Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to you all! I hope you have had a wonderful day with family and/or friends.

Everyone should get at least one present on this day. So here is my Christmas gift to you...

 

This sentiment is in png format and published at 300 dpi. To grab it, click the download button to be taken to a download location. In the zip folder you will find a copy of the sentiment, its preview sheet, the credit information and my terms of use which are standard to all my folders.

Stay tuned as later this evening I have something special planned for all of you who enjoy treasure hunts. The fourth annual edition of The 12 Days of Christmas starts--Each day for 12 days, you can earn a free holiday themed digi paper by doing a simple task. So, I'll see you all again soon! Although given the time right now (8:30 pm), and the fact that I still need to eat supper, I suspect it might be closer to Boxing Day than Christmas Day when I get it posted!

Happy holidays all!

Ahoy Mateys! It Be Talk Like a Pirate Day!

 

Ahoy mateys, will ye drop anchor and stay with me fer a bit? 'Tis that time o' year where ye flap yer jaws like a buccaneer! Arrr, indeed, today be Talk Like a Pirate Day. Thar be parrrrties, fund-raisers, pub crawls, and other special events takin' place all over th' world today.

Fer thems o' ye who be unawares o' this unique occasion, it starrrrted out as a fun concept in 1995, encourrrragin' people t' talk like a pirate. It be created by John Baur (Ol' Chumbucket) and Mark Summers (Cap'n Slappy), hailin' from th' state o' Oregon in th' U.S. Accorrrrdin' t' Summers, th' day be invented as th' result o' a sports injury. While th' two mateys be playin' racquetball, one o' thems reacted t' th' pain with an outburst o' "Aaarrr!", and th' idea be born. Thems two scallywags sent a letter about thar invented holiday t' th' American syndicated humor columnist Dave Barry in 2002. This chap be likin' th' idea so much he promoted it. Th' media grabbed hold o' th' holiday after Barry's column and it now be an international event followed by many each year on September 19th.

T' help celebrate this glorious day wit' a bit 'o swag, I be givin' ye fer free some treasure. This time 'round I thought some actual pirate words be fun…

T' be grabbin' 'tis treasure, click on th' button above t' be taken t' a download location. In th' zip folder ye will find a copy of th' treasure, its preview sheet, th' credit information and me terms o' use which are standard t' all me folders. This treasure be in png format and published at 300 dpi.

Now o' course I can't be sendn' ye along yer way wit'out a pirate joke or two:

Q: Why don’t pirates shower before they walk the plank?
A: Because they’ll just wash up on shore later.

Q: How much did the pirate pay for his piercings?
A: A buck-an-ear.

Oh, and if ye be interested in findin' out more fun facts about 'tis fun day, be sure t' check out th' official Talk Like a Pirate website available HERE.

Until I be sailin' these fair seas again,

Note about me pirate name...
Passion be a big part of me life, which makes sense fer a pirate. Even though I not always be th' traditional swaggerin' gallant, me steadiness and plannin' make me a fine, reliable pirate. Arrr!

If ye be wantn' yer own pirate name, be cerrrrtain t' click HERE.

References:
Baur, John and Mark Summers. (2002-2014). FAQ. Available: http://www.talklikeapirate.com/faq.html. Last accessed 18th September 2014.
Author Unknown. (N.D.). International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Available: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Talk_Like_a_Pirate_Day. Last accessed 18th September 2014

I'm Sponsoring...The Outlawz Challenge Blog

Time for another sponsorship and this one is over at the Outlawz Challenge Blog.   

While you do have to sign in over at Outlawz, it is free to be a member and there is a different challenge every day of the week to keep you busy.  Every Monday it is the Greeting Cards Challenge.  That is the one that I am sponsoring this week.  The rules of the challenge are that your project must have a greeting/sentiment on the outside and you must follow the theme--this week it is Anything Goes.  The weekly winner is announced at the beginning of the following week and the prizes are awarded monthly.
 
Since the challenge is wide open I have allowed members to use any of the designs from my Preview Page.  

Winners will get their choice of one of my actual full kits OR a combination of other choices (a total of 30 papers: i.e. two sets of twelve + one set of six; or five sets of six; OR a total of 24 papers and two sentiment sets; or six sentiment sets [not part of an existing kit]).  

With Valentine's Day fast approaching I've decided to offer up one of my 'love related' sentiments as incentive for joining the challenge...

To grab it, click the download button to be taken to a download location.  In the zip folder you will find a copy of the paper, its preview sheet, the credit information and my terms of use which are standard to all my folders. 

You can find out all the details you need to enter the challenge over at the Outlawz Challenge Blog.  To head there now, click HERE but don't forget you need sign in to play.  I hope to see some of you there!  

Until next time,

Card Design: Path of Positivity #32 Midway--Gratefulness

Hello!  I realize it has been a while since I've been able to participate in this challenge but I had a chance to create for this month's midway for The Path of Positivity Challenge; so, I'm here to share my card along with the freebies from this month's challenge as well, which you can find at the bottom of this post.  Don't forget, even if I don't show them here, you can always find two new free sentiments each month, always on the first and third Mondays of the month over on The Path of Positivity Challenge; so, be sure to check in over there.  I'd love for you to join in our challenges as well.  While the themes are different from your average challenge themes, just giving them a little bit of thought can often help you to figure out how a particular project you have, may apply to the theme.

The theme this month is Gratefulness.  There is so much to be grateful for in our lives.  Even when things are difficult and you are not feeling all that thankful, there is always something, even if it is something small, that you can be grateful for.  Is there someone that you should be saying thanks to or maybe you could simply share the general sentiment of gratitude.  It is the perfect season to be expressing gratitude especially for those of you living in the US with Thanksgiving approaching at the end of the month.

This month our sponsors are...

Scribbles Designs...

and Kitten Scraps...

Since I'm on the Scribbles Designs Design Team, I opted to work with an image from a designer I've never worked with before. Kitten Scraps is a company that is new to the Path of Positivity family.  Nathalie, the owner specializes in Digital Scrapbooking kits.  In fact, it turns out that Nathalie lives less than 2 hours away from where I do in Sudbury, residing in North Bay, Ontario.  Small world eh?!

Anyway, with the theme this month being one of gratitude I thought it was the perfect time to create my hubs' Christmas card.  I am truly grateful for this amazing man in my life.  He is always supportive and there for me no matter what.  I need to start thanking him more often for being the incredible man that he is.  

The Kitten Scraps store had the perfect set for me to work with.  The hubs' (and I as well) just love penguins.  In fact, our small bathroom on the main floor is decorated in penguins.  So, when I saw this set, I knew it was perfect for his Christmas card.  The cute little character I used certainly puts a big smile on my face and I hope it will for him as well.

Here is a link to the kit that I worked with called: Winter's Playground Bundle...

This bundle is filled with lots of fabulous goodies.  To find this bundle in the Kitten Scraps store, please click on the watermark or name above. To find out more about which specific items I used, see below.

General info:

• This card was created 100% digitally and then layered in a poster mockup.  I will print it out and assemble it a later date.
• Other than the sentiments, the cloud pattern and a couple layer styles, everything I used is exclusively from the Winter's Playground Bundle.
• This card has been inspired by a sketch from I saw over at All Dressed Up Challenges. 

FRONT

Digital Image and Elements Details:

• As mentioned above, the main image (skating penguin) and elements (snowflakes, snowballs, buttons, button thread, heart gem, frame), are all included in the Winter's Playground Bundle, available from Kitten Scraps.  I believe that each of these items is available in the smaller Winter's Playground Kit, if you don't want the full bundle. Click on the watermark below to find its location in the store.

• I took one of the snowballs, cut it in half and enlarged it in order to serve as an ice pond for the penguin to skate on.  I then added a snowy background using a layer style courtesy of Designercow, Photoshop Layer Style. Then I added the snowball trio image and then added three other snowballs making them different sizes.
• Clouds pattern used in behind penguin courtesy of Webtreats, Etc.

Digital Sentiment Details:

• One I created for the start of the challenge.  You can find it below.  I simply recoloured it for the purposes of this card so it would match.
  

INSIDE

Digital Sentiment Details:

• One I created for the inside of the card, made to match the one used on the front.
  

OVERALL

Digital Paper Products: 

• I have used two patterned digital papers and two solid ones, all from the Winter's Playground Bundle.  You can purchase these paper kits separately if you would like by clicking on the watermarks below.

Digital Embellishment Details: 

• The shapes used for matting in behind the sentiments are simple shapes created in Photoshop Elements and paper pieced with solid papers from the Winter's Playground kit.
• The shadows to give each element some depth were created with a layer style from Sheila Reid, Pixel Scrapper. 

Other Notes: 

• The poster mockup that I used to display the card in is from Design Bolts.

 

Challenges I am hoping to enter... 

***Please note that if the word verification appears, ignore it and simply click the 'publish' button**  

• http://www.wordartwednesday.blogspot.ca/ (5E)-- Anything Goes
• http://creativefingerschallengeblog.blogspot.co.uk/ -- Anything Goes
• http://inspirationdestinationchallengeblog.blogspot.ca/ -- Always Anything Goes
• http://www.craftyourpassionchallenges.blogspot.ca/ (3E) -- Always Anything Goes
• http://ttcrd.blogspot.ca/ (2E) -- Always Anything Goes (1st entry)
• Avenue 613 -- Anything Goes with optional twist
• http://craftingfromtheheartchallengeblog.blogspot.ca/ -- Anything Goes
• http://kraftinkimmiestamps.blogspot.ca/ -- Wonderful Wednesdays:  Anything Goes
• http://yourscrapbookplace.blogspot.ca/ (3E) -- Always Anything Goes 
• http://artimpressionsstamps.blogspot.ca/ -- Christmas Creation
• http://simplycreatetoo.blogspot.ca/ -- Give Thanks
• http://cagichallenge.blogspot.ca/ -- Winter Holiday
• http://www.aaacards.blogspot.co.uk/ -- Thanksgiving or Thanks (I've gone with the 'thankful/grateful aspect of the challenge)
• http://classycardsnsuch.blogspot.com -- Thankful
• http://onestitchatatimechallenge.blogspot.ca/ -- Giving Thanks 
• http://christmascardchallenges.blogspot.ca/ -- Photo Inspiration or Anything Goes:  Christmas
• http://craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge2.blogspot.co.uk/ -- Anything Goes:  Christmas
• http://crimbo-crackers.blogspot.ca/-- Kraft OR Buttons or Both! (I have gone with the buttons portion)
• http://abcchristmaschallenge.blogspot.ca/ -- W is for Wild Thing (Penguins are wild right?!)

__________________________________________________________________________________ 

Finally, that brings me to a couple of freebies.  The first was offered up at the challenge start and the second was just offered up today during this week's midway...

© 2015

Font Information:

• TrendHM-Ornaments font created by LatinoType
• Cookie font created by Ania Kruk
• Beffle font created by David Rakowski

© 2015

Elements:
I have used a few existing design elements from Lisa Glanz (lisaglanz.com), in the creation of this sentiment.  These elements were purchased with a commercial use licence as part of a bundle through Design Cuts (www.designcuts.com).
 
Font Information:

• Labyrinth NF font created by Nick Curtis
• Corben font created by New Typography

Please be sure to click on the images to bring them up into the lightbox in their proper size before saving them.  Click on the font name to take you to a download location.  The first font in the list was purchased as part of a bundle with extended licensing and as such may be used for commercial purposes.  While the bundle is no longer available, the font can be purchased through the original designer.  The next three fonts were free and listed for commercial use at the time of these creations.  As such, it is my understanding, that I am within my rights to use these fonts in my creations and offer them to others.  Please refer to my full terms of service for what you can and cannot do with this digital creation.

These word art creations are in png format and published at 300 ppi. They are quite large in order to accommodate different programs that people work with.   If you are a card maker you can always resize them smaller without distorting the quality.   

Credit Notes For These Creations:
© Lisa L. Décosse. PUO. However, you are allowed to use the sentiments on handmade projects that you intend to sell on a small scale basis provided credit is given. You also need to include a credit note and a link to this blog should you use any of my images in your creations and post them on your blog. Please be sure to familiarize yourself with my full terms of use found in the 'Download Instructions & T.O.U.' tab at the top of this page. Of important note:  Please do not share my images with family, friends, etc. Additionally, do not post any images to file sharing services like Box®, 4-Shared®, etc. Instead, please direct people to my blog(s) so they can grab the image for themselves. If you would like to post a watermarked version of the image, please contact me to obtain one.

_______________________________________________________________

 I invite you to go and check out, not only, the fabulous creations some members of my Design Team had the opportunity to create over on the Path of Positivity (click HERE for the midway) but also some of the great entries into this month's challenge (click HERE for the challenge).  I also invite you to come over and enter a project yourself, if you haven't already.  With so many reasons to be grateful, what is stopping you from entering?  Spread the gratitude and thanksgiving wishes around.

Well, that is it for this one!  See you soon!!!  

Until then,

I'm Sponsoring...The Creative Moments Challenge Blog

It is time to announce my latest sponsorship!  This is the second challenge this year I've sponsored for the fabulous Creative Moments Challenge Blog.  It is a delight to be able to do so again! 

The current challenge starts today and the theme is Anything Goes, Use a Sentiment or Quote.  The challenge is approx. two weeks long and ends on September 15th; so, that gives you lots of time to participate.  Since this challenge was wide open, I decided to let the team choose whatever they wanted to work with from the selection of designs available on my preview page.  I can't wait to see what they came up with!
 
For the prize, I have decided that the winner can choose FIVE different sentiment sets from the Sentiment Kits portion of my Design Preview Page.

I hope that you'll consider playing along in their challenge.  To help provide some incentive, I am offering up one of the sentiments from this section as a freebie.  Since most children are headed back to school this month, I figured this one would be a good one to offer...

To grab this sentiment click on the download link above to be taken to a download location.  In the zip folder you will find a copy of the sentiment, its preview sheet, the credit information and my terms of use which are standard to all my folders.  This creation is in png format and published at 300 dpi.   

You can find out all the details you need to enter the challenge over at the Creative Moments Challenge Blog.  To head to the main challenge blog, click HERE.

Until next time,

Card Design: Path of Positivity #29 Midway--Opportunity

Hello everyone!  It is time to show you the creation I made for the midway of The Path of Positivity Challenge.  I'll also be sharing the freebies from this month's challenge as well, which you can find at the bottom of the post.

The theme this month is Opportunity.  Like I mentioned at the start of the challenge over on the PoP blog, We are given so many opportunities in our life and it is up to us to figure out which ones we should hold on to and which ones we should let go of.  Even when things are difficult, opportunity still exists--we just have to look a little harder to find it.  Is there someone you know that needs a little encouragement to seek out their dreams and goals so they can climb the ladder to success?  Or maybe someone in your life needs a little reminder that life is all about taking chances.  You could even create a birthday card as my team member and good friend Desíre did, adhering to the idea that every birthday holds the possibility of wonderful opportunities for the year to come.

This month our sponsors are...

Oddball Art Co....

and Deedee's Digis...

Next up, is the card I made using an image from Deedee's Digis...

The quote I created for the start of the challenge states, "In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity".  Even when we are going through great difficulties in our lives, it is important to hang on and see that there is opportunity to be had.  As such I've created this card to share with one of my friends who is currently in a bad place in her life. 

General Info: 

• This card was created 100% digitally and then layered in a poster mockup.  It is my intention to print it out and assemble it at a later date.
• This particular layout was inspired by a From the Hearts Stamps Sketch.  

FRONT

Digital Image Details:

• Hang in There:  This wonderful image was perfect for the sentiment of my card.  Click on the watermark below to find it in the Deedee's Digis store.
  

Digital Embellishments:

• I used washi tape templates from Marisa Lerin, Pixel Scrapper, and paper pieced them with papers from my Mommy Dearest set (details below).

Digital Sentiment Details:

• One I created for the start of the Opportunity challenge.  You can find it below.

INSIDE

Digital Sentiment Details: 

• This great sentiment was created by Paulette from Create with TLC.  I picked it up as a freebie a while back.  For more great freebies, click HERE to go to Paulette's blog and to purchase some wonderful sets, click HERE to go to the store.

OVERALL
Digital Embellishments: 

• The shapes used for matting in behind the image and sentiment are simple shapes created in Photoshop Elements.
• The shadows to give each element some depth were created with a layer style, from Sheila Reid also with Pixel Scrapper.  

Digital Paper Products: 

• The  paper used as a base is from my Mommy Dearest:  Patterned Papers Kit.  The two accent papers used in the washi tape are from the Mommy Dearest:  Textured Papers Kit. 

Other Notes: 

• The poster mockup that I used to display the card is from Design Bolts.

 Challenges I am hoping to enter:

• http://www.wordartwednesday.blogspot.ca/ (5E)-- Always Anything Goes 
• http://yourscrapbookplace.blogspot.ca/ -- Anything Goes (2nd entry)
• http://craftingfromtheheartchallengeblog.blogspot.ca/ -- Anything Goes
• http://www.craftyourpassionchallenges.blogspot.com/ -- Anything Goes 
• http://lovetoscrapchallengeblog.blogspot.co.uk/ -- Anything Goes 
• http://simplypapercraftsforalloccassions.blogspot.co.uk/ (3E)-- Always Anything Goes 
• http://crafting-with-friends.blogspot.co.uk/(3E)-- Always Anything Goes (1st entry)
   __________________________________________________________________________________________________ 

Finally, that brings me to a couple of freebies.  The first was offered up at the challenge start and the second was just offered up today during the midway...

© 2015

Font Information:

• Speedball No 3 font created by Nick's Fonts
• Dollar Bill font created by Twicolabs

Both of these fonts were listed for commercial use at the time of this creation.  

© 2015

Font Information:

• Classy Pirate font created by Design TNT
• Kathya Script font created by Seniors Studio

Please note that the first font listed may be a limited time freebie but was listed for commercial use at the time I downloaded it.   The second font was purchased as part of a limited time bundle with a commercial use license but may be purchased from the designer by clicking on the link above.

Please be sure to click on the images to bring them up into the lightbox in their proper size before saving them.  It is my understanding, that I am within my rights to use these fonts in my creations and offer them to others.  Please refer to my full terms of service for what you can and cannot do with this digital creation.

These word art creations are in png format and published at 300 ppi. They are quite large in order to accommodate different programs that people work with.   If you are a card maker you can always resize them smaller without distorting the quality.   

Credit Notes For These Creations:
© Lisa L. Décosse. PUO. However, you are allowed to use the sentiments on handmade projects that you intend to sell on a small scale basis provided credit is given. You also need to include a credit note and a link to this blog should you use any of my images in your creations and post them on your blog. Please be sure to familiarize yourself with my full terms of use found in the 'Download Instructions & T.O.U.' tab at the top of this page. Of important note:  Please do not share my images with family, friends, etc. Additionally, do not post any images to file sharing services like Box®, 4-Shared®, etc. Instead, please direct people to my blog(s) so they can grab the image for themselves. If you would like to post a watermarked version of the image, please contact me to obtain one.

_________________________________________________________________________

 I invite you to go and check out, not only, the fabulous creations some members of my Design Team had the opportunity to create over on the Path of Positivity (click HERE for the midway) but also some of the great entries into this month's challenge (click HERE for the challenge).  I also invite you to come over and enter a project yourself, if you haven't already.  There are still three weeks left to enter. The concept of opportunity provides you with the chance to explore a number of different avenues.  We look forward to seeing your interpretation on this month's theme. 
Well, that is it for this one!

Until next time,