Pippi Merry Christmas with Freebie

Christmas Happens All Year (when it's in your heart) (smile!)

I could not pass up the fun, eclectic Christmas bird freebies on Kajsan's Blog.  I've used one of her birdies on 4 cards, each slightly different:

Colored with Prismacolor Pencils and Gamsol, and distress inks, these were so cute and fun to color!

Just looking at her birds makes me happy!

Would you like another Christmas Freebie? My gift to you - Arrangements of the same sentiment for use on the inside or outside of your projects. Please do not sell the Sentiments. Use on any of your projects, including projects involving any design teams you might be on.

Click on the image to bring it to full size. Because of the changes Google Made with Blogger in June 2020, your image will appear to be solid black. Don’t panic. Right click and do a SAVE. Once it is saved on your hard drive, you can open it and it will have a transparent background. I create PNGs instead of JPGs so they can be placed anywhere on a scene or project, and so backgrounds can be made using them. Please let me know if you have any problems. I hope they serve you well!

Enjoy!

Products: Embossing Folder by Craft Essentials Diamond Tiles, Kajsan's freebie Pippi Digital Stamp, Dies: SB Labels 5 die and TH Garden Greens. Paper: SU pattern paper, SU celery green cardstock, SU Rose Red cardstock, white cardstock, Other: PrismaColor Pencils and Gamsol, Distress inks (Fire Brick and Victorian Velvet), MS Lace Heart Edge Punch, Washi Tape

I would like to play in the following challenges please:

1. C.R.A.F.T Challenge #598 Christmas 5/27
2. Fezziwigs Festive Frolics #May 12 "Let's Get Sentimental" 5/24 (sep post T3)
3. Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Challenge #542 Anything Christmas 5/21
4. The Holly and the Ivy Christmas Challenge #94 Anything Christmas 5/23 (sep post)
5. Merry Little Christmas Challenge #34 Anything Christmas 5/31 (sep post)
6. Cards for Gals #147 Things With Wings (I used birds) 6/2
7. Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2120 AG 5/24 (sep post)

Thanks for popping by to see my Pippi bird!

On A Musical Note - Inspiration Station Challenge

Welcome, Friends! It's time for a new Inspiration Station Challenge! What fun to "interpret" this challenge's inspiration piece. 

The inspiration board this time: PSST! Remember! It's entirely YOUR take as to what inspires you - it could be emotional, thematic, color, texture. What ignites your imagination today?

I was inspired by the colors, the music theme, and the fun melodies always heard on the carousel. Remember that reaching for the brass ring was only part of the fun - it was seeing the joy on the faces of fellow passengers and the whiz-by smiles of watchers standing nearby!

So much fun because I was able to hold ink pads AND stamps! (giggle)

This delightful card is 5.25" x 6.5". The black background was stamped with VersaFine Clair Charming Pink (just in case the color showed through the white detail embossing powder after the EP was heat set). The carousel horse was colored with Zig Watercolor pens and Distress Inks. The distressing around the image was done with both pink and black inks:

To tear the mulberry paper, a paint brush with lots of water was used. Let the mulberry paper absorb the water, and it is very easy to tear. Then I "rolled" the edges inward while they were still wet to give a little dimension to the layer:

Hope you will drop by and play in the Inspiration Station Challenge!

Products - STAMPS: Hero Arts C2916 Wishing You a Happy Day, JudiKins 2104J Music Notes, Inkadinkado Carousel 6-00716 - DIES: Memory Box Meridian Border, IO DIE062-F Flourish, Taylored Exp Banner Stacklets #1,  SB Edgeabilities Classic Petal E8-006, SB Labels 22 S4-346,  - INKS: VF Charming Pink, VF Nocturne, Distress Black Soot, Distress Kitsch Flamingo, Distress Tattered Rose, - PAPER: Black, White, Pink, Mulberry - OTHER: Zig Watercolor Pens, White Detail EP, Clear Glitter, Pink Glitter

One of my huge pots of Coleus Plants. In about a month, they will grow long spikes of purple flowers, attracting all kinds of pollinators. Hummingbirds especially love their flowers! The cascading "smiles" of salmon flowers are Angel Wing Begonias, with a few dregs of jade plants and snapdragon flowers (whispering their last breath due to the heat).

I would like to play in the following Challenges please:

1. Allsorts Challenge #624 Anything Goes 5/22 (sep post 5/21)
2. World Wide Open Design Team Challenge #5 AG for DT (sep post 6/12)
3. 2 Crafty Critter Crazies #50 Have A Critter 6/1 (sep post)
4. Pammie's Inky Pinkies #2120 AG 5/24 (sep post)
5. Outlawz Monday Greeting Challenge (5/10 - 5/23) Use Dies (6/1) (used 5 dies)
6. Here Is A Place to Start #5 Anything Goes (6-7 check tabs)
7. AAA Birthday Challenges #25 HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO AAA! (5-30) sep post (6-7)

Stamping Hugs,

Sweet Card Kits from Lori M

 Hi, everyone! Hope you are doing well.

I was recently surprised by Lori of Little m's Crafted Mind when she mailed two card kits custom made with her Cricut! Her beautiful kits are my card shares today:

Here is a photo of the kits:

Lori's darling card sample:

I wove pale pink dotted ribbon through this card and added a Sue Wilson die (NUBS). The flowers are "doubled up" and popped up:

In this card, Lori set the lines to a vertical setting. The Spellbinders die is NBUS:

Thank you so much for the play day, Lori!

And thank you, my dear blogging friends, for stopping by.

Products: Dies: Lori's Cricut Design, Sue Wilson Mini Gemini Die Set Ara, SB Diamond Floral die, SU tag punch, Distress ink

Challenges I'd like to play in please:

1. NBUS CHALLENGE - May - never before been used 2 dies and the gifted items from Lori. 6/1
2. Always Fun Challenges - #212 combine old and new - used new card kit from Lori with old stash NUBS tag, ribbon and dies. 5/10
3. Lil Patch of Crafty Friends #157 AG 5/15

Loving you,

ALTERNATIVES TO FOLLOW-BY-EMAIL

FOLLOW UP POST - As mentioned in my April 14, 2021, Blog Post, Google is doing away with the "Follow by Email" option for Blogger blogs.  

This means anyone using the FOLLOW BY EMAIL gadget on your Blogger Blog (or for those who use Feedburner), they will no longer automatically receive email notifications every time you publish a blog post. 

It also means that if YOU follow other people using Feedburner's FOLLOW BY EMAIL option on THEIR blogs, you will no longer receive email notifications when they publish their blogs.

I currently follow many of you via email notification, and am in the process of removing myself from your lists, and following you via different means. Regarding blogging friends who do not offer that option on their blogs, I have followed for years through the BlogLovin' option. I am in the process of transferring all my FOLLOW BY EMAIL buddies to two other options: Feedly and BlogLovin'.  And hope to determine which is preferential.

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO DO NOT USE THE GOOGLE READER:

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SOME FOLLOW-BY-EMAIL OPTIONS

I found this webpage that offers a preview of the 6 best free email marketing services. Or click here:

https://themeisle.com/blog/best-free-email-marketing-services/

Keep in mind, when it says you can send up to 300 or 500 emails per day, it means one email per address. So if you have 1,500 email followers, that means 1,500 emails per day.

Someone in my previous post mentioned Mail Chimp. They allow up to 2,000 subscribers (that equals 2,000 emails every time you publish). You are allowed up to 10,000 email notifications per month. So if you post 3 times per week, and have 150 subscribers, that would be 1,800 email notifications per month. If you have 300 subscribers, that would be 3,600 email notifications per month, well within the allotment. 

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BLOGLOVIN' OPTIONS

At BlogLovin' you may choose to receive email notifications Frequently, or Daily on a single digest post. Or you may visit the BlogLovin'site periodically, or obtain their app for tablets and phones and follow directly that way. As Connie Crafter pointed out in a comment on April 14, Google acquired BlogLovin' in 2018. This acquisition may be why the free Follow-by-Email option is being eliminated by Goggle on Blogger blogs. Because Google owns BlogLovin', we don't know what the future holds in store for us there. Still, it is a nice option. AND, if you "follow yourself" on Bloglovin, you have a very nice picture of every one of your posts going back years.

That being said, it appears that BlogLovin' has eliminated their convenient organization tool where blogs could be put into categories. They have a tag option which does not appear to have the same usefulness. This is a change in the last few years.

To use BlogLovin', create an account and get started by "searching" for the blogs you wish to follow.

1. TIP: it is easiest to copy and paste the blog address into BlogLovin's search option.) 
2. If you don't already have a BlogLovin' account, you may actually have followers without realizing it. 
3. BEFORE creating your account, search for your own blog address and then CLAIM IT to create your account. 
4. When you click on CLAIM IT, BlogLovin' will suggest you copy and paste an HTML code onto your Blogger Blog POST. This step is not always necessary. But I found that putting that HTML code into a side bar or the bottom bar of my blog was sufficient. Bloglovin' recognizes its own HTML code on your Blogger blog, for automatic updates. (look at the very bottom of my blog to see where I placed the HTML code unobtrusively) as an ADD A GADGET HTML. 

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FEEDLY READER OPTIONS

FEEDLY - is another platform, similar to BlogLovin', but it allows you to organize the blogs you wish to follow. To use Feedly, create a free account. As a new blogger in 2012, I used their platform, but discontinued later for other options. Now I find myself returning to them. Follow the steps below (thanks to Leslie Miller for helping me through the process). (if you are reading from my blog, click on the photos to enlarge)

1. On the left sidebar, click the PLUS symbol:

2.  Copy-and-Paste the blog address you want to follow:

3. Select the option under the word SOURCES (it highlights in grey shown below):

4.  A little pop up box appears. Select the FOLLOW button:

5. Another little pop up window appears so you can either select an existing NewsFeed Category, or create a new feed category. The free option only allows you three Categories:

6.  Add to your Category:

7. You are now AUTOMATICALLY following any blog or website that updates its feeds:

You can also change the "follow options" for each blog, or each category, to suit your needs. 

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Hopefully, one of these options will assist you in determining what is best for you in the way of following your favorite bloggers.

Lovingly,