Wordless Wednesday- “Summer” Album Sneak Preview

 

Photography by Dixie Tayler Photography http://www.dixietaylorphotography.com

Sneak Peak- Animals

I’ve been working on these cute animals for the last 2 days. They are going to be the main feature of a few kids themed albums I’m working on. I will also be offering them as a set of PSD work paths. You will be able to take the path and stroke it with your choice of brush (in these examples I used a brush called “stitch” by boyinpaw) or fill it with your choice of color or pattern. So far I have 26 different animal paths and I’m looking to add more! Stay tuned to see when the final product is available.

 

You can view all the completed animals so far by viewing the album on my Facebook profile here.

Freebie Friday!

Freebie Friday WILL be a tradition around here. If I ever forget then I’ll make up for it, I promise. Today’s freebie is an album template that I created. It is called “Rockin” and is perfect for photo’s of any boy that loves guitars or rock and roll. This album includes 10 spreads in a 12×12 format. This is the full layered PSD file so it is completely editable. It is specifically formatted to fit White House Custom Color Album printing specs, but can be easily altered to use with any printer you like. Here are a few samples of what you will be downloading.

This download is in two parts so click here and here to get it.

As with all my freebies feel free to use this template for both personal and commercial use. The only thing I ask is that you not share the digital file in its original form. Please send people to this blog to download their own copy. I would love any feedback you have to share with me. Thanks and enjoy your freebie!

A New Direction

What initially attracted me to the world of digital design is digital scrapbooking. I LOVE to create my own digital scrapbook pages and kits. As I have learned more about design and refined my skills I’ve decided that there is even more that I want to do.

Playing with everyone elses photo’s has led me to have a desire to learn to improve my photography skills. All the research that I have done on that topic has introduced me to the world of professional photography in a way I never knew truly existed. I was completely unaware of the fact that many kids have a Senior portrait session their last year of High School, for example. I have discovered that professional photographers are always on the look out for a well designed album, card, or other options to display their work. This is what I want to focus my efforts on for the time being. This blog is going to become a place for me to showcase and sell that work.

I will try to update and add more designs at least 2-3 times a week until I have a good supply built up. Every Friday I’ll upload a freebie so that you can get a feel for my work. I’d also like to work on making some tutorials for those desiring to create their own designs. On top of it all I want to continue improving my own photography skills and sharing with you along the way with Wordless Wednesday’s.

Please leave a comment letting me know what types of designs you’d like to see, what you’d like to see as freebies, what tutorials would best serve you, and anything else you think I can do to make this blog relevant to you!

The New Way to Work

What does “The New Way to Work” mean to me?  This is the question posed by Elance the awesome website that I use to find freelance work.

The new way to work for me is one of the biggest blessings in my life.  Because of Elance and other work at home opportunities I get to be with my kids in these precious years when they need me the most! I am here to love them and teach them.  They will never have to be sitting in this house by themselves just waiting for mommy to get home from work.  They will never be stuck at a babysitters all day long just so I can earn enough money to pay the babysitter!  My children will know without a doubt that they are the number one most important thing in my life.  Well maybe second because their dad is number one My children will grow with confidence and high self esteem because I will be able to fill them to overflowing with love and positive encouragement on a daily basis.  My children are my life and now my life can revolve around them thanks to Elance!

According to USA today 70% of mothers work outside the home.  To each their own I say but I am so glad that I can be home with my children and still be able to earn some money.  That lifts my self esteem to know that I have done a job well and that a client is pleased.  When I have something to lift me up and help me feel valuable then I can pour all of that right back into my children and help them feel more valuable.  After all what can make a mother feel any better than watching her children grow to be strong intelligent productive members of society?

Does this sound good to you?  Check out my Elance Profile. Support a work from home mom by hiring me to do your creative digital designing or join Elance yourself and join the movement that shows us a New Way to Work!

slow moving

I wonder what the secret is to getting freelance jobs.  I have bid on many jobs on Elance in the past several weeks.  I got two jobs in quick succession a few weeks ago and since then it has been all dry.  I know I am a good provider. I work hard and get things done on time.  I am VERY experienced with powerpoint after being an intelligence analyst for 4 years.  Heck my job was to build powerpoints! I am doing well in school.  I get good remarks and high grades on all my projects.  So why can’t I get anyone to hire me.  I think part of the solution is to build up my portfolio.

This will be my research for this week.  How exactly do you build a portfolio? What should be in a portfolio?  Should you have one portfolio with everything in it or should you have separate portfolio’s for each type of work?  Maybe both? If you don’t have actual work for real clients to put in your portfolio should you create random things for fictitious clients? How should you display your portfolio?  How do you share your portfolio?  How do you make your portfolio stand out from all the other ones the client is looking at?

The Beginning

As I begin my adventures in the world of work from home mommyhood I am filled with apprehension and excitement. I have spent the last 8 years in the United States Marine Corps, a challenging job to say the least. Trying to work from home, go to school online, and take care of my babies will be even harder!

I am 26 years old and mother to three children. My boys are ages 6 and 3 months, and my girl is 18 months. My oldest son is from my first marriage (oh the drama I will spare you from!) and my two youngest are from my current (never to end!) marriage. A blended family, needless to say, only ads to the challenges I face as I embark on this journey.

My primary love in the graphic design world is digital scrapbooking. I design scrapbook pages as well as original embellishments. I also love to do the photo editing required to make a page wonderful. I have made a few full scrapbooking freebie kits and also do scrap for hire. You can view my scrapbooking profile at Scrapbook Flair

I am currently attending American Intercontinental University Online and majoring in Digital Design. I am really loving this university. My favorite thing is that they provide all books and computer programs that you need to complete your classes. So far I have received the computer programs Microsoft Office 2007, Adobe Creative Suite 3 Design Premium. I have also received several useful books, my favorites are the Classroom in a Book for Illustrator, InDesign, and Photoshop, the Krause Idea Indexes, and Business and Legal Forms for Graphic Designers. I will complete my degree in June of 2010.

The first paid jobs I have completed have come through the Elance website. This is an AMAZING site. Anyone can post a job for hire on this site for FREE. Providers can then submit a bid on the job stating how they will complete it, in what time frame, and what they will charge. The Poster then chooses a provider to assign the job to. I have completed two jobs on this site and am looking for more. You can view my Elance profile at

And now the littlest is hollering to be fed so I guess I am done.