I love this sentiment. Some people feel better if they exercise every day. I do feel good if I exercise but it doesn't give me the lift I get when I do something creative. It's what I crave. Almost as much as chocolate. The kit is from The Digi Files #27.
I have been collecting quotes. There is now an iPhone app called Quotebook. It's nice but I want an iPad app, and a way to sync on my desktop. So I mostly use Evernote. Since I am not a writer, what can I do with these quotes? Make cards! I used Cosmo Cricket's Lil' Boy & Lil' Girl kit for this card.
Here is another card template taken from one of my larger page templates. I was looking through my kits and decided to use Curiosity by Studio Q. I checked out the elements first and decided to make a card just using the definition.
Now that I am caught up with my card making, I can make a card for no reason. It's fun but as I was making this, I thought it looked like a boy card and went looking for a boy, or man, who would need a card in the next few months. I picked my brother Steve. The elements that came with this kit, Rachel Young's With You, did not inspire me. Steve is a boy scout and like eagles and owls. Surely, I must have an owl brush somewhere. I saw I had a couple from Katie Pertiet which are beautiful but not right for the feel of the papers. I could change the papers or look for another stamp. I found a cute owl from Nancy Kubo. Maybe too cute for a 56 year old man, but he goes so well with the plaid.
The Digi Files for April include this very kit from Studio Q called Sweet Garden. All of her kits are beautiful. I love the simple patterns. Oh and I learned this awesome trick for recoloring elements. Check out this video from Peppermint.
I took one of my 12"x12" templates and converted it for a card. So easy I'd call it cheating. 
Just like the papers from 7 Gypsies, I saw Echo Park's Be Mine and thought it was a cool kit but I would never use it. Then Jessica Sprague put it one One Dollar Wednesday and I figured I would use it enough to justify the cost.
I saw this quote on a magnet at Barnes & Noble. I took a picture of it with my iPhone. I thought I would use it for a card for Bonnie. And maybe I will have this card printed and send to her. Either way, I think it is inspiring. I definitely need to take a few chances.
Here is another sketch that has changed much from the original. And then it still isn't what I envisioned in my brain. I was thinking of those cute notebooks which have different shaped pages. Since it is digital, the pages are just layers. I think Echo Park's For the Record looks good with the scalloped edges.
I love quilts. Not all quilts. I usually like the brighter colors seen in amish quilts. I really like the patterns. I can't sew. I had the idea to use these patterns in cards. I started to look at patterns and shapes and spent quite a bit of time making some shapes in photoshop. Then the following morning, I found these templates. I don't usually buy templates as I can easily make my own. But I know that these templates would save me a LOT of time. And these are 12x12 templates so I could use them for layouts too. I bought them and used the simplest one right away. I chose Echo Park's Life is Good for the beautiful papers.
I love the huge collections from Creativity by Crystal. So many options and so many great products. And recently I got Maci's Room for $1 at One Dollar Wednesday at Jessica Sprague.
I found yet another site for digital product called My Memories. I must admit, I do not like the site. It is an odd shopping cart and doesn't work the way I expect. Also, it seems like they repackaged the downloads. They separated all the embellishments into folders which means more clicks to find what you want. I had planned on merging them all but the file names are the same! Huh? I am thinking that the designer did not do that. So when I went to link to this kit, Village Fair, I did a google search and found the designer's blog, A Work in Progress. I also found that she has her kits at another shop so I have linked there. Brushes are from Art Warehouse.
Funny thing started to happen. I challenged Bonnie to doing one layout every 3 days. And I am doing it too. And when I do a layout, I don't feel the urge to do a card, or 3. Good thing I have some many of these in the queue. I used Celeste Knight's Honey Cake for this simple card. The journal card and butterfly brush are from Katie Pertiet. The birthday definition brush is from Hero Arts.
I remember the first time I saw this collection, Oh Baby Girl! by Basic Grey. I fell in love with the ginghams but the elephants? Huh? But I love them now. 
Realizing that I can just make just without a specific purpose has been liberating. I just like to make them up but feel like I need to make them for someone special. But I just don't know enough people. Ha. 
I look for inspiration almost everywhere I go. The boys love going to Barnes & Noble. I prefer to read my books on my iPad so I don't look at books when we go to the bookstore. I will sit in the café and look at a magazine or go online. Sometimes I look at packaging and sketch some ideas for cards. I used Erica Zwart's Fresh kit on this card.
I signed up for The Daily Digi. I would have minded paying for the kits at a higher prices but some were exclusive. I was happily surprised that I liked almost all of the collections in The Digi Files #27. And really, if you like any of the designers, it is a good deal. I am is from Penny Springmann. She has her own shop and also sells through Sweet Shoppe Designs.
I was not happy with the original sketch so I altered it. A lot. In fact, it bears no resemblance to the original although both are square. I tried to randomly pick a kit to go with this, but mini bridge is slow and I ended up on the bottom of the list when the beach ball finally stopped swimming. I think it worked out well. Just Breathe is a freebie from Vicki Stegall available at Oscraps. The letter box brushes are from Katie Pertiet.
I picked up Life is Sweet from Kay Miller Designs a few weeks ago. It was a freebie from After 5 Designs.
