I'll be mailing boxes to...

It is a rainy and gloomy day here.  I made it to the airport in plenty of time but the drive was not fun!  I was excited to get home and do the drawing to find out who would be receiving these boxes.  (My husband will probably be glad to see the boxes leave the "nap sofa" in the sun room too!).  I don't know what the weather is like where the winners live but I think the news will bring a bit of sunshine to their day if the weather is as unpleasant as it is here!

I was touched and humbled to read all of the nice things people wrote about my blog (I think they weren't just doing that to try to win since it was a random draw!).  I did not post anything about this celebration on any message boards because I wanted the winners to be people who are regular visitors - I wasn't doing this to try to "attract" people to my blog.  It was great to celebrate with you all and to share some fun.  I want the people who find my blog and continue to visit it to be here because they want to learn and to participate in my creative journey - not because they think they will get prizes.  That said, I have been fortunate to work with various companies who ask me to review products or serve on Design Teams and I will continue to have some giveaways that are sponsored by companies.  I will only work with a company if I truly like their product and think it is something my readers would find beautiful or useful.

More Discussions...

It was very nice to feel a bit more involved with the people who read my blog by seeing the answers to the questions.  I enjoyed it so much that I have decided to start a weekly "discussion day" where I will post a topic and hope that many of you will reply with your thoughts.  A long time ago I started a Capadia Designs forum page but I didn't pursue it.  I have a few new projects taking shape and depending on how they work out, I may revisit that idea.  I have had a few meetings so far that look very promising so watch this space...

More Boxes...

A lot of you enjoyed the suspense of seeing what would be added to the box next.  I can't fill and ship three boxes every month but I have decided to have an open box in my craft room and add to it as I do projects or see something I think my readers will like.  I'll have a link where you can see what is in the box for the month and then I will randomly pick a reader who has commented sometime during the month.  I think that will be fun and a little less busy than the past week has been...

And the lucky readers are...

So - that's enough of my ramblings - I know you are all here to see the names that were drawn.  Each of these people will receive one of the boxes...but I am not telling them which one!  I hope this will make it even more fun to receive the box.  If it turns out there is something in your box that just isn't right for you - please pay it forward and make someone else happy.  

Here are the three lucky readers...

Luria

KTbirdiegirl

and...

Granny Charlotte

Please send me your mailing information as quickly as possible - I'd like to send these boxes out tomorrow or Friday, before I leave to go see our son's Senior Project music performance.  I had email addresses for two of you and a blog address for the third (where I could leave a comment) so it will be easy to get back in touch with me.  Please send the mailing information to me at capadiadesigns@gmail.com - don't post your details in a comment on the blog to maintain privacy.

Thanks to everyone for a fun-filled week.  I am looking forward to continuing our discussions.  I will also try to cover some of the topics that were suggested in future posts.

See you in the morning!

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Design Team Call and Creative Memories digital content sale

Good morning and Happy Wednesday!  Later today I will have the names of the three people who will be receiving the boxes.  The deadline for comments was midnight Pacific time on Tuesday.  I am three hours ahead on the East Coast so that was 3:00 a.m. for me.   I had to get some sleep so I could drive to the airport this morning.  

I really enjoyed all of the interaction here and on the Facebook page and I have read every single comment that has come through.  I have had family here visiting (sorry to see them leaving already) and I need a bit of time to regroup and catch up on other projects.  In the next few days I will try to put together a summary and explain how I would like to keep the discussions going.  I am so happy to share these boxes and only wish I had enough to send one to everyone.  Keep your fingers crossed and think good "random" thoughts!

The image at the top of this post is something I created starting from this photo that I took at an indoor flower show.  Just a bit of digital doodling!  I enjoy altering my photos and making new designs with them.  I use the Creative Memories StoryBook Creator Plus 3.0 software to do this.

SALE  - With my attention focused on the Blog Celebration for the past week, I nearly missed this sale.  If you use StoryBook Creator Plus 3.0 there is a sale on some digital content ending today (April 13th).  It is called the Mother's Day Digital Artwork Sale, however, there are a lot of items that are not specific to Mother's Day. You can find the digital items that are on sale HERE.

Dollar Days are also still in effect at Lettering Delights and they keep adding more content to the site.  You can click the image above or the affiliate link in the left side column to go to the Lettering Delights site and shop for some great images, digital papers and fonts.

Many of you have commented to say how much you like the Creative Charms embellishments that I use and write about.  Here is some exciting news - you can apply to join the Design Team for Creative Charms.  Here is all of the information...

Creative Charms Design Team Call

Monday, April 11 – Sunday, April 17

Creative Charms is an embellishment manufacturing company and we are looking for a designers to add to our design team. We are looking for several people who are passionate and excited about sharing their ideas and creativity. The designers we are looking for are in at least one of these categories: scrapbooking, card making, and altered design.

The designers shall:

·         Post twice a month to the Creative Charms blog
·         Post to their own personal blog and Facebook any specials and giveaways
·         Contract for at least three months with an optional 3 month extension

Compensation of $30 of Creative Charms product each month with additional monetary compensation for publication in print magazines.

To apply please email the following to midori@creativecharms.com with the subject line Design Team.

·         Name
·         Address
·         Phone Number
·         Email Address
·         Blog Address
·         3 of your favorite projects
·         Design team experience (past and present)
·         List of projects that have been published

It would be fun if some of you joined me on the Design Team - so why not give the application a try?

Sorry to keep you in suspense - I'll post again to announce the winners later today.  I also have some new things to share from my shopping trip around the antiques and consignment stores in town.

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Color like a "Pro" - last day to join the celebration!

This week of celebration has been a lot of fun for me and, I hope it has been an exciting change for all of you as well.  I was so interested to read your comments and it seems that many of you enjoyed the chance to hear what other people thought about some of the question topics.  Today I am adding the final item(s) to the boxes and it will be the last day to leave comments for a chance to be chosen to receive one of the three boxes.  I'll cut off the time to reply at midnight today (April 12th) on the west coast (3 am Eastern Daylight time on April 13th - another "3" in the mix!).  I'll post the winners later in the day on Wednesday - I won't be able to figure it all out first thing in the morning and I need to drive to the airport so I won't be able to have the winners in the morning email (but I will post sometime on Wednesday)  If you are one of the winners I'll need you to email me with your mailing information as soon as possible.  Thanks!

We have family here visiting for a few days and I haven't been able to be on the computer as much as usual, however, the new smart phone is a big help for trying to keep up with email.  Thanks for all of the thoughtful and funny comments - and no, I wasn't put up to ask the question about collecting vs crafting by any of your husbands or significant others!  I am going to feel very lonely if you all stop commenting after the winners are drawn and I have a plan for a way to continue some discussions that I think you will like...

Today I am adding the last item - which is really 12 items (and one for good luck!).  Each box will have a set of 12 ProMarkers that were given to me by Letraset to help celebrate all of my milestones.  Two boxes will have the set pictured above with an extra fine liner pen inside and one box will have this set...

...in a plastic case with an extra blender pen.

Thanks to Letraset for providing these markers.  They recently sent me the full range of colors to work with.  Two of the sets are brand new and one of set is ever so slightly used (by me).  Instead of holding on to the extras as back up I thought it would be better to make the boxes relatively "even" and let the winners have a go with the markers.  I can't tell which of the two boxes was opened and used - they were only used a few times.  I think the markers will all last a long time.

I thought I'd list the contents of the boxes in one easy location to remind you what is inside..

Day 1 - Ciao Bella 12 x 12 stack

          Cricut Magazine (from Northridge Publishing)

Day 2 - Tipsy stylus in blue and matching lanyard (from Denise at Prime Global Enterprises)

              Glitter with glue stickers  K &  Company

              Blue photo/diecut storage folder

Day 3 - Creative Charms embellishment set - different in each box   one black and white, one vintage and one colorful (from Creative Charms)

Day 4 - Creative Memories paper album kits, Creative Memories mini tape runner, Creative Memories tin with sticker paper, letter stickers and pen

Day 5 - Martha Stewart Stamp Sets (one per box) 
Christmas Tree, Heart and Flower, Monogram and Frame
Three types of ribbon, glitter flowers, pink glitter dots and ladybugs

Day 6 -  Imagine printed papers (6 x 6) and sample print and cut images, imagine sunglasses, green apple tea light candle and IKEA bag (pink, blue or green)

Day 7 - set of 12 Promarkers (from Letraset)

Each box will also have a few more "secret" surprises from me - I want to be sure you have fun opening the box if you are one of the three random choices.

Instead of reposting the directions for the giveaway, I would ask that if you have just come upon this celebration week and want to start at the beginning you go to Wednesday's post HERE and work your way forward.  The rest of you already know how to play along!  You have to answer the question of the day by commenting on the blog and then you can leave an additional comment if you are a blog subscriber or follower and a third comment if you are a Facebook fan.

I know a lot of you don't use Facebook and I understand that choice.  For those of you who are on Facebook, please be sure that you "like" the Capadia Designs page (some of you are my "friend" but are not a fan on the Capadia Designs page and I don't want you to miss anything...don't worry - I plan to keep things posted on both the blog and the Facebook page so if you aren't on Facebook you won't miss much if anything.

I am still learning the technique of using the Promarkers.  Above is a wreath stamp from Hero Arts that I tried recently.  I wasn't sure how to handle the base green part and I added lots of colors - maybe too many... I am also trying out ways to use the markers for projects other than coloring in cute stamped images for cards.  I enjoy learning new skills and sharing what I learn with others.  I am a little outside my comfort zone sometimes when working on the coloring but I hope to improve with practice.  I have also looked to my friend Enfys for help - she does a lovely job with coloring and makes great cards.  You can find her at Going Buggy.

Learning a new skill or improving on a skill is a lifelong process.

Questions for Tuesday - Last Day (for now...)

What is your learning style?  What do you like to do to improve your skills and technical abilities?  When you want to learn a new technique or computer program do you prefer to read a book, watch videos on You Tube, follow step by step directions on a website or blog,  work one-on-one with someone who is an expert, watch a DVD, ask a friend for help, post on message boards and hope for reliable answers or some combination of all of these?  Are you a visual person who needs to "see" how to do it or can you follow directions from a recording or podcast?  What is at the top of your list to learn so you can make better projects?

Whew - a lot of questions again - please answer as much as you can and let me know if there are specific topics that you would like to see me discuss on the blog.

My fingers are crossed for all of you - even though I know there are only three boxes to send.  If not this time, your lucky day will come eventually!  Have a great day and Happy Crafting!

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Just a little "Imagine"-ation to share

I hope you had a nice weekend.  We certainly are enjoying the return of warmer weather at last. In addition to yard and house work we moved into the world of "mobile devices" and finally got smart phones this weekend (we went with the iPhone).  I am a little intimidated by all that it can do and still figuring things out but it was great to be able to use it to read the comments you all were leaving while I was on the go.  I do read and appreciate every comment and I hope you are also reading the comments of others - there have been lots of interesting things mentioned and I hope to do a "wrap-up" to highlight stories that really caught my attention in another day or two.

Today is my day to post as a Design Team member on the Scrappy-Go-Lucky blog.  You can read my post about the Damask Decor cartridge HERE.   Mandy has a great contest going on this month and you could win an Imagine machine.  This is an actual contest where you need to make something (a flower) and send it in to be judged.  You can get all of the details HERE.

I don't know how many of you have the Imagine machine and I thought that it might be nice to include a few samples of things printed and cut with the Imagine in the boxes.  I printed some sheets of cardstock using three bright patterns from the Blast Off cartridge, and a cute print from the Nursery Tails cartridge.  I cut these into 6 x 6 pieces just to add a little sample that you can use for a card or small project.

I also printed and cut a couple of images from Nursery Tails and the tea cup I used for this card (if you missed the post for this card you can click HERE to read it).

So, what else got added to the boxes today?  You know that I like to shop at IKEA and, if you have been reading my blog lately, you probably remember that I just got some items to help me reorganize my craft space (still working on that...!).  When I was there I saw these cute little bucket bags.  They are actually meant for plants but I got some to use for storage and I picked up a few to share with my readers.

Just like nearly everything at IKEA, they come flat and you assemble them by guiding the rigid plastic strip into the channel at the top of the bags.  Definitely one of the easiest IKEA assembly jobs I've ever done!  I got three different colors and one is going into each box - you can use it for gardening or in your house wherever it will make you smile!

Many of you mentioned candles as something you use to make your home have a nice smell and for a calming effect.  I popped in some tiny tealights, wrapped in net and tied with a pretty ribbon (and I'd be disappointed if you didn't save the ribbon and use it on a card or another project!).  

The scent is "green apple" which is appropriate because my husband's family has an apple farm in upstate New York.  If you have been reading my blog for a long time you may remember hearing about our apple picking adventures - if you missed that you can read about it HERE.

One more fun item in the box is a pair of Cricut imagine sunglasses.  We were given these on the cruise and I already had some from CHA so I thought I'd share them.  The lenses are actually more green than they appear in this photo - and they will make you look like a bug!

 

Once again the color of the bag that goes into the box will be random - and I may mix up the boxes before I mail them just to keep things surprising!

These boxes are nearly full - one more day and the item that will be added tomorrow is something that many people have asked about so I think it will be a hit!

I have really enjoyed the fun of this week and I am glad that so many of you have gotten into the spirit and played along.  I wish I had more than three sets of presents to send out - I know that the people who receive these boxes will have a good time trying everything out.

Instead of reposting the directions for the giveaway, I would ask that if you have just come upon this celebration week and want to start at the beginning you go to Wednesday's post HERE and work your way forward.  The rest of you already know how to play along!

The question for Monday is

Are you a crafter or a collector (or both)?  So many of the people I know who craft are also collectors and there is a tendency to want all of the items in a series once you get started.  Do you think that there is such a thing as "too much" when it comes to paper, supplies, Cricut cartridges, etc.  Would your creativity and imagination be able to inspire you more if you weren't trying to remember where you put everything?  Do you spend more time acquiring, and organizing than you spend actually engaging in the creative process?

Once again there are a lot of questions and I am just interested in hearing your general thoughts on this topic so don't stress about answering each part!

Just one more day and then I'll do the random selection of the three people who will receive these packages.  I'll also let you know about some upcoming events and plans that I think will be interesting for you.  We have family visiting this week so I'll so my best to catch up on any email that may have been lost in a sea of comment notifications.  Have a wonderful day!

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It's all in the presentation...

I hope you are having a great weekend - we finally had some nice weather here.  We were able to get outside a little to enjoy it - my husband did some spring clean-up in the flower beds and I admired his work!  The irises are about six inches tall - it won't be long until they are blooming again.

 

The iris bulbs that we have growing outside the front door have a beautiful deep color and are special to us since they came from Grandma's garden.  It will probably be another month until they look like this.

We have several other iris varieties in the garden - I think this pink one is so delicate and pretty.  Many of you mentioned gardening as one of your other hobbies.  I love to look at the gardens and take photos but my husband is the one who does nearly all of the actual gardening.

You are probably wondering what is going into the boxes today...so I won't keep you in suspense.  It is another "separate but equal" day with three slightly different sets of items added to each box.  I can't seem to get enough of the Martha Stewart Crafts products.  I enjoy the papers, the glitter, the punches (oh so many punches!) and the stamps.  I have added a Martha Stewart stamp set to each box today.

Christmas Tree

Heart and Flower

Monogram and Frame

Whenever I think of Martha Stewart I think about her emphasis on presentation.  Paying attention to the small details can definitely make things feel more special.  It doesn't take much time to add a little something and rise above the ordinary.

 Here is a simple example.  I wanted to return a pie dish to a neighbor who surprised us with a special treat.  I was taught that you never return a dish empty so I wanted to bring it back with cookies.  Instead of putting the cookies in the dish and covering them with foil or plastic wrap I used a cellophane bag, stacked the cookies and tied them up with a ribbon.  

ribbon, ribbon and more ribbon!

If you are a regular reader of my blog you know that I have a weakness for the ribbons that are available at Costco.  They are very reasonably priced and come with many beautiful designs.  Most of the ribbons have wired edges but it is simple to remove the wire for papercrafting (here is a LINK to a post showing how to remove the wire).

The only "problem" is that the ribbon comes on 50 yard spools (well, it is Costco sized!) and so it takes a long time to use up the ribbon.  So - I try to share my ribbon whenever I can so I can buy more in new colors and patterns!  These three are all nice for spring projects.  I used the glitter daisies on the right for the cookie package (and also have a card sitting on my craft table waiting to be assembled using the same ribbon).  The center ribbon is a sheer pink with glitter silver dots.  On the left is the ribbon I "had" to buy so I could give some to my friend Shirley ("Okieladybug"), with Cricut green dots and cute ladybugs!

I cut off a couple of yards of each of the three ribbons and added all three to each of the boxes.  There should be enough for quite a few cards or to make a bow on a nice package. 

 

These boxes are getting very full - I should probably make a list of all of the items inside so you can keep track.  The sets might get shuffled when I wrap everything for shipping so there will definitely be an element of surprise when the three lucky people open their boxes!

Instead of reposting the directions for the giveaway, I would ask that if you have just come upon this celebration week and want to start at the beginning you go to Wednesday's post HERE and work your way forward.  The rest of you already know how to play along!

Here is the question for Sunday

What "little" things do you do to try to make your daily life more creative and artistic?  Do you like to set a beautiful table, arrange flowers and place them around the house, keep your linen closet tidy with sheet sets tied up with ribbon? Do you think attention to the small details can make your routine tasks seem less dull and repetitive?  How do you try to lead an "artful life"? 

That's a lot of questions and you don't have to answer each one directly - just share your thoughts on the general topic if you can.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend and be sure to check in Monday to see what else is going in the boxes - one of the items might make you laugh...

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Another "Creative" Day

Today is the midpoint of the celebration week - I am having so much fun filling the boxes and reading all of the comments and answers to the questions.   At the top of my blog it says "do something creative every day."  This represents the commitment I made January 1, 2009 to post daily to share my creative adventures and encourage others to join me.  I haven't missed a day since 1-1-09 and I am motivated to continue when I read how many of you start your day reading my blog.  It is amazing to know that people actually do read my ramblings and find inspiration from my work.  Thank you all for joining me on my creative journey.

I originally bought a Cricut in 2007 to help me with scrapbooking.  We have thousands of photos from the years we spent living overseas and I wanted to get them into simple albums.  I became a Creative Memories consultant a couple of years before I "caught the bug" and I really enjoyed helping people work out their layouts and preserve special memories.  The Cricut diverted my attention from scrapbooking when I discovered all of the other types of projects I could create and when I started using Design Studio it more or less took over my creative life.

I have done all sorts of other crafts throughout my life and I also enjoy quilting - or at least making quilt tops!  The two photos of quilt tops are both "stack and whack" style quilts and one of my early experiments with the Cricut was creating with a paper version of this technique.

This was one of the cards I made - you can read more about this technique and see what I went through to try to get a properly sized diamond HERE.

 I am still a Creative Memories consultant and I do a lot of digital projects using the CM software.  I was thrilled when Creative Memories started to offer Cricut cartridges and I thank everyone who has purchased Creative Memories items through my personal website (HERE).  If you don't have a consultant and are interested in CM products, I would be happy to help you.  The items I am adding to the boxes today are all Creative Memories products that were limited editions or are no longer available.  If you are looking for something that was in the CM line a few years ago send me an email (capadiadesigns@gmail.com) - I just might have it on hand here.

The first group of items is this collection of two paper albums and three packs of paper and stickers to complete them.  They each have a large envelope you can use for mailing the completed albums.  These are great to make for gifts for far away relatives.  The theme is tropical.

 There is an opening for a photo in the front cover  - these are a few sample pages from one of the paper albums I did for my husband's parents when we were on a family vacation in Florida in 2008.  I brought along just this kit and a tape runner and had photos printed at the local CVS so I could assemble the mini album and give it to them while we were still on vacation!

I think there is a tendency for our entire family to like blue!

I am also adding to each box a mini tape runner - these are no longer made by Creative Memories but can be quite handy for tiny places.

The third item is this little kit - a colorful tin filled with some adhesive shiny papers, a pen (random color) and some letter stickers (don't laugh - there are still ways to use these even if you do have a Cricut!).

These boxes are starting to get rather full - and there are still three more days.  It is a good thing that they will mail for a flat rate - I think they will end up being pretty heavy!

Instead of reposting the directions, I would ask that if you have just come upon this celebration week and want to start at the beginning you go to Wednesday's post HERE and work your way forward.  The rest of you already know how to play along!

The question for Saturday is

What other hobbies do you enjoy and how have they influenced your paper crafting?  Do you still keep up with these hobbies or has the Cricut (I think most of my readers do use a Cricut) pushed them aside?  Are there ever enough hours in the day? (That is a rhetorical question and doesn't need to be answered unless you have a tip on stretching out time!)

I hope you have a wonderful weekend - we have lots planned but I will be adding to the boxes again tomorrow - and it is another set of similar but different items that I'll be adding...

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