Happy New Year!!!

Just wanted to wish you a very happy 2011.
I think it's really going to be a good good new year.
Have a safe and happy holiday and I will see you on the other side ;)

Oh!  I almost forgot...the first edition of the brand new Ginger Scraps Street Magazine will be out bright and early tomorrow morning!  I am SO excited!  I can't wait to see my very first article in print!  Woohoo!

Here is a sneak peek at the cover...

So cute!

I will add a direct link to the magazine right here as soon as I get it so you can zip on over and take a look...and perhaps subscribe even ;)
xoxo!

***HERE is the direct link to the magazine!!  check it out!  It's darling!

Thank You! Thank You!

The season of giving has come and gone, and now t'is the time to say THANKS BUNCHES! for all the totally fab gifts you received.

I whipped up these thank you tags as part of a stationery set I am working on...aaaaaaaand kinda sorta hope to sell in the lil online shop I would like to open in 2011 (can we say New Years Resolution??!)

I thought the circular thank yous could be printed on sticky paper and be used as seals on the envelopes of your thank you notes and the others could be little thank you tags you could stick in a potted plant or tie to a little goodie of sorts...I think they are kinda cute.

Aaaaaaaand...as a test run...you can download the circles HERE!  It's my thank you to you!  Thank you so much for stopping by!  You are a gem and I love love love your visits :)

p.s. I am back from my little vacay.  It was lovely to be away.  But I am happy to be home again!

On a Lil Vacay...

Just taking a wee break...a lil vacay...be back in a few days...xo.

 image credits: sandra lundry inspired imagery

Navy Stripes

Navy stripes and a bow...on a Coach bangle.

Why do they do this to me?!

Love it.

Gotta have it.

I wonder if my mums has gotten my gift yet????

image credits: Coach.com

Last Minute Gift Items...

So I popped into Anthropologie this evening to look for a few last minute Christmas gifts...

I saw all of the following and wanted them for myself! 
Ha!
That means they would make perfect gifts.

Thought I would share them with you too, in case you have some last minute shopping to do as well ;)

Friends of the Forest Cards
these are adorable.

Autumn Drizzle Glass
these come in different colors with slightly different flowers on each.
love 'em all.

Leave Your Mark Note Sticky
each letter is slightly different.

Tea and Toast Butter Dish
comes in four different colors and is so quaint and cute.

image credits: Anthropologie.com

Jo Totes...

THIS is the camera bag I am longing for.

It's adorable.

It's purple.

It's perfect.

It's sold out.

Jo Totes are "camera bags for ladies."  

These bags are so totally fabulous because they have special padded compartments for both your ordinary day-to-day purse items as well as your high tech photography equipment.

A Jo Tote is basically a camera bag that double as a purse. 

So now you can go out and about with just one bag...
and a cute one at that!

image credits: Jo Totes

Article #1

So I my very first article as a Staff Writer for GingerScrapsStreet Magazine has been finished.  In fact it's been signed, sealed, and delivered!  I am so excited.  The editors are completely charming and gave me wonderfully positive feedback...my article will be published in next month's issue!  Yay!  You simply MUST become a subscriber ;)

You can go HERE to subscribe...the link is actually for our sister magazine but the subscription will send you GingerScrapsStreet Magazine too...January will be our first issue so it should arrive to your inbox shortly!

Happy Weekend!

image credits: GingerScraps Blog

Owlphabet

I'm a teacher. I dig the alphabet. 

And owls...well...you know how I adore those lil guys. 

So when I saw THIS, I pretty much died and went to heaven.

Owlphabet by Gingiber

Starry Diffusion

I just learned how to transform an ordinary photo like this...

into something glowy and brilliant like this...

The effect is called Star Diffusion...kinda cool huh? It adds a magical, slightly ethereal touch to your photos...

You can follow the tutorial HERE...do give it a try! It was quite easy ;)

House Love

Hello??! 

Totally just found THIS.  

and its AMAZING.

I don't have a house of my own at the moment.  But when I do.  I am so gonna use this site as my home improvement guide.  Every project on there was actually done by the real, true life, super happy, uber-creative couple who created the blog while remodeling their home...the project ideas are so inspiring and really, just so darn easy! 

In the meantime however, while in my perfectly content pre-homeowner status, I am going to work my way through this incredibly productive couple's stash of artsy-crafty, organizational, money saving, and green living ideas.  Good thing the new year is right around the corner...I sense some resolutions a'brewin...

image credits: Younghouselove.com

Scatterbrained

That's me.  

I've been totally and completely scatterbrained the past few days.

I've been going and going and going.  

Barely taking a moment to sit back and reflect upon or appreciate my day.

And I am going to keep on going for the next week or two...or well, probably until after Christmas. No, make that New Years. 

Oh goodness, but then the new semester starts at work...well, shoot.  

Life is a busy thing sometimes. 

Sometimes I feel like I just don't have the time to slow down and enjoy the details...

I saw this on Etsy and thought, WOW, it's totally speaking TO ME.  

I love it.

I'd like to try to remember this on a regular basis...especially during the next few weeks...

image credits: Artsyville

Joy Ever After

How About Orange is one of my very favorite blogs.
I read few blogs every single day, and that is one of those few...it's just that fab.
Well the other day I learned via How About Orange about another fabulous blog that became one of my top faves the moment I saw it.  Seriously.  It was love at first sight.

Here are some reasons why...
1. this paper ornament is just chic, artsy, classy...
2. going to a cookie exchange?  Here are some freebie tags for your goodies!
3. or why not try out this winter sangria at your holiday gathering this month?

seriously.
I am loving this blog.

...and did I mention the quotes at the footer of each page.  Totally inspiring.

image credits: Joy Ever After

All I Want For Christmas...

...is to take THIS photography class.

AND...

awesome news...

it's on sale right now!!

I should totally buy it shouldn't I??

p.s.  the textbook is on sale too. 

and I so gotta have that too.

p.p.s  and yes, I bought it.  

I bought my new camera for reals this time.

Canon Rebel T1i

Today one of my students said, "I love you Miss M...but totally like a friend of course."

It was cute.

Mondays need a little cute.

Also cute, this winking panda flashdance sweatshirt. 

Adorable.

image credits: Crywolf Canada via Poppytalk Handmade

Comfort Foods

sometimes you just have a couple a bad days.

and comfort foods, well, they don't call 'em comfort foods for nothing.

i saw these "featured sweets" on Bakerella and i think i might have to make them.

i don't really eat muffins all that often...

or pancakes for that matter...

but mini maple pancake muffins with chocolate chips sound pretty darn amazing right about now.

 image credits: Bakerella

You're Hired!

Check out that cute new staff writer over at ScrapStreet.com...

;)

SO EXCITED!

Scrap Street Magazine - December Issue

Build Your Own...

Cupcake!

What delicious fun.

Vol.25 is one of my very favorite designers and is the creator of this adorable cupcake construction kit.  You can download it here on her blog for free!  

It's just a cute little something to do for your little ones...or...who am I kidding??! It's a little something to do for big ones like me who are total suckers for cute things! 

image credits: Vol. 25

The Family Christmas Card

As far as clients go, I would have to say that Mom is by far...  
the toughest,  
absolute pickiest,  
most detail-oriented of them all.

She's had me working on the family Christmas Card.

For weeks.

Probably since before Halloween.

Over the past month or so, there have been several totally fabulous possibilities that have hit the chopping block.  It's a tough screening process, believe me.

The final card was finally chosen about a week ago and since then it's had at least 10 reincarnations.
Christmas Card 2010 has been a process to say the least.
But we have finally...well I am saying this with my fingers crossed...but we have finally sent the official, for sure, final final draft off to the printer today with my mother's blessing...phew!

Here are a few of the possible cards from the past few weeks...
One however, is the actual winning design...but I won't tell you just yet, in case you might be getting one in the mail ;)

p.s. I love you Mom!

card supply credits: echo park abundance paper, carina gardiner sweet nothings paper, suddenly artistic splatters on a grid photomask, suddenly artistic life in black and white paper, karla dudley brush

Good Things Come...

in tiny Coach packages.

New Coach wallet and wristlet...

so loving the jewel tones.

image credits: Coach.com

Party Frocks

 ...are the best.

love this photo.

photo by Sandra Beijer

Photo Play

I love to take pictures.  And I love to make my photos look kinda artsy and pretty.  I just jazzed up these pics from the twins birthday...

My brother may actually have taken a few of these photos since we are sharing a camera at the moment...you know my recent camera drama.  I cannot seem to settle on a camera to save my life...I've bought and returned TWO already...

Anyways, I am thinking I want to print a few of these photos and frame them as Christmas gifts for the fam.  Might be nice, right?  I love how they turned out. 
Hopefully I am typing this on an off day when the fam isn't reading and they'll skip this posting.  I'm terrible at keeping surprises! ;)

Very First Product!

Sooooo... I have some products on sale!

Ok, well a product. 

But I am pretty excited about it because this is the first time my creations have ever been on sale at an official online store.

I designed some Quick Pages for Catherine (a.k.a. Butterflies and Bluebells) using her Noel Chez Moi kit and she is selling the pages as a pack of four or bundled with matching word art and photomasks.  If creative time might be hard to come by these days or you've fallen a wee bit behind in your digi-scrapping, or if you are new to digi-scrapping altogether, Quick Pages like these might be just what you need right now!  They are so easy to use and not gonna lie, the ones I've created for you really are quite nice ;)

Here are some sample layouts using my Quick Pages...
(note: the thin blue line around the edges is just to separate them from the white background of my blog, it isn't really part of the layout...)

Kinda fun, huh?  

Did you brave the shopping scene today??  If so, hope you made it home in one piece with some great bargains!  I chickened out.  I'm hoping to catch some of the leftovers this weekend... :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Cows and Chickens have absolutely nothing to do with the Thanksgiving holiday that I had absolutely every intention of writing about, but I just SO couldn't not post this super funny super cute tee that I saw on Threadless. 

OMG.

Are you just dying??!

That is the cutest cow and chicken and egg ever. of all times.

love it.

Thank you so very much for stopping by, it truly makes my day!
And I wish you a wonderful holiday...and well, just a wonderful day if you don't celebrate Thanksgiving in your part of the world ;)

image credits: Threadless, Jean-sebastien Deheeger

Every Great Gift...

Needs a really great bow.

And not only do I heart bows tremendously, but I'm gonna go ahead and say that yes, I do tie a darn good looking bow.  However, my talent only goes so far.  When it comes to gifts, my bows may be a bit sub-par...

But never fear! I found the following tutorials that will show us how to make various types of gift bows!  Perfect for all the holiday packages we will be wrapping up in just a few weeks...

Gift Bows...by Scrap a Little

Magazine Gift Bow...by How About Orange

Trouble Free Gift Bow...by Small Notebook

Expert Tips and Various Bows...by Container Store

Owlies 2011

My Owl Barn is THE place in the blogosphere for staying in the know about all things owl. 

I've been a fan for some time now, but when I saw THIS oh boy oh boy did our relationship deepen. 

You can customize your very own 2011 owl lover calendar with completely original completely gorgeous owl artwork!  

And as if that's not awesome enough, you simply hit submit and it will be downloaded to your desktop in seconds.  You can create as many calendars as you'd like, perhaps one for all of your owl loving friends??  Love it!  I probably spent far too much time creating my calendar, trying to find the most perfect owl to match with each month...however, I do think I came up with a winning combination ;)

Enjoy!

I Think Autumn Has Arrived...

Cuz it's been raining here.  

aaaaaaaaaall weekend long.

Perhaps I should consider purchasing a pair of these...

ummm hello Kate Spade? You DID NOT just go there?

Oh yes. 

She did.

Black wellingtons. With big red bows.

I heart them.

Tremendously.

images via Target and Zappos, brands: Target, Gabriella Rocca, Bogs, Hunter, and Kate Spade

If I Had an iPhone...

This would totally be my wallpaper.

Image by Pawel Jonca via Poogla

Did You Know...

The word "verb" is actually a noun.

and...

That bees do not have ears.

and...

That hamsters are illegal in Hawaii.

Yeah.  

For reals.

Learn Something New Everyday has made it their mission 

to provide you with one completely random lesser known facts like the aforementioned

every single day

IN ILLUSTRATED FORM.

omg.

and added bonus, you can get the illustrations printed on tee shirts.

 sweet.

This one is totally my fave.
  

image credits: Learn Something Everyday

Let's Try Again.

Ok so book #24 didn't work out.

I didn't like it.

I returned it to the library 30-ish pages in.

Soooo I need a new read.

I browsed the shelves of the library today and was totally uninspired...nothing sounded the least bit interesting.

hmmmm...

Might you have any suggestions??

Also, along these same lines...I returned my new camera...again.  

Yep.  

This would be the second camera I have purchased and returned in the past three weeks or so.  

I just cannot make up my mind as to the type of camera that I want - the camera that is just right for the type of photos I want to take, that is perfect for my lifestyle, that is right for where I want to take and use the camera, and for exactly what I want to use it for...

etc. etc.

I just need to think about it for a bit.

And trust me, I have done tons of research...
I've read blogs, reviews, forums...
You name it, I've read it.

And I think it's actually a good thing that I've gone through this lengthy purchasing process.
I think I actually have a decision-making benefit now that I have tried both types of cameras.

I can really and truly make an informed decision having actually taken photos with each camera and carried them around, tried their features etc...

So, I guess now we shall just wait and see if I can in fact, actually make that informed decision one of these days...

SIDE NOTE: I thought this was a cute new holiday card just introduced over at Rock Scissors Paper..

image credits: Rock Scissors Paper

It's Barely Thanksgiving Buuuuut...

I saw some adorable Christmas wrapping paper the other day and just had to share.

But, first of all, do you love the Container Store as much as I do??
Oh lordy.
I could buy containers all day long.
I mean good grief I will walk out of that store with brand new snazzy containers for things I had no idea even needed to be contained before I got in there.  And side note: in all honesty, those items in most cases had been perfectly fine my entire life un-contained and probably would have been perfectly fine for the rest of my life without an expensive container, but goodness, those containers were just so fancy-looking in the store I had to have them.

Anyways, around this time of year the Container Store has some quite fabulous holiday goodies...things like wrapping paper, stocking stuffers, containers to contain all of your holiday wrapping and stocking stuffing supplies...it's marvelous really.

I stumbled upon their holiday wrapping and thought they had a lovely collection this year...some were cute and fun, some were kind of retro and modern, and not gonna lie, there were some ugly ones too, but we'll focus on the positive...here are some of the ones I liked:

They are kinda cute and funky I think...a little different for the holidays...check 'em out...as well as some of the fun stocking stuffers like these...or these.

image credits: containerstore.com