Making clusters can be a great way to expand a kit you want to sell, or a way to use a kit you just purchased.
Making clusters can be a tedious task however. This script will help you as it will serve as a starting point, in gathering a certain number of long elements (like ribbons, tapes, stitching) and other elements (like flowers, buttons, tags, knots, etc.).
You can generate as many strip clusters as you want, from the elements in a single folder. You can create horizontal strips or vertical ones. Did you know that it is not a good idea to rotate a strip cluster that is already made? The shadows will be showing in the wrong angle, and any light source indication will also be inaccurate, giving an odd looking result in the end. So this script will NOT rotate any element (except the long elements) but will place them in a vertical arrangement, if that is what you want.
You can also choose to have few elements on the cluster or a fuller arrangement.
Since the script cannot "see" the result, it will not know if it looks good or not. That is YOUR task. But the script will have given you a starting point, from which you can rearrange the elements, add new ones, remove some.
A time saving tool for you: Strip Cluster Maker.
Do you like strip clusters? Did you get the Cluster Template maker #3? Tell me how you use (or would use) strip clusters in your projects. Add your answer in the comments below. I will pick a winner and announce it in the newsletter, next week. Not a subscriber yet? Not a problem. You can register here and it is free (and you only get one email per week).
This week, with Heather T's permission, i am giving you the exact strip cluster that I made using this script.
It is 3600x700 pixels in size, in PNG format. It also includes all the shadows for realism (including the lifted thread on the left).
You need to be logged in to download this sample. You can either login, or register on the top of this page.

Creating a geometric pattern can be easy if you have only one shape, but it can become tedious if you have multiple similar shapes, using different colors. Until now, you either had to do them by hand, or rely on layered templates, which only offer a limited number of color arrangement.
Although Easter is over for most people, the colors associated with Easter are still very appropriate for spring, so whether you want to showcase your Easter photos, or spring photos, these colors should be quite suitable.
Did you register to our live class, tomorrow? There is still time to do so.
Linda asked me recently if i could create a script that would generate a painted background from an image. Of course, one can always use the Brush Strokes effect in Paintshop Pro, but sometimes, we only want an abstract background based on the colors of a particular image we like. It can obviously be hard to find a perfect match unless we create it ourselves.
This week, i picked a few very colorful images on Morguefiles and turned 3 of them into full size papers. Do you have a fun, happy project you want to showcase? You can use those background papers as a base for showcasing your photos. You can also use those papers in other ways (or use them with other scripts!).
Can you create your own sticker out of any image you have? Sure you can. Use any png image (even if you extracted Uncle Jim from a photo) to turn them into custom stickers. And also, have a peek how you can make that sticker look like it is curling up a bit.
Creating designs for seamless tiles is not that hard, but creating many using the same palette without redoing the same one twice is a little be more challenging.
For a sample, i created 8 tiles in the green colors (for St-Patrick month). Each tile is 250x250 pixels and can be scaled up or down as a pattern. You can add a rotation. You can combine two tiles. You can duplicate a single tile and flip/mirror it to create a different pattern.
What do you know about Adjustment Layers in PSP?
A few years ago, I came up with a script that would create uneven pieces of papers around individual letters. Those were perfect to simulate the look of ransom notes or such and it was called Kidnap Alpha.
This week, I created a basic alpha using this script. The base paper is grey and the letters are either black or dark grey. All the edges are torn.
If you ever had cookies or cakes, you know what a little sprinkles can add to the look!
This week, i had fun "painting" with those sprinkles (it is addictive).
Did you join the live presentation, last week?
You can find various strings in digital scrapbook kits, or sometimes as a set of elements, but are you struggling to find the right color, or the right length, or the right shape?
I created these fun flowers out of the twisted strings. They are fairly large so you can size them down to fit your project. You get two flowers, two leaves and one stem. Combine them as you wish, add them to clusters, make a border out of several flowers, etc.
You might be able to find some ready-made wooden windows in PNG format but what if you could create your own, to perfectly match your project? Use the same wood, or adjust the size or format of the window.
This week, i went a bit out of my comfort zone and created a cluster with a sample window. I had fun using a curly ribbon and wrapping it around the sides of the window, and then, just added some flowers and greenery.
I know, you can probably create a wood frame very easily, right? Using Paintshop Pro, some tasks are quite easy and creating a wood frame is one of those. However, it still takes a bit of time, and if you want to create a series of frames, for a kit or a collage, it can quickly add up.
How about a few frames to play with? I created 10 frames for you: 5 have mitered corners and 5 have overlapped corners. Their sizes range from 1000 to 2000 pixels, but you can easily resize them if you need.
Do you have photos of your clock or watch? Maybe a photo from New Year's Eve? How about an in-review project where the time is illustrated with a clock or a watch or other time ticking device? Post it on the Corel page
QR codes might be used as a way to direct someone to a website or use a coupon for a purchase, but you can use that pattern to create some fun labels.
As a way for you to sample the result of this fun script, I created 6 inspirational tags for you, in various basic colors. Each tag is 300 pixels wide.