Glossary of Digital Scrapbooking & Art Terms

Whether you are a complete beginner or a seasoned pro, the world of digital art has its own unique language. We have compiled this list to help you decode the acronyms and understand the technical terms you’ll see in our shop and community.

License & Usage Terms

These are critical for knowing how you are allowed to use the files you buy.

• PU (Personal Use): You can use these items for your own personal projects (like family photo albums) or gifts. You cannot sell anything you make with them.
• CU (Commercial Use): You can use these items to create new products that you sell to others (e.g., making a wedding invitation to sell on Etsy). Always check the specific Terms of Use (TOU) included with the file.
• S4H (Scrap for Hire): A specific license allowing you to create custom scrapbook pages for a paying client.
• TOU (Terms of Use): The legal document included with every download that explains exactly what you can and cannot do with the files.

Digital Product Types

• Kit: A coordinated collection of digital papers and elements (stickers, ribbons, frames) sold together in one pack.
• Element Pack: A set of decorative items (flowers, buttons, stitching) without the background papers.
• Alpha: A digital alphabet. Each letter is an individual image file, allowing you to "type" titles that look like real stickers or chipboard.
• QP (Quick Page): A pre-made layout with "holes" (transparent areas) where you simply slide your photos in behind the page. The fastest way to scrapbook!
• Template: A skeleton layout (usually a PSD or TIFF file) with grey blocks representing where photos and papers should go. You "clip" your own papers to the shapes to customize the design.
• Hybrid: A project that starts digitally but is printed out and assembled physically. (e.g., printing a digital tag and tying it to a real gift).

Common Scrapbooking Product Type Abbreviations

• CS (Cardstock): Solid colored paper with a texture that mimics real cardstock.
• PP (Patterned Paper): Background paper with designs (or occasionally "Page Protectors" in physical scrapbooking contexts).
• SP (Solid Paper): Background paper with a single color and no pattern.
• ELE (Elements): Short for "Elements," referring to the decorative pieces in a kit.

Printable & Crafting Terms

• Ephemera: Vintage or collectible paper items (like old tickets, postcards, stamps, or receipts) used to decorate a page. In digital art, these are often sold as part of Collage Sheets.
• Collage Sheet: A single printable page containing multiple images (ephemera) arranged to be printed and then cut out.
• Junk Journal: A handmade book created from a mix of found papers, recycled materials, and printables, often used for art journaling or memory keeping.

File Formats & Machine-Related Terms

• JPG: A standard image file with a solid background. Most digital papers are JPGs.
• PNG: An image file with a transparent background. Most elements (like a digital flower) are PNGs so they can sit on top of your paper without a white box around them.
• ZIP: A compressed folder. You must "unzip" or "extract" this folder to get to the image files inside.
• PDF: A document file often used for printables (like planners or journals) to ensure the size stays correct when printing.
• GSD / KNK / SVG: Specific file types used by electronic cutting machines (like Cricut or Silhouette) to cut shapes automatically.
• PSE (Photoshop Elements): A popular, more affordable version of Adobe Photoshop used by many digital scrapbookers.
• Cricut / Cameo: Popular brands of electronic cutting machines used to cut paper, vinyl, and stickers.

Techniques & Concepts

• Fussy Cut: The technique of carefully cutting out an intricate shape or image from a sheet of paper using small, sharp scissors.
• Kiss Cut: A specific cut setting on sticker machines where the blade cuts through the sticker paper but leaves the backing sheet intact, creating easy-to-peel sticker sheets.
• Inking: Applying ink to the edges of a piece of paper (digital or physical) to create depth, dimension, or a vintage look.
• Photo Matting: Placing a slightly larger piece of paper (a "mat") behind a photo to create a border that makes the photo pop off the background.
• DPS (Double-Page Spread): A layout designed to span across two facing pages in an album.
• Focal Point: The main area of interest on a page where the eye is naturally drawn (usually the best photo).

Printing & Technical Terms

• Bleed: The area of a design that extends beyond the final cut line. If you are printing a card professionally, you need a "bleed" so you don't get white edges when the paper is trimmed.
• Crop Marks: Small lines at the corners of a printable page that show you exactly where to cut.
• DPI (Dots Per Inch): A measure of print quality. High-quality digital art is standard 300 DPI. (Web images are usually only 72 DPI and will look blurry if you try to print them).
• GSM (Grams per Square Meter): A measure of paper weight.
  • 80 GSM: Standard copy paper (too thin for most art).
  • 100-120 GSM: Premium paper (good for planner inserts).
  • 200+ GSM: Cardstock (best for printing cards or tags).

Community Acronyms

• LO (Layout): A completed scrapbook page.
• WIP (Work in Progress): A project that isn't finished yet.
• CT / DT (Creative Team / Design Team): A group of artists selected by a designer to create example layouts using their new products.
• SB / SBing: Scrapbook / Scrapbooking.
• RAK (Random Act of Kindness): A term often used in forums when someone gifts a product or sends a card to another member just to be nice.
• ISO (In Search Of): Used in forums when you are looking for a specific type of kit (e.g., "ISO a kit with dinosaurs").
• DD / DH / DS: Darling (or Dear) Daughter / Husband / Son. Common shorthand for referring to family members in forum posts or journaling.