Circle Mania 2013

I came back this week from an awesome event put together by a member of the Cricut Circle community, Scrapalette. It was great, from the food to the venue but especially the people! They all made this California girl smile.

Altered Angels Scrapbook store (friendly and their adorable pugs roam the store helping you to shop)

 

The best Pecan Pie EVER!!!

It was a great weekend of crafting (well watching others craft) shopping (love me some Archivers, please come to California) and laughing. The Hilton Garden Inn in Alpharetta, Georgia was fantastic and helpful. It was fun listening to all the Southern accents and being treated to that famous Southern hospitality. 

Gossamer Blue Kit Club

If you're looking to join a kit club I have a good one to recommend. Gossamer Blue is a great because of a couple of reasons, great products and prices being the main one. It is no commitment so you can cancel anytime without fees. The monthly price of the kit is about $30 which is the base price of many other kit clubs. I've enjoyed their paper and embellishment selections, my December kit included a lot of SNAP products which were sold out everywhere else.

A unique thing about their club is that each month includes a digital element and if you upload 4 layouts using their kits for 5 straight months they will send you a free album to house the 20 layouts! Neat huh?

I started my kit in December and have been impressed with the speed of my kit shipment and customer service. Another neat feature is that they include a sticker label that features the name of the kit and the colors used for quick reference. Little touches like this impress me a lot.

Find more info at their site here:http://www.gossamerblue.com/
The current Lookbook (sneak peek of upcoming kits) is here: Lookbook

Etsy Finds

Haven't done one of these in a while and with Christmas coming up thought I'd start again.

In case you haven't noticed I love "cute". One of my favorite shops is Stephanie Fizer Coleman's TheFoxandTheTeacup
She has some adorable prints and other items and I've even requested custom items from her before. I adore her calendars which are only available this time of year.

Quick Tip: Washi Organization

I came to be a washi tape addict last year and have slowly built my collection. However one thing that I was getting confused on was which Washi I had already bought. I took a class with Freckled Fawn and they gave a fantastic tip about adding washi in strips to plain manilla tags and then connecting them with a binder ring. Genius! Now I can use this tool when shopping so I don't double up on a roll (it lasts forever!) and I can use it to refer to when I'm doing layouts.

I need more orange, yellow, pink and purple

FYI: Washi tape for those who don't know is similar to masking tape since it has transparent qualities. You can use it on layouts for embellishing, journaling on or as borders. You can even use it on home decor items.
I buy mine through various places since alot of scrapbooking companies are now making it but here are a couple of  washi "specialty" shops.
Freckled Fawn (highly recommend their red woodgrain tape, it's adorable)
Pretty Tape on etsy
TheWashiShop on etsy

Also don't forget to come back here for a Halloween Blog Hop. I will have Blog candy up for grabs!

Your Handwriting into a Font

Have you ever wanted to get your handwriting made into a font to download onto your computer? How about for only $10? At the Lilypad this is now an option!
Click here to go to Handwritten Font page
There are 2 options, 1 where you allow your personal font to be sold and redistributed by the designer for $10, 1 where you are the only one who will ever get to use your font for $20. How cool is that?
This weekend they are also having a 30% off sale (does not apply to handwritten font product).
Lilypad digital store

4x6 photo Templates

One thing that I have long wanted has finally arrived. Designs by Lily has created digital 4x6 collage templates! You can create collages that will fit on a 4x6 photo and print out on your home printer. She has figured out a variety of ways to fit in a number of pictures and they look professional and even have a white border to make everything look crisp and clean. You get 20 different templates for only $3.20 right now. Love it! And I am loving this new digital store, soo many great designs and great prices.
Check it out Here: 4x6 Collage template

Stores to know

I've discovered a new venue for my scrap shopping. I had heard the name before but when I visited the shop it is adorable and I looove that they have digital offerings.
Check out Pretty Little Studio and all their vintage, colorful goodies! They have a couple of free goodies to download like the image below.

Scrapbook Expo Sacramento: My favorite booth

I love when I find booths that are unique and not just a bunch of products hung up. I asked the good folks at Ooh la la if I could take pics and they said yes. I only wish they had an online store to purchase from!

 They specialize in these dress forms that they wrap in ribbon. They are made from a chipboard type material and come in different finishes like with sheet music or text. They sell blank forms or already decorated ones. They even had some that were decorated with wedding dresses and some that were pregnant, complete with bellies!

I think she said this was their first show but I hope it's not their last. They had some great kits and ideas. Check out more  on: http://www.oohlaladesigneroriginals.com/

Etsy Find

I love this artist, Britney Lee. She has done work for Disney, which is one reason I love her. I love her use of color and she likes cats!
Find her at http://www.etsy.com/shop/britsketch?ref=pr_profile

One of her series I love is her Hawaiian gods series like this print.