Inspire Me Monday: Digital Mash Up!

 

Hello all and Happy Monday! I have to admit, I didn't have a ton of time to craft this week so I thought of a way to share a little creative tidbit this week, in a bite-sized post! So, here we go!

Have you ever looked at two stamps or images and wished you could combine them to make a completely new image? Well, the beauty of digital stamps is.... you CAN! 

I'd been looking at the Glittering Glass Santa ornament and that lovely branch....

And, I wondered, what can I perch on that branch instead of an ornament? Well, I'd always been a fan of the little birds in the digital set Cardinal Couple! 

So, why not mash up the two images?

I started by opening up the cardinal image and then, I knew I needed to start "erasing" the cups and berries in the image...

If you have a photo editing software, most of them have an "eraser" tool, allowing you to take out pieces and parts in one fell swoop! I use Photoshop Elements and the tool is actually... an eraser! On this image, I was careful to erase everything but the bird and her little feet and made the tool rather small to get into all those nooks and crannies. 

Next, I opened up the Glittering Glass Santa image and then erased dear Ole Santa! Sorry, Santa! 

After he was erased, I clicked on the layer and duplicated it so that I could arrange the two branch images just how I wanted it in a way that a bird might perch on it. (To do this, you right click on the layer to the right and "duplicate" will be an option. 

But you can see above.... wow... that's a lot of foliage. I decided to get rid of the lower portion of the branches on both and then just arrange the top portions by tilting, dragging and dropping. 

I should mention, I used the magic eraser tool and with one click completely erased the background so that I could "see" the top branch over the bottom.  

And, I also shortened the lower branch erasing up to a portion that looked natural. See? I know this seems complicated but... trust me... it's not. If you erase too much? Pushing Control Z is your friend! :-) 

Then, all that is left to do is perch my little cute birdie! Below is a look at my finished digital image, just ready and waiting to be printed. While I don't have a picture of it, I also printed off the male cardinal. I wasn't sure I'd use him but wanted him on "standby!"

And here's a look at how it all came together! Some die cuts, a wee bit of layering, some sparkle, ribbon and a little bling! I now officially have my first Christmas card ready to send! I should mention that the sentiment is from a Power Poppy clear set called Simple Joys! 

Here's a little closeup! 

Now, after I finished my card, I thought, "Wow, that little birdie looks a little lonely!" So, remember that male cardinal I said I printed? I ended up coloring him up and tucking him into my layer so that they would be looking lovingly at each other. 

Truth be told, however, I honestly can't decide if they are looking lovingly or if the lady birdie is just looking at the gent saying, "Hey, quit being such a creeper cardinal!" I might have to look at this card just a wee bit more before the jury comes back on that one! Long story short, this was a tutorial on digital mash-ups, not creeper cardinals so... my work here is done! ;-)

Hope you took something fun away from all of this and... I hope you have a beautiful and creative week! See y'all next month!