Poetic Pages
(Or take time to rhyme!)

I had an exciting month with the release and introduction to the scrapping world of a book of my poetry. In honor of that milestone in my life I would like to take time this month to share different ways to use poetry on your pages.

Many people love poetry but hesitate to use it on their pages. Some complain that a poem doesn’t exactly fit their situation or sometimes that the poem is too long or sometimes, but rarely, they may say it is too short. You can adjust a poem to fit your situation or even the length of your page. If it is too short, add your own journaling to fill the page or tell how this little verse made you feel in relation to your photo.

When using a poem written by someone else, please honor all copyrights and list the name of the author. So often you can find the name of the author of a well-known bit of verse by searching the internet.

Sometimes to make a poem work for your page, you just need to take out a verse or two that doesn’t apply or change the sex of the person mentioned. Other times all you need is a verse or two to add some spunk to your page. If you make any changes you need to annotate at the end of the verse that it was adapted from a poem and give name of poem and author. If using other than for personal use you should get the permission of the author.

Let’s jump right in and use poetry and HugWare to create a few pages!

Project 1: Family Heirlooms by Kaelynn Winn

Family Heirlooms is a wonderful Creatable by a very talented artist. I chose a couple of her designs and did a two-page layout, which would serve as the beginning of a family album.

1. Create two 8 x 10 pages and fill with color.
2. Create texture using the effects function.
3. Add “Our Family” to the page and remove the surrounding white by using the magic wand feature in DIP. (Click on wand and click wand on white area, then hit delete)
4. For second page, add design from same Creatable and remove white.
5. Copy and paste poem. Use the Resize to fit page function to make poem fit into space.
6. Change the color and style of font to fit your page.
   
   There you have two very simple and effective pages to begin your album.

Our Family

Sometimes with our families
It's hard to impart
All the love and pride
That's in our heart.

Sometimes there seem to be
No words to say
Just how much we love you
And how you bless our day!

Sometimes we do not let our loved ones know
Hoping that our actions will show
And hope they will reveal
Just how blessed and lucky we feel...

Today we want to let you know
Just how special you are to us
And how each and every day
Our loving thoughts are sent your way.

As you look through these pages
I hope that they will help you to see
Just how very special and treasured
Your family is to our family and to me

Thena Smith

Project 2: Star Spangled Summer 2 by Laurie Furnell

I used the wonderful Laurie Furnell’s Star Spangled Summer 2 to create this simple page.

1. Create a new page using Laurie’s background.
2. Add a mat for the poem and duplicate it three times.
3. Fill the mats with colors from the background page.
4. Add USA and duplicate three times changing color each time.
5. Add oval and add photo that you want to showcase. In this instance I used an image from the Honeyville CD by special friend Gina Jane Johnson. I know that all of you love her work!
   

Project 3: Denim Boy

1. Create a new page in DIP and add rectangle, fill rectangle with color.
2. Use effects to add texture to mimic fabric…cement was the one used here.
3. Adjust the options on effects to heighten or lessen degree of texture.
4. Add hanky and use magic wand to remove white from around image.
5. Add corners from Creatable and poem.
6. Cut around little one using edge finder.
7. Version 3a shows how you can use just a stanza or verse and word art for your page.
   

Project 4: The Mom I Know and Love

The Mom I Know and Love (Alzheimer's)

In this book are photos
Of someone so dear to me,
Someone I love so very much
And whose face I love to see.

Time was when those eyes were bright
And intelligence and love shone through
Much different than the eyes
Which today stare back at you.

For those are not my mother's real eyes
Though I see them in her face
Those eyes that once showed her soul
And gave each one a warm embrace.

This awful disease has tried to claim
The mother that I love
But Perhaps when her mind seems not with us
She is visiting with God above...

Perhaps He sees that she is weary
And lacks the strength to stand
And comes and visits with her
And takes her by the hand.

Perhaps though to us her mind seems blank
And her voice cannot find the words to say
She is enjoying a Heavenly stroll
And will tell us about it someday!

Thena Smith

I realize that I have just scratched the surface of what you can do. I started with the obvious in hopes that it will cause you to think, “I can do that, that is so simple!” and get started. For the more advanced, you can create tags and put your poems on them, or portions of poems. You can create backgrounds using your poems and place the photo on top or surround a photo with poetry.

For those of you who have trouble with journaling on your pages, poetry is a very easy and acceptable way to add your thoughts and feelings when your own words may fail you. And sometimes reading a poem or someone else’s thoughts inspires us and a flood of words then comes from our own pen.

And your assignment if you should you desire to accept it:

1. Use a poem on a page. Experiment with various ways to use it.
2. Write a poem from the journaling you have already used on your favorite page.
3. Hug someone!
4. Say something positive to everyone you meet today.
5. Thank the person who waits on you at the fast food place, at the grocery, at the pharmacy.
6. Thank God for this day and live it to it’s fullest.
7. Remember to pray for our nation and our service men and women.
8. Hug some more folks and if you see someone without a smile…give them yours!!

Meet me back here next month and until then ………Happy Scrapping!!

Hugs,
Thena