Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Enter Our Spring Giveaway Package and See Fabulous Samples!

Hi Everyone,

To celebrate Spring I have a great Spring and Easter theme Giveaway with all the items below or you can change it to others items if you prefer. There's a mix with 3 items to mail in Easter Creative Scraps, Happy Easter Clear Stamp Set and Spring Cotton Scraps, plus 6 Digital Downloads in Bunnies and Blessings Digital Stamps. Victorian Eggs, Bunny Purse, Victorian Ladies and Easter Postcard Printables!  Just leave a comment and tell me 3 Spring Items you like?


Here's an adorable sample DT Leader Kathy Clements created using our Easter Kids Postcard Printables which have 4 Fronts and 4 Back sides and our Faux Lace-Floral 99 cent Printable Paper.


DT Member Vicki Chrisman made this sweet Spring Banner using our Spring Banner Digital Set


Vicki also made this cute Map Banner using Map Paper from CD #3 and you have to check out the tour of her friend Deb's house with all her vintage Globes and Typography!


DT Member Michele Kovack created this striking Sunflower card using our Sunflower Digital Set and a Lattice Die from Spellbinders.


DT Member Darlene Pavlick made this pretty Easter Blessing Card using our Easter Blessings Digital Stamp Set


If you win our Spring Giveaway you could trade the Bunnies to get our Blessing set below

DT Member Elizabeth Lincoln designed this stunning Easter Card using the lillies off the Blessings Set (shown above) and she used the cross from

Elizabeth also designed this fabulous card using a B&W page from CD 2 as well as a girl from our Garden Girl Digital Stamp Set and the banner is from our


You can see the Garden Girls Set below and how Elizabeth cut one of the girls out. Love how she colored the background as well!

We sold out of the Ornate Frames Chipboard but we found some Scallop Mini Chipboard Frames and have them on sale for $1.50 while supplies last.


Don't forget to leave a comment to be entered to WIN our Spring Gift Package - which is flexable and can be switched for other items. 

Wishing you joy and creativity
Sandy Redburn

Sandy


See Our Online Store: www.craftyvintagegirl.com  


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Thursday, March 20, 2014

See New Samples and Clearance Items in Paper, Chipboard and Albums!

Hi Everyone,   we been Spring cleaning and found stock left over from shows and also some light weight pastel card stock to put on Clearance.  Also, scroll down to see some fabulous samples from some of our talented DT Ladies!

The card stock is bundled together for $1.75 (less than .9 cents each) and includes 20 scored sheets 6.25 wide x 12.75 high. The Ivory and Light Blue have a bit of a linen texture.
We have a bunch of this paper but are limited on the other items such as the Sewing Machine Album.   So once items sell out - they are gone for good!


Here's the Light Blue.  I like the Blue and the Ivory more than the Pink 
which has a rose tint.

Here's a photo of the Pink Rose paper


Maya Road Ornate Chipboard Set.  includes 8 different style frames below with 24 total.  Below are samples DT Member Vicki Chrisman inked the frames brown and added images from our Bird and Botanical Scraps   UPDATE _ Sorry the Ornate Chipboard has SOLD OUT


Sorry the Ornate Chipboard sold out fast but we found some Scallop Chipboard Mini Frames and put them on Sale for $1.50 a package. There are 15 Designs 2.5" to 3.0"plus you get the inside pieces - so 30 total!


One thing about Maya Road Chipboard is they are generous with how many pieces they include (8) and this chipboard is thick. A regular glue stick works great for gluing on paper.
We have some of the Sewing Machine Albums on sale for $4.50 each. 


I also have some Clear Albums that include 8 pages and they are on clearance for $2.25 each.  Clear sheets are a bit weird but I like the shape and the 8 pages are 7.5" x 5.5" and you can glue on paper, fabric or color and stamp with permanent inks.

The first page has 2 pop out frames


Look at this beautiful collage card by DT Leader Kathy Clement who used some of our 99 cent Printable Paper and Bird & Blossom Scraps.

DT Member Vicki Chrisman embellished her Spring wreath using our Spring Kids Download and the bow was made with the Accuct Bow Die she designed!



Here's another quick Photoshop Tutorial by DT Member Sheila Rumney showing how you can warp text


GOOD NEWS!  We are working on changing web servers over and our store will not only be faster but the new web servers fixed the error some people using Firefox started getting.  The Blog will be moved over as well so everything is in 1 spot.

Sandy Redburn





Visit us on Facebook with over 5500 Fans!  






Toll Free Phone or Fax 1-888 597-8898


Local Phone 604 597-8817





Crafty Secrets Head Office


15430 78 A Ave.,


Surrey, BC V3S 8R4






USA Warehouse


250 H. Street, #436



Blaine,WA 98230
Friday, March 14, 2014

2 Digital Scrapbook Page Tutorials, Rooster Card and Spring Projects!

Hi Everyone,

I'm late as usual, it seems like the story of my life, but I just can't post something until I'm happy with it and this week has been full of distractions from a house full of company to a engaged daughter and wedding planning!  I was planning on making an altered box but wasn't happy with it and put it on the shelf and did a digital page for the scrapbook I'm making for my niece and nephew.

They have been coming here weekdays for the past 4 years as my mom (who lives downstairs) babysits them for my brother and we feel so close to them it's almost like they are our grandchildren.


I did a Tutorial Using Photoshop Elements as I've been working on new designs and realized that Paint can lower the quality of a file (Paint.net is better and will save high quality) but I'm trying to improve my skills at Photoshop Elements and I'm amazed at what it can do considering you can find it for  $60.00 on sale.    I love having everything in 1 spot so the first thing I do when I'm starting a digital project is copy all the designs I want to use into 1 folder.  I deleted about 7 items I didn't use but it's nice to have an array to choose from.

I made a smaller page but it's easy to do digitally as you can resize everything.  I used some of our 99 cent papers 222 Red Teal Floral Paper  and our Green Damask.  The recipe cards, hankie, paper clip, flower, cream brad are all from CD #1 Creating With Vintage Patterns.


I also wanted to add drop shadows to my frames and designs and I hope this explains it. You can always hit your un-do button under Edit, so play and try different effects.

I also wanted to show how to add text. Many of you may know how to do this but we also have many people just learning digital.  You can also print all of these papers and designs and do a traditional layered page and use glue, pop dots and all of the traditional techniques.   I'm going to have a hardcover scrapbook printed so I opted for digital.


Here is a cool Tutorial by Sheila Rumney on Using Digital Stamps to add Texture to Paper.


Here's a great rooster card by DT Member Michele Kovack using Farm Chicks Stamp Set and after she colored it with her Copic Markers she also stitched it in multiple layers with her sewing machine. Sewing on paper can get addictive and it doesn't have to be perfect!


We have a new Spring Banner Printable Set and DT Member Kathy Clement created some adorable cards you can see on her blog and this one below.


DT Member Vicki Chrisman also was inspired by the Spring Banner Set and did her own take using the Blank Banners as well with several printable papers from CD #1.


DT Member Darlene Pavlick created some really pretty Easter treat packs with our Mini Boxes and she also used some printable papers to create Hershey Wrappers with Gift Tags for some big chocolate Bars

I have to spill the beans - our youngest daughter and her boyfriend for past 4 years just got engaged! They met at college where they both got their degrees in Theraputic Recreation and I've always said when we get old I want them to run our recreation program! They are a great couple and I'm so excited they are tying the knot this Sept.


 Have a great weekend!
Sandy Redburn

Visit us on Facebook with over 5500 Fans!  
Toll Free Phone or Fax 1-888 597-8898
Local Phone 604 597-8817

Crafty Secrets Head Office
15430 78 A Ave.,
Surrey, BC V3S 8R4

USA Warehouse
250 H. Street, #436
Blaine,WA 98230
Monday, March 10, 2014

Mexico Photos and Thanks to All the Linky Entries and Congrats to #2 the $50.00 Gift Card Winner!

Hi Everyone, 

I wanted to say a big thank you to everyone who entered our March Linky Party, all of the samples people entered were really wonderful and everyone will receive a $6.00 Crafty Secrets Gift Card and Alicia was the #2 random.org lucky winner this month and wins a $50.00 Gift Certificate.

I also have photos from our recent trip to  San Jose del Cabo Mexico and some handy links and tips if you ever get a chance to visit this pretty place.  We found www.tripadvisor.com to be the most helpful site to check out the reviews on accommodations, restaurants, beaches and fun things to do.   You can also read my 10 Best Best Budget and Travel Tips from when we went to France. My husband Scott has been retired for 3 years now and his goal is to travel and see as many places as possible so we try and save where ever we can! This is out by the marina, we were heading to Flora's Farm and I'm so sad it was closed!


We rented a house so we could save some money, do some patio dinners and relax by our own pool and found Villa de la Torre a wonderful 2 bedroom house  with a guest house you can add on and it was less than $100.00 a night per bedroom when we divided it and nicer than a hotel room! This photo is coming through the gate. VRBO also rents houses around the world by owners and has reviews. You can also house swap (haven't tried yet)


 The gardens on the property were amazing and our friend who stayed in the guest house was 'seriously blown away' as she put it.You can see it at the back of the property.

Here's a photo of her bedroom in the guest house and it had a cute little kitchen and big bathroom and shower.


This was our bedroom off the pool.  One of my favorite things were the huge wood doors and wood detail around all the windows in the house.


Okay, I also liked this patio and we all worked out here in the mornings on our computers.


This was our favorite beach Santa Maria about a 10 minute drive from the house we rented. Our rental car came to about $425.00 for 9 days and them we split the cost so it seemed like a deal to have the freedom to come and go were we wanted but there are buses that run all day along the highway.

This was taken in the downtown area of San Jose del Cabo in the art gallery area where they have an art walk every Thursday evening.  I liked this town more than Cabo, it's more quaint but I was surprised the prices at most resturants and stores were not less than at home. The Mega store was the best place to get groceries and it has a great bakery.



I fell in love with this piece and would have loved to bring it home!

We drove into Cabo San Lucas 1 day and paid $12.00 each to go out on a glass bottom boat and the 2 person crew were great guys and took us all around the coves and dropped us at Lovers Beach for a couple of hours and came back to get us.



 I wish we had brought our snorkel gear as there were so many fish you can see at the side of our boat.  I think the crew threw some bread in the water and now I've read that it isn't good for the fish - who then don't eat up the algae. 

 We went up close to visit these lazy sea lions enjoying the sun on the rocks



Here we all are on the boat. The next day we were hit with a Canadian flu bug (yep - it came all the way from Canada) that made half of us sick for a few days. I'm so happy I only had it for 1 day but I was very dramatic and had a projectile puke that covered a tiny bathroom at a cute little restaurant. I was so embarrassed I spent 40 minutes cleaning it all up. Gross!



 This was one of the coolest photos I took. There was a giant flock of seagulls on the beach and they all took off and I managed to get this photo. Look at the one in the middle, doesn't it look like he has angel wings?


 Everyone felt better and we went for BBQ ribs at a place on the beach called Zippers our last night.



Maybe a house isn't for you if you have a large group but no one wants to help cook or clean up after. Then I would look for a package at an all inclusive and we did one last Christmas and it was one of the best family vacations we've ever done.  This time we wanted to go on an adventure everyday and see something new. We all love cooking and spending the evening enjoying dinner and wine and not worrying about driving so the house was a good fit.  The cleaning lady came 3 times during our 9 day stay and made everything look perfect each time. 

Do you like to travel and have any favorite place you've been to?
 

I will be back this week with some great projects from our DT ladies, plus I feel a little crafty and need to make something!

We have so many NEW items in our Crafty Vintage Girl Store you should check out

Also, see all the ideas and samples on Pintrest!   

Hope you are having a great start to the week
Sandy



Sandy Redburn




Visit us on Facebook with over 5500 Fans!  






Toll Free Phone or Fax 1-888 597-8898


Local Phone 604 597-8817





Crafty Secrets Head Office


15430 78 A Ave.,


Surrey, BC V3S 8R4






USA Warehouse


250 H. Street, #436



Blaine,WA 98230



Monday, March 3, 2014

See Our March Linky Party, DT Spring Challenge, Winner and New Items!




Welcome to our March Linky Party and  Design Team Spring Challenge! Please click on the links below to see what our Design Team ladies have created this month to celebrate Spring. I had a peek and there are some great inspiring ideas!  You can also read below how to join our Linky Party this week and receive a $6.00 Gift Card and 1 lucky random.org winner gets a $50.00 Gift Card.










Congratulations to #5 Rene the $25.00 winner  from our Blog Giveaway and a big thank you to everyone for your feedback on your favorite digital stamp format. 


I loved that everyone seemed to agree they prefer PNG files that are cut out and transparent so you can layer them over different colors and designs. So all the files have been switched over for this Take it Easy Digital Set


Here are the 18 separate PNG files included and on Special this month for just $3.50 because I felt a tiny bit guilty turning it into a medium set from a small - but I really think the lamp, bird cage, tea set, pillow, frame, flourish line and extra sentiment add to this set. 



Our Printable Easter Banner is also ready and it turned out so beautiful! It includes letters to spell HAPPY EASTER and SPRING JOY, plus 2 blank banners and the Font to create any alphabet letters. The graphics are stunning and include a mix of antique Easter and Spring images that have been repaired and re-styled for this set. Each banner at 300 dpi is almost 5``W x 8``H so the file is about 30 MB and is divided into 3 zipped folders. 

Heres an Info Sheet I made up explaining how you can use this `Banner Set


Heres a peek at a Spring Banner Sample that Kathy Clement created and she is posting the instructions and more photos on her Blog Mar 7. 



We now have a large array of Easter -Spring theme downloads and just need to finish up a set of printable pastel  papers by DT Member Sheila Rumney but I want them to be double sided  and we rushed off on this trip and I need to give her the other artwork. 

One Easter-Spring item I didnt get added to our online store was the Easter Cut-Out Kids as they need a better tree and some birds added.  I finally found some cute blue birds off an old card but the tree was harder.  Cindy (my graphic designer) just got back from vacation and I need her to help fix the àrt tree`I made. You must check out the adorable samples Darlene Pavlick created for this months Spring Challenge with this set.



So Now its your turn to enter our March Linky Party and post any sample you have created using any of our products.  Every person will receive a $6.00 coupon and 1 lucky random.org winner will get a $50.00 Crafty Secrets Gift Card!  You have until 11:59 PM Mar 9 to enter. Sorry, only one $6.00 coupon per person but you can enter up to 4 samples and increase odds of winning the big prize. Don`t be shy!







PS - I`m still away on vacation in Mexico and it makes my computer mess up all the punctuation - so ignore it and please check out our DT Ladies samples and Linky Party Entires!
Sandy Redburn
Visit us on Facebook with over 5500 Fans!  
Toll Free Phone or Fax 1-888 597-8898
Local Phone 604 597-8817

Crafty Secrets Head Office
15430 78 A Ave.,
Surrey, BC V3S 8R4

USA Warehouse
250 H. Street, #436
Blaine,WA 98230