My live chat has been rescheduled for today at 10pm EST. I am kicking off the month long celebration at reneepearson.com and a new Pen Scrapper every week  for the rest of the month. Make sure you stop by and help me crush the record for the most attendees at one of Renee’s live chats. It is sure to be a good time and I hope to give you some insight into how I use my Wacom tablet for my journaling.

I know I have said before how much I enjoy strumming my guitar. It makes me smile to think about the first time I held it and wondered if it was too big for me. I wondered if my fingertips would ever not be so sore. I wondered if I would be able to actually play a tune that people could make sense of. I am happy to report the guitar fits me nicely, my fingertips have recovered and I can play music that people enjoy. I am so glad to have this instrument in my life.

I have obviously lost my mind, but I decided to give it a try and participate in NaBloPoMo, also known as National Blog Posting Month. The goal is to post every day for a month. Consider me officially having started yesterday. Funny thing is, when I started blogging about seven or eight years ago, I used to post almost daily. Over the years, I have gotten out of the habit of writing and making art daily, so this will be an interesting experiment to say the least.

Now, my plan is to share something interesting each day. Today, I share with you one of my latest digital pages. This one is featured on the Wacom PenScrappers site. If you have not visited the site yet, you must. I attended a webinar recently to learn some new tips for using my Bamboo Craft and it constantly amazes me when I learn how to do something new with Photoshop. I love that program. Speaking of, I am working on the lesson plans for my first two online classes. Both will be art journal focused with one specifically for those who want to try their hand at digital. If all goes as planned, I will be posting  registration details some time in December. Art is so awesome!

Last night, the new and improved Wacom Penscrappers site went live. I already shared with you the news about the new Bamboo Craft which I am enjoying more than the previous one. Working with Wacom has been excellent. They truly allow me and the other eleven artists complete creative freedom to do our thing and showcase their product. You can’t beat that!

Here are the other Penscrappers. Make sure you check them out and their amazing work. This year, we all will have video lessons within our profiles. I am looking forward to learning some new things I can do with my Bamboo tablet. There is a contest going on and Margie Lundy is hosting the first month. So, make sure you visit frequently to see what is new.

Isn’t it beautiful?

Yesterday, Wacom put out a press release about a new product, the Multi-Touch Bamboo Craft. I just finished looking at the video with all the new features and I am blown away. I have used Wacom’s tablets for years and love the versatility of using a tablet and pen. I love it even more now because it is so much easier to edit my photos with a pen. Granted I have used a mouse for a while, but not with my laptop. I either use my tablet or touchpad on the laptop. So, seeing that I can basically do the same thing with the new tablet has me thrilled to pieces. I can not wait to try this sucker out! Now, I don’t scrapbook as much as I used to, but I still do a lot of hybrid digital work. In fact, I am working on some girlfriend gift concepts for a dear friend and outside of Photoshop, the tablet is my main tool for concept development. I am picky about my technology gadgets, so it is a really big deal when I find something that thrills me.

Here is what the site says about the new tablet:

Digital scrapbookers, memory makers, and crafters: Bamboo Craft is the perfect tool for unleashing your creativity! Get hands-on with your projects using both pen and Multi-Touch input for your computer. Multi-Touch enables you to navigate and work with your creative assets quickly and easily. The pressure-sensitive pen lets you create your own art, edit photos, add embellishments, and provide a personal touch with your natural handwriting and doodles.

Here’s a little more information about the class and the great deal Renee is offering for her first class:

Digital expert Renee Pearson debuts the new digital scrapbooking class, “Just the Basics, Ma’am” at her training site, reneepearson.com, beginning June 25th. Pearson, former editor at Digital Scrapbooking magazine, is the bestselling author of the Digital Designs for Scrapbooking series. An in demand speaker and teacher at scrapbooking events around the world, she is the acknowledged expert and “go-to” person for digital scrapbooking training.

“Nearly four years ago, when I wrote the first Digital Designs for Scrapbooking, computers were not yet an essential tool for mainstream scrapbooking,” says Pearson. “As the popularity of digital scrapbooking has grown, so has the need for easy-to-follow instructions. That’s why I developed this workshop.”

“Just the Basics,” is a 4-week beginning digital scrapbooking course. Each week’s lessons are delivered via high-resolution video modules. In addition to the videos, students will have access to free digital kits, scheduled live chats and discussion and support forums. Students will also have lifetime access to the training videos.

Renee is known for her easy-to-understand writing and teaching style. She promises fun, fast and easy lessons designed specifically for the beginning or occasional digital scrapbooker and crafter. Topics covered over the four weeks include:

Introduction to Photoshop Elements
Using quickpages and layered templates
Creating quickpages and layered templates
Adding digital embellishments
Understanding brushes and layer masks

To celebrate the debut of her first class, Renee is offering a special $40 price until June 19th. Sample project images and video are available at reneepearson.com.

Contact: Renee Pearson
renee@reneepearson
http://www.reneepearson.com

If you enjoyed this post, you might like these others about digital scrapbooking:

• Digital Scrapbooking for Kitschy Digitals
• Bamboo Fun for Scrapbookers, Crafters and Photographers
• Hybrid Scrapbooking with Christina Lazar-Schuler

Wacom has done a great job of packaging the Bamboo Fun for scrapbookers and crafters looking to enhance their photographs, layouts and artwork. Now, I have talked about my adventures with the Bamboo Fun and had a great time getting back into digital scrapbooking with the other PenScrappers. I really do love the tablet and use it all the time with my photography.

The package they created, Bamboo Craft is jam packed with everything you need to get started with the tablet. In addition to the tablet and pen, you get the following in the kit for $129:

• A 26-session training DVD from Jane Conner-ziser and Software Cinema showing you how to use the pen with the software included in the box
• A 28-page instructional book called Scrappin’ With A Tablet by Amanda Dykan to help you jump right into digital scrapbooking and art projects
• A fun Digi-Scappin’ CD of complimentary embellishments
• Adobe® Photoshop® Elements (6.0 WIN/5.0 MAC), the perfect application for editing photos
• Corel® Painter™ Essentials 4.0 for designing you own artwork and embellishments
• Nik® Color Efex Pro™ for adding unique photo effects to your digital photos
• Free 1-year Subscription to Scrapbooking & Beyond Magazine
• Free 8″ x 8″ hard-cover, professionally-bound Photo Book from Shutterfly
• Free online store so that you can sell your artwork or creations with Café Press and $15 off you first purchase of $50 or more

That is one heck of a package with about $172 worth of extra value in the box . It can be frustrating getting a new tool and not having what you need to get the most out of it. If you have always wanted to try a Wacom tablet, then this is a great value and I am all about getting the most for my dollar.

Why is this cool for you? Well, I am helping Chris give away a session and DVD right here on my blog! What I want you to do is leave me a comment and include your favorite color (I am nosey like that!). I will randomly select a winner Sunday, December 7!

I tell you, I wish I had someone to walk me through WordPress when I moved my blogs over to it. I know enough to be dangerous!

Working with Wacom and the Bamboo Fun has been a huge thrill for me this year. This time around, the theme is the fall and winter seasons. Check out the site, and the scrappers and the new contest. You are going to love this one!

In celebration of Digital Scrapbooking Day, myTego, a producer of custom skins for all kinds of electronic devices, invites you to participate in a design challenge. If your design is chosen, you’ll win a gift certificate to order your own skins using your design and the opportunity to have your design included in their catalog.

Go here to get more details on the contest.

In celebration of Digital Scrapbooking Day, myTego, a producer of custom skins for all kinds of electronic devices, invites you to participate in a design challenge. If your design is chosen, you’ll win a gift certificate to order your own skins using your design and the opportunity to have your design included in their catalog.

Go here to get more details on the contest.