Commercial Use Blog Train, what do you think?

17 posts / 0 new
Last post
Commercial Use Blog Train, what do you think?

Hi everyone,

We want to bring some more action to this thread and see more designers to join us in the fun. And we are talking about different ideas how to do it.

What do you all think about starting a monthly Commercial Use Blog Train? It would be on the 15th of each month. You will be given a theme and color palette on the 20th of each month. and on the 15th next month we will have the final train list here in the forum.

What are your thoughts? And if you have any ideas how we could improve and bring more designers to join us post them here in the thread.

Hello Ania! I agree to make a Commercial Use Blog Train, and it would be a good idea to make a "Blog Train Template": each designer will have it offering their own kit and could provide links of the rest of the designer kits, so that a person visiting one of the blogs could be able to download the rest just by clicking the link...

Or your idea is to host the whole here at pixelscrapper, Ania??

Let's wait what the other designers think!

The idea is that everyone hosts their challenge on their own blog but the main list of participants would be here in the forum. Exactly how we do it for the regular blog train, the difference is that we make commercial use freebies. Also for the CU train, you would make one or two things, you don't have to create a big pack like we do for the trains (unless you want to). But i think it would be best to focus on quality, not quantity.

I'm up for this as an ongoing monthly train! I like the 1-2 things idea for this, especially if we get a dozen people creating for it each month.

Some ideas for individual quantities (choose just one for the month's contribution!):
- 2-3 overlays/single-color paper patterns
- 1-2 layered paper patterns
- 2-3 extracted element templates (color or grayscale)
- 1-2 frames
- 1-3 layered element templates, depending on size/complexity
- 1-2 journal card templates
- 1 stacker template or layout template
- 1 timeline cover template
- 2-3 word art

Quality is definitely what will make a CU train popular.

These ideas are great Holly I will definitely use them in the future if e end up doing CU blog trains.

Now I understand, thank you Ania! And I agree with you: it is better quality than quantity.

Holly, your idea is perfect!

Only one thing: we could avoid people repeating things? I mean that we can end with a kit with lots of flowers and just one ribbon, for instance...

Sonia, maybe we could do an artsy papers train or a "beach" elements train and have everyone make the same thing?

Alternatively, if we really want to avoid repeats, we could do a rotation where if your name starts with A-E you make papers and F-I make flowers and J-L make theme elements and M-P make ribbons, etc., which would change up for the next month. My biggest worry with that is that I don't want to risk stifling someone's creativity--maybe I'd be assigned to make ribbons one month but have ideas for fantastic theme elements.

As far as a distinct blog train preview, I'll see about maybe creating a CU train template based on the PixelScrapper preview template.

Holly, the idea of doing a rotation could be a good idea: I know that there are designers who are better making flowers (for example) and they could be assigned to make ribbons, but this is a great chance for them to improve in those things they are not so good!

Don't you agree? It happens to me here: the more challenges I make, the most I learn smiley

I also agree about creating a CU train Template using the one of PixelScrapper as a reference, it will give a "more professional" touch to the Blog Train.

Oh! I forget to tell you something: sometimes designers like me use the papers created to make elements, so what do you think about telling people about deadlines dates??

The idea of challenging the designers is good and that is why we have the challenges.

Blog trains are for the designers to show what they do best so they can choose themselves what they are going to create. Each Train will have a theme, so the elements/papers have to match the theme. So if there is a train for Flowers well everyone will make flowers, but the awesome thing about it is that there is never enough flowers, and everyone has a different style so for anyone who comes to see what you made it is a chance to test out your best work and then come back and get/buy more if they like it.

I hope this clarifies the idea behind the train a bit.

We could easily do either a subject theme like beach or Halloween and make papers and elements related to the subject, or do an item-type theme like flowers or foliage or ribbons or tags or textures.

I'd love to see us work through some of the patron requests if we do subjects--there are requests there for backyard play items, cowboy/cowgirl, bath time, Gypsy, funeral, autism/Aspergers, marching band...any of those could make for a great CU train, as they're less-common kit themes. I'm not saying we shouldn't do more-common themes, too, but the less-common themes haven't been done to death already. We could also do seasonal subjects a few months ahead of "prime time", so that designers can get the CU items they need for their seasonal kits--like a Christmas CU train in October when they're starting to think about their Christmas kits, or springtime flowers in January.

That sounds great!!

Holly that is a great idea, and I will definitely look through the patron requests and incorporate them in our train and challenges.

I'd definitely be up for this one.

Sounds fun! It's been a few years since I've done any designing. I was a member of RAK Scraps and really enjoyed helping the other designers with the monthly kit.

Please send me the details...

Any updates on this? I think this could be really cool, especially if we only focus on making a few items each! I'm not sure what I'd be good at necessarily, but I'd have a whole month to learn and create my couple of items! smiley

Yes, I will set up the first blog train thread on the 20th of this month smiley which will be in a few days.