A Winner!! New Ideas & Finished Designs!!

                  Look what came in the mail!!! A GINORMOUS thank you to Anna from...

who came to my rescue and  was so kind to send my son an old school gameboy when I was having trouble finding one for him!! Despite LOVING new tech stuff, my son prefers the old school games. This pic is just for you... hahaha!!! After 5 hours in the car, he still posed for a picture!!

Thank you to everyone who participated in my mini Pizza giveaway!! There were some fun combinations!!  The winner is......

Congratulations to "V" from...

I actually think that a salad pizza would be delicious!!!

Onto more pressing matters... My kids are coming home today after being gone for  two weeks & I am trying to get this post finished before they run through the door!!! I am so excited to see them both!!

I have been working hard to finish the last couple custom blog designs up before I take my break, but I had a sudden creative window open up yesterday in between design approvals & I SNATCHED it right up!! I left my digital bliss... and opted to get my hands a little dirty instead... Here is a little snapshot of how I work most days. HAHAHA... Look how cute my little ipad looks next to my Cintiq!!! And yes, that is a stopwatch bookmark under the screen. I used them while I taught Kindergarten and now I use them to pace myself.. (but that is a post for another day)..

I got out my sketchbook, some pencils, my favorite eraser and I let my hands create what my brain was inventing... here is a peek.... I used about 20 pages from my sketchbook & I am so excited to get these digitized!! I did not have any one theme I was going for, I would just start sketching whatever popped into my brain....

It has been a really long time since I created something completely for my own enjoyment (as opposed to a request of some sort) and I had a lot of fun. I have a few freebies and a bunch of new sets coming your way!!

I would also like to share with you some of the designs I have recently finished...

Let me tell you a little about this design before I show you another. I had a lot of fun with this design!!
Laura is such a sweetheart to work with and she allowed me complete control over the creative process of the design. She gave me a few colors and style preferences to start with, but allowed me be completely free with the design. It was such a nice change of pace..as the design process can often be very demanding and time consuming. Before I showed her the result, I thought to myself.. well, if she doesn't like it, then I will use the design for my own blog... hahaha..

To my sadness, she LOVED it..hahaha.... I was actually so relieved and excited that she loved the design and the color choices. I always get so nervous when I send over a design preview. I spend hours one each element and having to change the design is often heart-breaking....but the end result is always stunning!!

Laura is someone that I connected with on my Facebook Fanpage and there is just something about her that I am completely drawn to!!

Thank you Laura for allowing me the honor of designing your blog - I just LOVE you to pieces!!

Click the image to visit Laura's Blog...


This next design was for someone very special as well!!! Linda and I connected through blogging and even met (in person) at the Arizona Blog meet up in 2012!!  I cherish her friendship and I could not have been more nervous to design something she would love!! The design truly reminds me of her... so delicate and inviting!!

Thank you so much Linda for allowing me to take on the challenge of bringing your creative vision to life & for being such a true friend!!

I WISH that I could show you the ones I am working on now, but that would be rude of me to ruin the surprise!!! hahaha..

I will tell you that Lisa Mattes (from Growing Firsties) is one of the funniest darn ladies to work with and I LOVE how her vision is coming to life!!!

Here are some recent custom button designs I have completed. Have fun looking at the designs...

I won't overwhelm you by posting all of the buttons I have designed, but these are some really fun designs and you might even find a linky to join!! I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend!!!

WORK, but don't forget to LIVE & an Up for Grabs Pizza Fraction GIVEAWAY!!!

Happy Tuesday Everyone!!! I am writing today to tell you all that I will be taking some time away from custom orders.

Now that you are all done imagining throwing a pie in my face (lol), let me do a little "es-plaining"...

I am planning to take about 2 months to step back, re-group, and complete some projects that I have placed on the back burner for a  long time.

Don't get me wrong... I LOVE doing blog design and custom work; however, the demands can often be overwhelming for one person. I feel like I have neglected my family and my health and I don't seem to be moving  forward. Sometimes, I feel like everything else is moving... people, friends, kids, TIME... and I am only watching it all pass....

I recently came across this quote/typography art by Sean Wes & I decided to make this my screen saver... hahaha!

(Image Credit: https://seanwes.com/)

This does not mean that I will not be working!! HAHA.. FAT chance!! I will use this time to FINALLY... complete my website and work on some other projects that I have been wanting to do. I will also get time to post and read more blogs!! I MISS reading all of your blog posts!! I believe that stepping back for a bit will be good for me and good for all of you as well!! 

So, the custom order links and forms will be disabled for the time being... and I will let you know when I will be back open for requests... I am sure that will be a very busy day indeed...hahaha

I will continue to accept custom button orders just to appease your creative bursts!! hahaha I hope you are all not completely upset with me.... (-; I will be preparing for the back to school rush and I am sure you will be happy when I reveal some of the finished work from the ideas that have been floating in my head... ha! I can't wait to get started!!

Now for a few new things I was able to squeeze in before I ran into Norton/Windows conflicts, which by the way, had me down and out of operation for nearly 3 DAYS!!! After reading Norton forum after Norton forum....and finding NO solutions that actually made any sense at all....., I put my brain to work and figured out the problem myself...My solution will make for a GREAT Tech post I'm sure!!! But in the meantime, here is what I have been working on....

Please make sure to read the disclaimer in the image below.... hahaha

Grab these on

TPT

Etsy

If you're not hungry yet... the following images might just do the trick!! hahaha!! 

I decided to separate the pizza parts from the fractions for those of you who may not need the fractions. These sets took quite a bit of effort, but the pizza looks almost real enough to nibble on..haha

I am not a big pizza eater.... however, my favorite pizza includes a FOUR-CHEESE blend, pepperoni, and banana peppers!! hahaha...

UP 4 GRABS Pizza Fractions Giveaway!!! 

Keep reading...

Grab these on

TPT

Etsy

Bundle up & Save!!

Grab these on

TPT

Etsy

Grab these on

TPT

Etsy

Grab these on

TPT

Etsy

UP 4 GRABS Pizza Fractions Giveaway!!! 

For a chance to win ALL of the pizza graphics above...

1. Leave a comment below and include the most bizarre pizza combination you have either tried or heard of.

2. Pin one of the Pizza Previews above & Include the Pin URL in your comment

*Include your email address

A winner will be chosen this Friday, July 19th, 2013!!!

Good LUCK!!!! 

(I will use a random number generator to pick a winner)

And, I didn't forget all of you desert lovers!!!

Grab these on

TPT

Etsy

You can thank...

The Reading Olympians & Common Core & So Much More for their custom fraction requests for these (-;

This next set is something fun I decided to create... I call these "CHALKETS" Chalk-Themed Pockets!!!  HA!!

Grab these on...

TpT

Etsy

Have a wonderful week everyone!!!!

Must Have Mondays with Dots of Fun & a Freebie

Must Have Mondays

with

CLICK HERE

 let's have some Must have Monday fun... I teamed up with Tammy from Dots of Fun and I am offering a fun set for her "Must Have Monday" Giveaway!! Click on her button and enter to win my Create-a-Kit digital graphics set!!

Because the thought of the next school year is right around the corner and many of you spend much of your summer planning, I chose a set that everyone can enjoy (I hope so).

Here is my, Create-Your-Own kit for making attractive resource covers, notes, labels... or anything you can think of..ha! This kit includes 9 digital papers in fun school themed colors, a translucent overlay and a cute text frame in 7 coordinating colors.

Click HERE to see how this set can be used to create fun cover pages for your online products!!!

Thank you for visiting & good luck to the Winner!!!

Tickle Me Tech: How to Create Attractive Cover Pages for Your Teachers Pay Teachers Products

Hi Everyone!! It has been a while, but I am here to Tickle you all with some Tech Tips!!! I have created a simple tutorial for beginners wanting to learn how to create an attractive cover page for products created for a Teachers Pay Teachers shop!!

Click the image above to download this tutorial from my TpT shop!!

One of the most common techy questions I get (pertaining to clip art) is how to use digital papers, frames and clip art in a document to create digital products. People often ask me how to add text over backgrounds or frames, or how to layer frames. Sometimes, I do wonder about some of my buyers... the ones who purchase clip art and then send me an email asking me how to use clip art. Many times, I have sat back in my chair thinking to myself how to even begin explaining this to someone. 

Me: Where do I begin?

My Brain: How should I know. Maybe you should start with a definition for clip art.

Me:Do they even have a computer?

My Brain: Probably in the classroom... and if there is one at home, chances are  - it is ancient!!

Me: Why does one purchase clip art without first knowing what it is for?

My Brain: Who cares... it's a sale - WOo HOo!! 

Haha!!

Well, after much debating with my brain, I finally came up with the perfect solution!!

I call it: Tickle Me Tech and it's my newest Tech series that will cover everything I know from the very basics to the most advanced. I am working very hard to put more tutorials together and I would eventually like to create a collection that can be downloaded in one zipped file. I even created a cute logo for the series. I came up with the name because I always feel "tickled" with joy whenever I learn something new and techy. I also know how excited many of you get when you learn something new pertaining to technology and the only word to describe this sort of happiness is, tickled!!! 

At this point, I will be posting a new "tickle" once a month...that is...unless time miraculously decides to be my best friend. Lately, time feels more like an ex husband than a friend, but only time will tell what will happen in the future..hahaha. 

 Instead of cluttering a blog post with images no one can read, I am linking the image above to my TpT shop, where you can download the tutorial and read it when you are ready. 

I really do hope this tutorial is helpful to many of you in the beginning stages of building your online Teachers Pay Teacher Shops!! For those of you who are more advanced, please feel free to bookmark or better yet, PIN this tutorial to keep as a tool and reference for beginners you know.

I really love blessing all of you by sharing my knowledge and offering free resources and clip art. I put just as much time into my free resources as I do for those I put up for sale. I am always blessed by your feedback and I love hearing about what you create. Please continue leaving feedback and pinning anything and everything - those little efforts make a tremendous difference & I can use all the help I can get.

And another crazy thought.... I was looking at some stats today and I jumped for joy when I realized that nearly 100,000 people have downloaded my FREE Frames and Borders set on TpT!! That is Crazy Talk!!!! Then I quickly realized that not even a quarter of that number chose to follow my shop...

Sadness and a vanilla cone!!!

I think following someones store should be a requirement when getting a freebie; however, TpT works on an honors system.... hint.. hint....

SO...If you love the RAD and Awesome FREEBIES, please make sure to follow my shop.... it is just rude not to..hahaha!!! I never grab a freebie without following...I believe it is the best complement and appreciation I can give in return to the seller.

Have an AWESOME WEEK everyone!!!!

Here is a free background I created for this tutorial.. Feel free to grab this freebie, but please make sure to link this image back to my blog whenever you use it. You can read my Terms of Use for more copyright information. 

Commercial Use Okay

The digital papers and frames used to create this tutorial and free product cover are available in my shop. This Kit will be marked down 50% this week only!!! Click the image below to grab this set.