new to it all

[jennickels]

I'm Jen. I'm a SAHM to 4 "phototastic" kids (I just made up that word, lol. Meagan will be 6 next month. Owen is 4 1/2. Brenna is 3 1/2 and Nora is 8 weeks old today.

I have been dabbling with digital scrapbooking for about a year but I was only using what came with my photo editing programs. But now I have discovered all of the digital scrapbooking sites and have gone crazy. I don't even need to buy anything because there is so much great free stuff out there. I feel like a kid at Christmas. I was up until 3am last night downloading and making pages. I just love the monthly sketch contest.

I am just having so much fun.:D

[Kristen]

Welcome! Isn't this fun?!? This is a great place to learn more and feed your new addiction, ah, passion! Look around, ask questions. Enjoy!

[vanillalatte]

Yep! There really are some great freebies here! And jump into the challenges where you can WIN more!!! :D

Welcome to DSP! I'm headed over to your gallery now to see what you've come up with so far! Have fun and just jump in with both feet. Everyone here is very friendly and helpful!

[Abby]

One word of caution .. when downloading all the cool freebies from everyone, be sure and make a note of who made them and where they came from - when you do post layouts, it's expected that you enter credits to whoever created the elements, papers, etc. A lot of new scrappers get so excited with all the goodies they don't make a note of that and then have to spend hours finding them again to write down the credits. LOL .. nice problem to have though! Look forward to seeing your layouts in the gallery!

[jennickels]

yeah--I've been trying to keep them grouped together so I at least know what went with what, lol. and that way a lot of the read me and proof prints are with stuff with the creators name on it. but i've still had to go back and search for a few names and websites to credit.

i've actually started keeping a log of each page i finish and i write down the title, when i made it, the kits and fonts i used and any other info so when i up load it i have all the info on hand. :)

[vanillalatte]

I used to have all kinds of problems with keeping track of my kits, where I got them and who the designer was. Here's how I got around that:

First I created a folder for each scrapping site that I download from. There are a ton and many that have freebies.

Inside each folder, I create folders for the designers.

Inside the designers folders, I create a folder for each kit.

When I download a new kit, I just put it in the folder for that designer, create the kit folder and unzip to that.

It sounds like alot of folders, but it's really helped me to stay organized. You may not want to use exactly that method, but you'll come up with one that works for you.

Also, if you keep your kits in separate folders, most come with a Text file containing the Terms of Use. If you don't remember the designer, open that text file. The designer's name will be in there.

[jennickels]

I was planning on doing that too but it is hard to organize with a baby in my lap and half the time i only have one hand to work with. i will be going back through to add the site folders.

i actually learned that trick while downloading stuff for my sims2 game, lol. there were so many sites i dl from and i couldn't keep track of anything--my hard drive was a disaster. in a week or so i'll have it all nice and neat.

[Abby]

Just a tiny reminder - when you upload layouts to our gallery, we want the name of the designer and the name of the kit (if you know it), but do not allow site names or initials. Just makes it easier if you remember that right from the get go.

[jennickels]

ok--i'll remember that. thanks for the tips guys. :)