Digital Scrapbooking Tips

Are you brushing up on your brush skills? Here are a couple of tips I’ve incorporated into my brush workflow that help increase my productivity.

1. Always create your brushwork on a new transparent layer. Click the Create a New Transparent Layer icon in the Layers palette before using a brush.  Doing this allows you to delete the brushwork if you later decide you do not want it on your project.  And it allows you to change the blending mode or color of the brushwork easily.

2. When you are working with a brush set, you can scroll through all of the loaded brushes using the arrow keys on your keyboard. Just select the Brush tool and hover the cursor over your open document to see the outline of the brush. Use the right arrow key to scroll through the rest of the set.  Your cursor will take on the shape of the brushes as you scroll, allowing you to find just the right brush for your project. Use the left arrow key to scroll back through the brushes in the set. Click once on your document to apply the brush to your new transparent layer.