It's a tale as old as time.

You make a beautiful card and your heart is filled with pure joy. You can't wait to share it with the world so you whip out your phone to take a picture, and then this is the result:






Awash with frustration and sadness, you refrain from posting your card photo on social media because there are so many other card makers out there whose photos look like they belong in The Louvre.

Friends, you can conquer your photo demons with these simple and cost-effective tricks!

1. Add Scrapbook Papers to Your Stash as Photo Backdrops.

I recommend these from Hobby Lobby or Michaels. They are less than $1.00 (and even cheaper when they're on sale!), so you cannot beat that, am I right?!




































2. Add Inexpensive Greenery as a Staging Prop. 

Warning: Be careful not to overdo it when you add greenery into your photos, because the attention should be on your beautiful card! I recommend some neutral branches like these from Hobby Lobby:




































Tip: You an also use the supplies you used to create your card as staging props! Inks or embellishments work great!

3. Use Daylight Bulbs

Go to your local Walmart or general hardware store and put some daylight LED bulbs into your cart. Daylight bulbs can add the effect of natural light to your photos. Experiment with the placement of the lamps in your photo taking area as you're taking photos and don't give up! I point my lamps at my white walls, because the light bounces off the white walls and creates a more natural brightness.

Now let's talk about a few simple principles when it comes to arranging your card photos.

1. It's All About the Layers!

Use a jar or something around the house as a riser underneath your card. This creates a bottom layer (your patterned paper backdrop) and a top layer (your actual card). Then, place your greenery or other props on top of your backdrop, (but under your card riser) as a middle layer!

2. Use What You've Got!

We all use Instagram, so here's a foolproof formula for putting the finishing touches on your photos.

• Brightness: Adjust the brightness filter until you get a more natural looking amount of light in your photo.
• Structure: Adjust the structure filter so that the great details on your card aren't lost!
• Saturation: Sometimes when the brightness is adjusted, the color is washed out, so adjust the saturation filter until you get a true representation of your card's colors.
• Shadows: Adjust this filter to reove the shadows that are sometimes unavoidable when trying to photograph your cards.

There are other filters that you can play with, but these 4 are ones that I use every single time I post a picture. My advice would be to start out simply, and then experiment with other filters once you've got the hang of using them!

Thanks so much for hanging with me through this post, and I hope these tips have been helpful to you!

If you have any questions, drop me a comment and I'll do my best to answer them!

Hugs!
Kelly

Hey there, Crafters!

The newest Winter Release from Catherine Pooler is available in the shop now, and we've got a fantastic blog hop lined up to showcase all the fantastic products! My first two cards use the Snowy Day Bundle and the third card uses the Cake and Confetti Bundle.

Our first card incorporates the Geometric Flakes Cover Plate Die, and it's super easy to use!



Start off by creating a wintery background of your choice. I created an alcohol ink background panel for this card, but you could definitely incorporate a different technique!



Then, cut out a 4.25 x 5.5 inch card panel and use the cover plate die to create the front panel. Apply Versamark ink all over the die cut panel and then cover with embossing powder. Glue the panel on to your background panel to complete the entire finished panel combination. Stamp a sentiment on to a strip of vellum cardstock and then wrap that sentiment strip around the panel piece and glue the ends of the strip together on the back of the panel piece.



Adhere that completely finished panel piece on to a cut and scored 4.25 x 5.5 inch card base, and you're good to go!


For the next card, you can pull out a great technique that I often forget about--dry embossing! Dry embossing combined with metallic cardstock creates a really classy look!

Welcome, crafty friends!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Are you ready for another great release from Catherine Pooler Designs??? You can find the entire release here.

Let's get right to the cards!

Christmas is a perfect time for patterned paper, am I right?!

You can combine different sheets of patterned paper at different angles to create a whimsical and fun look, and that's what I did for this first card.



Cut and score a 4.25 x 5.5 inch card base and then adhere your pieces of patterned paper at whatever angle you want on to your card base. Then trim off the edges!

Color the images from the Holiday Charm stamp set using whatever coloring medium you want and then cut them out using the matching dies. You can then arrange them in a wreath-type pattern on to your card by adhering them with foam tape.