How to recolor digital papers and elements

When to recolor your supplies

Recoloring is a practical way to stretch your digital stash. You might have a favorite ribbon or a great set of buttons that you want to use again on a new layout. Changing the color helps those items blend perfectly with a brand new kit.

It is easier to recolor some items than others. Light items recolor more evenly than very dark items. When you use standard color adjustment tools, white areas stay white. This makes it simple to change the color of a pale pink flower or a light blue button.

Keep in mind the file types you are working with. Digital papers are JPG files, while elements and alphabets are transparent PNG files. You can learn more about PNG vs JPG files to understand how they handle transparency. Both file types can be recolored using the same basic tools.

Hue, saturation and colorize

Most digital scrapbooking software offers two main ways to change colors. The first method uses a Hue/Saturation tool. This shifts all the existing colors in your image around the color wheel. If you have a patterned paper with three different colors, adjusting the hue will change all three colors at once.

The second method is the Colorize option. This tints the entire item with one single color. Colorize is very helpful when you want to turn a multicolored element into a solid color to match specific color palettes for scrapbook pages.

Saturation controls how intense the color appears. Lowering the saturation makes the color look faded or gray. Increasing the saturation makes the color brighter and more vivid. You will usually adjust both the hue and the saturation to get the exact look you want.

Recoloring in Photoshop and Elements

Photoshop and Photoshop Elements use adjustment layers to change colors. This is the best method because the change stays editable. You can go back and tweak the color later without ruining the original element.

Here is how to recolor your items in these programs:

• Open your layout and select the layer with your element or paper.
• Add a Hue/Saturation adjustment layer above it.
• Clip the adjustment layer to the element so it only affects that one item.
• Move the Hue slider to shift the colors.
• Check the Colorize box if you want a single color tint.
• Adjust the Saturation and Lightness sliders until the color looks right.

If you are new to clipping layers, you can read our guide on clipping masks explained for more details.

Recoloring in GIMP

GIMP is a popular free option for digital scrapbooking. The process here changes the pixels directly on the layer. You might want to duplicate your element layer first so you have a backup copy.

Follow these steps to change colors in GIMP:

• Select the layer containing your element or paper.
• Go to the Colors menu at the top of the screen.
• Choose Hue-Saturation to shift the existing colors.
• Move the Hue slider to find your new color.
• Alternatively, go to the Colors menu and choose Colorize for a one color tint.
• Adjust the sliders until you are happy with the result.
• Click OK to apply the changes to your layer.

This method works perfectly for standard digital scrapbook pages, which are usually 12 x 12 inches at 300 pixels per inch. That equals a canvas size of 3600 x 3600 pixels.

Recoloring in Affinity and Canva

Other programs also make it easy to adjust colors. If you need help picking a program, check our guide on choosing digital scrapbooking software.

In Affinity, you can use an HSL adjustment. You nest this adjustment inside the element layer. This keeps the color change confined to that specific item. It also keeps the effect editable, just like an adjustment layer in Photoshop.

Canva handles color adjustments a bit differently. In current versions, you can change the colors of your uploaded images using the edit menu.

Here is how to adjust colors in Canva:

• Select your uploaded paper or element on the canvas.
• Click Edit Image or Edit at the top of the screen.
• Choose the Adjust option.
• Move the hue and saturation sliders to change the colors.

Menu names vary by version, but the basic sliders function the same way.

Terms of use for recolored items

When you alter digital scrapbooking supplies, you must still follow the rules set by the designer. Recoloring is allowed for personal use by most terms of use. This includes the license for the free items on our site.

You can change the colors of papers, ribbons, and alphabets to fit your personal scrapbook layouts. However, the recolored files are still covered by the original terms of use. You cannot claim the new color version as your own design.

Do not share the recolored files with others. You cannot upload the altered elements to a gallery for others to download. You also cannot email the recolored files to a friend. The permission to alter the files is strictly for your own layouts.