Making digital papers and embelliishments

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Making digital papers and embelliishments

Can someone tell me how digital papers and embellishments are made? Does it take special equipment or skills? Thanks!!

Hi Brenda. I'm not an expert, so I will let others embellish on my humble comments.

You will have to have a software program on your computer in order to create papers and embellishments (or elements). There are several different kinds of programs available, and of different price levels too. I use Photoshop. Of that specific software, there is "Photoshop Elements" and then there are other, more complicated levels of Photoshop as well such as "CS6". There are designers that use other kinds of software, such as GIMP.

I'm glad that you are interested in getting started! I think that you will find the work very satisfying, and the forums here very helpful.

Papers can be made using a number of techniques:

  • recoloring a photograph of a piece of wall or paper
  • using overlays that someone else has made
  • photographing or scanning hand-drawn or painted artwork
  • using brushes/tubes for whatever graphics program you're using
  • drawing/painting them on the computer using a mouse or graphics tablet
  • using shapes and brushes to create repeating patterns
  • using element shapes to create patterns

Elements (embellishments) can be made by:

  • recoloring and texturing element templates that other designers have made
  • removing the background from photographed items (good for realistic-looking elements)
  • scanning hand-drawn items and removing the background around them
  • using brushes for stamped elements
  • using shapes, art brushes, and/or the pen tool to draw your own using the mouse or a graphics tablet

You'll want some sort of software that can handle layers. Photoshop is the big-name program in professional graphics work, but it's got a relatively high price tag. Photoshop Elements is the light version of it, and is usable for design, but there are a couple of things that would be really useful that are only found in the full version. Paint Shop Pro is another program with similar capabilities, and there are some people who design using it. I've personally created elements in ArtRage, then pulled them into another program for final cleanup and saving with transparent backgrounds. Some people create entirely in Illustrator, which is a vector-based cousin to Photoshop. And if budget is a consideration, you can always use GIMP, which is an entirely free, open-source program that can do 95% of what the full version of Photoshop can do, though its menu system is a little less intuitive (mostly due to Photoshop and Paint Shop Pro having copyrights/patents on their menu systems and GIMP needing to avoid copyright violations).

If you're looking to get started on it, I'll recommend making some papers to match a blog train palette sometime--use some of the overlays available here to make some solids first, then try one of the layered overlays to create a patterned print. Try combining existing overlays to create something new and unique. Then try making your own patterned paper from a doodle, or using brushes to create an artsy, mixed-media appearance.

Once you're comfortable with papers and how to use blend modes, try your hand at elements. Those can be as simple as recoloring existing images, clipping papers to PNG shapes, or erasing the background around a simple photographed frame or vintage card. On the more complex end, you can cut pine branches out of the background or draw/paint any item you want.

It's not terribly difficult, if you're already doing digital scrapbooking, but it does take time to learn all the skills needed to make stuff that looks as awesome as some of the big-name scrapbook designers. It's totally worth it, though, when you can just photograph something you can't find anywhere as an element and cut it out of the background, then recolor it to match the kit you're using!

Holly, you are my hero. Great information for Brenda!

l'll HAVE to come back to this post. Holly, TY

I use Photoshop Elements 11, plus a program called FotoSketcher, which manipulates images (including photos) so that they look like drawings or paintings. It's free to download, but you can make a donation if you find it useful. Like Holly said, it's a good idea to start small, with some papers for a blog train. I highly recommend trying your hand at designing - personally, I love it so much that I think if I was a young person just starting out, I would definitely train as a graphic designer. (I really feel as if digital scrapbook designing is what I was meant to do with my life!) Since I started designing, my elements knowledge and skills have grown so much that I'm doing things now that I never believed I would ever be able to do - but I feel as if I have just scratched the surface of what the software can do, and I'm learning something new every day!

Holly gave great information! I have, and use, Photoshop CS5 because I needed it for college. I really like it!

However, I do NOT like, or appreciate that PS is now subscription-based for the newest version. So, I, because I have a Mac, recently bought Affinity Photo by Serif. They recently also made available a version for Windows. The full version, which costs about $50.00 American, is, I'm thinking, very, very similar to the subscription Photoshop CC! All that for a LOT less than PS, and YOU own it!

I'll have to test out the Windows beta, Candee--thanks for the heads-up to it!

You are very welcome, Holly! Have fun with it!

If you're just getting started I would recommend Serif Drawplus, its really easy to use and a lot cheaper too!

This is all very helpful thank you ladies for sharing your knowledge!