I can't believe it's the month of May already. Although some of you are still suffering through the ravages of winter right now, I know it will be spring for you soon. For the rest of us, Summer seems very close already. And this month we celebrate Mother's Day. It can be a very special day for a lot of us and a bittersweet day for many. Some of us have lost our mothers and some of us have lost our children, both reasons to feel some sadness on that day. So rejoice if you are a mother or have a mother to celebrate with for that is a very special thing. We celebrate with you just as we know you will remember the mothers we lost or that we are mothers even though our children are not with us any longer. Happy Mother's Day to All from all of us at Graphic Central.

We have a new host here at Graphic Central. Her name is Pamela (PamelaT) and she hosts Blinkies and Custom Signatures. I've asked her to write a little bit about herself so you can get to know her.

Ok, some things about me. I'm 26. I've been married to Patrick for over 8 years. I have 2 furbabies "Little Bear" & "Little Cabela Princess" I have no idea why we said little, they are both labs. I absolutely love Labrador Retrievers! If I could have any job, & didn't have to worry about money I'd run a Lab Rescue just because I love them so much.
I love doing anything creative! I love music, singing, cooking, & of course graphics! I first got into graphics when I requested a siggy. I thought they were so cool. I thought it'd be a great way to express my creativity. I started asking questions, & then Amanda was kind enough to send me tuts, & I just picked it up very fast! Then, after a while I decided to try my hand on Graphic Central when Amanda & Marg invited me to try some blinkies! I soon added doing siggies to that, & then became a host!
I say my occupation is practicing to be a SAHM. I'm hoping for a promotion soon!

So please help us welcome Pamela to the team by stopping by and asking for one of her talented blinkies or sigs.

Well, we are still moving into Spring and almost into Summer. Please stop on by for an updated signature or maybe a new blinkie. We have lots of wonderful talented artists here at Graphic Central who are great at making your signatures come to life. Just drop on by.




Each month, a host here at Graphic Central with share an aspect that they do here with everyone. Sometimes it will be challenging and sometimes it will be easier to follow. But I'm sure it will always be interesting
to learn.

How to Cut Out a Picture in PSP

First you open your picture on your work board. Then you take your lasso tool and set it to Edge Seeker. You could set it to Freehand if you have lots and lots of practice and have a very steady hand.
If your picture is small, you might want to zoom into the picture. It will really help with seeing all the lines you need to go around.
Next, you take your lasso tool and set it on a starting point on the outline and start moving, in very small increments, to the next point where you will left click and move on to the next small point and left click
and so on and so on until you have completely cut out what you wanted.
Then when you have come to the starting point, then you will right click and the whole cut out will be highlighted with a moving line.
At this point, I like to feather my cutouts. Go to Selections, Modify and then Feather. I usually use 15 as the number but you can use any number that you think looks good. You can click on the preview and
see what it looks like with the number you have selected before you actually set it.
You are now free to Edit, Copy and Paste as a New Layer or New Image.
All you need to do is just a bit of practice and this will become really easy to do. Then you can do it all freehand and learn something new.





Our Get-To-Know-You question this month is what has been your favorite gift you've been given as a mother on Mother's Day? Or if you're not a mother, what has been the favorite gift you've given your mother? All hosts please answer this question on the Community Leaders board and remember to leave your P&P email address so you get your points. Thanks.




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May 1st - May Day, Mother Goose Day, Hawaiian Lei Day, Worthy Wage Day
May 3rd - Sun Day, Space Day
May 4th - National Weather Observer's Day
May 5th - Cinco De Mayo
May 6th - National Teacher Day
May 8th - No Socks Day
May 10th - Clean Up Your Room Day
May 11th - Mother's Day, Twilight Zone Day, National School Nurse Day
May 12th - International Nurses Day, Kite Day, Limerick Day
May 13th - Tulip Day
May 14th - National Dance Like a Chicken Day
May 15th - National Chocolate Chip Day
May 18th - International Museum Day, Visit Your Relatives Day
May 19th - Circus Day
May 20th - Armed Forces Day
May 22nd - Victoria Day (Canada), Buy-a-Musical Instrument Day
May 23rd - Penny Day
May 25th - National Missing Children's Day, National Tap Dance Day
May 26th - Memorial Day, Blueberry Cheesecake Day
May 31st - World No Tobacco Day

Special Goings-On
Asian/Pacific American Heritage Week (1st Week)
Be Kind to Animals Week (1st Week)
National Postcard Week (1st Week)
Teacher Appreciation Week (1st Week)
National Pet Week (2nd Week)
National Police Week (3rd Week)
National Transportation Week (3rd Week)
National Backyard Games Week (Last full week before Memorial Day.)
American Bike Month
Asparagus Month
Asthma & Allergy Awareness Month
Better Hearing and Speech Month
Better Sleep Month
Correct Posture Month
Healthy Vision Month
National Bar-B-Que Month
National Duckling Month
National Egg Month
Flower Month
National Hamburger Month
National Mental Health Month
National Physical Fitness & Sports Month
National Photo Month
Older Americans Month
National Salad Month
National Strawberry Month
Transportation Month
Get Caught Reading Month




Strawberries & Cream Dessert Squares


Crust: 1 pouch Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 egg

Filling: 1 cup white vanilla baking chips (6 oz)
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

Topping: 4 cups sliced fresh strawberries
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup water
10 to 12 drops red food color, if desired

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom only of 15x10x1- or 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray. In large bowl, stir cookie mix, butter and egg until soft dough forms. Press evenly in bottom of pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
2. In small microwavable bowl, microwave baking chips uncovered on High 45 to 60 seconds or until chips are melted and can be stirred smooth. In medium bowl, beat cream cheese with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Stir in melted chips until blended.
Spread mixture over crust. Refrigerate while making topping.
3. In small bowl, crush 1 cup of the strawberries. In 2-quart saucepan, mix sugar and cornstarch. Stir in crushed strawberries and 1/3 cup water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils and thickens. Stir in food color. Cool 10 minutes. Gently stir in remaining 3 cups strawberries. Spoon topping over filling. Refrigerate 1 hour or until set; serve within 4 hours. Store covered in refrigerator.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): No change.


Watercolor Butterflies

Watch closely as coffee filters metamorphose into beautiful butterflies.

CRAFT MATERIALS:
Paper coffee filters
Watercolors and brushes
Markers
Glue
Glitter
Clothespins
Colored paper

Time needed: Under 1 Hour
1. To color the filters, either dab on watercolor paint with a brush or draw on designs with markers -- or both. The watercolors will bleed into each other. If using markers, sprinkle the filter lightly with water to make the ink blend together. For a shimmery effect, add glitter-and-glue designs.

2. Once the filter is dry, pinch it in the middle like a bow tie. Slide or clip a clothespin onto it and fan out each side of the filter to resemble a butterfly's wings.

3. Cut two strips of construction paper, approximately the size of matchsticks, and glue them onto the clothespin for a pair of antennae. Then clip them to curtains, hang them from the kitchen chandelier, and even fasten a few to the telephone cord.




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We thought maybe you might have a question about something that goes on here at Graphic Central. We have lots of forums here...Photography, Signature Fun-which includes, Blinkies, Glitter Names and Custom Signatures and Graphics. The hosts have added tutorials in each category if you would like to learn any of these graphics arts. Please read through the tutorials and have a go at it. And please show us what you make. We'd love to see. We are also very open to having volunteers and/or Hosts in our requests forums. Please inquire within about becoming a volunteer if you know how to make blinkies, glitters, siggies or graphics of any kind. If you have any other questions, something you would like to know about any of these fields, please let us know and we will give you the answer in the following newsletter next month. Just leave us a post.