With a Nod to Andy Warhol

Pete was the best dog. When he was a pup, I would let him sit in my lap while I worked at the computer. He had a knack for hitting the delete key frequently. When he grew to 80 lbs., he thought he could still sit in my lap. By then his feet were so big that he could type and delete at the same time with one fell swoop. He was definitely a dog of many talents.

I wanted to make a memorial page for our sweet pup who we lost last week after 15 + years. I didn’t want to dwell for too long over this page because I am already having enough trouble being without my sweet Pete.

I turned to three of my all-time favorite tools, the KellyCraft Get-it-Straight Laser Square, Viva Décor’s Glitter Pens and Duetica Lettering Arts Studio software, to make a quick page that was everything Pete was without getting too sentimental. (The fact that I have every collar and tag he ever wore and a bazillion photos is bad enough. I didn’t want this to turn into a shrine!)

Here’s what you need:

KellyCraft Get-it-Straight- Laser Square

Duetica Lettering Arts Studio

Computer/printer

Paper cutter

Black cardstock, 12” x 12”

White cardstock, 8 ½” x 11”

Four white and four colored cardstock scraps, approximately 5” x 5”

Black acid-free pen

Kool Tac Premium Extreme tape

Note: I used Adobe Photoshop and InDesign, but you can use any type of photo-altering  and layout software..

1. Set the type using the Duetica Lettering Arts Studio. I used the Tin Whistle font. I set each line separately so that I could manipulate the type layout. Open your largest phrase (“Pete”) in Photoshop. Change the colors and crop to get rid of excess space around the edges. I saved it as a jpg. file since I didn’t need to worry about a transparent background. If you want the background transparent so that you can place it on top of another image, save it as a png file.

2. Open the second line of type. I purposefully left this one black, then reduced it to fit under the larger word. Print on white cardstock and tear all edges as closely as possible.

3. Open the photo you wish to use.  Use the posterize  function in your image file to convert the image and save it (save as).  Use the color balance function to change the colors three more times and save (save as) after each color change.

3. Open a 12 x 12 page in your photo/drawing or layout program. Place the four photos, adjusting them to fit. Add the headline and make sure it will all fit on a 12 x 12 page (Don’t forget to allow for the layers behind the photos and headline.).

4. Unless you have a 12” x 12” printer, you will need to print these images and the title on 8 ½” x 11” cardstock. I was able to get the title and two photos on one page and the two additional photos and journaling on the second.

5. Trim headline and photos and cut background layers.

Headline

1. Cut one additional layer of one of your colors 1/4” larger all around than your title block. Cut a different color additional piece 11” wide. Adhere the headline to the smaller piece of cardstock, applying your adhesive top, bottom and right side to allow for a journaling tag. Mount the entire headline on the 11” piece of cardstock to placing it ¼” from the right edge..

2. Measure the height of your headline (white portion only). Use your computer to set or hand-write your journaling type. Trim closely Mount this to a piece of black cardstock trimmed to fit inside the journaling pocket. Round the edges of both pieces on the left side and glue together. Insert this piece between the two pieces of colored cardstock. Use the Viva Décor Hematite Glitter Pen to draw the puppy foot.

3. Using the KellyCraft Get –it-Straight Laser Square, line up all the layered photos and the title block and glue them to the background paper.

4. Finish it off by outlining the large letters for more contrast. This doesn’t have to be perfect. With a cool typeface like Tin Whistle, you don’t have to be so wary of making sure you have perfect lines. In fact, this headline could probably use a black ink blot or two!

Do you have a special pet? Make a quick and easy page so the world will know how special your pet is. This page came together in less than an hour, proving that it doesn’t require a lot of time to make a great page when you have good tools.

Note: I received product from KellyCraft, Viva Décor, Kool Tak and Duetica Lettering Arts Studio. However, I would have used them anyway. I never endorse something unless I believe in it completely.