Hi everyone!!  Happy “Leap Day”! :o)

Kylie here…and I’m here to share next month’s FREE DESKTOP with you…just in time for tomorrow!  Whether you are skipping into Spring, or Autumn (like me), a burst of floral goodness is what this desktop is all about…a little something to brighten up your computer screen and your day!

CLICK HERE to download the 1024×768 version

CLICK HERE to download the 1280×800 version

NEW to desktops?? If you are interested in our free desktops, but have no idea how to insert your own photos – please visit our TUTORIALS page and refer to the USING THE PIECE-A-CAKE .PNG FILES TO CREATE AN ALBUM titles :o) We offer this tutorial in both screen shot and video format, for both Photoshop and Photoshop Elements. And, while the tutorial is not specifically for the desktops – the concepts are very much the same…and should help out a lot!

As a lil’ reminder, the text on the photo tab and the pic of my dear niece…well, they are on my preview example only – your download will be blank, of course :o)  That way – you can personalise it with your own photo and messages.  Hope you enjoy this one!  And remember that you can always find our latest free desktop by clicking the FREE DESKTOPS category located on the right side of the blog!

Thanks for stopping by…I’ll be back tomorrow with our next Easy-As-Pie Template Challenge and to announce the winner of  our last challenge…number 20!  Are you excited?!!…I sure am!!  See you then! ;o)

KylieFree Desktops, Uncategorized 22 Comments

Hello everyone!  It’s Jenelle here with another great Product Spotlight for you all.  Do you have a little star?  Of course you do!  We all do!  Whether it is our own child, niece, nephew, pet, neighbour… you name them – they are all stars!!!  So for all of our little stars,  I am spotlighting the Shabby Shoppe’s wonderful co-ordinated kit called… you guessed it…  Little Star!!  Plus, it is ON SALE for a limited time in the Shoppe at the bargain price of  $3.50.

The Little Star kit is fun, rustic and full of scrapping goodness!  The papers in this kit are shabby and textured, boasting bold and bright colours.  My favourite part of this kit is the monogram alpha stamp set – each stamp looks hand-stamped.  Plus, the alpha stamp set comes in a .png file format, along with a transparent background, so you can achieve some really great stamping effects on your layouts when you use each letter.

Need a little inspiration?  Scroll down to see some layouts from myself and the very talented Shabby Artists using this vibrant kit.  First up, a layout I created about my own little swimming star!

Did I mention that these textured papers are great for blending photos?  Rosy has done a fabulous job with blending on her layout and how cute is Kylie’s page with the circles and scattered stars?

 Casharina’s layout is so sweet – I love the way she has pinned the star ribbon on (and also made the ribbon into a banner – very clever!)  Kim has outdone herself with her amazing layout – it just makes me smile – what a star!

 Thank you so much for sharing your talent with us ladies.  You will be able to see these full size layouts in our Shabby Artist Gallery throughout the day/night, along with the full credits for each one.

Thanks so much for stopping by today.  I do hope you will swing by the Shoppe and grab yourself the Little Star kit – at that price it really is a shabby steal!!  But remember, it is only on sale for a limited time.

Please check back tomorrow - and pick up your freshly-picked FREE Desktop for March!  Until then, happy scrapping everyone!

JenelleProduct Spotlight, Uncategorized 1 Comment

Hello & HAPPY MONDAY everyone! – Kylie here! :o)  I hope you all had a gorgeous weekend…mine was hot, hot, hot! ~ down here in Australia!  I don’t know about you but I’m definitely ready for the change in seasons…not too much longer to wait, we’re almost there ;o)  Time now though for Layout of the Week!  It’s always an absolute pleasure to get to spotlight another amazing layout found in our inspiration gallery…and the thanks goes to everyone that takes the time to upload and share their special layouts…always inspiring!

I know it’s a bit like a broken record when I say this (and I’ve no doubt I’ll say it again, so forgive me)… but seriously guys, it is so tough to narrow down a winner for LOTW.  There are so many talented scrappers, and so many beautiful pages, it really does make it so hard to choose just the one.  Each page is so unique and special in its own right!  And while looking for the one it was so lovely to see a mass of Easy-As-Pie Template Challenge 20 pages in the gallery – you girls are rockin’ those!  The challenge closed last night and if you did upload an entry to the gallery just make sure you also added your comment and link to THIS POST (otherwise ‘Mr Random Generator’ won’t be able to count you…and we’d hate for you to miss out!!)  Also loving all the new Project SCRAP 2012 layouts too…and a big WELCOME to all the new ‘faces’ posting for the very first time! YAY! :o)

So without further ado…here is this week’s winner ~ January 2009 by Analia

I just love the large photo space…filling the whole page with precious baby sweetness!!  And the little photo lovingly tucked into the plastic pocket…oh it couldn’t get any more precious!!  A few little flowers to brighten up the page, the delicate lace-stamped border and a simple title…her beautiful name.  Thank you Analia for sharing such a beloved page…your First Year Book for Maddison is going to be so beautiful with pages like these!  Be sure to check out Analia’s wonderful gallery…lots of lovelies that are sure to inspire!

CONGRATS Analia!  I’ve just emailed over a $10 gift card to the Shabby Shoppe…hope you have fun shoppe-ing!  (Don’t forget to check your spam/junk mail folders in case you don’t see it.)

Thanks for joining us today!  Jenelle will be here tomorrow with a very cute Product Spotlight!

KylieLayout of the Week, Uncategorized 4 Comments

Happy Friday everyone!  This is Kim here to share one of my favorite sweet treats with you.  This one has some history for me.  My grandmother was quite the baker and made and decorated wedding cakes.  She was the one who made all the birthday cakes growing up.  Somewhere along the way she made a Boston Creme Pie and I fell in love!  It has been my birthday treat all these years now, and recently I finally made one myself with her recipe.  Now, it’s not exactly a “quick and easy” treat, but it’s well worth it for a special occasion!

So what is Boston Creme Pie?  It’s actually not a pie, it’s a cake.  I got interested in where the idea came from, so I found out that it dates back to 1856 when a French chef working at a Boston hotel started playing around with a recipe.  It probably was called a pie because at that time, most people would have had pie tins instead of cake pans.  They were probably baked in the pie tins and cut like a slice of pie.

 Now here comes the yummy part… how to make a Boston Creme Pie.  There are a number of different versions out there.  I am going to share my grandma’s recipe, as I think it is absolutely the best (and I am not biased at all – LOL!)

OK, let’s get started!  You will need to prepare 3 different parts to the cake before you can put it all together. 

1. Yellow Cake:

Different recipes call for different kinds of cake as the base of this dessert.  What I grew up with was a yellow butter cake.  You can either do a box mix to keep it simple or find a from scratch yellow cake recipe.  I baked mine as one layer in a 9×13 inch pan. 

 After the cake is completely cool, split it into two layers.  In case you haven’t heard this trick for splitting a cake, here is what I did.  I took a small knife and ran it around the edge of the cake, making a groove on all sides where I wanted the cake to split in two.  Then I put a piece of thread (you could use dental floss for this too) all the way around the cake in the groove made by the knife.  I brought the ends of the threads together, then crossed them and pulled the thread through the cake so it made the split.  This is a good way to get a clean and even split. 

 Once you have the two layers, place a piece of waxed paper between them and freeze.

2. Creme Filling:

• 10 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 slightly beaten eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 4 cups scalded milk

Mix the first five ingredients in a separate bowl.  Heat the milk in a pot on the stove until it is scalded, which means just below the boiling point.  Then add the other ingredients and continue heating on medium heat.  While it’s heating, mix with a hand mixer the entire time, until the mixture thickens and comes to a slight boil.  At that point, remove the filling from the heat and cool in refrigerator until cold.

3. Richmond Chocolate Frosting:

• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornstarch
• 6 tablespoons cocoa
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup boiling water

 Mix the sugar, cornstarch and cocoa in a separate bowl.  Boil the water in a pot on the stove and then add the premixed ingredients, stirring constantly until the mixture is thick.  Remove from heat and mix in butter and vanilla.  There you have it… yummy chocolate frosting!  As a side note, this is where I think a lot of Boston Creme Pie recipes vary.  Some of them have more of a ganache frosting, made from melting chocolate.  This one will be more of a glaze, but I really love the way it works with the cake and creme filling.  Give it a try!

Now to finish the cake:

 You’ve probably noticed that each of these three parts to the cake has their own requirements.  It’s best to freeze the cake, the creme needs to be well cooled in the refrigerator, and the frosting is actually easiest to spread on the cake when it’s still slightly warm.  Because of this, I recommend making the cake and filling ahead of time, then make the frosting right before you’re ready to put the cake together.  Once you have everything prepared, spread the creme filling in between the layers of cake, then pour the frosting over the cake, spreading evenly.  You will need to store the cake in the refrigerator if you are not eating it right away. 

 And of course, the last step is the best… Eat and enjoy!! 

Finally, we also have a FREE download of a 4×6 recipe card.  I used a template from the Shabby Shoppe’s Made From Scratch recipe templates, the Clementine kit, and the olive dot paper I love from the Gracie kit.  (For more info on fonts, etc, see the TOU in the download.)  Just click HERE…or on the image, to download!

Thanks for joining me for this sweet treat today!  Hope you have a wonderful weekend, and we’ll see you back at the blog on Monday as Kylie announces our Layout of the Week!

KimFood Stuff, Free (not desktops), Uncategorized 4 Comments

Hi everyone! :o)  It’s Kylie here today and I’m really, really excited to share our new project SCRAP templates for FEBRUARY.  Hope you LOVE them as much as I do and enjoy making them your own…by adding your photos, some papers, a little embellishment here and there, your all-important story-telling…and of course lots of love! 

Have you been taking your photos every week so that you can fill all those cute little photo spots??…hope so! :o)  I started the month off so strong (and have more than enough pics) but am afraid to report that I seem to have run out of puff as not many photo-worthy moments have come my way the last couple of weeks.  In my ‘perfect world’ I’d love to have my two photos to represent each week…all nicely organised and balanced.  But, for some months I know it’s just not going to work out that way, know what I mean!! ;o)  The important thing is to capture and document our week-to-week moments when we can…the special celebrations, the everyday moments…and like Beckie said yesterday ‘who we are in our real life’.  A little peek into our world from month to month!  Struggling to get your photo quota? – take a photo of the book you’re currently reading, a meal you cooked, a flower that’s blooming in the garden, a project you’re kids made, or a new haircut…anything you want!  Remember, this is YOUR book/album…so there are no ‘themes’ to follow, etc.  Just try to think BIG PICTURE and what you would want to remember in a couple of years, five years, twenty years.  That will be different for each of us.

Now, let’s get to the templates… you can click on the image below…or, CLICK HERE to download the your templates (two separate templates to create a ’spread’)!

New to project SCRAP? …well then, if you are not familiar with our little scrap project (if you ARE familiar with it, skip this paragraph, as always, lol)… THIS POST is a great place to learn more! Also, if you click on the PROJECT SCRAP 2012 category (on the right side of the blog)…you can ALWAYS easily find ALL posts related to the subject!  It’s your go-to place if you want to keep up with everything in 2012!  But, as a quick little reminder… here is the project in a nutshell:::

So, that’s it for now!  Be sure to post your finished February layouts in the new 2012 project scrap GALLERY!  We all LOVE to see how you work with our project SCRAP templates and all the sweet Shabby Shoppe products! :o)  SP will be doing her February ‘check-in’ in a few weeks time… and will, of course, be sure to include some wonderful gallery inspiration using the latest templates!  And can I just add that I was so excited to see the new gallery filling up sooo quickly with all the fabulous January pages…you guys outdid yourselves!!  And remember if you haven’t had a chance yet, it’s never too late to upload!!

Thanks for joining us today and be sure to stop by tomorrow!  We are all in for a real treat as Kim will be sharing a delicious family recipe for Food Friday…yummo!!! :o)

KylieFree (not desktops), Uncategorized, project Scrap 2012 19 Comments