vol.25

overlay inspiration from fresh art photography

Hi! I'm making a brief appearance to share some images I thought were REALLY inspiring. Jodie of fresh art photography purchased the whimsical-ness set from me just yesterday, and already went to work with the set. She e-mailed me these images:

I love how she designed this template by simply creating a frame with the 4 corner pieces from the whimsical set.

After seeing what she did I finished up two new sets (still not released) and sent them over for her to work some magic. Jodie didn't disappoint!

 


...are these not just adorable? Super creativeness at work here. Jodie and her partner Kim have an obvious talent, I definitely recommend you check out they're website. In fact if you keep an eye on they're blog you may or may not spot the very first eye candy overlay giveaway. Ok, so you will... :) She should have the post up some tonight. So, keep your eyes peeled!

Inspiration overlay overload

I just posted this on the overlays blog... and I'll share it here as well!

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Ok, so the overlays are finally listed! Here are some examples you've seen and some new ones you haven't! I hope you enjoy them!! :)

I am grouping images from the same artist together. :)

This group of photographs is from Tania Lezak. :) I was referred to her blog by a friend!

"he loves me so" overlay from the whimsical-ness set.

flourish from the whimsical-nes set

decorative corner heart from the whimsical-ness set

hanging lamp from the whimsical-ness set

 

he loves me so overlay from the whimsical-nes set

These images are from mique of 30 days.  She planted this crazy little overlay idea in my head! :)

 

corner heart flourish from whimsical-ness set.

 

"Kiss Me" from Lovey Dovey set

heart from lovey dovey set

These beautiful photographs are from Kylie Clark! She's due in about a week and a half, and found time to play around with my overlays. Love the softness in her photographs. :) She sampled the whimsical-ness set for me. So, all overlays used in her photographs are from that set. :)

I love how she duplicated the flourish and created wings. :) 

 

she added the text "dream a little dream" it is not included in any set. :)

Amber also contributed some cute images. I first discovered her on flickr. She had posted some really cute photographs. Her family and kiddos are super duper cute...

I like how she used three different shapes to create this effect. The two sentiments and also the heart are included in the lovey dovey set... and so are the next group of photographs.

 

this last one uses a balloon from the child's play set

Also, here is another photographer I was suuper nervous about asking to test my overlays. I really figured this couple would be too busy, I mean they are Ulmer Studios after all. ;) Needless to say when she replied back and was super excited about helping I was happy! She sent this image over this morning, it uses the "he loves me so" overlay... What a cute family! :)

Well, I am onto my last photographer... Hannah was the first person I actually asked to test my shapes. She had contacted me first. She was interested in buying some of my art, and from there I noticed she was a photographer. The rest is history! :) I'm going to show images using the whimsical-ness set first. :)

 



and then these next images feature the lovey dovey set...

here she combined love with a computer generated font!

remember, you can fill in the shapes if you'd like, and they can also be stretched to create different looks. The hearts above are all the same shape.

 

Love how she changed the font to the right perspective. :)

I'm still waiting on more images from a few different photographers, so expect another "inspiration overlay overload" post in the near future! :)

I'll be posting "a quote for your week" a little later! It seems like I *just* did one. Another week gone by already? The countdown to Christmas! I'll try and post some pictures of our house decorated. I didnt get quite as much into it this year... there is just something about having your house for sale. I guess I am trying to keep it low key. :)

 

They are finally listed...

Yes, they really are! Some of you may have already seen them in the shop... but if not head on over and check them out. I really did not expect to get them listed tonight, but it feels really nice to have them available after a couple weeks of planning/prepping/e-mailing/testing/drawing etc. etc.

I'm curious, which set is your favorite?

I have a BUNCH of photographs from some amazing photographers, who were willing to test my shapes. I'll be sure and post them all tomorrow! I am much too tired to do them all tonight! :)

btw- The shapes are currently on sale at 30.00. Its somewhat of a special introductory rate, it is good until the 22nd. After that, they will be the regularly priced at 35.00. :)

Until then... here is another image from Hannah! :)

Night everyone!! :)

Overlays UPDATE!

Hello everyone! Hope you had a great weekend. :) We did. Helped my parents pick out they're tree on Saturday, then went back to they're house and helped decorate the tree... watched some Christmas classics, and snacked on fudge. :) 

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However, I HAVE been working hard on the overlays though... I mean I even set-up a new blog dedicated to the new overlays.

It is still under construction, so you'll have to pardon my virtual dust. Over time I hope I can fill it with tutorials, and examples of everyone's work! I also created a flickr group for the overlays. Be sure and join, I am sure the inspiration coming from this group will be amazing!

Ok, SO... I am finally wrapping up the last of the loose ends, and I am 99% sure I will have the overlays listed BY tomorrow (monday) morning. I'll update both blogs when they are finally in the shop. :)

I am SO so excited to get these finished! :) 

I'm going to leave you with this image from Hannah of H2photography...

She used the Lovey Dovey set on this image, and I just love it to pieces. :)

I am hoping to find a gifted tutorial writer out there....

"Hoping!" Is there anyone out there who can write me a detailed tutorial complete with screen shots (or possibly even a video?) on how to load my custom shapes/overlays? I've started writing a tutorial, but I have so many other "pieces" left to finish in this puzzle before I can list these overlays and I'd would really rather spend my time doing that. :)

So, here is what I am thinking:

What's in it for you:

I would pay you in product, (the 3 finished sets) and also include your name as the author of the tutorial.I'll send one set now, and then the other two when the tutorial is finished. :)

Deadline:

It would need to be completed no later then tomorrow night. I know this isnt giving much time, but I'm really pushing to get these overlays listed monday. If you are interested please e-mail me! vol.25 (at) hotmail.com If possible, please include a link to other tutorials you may have written. Thanks so much!!

P.S. We got our first snow today!! Not much, but the ground has been sprinkled with the powdery white stuff. :) .... and because I can't publish a post with no images/photographers, I will leave you with this shot, using sentiments from the "lovey dovey" set. :)

They have a name AND a logo!

Things are moving along with the overlays! :) After much thought, I decided on calling them this:

I am hoping it is kind of catchy? :) I'm working on a couple tutorials to post here on the blog for customers to reference to after purchasing. That is something I have been dreading doing, but I suppose I need to keep plugging along! :) I finished the "child's play" set last night:

Anyhow, I had best get back to it! I'm just hoping to keep everyone informed!! :) I have sent a total of THREE sets out to testers now, and I'm in the collecting stage. :) I'm planning to show work finished using the lovey dovey set in a couple days! :)

HAPPY FRIDAY! :)

too cute thursday - red and white stripes

Ok! So I am really hooked on red and white stripes, and not necessarily in the holiday way either. So, I thought this thursday I'll share some recent favorites. Hope you enjoy. :)

I almost forgot today's too cute Thursday post. :) Been busy busy!!

p.s. Click the images to be directed to they're original source. :)

PS overlays update and creative tips...

Hello! WOW... first off I want to give a HUGE thank you for all the kind feedback and support I received in my last post. :) It definitely gave me some much needed fuel to keep things running at a good pace. I'm extremely flattered, and glad I decided to take on this "project." I am going to attempt to answer some questions that were asked, and also share a peek at what I have been working on to further the project along.

But first... in case you are wondering... the picture above is somewhat of a preview of another set I have in the works titled "Child's Play." Currently I have three balloons, and I am working on some other exciting "props" to complete the set. I also used a bird on the balloon from the "all about the birds" pack.  The heart shape stamped onto the balloon far left is available in the lovey dovey set. :) Ok doke! Onto the questions. :)

Question ONE: How many sets am I planning to design? 

Well, currently this is what the forecast looks like!

whimsicalness (check!)
Lovey Dovey - sentiments
Lovey Dovey - Lace and romance
Lovey Dovey - Mod (like this idea, but I'll need to brainstorm some ideas for it!)
Frame it (Basically Picture frames... but I'm not sure what the default frame size should be 4x5? )
Bloom and Blossom
Child's Play (or another similar name, balloons, etc.)
all about the birds
Elemental

Of course... just like the forecast I am sure this will change as I receive even more priceless feedback from everybody. :)

Question  TWO: Will these work in PS elements?

I was really hoping they would... and I can now verify that they do! :) I have PS Elements 7 on my computer... but I have never really used it. Today I spent some time playing around with it and doing some research on google. I actually found two ways of loading the shapes into Elements. :) So far I havent found a way of organizing them once they're loaded.  For some odd reason the preset manager in Elements will not allow you to manage shapes or styles. But if you really want them, it can be done! :) I ended up creating a shortcut on my desktop for Elements and just dragged the unzipped folder into Elements. They all loaded perfectly that way. :)

Question THREE: Will there be a tutorial available?

Yes! I will most definitely provide you with a few different resources on how to load and use the shapes. I will link up to a few places I found informative, and also provide some of my own how to. :) I actually just finished this little guide featuring ways you can get the most from your shapes by using them on photographs. I can see another guide being created that is more geared towards digital scrapbooking with the shapes.

Hopefully I will be able to give you tons of inspiration for your shapes. :)

Question FOUR: When will they be available?

Although I am not 100% sure I will be able to, I'm planning to have two sets ready and listed in my etsy shop this coming monday. I have a few tutorials I need to finish before hand, and some more graphics to design before then. But, it looks promising! 

Question FIVE: Are you still needing testers?

Yep! If you're at all interested from a scrapbooking or photographers perspective, please leave a link to your blog/portfolio. I really want to have a large collection of testers available for future sets. :)

Question SIX: How much will these cost?

I think I'll offer them at a special introductory price for the first week, although I am still not sure what the regular price should be. I hate pricing things. :)

Question SEVEN: How are these better then brushes?

I have some really great brushes that I love to pieces... but custom shapes are so much more versatile. They can be drug and stretched differently, and because they are vector based they shouldnt distort or become pixelated.

I think thats it! My munchiks just woke from they're nap... and are begging for a snack. Mommy duty calls. :)

If I missed any other questions, feel free to leave them here. :)

 

My secret project... no longer a secret!

Hey everybody!! I've been hinting away at this secret project for about a month now. Although I am still not ready to slap a price tag on them, I really wanted to share the project with you and hopefully get some feedback. :) So... your probably wondering what exactly these "shapes" are? I'll share the story about how these came about and along the way that will probably answer this question for you. :)

Remember our family pictures, and my post about the graffiti series I had been planning to do incorporating my art into photographs of urban industrial buildings? Well, that series was started... but before it really began I received a sweet message from mique over at 30handmade days. Asking if I had considered offering my drawings/doodles to photographers to use on they're own images. Of course the entire idea sounded like a fun "pet project" and right up my alley!

After hours spent with my favorite teacher "mr. google" I was able to each myself how to create these overlays. I had a few photographers take them for a test spin, and fortunately there were no problems needing fixed. Whatsoever! :) Huge relief! I already quite the collection of images/examples, and I have to say it is so exciting for me to see what they've done with the shapes. :) I'll see if I can't get a testimonial of sorts from each of these lovely talented ladies. :) But... until then maybe you can be inspired by what they've done! :) 

{{ Click each banner/picture to be directed to they're website or blog }}

 

 

Aren't these gorgeous? Be sure and check out each photographer's blog and website. They are truly inspiring.

I also had fun trying them out on a few of my own photographs...

 

 

Here is a digital scrapbook page I threw together to give you an idea of how versatile the shapes are:

I'm sure that I will have more images to share in the coming weeks. Especially since I am almost finished with the second set "Lovey Dovey Sentiments."  Sneek peek below: :)

 
I'm so excited to finally have these almost ready to be released. I will be adding the first set to my etsy shop by the end of the week. I'll give an update here when I do!

If you are photographer or digital scrapbooker with access to photoshop and would be interested in testing an upcoming set, please include a link to your work in a comment on this post. :) I'll probably only choose two more people, so please don't be hurt if you are not chosen. I hated to do it like this, because I really dont like turning people away... but I am just too shy to put people on the spot! Asking these lovely ladies (I have another partcipating as well.. more to come from her later) was almost too much for me! Of course they are incredibly sweet... and I am glad I did. But STILL. ;)  I'll be deciding based on a number of reasons the main reason being... whether or not I think your work would resonate with vol.25 readers. :)

Btw- I am not sure if these will load into photoshop elements. Does anyone know if ps elements allows custom shapes to be loaded? I know they will work in ps7 as well as newer versions of photoshop.

...well that is it for my big news! What do you think? :) I'm dying to know!

a quote for your week chap. 17

Happy Monday!! I'm going to reveal the details to my secret project a little later today! :) I've been a busy little bee, and I am soo excited to finally share the news!

photo credit

quote credit Collier, Robert on Success