~ We wish to let everyone know that our RAKScraps Blog is now live! Each day of the week belongs to a different RAKScraps CT Team, and they will give you the latest from their group! So be sure to check the blog and read what's happening at RAKScraps!

Monday: Events Team will let you know about current Challenges, Chats and Events.

Tuesday: Sponsor Team will share news about the Designer Highlight Sponsors. There's always lots going on in the Sponsor Forum!

Wednesday: Newsletter Team will give you the latest news, and even introduce some new topics of interest.

Thursday: Moderator Team will let you know about any pressing issues at RAKScraps, how you can help us eliminate spammers, and keep our boards friendly and clean.

Friday: Elements Team will share previews of their CT RAKS, and let you know about the Mega Kit.

Weekend Update will be written by the staff and will highlight the week in review as well as giving some sneak previews to upcoming events.

~ The entire July Mega Kit will be available from the 15th of the month until the end of the month. The July Mega Add-On Kit will be available from the 15th of June until the 14th of July at the ScrapWow.com Store.

~ And speaking of the July Mega Kit... RAKScraps is happy to announce a new Mega Kit Guest Designer Program. Dianne Rigdon has agreed to be our first Guest! We have many opportunities for Designers to participate at RAKScraps. If you would like to sign up to be a Mega Kit Guest Designer or are interested in any of our other Promotional Opportunities, please email us at: Admin@RAKScraps.com

~ The Quick Page Challenge (also known as the "Exchange Club") will now be offering their Quick Pages to the members of RAKScraps starting on the 1st of every month!! This has been extremely successful, as thousands of our Members have come in to enjoy these Quick Pages. Please remember that the RAKScraps June Mega Add-On Kit is still available and it coordinates with the June Quick Page Challenge sets. You can use your Quick Pages in our new "Use Your Quick Pages Challenge".

~ The Members Mega Kit Challenge is now located within the Scrap RAKS Forum with the new Quick Page Challenge. There are a lot of wonderful gifts for you in there - but you'll need to be logged in to see them. June's Challenge runs through July 14th. July's Challenge will run from July 15th - August 14th.

~ The RAKFile Challenge will now be a Special Event every month. It will be a different challenge hosted by a different member of the CT. So you'll want to check and see what's being created this month! Our new CT Member, AmyS_BRP, is hosting this Month: "Scrap Your Hero Challenge".

~ Bunchie brings us a July Posting Challenge - with a fun new twist! Just post in now with your current post count and start posting! You'll want to read the Challenge, too, though, the new twist is featured there! Remember - leaving "Love" in the Gallery is a great way to get your post count up, too!

• DeDe Smith, a Designer Highlight Sponsor this month will be hosting a Chat and Challenge on July 10th - 9pm EDT!

• Shelly brings us a great Mega Kit Challenge. Here you'll use the June Mega Kit and June Mega Add-On Kit to create your own layouts. We love seeing what you create! (June 15- July 14)
  
  
• Candace brings us a wonderful Sketch Challenge this month! (now running July 1-July 31)
  
  
• Find creative ways to add journaling to your layouts - this month in Angela's Journaling Challenge. This challenge now starts on the 1st!
  
  
• This month our own Diana has a great Elements Challenge for you.  This is a great way to experiment and try something you may not have before! (July 1- July 31)

• Lady Jane brings us a muscial way to enjoy scrapbooking - with the Lyrics Challenge.
  

• Enableem has a great idea for her Ad Challenge. (July 1- July 31)

• KayKay and Barbara encourage you to use your Quick Pages in our new "Use Your Quick Pages Challenge". (July 1- July 31)
  

• Candace is creating a new calendar page every month in the Calendar Challenge.
  
  
• And there are so many more Challenges at RAKScraps - please join in the fun!

Shannon Fahrnbach has a special treat for our readers. Click on this link to
download a Mini Kit just for you.

The Designer Highlight Forum will now Feature a Special Challenge. Use this Mini Kit in a layout and upload to the Shannon Fahrnbach Gallery! There will be a Prize awarded to a lucky participant at the end of the month.

RAKScraps Creative Team Members say:

Shannon Fahrnbachelle - Scrapbasics Overlays
"The scrap "basic" label is on the money because these are like your digital chalk/ink set: if you need to grunge up a photo, chalk out an edge, you name it, these are the most straightforward way to accomplish that digitally." - Angela

Shannon Fahrnbach – On the Edge: "I have always loved the look of a crumpled edge when you're working with paper, and these elements give you the ability to do it with digital! It looks so great and gives a very realistic look to your pages." - Jen

Shannon Fahrnbach - Gettin Dirty
"Gettin Dirty" by Shannon Fahrnbach is packed with colours that cover a wide spectrum and work well together. I like both grunge and crumpled, and this kit offers many papers and elements containing those textures. There are many elements - including tags, tape, buttons, ribbons, and frames - and they compliment the kit well." - Dara

Come read more about Shannon Fahrnbach in this Forum, and see layouts created with Shannon Fahrnbach kits in her Gallery!

Your Challenge, if you choose to accept it: 

Each month the RAKScraps Creative Team will be featuring a new challenge to be introduced in the RAKFile Newsletter. This month Amy (AmyS_BRP) is bringing us a "Scrap Your Hero Challenge".

July's Newsletter Challenge "Scrap Your Hero"

In the USA, the 4th of July is a much celebrated holiday. Many families have a member or know someone who is in the Military. These men and women are considered heroes to many. I thought it would be a great idea to do a challenge where you scrap a layout about a personal hero in your life. Journaling should entail who they are and why they are a Hero to you.

Your Layouts should have:
Your Personal Hero & Journaling explaining why.

Participants will receive the Hero's mini kit by Amy Sikarskie.

Upload your layout to the RAKFile Challenge Gallery.  Don't forget to post on the RAKFile Challenge Forum and link to your layout! This RAKFile Newsletter Challenge will run from July 1 - 31.

Templates - Examples of Usage

by Dara Golden

"Using templates is cheating," commented a friend of mine. "There's no thinking, other than which papers to use. Everything is preset. I won't use them." For a number of months, I thought that too. Going through a scrapbook magazine, I'd read an article praising templates and, to be honest, I couldn't see why. They seemed to repeat what my friend had said - add papers and a photo and, voila, you've got a layout - simple, no thought required! So, why am I writing an article about using templates? Because I now "get" them. As I explained to my friend, "Templates are like a recipe. If you don't have carrots, use something else. Don't like cumin, omit it. Like chicken, add more. Templates are a base, a starting point, but it doesn't mean you can't modify the base to create your own final product." 

For this tutorial, I wanted to use the same photo for all of the examples. I've read template articles where different photos were used for the layouts, and that seemed to diminish the point of the article [as colors of a winter layout may be quite different from a sunset layout]. Using the same photo emphasizes the "power" of the template - same photo, different looks using the same base. I also decided to use the same template as a base and show how by modifying a template you can get many different looks.

Background Information

Templates are layer-based files. Upon opening up a template file, there are different layers for each item - the background is its own layer, the photo is on its own layer, etc. There may be as few as two layers [background and photo], but oftentimes there are more [such as background, photo, frame, ribbon, and shadow]. Template layers are often shades of grey - a frame may be light grey, while the staples are dark grey. This makes it easier to see the different elements in the template. Some templates have individual files for each layer [stitching.png, brad.png, etc.], while others have all the layers in one file. Often, but not always, template downloads include a tutorial on how to use them. For more information on using templates in different programs, see "How to use Layered Layout Templates" from the Sept 06 issue of RAKFile (http://www.rakscraps.com/newsletters/09-06/RAKScraps_NL_09-06.pdf).

Layout Number 1

In this layout, I wanted to emphasize the bright colors in the clothing. I decided to use papers from just one kit - to show you don't need to have a big stash to use templates. For me, this layout shouts "bright colors! child having fun" and the tag explains what is going on.

Layout Number 2

For this layout, I wanted to emphasize the "rock" part of the photo. I used a rocky overlay atop some grey papers. This layout required a number of papers and effects to get the blending I wanted. I found some rock elements and used those for the stars. I'm not sure I like this as much as the first layout, but the photo's background is emphasized. This layout has a more "serious" feel, although the child appears to be having fun.

Layout Number 3

Here I rotated the layout 90 degrees clockwise and then flipped it upside down. By doing this, some of the elements were difficult to use in their flipped and rotated positions. Thus, I moved the ribbon to the edge, moved the tag, and made the photo vertical. The photo is flipped to be pointing to the left, but is the same photo. Once again, I decided to emphasize the clothing of the child, again using one kit. While I like the horizontal feel of this layout, limiting myself to just the elements in the original template makes this layout seem empty to me. While the eye flows from photo to tag to stars, it lacks something tying the layout together.

Layout Number 4

For this layout, I decided to remove the stars and the tag. I found this word art, and decided to make that the focal point of the layout, as it went well with the event. The word art was part of a kit, so I used papers from the kit for this layout. I added stitching from other kits - along with the swirls in the red sections. This layout has a different feel from the others, one that picks up the red from the clothing, but seems a bit more "mature" than playful.

Conclusion

Templates are a base to start your pages from. They are not written in stone, but are more “idea sparkers”. Have fun with your template and be prepared to improvise. If you don't like an element, feel free to remove it. If you don't like where an element is placed, move it. Feel free to use a template "as is" or have fun playing with them. Download a template and start playing with colors, elements, and papers and have fun. The great thing about templates is that if you do something and don't like it, the undo command is just a click away.

1. Your name and the reason you chose your RAKScraps screen name? (OK, so some of them are obvious)

My name is Candace Duffy Jones. My RAKScraps name, aunrea, was a name I created several years before I joined. I was trying to create something unique that no one else would be using.


2. What graphics program do you use the most? 

I use Photoshop CS2. I have been using Photoshop since Photoshop 5.5 which I started using when I was in High School and I took my first Graphic Design class.



3. What inspires you to do a layout or kit creation?  

A photo, a color, an idea. Anything and everything inspires me. But mostly my son.

4. How long have you been designing?   

I started designing freebies in January of 07. I started designing professionally in October 07

5. What's your favorite tip for new digital scrapbookers?

Don't let yourself get overwhelmed. Don't worry about make the best layouts, like the ones featured in magazines and on websites. Just have fun and always remember the memories are more important than the style.

6. What do you think is your best work?

LOL that is not a question I can easily answer. I am always criticizing my own work. But I guess maybe my new kit Teen Rocker, but then my newest kit is usually my best work.

7. What was the hardest thing to make a layout for and why?

My hardest layout is the one I made for this interview! I am not very good about scrapbooking about myself. I feel that all my layouts and other designs say more about me than my layouts about me. It was so hard I ended up using someone else template to make the layout!

8. What is your position at RAKscraps?

I am on the Elements Team and the Events Team. I host the Sketch Challenge and the Keep Up to Date Calendar Challenge.

9. What brought you to RAKscraps? What do you love the most about us?

I found RAKScraps when I started looking into digital scrapbooking. I have stayed ever since. I love the Mega Kit, the challenges, and the friendly atmosphere.

10. Tell us about your family and job outside the home, if any.

 
I am married and I have a 2-year-old son, Liam. I love both very much! My husband and I have been married for 5 years. He just recently left the Air Force and is now working as a Weather Observer in New Hampshire.
 
I get to stay home with Liam each day. He is amazing. He knows his alphabet and numbers! I am currently teaching him to read. It seems that each day he teaches me something new. He is also a large part of my inspiration.
 
I also do some web designing (from home). I love designing websites as much as I love digital scrapbooking. I also enjoy doing all sorts of arts and crafts.

1. What is your real name and why did you pick your screen name?

My real name is Michaele (pronounced like Michelle) and my screen name is jburkhart. Why? Not really sure - used it in one place and being a creature of habit, it just became my screen name everywhere!

2. What graphics program do you use?

I use Paint Shop Pro X, but would love to try my hand at Photo Shop someday.

3. What type of layouts do you like doing the most?

I love to do layouts mostly of my family, especially of my two girls! Style wise I would say that I am very eclectic in my designing of them. Sometime I like clean and simply, other times I like lots of elements and photos - just depends on what I am scrapping and my mood! I tend to use one kit per layout, rarely mixing up designers and kits.

4. What do you think is your best layout?

It is hard to choose just one, but this one stands out as one of my favorites:

Ready... Aim... Fire

5. What inspires you the most when doing a layout?

The colors in the photo inspire me. I then go on an EHD hunt to find the perfect kit that would go with that photo or photos! Then I just have fun putting the papers in different places until I like it and then move on to the elements! When that is all done I will finish it up with the journaling!

6. How long have you been digi-scrapping? Did you ever paper scrap?

Ten years ago I had started to get into paper scrapping and had lots of supplies to work with, but found that time was limited and never really got the chance to make any albums - only a few pages were ever completed that way! Then several years ago I played with some smaller scrap programs to make simple collages for work. While home on vacation during Christmas of 2005 I discovered the many possibilities of digi-scrapping and then purchased Paint Shop Pro X. After that there was no stopping me and I have been scrapping almost every day since then! I am sure my husband regrets buying the program for me now - lol!

7. Do you use templates (sketches) or your own thing on your layouts?

I do both. I love trying new things and templates/sketches offer me the opportunity to try new looks and styles. I also enjoy making them and host a monthly template challenge at a different site!
 
8. What suggestion would you give to a new digi-scrapper?

Have fun learning whatever program you are working with. Have fun joining in all the many different challenges that are out there. Always remember to give credit to the designers whose kit you are using. Having a large external hard drive is a great investment, but don't forget to back up all your stuff because you never know what could happen!
 
9. Tell us about your family and if you work outside the home.

I have been married for over 14 years and have two daughters that are 9 years apart! I have worked outside the home as a Child Development Assistant/ Preschool teacher up until two years ago when I decided to be a SAHM for awhile! My oldest just graduated 8th grade and is getting ready to go into high school, while my youngest will be starting kindergarten this August! I have three indoor cats (one of which has been in poor health the last couple of months, but he is hanging in there) and several outside cats - I love cats!

10. How long have you been a member at RAKScraps and what do you like the most about our community?

I have been a member since January 2006. I have always loved this community for all the fun challenges, friendly members and great LO inspirations. I wish there was more time in the day to participate more, but being a SAHM mom means taking care of the children first - my youngest will be going to kindergarten this August, so I am looking forward to being able to join in more then!

REMEMBER - Shannon will be hosting a "Scrapper's Spotlight Challenge" featuring this month's Member Spotlight, Michaele! Come on by and chat with Michaele and Shannon, and look through Michaele's Gallery for inspiration for a Scraplift!

Please come back and check out July's Mega Kit.  It will be released on the 15th of July, and will be available until the 31st.

Our August Designer Highlight Sponsors are:

       Tracie Murphy                       Kim Christensen