MyMemories Scrap Challenge and Sale

As many of you know, I am now on the Creative Team of Touched By A Butterfly, a digital scrapbooking design company.  This week, our fearless leader Celeste is hosting the Weekly Blog Challenge at MyMemories.  To enter, all you have to do is design a page using one of Touched By A Butterfly's kits.  These may be purchased at her MyMemories Store or you may download a free kit from Touched By A Butterfly's Facebook page simply by "Liking" it.  You can purchase the MyMemories Software for $10 off plus get $10 to spend in the MyMemories Store using the coupon code STMMMS4712.  The lucky winner of the challenge will receive a FREE copy of the kit Smashology 101 by Touched By A Butterfly.

In honor of her hosting the weekly scrap challenge, Celeste is offering 35% off her entire store as well.  Be sure to check out the store!  I have several new clusters and an upcoming photobook there which you are sure to love as much as I do.  Make sure that you hop on over to the pages listed in order to enter the challenge and have a chance at the freebies!

Remember to make a memory today, and keep a camera on hand to capture it!

Time to Go "CAMP"ing!

The Blog Train has rolled into town once again, bringing you a very special theme for a hot July.  Instead of resorting to the normal reds, whites, and blues of the summer, www.blogtrainblog.blogspot.com has the lovely summery theme of camping free for users for the entire month!  This is a once in a lifetime chance to grab freebies from almost a hundred digital scrapbook designers.  I know what I will be downloading for the next 2 weeks.  Do you?  Just check out The Blog Train Blog website to find all of the coordinating kits for the color template following template.  Happy Hopping!

When the Lord closes a door, He often opens a window!

Lately, I have been down.  And that is putting it nicely.  Nothing seems to be going right in the world.  My significant other moved to Texas without me, my grandfather was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and I failed to obtain a teaching job in Latin this year.  I have tried crawling into bed and not coming out before, but I promise that it never works out for the best.  Instead, I chose to vent.  Luckily for me (and you), I vent through art.  Sometimes I journal in my Moleskine, sometimes I make Artist Trading Cards, and sometimes I dive into digital scrapbooking.  Whatever the case may be, I always have something tangible to offer for my efforts.  So recently, I applied to work on the creative team of Touched By a Butterfly, a digital scrapbook design firm.  And finally, after viewing my blogsites, I was chosen to be a member.  Digital scrapbooking was there for me when I needed it (as well as those of you who have supported me here), and now I have the opportunity to give back to the artistic community in a meaningful way.  I hope that you will enjoy my designs as well as the opportunities it will bring for the digital scrapbooking community.  And in the end, maybe I will have more time to work on the things that I love...my relationship, my family, my education, and my art.

When Your Muse Should Keep Silent

Okay.  I must admit that occasionally the little voice inside my head speaks louder than it should.  Or rather, a little louder than I should allow it to speak.  Recently, my muse told me that I should offer my talents to several graphic designers with the hopes of becoming a member of their creative teams.  Everyone (that is my mom and boyfriend) tend to enjoy my scrapbooking skills and I had the insane idea that everyone else would love them too.   Instead, my art was met with little less than fanfare.  In fact, I believe that I was called boring...or dull.  I am not really sure because my muse has been in shock ever since.  I actually have not been able to enjoy scrapbooking ever since.  ...That is...until today.  Even though I had an epic failure with my attempt at joining a creative team, I was given the opportunity to enjoy my passion once more.  One of the designers stated that she had several positions opening for members to create art other than scrapbooks using digital scrapbooking kits.  Thoughts began to flood my mind.  My creative juices simply keep flowing.  I don't know whether I should build a matchbook shrine, an Artist Trading Card, a journal, or simply a Random Act of Art Kindness postcard.  Sometimes one door has to close in order for a window to open.  Sometimes we have to listen to our muse, and sometimes, it is best for her to keep silent.  She eventually will start talking again (in her own time), and we just must be receptive to the ideas that she puts forth.  Hopefully, I will soon be able to take a picture and enjoy the fact that one day someone else will enjoy it too.  

When push comes to shove, the only person who can tell your muse to be silent is you.  But make sure that if you tell her to hold her tongue, you are willing to live a life a little duller, a little colder, a little darker, and a lot lonelier.  I have learned that while I may not always like what my muse has to say, I will always give her the opportunity to speak.  She has a lot of wisdom to give, and if I don't listen, who will?

Digital Scrapbooking Giveaway!!!

Created by Melissa using Black Tie Event from Trixie Scraps Designs

Over the past several months I have become addicted to digital scrapbooking!!!  Using the MyMemories Suite V3 is so easy, that I am sure you will be creating scrapbooks left and right for everyone you love (please include one for yourself).  You can include pics, wordart, video, music, and a plethora of digital goodies that you can only get from using this amazing digital scrapbooking suite.  (For a preview of what you can do, simply download the trial version of the V3 Suite!) You can even make cards, banners, gift tags...the only limits are your imagination.  I am giving away 1 copy of the MyMemories Suite V3 and $10 to spend on your choice of goodies from the MyMemories Store.  That is a total of $50 worth of goodies up for grabs!!!

So, by now you are asking, "What do I have to do to win these this awesome gift?"  Pay attention because I am giving MULTIPLE chances to win!  Make sure that you come back here and leave a comment on this page of my blog for each task that you complete.  One winner will be chosen on December 24, 2011.

1- Follow Missa's Muse blog.
2- Like MyMemories on Facebook.
3- Go to the MyMemories Store and find your favorite designer pack.  Come back here and tell me which one it is and why.
4- Follow the MyMemories Blog
5- Follow MyMemories on Twitter.
6- Follow Evergreen_Grrrl blog.
7- Follow @EvergreenGrrrl on Twitter.
8- Follow Evergreen _Grrrl on Pinterest.

That's it!  Eight separate ways to enter this wonderful contest!  Remember to come back here and tell me once you have completed each task.  Good luck and may you enjoy (and win) this "Suite Contest!"
The Contest Winner will be announced here on December 24, 2011!!!

Finding Freebies

When delving into the world of digital scrapbooking, it is always important to know where to get good scrapbooking content for free.  In the past several months, I have downloaded tons of freebies, won contests for more freebies, and followed blogs just searching for more freebies.  I must admit that I have become addicted to the plethora of goodies out there for all to have.

The first place to look (besides the sites listed on the right hand side of the page) is Facebook.  Almost all designers and companies have a Facebook page where they offer exclusive materials that can be downloaded as "outside content."  MyMemories even offers a Friday Freebie that can often be downloaded directly into your Software Suite Volume 3!  I found that the best way to find new designers is to go to a page (like MyMemories) and simply "like" all of the companies and designers that they "like."  NOTE: You MUST like a page before downloading exclusive content.  Very quickly you will see how much content is to be had for free with only the click of the mouse.

Occasionally, design companies will host a blog/page hop.  This is a communal project among all of the designers the company uses and almost always coordinates in colors.  For Black Friday (available this week until Sunday), Scrapbook-Bytes is hosting a Facebook page hop which has absolutely nothing to do with shopping!!!  The colors are vibrant and varied, but they look gorgeous together.  I downloaded approximately 10 zipped freebies which even includes several alphabets!  This is the perfect opportunity for developing your outside content folders.  The only limits are the boundaries of your imagination.  This is one I created using an old photo of my pet, Cleo, and the Black Friday Facebook Hop downloads.  I wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving with tons of memories to scrap!

And just for a very special Thanksgiving, I have included two links to FREE design kits from the MyMemories Store.

https://www.mymemories.com/store/display_product_page?id=3SDS-CP-1111-8426

https://www.mymemories.com/store/display_product_page?id=MHMH-CP-1111-8584

Suite dreams!