Friday, November 30, 2012

Fiftieth Follower Freebie: A Special Treat For All My Followers

I have reached the 50th follower mark!  YEAH!!!!!!

To help celebrate this milestone,  I have a special treat reserved for those of you who have honoured me by signing up as a follower.  If your picture/name is listed over in the side bar as part of Google Friends Connect, email me with "DDD-50th follower" in the subject line and I will email you a special treat.

I'm so glad to have all 50 of you on board!


Here's looking forward to the next 50!

Until next time,

More Good News: I've won my first card challenge!

Woo Hoo!  I can't believe I won!  

I was chosen as the winner in the November card challenge over on the Avadares Challenge Blog.  Even if it is only a random draw, I still can't belive I won!  Thank you, thank you, thank you Mr. Inlink and of course Teresa and the gang over at Avadares!  I have won a generous £10 voucher from Crafty-Emblies which is a company in the UK that makes beautiful and unique wooden embellishments.   Not only do I win a great prize, I also get to post this lovely 'winner's badge' on my side bar.  


It's even more phenomenal because when I entered, there was less than 10 hours to go before the challenge closed.  For some reason, when I submitted my Christmas card to all the challenges about two weeks ago, I forgot about the Avadares blog.  Silly me, I know.  So when I was looking for challenges to enter my sunflower card into, I realized my blunder and set to rectify the situation immediately.  Lucky thing I did!

It's been an exciting week for me hasn't it?  First the DT announcement and now a win on a card challenge. 

Hmmm, they say things come in three...what other exciting news could be in store for me?

Until next time,


Thursday, November 29, 2012

So Very Thankful: Good News To Share

Today I'm so excited to share some FANTASTIC news with you.  In fact, if I was capable of it, I'd climb up and shout it from the rooftop.  Since that isn't possible, I'll just share it with all of you here on my blog.

Today I have one more thing in my life to add to my gratitude list.  I was asked to join a design team and after careful consideration to ensure that I would be able to keep the committment I would be making, I SAID YES!  So come February, I will be designing for the AWESOME Canadian company--Scribbles Designs owned by the super, fabulously talented, Sandy Sommerfeld.  I am truly honoured and so thankful to be chosen as one of the design team members.  I only hope that I do Sandy justice.

Today I want to show you the card I created using one of Sandy's freebies.  You can currently find it and information on the Design Team call over on Sandy's blog, Scribbles By Sandy or on the new Scribbles Designs Challenge Blog.  If you are interested in applying for a team member position, there is still time left.  Just head on over when you are done here and check out the details.  

So, in this edition of "Thursdays Are For Giving Thanks", my focus is on expressing gratitude for this amazing opportunity.  It is especially meaningful because this will be my first Design Team position.  Wish me luck!  I hope you will be joining us when the Scribbles Challenge Blog goes live.  Become a follower so you won't miss any of the action!


I decided to go with a clean and simple look for this card.  Sandy's sunflower design is so beautiful, I wanted to make sure it was the star of the show.  Copics include: Y13, Y15, Y17, E21, E23 and E25 (sunflower); G20, G29, YG61, YG63, YG67 (leaves and stems).  The sentiment, which fits perfectly, is from Hannalie over on Desert Diva.   The inside is stamped with a clear rubber stamp from the Stampendous Encouraging Words set using a Studio-G ink By leaving the inside void of any text, the card can be used for inspiration, dealing with difficulty or even for encouraging someone's dreams or expressing pride.


I'm afraid the colour quality of my scans aren't the greatest.  That is something else on my list of things to do--learn how to touch up pics for colour restoration.  Unfortunately, it is rather low on my priority list at the moment and will now have to wait until the new year to explore.  

I have entered this card into the following challenges: 
Thanks for stopping by and checking out my latest post. If you have the time before you go, I'd love to know one thing you are thankful for on this day.

Until next time,

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Nail Design: Pink Winter Frost

Since I'm still waiting for my 'comrades' to grow back, I figured I'd post a never before seen design from last year.  It is a winter theme in honour of our first real snowfall of the season.  The design is called 'Pink Winter Frost'.








Instructions:
  • Start with a clear base coat to protect the nails. 
  • Paint entire nail in a shiny light pink.
  • Add pink glitter as far down as you like. I've chosen to go about two-thirds of the way down.
  • Finish with 2 coats of a good quality top coat.
Easy peasy!

Until next time,

Monday, November 26, 2012

Follower Freebie 20: Warm Winter Wishes

It is bad enough when Blogger messes with me.  I spend more time trying to get the formatting I want to stick than anything else.  However, now my fonts have it out for me too!  When I tried to go in and create the sentiment I'm offereing in black as well, one of the fonts I had used was no longer available.  Now, it had existed previously because I have the png to prove it!  A gremlin must have gotten into my font folder because although it was still listed, it was no longer reading as a font file.  Very weird.  I didn't have enough to do. I had to uninstall the font, try and find it again and then reinstall it.  Things seem to be okay now but boy oh boy, I wanted to slap that font something good.
 
So finally, as promised last week, here is the sentiment that I used in my card for the November Designed 2 Delight Challenge.  This one will count as...

Follower Freebie #20:    In honour of 'morninglass' who became a follower on Oct. 31st.

I'm offering it up in the original colours I used in my card and also as a strictly black and white option.  Hope you can find a use for it.

P.S.  While the cups look cool grey here, they are actually a warm grey.

If you are interested in the font information I have included it below along with my other usual caveats.

Until next time, 
Fonts Used: 
Click the font name to take you to a download location.  The Mountains of Christmas font is considered free for commercial use and both the KR Coffee Love and Janda Sparkle and Shine fonts are free for personal use.  According to the download pages, 'personal use' typically refers to any use that is not meant to generate profit. So, I believe that I am safe in using them here in these designs and offering it to all of you.  (Pssst, in case you are looking for the clear coffee cup use the shift comma key.)

If you haven't already, please become familiar with my terms of use found in the copyright tab at the top of this page.  I have included a quick summary below.   If you are not sure how to copy the image, check out the download instructions page.  
  
Quick summary of Terms of Use:

  • Do not claim the image as your own.
  • Credit 'Decosse's Dynamite Doodles' somewhere on your creation
  • Do not share my images with family, friends, etc.  Additionally, do not post any images to file sharing services like Pinterest®, 4-Shared®, etc.  Instead, please direct people to my blog so they can grab the image for themselves.
  • If I have signed an image, do not delete my signature.
  • Leave a comment on my blog.  It is currently the only way for me to know if any of my freebies are being nabbed.  Additionally, it will help to inspire me to continue to create and offer future freebies.

Motivational Monday: November 26, 2012

Inspiration can come from the oddest sources.  My favourite episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer was on television late Friday night (go ahead laugh it up).  It is the musical episode called "Once More With Feeling".  There were two quotes towards the end of the episode that I thought would be perfect for Motivational Monday.  I am going to share one of them with you today.  The quote is "where there is life--there is hope".  Pretty profound for a science fiction show, wouldn't you say? 

Now actually, I didn’t take it for granted that the quote was original to the show so I went looking for the source.  Apparently, the expression originates in Ecclesiastes and is based on the Latin proverb “Dum vita est, spes est” --while there's life, there's hope.  However, where it comes from isn’t as important as the meaning it conveys.  While you still have a single breath left in you, then there is chance for change.  Today though, I am not focusing so much on the message of the quote but rather on where inspiration comes from. 

Inspiration can be found in many places.  It can come from our own imaginations or from the world around us.  You just have to start looking.  Our senses play a huge part in our inspirational journey.  We can be inspired by things that we see, things we hear, things that we touch.  We can even be inspired by the way something smells.  So if you are looking for inspiration, interact with the world around you.  You never know where your next idea may come from.

When you come across an idea, write it down.  I used to keep a journal where I would cut things out from magazines that inspired me to create.  These days I keep most everything in folders on my computer.  However you choose to store the ideas that encourage you, make it a system that works for your own lifestyle.  The more organized you are, the easier it will be to find the things that move you and get the creative juices flowing again when you are stuck for ideas.  

Inspiration is not just about helping us with our creativity though.  Sometimes, we need a little extra encouragement to help keep us motivated to get through the day, a project or another complexity we are facing in our lives.  During those situations, I find it best to turn more towards nature and the wonders of the world around you or to the thoughts and words from others (i.e. quotes).  It doesn’t matter what it is, just find something that you can grasp onto to help you navigate your way through the difficulties.

Whether it is in your personal life or your professional one, continue to look for things that inspire you to be better & do better every single day.  It won't be easy but nothing in life ever is.  You'll need to work at it.  Try an idea out, play around with the concept in different ways.  Sure, you'll probably be frustrated but that is part of the process.  You need to go down different alleys, knock on a few doors, and even get turned away until you finally come to your destination.  The key is to never stop trying.

So, where do you get your inspiration from?  I’d love to know.

Before I go, here is your motivational quote for this week.


If you are interested in the information used to create this sentiment, I have included it below along with my other usual caveats.

Until next time,
 

Clipart Information:
The graphic of the hands is a public domain image which can be found at Free Clipart Now. 

Fonts Used: 
Click the font name to take you to a download location.  The Brock Script font is considered free for commercial use and the Big Lou font is free for personal use.  According to 1001 Fonts, 'personal use' typically refers to any use that is not meant to generate profit. So, I believe that I am safe in using it here in these designs and offering it to all of you.

If you haven't already, please become familiar with my terms of use found in the copyright tab at the top of this page.  I have included a quick summary below.   If you are not sure how to copy the image, check out the download instructions page.  
  
Quick summary of Terms of Use:

  • Do not claim the image as your own.
  • Credit 'Decosse's Dynamite Doodles' somewhere on your creation
  • Do not share my images with family, friends, etc.  Additionally, do not post any images to file sharing services like Pinterest®, 4-Shared®, etc.  Instead, please direct people to my blog so they can grab the image for themselves.
  • If I have signed an image, do not delete my signature.
  • Leave a comment on my blog.  It is currently the only way for me to know if any of my freebies are being nabbed.  Additionally, it will help to inspire me to continue to create and offer future freebies. 
References:
Author Unknown. (2009). Latin Proverbs: Motivational Latin Proverbs. Available: http://latin-proverbs.com/phrases/while-there-is-life-there-is-hope. Last accessed 25th November 2012.

Author Unknown. (2012). while there is life there is hope. Available: http://www.answers.com/topic/while-there-s-life-there-s-hope. Last accessed 25th November 2012.

Meindl, Anthony . (2012). Where Does Inspiration Come From?. Available: http://www.dailyactor.com/2012/11/acting-advice-where-does-inspiration-come-from/. Last accessed 25th November 2012.

“Once More With Feeling”.  Buffy The Vampire Slayer.  UPN.  Much More Music, Toronto, ON. 23 November 2012. 

Rose, Gene. (2008). Where Does Inspiration Come From? . Available: http://governmentcommunicators.blogspot.ca/2008/04/where-does-inspiration-come-from.html. Last accessed 25th November 2012.

Xerri-Brooks, Sally. (2012). Where does inspiration come from?. Available: http://sallyxerribrooks.wordpress.com/2012/11/09/where-does-inspiration-come-from/. Last accessed 25th November 2012.

Sunday, November 25, 2012

Sunday Spotlight: November 25, 2012

Wow!  Can you believe it is exactly one month until Christmas?  I'm afraid to blink in case I miss it.  It is also just a little over a month since I started blogging.  My goodness, how time flies.  

Anyways it's time for the Sunday Spotlight. For those of you visiting for the first time, welcome to a special post where each Sunday I say a particular thank you to one of my readers acknowledging them for something thoughtful, inspiring, or mindful that they have said in one of their comments.  As a way of saying thanks, I will present this person with an advanced copy of a freebie that I promise, no one else will be able to get their hand on for at least three months and possibly longer.  Of course, given how far behind I am right now, it may take three months before they even get it themselves. 

So without further ado, the comment I'm highlighting this week belongs to:


 MICHELE FROM MS


who said:
What a fabulous idea! I agree with Sue and Naomi....you bring "fun" back  to blog reading with your comments. It's kind of like a good book you can't put down. You wanna know what's next!! I also agree with your friend Laurie....do not compare your work to others. I do the same exact  thing and feel sooooo inferior. BUT, I look back to things I created a year ago and see how much I have improved so that gives me the little boost to keep pushing forward and learning from those that I think are "better than me". Hope you have a great day Lisa ~~~ 
 
 Michele made my day when she said that I bring 'fun' back to blog reading and that my work is kind of like a good book you can't put down.  If that doesn't boost my ego I don't know what will.  However, the rest of what she had to say was just as important.  Michele really made me look inside myself and analyze some of my insecurities.

When we expose our talents and ultimately our heart to the world, we never know how we are going to be perceived.  Every time we showcase a card, a sketch, or offer a freebie, we are opening ourselves up to criticism from others.  Sometimes it is just easier to see our own work as being inferior so that when others knock us down we don’t have very far to fall.  This might be in part where my lack of self-confidence comes from.  Better to tear myself down before others do it.  It is comforting knowing that others have felt this exact same way at some point in their life.  So, I need to take Michele’s words to heart along with the others who keep telling me the same thing (you know who you are) and only use my own work as a measure of my success.  And you are right Michele, when I look at the very first card I created almost exactly a year ago to the date, I have come a long way indeed.
 

Honourable mentions include:
  •  Lisa, you are a joy and a delight! Although I was away from Blogger for much of the last couple weeks, your sunshiny love shone forth even when I  wasn't here. I couldn't resist dropping by before I flutter off to sleep... always remember that your work is lovely because it is created by YOU! :o) Hugs and blessings! -- Karen
  • So much good stuff here!!!! You do such a lovely job showcasing!!!! I will  drop back and visit these very talented women!!!  Thanks for making me laugh..I needed a good laugh..(teeny weeny crush on Colleen)  hehe!!! love it...  we are having a hop today if time is on your side and you just have to see the card I made for it..it is my favorite to date!!!!! eeeek -- Naomi
  • Lisa, I am beyond words!  You can't know how much I appreciate your kindness!  My son and I are so grateful for people like crafters who reach out with their hearts.  Everyone is so wonderful and we know that God will get us there, with the support of all of you wonderful crafters!  You all are in our hearts! --Sincerely Jessica and Eddie
  • I second what everyone above me is saying, Lisa.  You are uniquely "one of a kind" in our digital blogging world.  You have not only already inspired me with your "Dedication Monday's", now I see that you are now going above and beyond with more blessings each day.  To speak to us all  concerning one of fellow site, in relationship to what she is going through and encourage us all the help ... you are an angel sent from above in my book.  I will personally go to her site later today and do my part to help her.  Hugs always --Sue
Thank you ladies for your wonderful words of encouragement.

To all of you who left comments throughout the week, even if they were not acknowledged above, please know that I appreciate each and every one of them and each and every one of you!  Without your kind words, there wouldn't be much of an incentive to continue.

Until next time,



Saturday, November 24, 2012

Saturday Showcase: November 24, 2012

Hello peeps!  Hope you are all doing well and for my American readers I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with love and laughter--two of my favourite things in life.  For that matter, wherever you are in this world, I hope that your Thursday, your Friday and all your days are filled with the same wonderful qualities.  If they aren't currently, then I wish that they will be someday soon.  Now, let's get on with the showcase.

For those of you new to my little slice of bloggyland, each week I come across a lot of truly unique blogs featuring incredible freebies, remarkable card designs and great tips and techniques.  Consequently, I created a special Saturday post designed to showcase other artists' work (whether it be stamps, cards or otherwise), a blog post offering a great technique, or I might even just pick a whole blog to showcase.  The criteria I use is that it has to move me in some way (it makes me laugh or cry; awes, inspires or astounds me; etc). I believe that it is extremely important to support other artists within our creative community and this is my way of doing so.




My top picks for this week include...

CARD CHOICE
This wonderful card was designed by
  KAREN H.
Her blog is called

I came across this card a few weeks ago on my first vist to Karen's blog.  It is from her October 1st post aptly entitled, "In Everything...Give Thanks". I waited to post it until now because I wanted it to coincide with the American Thanksgiving weekend--appropriate since Karen is from Michigan.  I love the unique shape of this card.  I haven't tried doing shaped cards yet.  I'm a little nervous as to how it will turn out.  However, Karen makes it look easy.  I love her choice of colours which are very fall oriented.  My eyes are immediately drawn to the cluster of leaves.  Karen embossed the leaves and then added gold Stickles around the edge.  The resulting effect is stunning.  I also really like how she accented the frame of the card with rhinestones and I love her vision behind the choice.  She wanted to give the card "'a golden sunset appearance". She most definitely achieved this effect and what I was really taken with was how she herself, saw the embellishments "as harvest sunbeams from above".  I'll take a little descriptive prose on the side of my card viewing any day.  Of course, the quote says it all and fits in perfectly with my "Thursdays Are For Giving Thanks" post from earlier this week.  You will find all the details for this card in the link mentioned for Karen's post previously in this paragraph. If you are unfamiliar with her work, pay Karen a visit and check out her other unique designs.  For those of you who are also interested in baking, she features a 'Sweet Saturday' post filled with yummy treats and recipes (clicking on the blog name will take you straight to her blog).  
___________________________________________

FREE DIGITAL STAMP CHOICE
 This wonderful image was created by
  GINGER
Her blog is called
Ginger's House

I invite you all to stop by Ginger's House.  Well, not literally.  I'm not sure how she'd feel if 20 or 30 people showed up suddenly at her doorstep this afternoon.  I'm talking about stopping by her blog of the same name.  Although, at times it actually feels like you are sitting in her living room listening to her talk about her day or another adventure going on in her world.  Ginger has a very unique perspective on things and likes to share tidbits of her life with her readers.  Oh, and she has free word art too!  This is not your run of the mill wordart either.  I guarantee nobody has word art quite like Ginger.  She can make you laugh, cry, remember something special, really make you contemplate certain aspects of life and inspire you--and that is all in the same week!  I found the above quote when I was going through her archives and fell in love with it.  It is now on my list of daily mantra's and should be on everyone else's.  I feel a discourse coming on...but that is for another day.  The name of the post where I found this little gem is "I'm Playing Today".  Now unfortunately, the download link for this particular quote is no longer valid.  Ginger is hoping to be able to find it and repost it but there are no promises that she will be able to.  While the download link doesn't work you could still click on the image and then save the smaller png version of it.  Don't be discouraged though, there are so many other free images to choose from.  One of her most recent tidbits that touched me deeply was this one:
It is from the post entitled, "Go Vote By Two Moose Designs".  This is another unique phrase that really sings out to me.  As I mentioned in a recent post, my #1 mantra is 'Never Surrender'.  'Life is tough, but I am tougher' fits right along with this sentiment.  I personally, need to print this one out and post it somewhere I can see it.  If this wordart inspires you like it did me, I encourage you to go and get it for yourself.  If this one isn't relevant to your life, I promise that when you visit Ginger's blog you will find one that is.  I assure you, the time spent looking through her designs will be time well spent (clicking on the blog name will take you straight to her blog).
____________________________________________

Finally, that  brings me to the...
 This is a special category highlighting 
a stamp for sale by another artist.
  This week that honour goes to...
This beautiful image was created by  
LYN NORTON
Her blog is called
  Her Etsy store is located HERE
This kit that includes this stamp is available for sale HERE

I came across this image in the post called "Freebie for the week of October 28th".  Now if you weren't lucky enough to get this as a freebie during that week, I'm afraid it is no longer available for free. But that is okay because this category is all about stamps for sale by someone in our community.  Considering that today is 'Small Business Saturday', it is even more important to go out and support the small online crafting businesses like Spectacular Printable and the other small stores I've highlighted during the last four weeks.

I came across this image at a time when I was looking for ideas for my mom and dad's 50th anniversary card.  Lyn and her husband were celebrating their 40th anniversary that week and so she had opted to move away from the fall images for a more romantic theme before heading into the Christmas images. The actual image is from a clip art set available in the Spectacular Printable Etsy Shop entitled "Fancy Heart Clip Art" (link above). I really like the intricate nature of the design and especially the transparent background which makes it great for printing out on all different colours of paper.
________________________________________________ 

Well, that is it for this week's edition of the Saturday Showcase.  Thanks to all the wonderful artists listed above for agreeing to allow me to showcase their work on my blog.  Don't be surprised to see their work listed here again in the future.  Though you never know, I may be contacting YOU next to showcase something incredible you've created.
 
Until next time,
Note:  
 *Thanks to Nikki from Limited Runs Stamps for creating my Saturday Showcase badge.

Thursday, November 22, 2012

Thursdays Are For Giving Thanks

I just want to take a moment to wish a Happy Thanksgiving to all my readers and friends south of the border.  We celebrated our Canadian Thanksgiving back at the beginning of October, so now its your turn.

Even though today is an American holiday, the concept of giving thanks is a universal one.  We all have something in our lives for which we can be grateful .  The list differs for each of us because we all live in our own unique part of the world.  


Personally, I am thankful for a wonderfully supportive husband, two amazing parents, other family and friends in my life and of course my remaining furbaby Marigold.  I am thankful for the many people I have met in this unique online community. I am grateful for the roof over our head, the car in our driveway and the fact that my husband has found part time employment--more importantly, that he likes the type of work he is doing.  I'm indebted for the clean air I am breathing, the clean water I have access to and the peace in our land.  I am thankful that for today my pain is manageable and that I am feeling up to sitting and getting some work done on the computer and that I don't have to rely on my wheelchair for getting around the house.  For this moment, I only need to use my canes.

Yes, today is a good day and my hope is that tomorrow will be a good one as well.  Unfortunately, there are many others out there who are not so lucky.  There are many people in our world who are in pain and suffering great hardship.  However, even if your circumstances are not the best, I hope that there is still something, even something very small, for which you are able to show your gratitude. 

The only thing we truly have power over in our lives is the way that we think.  Being grateful is a choice.  We can choose to show gratitude and take a more positive outlook on things or we can choose to continue to focus on the negative.  No, gratitude won't make the bad things we are facing go away, it just helps us to look at our lives a little differently.  For example, I can complain about how painful and difficult it is for me to sit, stand and walk unassisted or I can choose to be grateful that I still have the capacity to do all three regardless of how long or how far.  Under different circumstances I might be in my wheelchair permantly.  For today I'm grateful that I'm not.

Gratitude is not easy.  If you live in darkness it is difficult to see the light never mind try to grasp onto something that you are thankful for.  But I believe the end results will be worth the effort.  Everything important in life takes work.  Start off with coming up with one thing you are grateful for in your life right nowWe are only guaranteed the time we have today.  Worry about tomorrow, when it comes.  

I have decided that at least one Thursday a month I am going to design a post around the idea of gratitude.  Thursdays around here will be about giving thanks.  I might pose a question for you to think about, further explore the concept of why gratitude is important, or create a design based on appreciation.  Maybe, it will just be a quote for you to consider.  I'd love to hear some ideas about what you'd like to see covered in this topic.  Send me an email or leave me a comment.  For today, I'll just leave you with this food for thought.

So, what are you thankful for today?

If you are interested in the font information I have included it below along with my other usual caveats.

Until next time,




Fonts Used: 
Click the font name to take you to a download location.  The Scriptina Pro font is considered free for commercial use and Champagne & Limosines font is free for personal use.  According to Fontspace, 'personal use' typically refers to any use that is not meant to generate profit and covers graphic design for blogs. So, I believe that I am safe in using it here in these designs and offering it to all of you.

If you haven't already, please become familiar with my terms of use found in the copyright tab at the top of this page.  I have included a quick summary below.  
If you are not sure how to copy the image, check out the download instructions page.  
  
Quick summary of Terms of Use:
  • Do not claim the image as your own.
  • Credit 'Decosse's Dynamite Doodles' somewhere on your creation
  • Do not share my images with family, friends, etc.  Additionally, do not post any images to file sharing services like Pinterest®, 4-Shared®, etc.  Instead, please direct people to my blog so they can grab the image for themselves.
  • If I have signed an image, do not delete my signature.
  • Leave a comment on my blog.  It is currently the only way for me to know if any of my freebies are being nabbed.  Additionally, it will help to inspire me to continue to create and offer future freebies.