband built a huge truck for the purpose of "bogging" it; in other words, driving it through muddy bogs until it's entirely covered in mud! I had never heard of this - maybe it's something only done in Canada? I must say the photos sure look like fun, though!

Above is just one of the photos on the layout. I clipped the layout title right out of the photo, and I love the way it turned out. This is a variation on a technique I wrote about on my blog earlier this month.

View the finished 2-page layout on my website, www.webajeb.com. Click on the Slideshows link at the top of the home page, then scroll down and click on "Krysta's Family Album."

Sisters Layout, and Thank you, DigiTreats!

Pamela, at DigiTreats, has been slowly working her way through the alphabet and creating digital kits for each letter. I didn't stumble on her blog until she was at around letter O, but I was able to purchase the kits for "K" AND she allows commercial-use. Her kits are sooooo cute! And so much fun to use.

I did this layout for a customer with two little girls whose names both begin with the letter K. The background paper and the little "k" button are from Pamela's Skip-K-kit. The ribbon, flowers and leaves are by Mulberry Lane papers.

Perfect paper and elements for these little sweeties!

Free Scrapbook Page Layout - Digi-Style

(Digital background paper by Xandra Martin.)

This technique of "filling" a rectangle/word template with a photo is all over the digi-scrapbooking world right now, and for good reason! Look how cool it is! I just love the simple yet, oh, so eye-catching look, of this layout.

I first saw the idea in the August/September issue of "Digital Scrapbooking" magazine (created by digital artist Jenny Seiler) then, shortly after, numerous bloggers and other digital artists have jumped on the bandwagon and created templates using words from the months of the year to their kids' names. Yeah, VERY popular!

If you like it, too, here's your chance to have it customized for you! Simply send me one digital photo (or mail a printed photo and I will scan it for you--see my websitse for my mailing address), let me know what single word you would like used directly underneath the photo AND what short phrase to replace "Rock Climber." This is FREE to my blog readers during the month of August.

Hurry! It's only until the end of the month.

A Fun Laptop Crop, and some Personal Layouts

Last Saturday a friend and I attended DigitalScrapbookingPlace.com's very first laptop crop at Adobe Headquarters in San Jose, CA. It was a blast! The ladies did a GREAT job. They had a big room set up with tables for our laptops, external hard drives, etc. There were about 100 of us attending; you should have seen the tangle of power cords under the tables, ha ha!

Anyway, we all had a great time, got fed lunch and dinner and snacks, watched some demos, learned some new techniques, won lots of prizes (well, everyone else did, all I got was a mousepad!), and Best of All, for me anyway, was getting LOTS of my own, personal layouts done.

Here are some of them:My nephew, Blake. Christmas family portrait. Digi-paper and elements by Claudi Designs. In my backyard.At the Dixon May Fair in 2007. Yes, that's me eating, eating, eating, junk food! (For more on my junk food habits check out this post on my personal blog.) Paper and elements from Club Scrap's Farmer's Market kit.

My cat, Jack, who loves water and bubbles, and likes to sit on the edge of the tub while I take a bath. Paper is Club Scrap; I can't remember off-hand where the rick-rack came from, darn it.
This year's Torchlight Parade.
Sis-in-law Maureen with her first grandbaby; three of my nieces and the same baby (yep, it's Blake again)! More Club Scrap - I love that club!
Michael, visiting from China in January.

These layouts were all over the board with regard to subjects and dates. Some of them were half-done so it was great to get them finished. I just worked on whatever photos grabbed my attention that day, and it was very freeing and relaxing and fun.

I even sent off an order for a dozen 12x12 prints of MY layouts to go in MY albums!

Tomorrow I'll be back to work on client layouts which are also fun, rewarding, and satisfying, just in a different way. I'm so thankful to my customers for their loyalty and their on-going business. Except for taking the month of June off, I have had steady work all year and my business is growing, and for that I am very grateful.

Digital Scrapbooking for You - But first you have to be able to find me!

I've been doing some research on optimizing my website, www.webajeb.com. How was I to know there's so much to learn?? I have had to learn terms like "keywords," "XML site map," "title tags," and "H1 headers," not to mention that I'm going to have to start tweaking the HTML code of my site. Yeah, the HTML code. We won't even go into that!

But, at the end of it all, I should have a website that is more frequently returned in the results list when people are searching for a service such as mine. That's been a big mystery. How to get noticed on the internet.

It's important because, so far, 90% of my clients have found me on the internet. So I have been studying up on what search terms people are using, how often, and how much competition there is for each term. Whew!

Not an exact science, by any means and, like the internet itself, it changes frequently. Someday I hope to have someone else do this stuff for me, like when my business has grown to the point where I have enough work to keep me busy 40 hrs/week. Until then, the extra hours I have available will be spent tweaking the html code of my website pages and believe me, I'd much rather be designing scrapbook layouts! Nothing's drier and more tedious than the html code behind a web page! If you are curious about what it looks like, go to my website, www.webajeb.com, do a right-click on the home page and then choose "View Source."

You'll be sorry you did. Welcome to my world!

Digital Scrapbook Layout - 'Lil Buckaroo

It's been awhile since I did any 8.5" x 11" layouts so it was fun to work within a different shaped space. Here is a layout I did for a new client. Her little daughter was helping out at "Branding Day" at a neighbor's ranch. Isn't that the sweetest little buckaroo??? I'm having so much fun with the photos. Next I'll add the kids' (and Dad's) names in the lower left-hand corner and it will be done.

The background paper and metal cowboy star are Club Scrap (Wild Wild West kit), and the ribbons are from "Real Ribbons for Digital Scrapbookers" by Heirloom Scrapbooks. Font is Captain Howdy.

Photos - Pairing up the Old & New

It's always fun to come across photos, like the two above, that so well illustrate family traits. The boys in these two pictures are cousins, but these pictures were taken 20 years apart. Yet, look how similar they are! Their knees and legs are the same, the way they stand when they first get out of a swimming pool, even the way their hair sticks up in the back.

They are obviously related!

Do you have photos like these, that were taken years apart, or of remote family members, that illustrate a family trait or similarity? I'd love to see them!

ShaZAM'n my Photos

Here's why I love blogs...people share so much COOL STUFF!

The English Geek wrote today about a new, quick & easy Photoshop technique that she'd found at Jessica Sprague's blog. Jessica calls it "ShaZAM" and it really makes the colors POP!

I decided to try it right away, on the above photo of my cousin, Stacy's, youngest son, Nick, during a swimming lesson. This next photo shows the result:
Wow!! The funny thing is that I thought that the original was a perfectly fine photo, but the enhanced version has much better color and contrast. I love this technique and am going to make a Photoshop Action for it becauseI'm going to be using it a LOT. My custom-designed digital scrapbook clients are going to love it, too.

Thx, Jessica!