{fresh seeds} larkspur + letters {july}

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So it’s official: summer has arrived here in the desert Southwest…we’ve experienced our first “Severe Heat Advisory” warnings of the season which pretty much just means that the heat has evolved from Hot to Ridiculously Hot.  It also means that we spend a lot of time indoors enjoying the blessing of air conditioning (ohhh how grateful I am) daydreaming about if it’s possible to actually fry an egg on the pavement or rapid rise a loaf of bread out on my patio.

But apart from that heat-addled brains kind of daydreaming, I find myself daydreaming about making pretty things and why I love scrapbooking so much.  And it’s both of these…The Pretty and The Crafty…that have inspired this week’s {fresh seeds}.  I’m so happy to share two — yay! — new releases to share this week.

Meet Larkspur.  Larkspur is the latest in the “Full Bloom” series of templates are designed in the spirit of a “fuller” page, richer in layers with many little details and a little more depth.  It’s been awhile since I’ve released a “full bloom” set, and I have to confess I have a soft spot for them.  They are derived from some of my most favorite pages and they can really be so beautiful and well, full while still affording you room to “play” and modify the page to suit your personal scrapping sensibilities.

And here’s a bevvy of beautiful inspiration from the girls and the Pollys:

Annnnnd.  We’re on the precipice of July (yes, seriously.) which means it’s time for the next installment of Grow With Love: Letters Edition with Crystal Livesay.

If you’re not familiar with the Letters Project, Grow With Love: Letters Edition is a fresh regular monthly feature in the Artisan Notebook for the year 2011.   It is a series of templates and journaling prompts rooted in letter writing that we hope will encourage you to step out of your comfort zone a little bit, reflect on your relationships and loves, and love a little more deeply and truly. This is not only a scrap project. This is about changing yourself and your relationships for the better. Still, as ever, these templates can be used apart from the prompts to tell any story and scrap any page tailored to your own scrapping needs and style.

This month’s offering is rooted in our creativity and crafty and scrappy.  It’s fun and happy!

And here’s a spot of inspiration:

Both new releases are available in my store at The Lilypad for 20% off through Sunday 26 June.

As always I looove to see your stories and art too, so please feel free to share with me anytime.  Really!  Just shoot me a mail or share them on my facebook page.  And if you haven’t signed up the newsletter yet you may want to do that so you can be the first to hear the latest news and get the latest exclusive savings (and maybe a fun summer freebie soon and very soon!)

Also!!!!

Registration for Grow With Love: Staycation has begun!  Staycation is a fun and relaxed and inspired summer adventure in storytelling.  I encourage you to learn more about it {HERE} and listen to Crystal and I yabber about it in this fun post too.  We so hope you’ll join us in this fun adventure!!!

I hope you have a fabulously pretty and crafty weekend!!

and the {6.24} giveaway goes to….

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Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to comment in the latest {fresh seeds} giveaway featuring the new releases Larkspur and Grow With Love: Letters {July} landing at The Lilypad.  More than that, thank you for all the kind comments!  It is always such a ray of sunny to me, so thank you!

So.  I met with Mr. Random (of Random.org) and he has selected the lucky winner!

Congratulations to post # 43 — Stephanie! Stephanie, I will be emailing you shortly with your coupon code.

And thank you again to everyone who participated!  I so hope you have a beautiful weekend!

The “We’re Really Excited” Post

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So….this is a post where we tell you how excited we are about our latest Grow With Love class, Staycation.  I’ve called it The “We’re Really Excited” post because, embarrassingly, I used that phrase more times in our roughly 8 minute chatter than should be allowed.  And I know that calling attention to it will only ensure that you will notice it all the more, but I’m all about owning the goofy and not being afraid to giggle at yourself a bit.   But, also…it’s totally true.  We ARE really excited about this project.  We hope you’ll have a listen to our little introductory chatter to learn more about this adventure:

Chatting About Staycation: Really Excited

Grow With Love: Staycation is a summer adventure in everyday storytelling.  Designed with the hope of helping you focus on the {extra}ordinary details and moments in your everyday, squeezing every last drop of  fun, and finding the joy that lives in the overlooked “regular” elements of your story.  All the while, actively and intentionally creating memories you will treasure.  This class is meant to celebrate the everyday, embrace the fun of summer with fresh perspective, and encourage and inspire you to create and write the story you will document.  Our prompts, products, articles, and tutorials will be the tools you need to write your special summer story and create meaningful pages that reflect the beauty of your everyday moments.

And more than that, we hope this fun filled adventure will encourage you to be intentional in your memory making: setting out to inject the fun into your moments and creating moments worthy of legacy and your story.  And we are totally, sincerely and enthusiastically really excited about Staycation.

And we invite you to learn a little more {HERE} and in the Q & A thread in the forum.  And we also invite you to ask questions here in this post!  What would you like to know about the process and the class?  Feel free to ask any questions in the comments and we will respond to them as best we can.

Crystal and I addressed a couple Q & As in the audio, but I’ll share a few more FAQs here as well…

Q: What if it’s not summertime where I live?

A: That’s ok!  Apart from the fact that it will be summertime one day in your part of the world, we hope that these prompts can be kept close and used anytime throughout the year, any time you feel pulled to make an ordinary day a little something MORE.  There is room for these prompts to be used and enjoyed over any holidays or breaks or any every day.

Q: What if I’m not planning a “staycation”?

A: That’s ok too!  Even though these prompts can be used as a “staycation” in and of themselves, you can approach them anytime, over a period of time, once in a while, whenever it works for you.  It’s all about making memories with those you love and making the most of your every day!  It’s about having fun and documenting the process.

Q:  Do I have to register in the forum?

A:  No, you do not.  You’ll receive all the basic course materials which are enough to follow along with the series at your own pace.  That said, we really encourage you to register in the forum because, while we will send out some emails with additional content, the bulk of our bonus content and all of our exclusive offers from class sponsors and contributors during the “enhanced class period” will be posted in the forum.  If you’ve signed up for the class, or even if you haven’t feel free to register and join in conversation in the forum.

Q: What if I’m not comfortable sharing or participating very much?

A: That’s ok!  Crystal and I really understand that not everyone will want to participate at the same level.  And so we aimed to design the class in such a way that you can still participate with as much or as little involvement in the forum as you would like.  You can sign up for the forum and peek in throughout the class simply to snag the latest content or exclusives or you can get comfy cozy and join in and share.  It’s completely up to you!

Q: Is the forum private?

A:  Yes!  The Staycation Forum is exclusive to Staycation participants.   This will go live just before the official class start date of Monday 11 July. Only class members will be able to see and share in this forum.  There is also a general forum area that is visible to all Plant Your Story forum goers.  This area is for general chatter about storytelling and for storytellers and scrapbookers to mingle and be.  You are welcome to post anywhere and everywhere you feel comfortable.

Q: Is the gallery private?

A:  Yes!  The Staycation Gallery is exclusive to Staycation participants.  There is also a general Storytellers gallery that is open to anyone.  You are welcome to post and share in either the private gallery or in the public gallery, or simply in the forum, or not at all…whatever you are most comfortable with.

Q: Is this class only for digital scrapbookers?

A:  Not at all!  While Crystal and I both have roots in the digital scrapbooking community we feel sincerely that this is a class that any scrapper (traditional, paper, or digital or digital art) can find inspiration.   We have had paper scrappers follow along with Grow With Love, scrapping the prompts and we have LOVED to see the results.  In fact, you could adapt this project in to any craft or type of storytelling.  And while the exclusive kit is in digital format, it is produced in printable quality and can easily be used in hybrid or paper scrapping.  And the digital templates can also be used as basic sketches.  We will be offering some more traditional sketches as well, but we truly believe that anyone hoping to tell their story can find inspiration in this journey.  🙂

Please feel free to ask anything that comes to mind.  We will update this post as we receive and answer questions.  We’re getting excited!  Can’t wait to embark on this journey!  Staycation registration is open through Sunday 10 July, 2011.

{blooming soon} Larkspur + Grow With Love

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So it’s been awhile since we’ve done a {fresh seeds} giveaway and the sun is shining and it’s Monday and so it feels like it’s time for a little fun and a little sharing.

I have TWO wonderful new releases coming to The Lilypad on Friday and here’s a chance to win both!

Larkspur is the latest in my Full Bloom series of templates, which are typcially richer in layers and details and papery goodness.

And here’s a peek at a couple pages my team has created already…soooo loving the amazing they are bringing!!

by Madlen
by Madlen
by Niki
by Niki

It’s also time for a fresh set of Grow With Love: Letters templates and Crystal and I are really having fun with this month’s emphasis.  It’s something I think we can all find inspiration to scrap….our hobbies.

Sooooo I’d love to share BOTH these fabulous new releases with one lucky commenter!   If you’d like to win Larkspur + Grow With Love: Letters {July}, just leave a comment below, for a chance to win before Thursday 23 June at 7pm (PST).   You can increase your chances at winning by posting about the giveaway on Twitter and Facebook, if you’d like.  Be sure to come back here with a link in the comments (please post as a new comment each time).

I will announce the winner here on the blog and in my newsletter on Friday 24 June when these {fresh seeds} hit The Lilypad.

Lots of luck!

{fresh seeds} dandelion

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I was so honored to be featured on The Daily Digi in April and if you missed the fabulous chance to grab Dandelion in the April Digi Files, you can now snag it in my shop at The Lilypad!  I really loved working on this project and I created it with the hope that it would be the best representation of my personal scrapping and design style, so it had a little bit of everything in it: page design templates, {clipped} template masks for papers and photos, a handful of doodley {story seeds}, and a couple of story starting journaling prompts.

You can grab the Dandelion {templates} and prompts or Dandelion {clipped} + {story seeds} OR you can snag the Dandelion {garden} which is the bundle of the two!  All are available at The Lilypad for 20% off through the weekend.

The Dandelion {templates} were designed in the spirit of  wishing, hoping and the promise of beauty and joy found in the every day….with varied design styles ranging from a “fuller” page, richer in layers with many little details and a little more depth to cleaner and more linear designs.

Dandelion {clipped} + {story seeds} include 25 clipping templates for papers or photos.  Simple sentiments are inspired by all things wish{full}.

Love them all? Dandelion {garden} is the wish{full} bundle of the Dandelion collection:

And here’s some amazing inspiration from the girls:

As always I looove to see your stories and art too, so please feel free to share with me anytime.  Really!  Just shoot me a mail or share them on my facebook page.  And if you haven’t signed up the newsletter yet you may want to do that so you can be the first to hear the latest news and get the latest exclusive savings.

Registration for Grow With Love: Staycation has begun.  Staycation is a fun and relaxed and inspired summer adventure in storytelling.  I encourage you to learn more about it {HERE} and keep your eyes peeled for a fun blog post from Crystal and I and a Q&A about the project!

I hope your wishes come true this weekend!!

{fresh seeds} Liatris

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Those who bring sunshine into the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves. — James M. Barrie

The Warm is most certainly upon us here in the desert Southwest and it won’t be long before The Warm melts into The Hot and then into The Oven Hot From Which There Is No Escape….and so I am happily soaking up the warm rays and enjoying the sunshine and blue skies before I feel compelled to lock myself in my house just so as to get some relief from it.  LOL!

And it is that happy kind of sunshiney mood and warm that has inspired Liatris and Liatris {story seeds}, my contributions to this month’s (amazing) BYOC at The Lilypad.

Liatris is designed in the spirit of the every day, of fun, sunshine, summer and play…with varied design styles ranging from a “fuller” page, richer in layers with many little details and a little more depth to cleaner and more linear designs. This set is perfect for any summer or vacation page, everyday page, all about me, or event page and gives you room to “play” and modify each page to suit your personal scrapping sensibilities.

Liatris {story seeds} is a collection of 21 different fun fun fun and playful word art strips and bits (in colored, b/w plain + distressed .png versions and in .abr brush format) and 6 4×6 photo clipping templates (in .png format).  They are the perfect little touches for your every day, summer or vacation pages or photos.   Inspired by fun, sun, warm rays, and the every day. Liatris {story seeds} will give your pages, blog posts, and cards a little extra fun touch of fun and whimsy.

 

And here’s a spot of Liatris inspiration from the Z&S team and the Pollys.  These pages make me smile!!!

Liatris and Liatris {story seeds} are available for 20% off through Sunday 5 June at The Lilypad.

As always I looove to see your stories and art too, so please feel free to share with me anytime.  Really!  Just shoot me a mail or share them on my facebook page.  And if you haven’t signed up the newsletter yet you may want to do that so you can be the first to hear the latest news and get the latest exclusive savings.

There are a few fun sunshiney and summery happenings on the horizon, including Grow With Love: Staycation — a fun and relaxed and inspired summer adventure in storytelling.  I encourage you to learn more about it {HERE} and mark your calendars for the upcoming registration period.

I hope you are enjoying a happy sunshine-y day!

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