[luckyladybug]

Hip Hip Hooray! Three cheers for 8.5 x 11!! I've always loved the utilitiy of the size. I'll confess that I often take my 12 x 12 layouts and redesign them to fit 8.5 x 11 binders. Thanks for bringing back the format!

The idea of taking the standard letter size to a landscape format is just plain brilliant! The presentation layouts are bringing new life to the art form. It's a good day to be a scrapper!

[Ro]

Yay, Jaymee! I'm excited that you're excited. We're having a blast working on it. I've already found that making 8.5x11 layouts is so much easier for me. My big question for myself is, "Why did it take me so long???" LOL

[Sara Arell]

Ro, on 28 December 2011 - 12:53 PM, said:

Beth: Tell you what... I'll do some tutorials very soon about how to adapt 12x12 layout templates to 8.5x11 layouts.

Candy, About printing 8.5x11: We'll put together a printing resource listing of companies that print that size and will keep it in th SG Blog where it is easy to maintain. Just yesterday, we located places that print individual layouts and places that will print bound books in either portrait and/or landscape. We want to make this possible, easy, and fun.for you.

I'll also look for resources that have cooler albums for that size than just 3 ring office supply binders.n I have seen them on !mazon. I'll do tutorals of how you can fancy those office supply binders, to. All in good tme, though!

Nana, if you can't find the email from the 27th, send an email to Angie at hello@scrapgirls.com and she will forward it to you.

That would be awesome, Ro - I am excited that our designers are going to design some 8.5 x 11 collections for us - and as for the binders, a few years ago, I found the cutest 3-ring binders - some even tied shut with a beautiful wide bow - but since then I haven't found anything that comes close lately. Now I take my 3 ring Staples binders and make a spine "layout" to insert in the spine and I design a front and back cover for them - they look really cute but I'd love to find some that are specialty binders - love the one I have that ties with a bow - If I can figure how to post a pic here on the thread I will take a pic and post it - maybe you would find a couple minutes to tell me how to do that? I have no idea how that's done! Pretty please!

[Sara Arell]

Ro, on 30 December 2011 - 03:32 PM, said:

Yay, Jaymee! I'm excited that you're excited. We're having a blast working on it. I've already found that making 8.5x11 layouts is so much easier for me. My big question for myself is, "Why did it take me so long???" LOL

I guess it's easier for me cause that's the only way I've ever done it - and I print at home so it is easy pease - I'm very, very excited about this new idea for our designers at SG - maybe I won't be the lone wolf who does 8 x 12 layouts any more - I always felt a little less talented posting my layouts at 8.5 x 11 and no one else seemed to be interested in that size for a long time so I am uber-excited!

Thank you, sweet Ro!!!!

[Dragonfly's mom]

I've used 8.5x11 because they fit on my shelves better.
I print at Costco on the 12x12 using the remaining paper for smaller photos to sent to family.

[Elizabeth99]

Quote

scrappingsimply.com prints on photo paper, super high quality (I've used them for about 2 years now), and offers 8.5 x 11. They have a twice yearly sale (25% off and a deeper discount if you sign up for their newsletter). I simply save all my new layouts since my last order with them in a new folder, print all those, then sort the printed layouts in the folders I want them in (I do it by year, or by family for heritage pages) and start fresh with an empty not-yet-printed folder.

Thanks for this tip, Cheri! I just ordered a few layouts printed from Scrappingsimply.com. I've never printed a layout professionally before, but I've been very unhappy with the results I've been getting off my Cannon PIXMA printer, which I bought specifically to print digital layouts.

[marilee]

I just wanted to add my thanks for the 8.5x11 products and layouts now available. It's the format I'm most comfortable with, and it was so hard trying to adapt 12x12 sometimes. You're the best!

[KBCustomCreations]

I think I'm going to try the new 8.5 x 11. I had a question for you all though. When you are designing your layout. Is your background/page size 8.5 by 11 or do you create a page bigger to allow for bleed/trim when printing?

I also have trouble getting my personal computer to print the same colors as my screen. As hints or tips with that. Thanks so much.

[Reminiscing]

I'm happy to read about the added 8.5x11 options. In 2009 and 2010 I was creating my weekly Project SG pages 8x10 because I wanted to print with the most economical choice I found at the time, Blurb, which didn't offer 12x12 back then (now they do). Those two years I did A LOT of paper cropping and template adjusting. Even though I've moved back to doing all 12x12 pages, what is being said about art and the rectangle makes sense to me and I'm glad to have the option.

[Ro]

KBCustomCreations, on 07 January 2012 - 01:55 PM, said:

I think I'm going to try the new 8.5 x 11. I had a question for you all though. When you are designing your layout. Is your background/page size 8.5 by 11 or do you create a page bigger to allow for bleed/trim when printing?

I also have trouble getting my personal computer to print the same colors as my screen. As hints or tips with that. Thanks so much.

I create it at 8.5x11.

The difficulty in getting the colors to match can be traced back to one or two things.

1. Your monitor needs calibrating. One easy way to know if your monitor is off is to look at the Scrap Girls purple. It is a pink-based purple rather than a blue-based purple. If you are seeing a blue-based purple, you know that you have a monitor issue.
2. Some printers just don't do quite as good of a job with color matching. I have two printers here = a Canon and a Kodak. The Canon matches the colors perfectly. The Kodak - not as well. But the Kodak is also a very inexpensive printer, so it doesn't surprise me. (We inherited the Kodak from my father-in-law when he passed away.) But if I played around with the Kodak setting, it might work better. I just haven't spent much time on it.

You could also go to the support website of your printer manufacturer. They often have articles about how to improve the print quality.

[sanot]

I am very excited about this endorsement for 8.5 x 11...I've only been digital scrapping less than a year, and initially really struggled with which size to use for LO...my main purpose is to chronologically scrap my family's life events, and to be able to put a report card or class photo composite or kid's drawing next to a layout will be great! And to print at home and see the album come together will be great motivation to keep going! I have some templates that I can't figure out how to adapt (ie. Design Pack Months and ScrapSimple Digital Layout Album Templates: 12x12 Album Series 4) but overall and excited about this! I'm hoping it will be more economical to print at home, too. I'm hoping, too, to be able to just stick some regular photo sleeves in next to the layouts when I have photos I want to add (especially ones that come from friends 6 months later) but not necessarily scrap.

[Smiles]

Go, Amy!
What I love about printing at home is to be able to print them out as I create them, instead of waiting till I have a bunch etc.
And I like your idea of adding in straight photos from other people.
I think we'll be hearing more about re-sizing templates.

[Syndee]

sanot, on 18 January 2012 - 10:55 PM, said:

I am very excited about this endorsement for 8.5 x 11...I've only been digital scrapping less than a year, and initially really struggled with which size to use for LO...my main purpose is to chronologically scrap my family's life events, and to be able to put a report card or class photo composite or kid's drawing next to a layout will be great! And to print at home and see the album come together will be great motivation to keep going! I have some templates that I can't figure out how to adapt (ie. Design Pack Months and ScrapSimple Digital Layout Album Templates: 12x12 Album Series 4) but overall and excited about this! I'm hoping it will be more economical to print at home, too. I'm hoping, too, to be able to just stick some regular photo sleeves in next to the layouts when I have photos I want to add (especially ones that come from friends 6 months later) but not necessarily scrap.

We had a tutorial in the Scrap Girls Newsletter on January 5th on how to adapt 12x12 layout templates to 8.5x11 - here's the link:
Jan 5th Scrap Girls Newsletter

HTH!!

[sanot]

Thanks Syndee...I've been adapting a fair number or templates lately...what is the correct etiquette for giving credit when you modify it? Can anyone shed some light on this? I've just been adding "modified8.5x11" at the end of the original name, so they still get credit in the EXIF.

[mbechtloff]

i know most people make 12x12, but when i started (which wasn't that long ago) i began make 8x10 pages, mostly because the photobook company i wanted to print with uses that size. i'm excited for this new size as it will be easier to adapt templates when i have a better idea of what it looks like.