Digital Scrapbooking: How to Make Your Own Frames, Borders & Other Embellishments

There are a lot of free digital scrapbooking kits out there--especially if you're just working on personal, non-commercial projects--that contain cute papers, frames, borders, buttons, ribbons, etc. But, sometimes you can't find exactly what you want at a price you're willing to pay. That's where it comes in handy to know how to create your own scrapbooking supplies.

I've previously published tutorials on how to create your own word art and how to make your own digital papers. Now I'm going to specifically address how to create your own borders and frames for digital scrapbooking and other computer-based crafts.

1. Use What You Already Have to Give You a Jumpstart in Making Your Own Digital Scrapbooking Frames and Borders

Just like making a cake, if you don't completely start from scratch, your job is going to be a whole lot easier. When I'm making my own digital scrapbooking accessories, I often use supplies I've previously acquired or created in order to kick start my current project.

If you already have a cute scrapbooking paper to work with, why not use that as the basis for a fun matching frame or border. Or maybe using some of your digital photographs would be a great place to start. Look through the documents you already have to see if there are any workable pieces you'd like to bring together to make your own customized frames and other scrapbooking embellishments.

2. Download a Program like Adobe Photoshop or the Free, Public Domain Version GIMP to Make Customization Easy

If you really are interested in creating and editing digital graphics yourself, I highly recommend downloading a professional editing program. Programs like Microsoft Office Picture Manager, Paint, and Picasa--although great resources--will only get you so far. For serious customization, with layering abilities and complete control, two programs stand out in my mind as good options: Adobe Photoshop and GIMP.

Photoshop is certainly the name brand in graphic manipulation, but it can cost a pretty penny-make that several pretty pennies. GIMP, on the other hand, is Photoshop's free counterpart having been released in the public domain as an alternative to the high-priced editing program. To find out more about GIMP and how to get started using the program, you can visit these tutorials.

Both programs will let you insert graphics as layers in a way that will allow them to be freely edited-giving you endless customization possibilities. In addition to being a program to simply house layers of images, Photoshop and GIMP both come with various tools and effects that can be instrumental in creating your own borders and frames.

In GIMP, for example, there is a default paintbrush tool--Square (20x20) Blur--that, when enlarged, is a remarkable outline for a digital scrapbooking frame. With no more thought than choosing a color and clicking the paintbrush tool in your worksheet, you have an instant customized frame. Similarly, effects such as the Gaussian Blur and Feather Tool easily zap dull rectangles into polished borders and frames. Having a good editing program and knowing some helpful tricks make creating your own digital scrapbook embellishments very much doable.

3. Put it All Together: Combine Using Your Own Images with GIMP's Tools for Digital Scrapbooking Perfection

Depending on what kind of scrapbooking you like, you'll obviously want to take your own approach when making customized digital frames and borders. But, here are a few things I like to do.

Use textured photographs. I have a photograph of a wooden door that I've edited and recolored several different times. I love shrinking the images and copying and pasting them to make striped borders and frames. I also like to sometimes take elements out of the picture I'm framing to make up the border to go around it. Copy and paste can be your friends too.

Use GIMP's Square Paintbrush. As briefly described above, I like to use the blurred square paintbrush to make digital picture frames for my crafts. After selecting the tool, I pick the color I want and click the paintbrush down on a transparent layer in my document. I then select (with the Rectangle Select Tool) the squared image and then increase the size of the frame as needed (with the Scale Tool).

Use the Gaussian Blur Effect. The Gaussian Blur, located under the tab "Filters" and then "Blur," is a great way to transform simple lines and colors into professional-looking masterpieces. Using the Rectangle Select Tool and Bucket Tool, you can easily fill in a selected area of your document, perfect for the start of a frame or border. If I wanted a gradient-filled border, but one that transitioned from color to color subtlety, I would select the area I wanted to fill and use the Blend Tool to fill my area with a color gradient. Then, having the area still selected, I would go to the Gaussian Blur Effect and press OK. If the particular image I am working on called for more of a blur, I would either keep repeating the blurring or increasing the settings until I'm satisfied.