Shutterfly Digi Scrap Blog

Heather Ann Melzer: Getting to Know Her.

Heather Ann Melzer , owner of Heather Ann Designs tells us a bit about her creative style and what inspires her.

Tell us about your creative style.

"My style is pretty simple with touches of whimsy here and there. I always make my photos the focus of my pages and use elements that compliment them and help me tell my story."

Who or what inspires you the most?

"My kids are my biggest inspiration when it comes to scrapping. They make life so fun and interesting that I’m always inspired to scrap something they’ve said or done.

When it comes to designing, I’m inspired by literally everything around me – websites, dishes, clothes, greeting cards – you name it. Since I’m a scrapper first, I design things that I know I’d want to use on my own layouts."

As a special little treat Heather Ann shares a fun link with us.

"Here’s a link to some fun freebies at my shop: CLICK HERE!  I also post freebies on my blog from time to time, so stay tuned!"

News From CHA : Shutterfly Partners With BPS !

The CHA Convention (Craft and Hobby Association) in Chicago is underway and Shutterfly has exciting news  to share: 

Shutterfly Partners with Big Picture Scrapbooking to Educate and Inspire a New Audience of Digital Scrapbookers

and

Introduces new digital scrapbook style photo books to capture travel stories and great moments in youth sports.

ROSEMONT, Ill., Jul 18, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Today from the Craft & Hobby Association Summer Convention & Trade Show, Shutterfly, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFLY), the leading Internet-based social expression and personal publishing service, unveiled "Digital Studio," a new online scrapbooking educational resource with Big Picture Scrapbooking, the worldwide leader in online scrapbooking education.

Digital Studio is a new online educational resource that makes it easy and fun for consumers to learn about digital scrapbooking, photobooking and photography. Members can participate in free and paid online classes about digital scrapbooking and photography that will also show them how to use Shutterfly to bring their stories to life. Class participants will also learn to make personalized digiscrap greeting cards and scrapbook pages created from free online kits. For more information about Shutterfly and Big Picture Scrapbooking's Digital Studio, please visit: http://www.bigpicturescrapbooking.com/digital.php.

"With digital scrapbooks accounting for one in ten of all photo books posted to Shutterfly Gallery, the creativity and craftsmanship of digiscrappers has really inspired the Shutterfly community," said Kathryn Olson, chief marketing officer of Shutterfly. Because digital scrapbooks consistently top our "make one like this" list, we know our customers are interested in further exploring this hobby themselves. Together with Big Picture Scrapbooking, we are pleased to offer our customers an online resource where they can learn from step-by-step tutorials about digital scrapbooking and how to take better pictures."

"We have teamed up with Shutterfly to launch a digital studio that will provide us with dedicated space to teach and enjoy classes for beginning digital scrapbookers," says Stacy Julian, founding partner of Big Picture Scrapbooking. "I'm thrilled to have the power and experience of Shutterfly on our side. They are dedicated to storytelling and supporting scrapbookers in general with comprehensive online services and quality printing solutions."

By partnering with Big Picture Scrapbooking, Shutterfly builds upon its commitment to the scrapbooking community, which began with Shutterfly's industry-leading printing solutions for digital scrapbookers and the formation of the Shutterfly Scrapbooking Advisory Board.

New Scrapbook Style Photo Books

Shutterfly launched two new photo books, A Trip to Remember and Play Hard, designed by Creating Keepsakes professionals. http://www.shutterfly.com/shop/product_c18490/Creating_Keepsakes.

A Trip to Remember photo book, designed by Creating Keepsakes Editor-in-Chief Brian Tippetts, showcases an inviting combination of travel-inspired design, soothing colors and casual layouts that put vacation pictures front and center. This photo book makes it easy to highlight all the moments, big and small, that make a vacation special with sentiment starter headlines, relevant imagery and plenty of room for captions to document travel adventures. Tippetts offers inspiration and step-by-step instructions on how to make a lasting travel memento at http://ck.shutterfly.com/inspire/articles/triptoremember.jsp.

Just in time for those who have caught Olympic fever, the Play Hard photo book, by Creating Keepsakes Hall of Famer Kerri Bradford, helps athletes of all ages capture the thrill and excitement of the sports season. The book features sports icons, sentiment starters and motivational headlines to help chronicle the highs and lows of an unforgettable season. For more ideas on how to capture the thrill of the game, visit: http://ck.shutterfly.com/inspire/articles/playhard.jsp.

About Shutterfly

Founded in 1999, Shutterfly, Inc. is the leading Internet-based social expression and personal publishing service. Shutterfly provides high quality products and world class services that make it easy, convenient and fun for consumers to preserve their digital photos in a creative and thoughtful manner. Shutterfly's flagship product is its award-winning Photo Book line, which helps consumers celebrate memories and tell their stories in professionally bound coffee table books. More information about Shutterfly (NASDAQ:SFLY) is available at www.shutterfly.com. Shutterfly and Shutterfly.com are trademarks of Shutterfly, Inc.

SOURCE: Shutterfly, Inc.

Heather Ann Melzer: Layout Inspiration!

It's not difficult to see everyday inspiration within the art of Heather Ann Melzer, owner of Heather Ann Designs. Her eye for beauty, not only in her layouts but within her photography, is evident. She catches everyday life , specifically her kids, in action and documents it in an incredible form. Here are a few layouts Heather created!

Heather has created a fun card template as a freebie for the Shutterfly blog. Enjoy creating something fun with it. (maybe a thank you card to someone you spent the 4th with, or an " I love you" to a family member in the service!) Please remember that all freebies are for personal use only!

Download Americana_Card_.zip

Welcome : Heather Ann Melzer!

It is so exciting to have the very talented Heather Ann Melzer , owner of Heather Ann Designs, as our featured artist here at the Celebration Blog. She  is going to share a bit about herself and she is going to share some wonderful celebration inspiration with us throughout the week. So, first, lets get to know Heather a little better.

Tell us a bit about yourself and your family.

"Hi, I’m Heather. I’ve lived in and around Chicagoland my entire life. I’ve been married to my husband, Tom, for 9 years and we have 3 children: Mackenzie, Katie and Jack (who just turned 1!). I’ve been making memorabilia books since junior high and started scrapping in the now traditional sense in 2003, when my oldest was born. I paper scrapped for a couple of years before falling in love with digital and then started designing in 2005. If I’m not scrapping or designing, I’m working, bargain shopping, working on a home improvement project with my husband, or doing something fun with the kids. Our lives are very full!"

Tell us about your business.

"My on-line boutique can be found at www.heatheranndesigns.com. I exclusively sell my own designs, which include digital scrapbook kits, calendar kits, quick fill page sets, elements, alphas, hybrid holiday projects and more. Check it out and put this coupon to good use."

Heather has some incredible Celebration Inspiration to share. Check out her layouts below!

 

Thank you : Liz Tamanaha!

Liz Tamanaha of Paislee Press Designs has been an absolute joy to feature. She not only has a gift for design, but her excitement for life and her absolutely charming personality has really grabbed our hearts and truly set inspiration into action!

As we say thank you to Liz for inspiring us, she sends us off with a darling two page freebie add-on that coordinates with her well known "Happy As A Lark" quick album.  Best of all, the album has been made completely compatible with Shutterfly. All you have to do is add your own photos and your own journaling in a program like Adobe Elements then upload it to Shutterfly and create your own 8 x8 book! It is such an easy way to create a book that has an elegant look and feel but is still very personalized!

Here are your two free pages! (Please remember that all freebies are for personal use only) Enjoy and please remember to upload your finished books into the Shutterfly Gallery for the rest of us to enjoy!

Download Lark AlbumAddOn.zip

Quickpage Freebie : From Liz Tamanaha

Liz Tamanaha of Paislee Press Designs has a great photo editing tip and a "classy quickpage freebie" for us! Enjoy!

Share a favorite digital technique that you love to use.

"As of late, I can’t seem to scrap a photo “as is”. I feel compelled to boost the contrast or brighten the colors or crop the photo to create a new perspective (or in my case, to “save” or “revive” an otherwise unscrappable photo). Photoshop actions are my best friend! A great resource for Photoshop actions is the Adobe Exchange."

Here is a square Quickpage for you. All you need to do is add your own pictures and journaling and you are done. Please remember that all freebies are for personal use only.

Check out this link for some incredible Paislee Press Inspiration!

Download Paislee-MomentsQP.zip

Love and Inspiration : By Liz Tamanaha

Liz Tamanaha of Paislee Press Designs shares more insights and inspiration!

Who or what inspires you most?

"Everything, but my latest inspiration is my daughter Audrey."

What fun or endearing projects are you working on right now?

"I’m working on an album to document my daughter’s first year of growth. I’m also working on our wedding album, our honeymoon album, and our Europe vacation album."

Check out the 8 x 8 album that Liz created at Shutterfly of her Wedding. Truly beautiful and elegant and absolutely inspirational!

Click here to view this photo book.

Getting to Know Her : Liz Tamanaha

Liz Tamanaha of Paislee Press Designs has some great inspiration in store for all of us this week. Her classic, clean art captures those everyday celebrations in an extraordinary fashion.

Tell us about yourself.

"I reside in sunny California with my husband and our baby daughter, Audrey. Things that make me happy are freshly laundered sheets. My daughter’s laugh. Jack Johnson songs. Dymo labeler. Handwritten notes. Spending time with my husband. The smell of freshly ground coffee. Jeans + flip flops. Maui. Jazz music. Finishing a crossword puzzle."

What is your creative style?

"Oh, this is a hard one for me. After all these years, I still find it extremely difficult to describe!! I like experimenting with different styles – artsy collage, modern + graphic, vintage + feminine – and taking elements from each then combining them to create a new look. Is there a name for this madness? In all seriousness, I am a simple girl at heart and my designs reflect my minimalist sensibilities. I’m drawn to layouts with lots of open space and soft, neutral-toned colors."

Lucky us, Liz has created a freebie card template for our blog. You can download the template, add your own photos, then have them printed at Shutterfly. It's easy fun and so creative. Enjoy and please remember that all freebies are for personal use only.

Download Paislee-Ecologie-5x7Card.zip

Welcome : Liz Tamanaha!

Welcome to our new featured artist, Liz Tamanaha of Paislee Press Designs.  Liz  is not just a wonderful designer, but a very experienced Shutterfly user. She has created several books full of celebration inspiration and even creates products perfect for  printing at Shutterfly that you can buy and use in your own books. Here is a sample of her work.

Click here to view this photo book.

We look forward to having Liz here with us and can't wait to share her inspiration with all of you!

Mini Kit Inspiration : From Gina Miller!

Thank you Gina Miller, owner of GinaMillerDesigns, for sharing so much wonderful inspiration with us over the last several days.

As a special gift, Gina has created a mini-kit for the Shutterfly Blog. Enjoy and please remember that all freebies are for personal use only.

Download PAPERS.zip

Download ELEMENTS.zip