Creative Memories Digital 411 Blog

Easy Easter Printables

Hippity, hoppity...Easter's on it's way! Have some fun creating special treats for the special somebunnies in your life. 

And there's no need for you to start from scratch, either. Remember these easy Click and Fill Party Favor Templates (US/CAN) from Halloween and Valentine's Day? Fill them with some Vintage Chic digital artwork (US/CAN), print and assemble. Easy!

To create them, simply download the templates and install them into StoryBook Creator 4.0 Software. New to digital? Try a free 30-day trial of our software (US/CAN)!

• Start a new project and choose the Local Printer category.
• Choose 8.5x11 Page (Portrait).
• Click Next, then choose the Click and Fill Party Favor Templates.
• Click Next again to create your project.
• To decorate, click into the different layers to fill them with papers and add embellishments.
• Print by clicking the File tab, then click on Print.
• Use a trimmer to cut the candy bar wrappers and tags with a straight edge.

Visit the Project Center for instructions on this type of project. Note: Each type of treat wrapper is featured on a different page in the project, so you can delete any that you don't want to make. If you want than one page of any of the designs, simply duplicate that page after you've finished designing.

Here's a closer look at the finished products!

{Candy Bar Wrappers} 

{Bag Topper}

{Mini Candy Bar Wrappers}

Get started by downloading the free Click and Fill Party Favor Templates (US|CAN).

We'd love to see your finished projects - share them on the Creative Memories Go Digital Facebook Page.

Enjoy!

Kristen Jacobs

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Valentine Treat Toppers

Baby, this is fabulous!

Our Fast to Fabulous products have taken off like wild fire. I mean really - who wouldn't feel like a rockstar after finishing a completely awesome and adorable album in just a couple of hours? Our new line of baby-themed Fast to Fabulous products are ready to roll on out the door, and they are oh-so-sweet and adorable. Those little owls - yum!

As usual, we're releasing the digital version of those sweet pages for quick creating on the digital side, too. Itching to see what the pages look like? Here are a few of my favorites from each of the Predesigned Pages:

Below is a sample from the It's A Boy Digital Predesigned Pages (US|Canada):

A sample from the It's A Girl Digital Predesigned Pages (US|Canada):

And a sample from the Cute As Can Be Digital Predesigned Pages (US|Canada):

And, if you'd like to flip through our super sweet new "flippable" preview of each of the sets of pages mentioned above, here you are:

It's a Boy Digital Predesigned Pages
It's a Girl Digital Predesigned Pages
Cute As Can Be Digital Predesigned Pages

Happy creating, and enjoy :)

Is it TIME?

For some reason, I'm always looking for the time. I think I'm afraid I might miss something!

I'd hate to be late for an important meeting, a doctor's appointment, or even an evening crop. I don't always wear a watch, so I find myself looking around for a clock.

That got me thinking...

I wonder if I could create my own clock using a Photo Panel and some clock parts from the local craft store?

So we decided to give it a shot and the verdict is in. We love it!

Jill, one of our designers here in Inspiration Studio, created this design in Storybook Creator 4.0 (US|CAN) with a photo of her kids from last summer.

Here's how you can do it yourself:

1. Create a new 12x12 project.
2. Fill the background with your favorite photo.
3. Insert a large circle to assist with aligning your numbers.  
4. Create a vertical and horizontal guide, crossing in the center of the project, to locate the placement of numbers 12, 3, 6 and 9; then fill in the rest of the numbers. 
5. Add a title or quote to your design. (Jill used the Hold Onto Each Other title from the Family and Friends Digital Embellishments)
   
   
6. Once aligned, hide the circle layer by clicking the eye along the left side under 'Elements'. 

Once you've finished your design, upload and order your photo panel on the Creative Memories Digital Center (US|CAN). In the meantime, pick up some universal clock pieces that will fit the 3/4" thickness of the Photo Panel at your local craft store.

Once your photo panel arrives, you'll add your clock parts.

1. Find the center of the clock by placing a piece of painter's tape on the center of the panel.
2. Mark your crossing points using a pencil.
3. Use a 1/2" drill bit to drill a hole through the clock, from the front to the back of the panel.
4. Remove the tape.
5. Insert your clock pieces as directed on the packaging of the pieces. 

Viola! You now have a beautiful, one-of-a-kind clock to place on your mantel or end table. 

 

 TIME for me to get back to work! Try it yourself and post a photo on our Facebook page.

 

Sweet gift ideas!

Personalized gifts (US|Canada) are always a favorite, so why not cross off a few folks on your list this year with some great gifts they'll love? T-shirts, mugs and mousepads are always a huge hit, and they're even more fun when they're completely personalized! Here are some fun project ideas for you. Enjoy :)

What grammy or grandpa wouldn't love to have a t-shirt like this?

Click here for instructions on how to create this t-shirt project.

Here's one for the person who fuels up on hot cocoa on the frosty cold winter days:

Click here for instructions on how to create this mug design. (Note: placement of design on mug may vary slightly)

And here's a surefire way to become teacher's pet:

Click here for instructions on how to create this custom mug project.

And lastly, give the gift that will go to work with the recipient every day - a custom mousepad!

Click here for instructions on how to create this mousepad project.

Have fun creating!

Jenny

New Flat Desk Calendars - a great gift idea!

Looking for a unique gift to give this holiday season? Try these new Flat Desk Calendars (US|Canada)! Keep a schedule, while showing off your favorite family memories. They are fully customizable, as with all our calendar products. Drag and drop your favorite photos into the photo drop spots, then customize the calendar grid by adding important dates and events. The calendar grid boxes are roomy, with plenty of room to scribble additional information onto the calendar as you use it on your desk.

We've created some beautiful FREE predesigned templates (US|Canada) for you to get started with, and you'll love them! They come complete with all twelve months in each set, with three sets available. Here are sample pages from each set in the free template package. Note: the first sample is shown with the corners of the calendar tucked into the black corners - the others are shown untucked.

Reflections:

Professional:

Seasonal:

Also available for purchase are fully layered, editable templates (US|Canada) that allow you to move components around as much (or little) as you want (I LOVE, LOVE these!). Here are samples of the styles available in that package of templates:

Grunge:

Scrappy:

Seasonal:

Enjoy :)

School's in session - start an album!

It's hard to believe we're already well into September, and the kids are back in school. I learned the hard way that before you know it, it's graduation time... so it's important to keep track of the sweet little milestones that happen during their school years.

As my son grew up, I saved all of his craft projects and artwork. I hung onto all those school photo envelopes with the noisy, crinkly see-through window on the front. And I also kept a little mini journal that listed out info like teacher, year, school and best buds for the year.

I recently realized I needed to pull all of these fun memories together into an album, and I decided a Custom Album (US|Canada) plus Custom Album Pages (US|Canada) was the way to go. The cover I designed was turned into a drag and drop template on the Digital Center (US|Canada) and the pages were created using StoryBook Creator 4.0 Software (US|Canada) and the School Through the Years Predesigned Pages (US|Canada). Here's the cover I created:

And here's a two-page spread where I am showcasing the info about Jordan's kindergarten year on the left side, and one of the predesigned pages had a "My favorite project" themed page - perfect for his adorable artwork!

On the "My Favorite Project" page below, I added a Memorabilia Pocket (US|Canada) and slipped the cute little project right into the pocket.

And here's a closeup of the info page:

In case you're wondering, the font I used on my pages is Jenna Sue.

Oh, and I would recommend working on your album as the years go by - don't do what I did and wait until it's all over. It's much easier to get details worked out if you stay on top of it - and imagine how fun it'll be to add pages to your book every year! :)  Enjoy.

A beautifully fun calendar idea!

Here's a calendar project idea that pairs up the wildly popular Enchanted Digital Power Palette artwork (US|Canada) with the fun dry-erase calendar project idea. We featured this project in our product cases at Showcase this year, and it definitely stole the show.

Creating this project is easy peezy - it's available on the Digital Center as a predesigned template. All you have to do is visit the 12x12 Photo Panel page (US|Canada), add the project to your cart and viola - you're finished. NO designing required for this one!

PS - the dry erase aspect of this works on both regular and metal photo panels. Just be sure to use dry erase markers with your dry erase photo panel project and every month you'll have a fresh, new calendar ready for use!

Enjoy! :)

Jenny

Something fun for teacher!

Yes, that's right - it's already time to send the kiddos back to school. This year, send them to school with a special gift for the teacher - a gift he or she will love!

These personalized stationery cards are a sweet way for the teacher to be able to send notes home in style! Available on the digital center (US|Canada) as a drag and drop template, simply click to personalize with the teacher's name, then order and you're all set!

Enjoy :)

Jenny

 

Something awesome I discovered at Showcase from Sarah V. Lee!

A good part of the fun of attending Showcase every year is sharing projects with attendees, but I also LOVE discovering all kinds of other sweet ideas that really need to be shared with the masses. And this year, I found something SUPER cool.

Creative Memories Elite Leader & Senior Director Sarah Lee shared this super project idea with us (the original idea came from Sarah's friend and Creative Memories Senior Unit Leader Lenore Sanborn - thanks Lenore!) at our digital training session, and I knew immediately that I had to share it with all of you!

You may have heard about the original Dry Erase Board Photo Panel idea (using lighter colors as a background, writing on them with a very dark marker), but now there's a new twist to the concept of dry erase boards! Try a very dark (we suggest some form of black) background on a regular Photo Panel (US|Canada) project with Expo NEON Dry Erase Markers. They work like a charm, and how super fun are they? They mimic what you see on a bistro board featuring daily specials - as you'll see above. 

For the project above, I simply placed a paper from the Nancy O'Dell Recipe Digital Kit (US|Canada) as the project background, colored it black and white, then pumped up the contrast to make it darker. Next, I added a few embellishments to the upper right corner and then boom - I was done with my design! Order it as is, then pick up some Expo NEON markers. Easy peezy!

Other fun ideas for dark dry erase boards?  Family dinner menu (as shown above), fun dry erase board for teens, "to do" lists at work or just share a quote of the day with your family as they head out for their day. The possibilities go on and on! They're also a great gift idea for owners of quaint little coffee shops, bistros and cafes, tanning and beauty salons, or any other business owner who may have a "special of the day" they want to feature. I love these things!

I look forward to hearing how you would use one. Have fun!

Jenny

Something awesome I discovered at Showcase from Nick Kelsh!

I totally dig Nick Kelsh's photography style, and he's always got the perfect advice for us that's sound yet very, very funny. He's not afraid to be silly (which I find awesome) and I think that's why SO many Creative Memories Consultants adore him.

I had the pleasure of working in Nick's booth on Friday at the Showcase Expo, and my job was to explain to folks these new fangled cards (the Going  Manual Mini-Manual) that Nick has come up with. Oh, and he's had the foresight to also create a DVD that goes with the cards, explaining exactly what the cards mean and how to use them. After having greeted hundreds and hundreds of excited Consultants when they entered the booth, I had the script of how I could explain these beauties memorized to a tee. And here's what I said:

"These cards are wonderful little laminited manual photography tip charts - they fold in half and fit perfectly in your camera bag or purse. They teach you how to use the manual setting on your camera. They explain f-stops, ISOs and things like when to use your camera handheld or when to use a tripod. And THEN, the backside of each card is jam-packed with super fun and useful general photography tips written by Nick."

Then I explained the price to folks, and nearly every Consultant who came through the line decided these were a must-have. To our delight, on his website howtophotographyourlife.com Nick has extended this awesome Showcase pricing out a while, so the more you buy the more you save! The cards are $10 for a pack of 20 (just 50 cents a piece), but when you buy more, you score big! Buy five 20-packs, he'll throw in one pack free for a 20% discount (that's $40 for 100 cards!). When you buy ten 20-packs, you'll get THREE FREE packs for a 30% discount (that's just $70 for 200 cards!). Perfect little giveaways at workshops, parties or team meetings!

And the best part is the video I mentioned - it explains everything on the card and how to use it.  They're just $5.

Because we're all about celebrating memories through photography, this sweet little product is something that will become your best friend as you venture through your life photographing both the big stuff and the very little stuff, too. Having this at your fingertips, that big letter "M" on the setting dial won't be such a scary place to stop when you're out shooting around. And who knows... you may eventually end up shooting EVERYTHING manually and poo poo the days when you used to set your camera on "auto".  ;)

Enjoy!

Jenny Dammann