Happy
Mother's Day!
~*~
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Have you seen all the new products in the MBI Store? We've got great prices on double-sided cardstock from Studio 8, new Grungeboard designs, and coming soon, double-sided TEXTURED cardstock and acrylic stamps from Daisy Bucket!!
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Do you like kits? If so, check out MBI's exclusive Mega-May kit! Quantities are limited, so get yours now! Click on the kit for more information!
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We'd like to welcome our newest members: scraparoo, honeybear and lematney!
Welcome to MBI!!
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Bert's Tip Jar:
Paper Piecing Ideas
If you like to make your own paper embellishments, check out these helpful tips!
1. You can make almost any type of graphic (even a photo) a paper piecing pattern simply by printing several copies of it and then layering it however you wish. Think flowers, cartoon people, seasonal graphics like pumpkins, stockings, Easter eggs and flags.
You can take a pattern from one kids’ clothing, scan it into your computer, print it and use it as a pattern for your paper piecing. Coloring books and/or stickers also make great paper piecing patterns.
2. Scan your paper piecing patterns into your computer and you can print them right on the paper you want to use (saves your pattern too) or you can just use your embossing stylus and dry-emboss the pattern right on to your paper.
3.
Use patterned paper instead of solid for a totally different effect, or trim the edges with decorative scissors!
4. Find a graphic pattern, an icon pattern and even iron on transfer and use those for your paper piecing.
5. To make the paper piecing, or parts of it, stand out, mat it.
You'll soon find out that creating your own paper piecings gives your layouts and projects dimension, interest, and a personal touch!
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As always, we'd like to thank you for being part of our community at Memory Book Inspirations. If you'd prefer not to receive newsletters and special information from us, please click here to unsubscribe.
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The Winner of the May Challenge is...
 Cheryl (cakvd)! Cheryl used tons of flowers to create a semi-circle around her journaling on this adorable layout!
Cheryl will receive a package of Soften Me Up fabric flowers from Daisy D's! Congratulations!
Want to enter next month's contest for a chance to win a gift certificate to the MBI Store? Click here for more information!
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Making the Most of Your MBI Mega-May Kit...
Tonya (gqzmommy) and Aleta (leeterbug) had fun creating layouts, cards, and projects with this month's kit. Take a look at their beautiful creations...
Tonya created a stunning layout and an altered jar with her May Kit!
 
And Aleta crafted this cute card and a two gorgeous layouts!
  
Thanks ladies for showing us your ideas! Pick up your Mega-May Kit in the MBI Store!
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Celebrate Your Heritage This Month!
by guest contributor, Terri (meterr)
Did you know that May is Older American's Month? Scrapping older photos might not seem as interesting as using your current family pics, but it's just as important!
If you barely remember who the people are in those old photos, how are future generations to know who
their ancestors were? We as scrappers need to preserve and use these photos!
PRESERVE,REPAIR AND ENHANCE...
 Before we begin scrapbooking old photos, the first thing we must do is preserve them. Keep originals away from sunlight and dampness. I keep mine in acid free envelopes in a fireproof box. If I know who the person is, I write on the back with an acid free pen: who, what, where and when.
I have found that 100 year old pictures sometimes last longer than my own baby photos, which were
taken in the 1970s. Different photo materials and inks were used during different decades, so wear and fading will differ.
I would recommend to a person who is truely interested in doing
heritage photo layouts to invest in photo restoration software, such as Paint Shop Pro or Photoshop.Using this software
you can fix rips, faded pictures and cracks.You can even crop things out of the pics...but be careful in doing so! The background can be as important as the person in the photo. I like seeing the old car in the background, an old kitchen filled with "retro" items or a tree that might have been a baby when the photo was taken in Grandmas yard, but now its 50 feet tall!
DATE AND AUTHENTICATE
You really don;t need to do this next step, but if you want to be authentic and true to the photo's decade or era, you need to learn to date photos and and use embellishments that are appropriate. There are several books and websites to help you date your photos. You can tell by the way the photo was printed, what it's printed on (postcard, Polaroid) and the way the people look (clothes, hairstyles). You can also tell by backgrounds (cars, calanders on walls, etc.). So a photo of your grandfather in the 1940s wouldn't look true to its decade with a Model T car embellishment!
here is a helpful website for dating photos:
http://www.familychronicle.com/dating.htm
Want to read more? Click here to read the entire article and get some ideas to create easy and fun Heritage Layouts!
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GO DIGITAL!
by all4Ty, moderator of the Memory Book Chatter Forum
You know you want to! There are so many ways to use your computer while you scrap, even if you aren’t quite ready to let go of your paper and scissors just yet. These are some things you can do make the transition to digital scrapping easier:
• Journaling – Whether you like your own handwriting or not, you may want to type your journaling on the page. Perhaps there is a song or poem you’d like to use on the layout, but you don’t want to handwrite the entire thing. Or maybe you’re after a more sophisticated look to the page. You can type your journaling onto special paper, even if you scrap 12x12 but don’t own a large-format printer. Print the journaling onto a regular piece of paper, then tape the special paper or cardstock you want to print the journaling on over the printed area, and feed the sheet back through the printer. Your journaling will be perfectly positioned on your journal block.
• Creating the perfect title – Don’t have the perfect title on hand? Don’t worry. You can use your computer to design a title specifically for your layout.  In Word, open a new document, then click the WordArt button (in the version I’m using, it’s located on the Drawing toolbar). In this example, I combined a WordArt image with a line of regular text – in the WordArt properties, you can select the placement of the image relative to other text.
• Journal on your photo – Sometimes the perfect picture can be enhanced by adding a title or caption right on the photo itself. You’ll likely need a photo processing program for this, but many software companies allow a 30-day download trial for new customers. Be sure to work with  a copy of your photo, as you don’t want to lose the original in the event you aren’t happy with the changes you’ve made. Create a new layer for the text, type, and modify the text as needed. When you are finished, save your picture as a .jpg and it can be printed the same way you print your normal photo.
Interested in learning more about digital scrapping and seeing more of Pam's examples? Click here!
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