by Linda | Feb 10, 2016 | DIY printables
I’m proud to announce that I’ve joined Petit A Petit and Family and will be blogging there once a month with happy mail printables for you to enjoy! Be inspired and get creative, whether in sewing, parenting, photography or crafting (or all of the above really).
Today I’ve posted the Puuurfect Cat-Themed Printables inspired by Celina’s pinterest board. I’m teaming up with Made by Toya as we will be posting in tandem, taking inspiration from a different board each month. You can join in on the fun and take inspiration how you see fit as well – use hashtag #pinandcreate on social media.
Excited for this new adventure I’m diving into as a blog contributor and excited to see where all the craftiness will take us. Here’s to collaboration and community!
by Linda | Dec 13, 2015 | DIY printables
Need coffee, just about right now?! I often get that craving and suddenly the battle of should I or should I not ensues!
Even when I’m super busy, trying to juggle mom life, work life and creative life all together… I try to find a few minutes to play in my art journal. Sometimes that is the “fix” that I really need. It’s helpful for my sanity and mood to do something fun and creative.
This is a page in my journal for the ecourse The Creative Life: Documented with Amy Tan and Jamie Waters. I was inspired to create the graphic about coffee because I realize how much I love it and practically need it sometimes. It’s just become a routine and ritual, more than the actual physical need – if that makes sense?
Or maybe it’s both – for the love and need of coffee!
It was a quick and easy page to get my creative fix for the day for sure. That is something that I learned from the class – that it really doesn’t take that much time to satisfy my creative needs. It’s not about the best or perfect layout or design – not the point at all!
I would love to share the need coffee graphic I designed as a printable with you – just click the image to get the full size graphic to download. I hope that it satisfies your creative fix, if not the coffee one 🙂
Have fun and let me know what you create – enjoy!
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by Linda | Mar 18, 2015 | DIY printables
Need a free printable thank you card for a dear friend? Check out this beautiful, soft floral design to download and print today. Instant thank you card!
A while back I designed this soft floral thank you card for my email newsletter subscribers, but I totally forgot to post it here on the blog. While organizing my digital files, I happened upon the design and knew that I had to share.
I think thank you cards are super handy for everyone. It’s always appropriate to say thank you and I think we don’t do it enough in writing. So here’s a free printable thank you card that you can create in no time. Printables are great for the last minute, because you can download instantly and print at home. Or if you are like me, print out a bunch of copies, so they are ready at hand. When you actually stop to think about it, there are loads of people you can send a thank you card to week to week.
Trust me when I say that thank you cards are highly appreciated. You don’t have to be a sophisticated writer, so don’t get scared away. Just your heartfelt thanks in your actual handwriting will do. Hand over the card or post it as snail mail and your time spent will be much appreciated. Just think about how you feel when you get a thank you note. It’s really good… so pass on that feeling to someone who deserves your thanks.
Download Printable many thanks card PDF
So, I’m a huge fan of printable stationery because I think it’s just so handy and useful. You can find just the right card you need and print it out from the comfort of your home. Amazing, right? I’m busily working on a secret printable project – so these thoughts are definitely on my mind. Definitely keep in touch, so you don’t miss out on the announcement. The amazing thing about digital downloads is the instant gratification *woohoo*
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by Linda | Feb 12, 2014 | DIY printables, my creative journal
My first venture into the online digital world was when I was only 14 years old. I think it was a local library class that taught HTML, so I created my very first web page and declared my existence online. Do you remember those flashing marquees and gaudy web colors?
The online world has definitely changed since then. Don’t you think we are all so darn sophisticated these days? With just a few clicks, you can make yourself a beautiful blog. Although I know, ultimately it’s always easier said than done.
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about this blog and how to move forward. I know that we all curate what we post, more or less. But the more I planned, the more I felt it was too mapped out. There are a lot of tips and tricks out there about blogging successfully, but the heart of the matter is figuring out what blogging means to you personally.
I’ve been blogging since my teenagers years, on and off, from platform to platform and I must admit that ultimately, I write because I need to express my thoughts. Something about getting them out and published, as if I was chatting to a friend about my life. Now that I live abroad, more than ever I feel so detached at times and often miss the company of just hangin’ with my girls, you know?
I also like to create and experiment with DIY crafts and my design and illustration. And I’m not ashamed to admit that having an audience gives me motivation. Perhaps it’s simply the act of documentation that really does it, no matter how many or few people read this blog.
Finally, there’s this thing with community and being a part of a larger whole. I’ve always loved being online and involved in the digital sphere of life. Although commenting was much more common in the beginning days of blogging, now the conversation has simply moved to the various social media outlets. But I think it still all starts with the content on a blog.
So, I will continue to blog. I’m just readjusting my focus and ultimately going to get a bit more selfish about this space. I’m not a professionally blogger, so there’s no need to follow editorial rules or business tricks. That’s not what this space is for.
It’s definitely nice to have some clarity, even if there are still a lot of questions and fuzziness all around. A single point of clarity is something I can hold onto. In trying to unknot all the issues in my head regarding this blog, first I had to identify the issues. I’ve run into problems of trying to create content just for the sake of blogging, thus losing my passion. I’ve also run into censorship issues, wondering if I should share this or not that… whether it “fits” the focus of the blog or not. I’ve always had trouble keeping up with posts as well and being a new mom, time will only become more and more scarce.
My blog problems aren’t really that dramatic – many of us run into these issues every so often. I’m shifting my perspective and realizing they can be easily resolved. First, I must have my heart into this space, so I will blog only what I want to. There’s no need to fit into any kind of box… this is MY blog after all. Everything fits in the category of me (duh!). And the easiest way to keep up is to lower expectations and commit to a realistic schedule.
Sounds pretty straightforward and non-dramatic, huh? Should have realized all this sooner, I know.
All those words above lead me to my real point (see how I like to write?) – that I should be living more authentically and proudly. Enough of feeling inadequate or not up to par or outside the popular crowd. Who cares! There’s no need to make pretense and seem a certain way just for the blog. Living abroad in Italy is exciting and amazing, so I need to embrace it. And we can never do it all, but we can do a whole lot with the time we are given nevertheless.
So this blog is about documenting my sort of normal, yet not so normal wondrous life. From living as an expat in the beautiful Tuscan hills to designing and illustrating the cuteness that I adore to motherhood to DIY crafty goodness that just makes me happy!
Now, I feel so much better about moving forward and doing what’s real and true to my heart. Yay! The guiding principle is to remember that it’s about living my authentic life and making sure it’s something I can be proud of.
I’ve created a printable of inspirational hearts (since it’s Valentine week as well) to remind myself of these principles.
Feel free to download the PDF for your personal use.
I hope you are inspired to just be yourself and do what is best for you. Thanks for reading and sharing in my story. I really do appreciate the time you take to visit my blog.
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by Linda | May 1, 2013 | DIY printables
The Pixel and Paper Series highlights digital techniques and products for scrapbookers like you and me. I believe that everyone should consider digital elements to be a part of their scrapbooking toolbox, so let’s learn together what the possibilities are. Each week, I’ll be sharing the opinion of a real-life scrapbooker to reveal how they use digital in their scrapbooking. Each post will also offer a freebie download to help you get started on your pixel and paper journey. Enjoy!
Introducing… Lisa Truesdell
I have heard and seen the work of Lisa before, but was truly introduced to her through Two Peas In A Bucket and most recently bought her e-courses there as well. I love to watch her videos and check out her projects for inspiration, so definitely wanted to hear her take on the digital versus paper divide in scrapbooking. She blogs as gluestickgirl and shares a lot about her process, from traditional scrapbooking to project life.
Lisa says:
I am very much a tactile scrapper, so I like to find ways that I can bring the digital side into the physical world. One of my favorite digital products are printable journaling cards and accents – I love that I can buy a set & print them out no matter what time of day it is. Total instant gratification. I’ve also had a lot of fun recently experimenting with photoshop brushes of stamp designs – they’re a great way to add a little something to a photo before you print it. And let’s not forget the Silhouette Cameo. Being able to create a title or a fun accent from any font or image that I have on my
computer is just too cool.
Instant Gratification
I think Lisa hits on a beautiful point regarding digital tools – it’s nearly always instant gratification! When you need something, you can quickly check online, download and print – wahlah! Pretty cool huh? There’s also the matter of multiple uses given the nature of digital products. In a sense, the possibilities are endless.
I know that Lisa often uses digital frames and digital journaling cards for her photo printing and project life scrapping. You can see great examples of her scrapping style that is very tactile and paper – even though she uses digital tools as well.
via Lisa’s blog
I hope you have enjoyed the entire Pixel and Paper Series as I wind it down with this post today. Ultimately, digital is simply another tool and perhaps one day we will no longer segment ourselves as a digital or paper scrapbooker.
We are simply all memory keepers who care about documenting our lives and sharing.
Whether it be with old fashioned pen and paper or with the latest social media technologies – the important thing to remember is to open yourself up to possibilities and have fun along!
