procastinating

I'm blogging. I should be working. I have to design a mini kit for the Elemental Scraps designer sampler for February. Its due today. Its already 6pm here. I'm down to the wire and my mind has went blank on me. None of my color palettes have caught my eye. Nothing from my inspiration folder has even created a spark. So, here I sit... blogging and wasting time. Okay, so maybe not wasting time exactly. I am thinking. I'm waiting for my muse.

too good to be true

I kicked butt yesterday and finished up not one but TWO new kits. I went to bed with more great products running through my mind. I woke, though, with a sore throat and feeling kind of rotten. I knew it was too good to last. The mojo is still flying but I keep having to stop to take meds and spray my poor throat with Cepacol spray (awesome stuff, by the way!). I'm prone to sinus infections so this is nothing new... just very inconvenient! LOL

Anyway... have you all checked out Janet Phillips' new site, The Daily Digi? I *have* to add it to my blogroll because I totally love that site and check in every few days to see what's new. There are so many great articles already and I know more are to come!

a sneak peek for you

Do you ever get the club kits at Digital Freebies? If not, let me fill you in. Every month two coordinating kits are released. During that month you get both kits for just $5.00. You can buy subscription packages to save money too. February is my month to work on the club kit. Dale-Ann and I are teaming up to bring you two completely adorable and totally fun kits. During February I will also have some coordinating freebies here on my blog AND something nice for my newsletter subscribers. I am so excited about how this kit turned out though that I just can't wait to show it off! Since I have to though, I thought I'd give you a sneak peek...



You like? Be sure to stop by Digital Freebies in February and pick it up! 2 full sized kits for $5.00 is a deal you just can't shake a stick at! There will be plenty of fun add ons as well so be sure to check out the whole Digital Freebies Club category!

If you're in the mood for bright colors and some spring like fun, then my next kit is just what you're looking for. No sneak peek for this one yet, but it should be done tonight. :)

And... despite the fear of sounding like a broken record... I'm going to say it again... sign up as a newsletter subscriber (to your right) and there will be a special freebie in the first edition, set to go out next Monday!!

new look, sale and more!

My poor blog was feeling quite inferior to all of the other pretty blogs out there so I had to give 'er a makeover! I must say, I'm pretty excited about the new look, new logo, slogan and such. To celebrate the occassion, I am even having a 50% off sale at my Elemental Scraps store! You can click on the graphic below to go right to the goods! :)



Anyway... the story of my logo, for those who are interested. I was a Valentine's Day baby and throughout my life hearts has been kind of a recurring theme. I was thinking about that as I sat down to design a new logo. I rifled through old products and came across my retired 'Love Grows' kit which had this doodle inside.

Within minutes it all clicked... art from the heart. It really says all I want to say. Our scrapbook layouts become a part of who we are. Each of them says a little something about us. One layout doesn't tell the whole story but all together they can let those around us peek inside and see who we really are. Scrapbooking, whether digital or paper, is such a personal and often emotional art form. Our layouts really and truly are art from the heart. And, just the same, my designs also come from the heart. I create products that say a little something about who I am and how I view the world around me. Each kit I create is a work of love. As I design I think about all of the wonderful layouts that will eventually be created with that kit and I feel priviledged to be able to contribute to someone else's expression of art (and heart!).

Project 365

So, how many of you are participating in project 365? I am, but in a rather unofficial capacity. I'm not posting my photos daily or even uploading my camera daily but I have remembered to snap a picture every day so far and I have to say, its a great feeling to be taking pictures again! I used to be such a shutterbug that I would often take 100 pictures or more a day... pictures of my kids, my pets, my husband, random things I saw, etc. For some reason though, all of that stopped and the camera only came out when there was a special occasion and not even then sometimes. In that rare moment when I would sit down to scrap (rather than design), I would look through my picture folders only to find that I did not have very many pictures to chose between. It made me a little sad so when I started hearing about project 365 I vowed to rekindle that relationship my camera and I once had. I haven't done any layouts YET, but I definitely plan to!

Newsletter!

Okay... so my last attempt at a newsletter did not take off as planned. This time I'm going to do it right though scrappers, I promise! To your right you will see a place to enter your email address to subscribe to my newsletter. Be sure to take a second and sign up! My first official newsletter will hit your inbox on January 26th and will include a special freebie!

Step on a crack?

Remember the old childhood taunt "step on a crack and break your mother's back"? Well, I have a 6 year old that recently learned this at school and has been chanting it repeatedly for weeks. Then, in the Sunday comics the Family Circle cartoon had one of the children hopping on the sidewalk and stepping on a crack as the mother, in the kitchen, bent over in pain.

You can imagine that all of this was going through my mind this morning when I flubbed my back up. I wasn't doing anything strenuous or wild, or even out of the ordinary. I bent over to pick up a throw pillow out of the floor in the livingroom. I didn't raise up entirely and went to scoot my 3 year old over so I could sit by him on the couch. Somewhere in between picking the pillow up and moving him, my back seized up and felt like it was on fire. I spent most of the day in pain. I managed within a few minutes to get on the couch and I didn't move for 4 hours. When I did finally move, I had my husband take me to the chiropractor for an adjustment. I feel a little better and I'm sure it will be fine... but I had to tell my girl not to step on any more cracks! LOL

So... Mango Tango... does anyone remember the blog train collab that I participated in for Sunshine Studio Scraps? Well, somehow my 4shared account was messed up and the link became inactive. I am uploading it now to reattach it but I wanted to make a note here so that anyone missing it can still get it! You can find it by clicking HERE.