Photos like they used to be - blurry, too blue, and very very cool

I am a Photoshop spaz, so I love finding programs that let me do cool things with my photos with little to no mental anguish. It's not just a great tool as a blogger, it's cool when I'm uploading them into e-invitations or videos or keep…

I am a Photoshop spaz, so I love finding programs that let me do cool things with my photos with little to no mental anguish. It's not just a great tool as a blogger, it's cool when I'm uploading them into e-invitations or videos or keepsake photo books.

The new Rollip site can give your snaps any number of neato old school Polaroid effects, as you can see here in with a pic of my daughter that I uploaded.

The service is less slick than Polardroid, but it's free and there's nothing to download. At some point Rollip will offer member benefits and actual Polaroid prints you can order, but for now it's just a fun free online app to add to your bag of digital tricks. -Liz

Find the free online Polaroid photo effects at Rollip

More in KidsView all picks →

shannon hale princess in black book and author

Q&A with children’s book author Shannon Hale

Shannon Hale is the bestselling author behind The Princess in Black series. It's a favorite early chapter book series for kids ages 5–8 and boys love it as much as girls do. Her newest book, Princess in Black and the Trick or Treating Trouble, comes out just in time for Halloween. We talked with her about it as part of our Q&A author series and asked about a few of her favorite things too.

Explore Build-a-Bear

Some Not-So-Spooky Fun this Halloween

How can Build-A-Bear be used for Halloween costumes? Let kids create a spooky Build-A-Bear sidekick to incorporate into their costume, which can help the costume be enjoyed beyond Halloween.

Q&A with children's author Sophie Blackall

Q&A with children's author Sophie Blackall

Cool Mom Picks readers, we are so excited to launch a new series for you. We are obsessed book lovers over here at the CMP headquarters, and we have a particular soft spot for children's books (even though we're moving our kids into coll…