Okay.  People have been asking me how I do my themes.  I'll try to explain my way.  It's not that I'm an expert of the CSS coding.  I'm more of a copycat.  I take a base theme, then I analyze the links of the graphics, make my own graphics and substitute the theme graphics for mine.  Some themes work better for me than others.

I will explain this by parts.  Because is near the time of starting again the Online Tatting Classes I'll be busy again.  So I'll do this weekly.  Please be patient!


First, let talk about what materials I use to make the themes.

You will need a graphic editor program like Paint Shop Pro or Adobe PhotoShop.  I use PSP X2 but will work with any version.  I haven't work with PS but is the same thing.  You can find trials at their web sites.

Corel Trials Dowloads

Adobe Trials Downloads

I don't pretend to teach how to use the programs, because I'm learning myself.  You will need at least know how to make a graphic with layers, to add text, crop  and resize.  I don't like to use a lot of animations, but if you know how to do them you're welcome to do add them to your themes.

The second thing you need are the photos or graphics.  You can search on the net for photos, but beware of copyrights.  If you have notice I don't like to use photos.  I use scrapbook kits!!!  They are amazing to use for themes.  There are thousands of places where you can get them for free (freebies).  Here is the "Mother" of all the freebies.  I have this page bookmarked and weekly I download freebies.

DigiFree - The Digital Scrapbooking Freebie Search Engine  This page will take a long time to load because is super heavy with graphics.  Also, I'm not responsible if you get addicted to them!  lol    No joking!  I have over 100 kits in the external hardrive (over 5 GB) and every week I get more.  Does anyone have the Scrappers Anonymous hotline? 

Some of the freebies are only obtainable if you buy a bigger kit.  Other are QP (Quick Pages) and that's a premade page where you place your photos.  Those are not good for themes.  So check that you're dowloading a kit.  Also they are usually divided into papers and elements.  The papers are, well, papers that can be use as backgrounds.  The elements are those nifty graphics like ribbons and clips and pearls, cute things like that.  There are the minis or samplers.  Those are smaller versions of a bigger kit, usually content 1-2 papers and a few elements.

Also I recommend this group on Yahoo  Scrappy Expressions.  Melissa, the owner, makes lovely sets that are more suitable to use on PSP because the resolution is smaller than a regular scrapbook kit.

Other thing you'll need.  The codes of premade or base themes.  I use the tutorials and help from the Customize your Multiply Profile group.  They are great people that know the CSS code and have very nice tutorials.  They have some codes written with the transparency settings and are easier to add your own code lines.  If you're going to modify the theme of another person be sure to ask permission if that person doesn't states that s/he allows modifications of their themes.

Other thing...  This is optional but highly advisable.  Get another Multiply account.  I have another account that I use solely for the editing of the themes.  That way if the code screw up the page, you can delete that account and make another and you don't screw up your page.

Also optional but advisable.  Have 2 browsers on your computer.  Some themes look perfect in a browser and totally horrendous in another.  I have Internet Explorer and Firefox.  FF is my default browser.  When I'm making the themes I edit the code on IE and then preview it on FF.  The Firefox browser can be downloaded here.

Well, I think that's all for today!  If I think something else that you'll need I'll let you know during the week. 

Next week where going to start analyzing a Base Theme:  Avlack.  I think it's the easier to modify...

So go ahead and get your materials.  Get a scrapbookit of your preference or we can use all one if you think will be easier.

Today I haven't done a lot.  Still feeling a little queasy from the nebulizer therapies.  I'm using it every day a couple of times.  Anyway, I managed to do this animated tag.  I love G-Juss and this tube was perfect for this tutorial.  The tutorial is by Clarey and you can find it here.  May be I'll do a theme using her.  If someone wants her with the name let me know.

It's a boring Sunday.  There's nothing on TV, there's no water on the apartment and I'm bore........



I got this tutorial from http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Gamocks_Creations_and_Tuts/ called  TatCapsule.  Isn't it cool?  Like if Kath made it just for me!  lol

I made the tube of the Tatted Princess using a photo I got online.  I have been lloking for the site again and can't remember where I got it.  I know that the Tatted Princess was made by a Lace Guild for a demo event and each member tatted a piece and that's what is forming the skirt, blouse and crown.  Here is bigger.  Isn't it a masterpiece?  Well, back to my boring schedule.  We're going to have dinner now.

Today I found this FABULOUS place for ScrapBooking and I made this one.  The place is Creative Victorian.  I love Victorian decoration and this site is like heaven!  lol  Today I got like 2 sets and tomorrow I'll get a few more.  I recommend the site!

Now is time for me to sleep!

Hi everyone!

This is a little tag I just made.  That's the real size.  I'll try to get it bigger and make a theme for the pages.

It's on my tag groups.  If you would like one with your name or anything on it, visit my group and leave a comment with what ever you want on the tag.

I got this recently from a list online. Can't remember exactly where. It's a program to make watermarks for photos, pics, etc. I find it very nice! Specially if you're a photographer or love to make tags and images with PSP or any other program. I'm still playing with it, it has so many functions that I'm a little lost.

http://www.photowatermark.com/

Here is another cutie pie!  His name is Noe Elias and he born I think in August.  The lady on the photo with him is not the mother.  It's my sister Letty.  As I explained yesterday, mom and sister become "aunties" of every baby born within the family, friends, church and wrok circle.    He is so cute and love to laugh, that's what mom says.  The hair is always in an eternal punk!

His parents are students at the college where Letty is the Librarian and Professor, the Colegio Biblico Pentecostal de Puerto Rico. I made the layout yesterday, combining a couple of scrapbooking sets I have.

This little cutie's name is Julianna Estrella.  She's the daughter of mom and sister Letty's coworker.  His 1st daughter and of course mom and Letty are the "aunties".  They are the aunts of all the babies that born in the college where they work.  lol  I think it's because the want babies so bad!  None of us in the family (my sisters and me) have been able to have babies.  So everytime a baby born from a friend they become nephews and nieces.

Anyway... Julianna born in October 20th at 9:30 am and was almost 9 pounds and 20 inches.  I'll put some pics in an album on a few minutes.

At Yahoo I have a group for tags, sigys and themes.  I think I'll move it here.  For now, I posted a Photo Album with the tiles and background I have right now.  If you want yours with your name leave a comment on the photo album and I'll reply when I have the tag done.

Geesh! I have been with no desire for tatting in a couple of days! I must be really sick. But I spent the day tagging. Here is another one using Raspberry Designs. I'm loving this site because of the freebies.

Also I have been just having tons of fun at Facebook with my sisters and cousins and on Multiply with some of the fellow Y360ers. I have been in Multiply for a very long time but I don't know why I didn't made the blog officially there. Well, may be was desteny so I was able to meet so many wonderful friends.


I will try to tat later, even if a little.

Great place to learn how to make stats and/or web backgrounds



alt="Click here to join SEDTutorials">
Click to join SEDTutorials

I made this one today. It's sweet looking. I made already some for my gang. If you want it and your name is not on the list send me a message. They're free for my friends! lol

The tags are going to be on my Siggy group in a photo album called "Memories"

Names made:

• Toni
• CAT
• Anisah
• Umm Ali
• Amira
• Karen
• Rebecca

You can join my siggy group:



Click to join needledreams-siggys

I was playing today with some new scrapbooking kits ("Havana" from Raspberry Road Designs) and I combined one to make a tag for a poem by Julia de Burgos. She's my favorite poetess. She was born in Carolina, PR (in the town where I grew up) and she was an amazing poetess. I had a book with her poems in Spanish and translated to English but I lost it. I'm trying to get it again. This one is in Spanish. Enjoy!

This is a rough translation:

I Love You

I love you... and you move me in the time of my life without hours.
I love you in the pale rivers that travel the night,
and never end conducting the stars to the sea.

I love you in that morning,
unfastened from the flight of the centuries runaway from its ship
white up to the water without waves where they swim sad,
your voice and my song.

I love you in the pain without cry that so many nights
pick up the dream on the inverted sky of my pupils
to cosmically look at you, in my undermined voice of noise of
centuries crumbling down.

I love you (white night's scream) in the reflexive insomnia
where in birds my soul has return.

I love you... My love mildly escapes from expressions and routes,
and goes breaking shadows and reaching your image
from the innocent point where I'm grass and bird song.

I haven't been tatting lately but have been tagging. LOL

This is from a tutorial I followed yesterday. This page has a lot of wonderful tutorials for PSP. It's a Dutch site but some tutorials are translated into English, Spanish, Portuguese and French. It took like 1 hr to download all the filters and knic knacks that the tutorial has, put I love the final result! I call it Autumm's Dreams.

WOW!

It's been months since I made a tag. Tonight while snagging some backgrounds and patterns I came to this site with a cute Lace Screen Frame. I can't resist anything that relate to laces, so I had to do it! I didn't use the pic of the tutorial. I got this cute TinkerBell pic and used it. I really like how it looks. The frame is so cool! I think I'll keep playing with it.

If you would like one, message me and I'll make it with your name.