Wow, I just realized that it has been way over a month since I’ve posted a free template. Oh dear, so sorry. I am completely overdue.

Here is Template 74. Grab it here if you like it.

Here are some pages I made from it. Credits at flickr.

I was nervous about making my pages too busy with all of the layers and paper strips I put in there. I fiddled with them for way too long.  I’m not to sure I succeeded at making nice pages but I think they turned out fun and colorful. If you have the same problem, make sure to use plenty of neutrals and not use too many busy patterns. I always experiment with different papers and move things around until I’m happy. I also try to limit my elements to 3 or so clusters to draw the eyes to different parts of the layout without being too distracting. My policy is simplicity is best but I went a little out of the box on these pages.

Whatcha think? Do you like fun, busy layouts or are you draw to simple, clean designs?

MOM, STOP RIGHT NOW! DO NOT READ THIS POST!!

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Hey hey, everyone. I’ve got a little project up my sleeve for Mother’s day and I’m hurrying as fast as I can to get it out so you can use it too.

I’ve created a 16 page photo book template. It’s available in my shop at 50% off until Monday, May 9th so grab it while it’s hot. I’m using it for a Mother’s Day photo book for my mom but it’s generic enough to use for anything. I thought maybe even a baby book or something like that. You could also treat it like a regular bundled package of templates and use them as individual pages.

For some reason I left a little pink line that runs down the middle of each 12×24. Make sure you delete those while you’re designing your pages. I use the line to know where the middle is.

I created the templates for a 12 inch page but I’m going to print my pages as 8×8 (I hate to resize all the papers) which is a good size for a photo book. There is no resizing needed when you send it to the printers.

Here are my pages. My plan is to have a photo and little love note from each member of our family. It all depends if my siblings come through for me. (COME ON GUYS!!) Credits at flickr.

Alright, that’s if for now. I’ve got a bunch more pages to make before this book is done so I need to get to work. Happy scrapping.

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Now, MOM!! If you couldn’t with stand the temptation then you are IN THE DOG HOUSE. Hope you’ll like the book. XO

I’ve been working on a new template for you guys. I have to admit that I got the idea from a cute layout I saw from Dani’s Girls, at least, I thought that is where I saw it but now that I’ve gone back to look for it I can’t find it. Hum, maybe it was somewhere else. I thought the cut out circles in the background were so cute and went to work making a set of templates. When I was half way done with them I saw another template designer post about her new templates. Argg, her templates had circles cut out of the background like mine. Shoot. Must be the latest fad and she beat me to the punch.

Oh well, I’ve gone ahead and finished them anyway because I’d put all that work into them. So here is Template 73. If you like it you can download it here.

Here are the pages I created with it. Credits at flickr.

I’ve also made a little add on pack for you if your a big fan of the cut out backgrounds. Check out in my shop because it’s half off until Saturday, April 9th.

Here’s some more pages.

As I was making these pages I was thinking that I needed to tell you a little tip for scrapbooking a 12×24 layout if you’re a newbie. When I’m placing my papers on the template I like to use the grid. Go View<Grid in the top drop down bar. The grid helps me to snap the background papers perfectly into place. This allows me to make sure that the two papers, right and left side, meet perfectly in the middle at 12 inches so when I crop it at the end, it is seamless. When I’m done with the papers and working on elements I get rid of the grid because I think it’s a bit annoying.

I also like to make a few adjustments to my layout after I’ve cropped it to it’s 12×12 size. I make sure not to move anything that hangs over the edge into the other page but I might move an element or two to help me balance the 12×12 better. Then, when it’s perfect I’ll save that page as a jpeg and go back in Undo History to crop the other side.

Hope that helps a little bit. Happy scrapping.

I’ve been trying to make some head way on my own scrapbooking pages. I was cranking away when I came across of folder full of beautiful pictures from a family photo shoot we had a year ago. I had to ask myself what to do with these photos. After all, I do already have prints hanging up on my walls so do I really need to make scrapbook pages of them?

Well, as I looked through the photos, I saw such cute outtakes of my kids. I didn’t want these to get left behind and forgotten. I want to be able to look at them whenever.

So I have created my Photography Templates to help me get the job done. You know that I like to keep things simple, clean and quick. This keeps the overwhelming feeling of scrapbooking 100s of photos down to manageable pieces. You can grab this bundled package at 50% off in my shop now through Mon, March 28th.

Here are some of the pages I created.

Emma had fun pretending to be a model.

I just love the funny face from Isaac. What a silly guy.

Leah was mostly sad and uncooperative this day. It took Jeremy being goofy to capture the happy face from Leah.

That’s it for now. Happy scrapping.

ps. if you received a crazy email from me with a link that doesn’t work, please delete it. Apparently my email was hacked with spam. So sorry.

Hey ya’ll! How’s your day going? Mine has been full of moving furniture and clean out junk drawers. Fun, no?

No.

Luckily little Leah is giving me a good nap time right now so I’ve whipped up a little Shamrock-y template for you. Remember how I’m not much into holidays… this template is a big step for me. I haven’t done anything else for this little holiday BUT some of the neighborhood moms have planned a picnic tomorrow at the park with nothing but green food to eat.

Humm, what to take?

So I was inspired to make this template for the pictures I’ll (hopefully) snap.

Do you need some inspiration too? Go ahead and download here. If you aren’t into Shamrocks then delete them without any hesitation and replace them with your own fancy element and you’re sure to end up with a darling page whatever the occasion.

Oh, and my daffodils popped out yesterday. Heeeeh!

I also saw some crocuses when I was out on a walk the other day. I love them. I used to have wild ones in my yard in Maryland. I miss them. Maybe I’ll have to plant my own sometime.

I have had my first template request from a reader. It was very fun to create a specific page for someone. Her request was simple and easy and resulted in a template I could use myself.

She wrote,

This past Christmas I was in love with making Christmas trees from mis-shapen triangles.  Since I have an 8 year old daughter, it was a great craft to do with her on cards, gift bags, etc.  Here is an image of what I’m talking about. I would love a template that has a tree similar to that (with separated pieces) off one side/edge, and places for 3-5 photos.

So for all of you that are behind in your scrapbooking (ha, I’m a whole year behind) and need a Christmas looking layout even though it’s March then you are in luck. I present this free template to you with compliments from Melissa. Download here.

I gave Melissa the option of sharing her pages with us all.

She used a kit from Creativity by Crystal

and for this one she used a kit from the Shabby Princess.

Fun stuff. If you’d like to see your idea come to life here at Mandagirl, go ahead a submit an idea too.

It’s scrapbooking time again. Yea.

I’ve got a nice free template for you guys today. It has oodles of pictures- 15 biggish ones! I wanted a template that I could use for some hiking pictures. I love all the photos from the day so I wanted to make sure to see all of them well, thus the style is quite clean and simple. If you like it download it here.

Here are my pages I created with it. Credits at flickr.

I’ve made another add-on pack in the same style. If you like my freebie check out the pack in my shop. It’ll be half off until Tuesday, March 8th.

Here are more pages I made with them. Sheesh, I’ve been getting things done around here. I always scrapbook in chronological order so when I start getting to warm-weather photos I get a bit more excited about scrapbooking. It must be because the photos tend to be more bright and colorful and involve enjoyable memories. Do you find yourself feeling the same?

That’s it for now. I’ve had my first request for a template so I’m going to work on that next. Happy scrapbooking.

Hello, Hello. I have a free template for you. I played around with the scallops and made them a bit imperfect. I like the way they turned out. I also made a little doodle flower. If you choose to keep them on your layout, you can used your magic selection tool and select the red color. Then you can paint them any color you want to match your layout. Otherwise, delete them and use your own embellishments. Same with the green doodle swirly things.

Download it here.

Here are my pages.

My little Add on kits were a success. Yea! I’m glad you like them. So… I made you anther one to go along with Template 70. It will be 50% off in my shop through Sunday 2/27.

That’s it for now. Short and sweet. Happy scrapbooking.

What? Did Valentines come and go already. Sheesh. I never got around to making the little Valentines cards I was dreaming of. Hum, I guess they’ll have to wait until next year. I hope you all had a lovely Valentines day. My house was filled with lots of homemade paper hearts with sweet words written on them. So nice.

But on to the real subject…

With all the adventures that I’ve had with running my little template shop I haven’t quite figured out how to keep on top of adding new products there as well as keep up with free templates on my blog. You see, I want to do both but have to make sure to keep my life balanced with computer time and mommy/wife time. I have to keep everyone happy, yes? So it is truly a mystery how other designers mange to put out new products weekly and do it with kiddos at home. Puzzling, don’t cha think?

So… here is my attempt. I’ve created some little add on packs. They are additional pages that will coordinate with the original template. But don’t get to excited. I’ve only made two so far. I’ll see how they do before I make some more.

Here is Add On Pack 64 (it’s 50% until Sunday 2/20)

and pages I made with it.

And here is Pack 69 (it’s 75% until Sunday 2/20)

and a page I made with it.

Now, the Template 69 pack is 75% off because I’m going to give you the first page for free. Yes, you can grab it here on my free template page for a limited time. If you’re wanting more pages, those 3 extra 12×12 are only .50. Woooh, what a steal.

That’s if for now. Happy scrapbooking.

Hey, have you been looking for one of these?

I whipped up one for a friend and thought I’d share the template. It’s of course simple and sweet but you could embellish it as much as you dared… or maybe you are a super duper hybrider and can make all kinds of crazy banners out of it.

I left the text layers editable so you can change the letters to spell out whatever your little heart desires… such as “Welcome to the Chaos” or perhaps “No, the Neighbor Boys do not Live Here.” Either of those would work at my house.

So if you’d like to whip one up yourself you can download my template by clicking here.

Remember to leave me some comment love below if you downloaded. Thanks!