Free Digital Downloads-Freebies-Free Digital Printables

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How to Make a Halloween Countdown Calendar-Free Download

carinagardner2010_halloweencalendar_MP_bannerIt may seem a bit early, but Halloween has come to my house this last week. I’ve been happily crafting with my Haunted™ Paper Line. Lots of white pumpkins and scarecrows are visiting my living room (Photos coming soon!).

Here’s a fun project that you really need to do (and can easily do) in advanced. You will specifically need the Haunted™ Line because the reason it is so simple is because the journaling page in this line has this Halloween Countdown already to go! (simply cut it out!)

IMG_4846_1Once this fun little calendar is finished, all you’ll need to do is let your kids stamp a fun shape (The Haunted™ Acylic Stamps will be what we are using. I’m thinking we will be using white ink and that creepy, crawly spider.) or just draw a mark on each day as you countdown to a very spooky Halloween! It will be a fun way to start October 1st!

I have the tutorial for you to download below (seriously, this is a 20 minute project at best and the hardest part is making sure you have a photo of your family to add!) and you can certainly expect some more haunted crafting happening ’round here this week. Those cute, um, I mean spooky crows just love getting photographed!

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How to Make a Butterfly Chandelier-Free Download

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I made this fun little chandelier for my girls’ room a month ago using my Back to Basic’s digital line. It’s been a cute addition to their room, and it was pretty easy to make. Check out the tutorial below.

Want to cut it with your silhouette machine (or any other machine that cuts Illustrator files?). Download the ai file here (not for commercial use or resale).It’s already set up with 6 butterflies to a sheet.

ILLUSTRATOR FILE DOWNLOAD

If you want a pdf version of all six butterflies already setup for you (if you need to cut them out by hand), don’t worry! I’ve hooked you up too.

PDF FILE DOWNLOAD

Download the tutorial with instructions here:

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Designer Weekend Sale—Daisy Jane and Informed

Today is release day. I have a couple of new releases today (30% off today only), but my favorite is my Americana, which I made in honor of Independence Day.carina_americana_layout


If you’ve been looking for a digital scrapbooking sale from me, here it is!  My designer sale going on this weekend at DHD. There will be a free kit (You’ll want to jump on and download it!), and two $1 kits. All of Daisy Jane and Informed with be 25% off on Saturday and Sunday ONLY.

I also have a special code for my blog readers! This coupon code is for 25% off the FRESH PICKED MEGA COLLECTION on Saturday and Sunday only! Your code at check out is: BLOGLOVECG

And finally, come join me for a chat in the DHD Scrap Room at 9am MST on Saturday, June 26th. If you’ve ever wanted to see the pure mayhem of chatting through a forum for 1 hour, you should come join in for it!

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Happy Birthday—Free Download

IMG_3158It’s just a silly, little thing, but worth it for the birthday girl! Print out silly faces of the birthday girl (or boy) and place a birthday hat on their head. Add a toothpick and you have a very fun (and thoughtful) birthday cake (even when your birthday cake is having a landslide problem. Next time don’t attempt a third layer, Carina)!

happybirthdayhat_cgJust click on the image (and “Save As” to download) if you want to use this little template for your own birthday hat silliness!

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Dirty and Clean Dishwasher Tag—Free Download

dirtyorclean_1I’ve been meaning to make this for myself for sometime now—A magnetic dishwasher button that tells everyone else in the house if the dishes are clean or dirty. Here it is for you too (should you also have the problem of everyone asking you if the dishes are clean or dirty). I’m going to laminate mine, glue to thick paper or board, and add a magnet to the back. A pretty simple project. If I had a button maker, I’d probably make it into a button instead. If you do cool things with this button, be sure add the link here or add it to our Flickr group.

When your dishes are clean, simply flip the “Completely Clean” side up and when they are dirty, flip the “Disgustingly Dirty” side up. I even included 4 colors here so you could decide which worked best in your kitchen:).

Download below!

dishwasher_cgHere’s a few other things to check out:

+ If you wanted Pretty Posy, you only have a few more hours to join the Facebook group. I extended giving out the freebie until tonight.

+ Coquette™ will be arriving in the next couple of weeks, and I’ve already started getting a quilt design together for you! I’ve also got all sorts of other crafty ideas for you with the line.

+ A few updates to the studio site was made including the addition of Love Nest™ to the fabric section. If you want to see this line at your local quilting shop, be sure and email the link to the web brochure to them! You can also check it out on the sidebar on this here blog.

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Funny June Weather

After a few beautiful days, we got this yesterday:

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Someone needs to explain this weather to me. Today I put in my herb garden. It was freezing and the wind was crazy. Silly me for trying to garden!

If you haven’t signed up for the facebook page yet, there’s still time to get the free kit! We are SO close to 500 people and once we hit it, I’ll be sending out a link to everyone with a download of this beautiful kit.

Happy Saturday!

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Facebook Fan Freebie

I recently started a Facebook page so that you can keep up with blog posts, sales, and freebies. So here’s one of them! Once we hit 500 people, I’m going to give away my new Pretty Posy digital scrapbooking kit to everyone who joins! Once we hit 500, this kit will go on sale at Design House Digital. So take advantage of getting it free now!

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Here’s a cute little layout I did of my friend’s daughter, Isn’t she adorable?

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Find My Free “Stuff” Easier

Recently, I included a link above called “free downloads.” If you have clicked on it recently, then you know that I’ve now made it a little easier for you to find the free patterns, free downloads, and free printables on this site!
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This new little page can be accessed from the top navigation bar (free downloads) or the blog’s side bar (the lovely photo of the Coquette™ flower in that cute little red-head’s hair). It doesn’t include ALL the free stuff that you can find on this site…just my favorites! And with EQ7 in hand (it just showed up this week!), I’m going to have a few more patterns before long for you (I have certainly gotten into the spirit of quilting since going to Quilt Market)!

And if you didn’t see the Design House Digital sale, yet, I’d recommend heading over. Super big kits are on sale for just $1! Have fun!

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Felicity Fabric Flower Pattern-Free Download

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I’ve been making these fabric flowers for a couple of weeks now and named the little pattern after my sweet little red-head. I first made this pattern for Siri’s ruffle dress that I’ve been working on (pinwheel and pearls in the center), but I also like it with the big button on this shirt featuring Love Nest™ and this cute headband featuring Coquette™. It’s pretty easy to make and super versatile!

The headband uses both the little and large petal patterns and the flower on the shirt just uses the large pattern. I can see a whole string of teeny-tiny flowers hanging like flags in my office. I’ll have to get to work on that!

Think shirts, headbands, clips, and belts. This little flower would be cute on all of those! Okay, enough gabbing! Here’s the easy-peasy instructions for you. Download by clicking on the image below!

Happy sewing!

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interNational Scrapbooking Day-Freebie

IMG_1307_smAll the hail and sleet the last couple of days gave me some extra “inside time” to get this freebie together for you in honor of interNational Scrapbooking Day! Otherwise, I’d still be in my yummy lime green gardening boots planting ranunculus in my front yard!

So here’s some of the fun going on at DHD: There is a HUGE site-wide sale happening, chats all day on Saturday, May 1st, and freebies to be had. I’m jumping the gun a little by posting a day early with this freebie, but I say let the fun begin! Be sure to drop by HERE at 9am MST for my chat at DHD (hint, I’ll have a little exclusive freebie:).

So why is this kit called Paisley v2? Because you can download Paisley v1 by signing up to be a fan of Design House Digital on Facebook! When the fan page hits 2000 fans, this freebie will be given out.

Okay! Here’s Paisley v.2. Just click on the kit to download it!

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Design House Digital Designer Blog Hop Freebie!

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If this is the first post that you are hitting for the DHD Designer Blog hop, then you are in for a treat! If you’ve hit this blog from one of the other designer’s blog, then WELCOME! I’m happy to give you one more piece of the DHD Designer Blog Hop Freebie!

dhd_carinagardner_dhddesigner_1PREVSo what is the DHD Designer Blog Hop? It’s an opportunity for you to check out each of the Design House Digital designer blogs and get to know your favorite designers! And what better way to do it than by giving you a little freebie to boot? Well, little is maybe a bit of an understatement, heehe. To get the entire kit above (can you believe how big it is?) simply click on the icons below with the designer’s name and hop from blog to blog, downloading as you go! (Hint, if you just click on the right hand icons you’ll hit every designer going one way, if you click on the left hand icons, you’ll hit each designer going the other way!)

Download my 6 digital papers from this gorgeous kit by clicking on the icon below. I’m totally loving the colors (spring is calling to me!)! Enjoy!

While, I’m here, I ought to mention that I’ve made a few changes to the blog and studio sites. A little easier navigation system (if you want to see designs in fabric, paper, digital, and courses, all you have to do is click on DESIGNS & RELEASES now.) It’s also easier to find the free downloads and the newest releases (under DESIGNS & RELEASES). Check it out up top! And my final little bit of news is that the ladies over at My Mind’s Eye’s blog have been doing some FABULOUS stuff with my new Meadowlark™ line, so check it out if you get a chance!carinadownloadicon

Okay, ready pick up the rest of this delicious kit? Check out these designer’s blogs:
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A Super Post- A Free Download, A Giveaway, and A Good Cause

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I’d like to start with the good cause because, well, it’s the most exciting for me! My little sister SuiKim (pronounced “Sweet-Kim” without the “t”) and her husband Steve found out a couple of weeks ago that they have been chosen to adopt a little baby boy! I’m especially happy for SuiKim and Steve, who are just about the nicest, kindest couple of people around. They have spent most of their marriage wanting to have a child, and haven’t been as fortunate as many of us. If you’ve gone through this process, you know how heartbreaking and difficult it is. I’m so grateful that this opportunity has come  for them and wanted to share my joy with you.

sistersWithout going into my family history, I’ll just tell you that my family as suffered a bit of heartache the last few years (a story for another time). Because of this SuiKim and Steve don’t have many financial resources. I wanted to help the best way I know how. So the digital kit above, BABY MINE, will go on sale on Thursday, April 8th, at Design House Digital with all the proceeds going to help pay for the adoption. Thank you in advance for your kindness and generosity in helping me get this new little family started. I’ll be sure to post pictures of the little one when he arrives (camera will be waiting in hand!). (BTW, the pic on the side is my sister Yanni (right), SuiKim (center holding Yanni’s son Tad), and me).

If you don’t digital scrapbook, or just want to help, I’ve included a donation box here for you to send money to them.

Please Donate To SuiKim and Steve’s Adoption


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Thanks again for all your help in this effort! I’m excited to see this little family get their first baby!

Okay, on to the next thing! A giveway. Yes, I know you like giveaways and I do too! Due to hit Design House Digital on Thursday is a new Color Kit. I’ve been getting emails about this, and FINALLY I got to it! Want to win it? All you have to do is leave me a little message in this post about your favorite hobby—Are you scrapbooker? Quilter? Avid crafter? Obsessive organizer? I love hearing about others’ obsessive need to create! I’m right there with you.

Here’s little peek at Color Kit 3. I’ll post the winner Thursday morning, bright and early so leave me some love sometime on Wednesday.

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And finally, a little freebie for you! It’s a little party card download made from the Baby Mine kit. Use it for a birthday, baby shower, baby housewarming party, or (in my case) “Baby’s Here!” party. If you aren’t a “digital person,” no worries! This card is already positioned on an 8.5″ x 11″ paper so all you have to do is download and print. You may get a download window, or the image may appear in a new screen (if this happens just right click on it and SAVE IMAGE). It’s a high quality jpg that will print beautifully for you! Enjoy!

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Canister (Flour & Sugar) Labels-Free Download

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I got into a bit of an organizing mood today and hacked at my kitchen. Part of the mood was due to these new air-tight canisters I bought. These happy tiffany- blue tops made me want to really get things in order. I then made these labels (perfectly neutral, of course, if you’d like to download and use them).

I’m sure the organizing bug has hit me because spring is nearing (although you wouldn’t know it from the little snow storm we had just minutes ago). I’ve been digging through my girls’ clothing (and my own), putting away the winter wear and breaking out the shorts (not to actually wear…just to ogle over and force spring’s hand). I even broke out the Madsen yesterday and huffed and puffed my way to Siri’s school (and back again). I’m clearly not in shape for spring.

Here’s the canister free download for those of you with the spring cleaning bug too.

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Valentine’s Day Card for Kids-Free Download

valentinesdaycard2010_cgI’m a sucker for Valentine’s Day. And while we are still three weeks away, I’ve got some great little projects put together for this very pink holiday. If you haven’t picked it up yet, the Love Nest glitter book is available at Hobby Lobby, and I’ll be doing a few projects with those papers and my new Affectionate papers at Design House Digital.

First up, getting my daughter’s Valentine’s Day Cards together. And you can download them too! These sweet little cards ar 3″ x 4″ and I’ve even already assembled them onto a 8.5″ x 11″ sizes paper for you. So all you have to do is print! I’ve made the boxes “chubby” for my kindergartner’s fat letters. We’ll cut them out and let her write on them in advanced.

You can also check out my Valentine’s Day Kiddie cards from 2009 (also a free download!) if you want lots of different cards (and birdies:). Those cards are also set up on a 8.5″ x 11″ paper so all you have to do is cut! Easy-peasy!

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Craft Project-How to Make an Easy Octopus Costume

carinagardner_blog1Yes, my daughter wanted me to make her an octopus costume for her birthday. So how could I refuse? I kept it simple by buying a t-shirt (with the gems already on it) and women’s long socks. Add some filling, a t-shirt transfer kit and my sewing machine and I was set. The only problem? Once I made one for my oldest daughter, I had to make a second one for my youngest daughter. Thankfully, it’s project that can be done in a couple of hours.

Here’s the basic idea. Take a t-shirt and iron-on one of my adorable octopus stickers. Or skip this step entirely. Then stuff 6 women’s socks with filling and sew them to the ends of the t-shirt. Grab a beanie hat (add a flower for fun) and put on a pair of shorts and a final pair of socks (so there are 8 legs in all). Instant octopus!

Want the full instructions and photos? Just download this pdf with my instructions for creating this easy craft project!

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Neighbor Gift Tags-Free Download

IMG_8789I just finished up my neighbor gifts—easy-to-make chocolate dipped pretzel rods. The girls helped me and we managed to make quite the mess. All you need to do to make this gift is melt carmel candies, dip pretzel rods in the “goop,” let them cool, and then dip them in chocolate. We also dipped ours in sprinkles and crushed Oreos for the fun of it. Tonight we will be delivering them.

IMG_8753To make them even more special, I bought cellophane bags that were 4 inch x 9 inch and stapled on this bag topper. I like them because they are generic enough that you could shrink them down as place cards or anything else that had to do with Christmas.

Instructions:

1. Download the 8.5 x 11 jpg (below) of the neighbor gift tag. The size is 4 inches x 4.25 inchs.

2.Personalize by adding your family name (we added the GARDNERS) with a san serif font like Arial or Helvetica (I am using Abell Condensed) OR leave the area blank and move on to step 3. To personalize, you will need to use some kind of editing software like Photoshop or Photoshop Elements.ng_cg

3. Print to fit cellaphane bag or shrink for other use.

4. Add a hand written message to the back or sign your family’s name to the front.

5. Fold in half (so the dimensions are 2 inches x 4.25 inchs and staple to the top of your bags.

6. Deliver holiday cheer!

Happy Holidays! Download the NEIGHBOR GIFT TAG here!

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There Are Going to Be Some Changes Around Here! Illustrator Class & New Digital Scrapbooking Site!

illustrator101_iconIt’s a season of change around my house. Josh started work with a new law firm, Siri has lost tooth number 2, Felicity has been trying out her new potty, and I’ve got some great new projects in the works. The first is this brand new online class for Illustrator, which goes on sale TODAY at Jessica Sprague.com! After teaching Illustrator at DSE, this last September, I was overwhelmed by the number of people asking for an online course. So here it is folks! A four week long Illustrator course that is completely self-paced and easy to use. The videos are broken into smaller tasks so it’s easy to go back to a tutorial. I’ve also included 3 Bonus lessons, digital scrapbooking kits, and vectors in the course.

While I created this course initially for digital scrapbookers, I would recommend it to anyone who is even thinking about getting into design. I’ve incorporated everything I would teach on Illustrator in a university-level introductory graphic design course.

So want to see what the class is going to be all about? Go straight to the Jessica Sprague site to see the introduction video, purchasing information, and the Lesson break downs. You can also go to YouTube to see the video. I recommend watching the video because it will show you a short tutorial of a class lesson along with everything you will need (aka technology requirements) to take the course.

With all change, there is also some sad news. I have decided to move my digital scrapbooking store from Two Peas. You will still be able to find all of my 2008-2009 digital designs there, but I will be moving to a new store come January 1st, 2010.

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I’m pretty excited to have been asked to come to the new store (which isn’t even open yet) because it will be site with designers that are so amazing! The name of the site is Design House Digital (http://www.designhousedigital.com/) and the list of designers going there is UNBELIEVABLE! I can’t spill anything yet, but you ought to check out the place holder blog to grab the newsletter freebie (it’s FABULOUS!). And while you are at it, sign up for twitter https://twitter.com/designhousedigi since I was told that people will get updated with the new freebies and store updates there.

Well, that’s it for now. I’m working away at a christmas line for fabric and paper and enjoying my little ones during this holiday season. Hope you are having a happy December too!

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Christmas Calendar Cones—Free Download

IMG_8459I promised a Christmas goodie and here it is! An advent calendar that you simply clip to a line. Add treats to the cones so your little ones can take one out everyday. This is a LARGE download because all of the 8.5 inch x 11 inch files are PRINT READY (300 dpi).

All you need to do is print (I printed from my home printer) and cut out. Tape each piece into a cone shape and hang on a line by clipping with a laundry clip. I hung 4 strings in one of our front room windows and clipped 6 cones (and seven on the last one) across the string.

I’ve also included a Santa that you can stick in the cones to show your kids what day it is.

We’re getting in the Christmas spirit at our house: We’ve got our tree up and we are heading for the Heber Creeper (AKA The Polar Express) tomorrow for my birthday. I think the kids will love it (which means I will love it…there is nothing quite like the excitement of children at Christmas). Go ahead and download this goodie and it’s okay if you get it up a few days late…your kids will still love it!

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Paint a Tree In Your Kid’s Bedroom-Free Download

paintedtree_pdfinstructionsI’ve been a busy girl. I’ve been working on my little girl’s bedroom since moving into our new house last month. It has been so satisfying to  finally be able to paint! While I don’t feel like it is fully finished, I still thought I’d share what I’ve done with you. And, if you are interested in making your own tree, I’ve provided the stencils I made for myself here for you.

The pdf shown here includes simple instructions and patterns for the flowers and leaves. Making your own tree won’t be hard as long as you have a little time. The process for making the tree takes about 3 days, not because it really takes that long, but because the parts of the tree have to dry before you can start a new color.

Here’s a helpful hint to create stencils: I used my Silhouette to cut these out. You could also cut them out by hand using an x-acto knife and still get the same effect.

Download the pdf stencils.

Want to see the rest of the room? First, I have to show you the BEFORE photo. The budget was tight so we decided to have the floors refinished a dark color, repainted everything, and replace the splinter-inducing pine trim as our “big budget” fixes. 5

And here’s the after. My favorite thing is probably the floors. Having them this dark really makes the light pink pop.

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Paper Flower Wreath: Free Pattern

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flowerwreath_carinaI finally got around to this project! This little paper flower wreath was a big hit with my girls as they pranced around the house with them all day! I recently got a Silhouette from QuicKutz, which makes this little project a breeze! But if you don’t have a Silhouette, the flower shapes are simple and can easily be hand cut.

So, for Project Mania, I’ve put together the pattern for you in both the pdf form and gsd files (for the silhouette). I like these darling little flowers because you can also use them for paper rings (my girls love the brads with jewels on them for the centers). Check out where to buy my paper products and digital products if you want to use these papers for your own little wreath! The papers I use in Felicity’s wreath are from my Bella Bella Collection and my AC Moore’s exclusive paper pads Bella Bella (180 papers) and Paris & Co. (180 papers). Siri’s pink wreath comes from my Bella Bella Collection and Paris & Co (180) paper pad.

pdfinstructionsDownload the Paper Flower Wreath pdf instructions

Download the Large Flower GSD file

Download the Medium Flower GSD file

Download the Small Flower GSD file

And be sure to click on the Project Mania banner up top to check out the projects that other people are doing on this blog hop!

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Monthly Menu Planner- Free Download

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It’s the offical “start” of Project Mania! And I thought I would start off with a free download! I’m hoping to inspire you to get organized this month or finish a project that hasn’t been finished.

It’s appropriate that it is Project Mania month because September will be my busiest month yet! We just learned last week that we will be moving into a new house (our very first house, Yippee!), which means I’ll be working on getting myself super organized for the move. So what else is in store for me? Some serious decluttering, deep cleaning, and painting. I also plan on getting my recipes organized, get some digital scrapbooking done, and finish painting a dresser. Oh, and there’s this little download to get me organized with my meal planning! It has a calendar with a month’s worth of meals and a shopping list. I’ve already started using this…sometimes I rip off the bottom to take to the store with me (this is seperated into half sheets so you can cut off the top and place on your fridge) or take the whole thing to remind me of anything I might be missing.

Download the Monthly Menu Planner here.

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Autumn Event Schedule-Free Download

autumneventschedule_single72In anticipation of Project Mania, I have a free download today! It’s an autumn event schedule…something I really needed for myself. If I don’t plan it, I don’t do it.

And last year we never made it to the Pumpkin Patch, I never did my fall cleaning, and I waited until the last minute to buy halloween costumes for the kids. I decided to make this little reminder list to stick on my fridge to remember and start to schedule in these things. When November and December come around, I feel so out of sorts when I haven’t already taken care of Christmas card photos or planned around all the extended family activites. So here it is, a free download for you! It comes on a single sheet (8.5″ x 11″) with 4 of these fit on it. One has some activites already outlined (like the one shown) and one is completely blank so you can customize it. Enjoy!

To download just click on the image or click here.

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Free Download During Chat Tonight!

carinaandjen_2ps_pinklemonadefreebieprevAs a fun gift to everyone who joins the chat, Jen and I have put together this darling little freebie! You will need to post in the chat tonight and we’ll send you a peamail with the link which will only be downloadable during the chat. Be sure and drop by and get it! Visit us in the CHA Summer Forum at 10pm CST.

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And the Winners of Peony Place Are…

Thank you to everyone who participated in this giveaway! I really loved hearing your comments and hope you will keep coming back for design projects and more! Be sure to stop by tomorrow for another giveaway and an interview with a fantastic designer, Holly Jones!

Winners announced! I will be emailing the winners in just a second! I used random.org:). Drum roll, please!

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21- Manic Mother

56- Michelle in AR

13- Lena Loo

Congrats Ladies! I’ll be contacting you with your winnings!

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Free Task List Design and Peony Place GiveAway!

It’s a freebie day! If you’re like me, you are all over the place all day long: kids, work, dinner, shopping…the list goes on and on! And sometimes I’ll think of something TODAY, that I need to remember TOMORROW…so I came up with these cute little task lists that are SUPER easy to use. They are formatted on a 8.5 x 11 paper and you just need to cut it right down the middle. I put the tasks into boxes with lines because I sort of like to categorize what I’m trying to accomplish…home stuff, work stuff, etc. It’s also sorted into TODAY and TOMORROW.img_1419

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Download the TASK LIST here.


Hope you enjoy this freebie! Today is sort of a “double take” because the SITS girls is having their Spring Fling and I’ve decided to fling some digital scrapbooking your way! All you have to do to be entered into this giveaway is comment on this thread. Easy-peasy!

I’ll do a drawing for the winners…for every 20 commenters I will draw a name and you get to choose ONE KIT from my new Peony Place collection! So get people to visit and comment! I’d love to give out a lot!!!! Here are the kits you get to choose from!

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I will be announcing the winners on Wednesday morning at 10am MST! So check back:)!

Also be sure and check out the 20% off coupon and $40 gift certificate we are giving away at the SITS girls for Card Nirvana!

Need the SITS GIRL discount at Card Nirvana this week: CODE: SITS20MARCH

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And the last thing that you need to know is that I have a very special interview and free gift that I will be giving out on Thursday! So be sure to check back for that giveaway! Happy Tuesday!
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Tomorrow’s Freebies!

I’m here to post about the wonderful stuff going on tomorrow here at my blog, card nirvana, and the SITS girls! The first thing is happening right here!!!! I am giving away for every 20 commentors, 1 digitial kit of my new digital scrapbooking line (which hits Two Peas in A Bucket next Tuesday…it’s not even out yet!), The new line is called Peony Place and it’s a collection set up in digital scrapbooking sets. Not a digital scrapbooker? These papers are still great to print out for hybrid projects like cards and holiday projects! All you have to do is comment on TOMORROW’s thread and you will be added to the drawing! I will draw one person for every 20 people who comments ( so if 40 people comments, I’ll draw 2 people and so on). How easy is that? I’ll also have a new freebie card up for you to pick up, so you should dash by to at least get the details on that! So everyone wins:).

Tomorrow’s winners gets to choose from these:

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Perfect for spring, don’t you think? Here’s a layout I did of my daughter Siri using the Floral Fantasy!

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Okay, so at card nirvana, you are going to be able to pick up a freebie tomorrow! So check here first and then you are going to want to hop over there.

Finally, Card Nirvana is giving away a $40 gift certificate (that’s a lot of cards!) with the SITS girls. You’ll need to check out their site tomorrow to be available. They also have the coupon code for a 20% off discount at Card Nirvana! If you have had your eye on something, now is the time to buy it! Head on over there and see what you can see!

Can’t wait to see you tomorrow!

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My New Mini-Office Space & Free Tag Download

I have to call it a space because that is what it is. It’s not a room. It’s not a studio. It’s a space. A 4 feet x 6 feet bit of space to be exact (if you count all of the rug). It located in my bedroom (something I don’t recommend, but under current circumstances could not be helped) and it was a strain to get a vertical shot of the thing! But here it is, in all it’s mini-glory!

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Basically, I tried to use things I already had around the house. I supplemented it with stuff from Ikea, Antique Shops, and Home Goods (for my budget). I tried really hard to stick to the basics—storage and lighting. I added the numbers because I was inspired by a page in a Pottery Barn decorating book. I REALLY wish I could paint the wall to give everything a nice pop…but since I can’t paint, I’ll try to bring in color other ways (for example, I’d love to paint that wood table I have that is acting as my desk).

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My big bargain buy was a total accident! I got that new chair for $12 down from $150 at Home Goods. It’s a great basic color and I can see recovering it in the near future. I’m also in love with the lamp!

This is the top view of the shelves. I bought the shelves from Ikea. Since I have so little space, I worked my way up to utilize space.

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My desktop…lots of sketching, facebooking, and designing happen here.

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Here was my “number” inspiration to help tie things together a bit. It makes it all a little more graphic:). I printed numbers, used sign stickers, and house numbers.I need a seriously big number to put on the wall but haven’t found one yet.

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Here’s the inspiration for the numbers: A Pottery Barn decorating book.

inspirationpottey1My tray on the desk keeps me “organized”. Well, sort of, I just dump things in it. It makes the desk less cluttered. It also holds my ugly hard drive (hidden under my Arts & Crafts book!).

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Here are my easy-peasy tags for my jars. I used My Minds Eye Rub-On Alphas and printed out the tags from these templates I made. You can download them here:

Tag Templates Download

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They are the same tag, set up for print-ready.

These are the My Minds Eye RubOns.

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Setting it up on my computer:

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img_11621I love the rubons because they are so simple and really take all the work out of this project.

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Hope you enjoyed! I’m sure I”ll be changing this minispace as I find more “stuff.” I especially want to add more color. Have a great Saturday!

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Valentine Gifts for Preschoolers

I posted my valentine freebie from card nirvana earlier, and we actually used  them today for Siri’s preschool class! I printed them out back and front, Siri wrote in all her schoolmates names. We then attached the heart lollipops to the cards by punching a little hole in the corner. Fast and sweet…just the way it should be!

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A note about the chocolate cards—we used a white gel pen to write on them! You can write on them with black ink, but it’s a little hard to read.

Want to grab these free cards? Grab them here from Card Nirvana, my digital invitation store!

**The Card Nirvana download is no longer available! You can now download them directly from this link:

https://carinagardner.com/valentineskiddiecard.zip

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Kitchen 123: Valentine Project and Heart Freebie

As Valentine’s day is approaching, I decided to be festive and actually do a project. You know, one where I am not on the computer. Ya, that doesn’t happen a lot. lol. If you want to make this heart tree, it’s SO easy and really inexpensive. Use any paper you like…my paper is the Bohemia line from My Minds Eye. I made 9 little “heart trios” as I call them, but you can make any number you like. So here’s the project: I took branches from outside and placed them in a vase. I used a piece of scrapbook paper, rolled it, and stuffed it in the vase. Then I put on these little heart trios. Here’s how to make them:

First, download my heart freebie here. Print is out as your template. Then you are going to want to cute out hearts from 3 different types of papers. I actually folded my heart template in half and folded the scrapbook paper too so my hearts were symmetrical. Then you want to glue stick three of the hearts together so they look like so:

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I then punched a little hole in each of these with a “baby” hole puncher. and hung then on string. I think ribbon would be cute too, but at the moment I don’t have ribbon thin enough for this project. So string it was!

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I did tie a little crochet lace around the top of the vase. I love how graphic this paper is because it feels so organic. I’d also suggest painting the branches white. I didn’t because I like the natural feeling of the branches, but I think that it could be a cute alternative.

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Here’s my Kitchen 123 Recipe card I made to file away this project (See the recipe card post).

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Grab the heart template freebie at my 4shared link: Heart Freebie Template

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Valentine Day Card Freebies!

Jen and I both got up our Valentine Freebies at Card Nirvana! I think you’ll like these cards! Jen put up this fun striped valentine’s day card and I have up some mini 3 in.x 4 in. cards that I made for my daughter’s preschool friends. I probably will attach them to heart lollipops or some other treat (I’ll post it when I do them), but for now, we thought anybody who wanted to use them for Valentine’s Day could grab them in advance! The Valentine Stripe card is for photoshop users and the small cards (Valentine Kiddie Cards) are set in a pdf. You can just print as is (there’s a cute heart wallpaper to print on the back of the cards) or use the Card Nirvana pdf to TYPE IN YOUR INFO. It’s SO easy.

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This is what the files look like that you get:

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Happy Heart Day! Have fun with the freebies! If you use them at all post the link here so we can see what you did with them! You can download from 4shared just one card. I’d recommend just going straight to Card Nirvana to pick all the freebies up at once though:).

**The Card Nirvana download is no longer available! You can now download them directly from this link:

https://carinagardner.com/studio/freedownloads/valentineskiddiecard.jpg

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Giveaway at DST

There is a cardnirvana giveaway going on a DigiShopTalk right now! Just click on the link and it will take you right to the thread! We’re giving away gift certificates to pick up some of the new digital cards in the store. Go head and submit to the thread! 
Check out the new French Boutique Collection that I just put up last night:

You can see them individually in the designer collection or general party categories.

More invitations being uploaded daily so keep checking back!

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