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Here is my DIY page. I wanted to include two photos, so I put the three small squares together, added another one, merged them to add the photo. with another small square placed in the centre to fill the corners, in the centre. I used the width of one of the rings to add the lace edge, (keeping the dimensions the same) it didn't look right, so I filled the ring. I added to 2 small squares, one thin strip and a fill to the one ring. All the colours came from the two birds. Textures. The background paper is a combination of colours from the birds, melding together. For the centre round paper, I promoted from the background paper, added a texture. Placed the blue ring under the top promoted paper.

Something turned up on my FB feed that caught my eye. Normally I don't pay much attention to them, but this one was from David Attenborough's fan club (or so they say). I googled the images to check for the veracity of this phenomenon, and it appears to be true. The natural wonder of it is quite astounding. And since we have a Welsh person in this group, I threw together a layout using a template to save time.

I took a screenshot of a map, of the Maesteg area. I have circled where my parents farm is. The narrow lane takes you up to Mynydd Yr Gaer mountain, and on to Rhiwcellog, which is common land, where the sheep would spend their summers. There are cattle grids on either side of all mountains. The farm fields would rest, to produce hay to feed the sheep during the winter months.

I remember it. Many friends from the area sent me photos. The other side of the forestry, is Pontycumer. From the age of 8 until we moved to Canada I hunted with the Llangeinor Hunt. I have ridden all those mountains countless times over those years. From the top of them, looking south down the Vale the view is specular, all the way to the ocean. I did page page for the Publish challenge, back in 2021. You can just see the 2 chimneys of the 600 hundred yr old farmhouse, and surrounding fields which belonged to my parents.

15 years ago when I was going to scrapbooking retreats with my laptop, I saved all my kits and photos on an external hard drive. Even when I worked at home on my desktop, I saved what I was doing on that external hard drive. I also had a cloud backup that would backup my desktop hard drive and the external hard drive. So I still had more than one copy of everything. Over 5 years ago I began having issues with my computer disconnecting from the internet on its own. Even new modems from the ISP didn't seem to solve the problem. Then in May of 2019 we had a power outage due to tornadoes in the area and when the power came back my 7 or 8 years old computer wouldn't even turn on. So I had to get a new one. While I didn't have a desktop I had to use my laptop which was not connected to the cloud backup... and I had no internet disconnects at all! I got the new computer and got everything setup including the cloud backup and the internet disconnects started happening again. I paused the backup and no more disconnects so I cancelled the service. So these days, I keep everything on my hard drive but whenever I download my photos or buy and unzip new kits, I back them up to 2 separate external hard drives. I also have 2 other external hard drives that I will back up everything to about once a month. I've also gotten to the point that all my old stuff are on the external hard drives but not the hard drive of my desktop. If I would need something I just hook up the external. This gives me more room on the desktop. I no longer like to scrap on my laptop because I'm so used to the dual monitors but I do have PSP loaded on it. So if I were to go away and take my laptop, if I take one of my external hard drives I could still scrap if I wanted. System works for me!

I created this photo in Adobe Firefly AI asking for vegetarian fast food. I put it together in Corel PSP 2023.

Sue, I totally agree with all photos taking precedence in layouts as well. Once again, thanks for the feedback!

Laurie, I also thought of the idea to run the circles off the page. I didn't but I like the effect. Well done!

Thanks Sue, you were not knit picking. That’s exactly the kind of feed back I am looking for. Tomorrow morning I will see if I can link layers together, and I will see if I can fix the Bird text. Thanks for the idea of swapping the square photos. I wasn’t sure how to make my composition totally work without resizing anything. I didn’t see that swapping the photos would help. Sometimes i need someone with a fresh eye to look at things.

Oh dear, that sounds ominous. I hope it's not serious. Something to possibly consider. I don't keep any photos or my PSP creations on the laptop. I have them all on my external hard drives. Also at the end of each year I copy photos, and PSP creations and jpg creations to sticks, as a backup.

My latest entry in the Basic Scrap Course: Module 4: Pumpkin Pickin'. Two of my 5 great-grands, brothers Jonah (born 6/20/23) and Logan (born 2/6/21) having fun in the pumpkin patch. They live in Pike County, PA. The Alpha is from Treed-Have A Nice Day.

After looking at Carole's latest script, I had to see if I could replicate it. This is my test interpretation. I used a new mask layer, hide all. Brushes, Fonts, from vector shape, select selection borders. I must admit I do like this effect, another way to showcase my photos. The photo fills the whole page. Perhaps this wasn't the best photo to use as an experimental page, as the background of the photo gets rather dark. But I get the gist on how to create this effect. One of my resident Great Horned Owls. I'm going to put the script on my wish list, as I'm sure it will take a fraction of the time it took me to create the page below. Still, I enjoyed myself.

November to me is always about Remembrance, especially during the first half of the month. I have done a lot of research into WWI and WWII service people from my hometown area in order to write biographies of them for the Legion. The more I learn, the more humbled I am. This is my FB cover page for this month. I make one every month...since I can...thanks to this group and Carole!

I was practicing adding text. I got the poem from an internet site where people can submit their poems. There was no name added and it also doesn't mention that you can't post it anywhere. Only it stated that you are not allowed to publish it under your own name. I just thought it was a beautiful poem. de Font is Agency FB. I don't remember where I got the pumpkin.

I had fun today playing with some scripts from Carole. I made tablecloth with frays, used the Sandwich plate with the stonescript build a room and a table,

I started working in the relatively new McDonald's in my town during my senior year of high school. I got the job because I was 18 and could work past 10 p.m. to do the closing chores needed. I worked all summer before heading off to college. When I came home for Thanksgiving, I stopped in to ask if I could work during the break between semesters and they said yes so I worked during those 4 weeks over Christmas/New Year's. At that time they told me that I would be welcome to work there the following summer if I wanted. So I did. So my job during my early college years was McDonald's. The funniest story though is that my dad absolutely loved their "fresh" French fries. He was under the impression that they cut fresh potatoes every day for their fries. Boy did I burst that bubble when I told him they were frozen! He still loved them. I quit eating fast food about 15 years ago unless I am traveling. For me it was for budgetary reasons... fast food was expensive even then. Here is a layout I did 9 years ago about the store I worked in. The owners were building a new store next door to the old one. The store I worked in was torn down and is now parking for the new store. One of the owners was an employee at this store when I worked there in the mid-1970's. She worked her way into management and after getting married to another manager, they set their goals of owning their own store. Last I heard, they own 3 or 4 in the area.

I wanted to show my lovely bistro chair so I placed it in the corner. 😃 The font name is BUTTERFLY. The background is a brown color layer and an overlay of an interior. I don't remember what scrap kit it was. At last, I could use picture tubes from PSP.

My mojo has escaped again and so I've been playing around, This summer I took a snapshot of a wall covering that I thought would make a good background. This morning I took a square of it and make it a pattern. Then I worked on the pattern and made it an overlay and reduced the opacity to 50% and then made a copy of it and put it in my Textures file. Then I made a paper of blue color and used effects>texture effects and this is what I came up with.

Yes, Happy November, weathers permitting! UK due for a winter storm soon so battening down the hatches! I have just read the Campus newsletter 31 October and was interested in the Colour Replacer article so had a quick go with a photo that I took on holiday that originally I had intended to make into a silhouette. I turned the colour photo into black and white in Effects/ Photo Effects and then applied the Colour Replacer using the dropper tool to source the colours I wanted to change. Just a bit of fun but it opens up more creative possibilities.

Happy November. Here's my new November Wildcat Calendar featuring Cheetahs from Cheetah Conservation Botswana. I print out the full size for my refrigerator door each month. I have it posted on our Facebook group. The calendar is a template from Cassel.

I'm going to clarify the linking of a shadow layer, or any layers in case there is any confusion. Yes, when you create a shadow on anything, it is automatically linked. Saying that, in order for them to move as one, you still have to select the 2 layers, by holding down the ctrl key, which them turns the selected layers blue. Even though they are linked, the layers still have to be selected. To deselect any linking, you have to once again select the layers, and then click the link icon. Vice vera for linking multiple layers.

Laurie: When I check the box for shadows to be on a separate layer, they automatically are linked. You have to unlink them to move the shadow separately, either with the pick tool or the warp brush.

Thanks Bonnie! Can’t wait to see what you come up with to make this DIY work.

Laurie, please forgive me as I don't mean to knit pick, as you did say you wanted feedback, and suggestions. To me all photos take precedence in my layouts. A portion of the photo of the gull on the water has been cut, by being hidden under an element. I would switch it with its opposite diagonal photo. There should be enough free space in that photo, not to obstruct any of that bird. Or place the gull on the water above the elements. After all you are the create,

Laurie, you have showcased some lovely bird photos. Your shadowing looks fine to me. Regarding the issue with the shadow not moving as you want, did you link the photo/element with its shadow? Which will enable you to move both evenly at the same time. Unfortunately, when linked you can't resize, or rotate, all it allows you to do is to move, not only on your page, but also in the layers palette. One other small thing I noticed, is that the letters of the title BIRDS aren't joined. Check the kerning setting, on the text tool bar.

This was a lot of FUN! But, oh so Challenging!! I duplicated one of the squares so that I could use four photos. The skinny bands presented me with another problem! I ended up duplicating one of the two bands to add balance to my composition. I wasn't sure how to shadow this one. So, I shadowed it like we did all of the other projects. I went to try and tweak things after I applied my shadows to another layer, and that presented me with another problem. My shadow did not move correctly with the images. I'd appreciate feedback and suggestions from all of the seasoned vets out there. Thanks!!

I hope not either. Microsoft issue with new build. I dont usually have anything saved on my laptop or work on it anymore. I have separate hard drives for data, there is 3 hard drives in my computer. one is the boot drive with the programs, one is data and my scrapbooking stuff and other is pictures only. And I'm now saving PSPimage files there in the pictures drive as a backup spot. There is an external drive to back up data and pictures but it's convoluted to do it, so that's the next on the list to address. To make it easier for me to do. Actually, hubby is eventually going to set it up so it automatically adds new stuff. I'm a total freak about losing my photo's and layouts. So it's high on MY priority list, but perhaps not so much on his. I am trying to at least get important stuff in two locations (on different drives). I want to be doing what you are doing in some way and at least he recognizes that's what I want. So much to do, and sometimes priorities get shoved down the list. I wish i was much better and more independent in my knowledge and use of computers. At least he is working hard at trying the solve the issue. Microsoft is weird about security. even with an account and password, every single thing you want to do requires yet another secret code you get by email. You even have to download an app to get to the "get help" section to find a phone number.

I'm hoping to get to this, it's my favorite of the challenges, but my computer is in pieces right now. I might try on my laptop but have very few photos on here.

I overlooked mentioning that the lace is one of many of Carole's special fonts, and one her latest brush punches, which in my opinion add a touch of finesse to any layout. I love and use them as much as possible.

Ooh. Where do I find that place?

G = grease...and lots of it!

My latest entry in the Basic Scrap Course: Module 3. Photos by my daughter, Debbie, from last month when she was visiting for her High Point Regional High School Reunion. The fall colors seemed muted this year. Not as many reds, so perhaps no maple trees. The materials are: Background paper-ID_All That's Fall; Title font: Souvenir; Text font: Agency; Cluster Group: ID_All That's Fall and ps_Jessica Dunn_harvest pie string. Making the cluster a group worked well as I could add shadows within the group while also being able to move the whole cluster around intact.

Like Jannette and Monique I live in the Netherlands but in the southwest of the country and we had much more wind. My village had only moderate troubles but nearby a lot of trees came down, we only had branches broken off and many leaves flying around; all that combined with much rain. Today it was dry but still windy and the ditches and wadi's are filled to the brim. It is advised not to go into forests/parks because of branches that may come off and paths that are blocked. The forecast for tomorrow is: rain! But the temperatures (around 52 F) are still mild for this time of the year and no night frost at all.

Your style resonates through in this page. It's positively ethereal. ( beautiful, delicate, exquisite). Lest we forget!

Fast food is something we seldom have... But when we travel by car, we always have breakfast at McDonald's, usually two hours after leaving home... It started to avoid traffic on the highways and became a tradition... When my niece and family come here, and we travel together, we do this, and they like it too... It's also something they usually don't do. We used to have the Sausage McMuffin, and, who knows why, for a few years, they don't offer this here anymore. 😞 Although it is not something we usually do, the first kit I bought (even before knowing Carole) was a Fast Food kit from KAagard that was offered 50% off at The Lilypad... I was just starting to get familiar with scrapbooking.

I prefer my own cooked potatoes- the next day- cut in slices with a little bit of cornstarch (for an extra crispy result) and then baked in butter. My husband prefers peanut sauce me mayo.

No, not done yet. Just a few more pages to do, but I'm just stopped for a bit until my mojo reappears.

My first project for the November theme Fast Food. Fenchfries to share.

How about a large plate full of FRENCHFRIES to share.