trimmingthesails

A bit of a comic touch ...

 "Comics and bars" -  that's what it was known as in our house. On a Sunday evening, once school bags were packed, shoes polished, and kit sorted for the next day, my brothers and I would settle down round the fire as Dad brought us that week's edition of the comic or magazine we'd each chosen as a regular order, along with a chocoate bar. There'd be the rustling of pages, the scrunching of wrappers and - mostly - silence for an hour ...

I realised later, of course, that it was a resourceful way for my parents to ensure some peace and quiet for themselves, but we loved it. At some point, we'd all swap. My brothers weren't so keen on Bunty or Judy, but the Dandy or the Beano was always good for some rumbustious entertainment ...

I've always loved the look of those comics; and what fun to experiment with making a page with one's own photos! A caption across the top of the frame, some sound and visual effects, the mottled and dotted effect of the background, plus some photos of Himself ...

... hello HalfTone App! Sixty-nine pence well spent. "If I'm going to star in a scrapbook comic", said Himself, peering over my shoulder, "I think I'm going to want some rhyming couplets too". I duly obliged. So for those of you who remember the opening sequence to this story, here is the sequel ...

And it printed out beautifully too. Now, cardmaking does not come easy to me, but I'm seeing possibilities!

And thank-you so much to all of you who popped in for a cup of tea  last week, and to Abi for the inspiration; it was just lovely to see you! And it was especially nice that so many of you shared what you might want to talk about too - it really felt as if we were having a conversation :).

Up here, the glorious weather for a day or two has broken, but I am singing in the driving rain - for this weekend will be sparkling with the sunshine of time with our dearest daughter. There'll be photos! Looking forward to seeing you soon ...

Happy Birthday!

Yes, it's someone's birthday - Julie has been Letting The Days Roll By for two years old today! Welcome to Pass The Page Blog Hop (the scrapbookers' version of Chinese Whispers) which Julie has wonderfully organised by way of celebration. I'm delighted to wish her well, hope for many more happy years of posting, and am enjoying taking part :).

Have you arrived here via the talented Mel? Mel very kindly let me have a sneak preview of her page as inspiration for mine. You'll see that her clever clustering of hexagons caught my eye, and acted as a focus for my own photos; and I've placed my journalling and title lettering in the same area of the page as Mel did. I loved Mel's subtle checked background which blends so well with the photo, and the vertical strip of blue which neatly echoes the arm of the windmill; I choose a pale distressed look to tie in with the documents in my photos. And although I couldn't match those three artfully constructed paper windmills of Mel's, I made sure there were three whole hexagons of the same size to the right of the main picture. We also both have little black and white drawings/stamps of modes of transport on our layouts, appropriate to our themes - have you spotted them?

Well done! Now, I am not wanting to be discourteous (I really, really am not) and you are most welcome to stay for as long as you wish (and I hope you will), but - whispering very quietly in your ear - haven't you got somewhere else to go? Like Jo's? I think she'll be waiting for you ... :) And I will be hot on your heels, looking forward to seeing what has caught Jo's eye from here. Catch you there!

And thank-you so much, Julie - it has been a lot of fun :).

Julie        jsquaredscrapspot.wordpress.com
Alison       alisonslife-in-the-slow-lane.blogspot.com
Fay          beautifullilysramblings.blogspot.com
Ruth         chattycraftyartypig.blogspot.com
Jemma        just-jimjams.blogspot.co.uk
Miss Smith   journalofcuriousthings.co.uk
K            kscraftycorner.blogspot.com
Mrs Wookie   mrswookieswanderings.blogspot.co.uk
Mel          ispeakmelsh.co.uk
Alexa        simplyalexa.typepad.com/trimmingthesails
Jo           curlyscrapbooker.blogspot.co.uk
Jacky        scrappyjackylive.blogspot.com

 

An ad, a page, and a reminder ...

You probably know how much I love a good advert, especially one with plenty of 'white' space; and when this fell out of the middle of a magazine, how could I resist?

It was just perfect for the photo of our rather tatty rhubarb, the only plant we brought back from the allotment-which-is-ours-no-longer. (Though quite why we choose this specimen I am not sure - I remember my brothers and Dad and I lawnmowering over the rhubarb patch one spring in the hope it would take the hint. It didn't. Mum was pleased.) The ad inspiration made a great cover for a little page inside with some and rather sad photos, and a dollop of hand-journalling ... A similar technique gave extra journalling space for a photo of all the wonderful gluten-free products my lovely daughter-in-law sent back with Himself for me.

Combined with the Lemon Drizzle collage, the page now looks something like this ...

I confess to enjoying 'keeping up to date' - despite all the voices in my head about it not being necessary! Oh, and washi tape makes a wonderfully un-bulky hinge ...

On Monday, I'll be stopping for a mid-month moment again, and you are most welcome to join me again, or for the first time, for Simply A Moment.  It will probably be Tuesday before I am able to post, with the linky as usual, so please remember there is no rush - it'll be here for a fortnight!

Wishing you a lovely weekend, full of happy things ... :).

Creativity on the Move: Keynote 3 (Shapes)

Hello and welcome! Whether you're very, moderately or only slightly interested in using your iphone or ipad to scrapbook or record your memories, I hope there might be something in here which piques your curiosity just a little! Today's post and pdf is all about Shapes: where to find them, how to style and use them, and how to do things with them which the originators of Keynote never dreamed of - my favourite part! And, as always, the shots you see here and the pdfs were created totally in Keynote on the iPad and iPhone.

Some of the quick uses to which Shapes can be put include ...

• making tabbed journalling blocks by combining two rounded rectangles of different sizes
• popping a photo onto a coloured background in a jiffy without needing complex layering skills
• creating shaped journalling spaces, with or without borders or fills, where the text adjusts itself as you type
• turning photos into a mini-layouts by adding text- or colour-filled shapes
• devising striped, dotted or squared 'papers' or 'borders' to suit your page in just a few taps
• adding fast-and-easy shadows and reflections for a graphic design look

And, of course, stretching your own creativity enjoyably as you find new ways of using the tools provided! Please help yourself to the detailed pdf of instructions; the previous ones are also included below. As always, the pdfs can be downloaded to your computer, then emailed to your iPad or iPhone; or downloaded directly to your iPad. You can also upload them to a cloud facility like Dropbox, and then download them to the iPad later.

Previous posts and files:
Creativity on the Move: The Map

Creativity on the Move: Managing your Photos
Download COTMManagingYourPhotos (pdf)

Creativity on the Move: KN01Photos
Download KNAlexa01Photos (pdf)
Download AlexaShapedMasks (key)

Creativity on the Move: KN02Text
Download KNAlexa02Text (pdf)

Today's pdf:
Download KNAlexa03Shapes (pdf)

Hoping you enjoy them (and all feedback and comments welcome!) :). Next week, it's exploiting colour to maximum effect in Keynote. Might you pop back?

 

Monday Musings ...

Morning Monday! Or at least it was morning when I started - hoping I might just squeeze in this post before Monday shoots off into Tuesday. And it's ...

goodbye to ...

• agonising over how best to organise my scrapbooking (for now, at least)
• dustsheets, stepladders, and multiple coats of paint in the bathroom (is paint really as opaque as it used to be?)
• our one sixth of an allotment which, with some sadness. has been handed over to a new owner. I'd show you some photos but I wouldn't want you to feel burdened by its bedraggled neglect ...

hello, on a brighter note, to ...

• the return of Himself, complete with photos, marzipan and hugs
• falling over the piles of plant pots, green mesh tunnels and bags of compost which don't yet have a home
• quick mini-scrapping - an iphone photocard, a receipt and a café-advert popped together to form a layered pocket holding a journalling card and tag. Dad and I have, student-like with books and pens and paper, been indulging a rapidly-forming café-habit :).
  
  

And that is as good as it gets at this point in the week, my friends: it feels a triumph to be vertical and breathing. I might even have five minutes while the kettle boils to prop myself up against the kitchen work-top, thumb through cookery books and wonder just how they got that lemon drizzle cake to be so soft and crumbly ... Any helpful chefs or alchemists out there? All insights gratefully received!

 

The Return of Colour, and Creativity on the Move (Keynote 02)

You've probably got one too, lurking quietly and well hidden from view. Rarely a thing of beauty or a joy forever, they're not usually by the front door where the visitors come in. My grandmother used to call hers The Glory Hole (which Grandad referred to, with a surreptitious wink behind her back, as The Gory Hole). But for us, bereft of attic, cellar or garage, ours is out of sight - and usually out of mind too. However, a hint of a thaw and a blink of sunlight this morning encouraged me to don my wellies and head off to peep round the ramshackle door into ours. Now, I do love a challenge, especially if it's one of Paula Gilarde's lovely graphic ideas over at live.scrap.repeat, and I wondered if I could interpret her Inspiration Challenge 89 on the iPad ...

I really like what you can do with taps, swipes and the occasional two-fingered twirl for rotating shapes! And the daffs have made it back up the garden path to a place of honour on the kitchen table :).

Having explored how to get photos onto the iPad or iPhone last week and use them in Keynote, this week's help is all about text and how to style it. The overview looks like this ...

... and the pdf is just below, so please do help yourself. It can be downloaded to your computer, or emailed to yourself on your iPad or iPhone. If you have GoodReader (free from the App Store), you can download it directly to your iPad, and peruse it there. I do hope you find it useful and fun! Next week, we'll look at at all the things you can do with Shapes in Keynote.

Previous posts and files:
Creativity on the Move: the Map

Creativity on the Move: Managing Your Photos
Download COTMManagingYourPhotos (pdf)

Creativity on the Move: KN01Photos
Download KNAlexa01Photos (pdf)
Download AlexaShapedMasks (key)

Today's pdf:
Download KNAlexa02Text (pdf)

Hoping you've enjoyed a bit of a break, if there were Easter celebrations your way, and are easing gently into a new and warmer (or cooler, if you need it!) week ahead. Having made an initial foray, I am determined to set off for More Exciting Adventures In The Lean-To. Well, possibly. If the temperature rises. And the sun shines again ... :).

(Pdf for strictly personal use only. No copying, adapting, extracting, re-distributing or selling allowed. All images, files and text are copyright and belong to Alexa, www.simplyalexa.typepad.com/trimmingthesails. All rights reserved.)

New week and new baby ...

We have a new baby in our home. Oh, did I not mention it before? Actually, it's been quite a while now. Being long past the baby stage here, I'd forgotton all about the rearranging of furniture and rooms, and the endless discussions about the most suitable place: not too warm, not too cold, not in the spare room because we do have visitors coming and going, not in our bedroom because (at this point in my life) I did not relish the thought of little burps at night ... Not to mention the sheer quantity of kit! A washable floor to cope with the inevitable dribbles, a soft rug for warmth, a source of gentle light and heat - Himself has been most assiduous ...

It will not be much longer now, I am assured (though the nine inches of snow in the last two days and intermittent power has cooled progress somewhat) and the current levels of 27% alcohol should apparently diminish. Roll on beer-bottling day, that's all I can say, and the return of our shower to normal usage :).

So how's your week shaping up? Here, it's going to be snow, struggle and sighing!, I suspect, as we slide into the wonderfully optimistic Great British Summer Time (pardon?) on Saturday night. But on a brighter note ... The quick and easy page above was done in Keynote, and it printed out very nicely for my current scrapbook too:

On Mondays - and yes, that's today! - I'll be adding an additional post with downloads on using Keynote for print and digital scrapbooking and memory-keeping, so do pop back later if you're interested or just curious. I'm keeping them separate from my usual posts, as I realise that not all of you will be either of those :).

And I am more than a little behind with my blog reading, but hope the power situation will stabilise and I will be popping in soon. With warmest good wishes for your week, as I grumble off to find the shovel and scarf, gloves and grit!

 

Creativity on the Move (1): the map

Hello and welcome! Today, it's Creativity on the Move: using your iphone and/or ipad for memory-keeping and scrapbooking. Whether you scrapbook digitally, consider yourself a hybrid scrapbooker, or prefer purely paper, I hope there is something for you in here - even if it's simply knowing what's out there!

When I am setting off anywhere, I like a map: a sense of the lie of the land (or sea!). Today is an overview of what you can use or might need, with the detailed how-tos in subsquent posts and pdfs. If you have any questions, please do pop them into the comments below so that I can be as helpful as possible. Off we go - this is my travel kit ...

1 Taking photos and storing/transferring them
There are a couple of options here ...

• iphone/ipad with a built-in camera: at least one of these. If you have both, you can 'sync' them through icloud (I'll show you how to do this if you're not sure) so that a photo taken on one shows up on the other. This is handy if you want a larger screen to work on, but you can work quite successfully on the iphone alone.
• If you have an android phone with camera, there is a version of the photo-editing software I use (Snapseed) for android phones too - keep reading! However, the software for page-making which I use works only with the iphone and ipad.
• optional: your own camera, and a connection kit for the ipad (check your camera's compatibility). I also use my slip-in-my-bag Canon Ixus: a connection klit means that photos can be transferred easily straight from the camera to the ipad in seconds.

2 Editing Photos
You may, of course, be perfectly happy with your photos the way they come out of your camera! I often find mine need slight adjusting for brightness or contrast, and a bit of sharpening; sometimes, they need a little repair, or I want to do something more interesting with them too. Out of the photo apps available, I find Snapseed the most versatile and easy-to-use. There are iphone and android versions and here's what it does ...

You'll see above, down the left, the vast range of its capabilities. Open each window (Automatic, Tune Image etc.) with a screen tap for further sophistication. Its genius lies in its great ease-of-use. Tap the screen to reveal the list of options, slide your fingerup or down on the menu which appears to choose the function, and slide left/right to decrease/increase it - that's it. Here's the Tune Image screen, for example ...

And if you like to play around with your photos, there are a host of interesting filter options in Drama, Retrolux and Grunge. The latter has 1500 possibilities which you can zip through quickly by dragging your finger across the screen ...

3 Making a scrapbooking/journalling page
The best and most versatile app I've found is not a scrapbooking app at all. It's Keynote, Apple's piece of software for putting together a presentation. It has a host of adaptable features, and you can add video and music too, if you are so inclined. Again, it's easy to use and I'll be showing you in detail how to do this - as well as giving you some additional useful items which enhance and work with Keynote's current functions. Think "presentation = album" and "slide = page", and you're on your way! It is a lot easier (and cheaper) to use than Photoshop Elements, and can produce a huge variety of pages ...

You can make whole pages or parts of pages and print them out, or quick and pretty 'mini-pages' on-the-go which can either be added digitally to, or printed out for, a pocket in your Project Life pages. You can email them straight to friends and familly or, once saved to your camera roll, upload them to Facebook and Twitter, or blog them directly without needing your computer.

4 Printing the finished page
It is quite possible to print directly from your ipad or iphone if your printer is wireless and Air Print compatible. Or you can upload your pages to your computer, and print from there. This is my preference, as I sometimes want to print several mini-pages on a single sheep of photopaper. I also like to keep a copy of my work somewhere else besides the iphone or ipad. This can be done via syncing and the iCloud, or via Dropbox (www.dropbox.com) - a handy and free way of storing any data which you can then download when and where you want.

Next steps
If you're interesting in having a go, then the next move is to equip yourself with Keynote, plus Snapseed (if you want to a neat photo-editor), and Dropbox (if you want a handy place to keep a copy of photos and pages and an easy way to transfer them to your computer). I'll share with you over the coming months what I'm learning, and hope you'll dip your toes in the water too. (And I should let you know that I have absolutely no financial interests or affiliate links of any kind.)

Please do ask questions if you'd like to, or let me know of anything you want to know in more detail. Hoping you'll be coming along with me, even if you're just peeping over my shoulder for the meantime :).

Bloggers' Weekend: The Inside Story

Oh, and I hope you haven't been holding your breath too much - I couldn't possibly begin to give the full unedited story! But here are some highlights ...

As they say, you had to be there - but hoping this gives a flavour! With grateful thanks to all the wonderfully creative and lovely people who took part - this is as much your creation as mine ... :).

Bloggers' Weekend: The Cover Story

Hello and welcome! Yes, we are back home again, dispersed to the four winds, trailing cases and bags and totes (you would not believe how much stuff we had) behind us. And, before you ask, yes, it was wonderful!  It was a real privilege to be amongst so many talented bloggers and scrappers - warm, generous, and lovely, each and every one. Here we all are ...

Just having a little fun with the ipad, and putting together the next page for Monday - if you'd like the inside story, then please do come back :). In the meantime, there is tail-chasing, blog-popping (my new word), and catch-up to play: how can a weekend away generate so many things to do in the ensuing days? This must be somebody's law ... See you soon?