Safe & Sound blog train

QUICK NOTE: If you haven't already snagged what you want from my store at Stuff to Scrap, you still have a few hours! Everything is 50% off and will be gone after midnight MST tonight.

The beginning of the month means it's time for new blog trains. One of the ones I'm taking part in this month is through the forums at Stuff to Scrap. The theme this month is Safe & Sound. November is Child Safety and Protection Month; we're using the train to bring attention to childhood safety & accident prevention.

Although I've cut back considerably on designing, I did want to contribute something to the blog train. I took the layout I created from Scrapalicious Cereal's Autumn Adventures kit and turned it into a template. The .zip file includes the file in three formats: .psd, .tif, and .png (including drop shadows).

Download has expired.

And here is the list of the rest of the designers taking part in this month's blog train. If a designer doesn't have her portion posted yet, please check back as we're spread out across the globe. Also, be sure to grab each portion by the 15th of the month. After the 15th, designers are free to put their potion of the blog train into their store(s). My template will remain available until the end of November. Happy collecting!

Stuff to Scrap Blog

Scrapalicious Cereal

Amy Owens Photography and Design

Memories by Digital Design

Luna Rosa's Scraps

HD Creations

Scrappin' Serenity

The Scrappy Kat

Scraps N Pieces

Sweet Maple Diary

Shel Belle Scraps <--YOU ARE HERE

JKCreations

Saphira's Scrapdesign

Let Me Scrapbook!

Pixiepics and Scraps

Designs by Snowlady

A Fish Design

MDK Scraps

Jensen Motley Crew Designs

CutieFruity

Trick-or-Treating blog train

It's Halloween weekend and the designers at Stuff to Scrap are having a Halloween Party. There are all sorts of fun events including speed scraps, sales, and freebies galore.

One part of the party is the freebie blog train. I created an additional alpha to my latest kit, Amelia. It's a white & multi-color glitter alpha that coordinates perfectly with the rest of the kit.

Download is expired.

Don't forget to stop by the other designers' websites to see what goodies they're offering for you. Happy Halloween!

Scraps by Andrea

Christin's Creations

SAHM Scrapper

JKCreations

Scrappin' Serenity

Rainamoon Scraps

Mommy Me Time Scrapper

Digi-designs by Nicole

Scraps of Ellay

Shel Belle Scraps <--YOU ARE HERE

This Little Missy

Designs By Ashlee

Knittinjen

Scraps N Pieces

Scrapalicious Cereal

Jensen Motley Crew Designs

The Scrappy Kat

B2N2 Scraps

Designs by Snowlady

HD Creations

Adriana's Cafe

Designs by Christi

AmyDane Designs

Gettin' Scrappy with Britt

Taking a Break Sale

Sometimes, we have to make tough decisions. I've alluded to the fact that things have been really hectic for me the past few months. While working at a feverish pace on a myriad of tasks all weekend long, I realized that something needed to change. Somehow, I had let myself get stretched too thin and I wasn't very effective at anything anymore. After a long, hard look at my responsibilities and priorities, I came the conclusion that I needed to take a break from designing. As much as I enjoy it and love seeing what people do with my kits, I need to focus my attention and energies elsewhere.

I've decided to take cut back dramatically on designing and am closing up my shop at Stuff to Scrap. I'm not retiring; I will still be taking part in blog trains from time to time (including one that goes live November 1st) and hope that I can resume a more robust designing schedule at some point in the future. My blog, Facebook fan page, and Twitter handle won't be disappearing either; I'll still be updating those from time to time.

What does this mean for you? It means great deals on my stuff over at Stuff to Scrap: 50% off everything. You don't need a code--everything is already marked down for you. Check out out the flyer for more information (image linked to the store).

$2.00 Tuesday

It's Tuesday and that means big sales at Stuff to Scrap. This week I've put my Makin' It Funky! kit in the $2.00 bin.

Autumn Adventures freebie

Jennifer, of Scrapalicious Cereal, has a new kit out called Autumn Adventures and you are going to love it. I got a chance to play with it early and knew exactly which pictures I wanted to use. I recently went to the North Shore (Lake Superior) and took quite a few pictures of the autumn landscape. The picture in the layout below was taken at Split Rock Lighthouse. I did the layout for this month's theme challenge at Stuff to Scrap.

Here's a preview of the entire kit. It will be available for $2.00 tomorrow (Tuesday) at Stuff to Scrap.

And finally, a little freebie for you from me. I created a stacked paper freebie for you using the materials in the kit.

Download has expired.

Put Me In Coach

Christie, of Scrappin' Serenity, has a new kit out today called Put Me in Coach. She asked the Stuff to Scrap Designers if any of them wanted to play with the kit and I jumped at the chance. I love baseball (especially the Twins) and the new Twins ballpark (Target Field). And yes, I'm bummed that the Twins season is done. But it was a fun year, they played some great baseball, and I have some wonderful memories of the season. That's what counts, right? :)

Here's a layout I created using Christie's kit:

Here's a preview of the entire kit. It's chock full of great stuff!

Finally, I also created a little freebie add-on for you, a cluster frame. Please note that the cluster frame is Personal Use (PU) only.

Download has expired.

Amelia

I'm back! Life has been incredibly hectic (and a lot stressful) the past three months. Things are finally starting to settle down and slowly, but surely, they're returning to normal.

I'm excited to show you the first full-size kit I've designed in a couple of months. I've had this color palette sitting on my computer for quite some time and never knew what to do with it. Then one day inspiration struck and I realized it would be perfect for a girly kit that had not quite traditional girl colors. Why is it called Amelia? No particular reason except that it's a girl's name I've always liked.

My CT knocked it out of the park on this one. Check out what they've done:

 

And some of the fabulous Stuff to Scrap Designer Darlings played with the kit, too. Look at this gorgeous eye candy!

Here's a preview of the full kit. There are 17 papers, 42 elements, and one full alpha. As you can see, I had a lot of fun with these colors!

I also created a set of coordinating cardstocks to go with the kit.

There is also a set of quick pages that is available.

This week only (October 10-16), this kit is available for 30% off at Stuff to Scrap. Head on over to the store and pick up the kit, the cardstocks, and the quick pages.

Rainbow Bridge collab

In early September, Katina (aka The Scrappy Kat) lost her poodle, Pepe. Pepe was a rescue dog, and Kat enjoyed his loyal, loving companionship for 15 years! Most of us can relate to losing a pet, and it is especially heartbreaking to lose one who has been a part of our family for such a long time. As we are not all in Kat's neighborhood to give her big hugs, the designers at STS have decided to give her a virtual hug, but creating a special kit called Rainbow Bridge (poem below) to honor not only the adorable, well-loved Pepe, but all the animals we love and lose in our lifetime. We have dogs, cats, horses; we even have lizards, bunnies, and many other kinds of pets in this kit. With a colorful rainbow palette and a ton of papers and elements showcasing all kinds of pets, this kit is perfect for ALL pet owners. The kit is HUGE and includes 148 papers and 325 embellishments, and 2 full alphas.

The best thing about the Rainbow Bridge kit is that ALL proceeds from the kit will be donated to Katina's local Humane Society. You can check out their website here. And here is the lovely poem that inspired this kit:

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together.
-Author unknown

October Build a Kit: Fall Harvest

A new month means a new build a kit palette at Stuff to Scrap. This month's palette is a rich palette of autumn colors. I created a mini-kit this month that includes six papers and twelve elements--perfect for scrapping your fall photos.

Two of my CT members created layouts using the kit. Check out this eye candy:

Click on the flyer below to see what's being offered for this month's Build a Kit palette. (Image linked to store.)

Hallowed End Mega-Collab

I'm not much into Halloween, but I might just have to take pictures at my friends' party this month so I can use the newest mega collab kit from the Stuff to Scrap designers, Hallowed End. This mega kit contains 95 papers, 154 embellishments, and two full alphas. Here's a closer look at the kit (images are linked to the store):

A closer look at the papers:

And a closer look at some of the embellishments:

We also created a set of 19 12x12 QPs for you. You can purchase these separately or you can get them FREE with any $10 purchase.