Making Simple Shapes: Star, Cloud, and Sun

Cloud, Star, Sun

Here are some more simple shapes that you can make on Muzy.

Star

What did your teacher stick on your paper when you got an A? A gold star, of course. Muzy is a gold-star kind of place. So let’s look at how to make a simple star. Read the rest of this entry »

Making Simple Shapes: Heart and Flower

Want “stickers” to put on your photograph? Why don’t you make your own custom one? After all, what is collage but a super-sticker machine? Here are some simple iconic objects that you can make in Muzy collage to stick anywhere, using a little shading and a few simple 2-dimensional shapes.

Heart

Let’s start at the “heart” of things, as it were. Hearts are everywhere. There are plenty of hearts on Muzy, but why not make your own? Personally, I prefer the swirling, free-style hearts that are off-center and tumbling over themselves toward something amazing… but let’s start with a balanced, geometric heart. Read the rest of this entry »

Textures, Patterns, and Fabrics

concrete by smws. Click to view.

Muzy has acquired many textures, patterns, and fabrics that have exquisite uses. There is always room for more. Look around you: tabletops, chair backs, your favorite pair of jeans, the sand at the beach, the wall or ceiling or floor, the intertwined twigs of an empty winter tree… all of these things are fascinating textures and patterns that can be put to creative use on Muzy. You’ve got a digital camera somewhere, right? On your phone? How about a webcam? Find the intriguing patterns and textures around you, and send them to Muzy. Read the rest of this entry »

Backgrounds for Muzy Collage

Backgrounds are extremely useful items for Muzy collagers. So, here is a tour of fun and interesting backgrounds, to give you creative ideas either to make a background or to jump-start your collage.

At the most basic level, making a background is simple. Just fill the canvas… with a color, with an abstract design, with a scene… with anything that Muzy collagers might want to collage on top of. But what makes a background useful, effective, or fun?

Abstract Backgrounds

Orange background by mafer. Click to view.

Here is a background that is very simple: a bright orange with a little bit of highlight and shadow in it, giving it depth. The background is completely abstract and monochromatic.

In part because it’s so simple, this background is also very useful. It can be used in a huge variety of collages, either as a background and as a colorful element in the collage.

Its bright, bold color is also one of the primary advantages of this background. It adds a color statement to whatever collage it appears in. Read the rest of this entry »

Making & Using Frames in Muzy Collage

TV - Bad Reception Filter by Cooperweb. Click to view.

Frames are fun and useful items on Muzy. This clever “TV – Bad Reception Filter” by Cooperweb makes it easy to put any image on Muzy on television… with a little bit of fuzzy “television snow” over the image. Frames can be simple picture frames to fit around any image, or they can be complex backgrounds with a cut-out area to place an image behind.

Frames can be used as a large element on the canvas, literally framing the image. Or frames can become a part of a larger collage, an element that contains another element within it. Read the rest of this entry »

Making Wallpaper and Tiles on Muzy

Pattern by SillyGram. Click to view.

Wallpaper (a.k.a. tiles, patterns) are repeatable items that can be put together to form a pattern over a large area. They’re useful as backgrounds, to “skin” items, to decorate rooms, as abstract art, as “fills” for outlines (such as outlined letters)… well, they’re just useful.

The fantastic pattern you see on the left is by SillyGram. It’s made of a single design, a curving line with two hearts. The initial design is also called Pattern on Muzy. The smaller pattern is repeated in a regular way to create this wallpaper tile. Read the rest of this entry »

Creatively Using Objects in Muzy Collage

Ladybug by smws. Click to view.

Muzy collage does a lot more than just place one item next to another. There is a lot of creativity involved in deciding on a direction or idea for your collage, choosing items, and combining them together using both the drawing/erasing tools and the resizing/stretching/repositioning tools. When I first was introduced to Muzy, I didn’t realize how creative Muzy collage could be. Now, collaging is one of my favorite activities at Muzy.

This ladybug collage by smws is one of my favorite examples of the creative use of objects in a collage. The ladybug isn’t drawn; it’s composed of a mass of objects created separately for different uses, combined in an intriguing way. The end result is surprising and compelling, and even humorous as well as lovely. (Isn’t that a space invader as the ladybug’s head?)

So, let’s talk a little bit about creative collaging. Read the rest of this entry »

Remixing and Making Kits

Muzy has a new capability: remixing other people’s work.

Font Proof Sheet by smws. Click to view.

What is the difference between using a collage and remixing it? When you use a collage, it’s “flattened” into one item (a.k.a. layer) in your new collage. You’ll want to use a collage, instead of remixing it, when you want the collage to stay as a whole. When you remix a collage, you’ll find that all the items are still separate… you can select them and move them independently from one another. Basically, you have all the control that the creator had while working in the collage editor. Read the rest of this entry »

How to Tag Your Items

Tagging! It’s how you find things in Muzy search, and it’s how your stuff gets found and used by other people on Muzy.  Tags appear at the bottom of the “browse” screen to lead you to other, similar items you might be interested in, and the Muzy search function searches through tags to find items that fit your needs.

The better items are tagged in Muzy, the easier they are to find when you need them. That means, if your items are tagged well, other people are more likely to find them when they need them, and so other people are more likely to use your items.

If you’re looking to gain more karma or if you want to be helpful and add to the community, tagging your items well is a good place to start. So, here’s a step-by-step introduction to tagging. Read the rest of this entry »

What Makes a Muzy Drawing Useful?

A Muzy collage by Gerbear. Click to view.

Muzy is more than a drawing tool. It’s a collage tool. That makes it unique. That doesn’t mean Muzy can’t or shouldn’t or isn’t used as a drawing tool. It’s a great drawing tool, too. But the social aspect of Muzy is about interacting with other people’s drawings, and creating interesting and exciting collages by using objects in new ways. Part of the Muzy experience is drawing items to be used, not just for their own sake. Of course, the added bonus is that, when people use your drawings, you’ll earn Muzy karma… and having lots of karma is always a good thing. Read the rest of this entry »