Here to celebrate those bad girls is a set of Photoshop brushes pulled from the my collection of magazines of the period, cleaned up and ready to roll. These bad girls come with their own racy tabloid headlines. Download this brush set, which comes with a text file and brushes in .abr format.
Don’t redistribute these girls, or I’ll send their sisters (more bad girl brushes coming soon!) after you. Seriously, a lot of time and clean up went into these tabloid sisters. Please point people to my web site so I can justify the time and hosting expenses. A link back would be very much appreciated, too.
I have to admit that I’m a lot more likely to get things done if they’re written on a beautiful list, rather than a scrap of tattered napkin. This set of Photoshop brushes offers a variety of styles, from royally elegant to urbanely grungey. Create a batch of 3 by 5 cards and keep them with you so that no brilliant idea and no urgent task goes unrecorded.
You can download these nifty brushes here as a zip file. Please don’t redistribute these brushes, but point people back to my web site for download. They take some time and effort to create. I hope that you find them useful.
Donna Reed, June Cleaver, Gidget, and all the other good girls of the 1940s and 1950s assured us that if you did the right things, you could end up in a spotless rancher with shiny faced kids and a husband who came home from the office each night.
To many folks, that sounded safe, clean, all American, and wholesome.
To some of us, especially regarded in retrospect, it looks like the ingredients for squashed expression, thankless boredom, creativity expressed only in radish roses or rickracked curtains, and a smothering set of rules for behavior to be that good girl.
Bad girls blatantly refused to bend to the confines of the good girl role. They stayed out late, wore their tops too low and too tight, wore their eyeliner dark and their thoughts darker. They made their own rules and often suffered the social consequences. They were bad, and infinitely more intriguing.
Here to celebrate those bad girls is a set of Photoshop brushes pulled from the my collection of magazines of the period, cleaned up and ready to roll. These bad girls come with their own racy tabloid headlines. Download this brush set, which comes with a text file and brushes in .abr format.
Don’t redistribute these girls, or I’ll send their sisters (more bad girl brushes coming soon!) after you. Seriously, a lot of time and clean up went into these tabloid sisters. Please point people to my web site so I can justify the time and hosting expenses. A link back would be very much appreciated, too.
Did you make a New Year’s resolution to get more organized for this year? If so, you can start off by creating some nifty calendars from templates. I’ve rounded up links to some helpful free, downloadable templates to get you started.
How much you customize the calendar templates here is completely up to you.
Do calendar weeks start with Sunday or Monday? Maybe I’m old-fashioned, but I always thought they started with Sunday. However, many of the calendar templates shown here give you a choice of starting with Sunday or Monday. I like the idea of a nice soft weekend gently padding each end of a hard five day work week.
Templates for Photoshop
I’ve posted a collection of individual Photoshop brushes for each month of 2008, and the set includes a single brush with all the months. These are perfect for printing out on 3 by 5 cards to carry with you in your hipster PDA.
Over at Trimoon’s blog, you can download a Photoshop template that includes editable text layers, so that you can use whatever fonts and colors you’d like, as well as space for your own photos. There are three styles of calendar templates available. One style is in the traditional one-page-per-month, and there are two templates for all-the-months-on-a-single-page format as well.
At Jeffrey Friedl’s blog, you can download a custom Photoshop script that Jeffrey has created, and manipulate it to create just about any format of calendar that you’d like. If running scripts sounds a little too tech, scroll down to the section that says “Pre-built sample PSD files for 2008″ to download Photoshop files that you can use sans script. It’s ok to admit that tinkering with Javascript in Photoshop might be a bit too scary. Admitting it is the first step to overcoming your fear.
Templates in PDF (Adobe Acrobat) Format
I won’t tell. The rest of the world sees you as a sophisticated, urbane and witty person. The only humor that tickles your funny bone are the cryptic cartoons in the New Yorker. They’d never guess that you secretly cackle over Lolcats or giggle at CuteOverload. Just between you and I, you can download a free LOLcats 2008 calendar to decorate your secret underground lair.
Templates in PDF format only require the free Adobe Acrobat reader to print. You can also customize PDF templates in Photoshop by opening the PDF file in Photoshop a page at a time, then working whatever color or design magic you’d like.
Canon’s web site offers some really unusual and interesting templates in PDF format. One of my favorites is a calendar with black and white photos that sits in a CD case for display. You can recycle a CD case, and if you’re feeling especially green, print the template on the back of paper to recycle the paper as well.
Well, 2007 just zipped right past us, didn’t it? In the spirit of managing my time, and remembering to:
pay the rent on time
plan for vacation (hooray!) and time off
keep on top of my blog postings
I’ve created a brush for each month of 2008, and a single Photoshop brush that contains all the months in one. You can use these wherever you need a timely reminder.
These brushes are in a zipped format. You can download the Zipped archive of 2008 calendar free Photoshop brushes. You can use these brushes in any program that supports the Photoshop .abr file format. Instructions for loading the brushes are included in a text file along with the brushes.
Please don’t repost these anywhere else, but point people to this site to download.
You can see some examples of how to use the calendars on 3×5 cards to create a little organizational magic with some zip and pep.
I’m a huge fan of the little 3×5 index card. You may be familiar with using these to organize your life, popularized by the hipster pda and the philosophy behind Getting Things Done. There are many templates for cards that you can download for free, but they tend to be a bit bland for my taste.
I’m offering up some tutorials so that you can learn Photoshop techniques and create nifty 3by5 cards all in one. You’ll want to print these out in order to use them, so look below for printing instructions. The idea behind creating these cards is rather crafty. First, you’ll be practicing your Photoshop skills on a small, manageable project. Secondly, you’ll have tangible evidence of your Photoshop mastery. Thirdly, you’ll have gorgeous cards that will hopefully inspire you to become more organized.
There are so many ways to use these 3by5 cards. I use them to store bits of information that would otherwise get lost, including:
MP3s I want to download from iTunes
My son’s shoe size
Serial numbers for software
Quick ideas and small sketches
Addresses and phone numbers
URLs I want to visit
Books I want to read
Recipes
But the main reason I use them is to keep myself on track. Every day I write out a To Do list for the day, and pick the 3 most important things to get done for that day. If other tasks pop up, I write them down and keep them for another day so that I don’t get distracted.
You’ll want plain cardstock, in either white or a pale color that tickles your fancy. If your printer will print on 3 inch by 5 inch cards, you just need blank index cards. You won’t even need the rest of the instructions on this page
Printing Multiple Cards at Once
If your printer isn’t as flexible, you’ll want to buy a package of 8 1/2 x 11″ cardstock. Cardstock is just a fancy way of saying heavy paper. If you look at a regular index card, that’s cardstock weight paper. You’ll be able to print three cards per 8 1/2 x 11 page. If you’re very lazy, you can buy 8 1/2″ x 11″ cardstock by Avery or Oxford that has been perforated so that you can punch the cards out after you’ve sent the paper through your printer.
To print multiple cards, I’ve provided a template. Download the PDF template for printing 3by5 cards, and next open it in Photoshop. When you open the PDF, you’ll want to change the resolution to 200 pixels per inch. I’m using that as a guide because it’s low enough resolution that it won’t create huge file sizes, but high enough that your artwork should print out nicely. If you’ve included photos, or want better resolution for other artwork, you’ll want to work at 250 to 300 pixels per inch.
Once you’ve opened the PDF template, you’ll want to open the card or cards you’d like to print out. Copy the card by making sure that the image is flattened (Layer > Flatten Image). Next, select the card (use Ctrl + A on Windows, Command + A on the Mac), copy it (Ctrl + C on Windows, Command + C on the Mac).
Next, select the template file, and Paste (Ctrl+V on Windows, Command + V on the Mac). You’ll want to paste 3 copies, and align them using the template’s guidelines.
Now you’re ready to print. Select File > Print. Leave the settings as they are unless you’re using the perforated cardstock. If you’re using that, deselect Center and change the top setting to .5. This will make sure that your prinout matches the perforations on the page precisely.
This stuff is addictive, so make sure to print enough to share with others.
Trimming may sound tricky, but it’s not. Stack the pages you’ve printed out so that they line up. You may want to use a binder clip to keep them together, but you can skip that step if you like.
Line up the ruler with the printed border of the card. Make sure your fingers are out of the way! We don’t want any artistic accidents here. Then use the Xacto knife to draw along the edge of the ruler. You may have to draw the knife across the line several times in order to cut, but don’t push down too hard on the knife. It’s better to use the Xacto knife several times rather than try to cut through a stack at once. Do this for each edge. If the blade gets dull, change it.
I’m totally uncoordinated, and I can do this just fine. As long as you don’t rush, I’m sure you can master this technique quickly. As I was telling my son, back in the old days before computers, everything was pasted up by hand which meant a lot of measuring, trimming, and pasting, which now makes us very grateful for how easy it is to draw a straight line in Photoshop without needing to use rulers, inks, pens, white gouache paint and razor blades (for mistakes).
There’s also something very satisfying about being able to do something tangible by hand, stacking the cards and straightening a nice pile of your handiwork. It’s a feeling you just don’t get with a pile of pixels at the end of the day.
This page offers a flexible, visual method to teach beginners the basics of HTML. You’ll need:
basic HTML knowledge
the PDF template (see below) and color printer
magnetic sheets to print on (alternatives listed below)
a whiteboard, large window, or blackboard to write on
When deciding to teach my youngest son how to write a web page from scratch, I thought about what might be the best way to approach it.
I first helped him memorize the order of the very basic web page tags. These are barked out in a military type fashion in order to keep things moving along. Marching is optional
HTML!
HEAD!
TITLE!
CLOSE TITLE!
CLOSE HEAD!
BODY!
CLOSE BODY!
CLOSE HTML!
To reinforce the order of these basic tags, I created some HTML magnets to use on a large white board we have at home. That reinforces the memorization and grouping of these tags, and introduces the idea of opening and closing tags, and nesting elements (the title tag goes within the head portion of the document). The BODY tag is larger than the others, because, since I’m teaching him how to design web pages, I wanted to demonstrate that that’s where most of the layout tags will go.
The structure of a web page, for someone who hasn’t any type of coding experience, often doesn’t make a lot of sense. Placing the magnets on a white board makes it much easier to demonstrate the structure, move tags around, etc. I’ve made some tags in two parts (three, if they have a closing tag) to allow things like adding a URL to an A HREF tag, or adding a class name to a tag. I also color coded the tags so that I could color code and match the css attributes when we started discussing style sheets.
I gave each tag a distinct color and shape. The first five tags are orange ovals. Links are gray rectangles, etc. I’m a very visual person, so having cues like color and shape to group and distinguish tags helps me a great deal. I was actually inspired to do this by a description of synesthesia, and how, a writer who had synesthesia experienced every letter on a page as a different color.
Printing the Magnet Templates
I’ve created two different PDF files with some basic HTML tags. You can buy magnets that you print on from an office supply store. The sheets are thin and easy to cut with regular scissors.
If you can’t print out the magnet paper with your printer, you could print the PDF file out on paper. You could then glue magnets to the back of it. You can buy inexpensive business card sized magnets for this purpose. If you have existing magnets, you can recycle them and use them in this project.
If you want to go the least expensive route, you could use a repositionable glue stick on a paper printout. This would turn your paper into post-it notes that you could use on any large surface and wouldn’t require a magnetic background. You could use a large window, or the side of a refridgerator, or a blackboard. (I would test any questionable surface to make sure the glue doesn’t leaves a mark behind).
Downloading the Magnet Templates
There are two sheets of magnets. If you use these, please give a link back to http://www.mccannas.com. Do not redistribute these files, but please point people to this web site instead.
Download the first HTML magnets PDF Template. This template includes magnets for all the main HTML document tags, headings, and DIVs. In order to download the file, instead of letting your browser automatically open the PDF, Right-click and select Save Target As or Save Link As).
As our lives become more and more entwined with technology, the appeal of the handcrafted becomes stronger. This batch of free fonts all have very different looks, but a distinctly human appeal. I’ve selected five fonts that are the opposite of slick and high tech.
Yo, ho, yo, ho! This font has a decidedly piratical style. I can definitely imagine using this in an invitation to your Talk Like a Pirate Day party. Download Clerica here.
This is crusades, a blackletter font with a distinct handcrafted look. Download Crusades here.
Goombella looks as though it were rapidly drawn with an inky brush. There’s a sense of urgency and weight that would make this a great choice for a headline or heading. Download Goombella here.
HVD Bodedo has the very trendy look of a printed typeface that has been hand traced. It’s legible at a number of sizes, and has an informal feeling. Download HVD Bodedo here.
Creating freebies for a site is always a great way to draw traffic, but the folks over at the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society have truly taken this to another level. You may not be entirely familiar with the works of author H.P. Lovecraft, but these folks live and breathe for Cthulhu. They’ve created historical fonts (which are not free, but very inexpensive - an entire CD for $20).
Best of all, there’s a treasure trove of free historical documents that you can customize. Drivers licenses, a private investigator’s license, telegrams and picture postcards, to name a few. The best (in my ever humble opinion), is a very realistic “Certificate of Insanity“. We all know someone who is certifiable, yet running loose in the (workplace, dorm, neighborhood) world. Wouldn’t a certificate of insanity make a great gift?
You’ll need a later version of Adobe Acrobat reader to customize and print out these goodies. Some of the files are large, so it was easier for me to click the link to the PDF and select “Save Link as” or “Save Target As” (depending on which browser) and download these instead of trying to open them in a web browser window. Once you’ve opened them in the Adobe Acrobat reader, you can read the instructions and customize the text.
The Adobe PDF Reader features an icon in the upper right corner of the screen, labeled “highlight fields” that will help you to find out what you can customize. I found it very helpful to locate the text fields within these documents.
All of these goodies are created by the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society, who make props for films. They’ve also produced some films of their own, most notably The Call of Cthulhu, a black and white film done as a silent. These people are dedicated to creating a historical look and feel for typography and documents that is truly inspirational.
Dirty Ames a grungy elaborate free font that would be great for monograms, initial drop caps, or part of a logo or even a background image. Download Dirty Ames here.
The font Missed Your Exit is a very legible, trendy script font. Download Missed Your Exit here.
Download Mutulu Ornament a free script font with elaborate swirls. While this is not a great font for large text blocks, it would make a graceful initial letter or part of a company logo.
JF Ringmaster an elaborate decorated font, perfect for big headlines, initials, or drop caps. Download Jester and more fonts from Jester Font Studio.
I have to admit that I have no idea what kind of creatures make up the font Schnoerkell, created by the tireless Manfred Klein. This would make a fabulous title or drop caps for a fantasy book. Download Schnoerkell here.
The font Rage is made up of mix and match letters from several alphabets. It shouldn’t work, but it does. Rage has a unique handcrafted design that would work well on anything from a book of Victorian poetry to a logo. Download Rage here.
As I previously posted, Adobe has a free quarterly magazine that is available for download.
Adobe still has a free quarterly magazine, but it has changed names from Proxy (admittedly a bit of a geeky term) to Adobe Magazine (I wonder how long it took to come up with that snappy title?)
It looks like that along with the name change, the magazine has become more aspirational than hands-on-helpful for users. The first issue features a Nike campaign, a photographer, and (my favorite!) typefaces voted “best of” by the Type Director’s Club.
I posted a tutorial for using abrViewer.Net a while back. Well, the lovely and talented Anna Forrest updated this utility. It offers several new features, the most useful of which is probably the ability to view .JBR files, or custom brushes created for PaintShop Pro. This means that you can download one of the sets of free PSP brushes and convert them to Photoshop brushes. Search for brushes in .jbr format using Google.
The other new features include:
- Replaced the single folder brush list with a file browser showing all subdirectories of the selected folder.
- Added the ability to categorize brushes into ‘favorites’. - Added the ability to install and uninstall brushes to Adobe Photoshop’s preset directory.
- Added an options dialog to set location of Photoshop’s preset directory and configure one or more folders to be loaded into the file browser automatically when application starts.
I’m going to reveal a little known secret. Adobe offers a magazine in PDF format, titled Proxy, that covers all of their products, and it’s free. How cool is that?
At Jeffrey Friedl’s blog, 
I’m a huge fan of the little 3×5 index card. You may be familiar with using these to organize your life, popularized by the 
