Happy Friday everyone!  Jenn here and I would like to share with you one of my favorite places to find inspriration. I love to go through all kinds of magazines and look through all the great ads! Sometimes I love the arrangement of elements on the ad or sometimes a great color combo speaks to me.

Here is an ad I found recently.

And here is the simple layout I came up with.

It really is a great way to come up with ideas especially if you are in a creative rut! I hope you will give it a try!

Have your ever wondered how people get great looking photos even if they aren’t professional photographers?  Well, there is a little secret I want to let you in on!  There are these wonderful things called ‘actions’ that help you appear to be a much better photographer than you are!  Actions can be found all over the Internet – and the different kinds are staggering!  Some of my favorites are black & white and vintage looks.  They are easy to install in your photo editing software.  And they aren’t tricky to use- just a few simple clicks!  Here are some examples: (my actions are from EZ Actions)

Original photo:   It is so red – the coloring is quite bad!

Photo with Platinum action:  The entire photo changed!

Original photo:

Photo with Sepia Action:

Original photo:

Photo with Contra Pop Action:  subtle but fun difference!

I challenge you to buy an action or two- they are very affordable!  Just play around and have fun!

~Danielle

Over the years since I started scrapbooking my style has changed many times.  When I first started, like most people, it was just a matter of a few stickers, maybe a border and a title.  Of course then after finding all the online websites and galleries you start trying to find your style.  That in itself can be a HUGE process.   So over the years I come to realize that I am pretty much a simple scrapper.  I do like to throw in different things as they are available but for the most part, I want to show off my photos by keeping it simple.  Here are a few suggestions to help you in keeping the “Less is more” style.

1.  Don’t be afraid of white space, it is your friend!

2. You don’t have to over embellish to make your page look great.

3.  Your title can be something super simple or a long title that becomes your embellishment on the page.

4.  Using one photo is OK.

5.  You can place your focus in one place on your page.

6.  Place your photo and embellish around it.

OK, now that I’ve given you a few tips and examples, make sure you go try it! Simple scrapbooking can become addicting and freeing!  Happy scrappin!!
–Anita