Overlays Make Stunning Digital Scrapbooking Pages!
Overlays are so similar to the ugly duckling story, where the one that wasn’t so beautiful to begin with becomes a swan.
If you choose an Overlay for your project, you can make it become a swan and can turn boring scrapbooking pages into magically textured or patterned works of art!
Who would guess that these rather uninteresting-looking digital scrapbooking supplies had such incredible powers!
So why are Overlays so quickly dismissed? Perhaps the reason that Overlays don’t get the attention that they deserve is because they are not the best looking in the crowd.
It’s easy to just forget all about an Overlay supply when you have so many eye-catching, pretty embellishments and supplies with bright colors, interesting effects, that scream, “Pick Me! Pick Me!”
Overlays often can be missed, when hiding underneath is a wonderful surprise! See the example of the gray colored snowflake overlay above? It really doesn’t look like much? But guess what?
Overlays can be extraordinary!
Overlays can really take your digital scrapbooking to the next level! So let us explain a few things to get you started with Overlays!
So, What are Digital Scrapbooking Overlays any way?
Digital Scrapbooking Overlays are generally a transparent pattern, embellishment, or textured background layer which can be added on top of digital scrapbooking pages or supplies. When you add an Overlay on top of another layer in a graphic software program, such as Photoshop or Photoshop Elements, they can enhance and really add texture and depth to your digital scrapbooking page.
In the image above we took an Overlay, then added to a colored background and made a new digital scrapbooking paper in Photoshop! Then we took other digital scrapbooking supplies, and digital photos, making a great digital scrapbooking page!
Use your Overlay on Digital Scrapbooking Paper!
Just adding an Overlay to a digital scrapbooking project can make it look completely different!
For example, if you add a patterned Overlay to a colored Digital Paper, you could create a brand new paper that looked real and 3-D!
So in this image we took a Overlay and added it to some digital scrapbooking paper we already had and now it went from being a neutral blue textured paper to a Winter Wonderland of Snowflakes Paper!
For More Fun Color Your Overlays!
The fun doesn’t stop there! You can colorize add effects to the Overlays to really make your pages look interesting! 
It’s incredible how much you can do with Overlays and how easy they really are to use with just a little bit of training!
(See Photoshop or Elements Overlay Training)
What types of Overlays are there?
There are several types of Overlays that Digital Scrapbookers like to use, but here are three important Overlays to know about:
Type One: The Pattern Overlay.These Overlays are patterned transparencies that are perfect for adding design to make completely different-looking digital scrapbooking pages, or to enhance parts of a page.
They can be used just as they are, they can be colorized, or they can be combined with other Overlays to create an even more impactful digital scrapbooking page.
This Flower Power Overlay Kit is an example of a Pattern Overlay and can be used on top of a colored digital scrapbooking page. Below is an example of the colorized flower Overlay from this kit after it was added to a digital scrapbooking page!
You can see what magic can take place with a wonderful overlay! It is really hard to believe that the gray-looking transparency in this Overlay Kit can make the page look so incredible after it is colorized and added!
Another example of a Pattern Overlay is the Snowflake Overlay Kit.
This kit also has some Embellishment Overlays that we will be talking about next in this article!
Type Two: The Embellishment Overlay.These types of Overlays can be added an existing Digital Scrapbooking Page and act like an digital embellishment.
Place them on borders, tags, or other areas, just as you would with a regular digital embellishment. Sometimes they are already colorized so then you just add them to a page, size them, and you’re done!
In the example above, first, we have added a Pattern Overlay to enhance the background of some digital scrapbooking paper, then we added two Embellishment Overlays – one on the white border and the other on the tag. These Embellishment Overlays are colored and are made to look like we have rubber stamped these onto our digital scrapbooking page!
Type Three: The Background or Paper Texture Overlay.These types of Overlays are used to create interesting Digital Scrapbooking textures. Textured Overlays are the biggest secret of all. At first glance, they really don’t look like much, but with a few scrapbooking tricks up your sleeve, you can create wonders!
For example, using an Overlay Kit, like this Paper Texture Overlay Kit, you can add a real, 3-D look with varying textures to what used to be a dull, one-dimensional colored background. Texture Overlays can also be applied to purchased digital scrapbooking papers with patterns or designs… you don’t have to stick to solid backgrounds only! Adding these types of textured Overlays can give the digital paper a new, interesting look and can change old supplies to make them look new… all without buying new papers!
Are Overlays Easy to Use?
Yes! Overlays are much easier to use then you might think, especially if you get some help from Digital Scrapbooks and More’s Intermediate Overlay Basic Training for Photoshop or Photoshop Elements!
This training can introduce you to some of the important tricks and tips when using Overlays. Plus, you can learn about combining Overlays, colorizing them, editing them, and get additional helpful information about some of the secrets of using Overlays!
The Overlays Basics in Photoshop Elements Training or for training for Photoshop.
Either of these training sets contains 3 downloadable video tutorials, 3 Cheat Sheets for a quick re-cap of the lesson’s steps, and also includes 4 FREE Overlays as an added BONUS!
So what is stopping you? Start using Overlays in your digital scrapbooking projects and find out how fun and easy they are to use! Get training, use Overlays, and create Digital Scrapbooking Projects that have people asking you, “How did you do that?!!”
First, they can be put on to a colored background and magically you have a digital scrapbooking page!
Happy Scrapping!
Cheri
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If you want to see other great overlays – see Digital Scrapbooks and More’s Scrap Shop please check into the Overlay Section too!
