Digital Scrapbooking Blog and Scrapbook Inspiration
from DesignerDigitals

Have you ever tried to define art?  Webster definition is ” the conscious use of skill and creative imagination especially in the production of aesthetic objects”. I define art as a form of communication. Art jounaling is a form of communication. It is a vessel which can give that inner voice a form, a color, a design. On days when you have a lot in your heart, but you are having a hard time making sense out of all the emotions - that’s when you sit down with an empty new page in your Photoshop - and you start to pour those emotions out on the page.
Art journaling - is a way for you to communicate your feelings. Uncencored, without restrictions, without fear. Don’t be afraid to be judged, because in the end - you decide whether you show this page to the world, or if it stays on your computer. The lesson here is - learn how to use this free space for yourself. Not to scrap, not to document, but to communicate.
Welcome to a new round of art journaling! 

A while back I visited the Musem of Art and Science in Milan Italy, where there is a very interesting exhibition about Leonardo di Vinci. I was struck with this prolific, intelligent man’s work, and I was fascinated with his journals. Yes, I believe they were art journals. So this is where I want to go today. To get inspiration from the master. Let his works inspire you to start your own art journal. We do it the digital way and we do it with all the wonderful utensils we have available for us right here at Designer Digitals .  If you would like to share your piece of art with us, please post in our wonderful Art Journal gallery.
I am always thankful for all you trusty followers of the art journal challenge and I welcome contributions from those of you who are new to this!

Hi, everyone.  Janet Long here.  This year for Valentine’s Day, my three married daughters and I decided to do a Valentine decoration exchange.  We each made some kind of decoration and made enough for all four of us.  Then we mail them out to each other.  I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my decorations from my girls at this very moment!  One of the decorations that I made for my girls is this “Love Sign.”  After designing the sign, I cut out the letters separately and sewed them to some chipboard so that they would lay nice and flat.  Then I clip them to some magazine file boxes with bull dog clips.  Another idea is to attach magnets to the bull dog clips and put the signs on a magnet board.  It is a pretty simple and fun project.  If you make any Valentine’s Day decorations, please be sure to post them in the Hybrid Scrapbooking and More gallery for all of us to see and admire.  Thanks!

Here is a copy of the digital files:

Here is a list of the products I used:
Letter Box Love Kit
Carded Stacks No. 01
Letter Box Clusters No. 05 Brushes and Stamps
Assorted Tapes No. 03
Carded Stacks No. 01
Game Cards: Love
Wooden Alphabet No. 07
Christmas Postcard Journalers No. 01
Passionaire BrushSet
Posted Valentines No. 02 Postage Stamps
In Stitches: Hearts No. 01
Collageable Photo Frames No. 03
Metal Rimmed Glitter Alphabet: Red No. 01
Staple Its!
Gator Crossing Element Pack
Wooden Alphabet No. 03
Weathered Wooden Word Strips No. 02
Digitally Pressed Petals No. 05
Mixed Stamped Titles Brushes and Stamps No. 03
Vintage Flashcard Alphabet No. 02
Collageable Photo Frames No. 02

Okay this is just about your last ‘nudge’ for Valentine’s Day!
What are you making and creating digitally for Feb 14th?
Take a good look through our gallery and be inspired. Books and cards, layouts and stories..

I feel like I have barely had a moment yet this year, and so I opted out of the pressure of a book for my long-suffering hubby and have created a special card/picture instead.
I’m showing you, but don’t show him yet okay? Okay!

I used Journals No. 03, Heart loopdaloops No. 02, elements from With Love layered template pack No. 01, and prompted ticket journalers; Love,

Actually, it wasn’t just the ‘pressure’ of creating a book that stopped me, it was the shocking realisation of exactly how few pictures there are of us together.  Fourteen years together and I can rustle up round about nine pictures of us together.
Single figures.
A plea to family hasnt so far exactly raised that number either.  I know neither of us like being ‘that side’ of the camera but wow. It was saddening to discover.
OH yes we’re changing that this year..

How about you? Is there someone missing from your photos because they’d rather not be in them? Are YOU missing? 

Take the photo. 

Take your picture, their picture, and to heck with the reasons why not. I can assure you, however bad you think you look now, or they think they look, in ten years time you/they will wish for the very photos you’re about to take. 

Lets call it a little Valentine’s Day gift to ourselves shall we? And lets put the missing person back in our layouts.

The creativity of the designers here at Designer Digitals never ceases to amaze me. That’s what struck me when I first saw Katie’s Laughter Layered Template and her series of stuffed frames and journalers. In the template, the tactile quality of the photos tucked behind the patterned paper is so appealing, so versatile, and so much fun to use.

Paula (PaulaSG) used shots of the Las Vegas night lights to fill the frames on her page and then backed them up with a large blended picture of part of the Strip. The glittery title and the brushwork are perfect accents for her layout.

Credits: Laughter Layered Template, Cootchie Coo Solids Paper Pack, Artfully Intense Paper Pack, Digital Poetry: Dates, Graphic Pop Edgers No. 03 Brushes and Stamps, Metal Rimmed Glitter Alphabet: Pink No. 01, Seasoned Dates No. 01 Brushes and Stamps, Animal Park Solids Paper Pack

Carol’s (carollee) page is a tribute to the women in her life, and I love the delicate pinks and greens she chose to complement her pictures. The line of stitched hearts underscores the feelings expressed in her journaling.

Credits: Laughter Layered Template, Vintage Book Colors: Reds No. 01 Paper Pack, In Stitches: Hearts No. 01, Brushed Alphabet No. 03, Journal Strips No. 01, Nana’s Buttons, Petit Jacques Kit, SprayPaint No. 02 BrushSet, Trim Its!: Eyelet Trims

I must have been channeling Paula as I worked on my layout because I also used pictures of the lights along the Strip in Las Vegas for my page. I wasn’t entirely happy with the quality of my pictures so making them small was a plus for me.

Credits: Laughter Layered Template, Colored Cardboard: Blues No. 01, Lady Luck Photo Masks No. 01 Brushes and Stamps, Weathered Wooden Word Strips No. 01, Messy Stamped Alphabet No. 06 Brushes and Stamps Value Set, Little Snips Alphabet: Blue, Beach Huts Mini Kit, ArtPlay Palette MiniKit No. 11, O.M.G. PageSet, Stitched by Anna White No. 08, Fireworks Brushes and Stamps No. 02, By the Sea Paper Pack, Fasten Its, Snow Melt Paper Pack

Are there pictures on your hard drive that need to be tucked into this template? Pick it up for 30% off and post your page in the Template Challenge Gallery so we can leave you some love.

It’s Thrifty Thursday at DesignerDigitals where we have a brand new item priced at just $ 99 cents and 384 items marked down 30%. These specials only last until 6am EST on Friday morning so don’t miss out.