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Using Ploppers "™"-A Fast, Fun and Easy Digital Scrapbooking "Tool"
Ramie Ahlstrom - Scrapping Deck Cruise DirectorPloppers "™" are the easiest way to scrapbook digitally. While the number of names they go by is as numerous as the number of digital scrapbooking websites out there, I'll refer to them as ploppers "™" for the remainder of this article. Other names include: quick pages, quick sticks, digital drop-ins or drop-ons, jiffy scraps, scrapwiches, pronto pages, scraplets, presto pages, express pages, and bag-ettes. By any name, they are all basically the same things. They are pre-made pages that simply need your photos added to them to make a complete layout.
These pages can be acquired from most digital scrapbook websites. They are available from almost every digital designer who sells their creations, and can be found for free on many digital scrapbook websites.
Using a plopper "™" couldn't be easier! All you have to do is to open it in your favorite digital scrapping (or photo editing) software and then insert a photo. Add some text (a title, journaling, the date if you'd like,) and you have a completed layout in mere minutes!
Note: Some ploppers "™" come with titles already on them, while some have no text so that you can add your own. Adding text will use different steps depending on the software program you are using, so be sure to read the "help" menu, or your "owners' manual" for information on how to do that.
Simply adding texture to a plain layout (the backgrounds and/or elements) can make a huge difference! Just as using some textured cardstock (think Bazzill) makes a paper layout go from ok to wow, adding a textured layer to your digital layouts makes them look real, and gives them an extra zing! (And, it doesn't cost you a penny!!)
Here's a layout I did using a plopper "™" with a title already in it:
Here's one to which I added my own title:
In this layout, I added some additional words to make the title a bit longer and then added journaling in the circle to the left of the photo. Our very own Tonya Doughty from Tonya's Advanced Cyber Cafe designed this plopper "™", as part of her Seaside Kit:
You can also add additional elements to layouts that started as ploppers "™" if you so desire. If you don't like the look of the additional elements, simply delete them with the "undo" button in your software!
I enjoy using ploppers "™" and have found myself using them frequently! Fast and easy to do, they allow me to complete layouts without having to think too much (sometimes a very good thing when scrapping late at night)! I especially like to use them when I'm having a case of scrappers' block. Sometimes, the layouts I have "pictured" in my head just do not work out because the pieces I want to use don't quite match, or the photos are not quite what I had hoped for. This layout showcases some old photos of my husband, sound asleep as a wee one. These thirty-year-old photos had deteriorated a bit, and didn't match each other perfectly, but I wanted to scrap them. I used a plopper "™" and added some text. It's a very simple page, but it's scrapped, and I think he'll enjoy it. He has not yet seen it….but will when I send him the link to this article-hopefully I won't get in too much "trouble"!!)!
Ploppers "™" are a perfect way for a new digital scrapper to begin. They are an easy way to take the plunge into digital scrapping, since they allow you to become more familiar with your software. If you have thought about taking the plunge, but can't get up the guts to do it, try using a plopper "™" or two. I think you'll enjoy the ease of it, and I think you'll find that digital scrapping is really easier than it seems!
If you are a more advanced digital scrapper, you can use ploppers "™" as well. You can alter them to make them fit your photos better by changing the color and saturation levels. I altered the color in this one a bit; the original was more of a bright teal color versus the dark blue I desired:
Most ploppers "™" come in a .png or .jpg format, and have a transparent place for putting your photo. Depending on your software, you may be able to place the photo behind the plopper "™", so it appears that the page was designed around the photo. For ploppers "™" that don't have transparent photo spaces, you will need to resize your photo and lay it over the "photo mat" on the plopper "™". This is sometimes easier said than done, but it does work. It can give your photo that "double matted" look that is ever popular on paper pages!
I hope you've enjoyed this little glance into the easiest form of digital scrapping out there! Be sure to share your digital layouts with us, for display in our Reader's Gallery. Resize them to 475 pixels on the longest side, and send them to robinwillis@ssreflections.com, along with your name, and the city and state (or country) you live in. We look forward to seeing your fantastic work!
****Note to readers: The term Plopper "™" is trademarked by Digital Scrapbook Place and is used in this article, and accompanying supply lists with permission from them. I chose to use this term only because it was the first term I used when I started digi-scrapping. That is what I call them personally. The term is interchangeable and varies by designer and website. Thanks!
Happy Scrapping!
Ramie Ahlstrom
ramieahlstrom@ssreflections.com
Scrapping Deck Cruise Director
S.S. Reflections, Inc.
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***Disclaimers - While individual techniques may vary, always follow product manufacturers' directions and cautions for safety and best results.
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