A Hybrid Layout!

I wrote another article reviewing Jessica Sprague's Scrapbook Alchemy Episode 2 class for Bella Scraps Magazine. That class was SO much fun!! I totally recommend it.

PLEASE go read my article, and leave a comment, too! I'd love to see what you think! People don't comment enough over there, and it makes me wonder how many people are reading it. So, stroke my ego a bit, okay?

And, for my mom, who probably won't click over, here is my finished layout!




For the rest of you, I show close-ups and a mini tutorial on covering chipboard elements. I think it is pretty darn cool, if I do say so myself.

4 hybrid templates!

If you are looking for the Cupcake Box tutorial, click here!

I opened up my May grab bag today, and all 4 templates are now in the shop!









20% off today!

It's $2 Tuesday again!

Yep! It's $2 Tuesday again! Go see what I've put on sale!!

AND, just a reminder that my May Grab Bag will be taken out of the store and split up on Wednesday night. You can grab 4 new template sets for just $5.99, or wait until Thursday morning and buy them individually for $3.99 each! Which is the better deal, eh? Grab the Grab Bag while you still can!

The Cupcake Box Template Tutorial

If you have arrived at my blog as a result of Stampin' Out Alzheimer's, then WELCOME! I hope you enjoy playing with your exclusive free template; my Thank You gift for donating to a wonderful cause and participating in this fun event.

You'll notice that your freebie contains a lot of different files for a lot of different programs. Most of you are traditional scrappers/papercrafters, so you'll probably be the most familiar with the PDF "lines only" version of the template. You can ignore the rest for now, but keep them, just in case you ever decide to venture on over to the hybrid scrapbooking world! (I will address hybrid scrapbooking at the bottom of this post!)

Let's get started on that tutorial, shall we?

Step 1: Choose your paper and print the templates. I chose two-sided Key To My Heart B&T paper by Close To My Heart. If your printer prints borderless, then make sure you choose your borderless option. For more information about finding the borderless option, click here. If your printer doesn't print borderless, you might need to print at 95% or so. It's a good idea to print a test run, just to make sure!


Step 2: Cut on the solid lines and score on the dashed lines.

Step 3: Fold on all scored lines. Fold one hexagon to the inside, and fold one to the outside.

Step 4: Apply adhesive to the tab and attach to the inside of the template. Your cupcake is taking shape!




Step 5: Apply adhesive to the bottom hexagon. Remember, one of the hexagons is on the inside of the cupcake. When you close the bottom, you will sandwich the tabs between the two hexagons, creating a stronger cupcake bottom.




Step 6: Assemble the top by folding the plain frosting tabs to the inside first.

Then, fold the "cherry" tops in, hooking the cherry pieces together as shown.



Step 7: Assemble the "wrapper" the same way you assembled the "cake". If you are using the digital files, you can skip this step, or go ahead and try it for some added dimension!


Now, decorate your adorable little cupcake!

I'll show you what I did:

(Everything by CTMH except for the lace and the flower, by Prima!)

(Digital papers and elements by Libby Weifenbach (SOA Freebie!), rhinestone by CTMH)

If you would like to try your hand at hybrid scrapbooking (the mix of digital and traditional), and you have Photoshop or Photoshop Elements, then check out this blog post at The Hybrid Chick to see how to add digital papers to your template! (I wrote that tutorial with newbies in mind!!) While you are there, take a look around. There are a lot of wonderful, informative articles and inspirational projects. Many of them are step-by-step tutorials with new-to-hybrid scrappers in mind!

If you get super-excited about digital scrapbooking, I'd like to suggest JessicaSprague.com to you. Jessica is an amazing teacher, and you will learn more in one class with her than you will in a whole year trying it on your own! She has some great free classes available right now, so go check them out!

And, if you liked my template, there are plenty more where that came from! Go check out my store at The Digichick, and be sure to use the coupon that was included in your SOA download! I release new products on Thursdays, and I usually put at least one product on sale for $2 Tuesdays! Subscribe to my brand new newsletter for updates on new releases, sales and special offers just for subscribers!

Don't forget to participate in the Cupcake Challenge going on this week at Stampin' Out Alheimer's! I can't wait to see what you create!

(Digital papers by Dianne Rigdon, flower by Prima, ribbon and sassy strands by Close To My Heart)

Sassy Purse #2

Check out my new release!!




I'm so excited about this one. Look at those adorable handles!!

I was inspired by a purse that my sister-in-law gave me (thanks B!), and I think it turned out so cute!

20% off today! Go pick it up!

$2 Tuesday, a little sneaky-peaky and a new set of printables!

Yes. It is. It's $2 Tuesday. Time to go pick up some GREAT deals! Go on! I'll wait!



I've been having SO much fun creating new templates lately! Here is a little sneak peak of a cute little set that will be going in the store on Thursday!

CUTE, eh? Wait til you see the whole thing!! (And, if you adore that paper, go grab it from Jen Wilson's store!)

Eeek! And, before I forget, you HAVE to head on over to Dianne's store to pick up my latest set of printables!!



I'll be back soon to show you some more fun goodies!! YAY! Wait until you see what I did tonight. Hybrid AND pure traditional goodness. Oh, you are going to LOVE it!!

Oh, and I haven't forgotten about posting the after pics of my garage sale finds. SUCH an improvement!!

Correspondence Boxes . . . or pretty boxes for your cards.

Check out what I put in the store today!





You can see my examples in the tiny little boxes on my preview, but I'm not going to post them here, because when I saw what Julee did, I was embarrassed by my efforts.

LOOK at what Julee Tilman made:



(Crazy how two people can look at the same kit and come away with totally different projects!)

Anyway, these babies are on sale for 20% off today! Click on the images to be taken to my shop at The Digichick!

A huge grab bag!!

It's Grab Bag time again at The Digichick, and we all went a little nuts! I have never seen such amazing grab bags from the other designers, so I just HAD to go all generous on you myself! The thing just kept growing!

Check it out!


And, this is what I made with it:



If this kind of thing intimidates you, I collaborated a bit with Pamela Donnis and created some ready to print versions:



Seriously, I could go on and on about the grab bags at The Digichick this month. They are SO stunning! Go grab them while you can! Off the top of my head, I would recommend Mari, Elise, Pamela, Mira Designs, and Amy.

It's $2 Tuesday! Grab the Tall Box!

Yep! It's $2 Tuesday again! I went ahead and put my famous Tall Box template on sale. Well, okay, maybe its not FAMOUS, but it certainly is popular!! Enjoy!



And, here is a little layout I did last night. It was SURE nice to actually scrap a bit. I've been so busy with design stuff that I haven't made time to scrap!! Not any more! YAY!



By the way, EVERYTHING (except the cutie) is by Jen Wilson for the Project 52 challenge. I've been SUCH a slacker! This is the week 6 layout. The challenge was to scrap a perfectly imperfect photo. (You'll notice he is blurry.) We are now on week 16. Yikes! I have some scrapping to do, huh?

Sweet Strawberries anyone?

It's new release Thursday at The Digichick, and we have released a MASSIVE number of new products. You've gotta go check it out while they are 20% off today!

And while you are there, pay special attention to MY new items!!

I am SO excited to show you Sweet Strawberry:


I already showed you what I did with them:


And by Jen Tapler:


Aren't these just the cutest?

I also have this Door Hanger/Hard Holder template set:


You HAVE to click on that link to see what my creative team has done with this template. They are so creative!!

And, I also created this great basic box that is just the right size for a deck of cards:


I'm going to put pieces of colored cardstock in mine to use as flashcards for my son:


But look what Julee Tilman did! Isn't it cute?:


Remember, grab these items for 20% off today!!

It's $2 Tuesday and I'm running around like a chicken with it's head cut off!

Look what I have put on sale for just $2 today!



Get it. You know you want to.

OH, and I rearranged my furniture. I was on a massive vacuuming spree yesterday and moved my family room furniture all over the place. Then, I got a little inspired and rearranged a bit. I would post pics, but of course I'm totally embarrassed by the fact that we have been living in this house for over 4 years and I have NOT decorated. But, hey, I'm working on it.

PERHAPS I will post pics as soon as all of this National Scrapbooking Day (May 2nd) craziness is over. Here's a list of things I'm working on:

• 3 new releases for this Thursday. Have to finish my samples, take pics, post, etc.
• A Grab Bag for the month of May - Create 3 new products, samples, etc.
• A collab for MSA - almost done with my part.
• A collab for TDC at DST (oh, you love all those acronyms!).
• A project for the DST Insider.
• My From The Desk of the Editor article for the DST Insider.
• Email 3 pictures of Grant to his teacher and scrounge for $8 in cash (who carries cash?) for his class picture.
• Prepare for a paper scrapbooking group.
• Buy presents for 2 baby showers. Both boys. Hee, hee!

OH, and there is all of the regular family stuff like grocery shopping, cleaning, kissing children, hugging hubby, etc. AND, Mitch is leaving for Malheur (the GFU Ornithology Trip - more later about that if I have time!) tomorrow morning and won't be back until Saturday. AND, I have a MOPS steering team meeting tonight which I totally want to ditch so I can be with my hubby. Plus, there is small group tomorrow night, and I have already decided that we are just going to play a game (a couples game) and I will be the moderator. Hmm. Anything else? Hopefully not.

IN THE MEANTIME, because it makes me happy, I'm going to give you a little sneaky peaky of a project I finished yesterday for one of my new releases. I'm so excited!!



Cute, eh? Aren't you just dying to get your hands on that template??! It is SO adorable in person! AND, it will be on sale on new release Thursday. Yeah, baby.

Okay, have to get to work!!

New Release Thursday!

Hi friends and family! This is just a little drive-by posting to show you what I've been up to in the digi-world. (I'll drop off pics of my newest decorating endeavors soon!)

New at The Digichick and 20% off!


I've also added two other items that I've posted here before. Go check it out if you are interested!!

Lots of new stuff

New stuff in my store at The Digichick today:


What I did with it:



What Julee did with it:



And stuff that I took to Funky Playground Designs for my guest appearance last month, and brought back home for good! (On sale today!)






Just between you and me, that Easter Egg Basket is selling like hotcakes!! Wahoo!

Easter Eggs

Look what I made yesterday:



If you want to learn how, check out this AWESOME (if I do say so myself) tutorial I put together for The Hybrid Chick!