Run, Run, Run!!

If you haven't had a chance to get in on the daily download at Digi Scrap Drive-In, you're running out of time!! This is such a cute kit. You're going to want as much of it as you can get!

It's Day #9 today, so get over to the Drive By Forum and get today's portion! Don't forget to come back for the remaining days!

Need convincing? Here's a LO I made with it:

More New Releases

I've got another batch of New Releases from Stolen Moments this week!

First off is this fantastic batch of templates:

Next, she's put out these fun photo masks featuring a family theme:

Last, but my little favorite, are these fantastic date elements. These are so original and SO fun:

I've still got a couple more weeks guesting on her CT, so I got my hands on these early. They are SO fun to play with!! I made a couple of LOs with these and I LOVE how they turned out. Check 'em out:

Alright, I'm done for now. Ciao!

DSDI Blog Train

Welcome to the DSDI blog train!! All the QPs on the train today came from this beautiful collab kit by the DSDI designers:

Head on over to DSDI this weekend for the scavenger hunt and you could get it for free!!

In the meantime, enjoy this QP from me:

link has expired

Here's the train list for you:

Gail http://gailsmomentsintime.blogspot.com
Lindsey http://lindseybdesigns.blogspot.com/
Janie http://scrapastrophe.blogspot.com/
Heather http://madfatscrapper.blogspot.com/
Tess http://tessthescrapper.blogspot.com/
Carol http://carolscreativecorner.blogspot.com/
Brenda http://digitalcreationsfrommillstreamcottage.blogspot.com/
Sarah http://www.scrapoliciousscraps.blogspot.com/
Hazel http://hazel-thisisme.blogspot.com/
Jaime http://www.cjoy2day.blogspot.com/

A Note from Stolen Moments

Just popping in on this fine National Digital Scrapbooking Day with a note or two from Amber of Stolen Moments. I'm enjoying a guest spot on her incredibly talented CT this month, which I'm so excited for. Check out what she has to say:

How fun is that?!?! Become a fan and get all the updates you want - right at your fingertips.. Streaming blog feeds - mine and the CT blog - sneak peeks, exclusive coupons, you name it! So go! Sign up! If I get more than 50 fans, I might even up the prize level.. Heck, if I get more than 100 I may even up it some more... you never know.. So be sure to tell your friends, too! :D

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And of course... it wouldn't be DSD without a grab bag, right? This is my very first one, and I'm so excited to show you how it turned out... Take a look...

Now.. I'm not going to show you what's in there, but I'll give you some clues..

Look at all the pretties my CT made using the bag...

Still not enough of a clue for you? Well... Then head on over to the shop, and take a peek at the detailed images.. You'll find all you need to know right there... The bag will only be available thru Nov.11th, at which point it will be split up and the contents loaded into my shop individually.. Be sure not to miss out on this GREAT opportunity!

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And can you believe it?!? There's MORE!!! My CT has a contest going on over at their blog right now, too.. Anyone who purchases my DSD Grab Bagthis weekend just needs to leave a comment with their order number, and you'll be entered to win a $5 GC to my store.. Just think - if you won thatand the Facebook contest, that's $15 in Stolen Moments goodies - FREE! {Maybe more, depending on how many FB fans I get.} ;)

Check out the CT blog for more details.

Designer Call

Digi Scraps Drive In is looking for a few more designers. Check out the details:

NSD at DSDI

Well, National Scrapbooking Day is coming up on November 7 and there is sure to be a TON of fun out there to be had. If you're looking for a good place to hang out, here's a great suggestion for you:

New CT

I'm happy to say that I was recently invited to join the CT of Sherri Tierney and I've accepted. I really love Sherri's stuff and am SO excited to be a part of her team and use her amazing products. I've already finished two pages with her kits and I'm absolutely THRILLED with how they turned out!

This first page is called "The Boo Crew." The pics are from last year's Halloween.

This page was created using this collection of kits called the Which Witch Collection. You can get each kit individually OR get a BIG discount by getting them all together in this kit. PLUS- this kit comes with an additional add-on to match all four kits!
This next page is called "Little Lady." It's a picture of my niece last Halloween in her ladybug costume.

For this page, I used the Honey, Bee my Little Lady Mega kit. It combines the Honey Bee and My Little Lady kits into one giant mega!! Like the collection I mentioned above, you can buy each kit separately or buy the collection and get a big discount and another free add-on. The witch on this page comes from the Which Witch Collection above.
These kits can be found at any of her stores. To get to Sherri's store at Inspiration Lane, click on her blinky in my sidebar.

FTC Changes

Well, apparently the FTC has decided that disclosures must be made on blogs. So, you'll notice a few changes on my sidebar regarding my CT status in the digital scrapping world. Those of you who, like me, blog about CT LOs might want to follow suite. An $11,000 fine would really suck.

Here's the story:

FTC Cracks Down on Blogging Endorsements

BY David CapeceFri Oct 9, 2009 at 8:06 AM
This blog is written by a member of our blogging community and expresses that member's views alone.


The blogging community was shocked this week when the Federal Trade Commission announced on Tuesday an update of its guidelines for advertisers, which now extends into the realm of social media. In an effort to maintain full disclosure, honesty and transparency among brands and consumers, bloggers and other social network users must disclose their affiliation with a company for any product review, advertisement, or endorsement, whether it be a paid review or compensation in the form of a product. Failure to do so will result in an up to $11,000 fine for each instance.
While the FTC looks down on pay-per-posts and sees it as “payola blogging,” the majority of the Internet community sees it as social influencer marketing, or the use of bloggers to promote products and brands. Many companies develop relationships with popular figures in the blogging community, and offer products or compensation in return for a review — positive or not. However, many bloggers already disclose their relationships with companies, whether it’s by running an ad in their sidebar, or stating it directly within the post.
The Internet and blogging communities already run a “checks and balances” system, regulating themselves by holding influencers to high standards, especially if their popularity is notable. If a popular blogger failed to disclose something, and it was later found out, they would most likely face criticism by their peers, hurt their credibility and reputation, and see a significant drop in readership. Knowing the consequences beforehand is what keeps them from holding anything back. Bloggers thrive on honesty – it’s why they blog in the first place. Sharing and open communication is often what compels users to the medium in the first place.
A notable example of this comes from Chris Brogan, a well-known social media guru who, last December, faced criticism from his readers following a sponsored post he had done for Kmart. His readers and followers felt a sense of betrayal, and questioned whether he could be trusted in the future. Brogan maintained that he had fully disclosed the relationship, and that it in no way should it affect any of his past or future work. Though he most likely still lost readers, he also gained more trust for explaining his reasoning, and learned a lesson for the future as well.

Trendsta, an emerging social influencing business, relies on sponsorship from clients to connect their products with the most influential social network users. While Trendsta already discloses client relationships, the new guidelines may have an impact on the influencers themselves. Just how far these guidelines extend is still uncertain, but the news has certainly caused quite a stir, and plenty of outspoken opinions.

But just how long will these new guidelines last? Social media is evolving every day. Soon, there will be something more than a blog and beyond Twitter that will make monitoring these kinds of activities even harder. Should the FTC really be concerned with something that is already self-regulated to a certain degree? While they say they will focus more on big-name bloggers and the advertisers themselves, there are still large groups concerned about their futures in the blogging world. The new guidelines go into effect on December 1st, leaving bloggers a short amount of time to figure out new strategies if necessary. When the time comes, only then will we see how many people will be effected by the changes, and just how far the FTC will go to enforce them.

Busy, Busy Weekend

Wow, did I ever have a crazy weekend! I spent a good portion of the weekend participating in a Grand Opening scrap-a-thon at Digi Scraps Drive In. I worried that it might kill me, but between that and other contests this weekend, I scrapped 14 pages. That brings my total for September to a record breaking 27 (including one I did today but can't post yet) layouts. 27!!!!! I'm rather impressed with myself. In there somewhere, I squeezed some CT LOs in. Check em out:

These first two LOs are for Julie Marie Designs. These are from two of her more recent kits. First we have my page for her "Fall on the Farm" kit. I adore this kit. This kit is full of great elements for harvest, animals, and all your fun Autumn activities.

I also got to play with here "Sky and Earth" kit. Its full of bright greens and blues tempered with a little brown. Gorgeous!

Next is a page for the amazing Melly Scraps. The kit I used for this page is appropriately called "His and Hers." I also used the add-on. I had a lot of fun with this page. The kit comes with a full set of stuff for boys and a full set for girls. So, I didn't even have to recolor anything to do this. I just used both sets.

These next two pages are from the gorgeous "Brighter Days" kit by Christie Lemmon Designs. I LOVE THIS KIT!!! It's chock full of tons of great stuff to play with in all the main rainbow colors. There are SO many things you can do with it.

My Pool Party freebie

So I know I mentioned putting up some glitters, but thery're not quite ready yet. So instead, I have a paper pack for you. Since it's the end of summer, I figured I would give summer one last hurrah and do a pool party kit. Here are the papers. The elements will be done in the next couple of days. Enjoy!

Get it HERE

Latest CT LO's

Hello all!! It's been a VERY busy month for me, which is why I haven't posted a thing in almost two weeks. I've decided that my poor designers are in dire need of a little spotlight. So, here are a couple of my latest LO's for them.

This first one features a BRAND NEW kit from Lemmon City Productions (which is a collaboration of Christie Lemmon Designs and Steel City Scraps) called Hot Tamale. This kit is full of bright fun colors, including a purple that didn't make it into my page! This kit is perfect for western-style pages, trips to Mexico, or just about any other picture you want. Available only at Inspiration Lane.

Here are two LO's for miss Christie Lemmon. This kit is called mud puddles and is filed with gorgeous blues and browns with some fun metallic accents. It comes with lots of generic ellies; bows, swirls, buttons, etc. But, it's also got a few "dirty" elements like that fantastic muddy handprint. It's perfect for all those pictures of your kiddos gettin' dirty! Click on my Christie Lemmon blinkie to check out her store at Inspiration Lane.

Last but, certainly, not least is a page featuring Julie Marie Designs. The papers come from her August Color Play paper pack and the ellies are from her Earth Wings and Earth Wings #2 kits (with the exception of the frame and the "silly boy" tag). I also used her Photo Masks #1 & #2 for the blue and yellow papers under my photos. She's got some amazing stuff. Click on her blinkie in my sidebar to check out her store at Elemental Scraps!

I'm working on some glittery splashes to give away. So, stay tuned for a freebie!

CT Contest Final Week

Round 4 of the Battle of the CTs over at DigiScrap Addicts is now complete and open for voting! I can hardly believe a month has already passed and we're winding this competition down - it has been so much fun!! My team and I are keeping our fingers crossed that we do really well in the voting this week and we can't wait to see who wins the big prize!

This week, our challenge was titled "Inspiration Found." Our task was to choose two layouts from our battle team mates and scraplift them both, in some way. So, we all got together and chose the team mates we each wanted to scraplift and got to work! Our common theme this week was the kit we used, which was a brand new release from Trixie Scraps this week in her August grab bag at Scrap Matters! I think this was our best week, yet - the layouts are all absolutely stunning! But, I'll let you be the judge, here is a look at each of them!



For the final, and probably most important week, I am again asking, will you please vote for us?? Voting can be found HERE and our team name is Trixie's Scrap Stars. You don't need to be a member of DSA in order to vote, however, if you voted last week (Thanks!), you may need to clear your internet cookies before you can vote this week. We REALLY, REALLY appreciate your votes throughout this competition - it means a lot to us!!

To thank you for voting for us this week, I have the final part of the weekly freebie kit Trixie Scraps designed, as well as a recap of the previous three weeks! You can now see the whole kit revealed and it is called "You're a Star" - isn't it just divalicious?! This is your last chance to download all four parts, as the freebie links will be taken down later this week - don't delay!!

Thanks again for supporting our team - it really does mean a lot to us! Enjoy your freebie!



Links have expired. Kit can now be purchased at Scrap Matters.

Contest and a Sneak Peak

I'm going to start this post by asking for your help. Apparently, I have a thing for scrapping contests. Along with finishing up the CT contest at DSA this week, I've also started an individual scrapping contest at Iinspiration Lane. We were given a mini kit to create two LO's with and then people get to vote for their faves. The top 25 will move on to the next round. Now's the part where you come in! If you could head over here: http://www.inspiration-lane.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=117&t=2734 and vote for lindseylou I would REALLY love it!! You can vote twice. If you're not a member of IL, you can email your vote by clicking on the email icon under Jen Yurko's avatar. Thanks a bunch!

Here are the two LO's I've made:

Now, on to the sneak peek!! This one's for Trixie Scraps newest product, which I have used and which is AMAZING!!

Trixie Scraps is also hosting a special birthday speed scrap:

Birthday LO's

Here's some of my latest LO's to check out. Inspiration Lane is turning 1 this month, so the designers have put out a series of coordinating birthday mini-kits. I decided this was the perfect time to start scrapping my little boy's birthday. It's so nice to have all these different designers put their spin on this idea while keeping them coordinated. I made these 3 LO's using minis from 3 different designers, but they all fit together beautifully.

This first LO was made using the It's My Birthday mini from Christie Lemmon.

This one's from the Birthday mini by Julie Marie Designs.

This last one is from the Ready, Set...Blow mini kit by Steel City Scraps

CT Contest Week 3

Round 3 of the Battle of the CTs over at DigiScrap Addicts is now complete and open for voting! Wow, this battle is going by so fast! This round was fun, but a real challenge. Round 3 was titled "Scrap By Numbers." Each team had to come up with a formula to scrap by, using the numbers 1-10. Each number corresponded with the number of a certain item which had to be used on the page. We were having such a hard time coming up with a list, we had Trixie Scraps herself challenge us with a list... after a couple tweaks, we had the perfect formula! Our team decided on a theme of "10 Things I Love About ..." and then we could each choose our subject. Here was the formula we each followed:

10 fonts
9 buttons
8 pieces of stitching
7 flowers
6 papers
5 strings
4 ribbons
3 glitter splats
2 alphas
1 photo

And, here is a look at each of our layouts - the team did AWESOME this week!! We're all really proud of taking on this challenge and doing so well at it!



Even Trixie got in the act this week and did a "sidelines" layout, to show her support for the challenge! It doesn't count for the voting, but here is a look at her layout, too!



Once again, we are asking - will you please vote for us?? Voting can be found HERE and our team name is Trixie's Scrap Stars. You don't need to be a member of DSA in order to vote, however, if you voted last week (Thanks!), you may need to clear your internet cookies before you can vote this week. And of course, to thank you for voting for us this week, I have the third part of the new freebie kit Trixie Scraps designed - click on the preview below to download! Thanks so much for supporting our team - it really does mean a lot to us!



Link has expired.

CT Contest Week 2

Round 2 of the Battle of the CTs over at DigiScrap Addicts is now complete! This round was so much fun - the task was called "I've Got Rhythm" and our layouts had to have a musical theme - all five of our teams' layouts had to have the same theme, too! So, my team decided to use a Celine Dion song called "If I Could." We each took a verse of the song that we felt applied to us, included the coda somewhere on the page, and scrapped photos of our children. Then, we each wrote some heartfelt journaling to our kids and told them what the verse from the song meant to us. Our team pages came out AWESOME!! Here is a look at each of them:

If interested, you can check out the lyrics to "If I Could" here, and also see a video of Celine performing it here.

Will you please vote for us?? Voting can be found HERE and our team name is Trixie's Scrap Stars. You don't need to be a member of DSA in order to vote, however, if you voted last week (Thanks!), you may need to clear your internet cookies before you can vote this week. And of course, to thank you for voting for us this week, I have the second part of the new freebie kit Trixie Scraps designed - click on the preview below to download! Thanks so much for supporting our team - it means a lot to us!



Link has expired.

CT Call for Trixie Scraps

Hello people. Trixie Scraps is having a CT call!! Check it out! This is the designer that I do advertising for. She's fabulous to work with and her stuff is AWESOME!! Run! Apply!!

Do you have what it takes to be a Trixie Scraps Star?
Auditions are now open for several spots in my talented cast!

Requirements:
2 layouts per kit, 2 kits per month minimum (more if you choose!)
Post to four galleries (SM, DSDI, DSA and one of your choice)
Enabling of each kit you work with at DSA/DST
Blog posting and advertising assistance appreciated!!
Active participation in my CT forum

To audition for this show, please send me an email with the
following information:
A brief bio and the reason(s) you want to be on my team
A link to your most complete online gallery
Your blog address
A list of your current CT commitments

Please send your email to me at ctcalls@trixiescraps.com
Call closes July 30th - all applicants will be emailed by Aug 3rd!

Vote for Me!!!

Did you know that I am competing, along with four other fabulous chicks, in the Battle of the CTs at Digiscrap Addicts? That's right, I am! I am one member of the fab 5 team known as "Trixie's Scrap Stars!" We're having so much fun competing together!

This week, our challenge was to create a white-space layout with a common color theme. We could also optionally choose a common page theme, as well. So, the girls and I got together and we decided to use Trixie Scraps' mini kit, Sarah's Song, for our layouts. We also decided to do a common theme and we all put together an "ABC About Me" page - they turned out GREAT!! Here's a look at each of our layouts:



Now, there is a HUGE prize at the end of the DSA Battle of the CTs, and the way you win is by winning the public vote. All the votes are added together, each week for four weeks, and the team with the most votes at the end WINS a huge pack of coupons from all the participating designer sponsors. Needless to say, I'd LOVE to win this prize, so I'm begging for votes! Would you please head to the DSA forum and vote for us? You don't have to be a member of the community to vote - just head over, find Trixie's Scrap Stars on the designer team list and click VOTE!!

To thank you for voting for us, Trixie Scraps has designed a brand new kit and we get to give it away for FREE to all of you! Each week for the four weeks of the DSA Battle of the CTs, I'll have a new piece for you to download - and its a mystery download, too! So, here is the first peek at this fabulous kit - just click on it to download the first part of this freebie. Trust me, you're gonna love it! Thanks so much for voting for me and my team - and don't forget to check back next week for the second part of this new freebie kit from Trixie Scraps!


Link has expired.

Christmas in July

Quick post for Trixie Scraps today. Get in on this sale! She's got some great stuff that I really LOVE!!

Is that a chill in the air - in July? No... its just the

Christmas in July sale,

coming this Friday to Scrap Matters!!

To celebrate, Trixie Scraps is taking two of her best-selling kits out of the vault and re-releasing them for a

limited time!! And, not only will the kits be on sale

, but there will be a freebie

included with the purchase, too! I have a sneak peek to share with you - can you guess what's being

unlocked from the Trixie Scraps vault? It's so

exciting!! Make sure to watch for the re-release in

Trixie Scraps' store, this FRIDAY, July 17th, only at

Scrap Matters!

Julie Marie Day

Wow. Sorry for the neglect. Life got a little crazy there for a bit. Today I want to post some more of my CT layouts for you. We'll just call today Julie Marie day, as all my LO's are with her kits!! If you're interested in these kits, I've got her blinkie on my sidebar.

I call this first one "A Glimpse of Heaven." I know, cheesy title. I got it from the word art and I think it works. This was made with the GORGEOUS Midnight Romance kit.

The next three were not originally intended to be 3 seperate pages. I was going to make a page with this kit: Serendipity by Julie Marie Designs. So, I started looking through my pics and found these 3 photos of my boys. They all fit together so nicely, but I didn't want to shove them all together on one page. So, I seperated them and they made lovely related pages. The first two are a little different for me. There's very little to them. But, sometimes I think simplicity speaks volumes.