{"id":80040,"date":"2023-08-06T19:08:46","date_gmt":"2023-08-06T23:08:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sweetshoppedesigns.com\/?p=80040"},"modified":"2023-08-06T19:08:46","modified_gmt":"2023-08-06T23:08:46","slug":"extracting-maximum-value-from-a-template","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sweetshoppedesigns.com\/index.php\/2023\/08\/extracting-maximum-value-from-a-template\/","title":{"rendered":"Extracting Maximum Value From A Template"},"content":{"rendered":"

I don’t know about you but, personally, I like to get as much value as I can from the things that cost me. That includes my layered digital scrapbooking templates<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Once you’ve created a layout with a template, do you ever use that template again? Depending on the style of template and the final form you plan for your layout, it can be good to use the same or similar templates for all the layouts in a single project. That creates a sense of continuity and elevates the professionalism of the final product. However, if it’s a single layout going in a family album, often when the template is highly themed, you may not want to re-use it.<\/p>\n

Single-use templates are good. But what if I could show you a way to extract the maximum value from a template?<\/p>\n

In previous blog posts, we’ve explored different ways you can use the layered templates available in the Sweet Shoppe<\/a>. In “Babe It Your Own”<\/a><\/strong>, Kiana walked through ways to take an existing template and make it your own: not using all the photo spots, shrinking the template to include wide margins, flipping or spinning a template, and melding two templates into one. In “Twisted”<\/strong><\/a>, she showed us further examples of the different results you get when you flip, rotate, or shrink a template.<\/p>\n

I’m a big fan of taking it even further by extracting<\/strong> things from my templates so I can put them to new and different uses. And that’s what we’re going to focus on today; what can you extract from a layered scrapbooking template to maximize its value? The answer falls into four main categories:<\/p>\n

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  1. Extract Cluster Templates<\/li>\n
  2. Extract the Background<\/li>\n
  3. Extract Titles<\/li>\n
  4. Extract Layered Elements<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Let’s take a look at them one by one.<\/p>\n

    #1 – Extract Cluster Templates<\/h1>\n

    Last year, I shared my process for building a cluster template library (“Fake It Till You Make It: Element Clusters” – May 12, 2022<\/a>) that has allowed me to look like a Cluster Master despite my struggles to create them from scratch. Every time I get a new template, I examine it for clusters. If I find one that I think I might find use for in the future, I hide everything except the layers for that cluster, group them together, delete the rest, crop the canvas, and save it as a new file in my Cluster Library folder. You can read all about my step-by-step process here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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    I extracted two clusters from this template in Alchemy Wild Studio’s Two Sides of Life<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    These are some great templates for extracting clusters<\/strong> you’ll find in the Sweet Shoppe<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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    But the more I built my cluster library, the more I realized clusters aren’t the only thing I can extract and re-use from a template…<\/p>\n

    #2 – Extract the Background<\/h1>\n

    Some layered templates have especially cool backgrounds. Take, for example, Trio Pack 111: Radial by Cindy Schneider:<\/p>\n

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    I love the way these backgrounds look, so I was quick to extract them and start a Background Template library to go alongside my Cluster Template library! Simply follow the same steps as in #1, but rather than leaving only the layers for your cluster, hide everything except the layers for the background.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    Then when you sit down to scrapbook, rather than starting with a completed template, begin with a background and build it up from there – like I did with this layout featuring one of the senior portraits I shot for my stepdaughter:<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

    These are some great templates for extracting backgrounds<\/strong> you’ll find in the Sweet Shoppe<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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    \n

    #3 – Extract Titles<\/h1>\n

    Some designers include detailed layered word art in their templates. Why not isolate those layers and extract them into their own file so you can re-use them on other layouts?<\/p>\n

    I pulled the “HO HO HO” from Half Pack 333: Very Merry<\/a> and added it to my Title Template library.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    Then when I was working on a layout about my Santa Dad and Mrs. Claus Mom, it was easy to grab and repurpose:<\/div>\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

    These are some great templates for extracting titles\u00a0<\/strong>you’ll find in the Sweet Shoppe<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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    \n

    #4 – Extract Layered Elements<\/h1>\n

    Our template designers often create a variety of shapes to be used as clipping masks, often emulating the look of traditional paper die-cuts. These elements can be easily extracted and saved as their own templates for use in other layouts.<\/p>\n

    For example, Singleton 86 by Brook Magee includes a layered rocket ship that I knew I’d want to use again:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n

    I haven’t made a layout with it yet, but I’m planning to use it soon on a birthday card for one of my grandsons!<\/p>\n

    These are some great templates for extracting layered elements\u00a0<\/strong>you’ll find in the Sweet Shoppe<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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    As you begin to build your personal libraries for layered Clusters, Background, Titles, and Elements, you’ll find a new Scrapbooking Superpower: the ability to mix and match and create entirely new layouts! It’s like that song from Fall Out Boy: “I’m gonna change you like a remix, then I’ll raise you like a phoenix.” Let me show you a few examples to get your creative (and re-creative) juices a’flowing:<\/p>\n

    Cindy Schneider’s Trio Pack 45<\/a> is a fun set of layered templates with an adventure theme.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

    They make gorgeous layouts as-is, but when you start thinking about extracting maximum value from your templates, you get so much more. I didn’t just get 3 12×12 page templates. I also got:<\/p>\n