Guest Blogger: Dream Team Member Cindy Tobey

04/09/2010 at 5:00 am | Posted in fonts, guest blogger, How-Tos, product, technique | 16 Comments
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Hello! It’s Cindy Tobey here, a member of the 2010 Creating Keepsakes Dream Team. Don’t you just love spring? I sure do! There are tiny buds forming and starting to bloom, bunnies are hopping from yard to yard, and my favorite, the chatter of birds outside. I’ve stopped by today to share a layout and spring themed accent that I hope you’ll enjoy!

Handmade paper flowers are all the rage right now, and I’ve used the same technique used to make spiral flowers to create a sweet little bird’s nest for my page below.

Climb by Cindy Tobey. Supplies: Patterned paper: American Crafts, Cosmo Cricket, Crate Paper, Hambly, Jenni Bowlin Studio, Jillibean Soup, and My Mind’s Eye; Stickers and paper border srtip: Doodlebug Design; Journal tag: Jillibean Soup; Ribbon: SEI; Felt: Prima; Leaves: Bazzill Basics Paper; Font: Century Gothic; Adhesive: Beacon and Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L; Other: pom poms.

Step 1: Cut a 4″ circle from patterned paper. With a pencil, sketch a spiral onto the back of the circle. Cut along the sketched line.


Step 2: Roll the paper to form a nest shape, securing with adhesive in just two or three spots as you go.

Step 3: Use liquid glue along the bottom edge of the spiral to secure it to the base. Note: The base is the center of the paper circle that you cut into a spiral.

Step 4: When the glue is dry, take the palm of your hand and push down on the nest gently, to slightly flatten it. Work the edges of the nest with your fingers to get the desired shape.

Step 5: Finally, glue pom poms into the bottom of nest.

Tip: Use whatever you have on hand for the bird eggs. Buttons or beads would work great too! You could even add dots with a marker to buttons or beads for speckled eggs!

I hope you’ve enjoyed learning this technique and will give it a try! Thanks for reading, and happy spring!

Cindy

P.S. Don’t forget to download today’s font as part of Free Font Friday! This weeks’ font is CK Weez. Download it today at Creating Keepsakes.

Special Guest Blogger: Mandy Douglass

04/02/2010 at 8:10 am | Posted in fonts, General Inspiration, guest blogger, Holidays, How-Tos, product, technique, Uncategorized | 5 Comments
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Hey all my favorite CK Readers! It is me, Mandy Douglass! I don’t know about you, but I am so excited for this upcoming Easter holiday weekend. Now that I have two little boys, it just keeps getting more and more fun each year. I love easter egg hunts, easter baskets, easter bunnies, and those little peeks from the tulips that will soon turn into beautiful flowers.

Last year was the first year my son, Bryson, could start to understand the whole easter egg hunt idea. So today, I thought I would share a photo tip and a ribbon tip with you from this fun new page I created about his first hunt!

The Race is On by Mandy Douglass. Supplies: American Crafts.

Photo Tip:

Bryson was just learning to walk, and he really didn’t have enough balance to pick up eggs, so crawling was his only way to get those funny looking round things! I thought this photo was perfect to use on my layout, because it captures his perspective on the easter egg hunt. There weren’t a lot of kids around to “race” him for the eggs, but the faster he got them, the more excited he was. I challenge all you CK readers to get down in the grass this weekend and get some true perspective photographs!

Ribbon Tip:

Next is a fun tip a friend taught me a while back. I often find it hard to punch through a page or get a knotted ribbon to stay in place without gargantuan amounts of glue! So here are a few steps to show you how to get that cute ribbon knot to stay in place and avoid getting sticky.

First cut a piece of ribbon about 3″ long. Then staple it to the area of the page you would like the ribbon to be.

Then simply tie the knot (I usually only tie one knot and it stays in place).

 

Then cut off the remaining ribbon.

Simple, huh!

Bonus Gift-Bag Topper Tip:

I decided to use the same technique on some cute treat bags for Easter. (Not only did I get a cute bag out of it, but it also gave me a great excuse to open those Cadbury Mini Eggs that have been staring at me for a week!)

To make the bag topper, I made a simple flap using Sizzix’s scallop square die cut, then I folded it in half. I added some darling egg paper from the Dear Lizzy line by American Crafts and stapled the decorated flap to close the bag and keep the ribbon in place. 

Last, I made a cute little tag using a Quickutz oval die, some scallop scissors by Fiskars, and Dear Lizzy Dimensional Sticker. Then knotted it all in place! 

Such an easy way to do lots of Easter treat bags.

“Hop” that you all have a great holiday weekend!

Mandy Douglass, CK contributing writer

P.S. Don’t forget to download today’s font as part of Free Font Friday! This weeks’ font is CK Day Dream. Download it today at Creating Keepsakes.

Special Guest Blogger: 2010 Dream Team Member Jen Jockisch

03/26/2010 at 5:00 am | Posted in fonts, General Inspiration, guest blogger, How-Tos, Uncategorized | 11 Comments
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Hi everyone! This is Jen Jockisch. I’m a first time contributor to the CK blog, and a member of the  Creating Keepsakes 2010 Dream Team. Today I have a really quick and simple technique to share with you that’s fun and easy.

I love to create flowers with patterned paper, and the flowers I’m going to show you today make great embellishments for your scrapbook pages or altered items.

All you will need is a 12″ x 12″ piece of cardstock or patterned paper, a paper trimmer or scissors, a stapler and some foam adhesive (smaller foam tabs are best).

Choose your paper, then cut a strip of paper measuring 1/4″ to 1/2″ wide. Fold either end to meet in the middle, and staple. (If you want a smaller flower, simply cut your strip before you fold, making it shorter than 12″ x 12″)

Repeat this process four times (more or less depending on how many petals you want), and layer all of the pieces together, overlaping in the center. Staple together. It may take a few staples to get your petals situated where you want them.

Place your foam adhesive on the ends of the petals and adhere to your page.

I like to punch a circle from cardstock and place in the center of the flower and add buttons, brads, rhinestones or other embellishments. If you do this, youʼll want to again use foam adhesive on the back of your circle so you don’t flatten the flower.

Finally, add stems to the flowers using ribbon, patterned paper, or other fun trims.

Thanks for reading, everyone, and have a great weekend!

-Jen Jockish

P.S. Don’t forget to download a new font as part of Free Font Friday! This week, download the CK Broad Pen font here!

 

Special Guest Blogger: Jaime Echt for The Crafter’s Workshop

03/19/2010 at 12:03 am | Posted in guest blogger, How-Tos, product, technique | 108 Comments
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Well, helloooooo! [Visualize a royal wave.] Jaime Echt here, Queen of The Crafter’s Workshop. What a treat it is to be this week’s guest blogger.

I have some really fun projects to share, so let’s just dive right in. We’ve had a lot of snow in New York lately, so my Flurries template (TCW164) has been working double time. Now let me stop you right here and declare that I LOVE templates. No, not because my life revolves around designing the most fan-tabulous templates on earth, but I love them because I can create a piece of paper that has PINK snowflakes on it.  Yes, pink! Come on, have you seen the playground lately? It’s a sea of pink! And yes, my little snow angel does indeed have a pink snowsuit (pink hat, pink scarf, and pink gloves), thank you very much.  So yes, I do need pink snowflakes for my layout. And by golly, I’m gonna’ get them.

So here’s my “Frost Valley” layout. (Frost Valley, by the way, happens to be a very cool place to bring scouts, school kids, or even your family.)

Neat, huh? Are you ready for another one? The layout below uses my retro Sunburst template (TCW166), chalks, inks, pens, and my sewing machine! (And the remnants of my daughter’s hemmed pants.)

Once again I was faced with the desire to have my layout look exactly the way I wanted it to. And I’m a real stickler for color, so if the color is off, it makes me nuts! Thank goodness I have every gel pen, chalk, and inkpad known to humankind. Okay, not really, but I do love to use them on my layouts, like I did with the techniques that follow.

Here’s a close-up photo of my stitching. See? It’s not perfect.

And last, I journaled around the perimeter of the Sunburst design with a favorite gel pen, of course!

Comment to Win

Fun, right? So now I know you’re saying to yourself, “Self, wouldn’t it be nice if I had my own little Sunburst and Flurries template to play with?” Why yes, that would be lovely, wouldn’t it! So let’s do a little random giveaway to five lucky winners! Each winner will receive our 12×12 Sunburst (TCW166) and our 12×12 Flurries (TCW164). They’re two lovely templates to get us over the springtime piles of snow. To enter, just leave me a comment on this blog post by March 23, 2010. Easy Peasy.

Here’s hoping that the Template Fairy visits your home really soon. And brings you lots of lovely templates to play with!!

–Jaime Echt

P.S. Don’t forget to download a new font as part of Free Font Friday! This week, download the CK Magnificent font here!


Special Guest Blogger: Deena Wuest

03/12/2010 at 3:49 pm | Posted in guest blogger, technique | 9 Comments
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Hey CKers! Deena Wuest here. Just dropping by today to drop off a quick and fun project for you all.

We all look for ways to help the environment—recycling, taking shorter showers, switching to florescent lightbulbs, etc. And while these are all important steps, they don’t necessarily fall into the category of “fun.” Well, today we’re taking the three Rs (Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle) and applying them to our home turf. And guess what? They not only reside under “fun,” but they help the environment and keep *your* green in your wallet as well! It’s all about using what you have in fresh and creative ways.

Today, we’re looking at fabric. If you’re one of those multitalented gems who not only scrapbooks but can sew up a storm, then you’ll no doubt have lots of fabric remnants in your craft room. Take a look at them with a fresh set of eyes, and put them to work in your albums or craft projects! If you don’t have fabric scraps lying around, do what I did and ask your local home-design store for expired fabric swatch books. On the day I went, the store had more than my family could carry! And they were 100% free! So we not only rescued the books from the landfill but had a blast flipping through all the fabric and thinking of the fun projects hiding within them.

Swatches come in so many cool designs, and they are the perfect size to make handmade gift bags or treasure bags. For my first project, I created a simple, long, narrow bag to hold old love letters.

Supplies: Bags: Fabric from recycled swatch book; Tag and pink button: Pink Paislee; Metal-rim tag: Making Memories; Ribbon: C.M. Offray & Son; Other: Button.

To create this bag:

  1. Cut two pieces of fabric in equal sizes, and sandwich the right sides together.
  2. Press a fold of about 0.5″ to 1″ along the top of each fabric panel.
  3. Run a straight stitch along the sides and bottom.
  4. Turn the bag right side out.
  5. Hem the fold along the top of the bag, if desired.
  6. Embellish with buttons, ribbon, or other accessories.

I have to be honest here. I can’t sew to save my life. It’s true. But if I can manage to figure out a simple straight stitch, anyone can! Don’t have a sewing machine? These projects work great using fabric-adhesive tape or any stitch-less sewing products.

Here are a few more projects I created from old fabric swatches.

Supplies: Bag: Fabric from recycled swatch book; Cardstock: Katie Pertiet; Scallop: Anna Aspnes; Word art: Ali Edwards; Binding: Zutter Innovative Products.

This little bag was created from an eyelet fabric swatch. To keep the edge detail, simply press the fold to the outside instead of the inside, and then stitch up the sides. Super simple! This bag was created to hold a mini album I carry in my purse. Not only cute, it keeps my album from getting scratched.

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Supplies: Bags: Fabric from recycled swatch book; Paper and brushes: Mindy Terasawa; Font: Avenir.

We made these little bags and loaded them with favors and candy for my son’s birthday party. Photoshop + a fun robot kit = quick and easy bag toppers. Super simple, and the kids all had a fun keepsake from the party.

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Supplies: Denim fabric: Recycled swatch book; Die-cuts: Sizzix; Chipboard accents and ribbon: Little Yellow Bicycle; Font: Avenir.

And don’t limit these fun little fabric swatches to just bags! I ran denim swatches through my die-cutting machine to create this little fabric album. What was once going to be thrown away I now hold as a treasured keepsake. How cool is that!

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Try these other ideas too!

  1. Use a fabric swatch as photo mat on a layout.
  2. Create an interactive mini album from old denim pockets. Bind and fill each pocket with a journaling tag or a photo.
  3. Cut a large monogram from fabric for a unique accent on a layout.
  4. Create fabric flowers to use on a page.
  5. Run fabric through a die-cutting machine (or use good-old-fashioned scissors) to create fun fabric tags.
  6. Create a fabric scrapbook by covering chipboard or cardboard with fabric and stitching around the edges.
  7. Create a fabric pocket to hold memorabilia on a page.
  8. Some fabrics can even be run through your printer! Just use a temporary adhesive to adhere fabric to paper first so it won’t jam. (And check your printer capabilities first.) Lots of possibilities here. Print journaling, titles, and photos. Even entire layouts can be printed on fabric.

What other fun and creative ways do you have to use fabric scraps in your projects? I’d love to hear (and see) them! I don’t know about you, but this whole recycling thing just got a lot more fun! Happy Friday everyone!

—Deena Wuest

P.S. Don’t miss Free Font Friday! You can download CK Shadowed Block for free here. Check back next week for another new font.

Getting in the Irish Groove

03/05/2010 at 2:36 pm | Posted in General Inspiration, Holidays | 5 Comments
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Rather than bringing in a special guest blogger this Friday, we thought we’d point you to some other great sites on the web that have some fantastic projects you can create for St. Patrick’s Day, which is fast approaching. Check out these projects below, and then head to the links for more details and how-to information.

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Shamrock Boutonnieres from Martha Stewart

Cut or punch shamrocks from green-patterned papers, and then tie them together for a shamrock bouquet or boutonniere like this one from Martha Stewart.

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Swizzle Sticks from Martha Stewart

Enjoy this idea, also from Martha Stewart, of using a heart stamp to create great swizzle sticks for a St. Patrick’s Day party.

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Leprechaun Catcher from Family Fun

If you have little ones at home, they’ll enjoy creating a Leprechaun Catcher like this one from Family Fun.

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Onesie from ApplesLovesOranges on Etsy

If you want to play with felt, glean inspiration from this adorable onesie by ApplesLovesOranges on Etsy.

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Shamrock Pin from Disney Family

And although you may not have suckers in your scrapbooking stash, I couldn’t resist sharing this idea from Disney Family. It’s easy to turn three green suckers into a shamrock pin that’s good enough to eat.

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—Brittany Beattie, online senior editor

P.S. Don’t miss the Free Font Friday download this week: CK Pleasing.

CHA 2010: Trendy Looks

02/05/2010 at 4:00 am | Posted in Hot Trends, product | 154 Comments
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When it comes to trend spotting, the CHA show floor is a happenin’ hot spot of activity, with fresh trends as far as the eye can see. To wrap up our CHA Winter extravaganza, we want to share two of our favorite show-floor trends with you today. (Our Friday guest blog spots will reconvene next week.) Both looks we’re going to focus on are fashionably fabulous and sure to make any paper project shine. So trend trackers, are you ready to check them out? All right, let’s take a look at some of the hottest looks out there.

Look #1: Handmade Flowers

Spring was definitely in the air at this winter show. Handmade blooms were popping up all over place.

These pretty posies made from cardstock were on display at the Bazzill Basics Paper booth. We love how they fill in the open area in the corner of this layout.

 

The Melissa Frances booth took the flowers off the page and into the window with these beautiful flower balls. How sweet would these look hanging in a craft room or nursery?

 

Cosmo Cricket has an idea for dressing up a gift box in botanicals. They rolled paper rosettes from patterned paper for a bright dash of dimension.

 

The fine folks at Little Yellow Bicycle filled a vase with doily designs and paper-cut flower shapes. Any brunch gathering can be taken to the next level with these on display.

 

Look #2: Dress Forms

At first glance, it was easy to confuse the CHA show floor with a NYC runway. Dress forms were around every corner. What a wonderful way to display the latest and greatest paper lines!

GCD Studios knew how to welcome its booth guests with this lovely dress form on display right at their entryway.

 

Make a mini album for any fashionista in your life with this fantastic dress-form album from Maya Road.

 

Making Memories launched a new jewelry line this CHA, so it only seems appropriate to adorn that area of their booth with a stylish dress-form display. We loved how they draped the pattern around the shape.

 

These are just two of the many wonderful trends we spotted this show. For more of what’s hot, make sure you watch our “Hot Spot” column each issue in the magazine.

Comment to Win

So, what trend is your favorite right now, whether it’s from CHA or something else you love? Leave a comment on this blog post by February 7, 2010, and you could win this great prize package with new releases from Kiki Art.

Cheers!
Megan Hoeppner, Creative Editor

Free Font Friday

P.S. Don’t miss Free Font Friday! To accompany our flower trend, today you can download the CK Flower Power font for free here.

Special Guest Blogger: Beth Gerlach for Bella Blvd

01/15/2010 at 4:00 am | Posted in fonts, guest blogger, product | 269 Comments
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Ciao, Ciao! I can’t tell you how thrilled and honored I am to be guest blogging on the CK blog today. My name is Beth Gerlach. I’ve been designing as a Bella Blvd Artista since the company launched in July 2008, and soon after I became Bella’s Special Projects Coordinator.

Bella Blvd and I have a huge surprise for you today. We are kicking off our official CHA Winter product sneak peeks right here, right now. Our latest collections are new new new! Everything’s new from the cardstock stickers to the patterned-paper styles and more. We are confident you’re going to LOVE all the new yumminess!

I created this sketch and used it to make three different layouts—each with lots of the new stuff. I hope there’s a style—from simple to advanced—that appeals to you. The next time you have a creative block, draw your own sketch and see what you can create with it.

My “Beach” layout shows a line that’s bright, adventurous, and full of splash! (All products used are by Bella, with the exception of the crystals and thread.)

The new products on the layout below are full of wisdom, character, and class. All the edges are distressed and inked, and I added several layers and quite a bit of stitching and sticker flocking. (With the exception of the thread and the Doodlebug Design flocking powder, all products are by Bella.)

And last but not least, the products on the “Little Girls” layout showcase Bella’s take on vintage, eclectic, and chic. (All products used are by Bella, except for the Making Memories and Fancy Pants Designs stick pins.) Notice how I rotated the sketch around for this one.

Win the Complete Collection of Bella Blvd’s Newest Product Release!

That’s all I can show you for now, but rest assured, Bella Blvd will continue the sneak peeks next Monday (January 18). Be sure to check out the Bella Blvd blog for the latest updates. I just can’t get enough of it! I’m so excited that I have to give some away. That’s right, this is your win-it-before-you-can-buy-it chance to get it in your hands. Leave a comment on this blog post, and you’ll be entered to win one complete collection of Bella Blvd’s newest product release.

Good luck!!

—Beth Gerlach

Free Font Friday

P.S. In honor of Beth’s fabulously fun post, CK is offering the CK Fun font for free download today as part of Free Font Friday. Check back next week for a new font as well!

Special Guest Blogger: Suzy Plantamura of the 2010 CK Dream Team

01/08/2010 at 2:15 am | Posted in fonts, guest blogger, How-Tos | 13 Comments
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Hi, I’m Suzy Plantamura, a member of CK’s Dream Team. I’m a kid at heart, and I love to color! My purse always has markers in it for my girls and me to draw and color with any time we’re sitting still (at church, at restaurants, on long drives, and more). I draw the pictures, and the girls stay quiet while they color in the pictures!

Markers are a perfect way to express creativity and add a bit of personality to scrapbook projects as well. For example, I made this “Elf Obsession” layout primarily with just cardstock and markers.

"Elf Obsession" by Suzy Plantamura. Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill Basics Paper; Die-cutting machine and felt ornament: Making Memories; Stickers: Crate Paper, Making Memories, and My Mind’s Eye; Chipboard circles: My Mind’s Eye; Rhinestones: Zva Creative; Glitter: Martha Stewart Crafts; Markers: EK Success, Newell Rubbermaid, and Sakura; Adhesive: Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L; Other: Ribbon.

Techniques on This Layout:
I went a little crazy with markers on this layout, but it was so fun to make! Here are a few techniques I used:

* I drew the border on the layout with markers and then cut around its edges.

Notice the drawn border, the glittered letters, and the colored elves.

* I customized title letters by cutting them out of cardstock with the Slice by Making Memories, and then I added dots with a Gelly Roll pen. The pens are slow drying, so I added glitter to the dots while they were still wet.

* I outlined my photos with two colors of markers.

* I love elves, and my girls and I drew and colored them throughout the holiday season. I added a pocket to the back of my layout to include all our drawings.

* I used a black Ultra Fine Point Sharpie to draw the elves on cardstock, and I colored them in with Gelly Roll pens by Sakura—they are so fun to work with and glide on for perfect coverage! To make a color softer (such as when coloring skin tones), you can just use your finger to smear the color around.
More Techniques

The next layout I made also uses markers in many spots—see if you can find them all!

“Nailed by the Boys Once Again” by Suzy Plantamura. Supplies: Patterned paper: BasicGrey and Doodlebug Design; Chipboard letters: Pink Paislee; Letter stickers: Making Memories and My Little Shoebox; Border stickers: Crate Paper and Doodlebug Design; Transparencies and felt snowflakes: Little Yellow Bicycle; Acrylic snowflakes: Maya Road; Brads: Making Memories, Queen & Co., and SEI; Markers: Copic Markers, EK Success, and Newell Rubbermaid; Ribbon: Making Memories; Glitter: Martha Stewart Crafts; Adhesive: Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L; Other: Blue ribbon.

Did you find them all? Check the list here:
* First, I outlined the entire page with a silver Sharpie and outlined my photos with a white Uni-ball pen.

* I added small, white snowflakes to my title letters with the Uni-ball as well.

* I colored the edges of the transparencies with Copic markers.

* I added color to the edges of my punched borders with a pink marker.

* I colored acrylic snowflakes with markers to match my page.

Color Acrylic Accents

Follow these step-by-step instructions to color your own acrylic accents:
1. Remove plastic covering from both sides of an acrylic accent (if applicable).
2. Color one side of the snowflake with two colors of Copic markers, adding a lighter color over the entire accent and a darker color on just the edges.
3. Use a silver pen to draw lines on the same side of the snowflake.
4. If you make any mistakes and want to remove color, use the Copic Colorless Blender pen—it removes even Sharpie ink!
5. Turn snowflake over and use a white pen to add details to the front of the accent.


6. Tie a knot in a ribbon and pull it through the center of the accent; attach it to the layout with sheer adhesive.

My Favorite Pens

Here are some of my favorite markers and what I use them for:

* Uni-ball Signo by Newell Rubbermaid: The white Uni-ball is (in my opinion) the best white marker! I use it to journal, outline photos, and add details to embellishments. It is slow drying, so you can add glitter to it or emboss with it.
* Pigma Micron by Sakura and Ultra Fine Point Sharpie by Newell Rubbermaid: I use these two markers for journaling. The Pigma Micron pen comes in different tip sizes (I use the 05 style) and are pigment ink that is waterproof. The Sharpie is also permanent and great for use on transparencies or slick surfaces.
* Copic Markers: These pens are alcohol-based pigment ink, refillable, and will cover anything including metal, transparencies, ribbon, and acrylic. They come in tons of colors and different tips, with one tip on each end of the pens.
* Zig Writers by EK Success: These pens come in 48 colors and are pigment-based ink that is waterproof. I use the fine tip to journal and the thicker tip to color in items.
* Glaze, Soufflé, and Gelly Roll by Sakura: These markers are so much fun! They come in numerous colors and types of ink. I use them for coloring, because they blend well and smear great for lighter application. Glaze and Soufflé pens are slow drying, so you can use them to add glitter to or emboss a project.
* Stampin’ Write by Stampin’ Up!: These markers are great for coloring in designs using the brush tips. They have water-based dye ink, so although they have a fine tip, I don’t use them for journaling.
* Silver- and Gold-Leafing Pens by Krylon: These pens are fun for holiday projects! I use them to outline my pages or pictures, and they adhere well to any surface. The Sharpie Metallic markers also work great on slick surfaces.

I hope this blog post motivates you to pull out your markers and use them to add a bit of creativity to your scrapbook pages and craft projects. Embrace the kid in you, and have fun coloring!

—Suzy Plantamura

Free Font Friday

Don’t let thoughts of a several goals for the new year stress you out. Instead, enjoy a relaxed feel with the CK Easy Goin’ font available for free download as part of Creating Keepsakes’ Free Font Friday. You’ll find a new free font available next Friday (and every Friday) as well.

Happy New Year! (and Free Font Friday)

01/01/2010 at 4:00 am | Posted in fonts, Holidays | 170 Comments
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I can’t believe the new year is already upon us. Where does the time go? If your life is anything like mine, then 2009 flew by before you could take in all that was going on. The year had its ups and downs—the expected and the unexpected. It was full of change—some of it good, some of it not so good; some of it by choice, some of it not by choice.

As I contemplated the past year, I decided my main goal for 2010 is to make more of life’s changes be determined by me. Not just changes in circumstances, but changes in me. Stampin’ Up! makes a stamp set entitled “Define Your Life.” I love this set, not just because it makes great scrapbook pages and cards (which it does), but because its title speaks to me as well. I, probably like most of you, feel I can use a little more definition in my life.

This year, I’m determining to define my life. To define what I want to be, where I want to go, and how I’m going to make that happen. To not just let life happen, but to make it happen.

It’s said that in order to achieve your goals, you have to write them down. I’m going to take a little spin on this theory and create a Define Your Life journal for myself, with a 6″ x 6″ page dedicated to each aspect I want to be, do, or learn over the next year. I’m not worried about creating every page right now. I’ll be adding to the journal as the year goes on.  I’ll still be working on scrapbooking the events in my life, but I’m hoping that having these other types of pages will remind me to actively work toward making my life what I want it to be.

Maybe you’d like to spend more time with family,

Ready, Set, Bump scrapbook page

"Ready, Set, Bump" by Pam Callaghan, as seen in the January 2010 issue of Creating Keepsakes.

travel more,

 
 
 

 

Downtown scrapbook page

"Downtown" by Kelly Purkey, as seen in the January 2010 issue of Creating Keepsakes

 

achieve something big,

Paris Marathon scrapbook page

"Paris Marathon" by Sande Krieger, as seen in the January 2010 issue of Creating Keepsakes

work on a talent,

garden scrapbook page

"How Does Our Summer Grow?" by Jing-Jing Nickel, as seen in the January 2010 issue of Creating Keepsakes

or just delight in the little things this year.

details scrapbook page

"Delight in the Details" by Amanda Johnston, as seen in the January 2010 issue of Creating Keepsakes.

I’d love to hear from you about it. How do you keep motivated to make positive changes in your life, and how do you document those changes? Drop me a line in the comments section of this post, and let’s keep each other motivated to make 2010 the best year yet.

May this new year bring everything you hope and dream it will.

To help some of your dreams come true, two lucky winners will recieve a selection of Stampin’ Up! clear mount blocks, a stamp set, and either a package of patterned paper or a corner punch. Simply leave a comment on this post, and two lucky winners will be drawn on January 5th.

Happy New Year!

—Lara Penrod, managing editor

Free Font Friday

As you celebrate the new year, enjoy this holiday treat to you as part of Free Font Friday—a free download of the CK New Year’s Day font.

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