July is Here….

and that means I have to put away the Christmas decorations. Yep, this year that is what Christmas in July means!  I love my snowmen…they are too festive to only be out a short time each year. The nutcrackers on the mantle are getting a bit old though so no problem sending them marching for the attic.  We have had a very busy and rough year so things just were done a little differently.  My older son just graduated from high school, my younger son graduated from middle school, and we lost both my mom (“Nanny”) and our beloved kitty. My living room is filled with the boxes of keepsakes I packed from my mom’s home and as yet I have had no desire to sort through them. The boys are actively enjoying their summers off, but this means the house gets and stays messier.  Ahhh…the trade-offs.

There have been so many nice freebies being shared on the net and I try to support the artists that share their talents via these gifts by buying some kits along the way. Is it wrong for me to want the kids to go back to school so I have time to scrap and use the products more?  The truth is I have been spending as much time as possible with them since my oldest will be heading off to college soon (did I say WAAHHH!! yet?).  Plenty of scrap time in September…. And to show you what I am talking about, here is an artist I recently discovered through one of her freebies.  Go to this post at Elise’s blog – http://www.elisespieces.com/2011/06/its-dads-day.html  look at this Father’s Day Kit (scroll down a bit to see her freebie) …isn’t that perfect?!  Also,  if you sign up for her newsletter there is a free kit too.  Here is a recent kit that I purchased at The Digi Chick (a collab she did with ruby lane):  http://www.thedigichick.com/shop/Seaside.html

I think she has lots of fun things at both Scrap Matters and The Digi Chick…so take a peek!

And you can all thank my dear friend Lisa over at Jessica Sprague as she guilted me into finally updating my blog!

Another Template Added

Just noticed this new template was up. These are simple and clean but can easily be dressed up with a few embellishments in key places. Click on the preview and it will take you to her site. Scroll through the sample layouts and you will see this free template.  Don’t forget to comment if you get a second to thank her. This designer is very generous and has beautiful kits in her store – see below post. :>)

Post Holiday Digital Scrapbooking

Over the long holiday break another artist, Lindsay Jane, shared this lovely Holly Days mini-kit with her blog readers one piece at a time. Perfect for a post “holiday blues” type of scrap day! She also designed a complementary mini-kit aptly named More Holly Days.  Both are currently on sale at Pickleberry Pop

Lindsay is fast becoming one of my all-time favorite designers. She has a great eye for color schemes and creates fun pieces that are so cohesive together.  Her generosity with this 12 Days of Christmas fun brought out my Christmas spirit, as well as my credit card, to grab this Celebrate the Season kit while it was still on sale. That reindeer is so whimsical and stinkin’ cute!  But yet the kit offers sophistication for an elegant page with those gold glittered ornaments and the lovely simple papers. It will be fun to play with this one. So versatile…still 30% off too!!

If you get a chance go back and visit those sites where some holiday freebies were generously shared! Consider a post-holiday purchase to indulge yourself and as a thank you to these kind talented artists.

Lindsay Jane has a free 365 template on her blog today if anyone is doing that type of project. Just click the preview below and it will take you to her blog where the download link is available.

Beautiful New Kits All Around

I am in awe of all the beautiful new kits being released recently. It seems that digital designers are just raising the bar higher and higher in terms of quality digital products which is a wonderful thing for all of us who scrap and complete projects with their artistry.  This evening in my email was a newsletter from Designer Mye de Leon who has a store at ScrapMatters and Scrapbook-Bytes. Over the month of December I was drawn to her blog site as she generously shared 31 days of December Fa La La La lotta freebies. It wasn’t necessarily about the gift for me but it was fun to see what she had each day…much like when a child opens an advent door.  Moving into January she has a grab bag coming out soon and has given her loyal readers yet another lovely gift – this fun, colorful alpha!  Go over to her blog to find the download links (or click on the preview). Isn’t it adorable?!

Christmas Came Early!

I woke up today with a nasty headache and minor sore throat so after the morning school drop offs I retreated to bed for extra sleep. Yesterday I was chaperoning and photographing my son’s class on their community service field trip to a preschool so I am fearful that I may have picked up a bug. My body is not used to all those preschool germs any more! The rainbow today was in checking some email, blogs, and websites I discovered I had won a contest sponsored at Wild Blueberry Ink!!!  The dreariness of the rainy day outside and the looming possibility of a virus have all but disappeared from my focus. Doing the happy dance (well…with a bit of a scratchy throat LOL)!!  Thank you so much to all her donors – you can go to this page and find links to all of them. Cute things!

Celebrating Our Grandparents’ and Special Friends

Took some time this evening to play more with my free mini kit…if you haven’t been by to collect it yet, scroll down and click on the Mini-kit Preview for an instant download.    Below is another idea for either a framed 12×12 print or for a page in a custom Shutterfly Album.  It features some lovely word art I recently purchased at The Digital Designer Shop which I thought complemented this kit nicely. Tomorrow is another day to reflect upon all the wonderful things each of us has in our lives. This season I am especially grateful for the companionship of my friends from both my sons’ schools and those I’ve developed and cherish from the Spragueground.  A very, very  Happy Thanksgiving to you all! 

Images to Ink Winter Concert Mini-Kit (Free Below)

Holiday Word Art  by Cilenia Curtis @ The Digital Designer Shop

Rimmed Framers by Katie Pertiet @ Designer Digitals

Frosted Window Brushes by Julia Makotinsky @ Little Dreamer Designs