Once you choose hope, anything's possible - link fixed

This is my latest word art freebie!  I am loving making these!  Click  HERE  to download it.  Sorry the link wasn't working before.

A Dr. Seuss Word Art

I saw this quote and knew it had to be turned into word art. I hope this word art will put the finishing touch on that playful page you are working on. Let me know what you think. Click on the image for the free download.

Create your own font

If you are a digital scrap-booker, like me, you know how much fun it is to play with fonts.  I have been pining away for my own font.  When I say my own font I mean in my own handwriting.  You can pay for someone to make your handwriting into a font.  But who wants to do that!?   In my insomnia I found the website yourfonts.com.    Here are the answers to some of the questions you may have:

Question
Are the created fonts vector based?
Answer
Yes, the fonts are vector based and thus scalable without loss of quality. The file extension is .ttf, but the generated fonts are in fact OpenType fonts with TrueType based outlines that will work on Windows, Macintosh, and Linux computers.

Question
Is this online font generation service really free?
Answer
The short answer is: YES! The long answer is: Yes, this service is 100% free, no hidden fees and no strings attached.

Question
Can I share and sell my fonts?
Answer
Yes, when you have generated and downloaded a font through our service it is your property.

Question
What happens with the information I upload to YourFonts.com in the Upload Template process?
Answer
The information is used to generate your font. We will never share personal information. If you are concerned about your privacy, please read our privacy policy or contact us.

These answers came from the help section of the website.

I am going to download the template and have my 4 year old write her letters.  I think it would be so sweet to have her handwriting in its infancy!  I am also going to have my mom write a template for me.  I think my mom has great handwriting and I want to preserve it for my girls.

Go check it out and have fun with it!

Shabby Princess February Wall Paper

Each month Shabby Princess is generous enough to make up a free downloadable desktop. The awesome thing is that it is customizable with your own pictures. This is what I  did with the download.  Check out the shop, download the freebie and leave some love. LINK

I-Pod Valentine

Here is an alternative valentine for those who are 'too cool' for store bought valentines. It is an ode to the mighty I-Pod. I was inspired by THIS Valentine found in Family Fun magazine.
As you can tell I didn't follow the directions exactly...but then again rarely do I.... I did use 2 hershey kisses instead of the mini peanut butter cups wrapped in foil. I do not have 2 kisses pictured because I didn't have 2 in the house! I was lucky I found 1!

I also used a 12" piece of ribbon and tied a 5" piece of ribbon to it so the ends matched up. I used double stick tape to secure the kisses to the ends of the 'ear bud chord'. I also used double stick tape to close the wrap and secure the chord to the top of the box. Here are the score measurements from the left: 2 1/2, 3 1/4, 5 3/4, 6 1/2. You will be able to print 2 per 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper/card stock.

Shopping list:
1 oz box of Necco Sweethearts
12" piece of ribbon
5" piece of ribbon
2 hershey kisses
Double stick tape
HERE is your download


I would LOVE to see if you make these for your sweetheart! E-mail me a picture so I can share it with the blog.

Cupid Poo(p) Another Tic-Tac Box Wrap

Here is a cute quick craft for you to make for your sweetie or for a bunch of sweeties. My daughter will be taking these to preschool as her Valentine treat. I used the small Tic -Tac box. Pictured are the white Tic-Tacs but red or pink would work as well.

HERE is your download.

Step 1. Print out the page on card stock.
Step 2. Cut them apart.
Step 3. Score them 1 1/2" from the left and the right side.
Step 4. Cut 12" of 1/8" ribbon. I used white but red, pink or silver would be nice as well.
Step 5. Apply double stick tape width wise on the back of the wrap. I used 1/2" width of this brand.
Step 6. Center your ribbon on the tape and press to adhere.
Step 7. Wrap the Cupid Poo(p) wrapper around a small box of tic-tacs. Press the tape onto the box. This will help when you tie the ribbon.
Step 8. Tie ribbon.

If you are feeling super creative you can use a heart punch at the bottom under the envelope. I don't have one but you might!

Snowman Poop(p) A project to tuck away for next winter.

My cousin had one of these in her craft repertoire this Christmas. She is a traditional stamper/scrapper. She used a stamp for the snowman and layers of paper for the wrapper. Me being a digi-scrapper (and penny pincher) thought I would be able to recreate them in photoshop. I did use the smaller tic-tac boxes. I understand there are larger tic-tac boxes but I had a smaller one on hand so that is what you get! If there is a need for the larger one I can create one for you... just ask. The papers are from Shabby Princess Moody Blues free download. The Snowman is from badabina.

HERE is your download.

Step 1. Print out the page on card stock.
Step 2. Cut them apart.
Step 3. Score them 1 1/2" from the left and the right side.
Step 4. Cut 12" of 1/8" ribbon. I used white but red or black would be nice as well.
Step 5. Apply double stick tape width wise on the back of the wrap. I used 1/2" width of this brand.
Step 6. Center your ribbon on the tape and press to adhere.
Step 7. Wrap the Snowman Poo(p) wrapper around a small box of tic-tacs. Press the tape onto the box. This will help when you tie the ribbon.
Step 8. Tie ribbon.


If you are feeling super creative you can use a round punch to punch out the bottom of the snowman. OR you can use an exacto knife to carefully cut out the bottom of the snowman.

Baby Boy Wipes Box Cover

I got bored looking at my daughters' wipes box just sitting there on her changing table. It is nice and all but I don't know the baby on the box and it does not 'go' with her room. So I digi scrapped a 'cover'. It is a 3x6" rectangle (printed on card stock) for the front and one for the back. But that is not the freebie today!

My good friend is having a baby boy in February and I wanted her to have a cover for her box. So with the generosity of Farrah Smith and her Baby Boy kit I created these front and back plates for the Pampers wipes box. Look for the rerelease of the Baby Boy kit this January!
If you would like one for yourself here is a download for you. I printed this on card stock but I am sure you could use regular paper. I trimmed them and then applied to the wipes box with double stick tape.

MMM Caramel

Yet another penny pinching idea for the holidays is to make caramel. I know what you are thinking. "Sarah. Come on now. You are crazy. Do you think I have time to sit, watch and stir a pot just to make caramel?" I am telling you this is easy peasy.

Get a can of sweetened condensed milk. Take the label off. Put it in a pot of water. Make sure the entire can is submerged. Boil for 3 hours. Whala! Caramel. Did you catch that? Just boil the can in water. The sugars in the milk and sugar IN THE CAN caramelize making a wonderful caramel. The fabulous thing is you can boil as many cans as you can fit into your largest pot. As long as they are able to be covered in water you are good to go!

Now for some safety:
Do not let the water run out in your pot. The can will explode.
Do not put a dented can in your pot. It will explode.
Let the cans cool completely (over night) before handling them.

Once you have your cans cooled put on the label I have provided for you and present with a couple of apples. In case you don't like my label or want to customize your own this label is 3 inches high and 9 1/2 inches long.
My label for you

Don't forget to make a few extra to have on hand for an impromptu hostess gift.

Create a Custom Cup Sleeve

Something that I found to be a cute thing to give to the coffee lover in you life is a custom coffee cup sleeve. I used the template from Some Random Dude found here. He is more than generous with offering the template.

Using PSP ( but use what you have)
For my purposes I did up the DPI to 300 and then erased the instructions. Then I duplicated the layer and was able to fit 2 on a 8 1/2 x 11" paper. I used papers and fonts that I was able to download for free HERE. I then printed them on to card stock paper. I think my paper is 110 lb. But I think anything over 90 lb. will work. I cut them out and then hot glued them onto the cardboard sleeve you get with your coffee at your local coffee shop. ( minor trimming is required) Don't feel like spending $4 for a cup of coffee just to get the cardboard sleeve? Just ask the barista for a few. I am sure they will be more than happy to give you a few. Be sure to smile and say thank you!

Now to my friends... act surprised when you are given this gift. I just had to get it up on the blog and share this penny pinching idea with the world! To those friends who do not see their name...your sleeves are not completed. So if you have any requests just e-mail me!

Photos

I think a penny pincher's best friend is a digital camera.  Take a picture and if it is not right delete the picture.  If it is close to right edit the picture.  No more buying film, taking pictures, hoping they are going to turn out, sending them off to be developed and being disappointed only 15 or so of them are usable.  Now you have to do something with them!  

My newest obsession is digital scrapbooking.  I have always looked longingly at the rows and rows of beautiful scrapbooking paper, scissors, pens, embellishments and doo-dads.  But the penny pincher in me just didn't allow me to take the plunge.  I was worried about getting the most bang for my buck.  What if I cut wrong?  Wasted paper? What if I tore the picture when making a circle cut?  I would have to have that picture reprinted wasting more time and money. What if I messed up my journaling with my poor spelling?  I do not like my handwriting so I wouldn't have one of those elegant or kitchy pages.   It just was not worth it to me.  

Jump forward to last August when I was able to convince my hubby to sit down and show me a few editing techniques using Adobe Photoshop.  After a bit of struggling and a few stomped feet (mine) I was able to figure out the bare bones of the program.  Looking for what to do with my newly cropped and enhanced photos I went on line to find a cheap way to have the prints printed.  At the time my Wal*Mart was offering prints for $.24 each.  I was on the hunt to see if I could pinch a penny or two with an online company.  I discovered Shutterfly (there are others out there) and the photo books that they had available.  I was happy to find that you could upload your photos and they would be printed and bound in a hard bound book.  I loved that they had templates that you just dragged, dropped your photos and you had a page completed.

So there you have it.  A great way to save the expenses of film pictures, the expense and frustration (to me) of traditional scrapbooking and pinch yet another penny.