Epson(dot)com--we'll call it "The Iron Age" of Digi Scrapping

One Saturday, when I still lived in Wymount, I saw a scrapbook show on BYU TV. They had a segment on digi scrapping, and referred their viewers to the epson website to download free papers and embellishments. (The older the download, the less attractive the pages). These pages (and many others) followed. I don't remember the title of the show, but they have tutorials online that are worth looking up, especially if you have photoshop or a similar program. I would say these pages each took me about half an hour--I was getting better. All of them are my own layouts--that's what takes me the longest time--TRYING to figure out how I want the layout to look and what pics to use.

I actually created all of this one (even the brads),

except I downloaded the orange, patterned page in the middle.

Just enough shading (yay me!), but not enough distressing.

I changed the colors--it looks weird

(it wouldn't if I'd deleted the buttons),

but these colors matched better.

If only I had used more shading!--and distressing!

Finally, the downloads are starting to incorporate distressed edges!

I didn't do this layout. It was all put together for me.

I just had to find a picture, resize it and drop it in.

Love it! Of course, I have the papers if I ever want to do my own layout.
I don't use pre-made as much, becuase I usually have specific things I want to do,

and it's hard to find matching pre-made pages for free.