It's a New Year and time for some new adventures!
Masked Lady Rubber Stamp from 100 Proof Press
Markers and air tool used to create background
Glitter glue for some added sparkle
The text was superimposed over scanned image using Photoshop
and I added color to her bodice, arm and face in Photoshop as well
(A bit of mixing the new with the old to start off 2011 on the right note).
2011 has begun with a slow start for me. I've been tied up putting away and cleaning up from Christmas 2010; then I woke up on Jan 4th (My Birthday) to discover my computer had died during the night.
My home office is now a mess but Happy Birthday to me - I have a new computer. My old files have been recovered and place on the new machine and I'm learning how to use Windows 7. This will be a bit of a trial for me over the next week or so till I get acclimated but it has also inspired me to focus on creating digital art now that I have this more powerful machine and a huge 23" monitor.
I started to play around a bit with Photoshop at the end of 2010; so for 2011 my goal is to actually learn Photoshop and create a lot more art with it. I'm enthralled by the versatility of digital design and want it to become a viable tool in my artists pallet. (I'll share what I learn along the way.)
I figure the best way for me to dig in and learn will be a combination of books, online tutorials and browsing the web. I've been inspired by the digital scrapbooking community and all the products and tutorials they have available. To kick off 2011 and get my creative digital focus tuned in; I've purchased a whole collection of wonderful products from
ScrapGirls.com
I also want to spend much of 2011 exploring art creations with a Steampunk theme, so many of my purchases were with that in mind.
I've included links on the items; however if some of them no longer work it could be that ScrapGirls no longer offers the set or has since change the link on their end so you may want to go directly to their website and search for yourself.
I started with this great pack of
Steampunk inspired papers, embellishments and word art
(everything in this pack works together so instead of wasting time trying to figure out what works with what I can spend some time actually learning how to layer and build in Photoshop to create new works of art with that Steampunk feel.)
and then added the following items to my collection..
I just could not resist these Steampunk letters - Too Fun!
ScrapGirls even offers commercial licenses on their products if you need that option, so
for this set you would go to this link HERE or you can go to their site and search
for products with commercial licensing.
A classic vintage typewriter alphabet and some extra elements
A bunch of Sprockets, Cogs, Wheels and Gears
Frames, Signs and Alphabet Additions.
I want to create mostly Victorian, Vintage and Steampunk looking art right now, so for me these elements offer a lot of versatility.
A nice collection of vintage photography mats
A collection of vintage frames that work with the above mats.
The above frames and mats were available as ScrapSimple Templates
or as Embellishment packs.
(Templates let you customize the items with the colors and textures you want)
I choose Templates since I will want to create them in the color pallet and textures
of my choosing using some of the "Styles" I purchased below.
I look forward to having fun learning how to customize and interchanging the various building blocks from all of the additional ScrapSimple Templates I purchased below.
(My hope is that I will be able to easily mix and match elements to give me more variety and since several of the sets were made to work with one and other I believe this will prove to be the case.)
More vintage frames and bonus calendar for 2011
(I almost overlooked this set since it was a Calendar Set but I loved some of the
shapes and the fact that you get 12 fancy frames, finally sold me on it)
Parts and pieces of Vintage Signs
More Banners and Signs with a vintage look
Alphabet and small boxes that work with the above elements
Mini Oval Frames to work with the above alphabet and elements
Papers and backgrounds are also necessary to this creative process so here again I wanted a variety of items that would work together, had a vintage feel and I could color however I wished.
A collection of background papers and frames that work together
Some great Victorian patterns for paper and backgrounds
Some great vintage looking textures to create papers and backgrounds with.
Great Crackle backgrounds for that true Vintage feel
Cool Retro patterned paper - already colored and ready to use that I can
combine and layer with some of my other purchases
Brushes are a fun tool to use in Photoshop so I
treated myself to this unusual
set which has a bit of a Steampunk feel to it.
These come as both brushes and png files for Photoshop
Add a few wheels and gear elements and these would be very Steampunky
Styles is another fun Photoshop
Some funky metallics to add to my Photoshop - Styles pallet
This will be great on frames, borders, and other objects
Some classic looks to add to my Photoshop - Styles pallet
Additional metal looks to add to my Photoshop - Styles pallet
Step 1 was making the purchases.
Step 2 was loading the files to my computer and organizing them.
Step 3 was installing the Brushes and Styles into Photoshop on my computer
Step 4 will be learning how to use, layer and create with all these items.
Step 5 will be creating fun new art.
Step 6 will be sharing my creative journey and mishaps as I go.
Grins and Giggles for the New Year,
Evelyn
