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!
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
