Keep Calm and Mow On Free Printable & Design Team Inspiration

Hello, Friends!

Happy Summer!  I don't know what it's been like where you live, but here in North Carolina, summer has come on with a vengeance.  We had two weeks straight of temperatures near or at 100 degrees with high humidity, fierce thunderstorms, heavy rain and power outages.  We finally woke up to a rain washed world with clear blue skies, a lovely summer breeze and normal temperatures yesterday.  Now, it's time to get out and mow the lawn, which grew like crazy during the storms.  And that reminded me of a really fun free summer print that I thought I'd share with you here today.  This free download is for personal use only.  Just left click on the image below to open it, and right click to save to your computer where you can then print it out and use it on a card, a layout, on a flour sack towel, put in a frame or make up into a pillow.  It's really cute!

 

This heat has been keeping me in the studio where it's nice and cool.  I decided to do a clean-up of my scraps drawer, and was excited to find a bunch of great scraps from our Sew Decorative CD, Sew Nice Creative Scraps,  and Creating with Vintage Illustrations CD.  I quickly pulled them all together in this great shabby chic card. I think the check came from our Creating with Vintage Typography CD, so I really covered all my bases on this card made from the scrap drawer!

 

Some of you have may not realize that we have closed the old Shopatron website.  All our fabulous vintage goodies are now available in one place in our newly streamlined online store.  We have loads of new digital products there: Digital Art Stamps, Digital Printables (including everyone's favorite  Vintage Scraps an Vintage Cuts), Themed Kits that are loaded with images, papers and vintage prints, and beautiful PAPERS, too.  I think you will find the prices are surprisingly affordable, the selection is huge and it's so easy to just download to your computer.  Instead of having to wait for the postal service to deliver, you'll have your product ready to use in just a matter of minutes.

But if you love our original Clear Acrylic Art Stamps, Creative Scraps, Vintage Cuts, and Journal Booklets, and other items from our Heartwarming Vintage Collection, we still have a great selection of those in the store.  And, they are all on sale for at least 40% off, as Sandy is trying to close out her warehouse.  Teresa used our Words from the Heart Celebrations and Joy Quotes  along with our Creating with Vintage Typography CD to make this gorgeous wall hanging for a baby's room.

 

Teresa also made this pretty and practical "To-Do List" using our beautiful new Birds and Blooms Digital Papers and Digital images from the Creating with Vintage Typography CD.   That CD is worth its weight in pure gold!

Ginny used our Birds and Blooms Digital papers and an image from our Digital Birds and Blossoms Vintage Scraps to create a totally shabbylicious card. 

 

If you're not familiar with these lovely new papers, they were designed by our teammate, Sheila Rumney.  They have a wonderful botanical feel to them with birds, flowers, wood grain and soft pastel colors.  You get 24 fresh and beautiful papers for just $7.95.  You just print them to whatever size you choose, or can use them for great digital scrapbook pages.

 

Dar has created some really cute vintage cards using our Digital Vintage Photo Scraps.  I'm so excited that these are finally available in digital format, because you can enlarge these great images for use on larger projects.  

Diane used our Retro Kitchen Kit to make a super cute pop up card for a bridal shower.  I just love the fun papers she found in the kit, and the exuberant new bride who pops up on the inside of this kitchsy card. 

                             

Shantaie is always thinking out of the box, and I just love the cute pink barn she made using our Down on the Farm Digital Art Stamps.  This jumbo set has all 52 amazing images just waiting to be made up into a farm fresh project.  It's loaded with great images for the guys (tractors, cute farm boys, farm equipment) and great feminine images, too. Shantaie used the barn stamp, colored it pink and worked her amazing card magic on this delightful project.

 

Sheila is a genius when it comes to digital design.  She pulled this great image from our wonderful new Father Digital Download.  This download came out in time for Father's Day, but is perfect for any masculine project.  Sheila combined the wonderful fishing image with papers from our Creating with Vintage Typography CD.  

 

So whether you want to create with digital products or traditional products, Crafty Secrets has got you covered.  You'll love the sleek new layout of the ONLINE STORE, the responsive search engine and amazing variety of vintage and retro goodies we have for you there.  If you haven't visited in a while, you really should stop by!

Also, you'll want to get ready for our July Challenge and Blog Hop that will go live right here on Monday, July 6th.  We're celebrating summer with a whole host of fun projects from the team.  We'll give you a sneaky peek and links to their blogs along with a free digital image and paper for you to use in our monthly challenge.  There will be a great prize package for one randomly selected participant. So tell your friends and dig out your Crafty Secrets goodies so you can play along.

Thanks for stopping by today!  On behalf of Sandy Redburn, I wish you joy and creativity!

Cheerio,

Kathy Clement

DT Leader/Crafty Secrets

 

June Challenge Winner, DT Samples and Inspiration

Hello, Friends!

Thanks to everyone who played along in the June Linky Challenge!  We put all the eligible names in a hat and the lucky winner is:

#10: Helene from 2 AM Scrapper!  Hooray!  Helene used our Bedtime Kids Digital Art Stamps and moon and stars paper to make this adorable card for her grandson.

Congratulations, Helene!  Sandy will be contacting with the info you need to claim your prize!

Well, it's almost Father's Day!  Are you ready?  If not, our Father Digital Download can be used to make some really cute cards really fast!  Take a look at this cute card from DT Member Sheila.  I just love the texture that the burlap background adds to our stylish steampunk puppy!

 

And if Dad's an angler, we've got you covered there, too!   I love the touch of glitter Sheila added to this great vintage image!

As someone who struggles with coloring an image, I'm always blown away by the beautiful coloring that Michele adds to her projects!  Just look at the gorgeous hens in this card she made using our Farm Chicks Digital Art Stamps!  You almost feel as though you could reach out and touch those brilliant feathers! And that gingham bow and flower just pop off the card front!

  

 

I love a blue and white card just about any time of the year, but in the summertime, I think they are especially glorious!  This beauty from Diane makes me think of a blue sky filled with puffy white clouds.  I just love the way she used our Birds and Blossoms Digital Vintage Creative Scraps.  So sweet! And the sweet background paper is from out Retro Kitchen Digital Kit.

Sheila has a fabulous new digital layout on her blog!  She used our Sew Creative CD and the beautiful Birds and Blooms Digital Paper Kit to capture memories from a special mother/daughter trip to NYC. 

 

Ginny combined papers from our Barber Shop Kit, Thanksgiving Kit and Vintage Typography CD to make a fabulous digital layout honoring her son's achievements in Boy Scouts.  I love that pocket watch, how about you?

Teresa created a shabbylicious trio of cards using our fabulous Creating with Vintage Typography CD.  She added images from our Little Blessings Creative Scraps which are on sale for just $1.95 each in our online store.  I love the color palette and beautiful ribbons she used!

 

It has been soooo hot here in North Carolina!  Today it's just under 100 degrees!  It's great weather for staying inside and getting my craft on!   I'd love to hear from you!  What have you been creating? 

I hope you'll take a minute to visit the design team blogs, and to let us know what you've been working on.  Sandy has some great new collections in the works, and I'll be back soon with more inspiration for you.

Until then, on behalf of Sandy Redburn, I wish you joy and creativity! 

Cheerio,

Kathy Clement

Design Team Leader, Crafty Secrets

Father's Day Goodies, Frogs in Love and DT Samples

Happy Friday, everyone!  I hope you've had a healthy, productive week with room for a little fun thrown in, too!

Father's Day is just around the corner, and if you and/or your little people are planning to create something special for Dad, I have a new product that you are going to love!  Our "hot off the presses" Father Digital Download is filled with fun vintage images you can use to create birthday and Father's Day cards, layouts, mini albums and keepsakes for good old 'DAD'! There's a mix of 12 images and words on this printable page.  It prints out clear and crisp (300 dpi jpg. file) and can easily be resized to make large or small projects.  Best of all, you can use it again and again...just print from your home printer!  Many of the images actually appear to be 3-D embossed images, and there's a great range of themes from silly, to cute to sincere.  It's perfect for any masculine project you might need to make.

Darlene used the wonderful lion image and made a card that's fit for a king!  She'll be sharing this on her blog, Dar's Crafty Creations on the 11th, and you'll be able to get all the details there.

 

Sandy has a great free gift this month.  Just place an order online, and add this brand NEW Retro Father's Day card to your cart for free.  I think this is such a cute (and easy) design!

 

 If you need more inspiration for Father's Day or masculine cards, you can find them HERE .  

I'm super excited about our new Frogs in Love Postcard and Gift Tag Printable Set!  Oh, goodness...they just make me grin from ear to ear!  In fact, as soon as I laid eyes on these whimsical images, my fingers began to itch, and my creativity went into high gear.  

I "toadally" love the fact that these digital prints come with a post card.  It makes it so easy to create a layered card like this one.  My base paper is taken from Creating With Vintage Illustrations. I know I say this all the time, but our CD's are a wonderful resource for anyone who is limited by space or by budget.  Each CD is crammed full of gorgeous images, papers and ephemera.  Card making has never been so easy! You just pop the CD in your computer, choose the paper, image or ephemera you want to work with and print it out on your home computer.  Easy peasy!

I found that these froggy images were addictive, so I made a couple more cards...because I was having too much fun to stop! I think these would make such darling engagement announcements or decor for a bridal shower.

 This sassy Ballerina Toad just makes me grin from ear to ear!  Wouldn't it make a great thank you card for your child's dance teacher?  Or a birthday card for your favorite little ballerina?  Or a great gift tag...yeah, I'm kinda in love with Frogs in Love! You can read all the details on how I made these fun cards on my blog, Kathy by Design.

Here's a look at the entire 2 page set.  You can order it HERE.  And since it's an instant download, you can have it in your hot little hands today! 

 

Our design team has worked up some great samples to inspire you right before the weekend.  Diane made the most gorgeous tags with our Pastel Papers and Love and Romance Vintage Cuts.  They are truly shabbylicious! You can get all the details on Diane's blog, Nellie's Nest.

   

Lilacs are blooming in many parts of the country, and Teresa celebrated them by making some beautiful cards!  She combined papers from our Creating with Vintage Patterns and our Creating with Vintage Typography CD and then added card focals using our Flowers Printable Sheet Download.  The details on these cards are just beautiful, and you can read all about them on Victorian Paper Queen.

 

 Just look at that sweet bluebird with the sunflowers on Teresa's second card.  I'm swooning!

 

With school coming to a close, many of us are giving little gifts to thank all the people who work so hard to give our children a bright future.  Ginny made a beautiful card using our Birds and Blossoms Creative Scraps and papers from Creating with Vintage Patterns and Creating with Vintage Illustrations.   You can read all about this lovely card at Polly's Paper Studio.

 

I don't know what you have planned for your weekend, but I hope you'll find a little time to be creative.  Our June Linky Party is in full swing, and we'd love to have you join us for the fun!  We're celebrating the fellas in our lives this month, and the blog is loaded with tons of inspiration.  You can find a free digital paper and stamp to download and then enter your project with the Linky tool.  Did I fail to mention there's a fabby prize package?  You can check it out HERE. 

And if you haven't visited our online store in a while, you are in for a lovely surprise!  We've had a facelift!  Everything is looking fresh as a daisy, and the new search tool is really fast!  Come on by for a visit and see what's new, what's on sale, and what you can't live without!

On behalf of Sandy Redburn, I wish you joy and creativity!

Cheerio,

Kathy Clement

Design Team Leader, Crafty Secrets

Let's Hear it for the Boys! June Linky Party and DT Challenge

Hello, Friends!

Are we really halfway through 2015?  Yes, we are!  And that means it's time for the June Linky Party and DT Challenge.  This month's theme is "Let's Hear it for the Boys!" and as you can probably guess we are focusing in on masculine projects...everything from sweet baby boys to cherished grandpas and every age and stage in between.  

So many of us struggle when it comes to designing a masculine project, but I think that the inspiration provided by our amazing design team will have your fingers itching to create for the special guys in your life.

My sweet husband and I have a saying in our house: "If it isn't written down, it isn't going to happen."  I keep a magnetic list pad on the side of my fridge so I can do just that.  But every time I go to use it, the darn thing is missing.  Seems that my hubby needs a list pad of his own.  So with that in mind, I dug into my Creating with Vintage Typography CD and printed out some great papers and images, turning them into a "Honey Do List" pad that Dale will always be able to find.

I have a step out tutorial on my blog, Kathy by Design, so you can see just how simple it is to put one of these fun pads together.

 

With spring comes spring planting and lots of work in the yard.  Darlene found the perfect image for a masculine card celebrating these events in our Down on the Farm Digital Art Stamps set.  I love the way she added the picket fence and die cut chicken and rooster.  You can find all the information you need to CASE this card on Dar's blog, Dar's Crafty Creations.

 

A man's home is his castle...and his garage is his kingdom!  That's the cute message Diane attached to this clever gift box she made using our Car Classics Digital Art Set.  You could fill this up with candy, gift cards or nuts and bolts!  It's such a great idea that I know you'll want to read all about it on Diane's blog, Nellie's Nest.

I don't know about you, but I absolutely love baby boy cards!  Our Baby Boy Printable Sheet is loaded with darling images like the one Elizabeth used on this very cute card.  The papers and ephemera are from our Digital Barber Shop Kit.  See the cute buttons on this card?  They are made from paper, can you believe it?  Elizabeth will show you how in a tutorial on her blog, Paper Pass Times.

Our Digital Barber Shop Kit is a perfect resource for masculine projects, featuring 15 pieces of patterned paper and more than 40 pieces of themed ephemera.  Ginny was taken with our fantastic Mustache Man, and created an amazing retro card using goodies from the kit.  For a tutorial that will help you make the embellies on the card, visit Ginny's blog, Polly's Paper Studio.

 

If you're looking for great card focals, our Creative Scraps are loaded with fun images like this one that Gloria selected from our Wacky Animals Creative Scraps.  It's perfect with papers printed from our Creating with Vintage Patterns CD.  Men appreciate a card that makes them laugh...and this one fits the bill! You can get all the details on Gloria's blog, Scraps of Life.

 

Gloria's term on the design team is over this month, and due to other work obligations, she will be unable to continue on the team with us.  We are going to miss her beautiful designs very much, and thank her for all the wonderful inspiration she has provided on the blog.  She'll join us for the Linky Party whenever she can.  God speed, Gloria! 

It's baseball season, and what man wouldn't love to receive a card that celebrates DAD with a baseball theme?  Melody used  our Creating with Vintage Typography CD to make this wonderful vintage card.  You can find all the details on her blog, Paper Melody's .

Did you know that we have a host of free downloadable images on our blog that are available for personal use? Michele used this great fishing image on her Father's Day card.   Her background paper is from our Thanksgiving Digital Kit.  Our holiday kits and CD's are loaded with papers that work for projects year round, making them an excellent value.  I just love the way Michele uses sequins and ribbon to finish off this handsome card, don't you? Read all the details on Michele's blog, Thoughts of a Cardmaking Scrapbooker.

This next project from Shantaie is so much fun!  I love the way she used our Wizard of Oz Digital Art Stamps to create this whimsical gift set.  You'll want to be sure to pop over to her blog, Inking Pink, because she has a tutorial that will show you how to make the awesome funnel that tops her gift box. Thanks, Shantaie!

 

For those of you who scrapbook, you are going to fall in love with this digital layout from Sheila!  She used our Creating with Vintage Typography CD to capture one of life's everyday moments.  In her tutorial, she'll show you how to change the hue and saturation of a photo so that it blends with the papers.  Sheila's tutorials are always clear and easy to follow, so I know you'll want to pop over to her amazing blog, Sheila Rumney Design and Photography.

It's almost Father's Day here in the US, and this darling gift ensemble from Teresa would make the perfect gift for dad.   She used our Childhood Images Journal Booklet and papers from creating with Vintage Patterns CD. You can find great photos and all the details on Teresa's beautiful blog, Victorian Paper Queen.

 

Now it's your turn!  Create a project using any Crafty Secrets goodies and link it up at the end of this post.  As a thank you to those of you who are playing along, we have a couple of free downloads that you can use in your project if you wish.  You don't have to follow our masculine theme this month, but it's always fun if you do.  This is one of the papers from the Barber Shop Kit.  The retro colors are right on trend, and the pattern is perfect for masculine cards or layouts. Just right click and save to your computer.  For personal use only!

So you can add an image to your project, here's the cutie patootie fella from our Mustache Men Digital Art Stamp Set.  

One lucky participant will win our NEW Father Digital Download Sandy just finished creating - plus our Barber Shop Digital Art Kit and our Mustache Men Kit!

 
Just think of all the fun you can have with the masculine papers and ephemera in this great kit!

And, the winner will also receive our Mustache Men Digital Art Stamp Set.  

 

But you can't win if you don't play along!  The rules are simple:   Create a NEW project using Crafty Secrets goodies. Please mention Crafty Secrets in your blog post, and let us  know what products you are using.  Then just link your project up before midnight on Sunday, June 14th.  The winner will be announced here on Wednesday, June 17th.  The design team will be stopping by to leave you some nice comments, too!  In fact, we can't wait to see what you make! 

Let's get this party started!

On behalf of Sandy Redburn, I wish you joy and creativity!

Cheerio,

kathy

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