Getting Started: Kits, papers, embellishments and more!

You have purchased or downloaded free software and have chosen a few photos. Like animals preparing for hibernation, it’s time to start gathering a few nuts. And by nuts, I mean digital scrapbooking supplies. There are many types of supplies, but we’ll focus here on the main categories. Generally, you can find all of these supplies in “digital kits”, which are coordinated packages. You can even create whole matchy-matchy albums from some of the mega kits.

Types of Digital Scrapbooking Supplies
I’m using the new Weeds & Wildflowers Jolly Holiday collection here as an example.

Papers
As with paper scrapbooking, papers are the foundation. Don’t try to plan in your head – just select a paper and work from there. I’ve found some of my greatest inspiration but just getting started with a paper or two. In digital scrapbooking, papers are usually 12×12 jpg files.

Alphas
This category consists of individually designed letters that can be combined to make initials or words. They are much fancier than fonts.

Embellishments
Here, we’re going to consider anything that doesn’t fit into the above as an embellishment. This category can include ribbons, bows, buttons, word art, flourishes, frames and any shape you can possible image. Embellishments, to me, are what make a layout come alive – they are the center of the Tootsie Roll Pop!

Fonts
The font is the text styling. Fancy fonts are a ‘nice-to-have’, but you can often get away with the fonts provided with your computer’s operating system. My favorite source for fonts is the ScrapVillage. DaFont has simple tutorials on installing fonts on both PC and Mac.

Downloading Tip
Many files, especially kits, will come as a .zip or a .rar file. There are many free utilities for opening these files. Find some of the top picks at download.com!

Off to the Races
It’s time to start selecting, downloading and scrapping. My absolutely favorite starter kits can be found at the Shabby Princess. And guess what? They are free! In future posts, we’ll talk more about freebies. For now, please check out these great kits and get started.