Happy Ellaween!

My good friends at Ella Publishing Company are offering up a spook-tacular treat!


Can you believe it? Read all about it...


Today through Halloween only, you can save 31 percent on ten select Ella eBooks! (You know, because Halloween is on the 31st, and October is the tenth month of the year? Yeah, we're clever like that.)

Just in case you're not dressing up as an accountant or a math teacher this year, we'll break it down for you: you could save as much as $18.56 on eBooks you've been dying to read! (That is, of course, if you buy all ten eBooks before midnight on Halloween. We can't reveal what happens if you buy after midnight, but let's just say it's not recommended.)

{don't forget to use code ELLAWEEN}

You might have already guessed that I have SEVERAL of the books on the list. The concept is just so cool. Find a book you love, purchase, download to your hard drive. Easy Peasy! It can remain on your hard drive forever...or print them out.  I'm in the "print mine out" camp because there's just something about paper. I use page protectors {pages inserted back to back} and store them in a binder. 

click on image to go to the free download

simple joys | iloveitall on etsy

With Halloween just days away, I've been wandering around the house eyeing the items I need to put back into the Halloween bin until next year and wondering what I'm going to use for my Fall decorating.


With Halloween just days away, I've been wandering around the house eyeing the items I need to put back into the Halloween bin until next year and wondering what I'm going to use for my Fall decorating. 

I've decided that I'm printing out this Simple Joys print in a cheerful, happy, upbeat Goldenrod to brighten our Living Room. The color perfectly matches the changing leaves outside our front window, which are falling to the ground more quickly today with all the wind we're having.


It's also available in these colors:



In case you guys want to change out your seasonal decor also, these 8x10 inch prints at iloveitall on Etsy are reduced 50% until midnight EST, Thursday, October 28, 2010.

IN THE SCRAPBOOKING WORLD TODAY:

The newest Ella Publishing Company e-book, Journaling that Matters, has come to the rescue! Whether you are a scrapbooker that journals or a scrapbooker that doesn't, this book has tips, suggestions and pages upon pages of inspiration!

template download :: inspired by Cathy Zielske

Back in the day, Cathy Zielske shared a template with the readers of Simple Scrapbooks magazine.




I was new to scrapbooking and was looking for ideas and inspiration to record the stories of our family. The template was actually a two-page spread, but it was one of the pages that really spoke to me. As you'll see above, same page...three ways. A different design spin for each of the kids, same journaling. I used scraps and leftover letter stickers and tired to unify the colors to make it look purposeful.

Using the same template again, I trimmed the page and added it to a piece of patterned paper.  So young, but somehow these girls were able to figure out the iPhone and how to get to the movies and games. Hmmm.




Yes, that's Big Mama pregnant and waiting for little Spunky. We had our Thanksgiving and Zach's birthday celebrations early that year. We didn't want Zach to not have a chance to enjoy his party since one never really knows when babies decide to join us, do we? The same Cathy Zielske template was used again. 




And here's a layout about Spunky. I messed up the left side of the template, but had already adhered the letter stickers. Out came the trimmer, some adhesive and a 12x12 sheet of patterned paper! Disaster averted. At least I thought so.



As always, you can click on the photographs to see a larger view.

So here's the story. Francine Clouden was hosting at write.click.scrapbook. with the topic of hybrid scrapbooking. And I immediately thought of this template that I've used many times, as you can see, and plan to use many more times.

I couldn't find the link to the template anymore, so I contacted Cathy Z and she kindly allowed me to recreate, as best as I could, the template and offer it to the write.click.scrapbook. readers as a download. I've recreated Cathy's original template as best as I could in both an 8.5x11 and a 12x12 format. Take your choice, or take both. They're yours to use for free. Just click on the image to be taken to the download. Or go to the downloads section in my sidebar for this and other free downloads.


If you've never visited with Cathy Zielske, you are missing out on all sorts of scrapbooking goodness. If you're a runner, you'll want to read about Cathy's journey to becoming physically fit and more aware of her health. She is an author of this book and this book. Let me not forget to add that Cathy is an uber-talented designer and has tons of templates in her Designer Digitals shop as well as video tutorials on how to use her templates as you delve into the world of hybrid and digital scrapbooking. Links to free downloads are available as well in the sidebar on her blog.

What are you still doing here? Go check out Cathy Zielske's blog and get to know her, if you don't already! Tell her Monika sent you. Enjoy your template downloads, start capturing the stories of your life and remember that this special expires tomorrow...

handprint art


Speaking from experience, you might as well buy enough supplies to make one for each set of grandparents while you're at it! Nana has hers under her covered entryway with her other cute Fall/Halloween decorations and Oma has hers displayed as you enter her front door.

Silly me cut each of these letters by hand. Times 3 {remember, I did these for the grandparents, too}! My hand was in a permanent cramp when I finished. If you have a die cutter, that would definitely be the way to go, or perhaps buy some iron-on letters if you are like me and don't have one. These letters were cut from felt, glued on and then randomly outlined with silver glitter glue.

The black fabric is just broadcloth, sewn double thickness and then looped over to make a casing for the dowel and end caps, which were painted black. I used orange satin cording for the hanger. The handprints were made with white acrylic craft paint and then black felt was cut for the eyes and noses.


This was a fun project and I encourage you to give it a try. I've even seen ghosts made with footprints which were also cute.

If you liked this handprint craft, there's another handprint craft I shared at write.click.scrapbook. during the week I hosted, and my theme was Christmas in July. Just scroll to the bottom of the post. Don't worry, I'll be sharing all those free printables you see there with you here on this blog just as soon as Halloween is over!

Oh, and don't forget about this special deal which only runs through Wednesday at midnight.

making a list

Wow, can you believe that our holiday gift-buying days are numbered? Go ahead, laugh. The holidays will be upon us before we can sing "Frosty the Snowman."

I know that I'm already thinking about things that will put a smile on my families' faces, are you? So, here's a deal for you...


Buy one of these for your best friend:





...and get one of these for your sister and her family at half off!



 



Okay, you could even choose one of these to keep for yourself, if you'd like, and still get it at half off.





This would be a fun print to display, too, don't you think? You'll get it at half off.


  
For the person who takes A. LOT. OF. PHOTOS. you might consider this:




After all, 

which would be so nice for the newly married, newly engaged, newly in love and even newly christened parents!