Digital Scrapbooking Tips

The holiday season is picking up steam! This week we are continuing our holiday project series with a tip for designing your holiday cards in just minutes. Using a template as the base for your card will save you some time and help jumpstart your creativity.

Watch this tip on video.

Begin by deciding what size you’d like to make your cards. Using standard sizes is good idea because custom print sizes and envelopes will add to the cost and hassle of finishing your greeting cards this year. Select an envelope shape that you like and then create the card a bit smaller by opening a template in Photoshop or Elements. Make a copy of the template so you don’t accidentally overwrite the original. In Photoshop, choose Image > Duplicate. In Elements, choose File > Duplicate. Give the copy a new name and click OK.

Next, cut out the part of the template you’d like to use on your card. Get the Crop tool and make your choices in the Options bar across the top of the screen. For a 5x7” card, for example, type in a width of 7 inches and a height of 5 inches. Type 300 pixels/inch for your resolution and then click/drag out a box on your template to encompass the part you plan to use. Click the checkmark to confirm the crop.

Now begin covering the placeholders with photos and digital paper. Digitally “glue” the papers and photos to the placeholder by holding the Alt key (Mac: Opt key) while positioning your cursor between the two layers. When your cursor changes to a double-circle arrow, click to create a clipping mask. Your paper or photo will take the shape of the placeholder.

When you are finished, save a copy of the project as a .jpg to send to a printer or print at home by selecting File > Print and following the on-screen instructions to print the cards.