The 'bits' that make up the elements can come from wherever you want them too... to take your example, you might be able to find a duck-shaped brush, or a duck 'shape' that you can use in the appropriate place, or a copyright-free clipart duck that you could cut and paste and use as the outline etc. The only real restriction is that if you want to share the element with other people you can't breach someone else's copyright.
I'm not artistic at all and I can't draw to save my life... if I want something drawn I try to find it someplace else where I can 'borrow' it, preferably from a copyright free source. But mostly I play with colours and textures and use very simple shapes that don't need any artistic talent.

You can also take a photo, say a flower, and turn it into a brush or a texture and make it part of your background.

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~Karen aka Kajikit
http://www.kajikitscorner.com
2005 - 25 Jan - 13 cards, 3 digital page