Happy Easter!

04/04/2010 at 8:17 am | Posted in Holidays, Uncategorized | 151 Comments
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Happy Easter, and thanks for stopping by the Creating Keepsakes blog today. We hope the day is bringing you at least some semblance of spring weather. 

No matter how old my siblings and I get, we still get together every year to color Easter eggs. For some reason this activity has never lost its appeal for us. Maybe because we’re always a bit goofy while we do it. 

One of the (many) great things about the March/April issue of Creating Keepsakes, is the article, “The Good, the Fab, and the Spectacular” in which we show you how to take an event you celebrate every year and mix it up to create some spectacular Easter layouts. 

I especially like this layout from Susan Weinroth. I love how she created the grass and highlighted her photos within egg-shaped frames. 

"Easter Egg Clean-Up” by Susan Weinroth, as seen in the March/April 2010 issue of Creating Keepsakes, page 87.

 

I also love the various textures Erin Lincoln used for her egg accents on her layout. 

“Easter for Grown Ups” by Erin Lincoln, as seen in the March/April 2010 issue of Creating Keepsakes, page 86.

 

Leave us a comment and let us know how you add “egg-tra” special touches to your Easter layouts. I’ll choose two lucky comments to win this great Easter product from Jillibean Soup. Winners will be chosen on Friday, April 9, 2010. 

 

And if you haven’t actually gotten around to coloring those eggs yet, check out this video from Martha Stewart Living on how to use a fun masking technique to create some pretty amazing eggs. (The video will play on the lower-right side of the screen after a quick ad.)

Happy Easter!

 

Lara Penrod, managing editor

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.

Weekly Warm-Up: 20 Free Downloads in 10 Minutes (or less)

01/11/2010 at 4:00 am | Posted in weekly warm up | 18 Comments
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In the spirit of this milestone year that starts a new decade, we’re bringing you monthly lists with a 20-10 theme. Let’s start this party with freebies. How does 20 free downloads in under 10 minutes sound? Free sounds pretty sweet to me. So start the timer and see if you can’t collect 20 new digi delights faster than you can cook up some Mac ‘n Cheese.

Download #1: Love Notes
Tell someone you love them with our cutie-pie notes. Get the full set here.

Artwork by Creating Keepsakes Magazine

Download #2: Photo Labels
These easy-to-use labels make remembering the details behind a photo a breeze. And they’re designed to fit precisely on  2″ x 4″ labels (Avery 5263).

Label by Creative Crafts Group

Download #3: DIY Photo Cube
Creativity gets squared with this playful photo display. Download the template, and make your own cubed collection of memories.

Image by Creative Crafts Group

Download #4: Lovely Bookmarks
Marking your page is much more adorable with these bookmarks found at livinglocurto.com.

Images and artwork by livinglocurto.com

Download #5: Digital Kit
Enjoy the snow without the cold by staying indoors and scrapping your favorite frigid moments with this cool Winter Wonderland Mini Kit by Jen Allyson at twopeasinabucket.com.

Image and artwork by twopeasinabucket.com

Download #6: Pocket Card
Send an interactive valentine using this pocket-card template from Nichole Heady of Papertrey Ink.

Project and image by Nichole Heady

Download #7: Ticket Accents
Embellish your layouts with these fun designs found at The 80s Me. Now that’s the ticket!

Image and artwork by The 80s Me

Download #8: Pocket Calendar
Keep track of the months ahead with this calendar pattern (scroll down to the paragraph where it says “downloads” to retrieve the templates for each month). It was designed by Sam & Cheryl and featured on creaturecomforts.com. The handy pocket is perfect for holding memorabilia from various events until it comes time to scrapbook.

Alternate and deep breathing.

Image by creaturecomforts.com

Download #9: Box Template
Truly personalized gift wrap is only a few folds away with this template by Julie Ebersole of papertrufflez.com.

Image and project by Julie Ebersole

Download #10: Bird Pattern
Give someone a tweet gift by attaching a paper bird to an ordinary gift bag using this template from Paper Crafts magazine.

Image and artwork by Paper Crafts magazine

Download #11: Paper Globes
Put a little love in the air with this cheery template from Heather Bailey. (To get to this template, click here and scroll down the screen until you see the “free patterns” section on the right side of the screen.)

Image and project by Heather Bailey

Download #12: Fry-Box Pattern
With our free template, you can fill a handmade fry box with beauty supplies for a friend. It’s a fun treat without the calories.

Image by Creating Keepsakes magazine

Download #13: Photo Filters
Change up the looks of your digi photos using these free photo actions from The Pioneer Woman.

Image by thepioneerwoman.com

Download #14: Journaling Cards
Put your memories into words with our clean and classic journaling cards designed by Tiffany Tillman.

Journaling card designed by Tiffany Tillman

Download # 15: Goal Tracker
Putting your New Year’s resolutions on these stylish cards, designed by Heidi Swapp for House of 3, will make sticking to those goals all the more enjoyable.

Artwork by Heidi Swapp for House of 3

Download #16: Valentine’s Day Sentiments
Paper Crafts magazine offers a bouquet of beautiful sentiment downloads each month. Check them out for a quick card-making solution.

Artwork by Paper Crafts magazine

Download #17: Layout Template
Design a groovy grid page with this free grid page template by Cathy Zielske.

Image by Creative Crafts Group; layout by Cathy Zielske

Download #18: Doodle Download
Whether you’re decorating a gift bag or adding to a layout, coloring in this happy doodle by Stephanie Ackerman of Homegrown Hospitality is sure to make your project shine.

Image and artwork by Homegrown Hospitality

Download #19: Bookplates
Keep track of your 2010 reading list with these divine bookplates from Martha Stewart Living.

Image by MarthaStewart.com

Download #20: Birthday Party in a Box
Let the party begin with this box o’ fun, which was featured in our special issue 101 Hip, Handmade Gifts by Nicole LaRue.

Image by Creating Keepsakes magazine

Wow! That’s a whole lotta free for one post. We sure do know how to make the most of our 10 minutes, don’t we? Thanks for joining us today. We can’t wait to bring you another 20-10 list next month.

Cheers!
Megan Hoeppner, creative editor

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