tips to pass on

Don't overuse drop shadows. Soft and subtle is the key.

Use layers.

This may not be a tip to make a sig better, but, just a general tip. :)

I know that when I first started, I was afraid that my sigs weren't 'good enough'
(and I still don't sometimes). But, don't be afraid to post what you have! :)

Don't worry about trying a couple fonts for the siggy.. All of one for everything can be ok or can be very boring.

Don't copy someone elses siggy directly without giving credit.. But do look and get ideas because it may spark even more ideas for you!

Don't be afraid to experiment. Sometimes you'll figure out something super cool and will turn out awesome and can even teach it to others! Its the fun in learning!

Graphics, digi scrap kits, pictures can be great for sigs... but make sure you have the rights to use them first!

Less is more, with words, pictures, etc. 12 pictures, a long poem, and lots of other stuff will be too hard to really pay attention to. Simple can be better. If lots of pictures, use fewer words and vice versa.. or use animation!

Don't hesitate to ask someone how they did something if you see a sig that really sparks your interest. We all learn from each other! Its a safe place to ask and be helped not criticized!

Start your canvas the MAX size you want the siggy to be at the end. Then you can add. You can get rid of white space later, but don't resize to do that, crop!

Save the unflattened version BEFORE you save the flattened one (and make sure not to save over it!) because if you made a mistake its easier to fix than recreate!

Also safe often because nothings worse than half way through or later and your computer crashes and you loose it all!

Save the original photo you are editing/cropping BEFORE you do changes so you always have the original to go back to!

Don't take a siggy someone made for them and change it! They need to ask the original maker to change it, but you can make them a new one!