Die Cuts R Us - Product Spotlight Guest Designer

Wow!! I was asked by Claudia of Die Cuts R Us Blog and owner of Die Cuts R Us Store, to be this week's Product Spotlight Guest Designer!! Yippee!! I am excited!! I had planned on trying out for her Design Team, but that was during the time that my Mom had her heart problems and then ended up having a stroke (BTW...I am happy to report she is getting better & better...Thank each and every one of you for your continued prayers). Well, since I missed out on the DT Call...you can imagine how over joyed I was to be asked to GD for Claudia!!! Thanks Claudia!!

This week DCRU is spotlighting - the Quickutz Embossing Folders.
I have only one word...WOW!! Ok, I will say a few more words. I am so super impressed with the designs of these embossing folders, there are so many to choose from. My favorites are: Emboss A2 Polka Dots (Pattern-Small), Emboss A2 Retro Squares (Pattern) and Emboss A2 Polka Dots (Pattern-Large). Another fabulous thing about the Quickuts is that it is compatible with my absolute favorite die cutting/embossing machine the Cuttlebug, which DCRU also carries in the DCRU Store. Yes, you heard me correctly... you can purchase this awesome folders (for only $4.49) and use them in your CUTTLEBUG!!!! LOVE it!!!!!!!!!

Ok, one last thing about this week's Product Spotlight item and I will hush so you can hop over and get you some....the quality of the embossing is too "die" for. Seriously, I (being the embossing lover that I am) was highly impressed with the nice deep, quality emboss that was left behind after running these little beauties through my CB!!!

So when you have Fabulous Designs, Excellent Compatibility and Outstanding Quality...How can you go wrong??

Here are the cards I made using the Retro and Polka Dot Folders. I thought the Retro Folder went perfectly with The Greeting Farm Stamp (my 1st TGF rubber stamp BTW) that I also purchased from DCRU. Yep, Claudia sells TFG Stamps!! When I first saw this stamp...well, first of all I loved it, then I though oh this makes me think of I Love Lucy or an old fashioned, "retro" Laundry Detergent Commercial, so I knew instantly I HAD to use the Retro Folder with Laundry Anya!!!

Now I will stop talking and let you go shop!!!

Be sure to come back next Monday...I was asked to be the Guest Designer for another DCRU Product Spotlight!! YAY!! The only hint I can give about next week's product is...It REALLY took me out of my comfort zone. Not the type of product I normally purchase, BUT I now LOVE it and this has taught me to try new things, to walk on the wild side and get out of my box!! LOL!! See you next week!!

The Pink Elephant Challenge #34

The Pink Elephant has a Recipe Challenge for you this week!!!





Our Sponsor this week is Karen owner of Your Next Stamp!!
I am super excited to be able to bring Your Next Stamp to TPE!! Who wouldn't want a YNS Stamp?!?! They are ALL absolutely adorable!!! Luckily, Karen blessed each one of the DT members with one of her fantastic stamps and so we all got to create a card to showcase this week!!! I received Summer Fun Fhiona...YAY!!
I will announce now that I am over the moon that Karen has asked me to be her January Guest Designer, so be sure to look me up at YNS in January!! And be sure to show Karen some Pink Elephant Style Love and Support!!!

Crazy 4 Challenges - C4C4

Woo Hoo!! Crazy Time!!!!!
Our September hostess, Cindy Haffner, has brought us another fantastic sketch!!
Hop over to the Crazy 4 Challenges blog for full details and to be inspired by the other Crazy Girls!!

Supplies:
Stamp: The Greeting Farm
Cardstock: Tempting Turquoise, Very Vanilla, Cool Caribbean
Regal Rose Designer Paper, Cuttlebug Embossing Folder- Moroccan Screen
Misc. turquoise Ribbon, Copic Markers, Treading Water Border Punch

Scroll down for today's Bee Crafty Challenge....you are gonna LOVE Merrigan's new designs!!!!!

Bee Crafty Christmas Challenge

Bee Crafty

Oh, I just love Merrigan's new Christmas designs!! Her digis are always so cute!! I was lucky enough to get to work with Whimsical Girl and Snowman. It's she just full of winter sweetness!!!

To see all the other new designs and what the other DT Members have created with them, head over to the Bee Crafty Blog

Fred, She Said - Pendant

Fred, She Said

I just had to show you all this beautiful pendant designed by Tracey...artist, designer and owner of and for Fred, She Said!! Tracey has some of the most beautiful designs along with adorable Emma designs, as you may have seen in my Saturday Crazy 4 Challenges post!!!

The Pink Elephant Challenge #33

Hi everyone!!! This week's challenge at The Pink Elephant is a sketch!!
Robin once again created a super fun sketch and I hope you all like it as much as I do!!!

Hop on over the the TPE blog and check out all the Design Team Inspirations!!!


Supplies:

I used an adorable TGF Image that I purchased from Die Cuts R Us. Did you know that Claudia now carries TGF Stamps? Well, she does along with more popular products at great prices!!! I LOVE LOVE LOVE this Quickutz embossing folder....check it out HERE!!!

Crazy 4 Challenges - C4C3

Happy Saturday Everyone!!!
It's time to get crazy!!!! Crazy 4 Challenges that is...our September Hostess is Cindy Haffner and she has another fabulous sketch for us this week!!

I used another cute Emma design from Fred, She Said. Tracey has some of the cutest little stamps ever and they are super affordable!! Go grab ya some!!! To see more Fred, She Said cards and designs...look HERE!!!

Hop on over to the C4C Blog and check out the other DT members cards, then join in the crazy fun!!!

Doodle Street

A new Digi Company and Challenge blog is here...Doodle Street!!! My friend Heather of Heather's Coffee Break , has come out with her own line of digis. She is so excited and I am excited for her!!! You can find her designs HERE in her FRESH BREWED shop!! Here is one of Heather's designs that I had the pleasure of working with...

I used Love Mug 3.

The Pink Elephant Challenge # 32

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend!! What better way to brighten up your Monday than with a little something pink!!! Or guess I should say a big something pink...how about a Pink Elephant!!

Yipppeeee!! It's challenge time....

this week at TPE we have a theme challenge for you.


Back to School

Teacher Plate
©ByLORiDesigns2009LORiBOYD
Hope you can find time to join us this week!!!

Bee Crafty Challenge - BookMarks

Wow, this was fun!! Merrigan at Bee Crafty is offering a Bookmark Challenge. I used Sitting Boy and one of her new designs, Pile of Books (get his free at the Bee crafty Blog). I made these for Landon. He is getting closer to learning to read and I thought this would be a great treat for him!!
I am so excited to announce that my great friend and TPE Design Teammate, Sheri, is a new Bee Crafty DT Member!!! I am sooooo happy to be working by her side on another DT!! Love ya Sheri!! Welcome to the team!!!
Hope you all have a great week!!!
HUGS ~ LORi

Crazy 4 Challenges - C4C2

Wow!!! what a wonderful kick off week we had over at the C4C Challenge blog!! Not sure any of us expected to get as many participant as we did...but we sure are happy and very thankful for your support!! We hope you all had as much fun as we did!! Guess what, the fun doesn't end there...It's time for C4C2!! Challenge 2 brings us yet another fabulous sketch by Cindy Haffner!!

Hop over and check out the sketch!!
I used one of my hand drawn By LORi Designs images.
©ByLORiDesigns04-09LoriBoyd

Featured Card at SNR Card Universe

Ohhhh, I am soooo excited ... one of my cards has been selected as Featured Card on SNR Card Universe!!! I am SUPER new to SNR and am still learning the ropes!! I am excited!! Thanks so much Cheryl!!

Here is the card they selected:

A Trial Freebie

Hi Everyone!!! Thanks so much for all the wonderful comments and amazing emails I have received!! I am in awe of all the love and support out there. We are a sisterhood huh?!?! A Sisterhood of Traveling Stamps.... traveling (from blog to blog) and Stamps instead of pants...Ha Ha!! Ok, so I am being silly, but really while reading all the email and even the scripture that some of you passed along, YES I know what I should do!!! I was also thinking today about the friendships I have made BECAUSE of my BLOG!!! Friendship that I would never have made had I not hopped from here to there, not designed for any Design Teams or even been able to accept comments on my blog!!! WOW God is so good and I am so thankful for all of you...All the friends I have made and will make!!!

Ok, now to the FREEBIE Image....I MUST warn you this is ONLY a TEST!!! I have been thinking and praying about do a few digi designs, BUT I have no idea where to start (Any and all advice is welcome). I am thinking I need to purchase one of those Wacom Digital Drawing Tablets, but right now money is SUPER tight!! So until, I know what I am doing or where to start...A friend of mine said why not just draw something and stick it on your blog to see if people will like it. So that is what I did. This little ballerina mouse is a freebie, all I ask is that you leave a comment saying you took it, then make something with it and tell me know what is good and what needs improvement. Now this image is super raw so I know it is NOT perfect and this is not the quality I hope you will want to purchase one day, but I guess I just thought I'd take a baby step in the direction of my own digi stamps.
This will only be offered for free for 1 week, so tell you friends to come here and grab it.
Please do not share.
Please do not copy for anything other than personal use such as coloring and creating a card or scrap page.
Please give me credit when you post to your own blog.
Please remember to leave a comment saying you grabbed her, create something, then link it back here and add your card/project to Mr. Linky (Never know I might just find a few future DT members from what you link) then leave another comment or send me an email with your opinions.

Hope you all like my rough draft!! Thanks so much!!

This Freebie has been removed


Just click on the image, once it is bigger... save it!!
Image is ©ByLORiDesigns2009-LORiBOYD

It's Time...

I wrote this... I have had a sad, heavy heart and an icky feeling in my tummy for almost a week now. Stampin' Up! recently released news that as of Sept. 30th all demonstrators must sign a new Independent Demo Agreement or their demoship would be terminated. This new IDA restricts me from being on any Design Team (or at least the ones where I am supposed to promote their products...uhhh, That's any DT) , it restricts me from linking to anyone (even friends and family) who may work, promote, market for or link to any competitors of SU! "that offer similar products, including decorative stamps in any form, stamp art accessories, scrapbooking products, digital art solutions, and vinyl wall art." In other words i must agree to have a SU! Only blog, no emails about cool deals here and there, no facebooking about my latest "cool find" at Hobby Lobby or Micheal's, no twittering a link to an awesome sale at Hanna Stamps or The Greeting Farm, etc etc etc!! No posting links to any product I may really enjoy creating with or any companies I may design for... NO links except to SU!

Although, I was shocked and had tons of thoughts and questions, I wanted to pray about and think on everything before leaping...leaping to judge, leaping to be defense, leaping to decisions or leaping to leave SU! I have always loved SU! (just the last week of August 2 new girls signed up under me & joined my team and I would never promote something I don't believe in) I have always loved their products and while I understand that SU! is trying to protect their company and their more business minded demonstrators, I can't with the right heart or in good faith bring myself to sign that new IDA. I don't have a peace about this at all. Something in my spirit tells me to leave, but I am so torn. I keep thinking I should be able to do whatever I want with my own personal blog. I should be able to promote a friend's new business venture if I choose to. I should be able to enjoy my own "creative" life any way I choose to!! Really the only restrictions I want put on my life are those that my Lord and Savior puts there!!!! I would rather quit my blog completely than to push my creativity into a box. I would rather STOP demoing for SU! than to let another tell me what I can and can't do with my own blog. I didn't start this blog to help get SU! sales (I am ONLY a hobby demo), I started it because it seemed like a fun idea and I continued because it has brought me so much joy!!! I almost feel like closing up shop COMPLETELY my blogs, SU!, SU! Website (that I pay for monthly), handing over The Pink Elephant completely to Robin and walking away from this whole papercraft world. I feel very disheartened. I feel like just focusing on the Lord and my family!! Really I want NOTHING to do with the JUNK that causes me to worry over these unimportant issues. Today, at 3 o'clock a friend of mine will bury her sweet little girl who died in utero and was delivered via c- section on Thursday at 7 months gestation. As we were all praying for her this morning at church I couldn't help but think I bet Mattie (who was or is still a SU! demo) wishes that the only thing she had to grieve over was the decision to continue with SU! or not!!! I know there is no comparison between the two, but why waste a second on things that don't REALLY matter. I know that for SU! their $ does matter and on a smaller but equally important scale our $ matters to us, BUT you can't take it with you. However, the joy and fun that comes with crafting and creating, the friendship shared and newly formed through stamping, the excitedness you feel when some says Beautiful Card, the happiness one feels when your little card makes someones heart smile....those things DO matter!! This is the day the Lord made, I will rejoice and be glad in it...not this is a great day to make $, if I make a lot I will be happier!!!! I have made several commitments to companies such as: Die Cuts R Us Guest Designer - 3rd and 4th week of Sept '09, Hanna Stamps Guest Designer - December '09 and January '10, Your Next Stamp Guest Designer - Jan. '09 and a new "yet to be announced" company DT. Not to mention, the Design Teams I am currently on... I WILL fulfill my commitments with them. I want to continue with The Pink Elephant (under the new IDA I couldn't, because we promote our sponsors who are competitive companies to SU!). If I leave SU! I will no longer buy their products (I have 5 kids... I need the discount lol!), I have talked to my Stamp Club that meets monthly and offered them the choice to go to one of my downlines here in town, but they want me and said we don't HAVE to have a SU! Club we can have a regular ole' craft club!! That made me feel good because I felt if I left SU! I would be letting my girls down!! But nope...I discovered it was me they loved not just SU!... my heart smiled!!
As I talked to my husband, Eric, he reminded me that we had prayed about our finances the morning before the evening I learned of SU!'s New IDA. I have been praying about going to work. I LOVE being able to stay at home and homeschool the kids, but I want what God wants for my family. Eric said, " A lot of people have emailed and asked you to start your own stamp line (I always said No because 1. I don't know where to start and 2. I was loyal to SU!) well, maybe that is God's answer...leave SU! and start you own SMALL Stamp Co. I have also been asked by 2 different stamp companies to illustrate for them, but never wanted to loose SU! I don't know what to do, BUT I do know that God cares about even the small stuff and If we put Him in the middle of it all, it will surely work out!! When we put Him before anything else, He works ALL things together for those who love Him!!! And I surely do!!! I need to remember to be Thankful for Him, for family, for friends and for FREEDOM. Once again I know there is no comparison, but this whole SU! ordeal has given me a little taste of what people in different countries who do not have freedom of speech, freedom to vote or freedom to choose, may feel. It is sad!!
Ok, I have gotten way too personal (so not like me) and rambled on...Please forgive me!! Thanks for listening!! If you feel like giving me your opinion I am open to hearing it!!! This has been a bit therapeutic!!

If you find a moment sometime today please say a little pray for Mattie and her husband. A prayer for God to wrap His arms around them and fill them with supernatural peace and strength that only He can give!!!

Love and Blessing to you all,
LORi

C4C1- Crazy 4 Challenges

Howdy Y'all!! This is an exciting day... Crazy 4 Challenges is live and our first challenge is here. This month the hostess is the super talented, Cindy Haffner. Cindy has created a fun sketch for all of us to play with. I flipped the sketch to create my card. I used Stampin' Up!'s new stamp set...Beary Best Friends. It's she a cutie pie!!!?!?! This is a team full of Crazy Talented, Crazy Fun and Crazy Cool Girls...I hope you will all find time to join us every Saturday!! You'd have to be CRAZY to miss out on these challenges!! See ya there!!

My first time using Copics

Ok, so I had to see what all the buzz was about so I purchased my first Copics (from Claudia at DCRU). I could only afford a few!! And of course, I had to have Mo's NEW Image 1st Birthday Girl!

Now, I'll show you my first ever Copic creation, but you have to promise NOT to laugh!! I have never even seen a Copic Marker, let alone been Certified to use them...LOL!!! I just used them like I would any other marker (you professional Copic users will say Duhhhh! to that, I am sure). I loved using them...No Bleeding on the digital image!! Now the bad part....I want MORE!!

Her skin was colored with SU! Markers...I couldn't afford to get more...YET!!

Supplies:
Image: Digital from Mo's Digital Pencil
Cardstock: Stampin' Up! Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise and Whisper White
Accessories and Tools: SU! Pacific Point Ribbon, SU! Eyelet Border punch and Cuttlebug- Swiss Dots Folder

In a Crazy Kind of Mood?

Well, then I have the place for you!!! A fun place where 12 Girls "Crazy 4 Challenges" are getting their CRAZY on!!! Crazy Fun!! I am so excited to have been asked to join this talented team!!
Each Saturday(starting this Saturday) we will bring you a fun challenge!!!!! Now, I would tell you who the talented girls are that I am joining, but I think I will leave it as a surprise!!!!! So hop over and check out the blog, become a follower and see who my teammates are...Crazy 4 Challenges!! See you Saturday!!