Hey everyone…Kylie here again!  During the recent ‘vacation’ our beloved blog celebrated its second birthday! ~ on May 1st ~ YAY!!  Now that we’ve returned to our usual “scheduled-programming” we just couldn’t wait any longer to kick off this year’s birthday bash!

Any great birthday celebration must, of course, include a fun party game or two…and to help us celebrate all month long…we are inviting everyone to come & play!  It’s going to prove a lil’ difficult for us ALL to sit down and play pass the parcel, musical chairs or even pin the tail on the donkey (or should that be pin the element on the scrapbook layout – lol!!)…so I have detailed below TWO ‘not-too-shabby’ games that you might like to take part in.  And where there are games…there are sure to be PRIZES!! YAY! :o)  You can opt to play just one of the birthday games or both…either way I hope you enjoy them!

Link-A-Post is as easy as one, two, three!

1. Find your favorite Shabby Shoppe Blog Post published over the last two years

2. Grab the link to your favorite post (by copying the http: address from your internet browser).  Then add a comment here on today’s Blog Birthday Bash post.  The comment just needs to include the LINK…but if you’d like to tell us why it’s your favorite, then that would be really great – but not essential!!

3. All comments must be added by MIDNIGHT (US eastern time) on Thursday, May 31st.  The very next day we will select THREE ‘WINNERS’, at random, and announce them on the Blog.  Each ‘winner’ will receive a $10 Shabby Shoppe Gift Card!

(UPDATE:  It appears that our SPAM guard system is loving almost all your “linked” comments and wants to keep them for itself - LOL (well – not really LOL!!)!!  If you add a comment and don’t see it straight away it has unfortunately been directed to our spam queue, awaiting approval. I check this queue daily, SO DON’T WORRY, I will catch it and add it back to this post so everyone can see it, and more importantly so that you have a game one entry.  Apologies if this causes any confusion! …and THANKS for commenting in the first instance!!) 

Roll up, Roll up!!  It’s Shabby Squiz time!  Every correct entry gets a prize, folks!! :o)

Quiz…Squiz – oh it’s fun to play with words! LOL!  And if you haven’t heard the word squiz before here is a little info – squiz (noun) [ skwiz ]  quick look, a quick inquisitive look at something (Australia, NZ) – informal.  (gotta love Aussie slang!)

GAME TWO quiz rules:

• answer each of these 10 questions…

Question 1. The “new (and much improved)” Shabby Shoppe blog started out on May 1, 2010.  We kicked things off with a lovely chat with the amazing Shabby Princess herself…can you tell us what three desserts SP said she has trouble resisting?

Question 2. Which digital kit did we have fun product spotlight’ing on March 8, 2011?

Question 3. Which beautiful kit did SP use to design the NOVEMBER 2010 free desktop?  She mentions three…but what’s the main one?

Question 4. Name four of our talented team contributors (Shabby Artists)?

Question 5. Who was our random winner for Easy-As-Pie Template Challenge 20? (answer with their username)

Question 6. How many eggs in Kylie’s Choc-Cherry brownie recipe?

Question 7. In the blog post “Kim’s TOP 10 for organized memory-keeping”, what was Kim’s number 1 tip on her list?

Question 8. What hybrid project did Lu make for National Game & Puzzle Week, November 2010?

Question 9. Take a trip to the Shabby Shoppe by clicking on the “SHOPPE” link at the top of this page.  Can you tell us “What’s the latest at the Shabby Shoppe’s Blog?”  (Once you’ve written down the answer stay right there on the Shoppe homepage for the next Squiz question…or feel free to have a look around while you’re there!)

Question 10. Take a short trip to the ShabbyPrincess.com website via the free kits short cut (here’s a tip for you – click the little aqua heart that says “free kits” in the top right-hand corner).  Once you get there, name any two of Shabby Princess’ free kits? (here is another tip – click on “downloads” to view all)

• Once you have collected all ten answers, email your list to kylie@theshabbyshoppe.com with the subject heading: Shabby Squiz Answers
• I will then check off your answers and if all correct will send you a sweet little gift to say thank-you for participating in our Shabby Squiz adventure!!
• Your email must be received by MIDNIGHT (US eastern time) on Thursday, May 31st…this is a firm deadline and we won’t be accepting game two emails after this time.  Please understand that the quiz is only open for a limited time and to be fair to everyone there will be no exceptions. 

…sooooo, what’s the gift?

How cool is this Easy-As-Pie Invitations layered template set?! I just love it!!! …and it’s exclusive to those that complete the Shabby Squiz! (…it is not currently available in the Shabby Shoppe, just in case you were wondering?!)  So if you’re planning a party…well, with these templates in your stash you’ll be able to create invitations FAST…but still be as creative as you like and tailor them to your party theme!  Plus I’m sure you’ll find other fun ways to use these goodies…and not just for party time :o)

This gift package will be zipped down to an approximate 2.8MB file and emailed directly to you.  Generally, this size file is fine, but please let me know in your Shabby Squiz Answers Email if the current zipped file is over your email limit and I’ll happily break it down to smaller (separate) emails so that you can receive it all successfully.

So what does your gift include?

• [1] 5×5 layered invitation template
• [3] 4×6 and 5×7 layered invitation templates included in both sizes (for a total of 6)
• [3] layered label templates
• [2] present digi stamps (.png format)
• [4] please join us wordart stamps (each a different font style)
• [4] you are invited wordart stamps (each a different font style)

You have three whole weeks (plenty of time!) to complete this Squiz challenge should you dare to take it! ;o)  Come on, it will be lots of FUN!  If you are new to the Blog then this is your chance to have a look around & discover some older posts and other Shabby Shoppe ‘treasures’.  And if you’ve been with us from the very start well, you may just re-discover a few gems you may have missed, as you complete your Shabby Squiz journey.

Need a little help completing Game Two??

I really don’t expect you to go through every single post looking for the answers to my questions…we’ve nearly reached 500 posts, so it would take A SERIOUS amount of time, and then some!! LOL!!  There are ways to narrow down your search:

• Don’t forget to glance over at all the sidebar information on the right-hand side – there’s categories, contributors and monthly archives.  Clicking on these will also narrow down your search time!  So for example if you are looking for a Product Spotlight in March 2011 – you could choose to click on Product Spotlight (categories section) or March 2011 (in the monthly archives section) and then scroll through the results until you find the answer to the Squiz question!

Good Luck and HAVE FUN!!!  Feel free to play both games or just the one…totally up to you! :o)

———————————————————————–

Not only is May the blog’s birthday…but it just so happens that it is the Shoppe’s birthday month as well :o)  …so along with the fun and games (and gifts!!) today…I also want to let you know that we are having a SALE at the Shoppe!  When it comes to store-wide sales, we generally only have a couple each year…and love when we can celebrate both the Shoppe’s birthday AND the Blog’s birthday with one :o)  EVERYTHING (excluding gift cards and professional/photographer use products) is on SALE for at least 25% off…so head over to the Shoppe and have FUN!

Phew!!! …that’s it for today!  Enjoy our 2nd BLOG Birthday Bash and be sure to read the game requirements carefully – however if you are unsure about anything just leave a comment here and I’ll do my best to answer it! :o)  I’ll see you again tomorrow for TEMPLATE CHALLENGE 23 – and to announce the lucky winner of # 22! – yay!

KylieBirthday Bash, Shoppe News, Uncategorized 43 Comments

Happy Mother’s Day everyone! Kylie here…and yes, I know I’m a little early with my greeting/well-wishes given that Sunday is THE special day…but I have a little something to share!! Plus, we all know too well that the week will whizz by and the weekend will be here before we know it – so, getting in a little early seemed like the best thing to do! ;o) Last year we offered a beautiful & FREE piece-a-cake card to download and use on Mother’s Day…and this year we’d love to do the same. Our latest card is perfect for moms (or mums!), sisters, aunts, grandmothers, friends, daughters – you name it :o) And if you’ve already organized cards for Mother’s Day or perhaps live in a country that has already celebrated (so sorry we missed you! ) feel free to use this pretty little card for another purpose ~ a birthday, a thank-you, a simple ‘thinking of you’…or just because :o) We hope you enjoy using it (for whichever reason)…and that the special person you give it to…enjoys receiving it!

CLICK HERE for the download (or you can simply click on the image below)!

Your download includes:

• 4×6 ‘front’ in PNG format
• 4×6 ‘back’ in JPEG format
• Wordart: “Happy Mother’s Day” in PNG format

We’ve included the 4×6 ‘back’ in the event you wish to print & make a traditional double-sided card (especially great if you wish to add a letter, quote, scripture or poem). You will notice that on the ‘back’ of the card we have added a spot to place the wordart greeting…or to add your own special message, if you prefer. The wordart also fits nicely on the ‘front’! And if you are looking for something simple and photo-less, then why not use the ‘back’ as your ‘front’…always nice to have options! :o)

Of course…these are high resolution and are meant to be customized by adding your photos and text and then printed. However, they are also wonderful for emailing (a perfect last-minute option!) The recipient will probably appreciate it if you resize first though (a great size is about 800 pixels wide at 72dpi for email). And now that my Mum is mastering the art of emailing (go mum!!)…this is the option that I’m going with!! :o)

Piece-a-cake cards are just that…a piece-a-cake! But, if you need help figuring out how to add your photos and text (remember, you will need some kind of graphics program to work with these files) – please visit our TUTORIALS page for help! We have tutorials (both video and screenshot versions) for our piece-a-cake pages/albums for both Photoshop and Photoshop Elements. So, click around on the tutorials page and you should find all the answers you are looking for :o) But, the good news is that it is SUPER SIMPLE!

Enjoy the card! But most of all…ENJOY YOUR DAY…whether you spend it with your own mother…with your children…with your pets…or with family and friends – just enjoy it!

Be sure to stop by tomorrow – we’ve got something to CELEBRATE!!

KylieFree (not desktops), Uncategorized 8 Comments

Well, HELLO everyone!!! :o)  Kylie here and I’m so excited!…and I just can’t hide it! ;o)  It really is so lovely to be back and blogging again after our little two-week break…missed you guys heaps ‘n’ heaps! (Did you miss us too?! – hope so! LOL!!)  I was seriously feeling a little lost without you!  Don’t giggle, it’s true!!

Having been away for a couple of weeks also means that I’ve got a jumbo-sized Layout of the Week post today…three times the scrappy FUN…three times the scrappy GORGEOUSNESS!!  So let’s jump right in, shall we?!

First up is the very talented kris_t with her Finn at 4 layout!

To start with the photo is A.D.O.R.A.B.L.E. – just look at that smile…pure sunshine!  Following the “sunny” theme, the design is fun and playful…and those sunbeams jump right off the page, don’t they?!  The cut-out for the journaling is a fantastic spark of creativity and kris_t has made full use of all the cheerful Sandbox patterns.  This is a fabulous layout in its own right…but when you pair it with its “Sister” page, Alice at 2, the combination is magical and super-cute-to-boot!!  See…sooo cute together!!

Next…we have a sweet little page crafted by the beautiful JoyontheJourney!

A Non-Fairy Story is a truly wonderful combination of sweetie-pie pictures, creative scrapping and delightful story-telling!  Amazing work, JoyontheJourney!!  I just loved this layout when I first saw it and was eager to click on page two to read how the story ends!  Love, love, love…everything on the page/s!!  And the heart-warming chuckle, as a result of reading this non-fairy story, is quite simply the cherry on top!! :o)  Here are the two pages together (and if you haven’t yet read this masterpiece CLICK HERE to view JoyontheJourney’s fabulous gallery!)…

And last, but by no means least, we have one of jessg26’s April projectScrap pages!  What a standout!!

The fabulous color scheme and brilliant use of the template made this layout really pop when I was gallery-browsing.  It just screams – look at me, I’m ahhhh-mazing!!  Jessica is one of our gorgeous gallery girls and never ceases to inspire…especially when it comes to her projectScrap layouts!!  Beautiful photos, beautiful clustering, beautiful page!  Today’s LOTW post has had a rather happy coincidence of featuring two-pager’s…so it would be remiss of me not to include jessg26’s other page here also!! :o)

A BIG CONGRATS to all three of our ‘winners’!!  …and thanks so much for sharing your fantabulous layouts, in the gallery, to begin with!  Enjoy your $10 gift cards to the Shabby Shoppe…emailed this morning – be sure to check SPAM folders if you don’t see it :o)  Enjoy your Shoppe-ing girls!

And, as I’ve said before (and WILL continue to say) – THANK YOU to each and every one of you who post in our inspiration gallery and make the Shoppe such a fun and inspired place to hang out :o)  Keep posting and sharing your creations with us…we truly enjoy and appreciate every single upload (even though it makes choosing LOTW the toughest job ever!! LOL!)  BIG SMILES!!!

Thanks for joining us again! :o)  Now, before I sign-off, let me quickly tell you that this week is going to be HUGE…lots of fun (and games), and a download or two, too!!  So make sure you check-in every day…wouldn’t want you to miss out on anything!!! xoxo

KylieLayout of the Week, Uncategorized 7 Comments

hey guys :o)  Kylie here with a super QUICK post to share our FREE May DESKTOP !  I had a lot of fun working with SP on this one…it has a bright, happy glow about it!  Hope you enjoy it too!!

CLICK HERE to download the 1024 x 768 version

CLICK HERE to download the 1280 x 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 always – THANK YOU so much for stopping by…and for enjoying our desktops :o)  We plan to keep them coming…but I’m wondering if it isn’t about time we review our resolution sizes??  Last year we added a poll to our blog sidebar and I would love to know if you’d like us to add it again to find out the top TWO sizes.  I know many of you wish we could design EVERY size each month (we do, too, lol) – but I’m sure you understand that that is just not possible.  To get the ball rolling, we’d be grateful if you could add a comment on this post should you like to see it put to the VOTE once again!  THANKS!!

KylieFree Desktops, Uncategorized 18 Comments

Hello everyone…Happy Weekend! :o)  Kylie here to finish off a busy week!  Today is just a little post to let you know that our blog is taking a small VACATION over the next two weeks.  Our spring break, perhaps?!! ;o)

We’ll be back before you’ve had time to miss us, promise!  The team will officially return on May 7th…all refreshed and ready to rock the BLOG again!  The girls and I will be returning with all your favorites, starting with a super-sized LOTW post…so don’t stop uploading your stunning layouts to the gallery.  Also, the first week back will be jam-packed with celebrations…so please join us for a special Mother’s Day free download, our BIG BIRTHDAY BASH (yay!!), a STOREWIDE SALE (even bigger yay!!), the next Easy-As-Pie Template Challenge and bunches of other fun stuff!!!

During our lil’ break I will still drop by to share the FREE MAY DESKTOP - on the 27th of April, to be exact.  I’d love you to stop by too and pick it up!

And don’t forget to take advantage of the Spring and Easter SALE still running over at the Shoppe!  Lots of lovely Mother’s Day gift-giving options too!

HAVE A WONDERFUL TWO WEEKS!  (We’ll miss you!!)  As always – thanks soooooo much for being with us…and for being a part of the Shabby Shoppe community!  Bye for now and HAPPY SCRAPPING! xoxo

Oh, and HAPPY EARTH DAY, for tomorrow! ;o)

KylieShoppe News, Uncategorized No Comments