Hybrid How-Tos

Add digi flair to your paper pages

When I discovered digital scrapbooking a few years ago, I was not interested. It all looked too fake, too virtual. I’d been a traditional paper scrapbooker for years, and I was a big fan of my paper, scissors, and glue!

But I started paying attention when I saw computer scrapbookers creating paper-like layouts that included realistic stitching and inking—two of my favorite crafting techniques. When I really gave digital a try, I found that electronic paper and embellishments allowed me to create more layouts and be more adventurous with techniques, and I loved that. But I wasn’t willing to give up on my paper supplies. So I thought: why not go the hybrid route and play with both?

“Hybrid scrapbooking” isn’t as hard or scary as it sounds. In fact, after I thought about it, I realized I’d been hybrid all along—I’ve been printing my own titles and journaling blocks for years! Perhaps you have too. If you haven’t, here are a few digital techniques to try on your paper pages. Who knows, they might open up brand new horizons for you in your memory keeping.

Type Your Journaling

This clean and simple paper layout is considered hybrid because I used my computer to create the journaling. In this case I used Photoshop to format my journaling in two columns, but you can also easily create columns in Microsoft Word or another word-processing program. My instructions are written for Photoshop Elements, a common and relatively inexpensive photo-editing program.

Supplies:

cardstock (Bazzill) • patterned paper (October Afternoon) • stickers (Mustard Moon) • chipboard alpha (Basic Grey) • chipboard element (American Crafts) • brads (American Crafts) • stamp (Stampin’ Up) • font (Century Gothic) • software (Adobe Photoshop CS4) • 12 x 12 layout by Paula Gilarde

Click image for larger view

Here’s how:

Open a new document in Photoshop Elements. File > New > Blank File. Specify a height and width that are the same size as your finished layout, and specify a resolution that’s 300 pixels/inch. Your Color Mode should be RGB if you’re going to colorize your text.
Click the Type Tool (a capital “T”) and use it to draw a box in the position you’d like your first column. Specify a font and a size in the toolbar you see at the top of your screen. Type half of your journaling in this text box.
Click the Move Tool (the topmost button in your left-side toolbar), then click on your text box to select it. Duplicate the text box by holding down the Alt key while dragging the text box. Position the second text box next to the first one. Click the type tool again, select the text in the duplicate text box, delete it, and type the rest of your journaling.
Print on cardstock, then add photos, a title, and your choice of embellishments. Enjoy!

Use a Virtual Frame

My all-time favorite hybrid technique is using digital frames for my photos. I love the dimension they add to a design—even if it’s fake dimension! There are tons of different frames that are available for purchase or download, but I am especially fond of cluster frames or storyboard frames where I can display a bunch of photos quickly and easily.

Supplies:

cardstock (Core’dinations) • patterned paper (American Crafts) • embellishments (American Crafts) • alpha (American Crafts) • font (Paula Print) • digital cluster frame (Photo Clusters no 16 by Katie Pertiet, designerdigitals.com) • software (Adobe Photoshop CS4) • 12 x 12 layout by Paula Gilarde

Click image to view inside of journal

Here’s how:

Open a new document in Photoshop Elements. File > New > Blank File. Specify a height and width that are the same size as your finished layout, and specify a resolution that’s 300 pixels/inch. Your Color Mode should be RGB.
Now open the .psd version of the frame file you’ve downloaded or purchased. (I typically use the .psd files because you have the ability to move the layers of the cluster frames around for custom looks.) In the Layers Palette, select the top layer of the cluster frame. Hold down the Shift key, scroll down and select the last layer. All the layers will be highlighted, showing that they are selected. Use the Move Tool to drag all the frames at once onto the new document you created. Close the original frame file.
Now open the photos that you want to use.
Use the Move Tool to drag a photo on top of the frame you want it to go in. With the image selected, click Ctrl-T (Cmd-T on a Mac) and drag the photo’s corners to shrink, enlarge, and rotate it so it fits the opening of the frame.
Click the photo to select it, then hit Ctrl-G (Cmd-G on a Mac) to clip the photo onto the photo layer mask.
Repeat steps 5 and 6 for the rest of the photos.
Print your photo grouping on photo paper, trim around the edges, and add it to a paper page.

Print an Embellishment

One of the wonderful things about digital is how versatile it is. Elements can be used over and over, making it a cost-effective way to scrap. Plus, you can't beat the instant gratification of being able to buy and use digital elements immediately, from the comfort of your home office! For this next layout, I needed a girly super hero embellishment. Rather than scouring the store for just the right product, I made my own! I chose a super-hero character from a digital set I had purchased, printed it on canvas, cut around it, and added some pearls and gloss for an instant accent.

Tip: If your chosen embellishment doesn’t match your other products, you can change its colors using the Magic Wand and Edit > Fill Selection tools.

Supplies:

cardstock (Core’dinations) • patterned paper (Piggy Tales) • alpha (American Crafts) • font (Century Gothic) • digital embellishment (Little Super Heroes by Pattie Knox, designerdigitals.com) • software (Adobe Photoshop CS4) • adhesive canvas (Claudine Hellmuth) • 12 x 12 layout by Paula Gilarde

Click image for larger view

Here’s how:

Open a new document in Photoshop Elements. File > New > Blank File. Specify a height and width that’s just larger than you want your finished accent to be, and specify a resolution that’s 300 pixels/inch. Your Color Mode should be RGB.
Open the element you want to print.
Click the Move Tool, then select the element and drag it into your blank document.
With the image selected, click Ctrl-T (Cmd-T on a Mac) and drag the photo’s corners to shrink or enlarge it.
Print and cut out your element.
Embellish as desired!

Now that I’ve shared these tricks with you, why don’t you try some of them on your layouts? There are lots of free and inexpensive digital supplies out there to experiment with, so there’s no excuse not to try!

Bonus Idea

For one more fun layout tutorial, please visit my blog. I’ll show you how to create journaling in the shape of a Christmas tree (and other shapes too) using Photoshop or Photoshop Elements.