Holiday Gifts for the Photographer in Your Life

Some of these items are WAY too cute. I am definitely buying some of these for some of my pals. Very cool stuff

http://photojojo.com/store/

Portable North Pole

What is better than a personalized message from Santa for your child? At the PNP (portable north pole), Santa gives your kid a real personal touch, from their name to the gift they want, to other small details that lets your child know Santa's watching!

I love, love, love this site. We did it last year and Tyler was amazed. I can't wait to see his face when he see's his photos and Santa's message to be a good boy.

Click here to go to the Portable North Pole

I'm a Cheer Chick!

Yes, I'm way too old to be a cheerleader, but I'm now officially a 46 year old Cheer Chick for MScraps. I (along with a group of really fun. funny, cool women) scour the galleries and forums of MScraps for interesting threads and layouts and just comment. Yes, I have been 'tapped to talk'. Hard to believe, huh? lol

The great part about that is that its something that I do all the time anyway, just not as vigorously. Now I do it, am part of a great community of women with similar interests, and I get a little something for my efforts.

The other cool thing is that MScraps has just started this group so I'm part of the pioneer launch of cheering. Perfect timing, too since its the Cheer time of the year - holiday season!

Free Silhouette Template

Hi everyone,

Back to my ole' skool roots of traditional designing, I played around with Illustrator today and made up a freebie for those of you who pop on to my blog every now and then -- a Star cupcake liner.

I created it for my new Silhouette SD digital cutting machine but I didn't make/have any cupcakes around to put them on so the photos of that will come later.

Star Cupcake Liner

What can you do with it?

Print or buy your own papers and use that as the base to cut from. Here is an example using HayNay designs. My files are all over the place so I don't recall which kit. But see how cute it can look?

I have no official 'terms of use' since I'm not selling in stores. But please do not resell this. It is a FREE product for share only. And if you post, please give credit to me: Scrapporreia and link to my blog if you can. One of the files is a .svg for the Cricut, but I don't have one so I don't know if or how it works, but if you do and it works for you, please come back and let me know.

Also, if you comment with links to your project, I'll post them in a future blog.

DOWNLOAD the Silo file, ready for cutting by clicking on this link:

Star Cupcake Liner template for Silhouette SD

Enjoy and let me know what you think!

:) Linda

Silhouette SD

My new toy arrived on my birthday. I got a Silhouette SD. I don't even know if I can type enough words to say how much I love it.

I typed in Tyler's name and cut it out of copier paper. That was fun - and I hadn't even done anything with it, yet! Then I wanted to see how it cuts a custom design, so I pulled a jpg I had on my harddrive and voila! so easy and so cool!

Here is my 'test run':


No credits, I downloaded this card online, the papers are construction and copier paper... but that's part of what's so cool - nothing special needed!

I chose the Silhouette  because I wanted a die cutting machine that would do what I wanted, not what some cartridge supplied. And I didn't want to have to buy catridges. I went to art school - I can design my own stuff and I have the internet to download what I'm too lazy to design. I wanted the flexibility to do what I want to do.

Wait -- did I say.. I LOVE IT? lol

I'm working out how to do all the things I think its capable of. I'll be back on with more goodies as soon as I get some done.

I Love Rides!

Well, I don't but my kid sure does. lol


Here is a layout I did using Simply Kelly Design's latest template (15 photo layered template) and just about every kit in my stash. I've gotten a lot of ribbing on the length of my credits. lol
It is also my last layout for my November guest CT spot for Chelle's Creations. And not to be overlooked, I also used some of the awesome stuff from my other CT designer, Sherry Ferguson Designs.

and :::rolling up my sleeves::: here are my credits:

Template:15 photo layered template by Simply Kelly Designs

Papers:Ticket To Ride by Chelle’s Creations
Cool Dude by Sherry Ferguson Designs
Bikini Season by Lynne Marie
Future Star by Spinky Dink Scraps
Playdate by RL
Hunk O’Tin by Spinky Dink Scraps

Elements:Ticket To Ride by Chelle’s Creations
Doodle Frames by Chelle’s Creations
Stitch Me Up by Chelle’s Creations
Little Engineer by Spinky Dink Scraps
Hunk O’Tin by Spinky Dink Scraps
Aydens Adventure by Colie’s Corner
Toolshed by Colie’s Corner
Play Stamp by Katie Pertiet

Fonts
A Little Pot
Centaur


Here is Kelly's Template. ON SALE TODAY!

Holiday fun

OOh all these holiday kits are so cute and fun, I can't stop making things with them!

Here is my latest: a hybrid I made using a combo of Holly Jolly Holiday by Chelle's Creations, my latest Black Friday purchase: Santa's Workshop by Trixie Scraps and
Snow Fun Bundle by Sherry Ferguson Designs BTW, this bundle includes Snow Fun the Flakes that you can buy on its own. I have use that sooo many times. Its a great way to tie a whole page together. So versatile.

Its kinda hard to see but these are individually wrapped candy canes.

Special Thanks to my wonderful husband who helped me hand cut each of these little elves and other elements.

Cyber Monday Freebie on Simply Kelly Designs

Hi Everyone,

Tomorrow, pop on over to Simply Kelly Design's blog for a freebie. Who doesn't like a freebie?
Check it out...here is a preview

Sometimes You Have a Block (part 2)

Finally, I'm back with the rest of that post. So the layout I was blocking on, ended up being really cute. It was Simply Kelly Designs' Circle of Memories Template.

I have problems with clutter (I know, you'd never know to look at my desk, huh?) on a layout and I don't know how to clean up a multi-photo template, so it always takes me soooo much longer. That plus all the stuff weighing on me, I just couldn't wrap my head around this. Then we took my son to this 'nature' talk thing with the Monmouth Park system and the photos were just made for the layout so I searched for an artsy-craftsy kit. Then I thought I'd play around and made Kelly's circle into a Turtle ... and it all just came together. Whew!


I used Sherry Ferguson's kit Creative Minds

Turtle Time


Here is the template by Simply Kelly Designs




and the Creative Minds kit by Sherry Ferguson

I Scrap for iScrap

I just couldn't resist typing that. :)

As I mentioned last week, I started on a new CT team for a really cool lady and her store, iScrap. She has a very clean, grown-up style. Here are a couple of pages I made using her Big World Template (which said it was quick pages, but I was able to totally manipulate) and This Moment kit, both on sale now at Mscraps.

Being Boys



Pop Pop's Garden

(and, yes, I see the typo, now -- I just gotta go back in and fix it. )


iScrap has some really beautiful work. Here are the kits:
Big World Quickpage (I know it says Quickpage, but I totally manipulated the pages in Photoshop)



This Moment



And after going back into her store, I'm wondering if I was supposed to use the Big World Kit or the Templates, so, here is the Kit... I'm going to go back and do a layout with it, just in case. lol

Snow Club using Holly Jolly Holiday kit

I feel like its been awhile since I posted a layout, so, here they come....

Using Chelle's Creations' Holly Jolly Holiday... an UBER cute kit - even if I only have a boy, I'm still happy with the layouts I created using this.

Snow Club was shot this past Feb. during one of the many blizzards that hit us.

I loved using the kit and it was perfect since the girls all had such colorful snowsuits.

Snow Club
Credits: All from Holly Jolly Holiday by Chelle's Creations

There is a facing page to this that I created using Simply Kelly Design's upcoming Christmas template, but its not released, yet, so I'll have to wait to post that. I love the way it came out, so I'm excited to post it. BTW, Kelly has everything in her store 30% off until Dec. 2. Go check it out!

Here is Chelle's kit:

And just as cute, CT member Kassie created a really adorable blogwear kit for her (now on sale at ScrapMatters for Black Friday/Cyber Monday)

Blog-torial

I'm thinking of starting something new. Not new to the world in general, but new to me and this blog; a series of tutorials. Recently, I've been getting queries about how to start digi-scrapping from my non-design friends (who are nonetheless very creative). It made me think back (yes 'back' for me is only a few months ago - but that's why its so fresh in my mind) to when I first started digi-scrapping and being involved with the community of amazing women who share this obsession with me.

There was so much to learn and there seemed to be a language and rules that I didn't understand. It was almost like joining a new school in your Jr. year. Everyone else had settled in and had their groove and their little circle. I was posting things that, now, surely sounded like I was either a dope or ON dope. But, who knew? and no one told me otherwise.

I've never been shy so I tend to jump right in - maybe make mistakes, and get over them. But everyone isn't the same. Some would like a little more guidance. So I thought I'd lend the wisdom of my 4 months to those who might be just starting out. I'm looking at tapping into some of my online veteran scrapping friends to help out in areas I lack. So it should be fun, informative and if nothing else, have some examples that may shed some light or inspire you.

Stay tuned for my Newbie Blog-torial - I'm loosely calling it Digi-scrapping 101.

::: gulp ::: I posted so I really have to do this!

Gotta Pixel LOTD!

Whoo hoo, Jenn just called to tell me that I got Layout of the Day at Gotta Pixel. I don't know how she knows these things, but I'm thrilled she does. So, off I go to their site, and sure enough, right on their blog, right above the Daily download featureing Sherry Ferguson's Giving Thanks (the Designer Spotlight) ... is my Thomas the Tank Engine layout!

I used Simply Kelly Design's 7 photo layered template and Spinky Dink Scrap's Little Engineer Kit.

Here is a grab of the page:

Sometimes you have a block

I had a few CT committments this week. Some were real deadlines and some, I just wanted to get some samples up for my designers. I got most of them done (I'll upload those after this post) and then I blanked out. No matter what I did, I didn't like it.

Designers count on you to make layouts for them to promote their kits, templates, designs, etc. So, when you toss up a haphazard layout or worse... can't seem to get it done - it really lets them down. So, I really try to do something that I'm not only proud of but also something that showcases as much of their supplies as possible. Also, your work posts in their galleries, so its up there for posterity and represents your body of work.

I think it was that I have this 2011 calendar that I want to complete and its looming over my head. I've done one... maybe 2... pages. I gotta get moving on it.

So, here is my one single calendar page:

December 2011

Credits
Calendar Bottom Templates Dotted by Graham Like the Cracker


Ho Ho Ho by Chelle's Creations
Stitch Me Up Dated Neutrals , Doodles Border It, Doodles Frame Mat It by Chelle's Creations

Newsie’s Alpha by Chelle's Creations

Sherry Ferguson Designs - Featured Designer on Gotta Pixel

Sherry Ferguson is a great designer and a really cool chick over at Gotta Pixel. And this week, she is the featured designer. Check out her storea and her new bundle - 30% off!

Snow Bundle - 30% off!

I'll try to get a preview to show you soon!