Jun 18 2013

Smarter Than Her Mom: MDS Inspiration

My Digital Studio: birthday tag inspiration

My daughter Abby (she’s 9) has been so excited to play with My Digital Studio lately (see MDS online) — and she’s got some GREAT ideas!  I’m sure I’m not the only mom out there with a kid who’s more tech-savvy than myself :)

When Abby had the background and ‘happy birthday’ finished on the gift bag tag she was creating, I asked her if she was going to add a “love, Abby” line.  The response was a big “No”… she had a better idea!

Abby turned on the facetime camera on the computer, adjusted the tilt of the screen, then stood back and held the gift bag out in her hand.  She took the photo of herself giving the gift to her friend, then saved it and added it to her MDS project. The whole thing took her about 45 seconds.

Then she printed the tag on our printer at home and added a layer of card stock.

How cool is that?

Gotta love those brilliant ideas that come from our kids.

Happy Stamping!

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New Catalogs are HERE!

New Colors, New Stamps, New Accessories… Use the link to view online or email me for your FREE copy!

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Jun 07 2013

Favorite MDS Digital Download: Fancy Frames

Girl Scout Bridging Certificate

If I had to pick a single top favorite Digital Download for My Digital Studio, I wouldn’t have to think for more than about 2 seconds.  My answer is the Fancy Frames Digital Download – I can’t go for more than 3 days without using it on a project!  (see it online now – 131330).

We had my daughter’s Girl Scout Bridging Ceremony last week, and each girl in our troop received an envelope with the patches the girls earned in moving from Brownies to Juniors.  Each girl also received a certificate recognizing her achievement – created with My Digital Studio.  (learn more about My Digital Studio)

Notice how none of the frames in the download match perfectly with the frame on the certificate?  Here’s what I did:

  1. Add the pink frame from Fancy Frames to my project
  2. Stretch the frame to fit a half-sheet of paper
  3. Recolor the frame to be a softer pink color to better match my text
  4. Added text and printed the certificates at home

Super simple!  I also used the same Digital Download recently on an advertising project for one of our PTO events (check out my PTO advertising poster).

And if you’re looking for text to make your own Girl Scout Bridging Certificates, here’s what I put on ours: “In recognition of your commitment in completing the requirements for bridging from Brownie Girl Scouts to Junior Girl Scouts!”

Don’t forget that you can try out My Digital Studio free for 30 days from my online store – and get your own copy of the Fancy Frames digital download for $2.95!

Happy (Digital) Stamping!

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New Catalogs are HERE!

New Colors, New Stamps, New Accessories… Use the link to view online or email me for your FREE copy!

See the catalog now


Jun 04 2013

Hip Hop Recital: 24-7 for one week

Ah, the excitement of dance recital week… if you’ve never experienced it first hand, let me tell you… it’s something to remember!  Both of my kids were in hip hop classes this year, and the recital time is so much fun. I just had to share a picture of where we are all week — so you’d understand why I’m not posting as much as usual this week!!

Hip Hop recital picture - with My Digital Studio

But of course I did take 5 minutes with My Digital Studio to create a quick postcard for you!  Here’s what I used:

Background
Designer Series Paper – Love Impressions – pattern 1

Embellishments
Downtown Grunge – frame 1
Keep This Memory – love arrow (re-colored)

Don’t worry — I’ll be back soon.  And in the meantime, be sure to browse my blog for recent project ideas!

Happy Stamping!

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!

Sign up now for Stamps in the Mail Club!

Supplies for 4 projects — ready to stamp, delivered to your front door.

Get details or sign up now

New Catalogs are HERE!

New Colors, New Stamps, New Accessories… Use the link to view online or email me for your FREE copy!

See the catalog now


Apr 19 2013

My Digital Studio: not just for scrapbooking

MDS: Not just for scrapbooking, perfect for PTO advertising!

Guess what?  My Digital Studio (MDS) is great for ALL kinds of projects! I wanted to share this poster (about 4 ft by 2 1/2 ft) that I created to advertise a recent PTO activity. It’s huge!  And it attracted lots of attention, which is the point of advertising.  I’ve actually used MDS for school projects loads of times.

The big orange frame came from the Fancy Frames Digital download (see it online here).  You’ll notice that it doesn’t include an orange frame.  No problem!  One of the fabulous features of the most recent MDS updates is that you can re-color an element.  So all I did was re-color the white frame from the download so that it matches our school colors.

For printing, I just exported my poster as a jpg, and then had it printed at a print shop on a large format printer.  For things that you can’t print at home, and that Stampin’ Up! doesn’t offer, it’s great that you can take your MDS creations anywhere.

Have you looked at My Digital Studio lately? There are a lot of great updates! Best of all, the cost for the software and content package is now only $19.95!

And if you have MDS purchased prior to August 2012, you can catch up to your friends who have already been all the new features.  And the cost is free!  The links to get those downloads are here on mydigitalstudio.net

Keep in mind that if you’re updating to the new software for free you’ll get all the super tools, but not the new content.  If you want the new content, I’d highly recommend just getting the $19.95 version, which will contain all the updated fabulous content.

And have you been using MDS?  Be sure you check the latest digital downloads!

Or looking for MDS project ideas? Here are a variety of MDS project ideas on my blog.

Or looking for some free MDS training?  Here are some free MDS tutorials from my blog that you might find helpful!

Happy Stamping!

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!


Apr 09 2013

Drumroll Please! And the winner is…

free stamp set drawing happy banner, created with My Digital Studio (MDS)

Thanks to all who placed orders on the Free Shipping Weekend!  The winners for my six $30 Shopping Spree Certificates are:

  • Elisabeth B. from Wisconsin
  • Marian K. from North Dakota
  • Emily R. from Indiana
  • Dawn H. from Wisconsin
  • Kathy L. from Arkansas
  • Margo H. from Illinois

Stampers, I’ll contact you for your orders!  Thanks so much, and congrats!

Remember that you can shop online in my store any time – and you’ll always be entered to win my Free Stamp Set of the Month Drawing, where you also get to pick your own stamp set from several selections!

Happy Stamping!

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!


Feb 26 2013

Ice Skating: Hazardous to your health?

Really?  Who takes pictures in the emergency room so that she’ll be able to scrapbook her broken leg?? Okay, it was me.  Last Monday I took my daughter ice skating and managed to fall and break my leg and destroy my ankle.

So I might as well get a few fun scrapbooking pages out of it, right?  This page was created from the Downtown Grunge Photobook Template (see it online – 126056) for My Digital Studio. (learn more about MDS)

All I did was move around a few photo frames (love that tape look with the frames) and add text boxes in a variety of fun fonts:

  • Warning – Bauhaus 93
  • ICE SKATING – Impact
  • can be hazardous to your health -Futura
  • (and to your favorite jeans) – Gabriola

And the scissors are from the Keep This Memory Designer Kit (129879 – see it online).  They add a nice touch and a fitting farewell to my favorite jeans!  Who knew that you wouldn’t be able to get jeans off once you had a cast put on??  Darn scissors…

Never fear, me and my crutches will be hobbling around for the next several weeks, but my fingers can still blog and my arms have a long reach at my craft table!

Happy Stamping!

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Feb 13 2013

Lego Minifig Valentines: You COLOR My World!

Preschool Valentine idea? Sure! How about Lego Valentines? I created this card for my son to take to school using My Digital Studio 2 (learn more about it) and a free font I found online – LegoThick.

We weren’t sure if his class party was candy-free, so crayons seemed like a great alternative treat.

It was simple to use MDS to create a block pattern (square punches stretched) and add the circles (Big Bold Birthday circle pattern digital stamp).  The white word blurb is the Round Bubble Punch, stretched to accommodate our greeting.

After the graphics were done, we got to work on our crayons!  When I was in Orlando last month for the Stampin’ Up! Leadership Conference (too much fun!), we stopped at Downtown Disney and I picked up a Lego ice cube tray from the Lego Store.

We didn’t use the ice cube tray for ice…we used it to make custom Lego minifig crayons!

A few tips for making your own Lego Minifigure Crayons from the ice cube mold:

  • We found that a sharp knife worked best for cutting the peeled crayons (thank you Pampered Chef!)
  • The crayons settled quite a bit so it helped to heap the crayon pieces on the mold
  • Our oven was set to 350 degrees
  • The crayons turned out most colorful when we didn’t melt them too long

My son is SO excited to share these with his class today!! Happy Valentine’s Day parties to all of you who don’t have school tomorrow!

If you already have your Valentines finished for this year, don’t despair!  These would be cute for a birthday party or any other seasonal treat.

Happy Stamping!

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Feb 12 2013

Bubblegum Valentine Idea: “Chews” Me?

Did you CHEWS your Valentine idea yet?  Are you looking for a cute bubblegum saying?

Here’s an idea for you!

My daughter and I created these for her class using My Digital Studio 2 (love it!).

We printed them at home, cut them out and attached them to tubes of gumballs.

Want to learn more about My Digital Studio?

Last week I posted a Family Banner project, complete with Video Tutorial.

My Digital Studio 2 (learn more about it) is a terrific tool for whatever you want to create!

Here are some other Valentine ideas & inspiration:

Another MDS tip for you — did you know that all the fonts on your computer will be available to you in MDS2?  The font I used for the “CHEWS” is called Party LET, and you can get it here!

Or try learning more about how I’ve used My Digital Studio for school projects, home decor, treats and more!

Happy Stamping!

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!

Sign up now for Stamps in the Mail Club!

Supplies for 4 projects — ready to stamp, delivered to your front door.

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Feb 08 2013

Make Your Own Family Valentine Banner

What says “love” more than family? I created a fun and simple banner using My Digital Studio 2 (learn more about it) and the Valentine Love Ensemble Download (see it now) from Stampin’ Up!.

The basic design work is already done for you with this sweet template.  It’s simple to add a few extra panels, photos of your family or friends, embellish with digital embellishments, then print at home!  Cut out, add a ribbon, and you’re set for a quick and fun memory project that will brighten your home!

Want to learn the details of the ‘how to’ on this project?  Good news!  I have an MDS with Meg Tutorial for you!

There are 3 lessons for this banner — you may find that you only need a few minutes of the first one if you’re an MDS user already.  If you’re new to MDS, you’ll probably like the detail in all the lessons.

(getting this feed via email? you’ll need to click to visit my blog to get the videos)

Looking for more tips?  Check out my other MDS with Meg Tutorials!

Happy Stamping!

To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!

Sign up now for Stamps in the Mail Club!

Supplies for 4 projects — ready to stamp, delivered to your front door.

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Jan 29 2013

Soda Pop Tops: It’s the DIY Bottlecap Jewelry Trend

Do you love the look of this trend?  It’s everywhere — these little medallions are popping up everywhere, and they’re amazingly simple to make at home as a DIY craft project.

You can use any bottlecap, but I’ve found that the Soda Pop Tops from Stampin’ Up! are really nice to work with — they smash easily and they have a great metallic finish.  (see them online – 129388).  They come as a package of 8 ‘regular’ sized ones (1″ circle punch will fit) and 8 little ones (1/2″ circle punch for the center) for $3.95.

I’m starting a “bottlecaps anonymous” group, in case anyone else needs to join me.  I think you qualify if you purchase more than 5 little boxes of these :)

They’re so easy!!  Here are the directions:

  1. Stamp or print image and punch with ¾” Circle Punch (see it online – 119873).
  2. Punch 1” Circle  (see it online – 119868) of First Edition Designer Paper.
  3. Run Soda Pop Top (see them online – 129388) through your Big Shot (see it online – 113439)  to flatten (no tabs, between two Cutting Plates)
  4. Use a thin layer of Crystal Effects clear glaze (see it online – 101055) to attach all layers and coat over top. Add rhinestone.
  5. Poke a little hole with your Piercing Tool, toss on a jump ring from the craft store, and add a strip of ribbon.

Okay, here’s where you’ll see the difference on these little treats.  It’s in the Tricks & Tips:

  • Having trouble with your image bleeding? To prevent this, stamp, punch and then press your circle into a VersaMark Ink Pad (see it online – 102283 ). Sprinkle with Clear Embossing Powder (see it online – 109130) and heat to melt.  No more bleeding!
  • Need a smaller monogram?  No problem!  I used Broadsheet Alphabet Digital Download (122159) on this one.  I added my letters into a project on My Digital Studio (learn more about this software) and then printed them so they’d fit in a 3/4″ Circle Punch.  Don’t have MDS?  NOT a problem!  You can get the Broadsheet Alphabet Digital Download and use it in ANY program… Microsoft Word, Photoshop Elements, etc.  And there’s no shipping on Digital Downloads, AND you get it right away — instantly  (see the download online).

Too much fun.  These make terrific crafty gifts, or a fun weekend or spring break project to do with kids.  You can even use the Circle Punches to cut out magazine photos or images that strike your fancy.  There’s pretty much no end to the creativity.

We’ve been making these this month at several of my events — at Stamp Club with Meg which meets here monthly, and also at our January Demonstrator Stamp & Share Event.  Don’t forget to let me know if you’re interested in learning more about all the fun we have as demonstrators!!

Oh, and yes, you can use these bottlecaps on cards or scrapbooking projects!  Click here to see some other ideas from my blog.

Happy Stamping!


To Order Stampin’ Up! Products On-Line 24/7, CLICK HERE!

Stamps: Broadsheet Alphabet (Digital Download); Paper: First Edition Specialty Designer Series Paper, Whisper White; Accessories: Big Shot, Soda Pop Tops, 1/8″ Taffeta Ribbon, Rhinestone Jewels, Crystal Effects;