New Scrapbooking Templates, You Could Be A Winner and New Freebies

 Welcome to The Cherry On Top.

Whoo hoo!  We made it to Friday and we've got great new templates, new pretty pages with new collections from around DigiLand and as usual, free stuff.

We've just put these new templates in our shop, Kreative Design Studio.  Photo Love scrapbooking templates are mega versatile templates.  I've left all of the squares on their own layer for complete flexibility.  Use the spots for papers or photos, merge where ya want and embellish on top.

Photo Love Templates

Four fabulous templates on a 12x12 format in formats, psd, tif and png.  Never tried our templates before?  We've got dozens of free ones on the blog.  Scroll through and find one that suits you to see the quality and craft of our goodies.  I've got a link for a free template more towards the end of the blog so keep on reading.

Photo Love Templates and goodies from the Sweet Shoppe

Can ya recognise the awesomeness of Tammy's pages?!  That's her's up there. ^^^^  She's mega talented.  Mine is the one below.  Tammy and I both, used the spots for papers only and she didn't even bother with photos!  Hehehe... Never let a template dictate a theme that doesn't work for you.  That is the beauty of templates.  Change them up to suit your needs.  I even blog different ways to change up templates on occasion.

I had a rare opportunity to see my brother and his wife this summer.  I hadn't seem him in 15 years!  My hubs took this pic of them at our place in Germany.  That's the Mosel River in the background.  Breath taking, eh?

Photo Love templates and Sweetest Pair from Kim Cameron Designs

Rachelle is a star, super scrapper!  She's done a double and she used our Free Falling scrapbooking kit.  You can find the kit here.

Photo Love Templates and Free Falling all from TCOT

Photo Love Templates and Free Falling all from TCOT

Andrea and Chris are showing off other ways to use those spots, which is exactly what I wanted you to see.  You could select the layers/squares you wish to use for one photo, merge those (don't forget to get rid of the shadow) and crop your photo in.

 Photo Love Templates and our Trolla Bolla Collection

I just love how Chris scrapped in that long photo!  She really took advantage of these squares and was able to show off a lot of pictures.

 Photo Love Templates and our Gnome For Christmas Collection

Rochelle also scrapped a super page with my gal Paty Greif's, Santa's Helpers collection, which is on sale for 30% at GingerScraps.

 Photo love Templates and Santa's Helpers

Aimee Harrison has two new collections out this week and they are SO fab!  This one is Jolly Ole Santa Clause and my little guy thrilled with his Pokemon stuffs.  Aimee's word art is so unbelievably fantastic.  If you're like me and not really into all of that journaling, her word art is perfect.  I often use them as titles, like I did here.  I did have to add that touch of green paper behind those deer so it stood out a bit better.  I wanted to make it look more like a present, but it just didn't seem to really add to the cluster. It made it too, busy.

 Jolly Ole Santa Clause from Aimee Harrison Designs

 Let's roll on to those freebies!

Have you taken the ride on our train of free templates?  Do ya love templates as much as I do or are you new to templates?  I've got a lot of tutorials on the blog as well as videos to get you started using templates. It is SO easy and you will save a lot of time, too.  

Free Template

This is  my page with the free template and the DigiScrap Parade's free Bold collection.

 free template from TCOT and Bold from the DigiScrap Parade

I like showing off the versatility of a collection like this.  There is a lot of pink in it, but also a lot of yellow and blue.  You can just as easily scrap up a girly page as a page for guys.

                                   Bold from the DigiScrap Parade

There is a really fun challenge group on Facebook that you may want to consider joining.  I'm a contributor there and these two templates will be available for free when you join in on the mash up challenge. If they are not up yet, give it time. They will be and they won't be available free for long.

             Free in the challenge group             free in The challenge group

The templates are a part of a pack of templates that will be available next year.  They have a nifty artistic flair to them.

coming next year to the shop

If you like free stuff and you like The Cherry's products in the Kreative Design Studio on Etsy, then head over to our group and place the link to your favourite product from the shop and you could win it.  Last time I looked, no one entered a link so you have a HUGE chance of WINNING!  Hehehe...

Join us in the group.  We'd love to see you there!

Did you see our Tuesday blog?  I did a little something different and I really enjoyed writing a blog like this.  I'll definitely do it again.  It's already got a pretty good reception.  Yay!  Thanks if you were one of those readers.

Recently, I gave out a free mini.  Did you miss it?!  Darn!  Sign up for our newsletter so that never happens, again.  We give our readers freebies all of the time.  You deserve something for allowing us into your mailboxes and absorbing your very precious time.  Thanks!

I've designed a pretty, coordinating free word art for you.  Click on the image to download.  If ya like the Choose Joy mini, you can grab it in our shop.

today's new freebie

Have you been downloading all of the amazing freebies from the Digital Scrapbooking Studio?  Click here to find out more.

Tomorrow, I'll have a free card using one of Aimee Harrison's totally gorgeous collections from this week.  You will not want to miss it!

Did you know The Cherry won an award?  Whoo hoo!  Top 100 scrapbooking blogs!  Click on the image and see the others on the list.  Consider following some other scrap-tastic blogs.

Thanks so much for hanging with The Cherry!

What Else Can Ya Do With Project Life Cards?

Welcome to The Cherry On Top.

We're continuing a project we started last weekend.  You can grab the second part of the tutorial right here, the first part here and check out the video showing you how to perfectly size and print your photos to fit in the pockets.

The Project Life cards you see here are still free on the blog for a limited time.  Click on the image to get to last Friday's blog where you can get the link.  You can also find out how to hop around our social spots and grab the rest of this coordinating  mini scrapbooking kit. Sorry, this is no longer available for free.

I've also got a free template on hybrid Saturday's blog.  It's in png format so you can use it digitally, traditionally and hybrid style.  Click on the image to get to the blog for the download.

I'm just uploading a little video on how to get the perfectly cropped pics for in your pockets.  It only took me a couple of minutes with PSE.  If you need the template for the pics follow these directions:

1)  download the free template pictured here

2)  open the template in your scrappy program

3)  crop the style of card you want, rounded edges or typcial

4)  shrink your card of choice just slightly

5)  double check that the insert will fit by placing it over the original template

These are what I made.  I've got the finished result down a bit further.  You can use these for so many things.  I've made a mini for my mom.  You can put them in your agendas and or planners to store goodies if you leave a bit of space on one side.  It's also the perfect size of a door hanger.  Cut out a big hole at top center and you're set.

Here's the rest of the tutorial for you.

We left off where you needed to just finish up your project with pics and our favourite part, embellishing!

There's my photos, perfectly cropped and printed thanks to the video and previous tutorial.

Are you like me and try to scrimp and scrape every scrap possible?  I have very limited supplies and no shops around to buy lovely scrapbooking and paper  products for projects so I have to be resourceful as possible.  I fit all of my photos on some left over, black card stock that a friend brought for me from the States.  Use your paper cutter and if you like, your corner punch to round the edges of your matting.

Most of my book has a black outline so black matting seemed most appropriate.  Check it out first and make sure your matting goes with your photos.

I got so lucky to find such a perfectly matching, old paper in my stash.  These are just discount store goodies and they are pretty terrible, quality wise, but when that's all you can get...Make do with you have, right?  It doesn't have to cost a fortune to be pretty and if you use your own "good" adhesive, it'll be fine.

See how I cut out a flower and a leaf from paper.  Of course, I tried to get a flower as close to the edge as possible.  Hehehe...  Trying to save that paper.  I inked around the edge of my flower and leaf so it matches the rest and gives a touch of contrast to my background paper.  A nice gem in the middle of my flower and a few of those nifty clear dots along the bottom of my photo.  The paper is already pretty busy so I didn't feel the need to over embellish.  Like I would EVER over embellish?!  Hehehe...

I'm going to be totally honest with you...I didn't mean to put the holes in the center of my backing.  I wanted to put holes in the center of my photos and I thought it looked totally redundant to do both.  Ha!  My original plan was to punch holes in the corner of the backing, not the center, but it looks totally ok, right?  Hehehe...  I  might have been able to embellish over the holes, but meh.  This is ok.

There's my book all finished.  I want to send it through the mail, so I don't want to put too many goodies on there.  I'm pretty sure my mom is mostly concerned with the photos, after all. Always consider who is receiving the gift and how much they will appreciate your efforts, if you care that is.

There is the other side.  There's more space for more photos and perhaps a touch of journaling, too.  You could even turn your matted photos into pockets if you needed more space.

If you don't know much about Project Life, we got a few blogs here with Project Life pages.  Check it out on Pinterest and I'll show ya a couple of things you can get at a great shop like Scrapbook.com.

You get a book similar to a traditional 12x12, like the one pictured here.

You can use sleeves similar to these pictured here and use purchased or hand made cards and your photos to go to into the small sleeves.

Here's an example of what some purchased cards look like.  I like the standardisation in Project Life, but once you start looking around, you'll see that it really is quite limitless with what you can do.

I'll be blogging again about different ways to use Project Life cards.  Ever since I designed a few and printed them out, I really start liking project life.  I do think it's a mega easy way to scrap, if you just wanna scrap fast and don't care about all of those embellishments, but you totally can take Project Life to stunning, artistic levels.  Stay tuned to The Cherry and see how we do it!

Above, you'll see our Trolla Bolla Project Life cards.  I blinged them up so I can traditionally scrap them in future.  Ya know, I'll be sure to share the project with you.

Thanks so much for stopping by The Cherry.  We've got a gallery in our Facebook group, if you ever want to show off any of your paper, hybrid or digital projects.  I'd so love to see more traditional and hybrid pages there.

Happy scrapping!

Cool Alternative Idea For Using Project Life Cards and Free Ones

Welcome to The Cherry On Top.

I've got a bit of scrapbooking inspiration for you, today.  I also want to show you what you a bit from yesterdays blog, because it's mega awesome and I thought of a nifty idea with what you can do with our free Project Life cards from yesterday.  I'm providing you with a free template, just incase you can use it.  This project can be done totally traditionally and or hybrid style.  You choose!  Ya gotta love choices.

How about these fabulous colours?!  I just love it on my youthful page with my youngest son.  The templates are new and from Made By Keuntje. JJ went to the zoo with his dad a few weeks ago and was in 7th heaven.  He went twice with his school, but never got to go where he wanted to go and they never stayed very long.  So he missed a lot.  This time my hubs let him be in charge and they were there for over 5 hours.

Briar Rose template from MBK and Thankful from Throwing Some Scraps Around

Briar Rose Templates

Thankful

These were the templates we put in the shop yesterday.  They are super for the paper lovers!  Look at all of those fabulous layers.  Your pages are going to look fantastic!

Got Your Back Templates

I scrapped this page up in under 15 minutes with the new templates and my free mini.  Give it a try!

Got Your Back templates and Choose Joy freebie

My gal Laureen went scrappy crazy with my templates and I could not be happier with her pages.  They are SO beautiful.

Shelly is new on the team and gave our templates a sweet boyish touch.  I love the boy pages.

 Hey Mister, Pretty In Green

Jodi also scrapped a fun page with her rocking hair and cutie pie.

Winter is here kit from TSSA

I'm giving away a fabulous, free mini scrapbooking kit around my social spots.  I'm so thrilled about the lovely reaction it's gotten so far.  Thanks to all of your for your beautiful comments.  It certainly is encouraging.  Grab the free cards from yesterday, the papers from our Facebook Group and the ellies from the newsletter.  I'll be sure to put the links back in next week's newsletter incase you sign up late.

THESE ARE NO LONGER FREE, but you can purchase them here.

Now, for my idea on an alternative use for these or any Project Life cards you have in your scrappy stash whether it be digital or traditional.

I've designed this template in both straight edge and cornered in case you need it.  Click on the image or below it to get the free png template.  I've put it in png so you can use it digitally, with your cutting machines or traditionally.

click here for the download

Here's the start of my project.  You'll get the idea and you can go from there.  I'll finish up the project and get it in our Traditional Tuesday spot.

I went through my card stock stash, looking for coordinating papers to go with my new, free Project Life cards.  I was pretty impressed with my find.  Hehehe.. I thought I'd show you what I got together. I matched as closely as I could, the colours from the cards.

There are three different ways you can go about with the basis of this project.

1)  use your cutting machine with our pngs and your paper choice

2)  trace around our templates, once you've downloaded them and printed them out

3)  keep your lines straight, use your paper cutter and use a corner punch for a perfect cut

Tah, dah!  There is the base of your page.  I've inked around my card and my background paper.  I like the black contrast.  I used my slimmest double sided tape for around THREE edges of my card to create a pocket.

I plan on inserting pictures into the pockets and using ribbon to pull and push the photos in and out of the pocket.  You see where this is going...Decide on how you want to bind them or other ways you can use them.

If you followed our tutorial on how to make your own journal or agenda, these will totally fit in there. I would adhere your new pocket page onto another larger paper, repeat your inking process, leaving enough room for your holes, to make an insert in your journal/agenda.  I've got how to do this in the original tutorial, too.

I'll make a cover to fit over these new pocket pages and more than likely bind them in the corner with a hole punch and a ring, like I did the journal you see here.

Here are a couple of items that you can purchase on line that will help you with this and many other craft projects you have in mind.   I love this mixed set of metal rings.  I use these more than any other fastener.  Click on the image to get to CreateforLess where you can find tons of craft goodies at Cherry price.

This is exactly the kind of book I used for my project and several others.  By clicking on the image, you'll hop over to Scrapbook.com where they have an awesome selection of craft supplies.

What a nifty blog for today.  I'm so glad you stopped by.

Consider our fun, free coordinating mini and showing off what you make with it.

Happy scrapping!