The Digital Scrapbook Place
N e w s l e t t e r
 

A Letter from Team Digital
Howdy All!! Fall is definitely here in the southeast, and it is my absolute favorite season!!! The colors of the changing leaves are so beautiful and rich, one last visual treat until winter takes over and things become stark and boring.

Two weekends ago we took a trip from Atlanta to the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee. We took the back way up through Cherokee, North Carolina. We were as the locals call it “Leaf-Lookers” we practically spent the whole weekend in the car but it was well worth it getting to enjoy the fiery mountains and blue skies. Seeing such gorgeous views makes me think of how thankful I am for the things in life God has blessed me with, and of course that leads me to think of my family and how much they mean to me.

Pretty soon my family will be getting together to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday sharing with each other the things that we are thankful for, the goals we have and the memories we’ve made. This is why I scrapbook to capture moments like that not for historical purpose but for the joy it brings to remember the special moments and times you have with the people you love, doing the things you love. I hope you all take time to make memories during this time of harvest and thankfulness.

Liz McCoy
DSP Moderator
(back to top)

See more samples and sign up for the club here.

This month's Club Digital has: two Page Kits (Chill Zone and Nostalgia), an overlay, an Alpha, Word Art, a Quick Click, a Font, and a Stamp set! Don't miss out!

(back to top)

Did You Know?
Did you know - at the bottom of the main forum page you can find out how many members we have, what events are are on the calendar, and who's having a birthday today?

Did you know - DSP provides a shortcut to your gallery to share with friends and family! http://username.digitalscrapbookplace.com (this doesn't work if you have spaces of punctuation in your name, unfortunately.)

Did you know - that Margie and Amanda met online, became friends, decided to open DSP, opened DSP - and then finally met face-to-face?

Did you know - you can find out about the designers, moderators and instructors (including photos in most cases) on the Team Digital page? (This can come in handy when someone in a chat starts asking questions and handing out prizes...)

Did you know - Team Digital has written more than two dozen articles, on everything from backing up your files, to Speed Scrapping, to getting creative with Quick Clicks.

Did you know - we have a glossary that covers not only DSP terms and scrapbooking terms, but also computer/internet abbreviations.

Did you know - the store has a list of all the designer codes and kit codes, so you can decipher the abbreviations on your downloads.

(back to top)

Read more about her here! Congrats Valerie!
(back to top)

You can view her gallery here - and watch for her DET layouts throughout November. Congratulations, Becky!

(back to top)

Featured Designer: Stacey Jewell Stahl

Happy November! You know I love creating memories for my family, and I love knowing that the work I do is safe from viruses, crashes, malware, etc., because of a little extra time and effort I take. Before the rush of the holidays next month, let's take time this month to safeguard and clean our files.

Back Up
If you've been meaning to purchase an external hard drive, let this be the month to do it. Set your automatic backup to run every day. If you've been meaning to do DVD backups and rent a safety deposit box, let this be the month to do it. If you are looking for online photo storage of your photos and high res jpg layouts, research sites this month (I subscribe to protectmyphotos.com for offsite jpg storage).

Computer Protection
A happy computer is an organized computer! Clean up your hard drive of temp files, cookies, duplicate files and just plain junk. Defrag your hard drive.

Run all of your scans for viruses, malware and spyware. If you are having spyware issues and don't know what to do, I recommend the site geekstogo.com for step-by-step help and links to free software and can't-live-without software.

Creating scrapbook pages is fun, but losing files is not. Take time this month to do that little extra that you've been meaning to do. Your computer will love you for it!

Blessings,
Stacey
(back to top)

Photography Tip - Simplicity
One quick way to take your 'snapshots' to the next level is to look for simplicity. Most snaps are just too cluttered.

To make the focus of your image clear, you must make a concise statement. Crop out unnecessary items and make the most important element the main focal point. Including only those surroundings that give your subject context. Get rid of the distracting clutter, especially around the edges of the photo.

You can simplify a shot simply by getting closer to your main subject and by using a wide angle lens. You can also use your zoom lens to help close in on the subject and make a dramatic photo that draws the viewer in to see what YOU saw that made you want to take the photo in the first place.

Jennifer
DSP Photography Moderator
(back to top)

December classes

DSU185 – Picasa: Easy Photo Editing and Management (2 week class)
Instructor Lauren Bavin. $15
In this 2 week class we will cover many of the ways you can use Picasa to organize, manage and improve your photos. We will cover such things as sorting, labeling and cataloging your photo and image collections, along with basic and more advanced photo editing skills enabling you to recover artistic and desirable images often from less than perfect photos.

DSU193 – Create Your Own Holiday Card (2 week class)
Instructor Suzanne Walker. $15
Have you been saying for years that “THIS is the year we will send out a family photo in our Holiday greeting cards?” In this 2-week class, you will have the opportunity to create your own Holiday cards to send to friends and family! In the first of the two classes, you will receive very basic posing suggestions to showcase your family in a greeting card snapshot. In the second week, you will receive 10 original and unique WordArt sentiments that you can pair with your family snapshot to create a card that is uniquely you, and totally beautiful. You then can print your holiday greeting card in time to really say, “THIS is the year!”

Be sure to visit our classes page for more information regarding these classes and our other great classes at DSU!

We would love to hear your suggestions on future classes! Send your suggestions and comments to me at dsu@digitalscrapbookplace.com.

We’re also looking for qualified DSU instructors! If you would be interested in teaching, please contact me for more information.

Amber, Dean of DSU
dsu@digitalscrapbookplace.com
(back to top)

Challenges/Contests/Events
Check our Calendar of Events and the November Links thread for a complete list of all events and challenges. Here are a just a few of our exciting Challenges!

New! Hall of Fame Gallery.
Check here for the best layouts at DSP - nominated by our designers.

Clear View Page Frame Challenge with Liz McCoy
Use the new Clear View Page Frames for a chance to win (2 CDs to the first place winner!)

New Kids Scraplifting Challenge with Kristen Skold
Although New Kids is over until January, we've decided we're having too much fun together - so we're scraplifting the Top Three from each of the three rounds. Everyone is invited to join in!

DET Bootcamp
Join in to stretch your scrapping skills in preparation for the next DET Contest coming up in March 2007. (Come join even if you don't plan to enter the DET contest - the Bootcamp is open to all!)

Up Close and Personal - Body Parts with Ann Maree
Create a layout with hands, eyes or feet for a chance at prizes!

Prompts & Props with Bethy and Z
Prompts are a challenge idea, something for you to scrap about. Props are a freebie, something for you to scrap with! From now to the end of the year we're going to focus on gift making, so that you can have a few easy quick things done and in the bag at Christmastime.

What About Me Challenge with René
The first theme for November will be Queen for a Day- What would you do if you were queen for a day?

Beginnings with Bethy: A new month brings new inspirations! For the first two weeks in November, we'll be using my new kit, Blue Sky Days, in the store on November 4th. The kit was inspired by the perfect blue skies of autumn and we'll be working with a prompt of the senses - visual. Come join us for inspiration and posting bonuses!!

(back to top)

Items Of The Week (IOTW)
Each week a new item goes on sale for only 99 cents. Check out the IOTW challenge starting each Sunday. Buy the kit, use it to make a layout, post it to the IOTW gallery and the designer will have different prizes for you! It could be a posting bonuses, random drawings, chances at a free fonting, you never know! Check it out this week!

The Item of the Week for October 29th is Play Day by Jamie Rousselle. This bright, playful kit was inspired by the tons of toys her son has scattered all over the house!
(back to top)

What's New at DSP?

We have some incredibly fun and creative new products in the store this month - just in time for making holiday gifts!

Scraps of Fun – Computer Craft CD Check out our latest CD! Printable crafts and gifts you can make at home! CD link Downloadable link	Scraps of Words – Card Sentiments This cd includes 40 card "outer greetings" and 100 different inside sentiments. Cd link Downloadable link

Board Books! DSP now offers durable high-quality board stock books in five different fun shapes! Free downloadable template with your order. Coordinating Shaped Board Book Instant Albums - fill up these Shaped Board Book Albums quickly with our fun Instant Albums.
	House Heart Purse Tag 6"x6" Square

CD Tins - Square or Round (3 Pack): Create gifts that will last a life time with these fun tins! Each tin will fit a CD sized mini album and are silver-colored metal. Paint or decorate the outside of your tin for that extra special touch! Free downloadable template with your order! CD Instant Albums - fill those CD Tins with instant albums!

(back to top)

A newsletter exclusive! Specially designed ploppers for your computer desktop. This month's offering is from our featured designer Stacey Jewell Stahl. She used her Psalm 23 and Psalm of My Heart kits. The calendar grid is from the wonderful Calendar Grid Brushes by Kim Liddiard.

Download the PNG file of your choice here: 1024x768 hires version and 800x600 regular version. And just like any of our ploppers, put your photo on a layer underneath the desktop plopper. Angle and size it as you please, add journaling, and save it as a jpg. Then update your desktop wallpaper background by browsing to your new image!

Voilà! A favorite photo paired with this month's calendar to help keep you up-to-date all month! Look for a new one each month in our newsletter!!
(back to top)