Building a Snowman With Out Getting Cold…

is easy with this brand new digital clip art kit!  Audrey Jeanne’s Build Your Own Snowman Kit 1 will hit the Daisie store next week.  It has a few blank snow Build your own snowman setpeople and a snow dog, cat and teddy bear to dress up!  (UPDATE:  This kit is now available for $7.98 in the Daisie store.  Click on the first picture to go there)

Hats, mittens, scarves, angel wings and halos are all included.  If you have simple digital skills like enlarge, decrease and turn you can make an unlimited amount of your own snowmen and snow scenes.

I’ve created a snow scene using this kit and the other Snowman kit that will be coming out next week combined ("Snowmen Warm Your Preview 2 Build Your Own SnowmanHeart.")  That image is below.  The background and snowbank are included in the Build Your Own Snowman Kit.

I made six different snow people out of this kit to test the ease of creating with it and will probably release them as a mini kit for anyone who doesn’t want to take the time to do it themselves (or for those of you that would like to see what they look like and then buy the kit to make them yourselves!)

sample scene made with two Snowman kitsThe best part of this kit is NO COLD HANDS!!!! 

Today is the last day to enter the "Creating a Special Christmas Contest" at Daisie, see the post below for details, so if you have a project in the works get it posted and you just might be a winner!

 

Two Contests End Tomorrow at Midnight

The first is my usual twice a month "Random Drawing blog comments contest" (all you have to do is write a comment on any or all posts from the 15th through the 31st to enter).  The set that I featured yesterday will be the prize so if you love snowmen, get typing!

The second contest has been running for almost six weeks now at THE DAISIE COMPANY and is called "The Creating a Special Christmas Contest."  The basic rules are that you 1. Use my art to create your project  2.  Your project could be used as a Christmas or other gift (doesn’t have to be given away or be Christmas themed)  3. Your project fit into one of the three categories, crafts, scrapbooking or cards.  So far as of this morning there were 141 incredible entries!!!  I am so amazed and so terrified to have to judge them (along with my judging crew)  To see the entries here’s the link: http://www.daisiecompany.com/galleries/showgallery.php/cat/711

We will begin the judging the morning of November 1st and will announce the winners as soon as we come to an agreement.  There will be three prizes in each category and some extra prizes for special merit pieces.  There will also be a little something special for everyone who entered.  I’m so blessed and excited at how many entries we have in the contest, it already is more than double the entries we had for my first contest in January/February of this year.  Thanks to all you who have participated!

THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY:  Eph 4:1-4  As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.  Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.  Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.  NIV
COMMENT:  I love this particular verse for its powerful simplicity.  When the scripture tells us to "be" something it means you can do it so go do it!  Make a choice and choose to act in the manner you’ve been instructed.  "Be patient" not when you feel patient go act like it!  Also this scripture shows us that it takes effort to remain in unity.  Every group, family, business or church goes through difficult times where its members struggle with each other, however if we all were to "make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace, we’d have a much happier and contented life! 

“Snowmen Warm Your Heart” Digital Clip Art Kit Coming Next Week

(UPDATE:  this kit is now available at the Daisie company for $3.98.  Just click on the first picture to go there.)  I’m putting the finishing touches on an brand new kit that will be coming out the first week in November at the DAISIE COMPANY.  It’s a small, 20 piece kit with a sweet, small price to match, $3.98

Snowman Digital Clip Art KitI smiled earlier this week when one of the commentors asked me for snow people without big chunky rocky faces!  I had already been painting my snowman angel and his/her friends 🙂 

Each of the scenes you see in these previews has been constructed out of individual parts so the combinations are endless.snowman soup digital art

In this second preview, you can see two uses of the string of lights that are included with this kit.  I have the two blue birds holding them in the snow and the moose antlers are strung with them above.  The "Snowman soup" with the snowman swimming in a cup of cocoa matches with the gift box and gift basket set that is also coming out this week, so you could make matching items to enlarge those gift sets quite easily.

snowman digital clip art kitsAnother set that I am working on is a "Build Your Own Snowman" set that will include several different faces, arms, hats, scarves and other body parts to make your own snowmen. 

I hope you’ll have a lot of fun mixing and matching elements to make your own unique creations.  By the way, these snowmen work perfectly with the "Warm Winter Memories" and "It’s Snow Fun" art kits at Daisie Company.  You can find those kits at http://www.daisiecompany.com/cart/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=32&sort=4d&page=12

THE PROVERB OF THE DAY:  Prov 29:9-11  If a wise man goes to court with a fool, the fool rages and scoffs, and there is no peace.

Bloodthirsty men hate a man of integrity and seek to kill the upright.  A fool gives full vent to his anger, But a wise man keeps himself under control.  NIV

Christmas Centerpiece Star Card Available Today

There’s a brand new crafting kit that is available this morning at Daisie.  It’s a very fun, easy but dramatic star card that opens up into a book or opens fully to Christmas photo card and centerpiece previewcreate a star-shaped center piece to decorate your home for the holidays.  Normally priced at $6.95, it’s on sale for a few days for $5.56!  To go to the store simply click on the picture to the right and it will take you there.

The centerpiece has png ornament frames for you to simply place your picture behind, size and center and you’re ready to print.  This is a perfect gift for grandparents, aunts and other distant family members that would enjoy having a wonderful way to feel close to you during the holidays!

 

After the Crisis, What Happens Next?

For those of you that don’t know, my family survived the 2003 Cedar fire in San Diego, which came 1200 ft from our historic property in Valley Center, CA.  We awoke at 3 AM to the intense smell of smoke and (2) 50 ft high walls of fire heading rapidly towards us.  The Santa Ana winds in that fire were 1/2 the speed of this week’s fire and had they been as stiff, we might easily have perished, as the fire came up so quickly there was no warning at all given.  We evacuated our place with just a few things in our van and no idea if we would ever see our 125 year old adobe farmhouse again.  We were the blessed ones, we came home to a lot of smoke and soot damage, but nothing destroyed.

However, our little community had more homes lost per capita than any other area in So. California that year.  We lost 265 homes and two lives.  A dear friend of my high school daughter’s died and her sister was burned so badly she was in the hospital for an enitre year.  We lived through the paralysis that comes after the adrenaline subsides and we saw very intimately what happens AFTER the TV crews go home and the next news story fills the airwaves. 

I wanted to let you know a little of what will be coming ahead for the fire victims, their families and their communities so you can be praying and if possible can send a donation to help them get back onto their feet. If you’ve watched the news, you’ve seen families standing in front of their homes seeming shaken and yet unexpectedly strong and thankful.  They are strong for the moment, drawing strength from the fact that they have each other, but in reality they are in shock.  In a few days, that shock will begin to wear off and the enormity of everything that has happened will begin to set in. 

Right now, most are thinking about the loss of their personal treasures and a lifetime’s accumulation of memories.  They’re thinking about what could have happened to their families and how they could have lost their lives.  There’s a certain amount of joy and relief in those thoughts, but also there can be some torment as well, the "what if" scenarios often play through the mind without ceasing and a good night’s sleep is a long way away.  What most haven’t yet had time to really think much about is "How do I make a new start?  How do I go about rebuilding?  Where do I even start with my insurance company?" 

There will be 2-3 years of battles ahead of them before they find a new normal.  They will have to fill out reams of paperwork, potentially have to  fight an insurance company if there’s no pictures of what was in their home, find a reputable contractor if they are going to rebuild, design their home and go through the permit process etc.  Many of them will sit in the assistance centers later this week with eyes glazed over and unable to make the simplest of decisions.

This is where agencies like the Red Cross and The Salvation Army are absolutely amazing.  They not only meet the most immediate needs by providing safety, shelter, food, and comfort, they provide for their long-term emotional needs as well.  They have trained crisis counselors that have been dispatched to the area to help these families face their loss and deal with their grief.   If you can spare a little bit out of your budget right now, I would love to encourage you to send it to either the Salvation Army or The Red Cross.  They will make sure your $ goes a long way to bring comfort and hope to families in a place so heavy and overwhelming most of us cannot even come close to imagining it. The web sites are: http://www.redcross.org/ and http://www1.usw.salvationarmy.org/usw/www_usw.nsf   KFMB TV and Radio believes in the Salvation Army’s work so much after the fires of 2003, that they are working to raise donations to send to them.  In 24 hours they have raised over $335,000.

Many of  you have visited San Diego and seen the beautiful side of the city.  There are many amazingly beautiful homes and people who have very adequate resources to handle their losses, but there is a more ordinary part of this city where familes struggle to make ends meet living where the cost of living is very high and the wages relatively low.  There are many poor that were burned out in this fire and many families that were renting will not have any insurance to collect from.  FEMA will provide a modest grant to these families, but it will be no where near what they will need to get back to where they once were.

Pray for these families.  Ask the Lord to remind you to pray in a couple weeks, a month from now, several months from now… this will be a very long recovery process and they need us to stand with them as they walk the long, difficult path.  Stop and pray for those who are still recovering two years later, from hurricane Katrina.  Especially those outside of New Orleans, who have received much less attention and yet whose needs are still great.  Thank you for reading, caring and praying.

Gerbera Daisie Instant Scrapbook Album Kit Coming Next Week

(UPDATE: This kit is now available for $9.98 in the Daisie Store.  Just click on the first picture to go to the store)  I have been taking a little break from working on the holidays to create several new "Instant Album" kits.  The first was just uploaded to Daisie for release little girl, baby, princess, tweener gerbera daisie instant scrapbook albumnext week.  The first item created for any product line is incredibly time intensive, especially one that requires instructions and as detailed creative information as these kits have.

Each of my 6" Instant Albums will have 20 pages and between 80-120 pieces to them!  Every single thing you need paper-wise for an album is provided, you simply add the pictures and any dimensional trims or embellishments you want to add.  If you can print, cut out, arrange and glue you can create a magnificent scrapbook for yourself, a family member or as a gift for a birthday, shower or baby’s birth. 

beginning scrapbooking easy kit preview, instant albumI include images of my prototype album that you can use for ideas or simply duplicate, whichever creative level you like best!  I have written little notes about what I added, how I added it and ideas for creating your own embellishments.

This type of a kit is absolutely PERFECT for a beginning scrapbooker.  If you’ve been so overwhelmed by walking into a store and seeing a million choices on the shelf that you left the store, you’ll love that I’ve made the choices for you.  However, though they go together, they aren’t "matchy-matchy."  Though this is a digital product (you print the pages off of your own computer), it doesn’t require very much digital skill at all.  If you know how to print off of your printer and you can add text to a page that’s about all the skill that is required.

baby album, tweener album, little girl album previewThere is a complete page of text tags and titles that are geared towards the album’s theme and on this kit, I’ve also given you the same tags without text but ready for you to put your own on them.  There is also a png template that is perfectly shaped for your photos to work in the mats that have been provided.  All you do is drop you photo behind the template in your graphics program, move, size and print  your photos and they are ready for you to cut out and glue in your album.

Additional albums for Wedding and Christmas have been created already and will be released in the next couple of weeks.  Please leave suggestions of any other themes you would like to see an album for.  No guarantees, but you know how often I take your ideas and run with them 🙂

THE PROVERB OF THE DAY:  Prov 24:10-12
If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!

Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter.  If you say, "But we knew nothing about this," does not he who weighs the heart perceive it?  does not he who guards your life know it?  Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?

COMMENTS:  When trouble comes, you don’t have time to get strong, you have to do that when times are good.  A lot of us think we’ll "get spiritual" one day, when we have the time or when we need to, but the reality is that when trouble hits, you will falter if you haven’t strengthened yourself beforehand. 

The second part of this proverb tells us that we are indeed our brother’s keeper.  If we see someone being raped or murdered or being oppressed by a mass-murdering tyrant, we do have responsibility before God to do what we can to stop it.  We can convince man that we are innocent but our hearts will either condemn us or not, we can fool everyone but ourselves and God.  Do we step out of our comfort zone to take care of others when it’s needed?  God honors that in our lives and He rewards (for good or for evil) based on the hidden places of the heart.  Hmmmm…. lots to think about!

 

Some Brand New Crafting Kits Coming, Unique Self-Closing Gift Boxes, Tea Bag Covers & Nugget Covers

gift box, nugget covers, teabag covers gift set previewI have been working on some Christmas food-oriented gift sets and just now have them ready to give you a peek at them.  These boxes are really, really unique and fun.  They are a self-closing bow top with a curved very unusual rounded top of the box.  I can’t really describe it in words so I’ll show you with a picture!

The largest box is 2 3/4" x 2 3/4" x 5 3/4" and the smaller box is the same width and dept but is about 4 1/2" high.  These boxes look complicated, but are pretty easy once you figure out the folds.  I will have photo instructions of each stage of folding them to make it really easy.

I have a couple more similar sets that will follow including a Gingerbread Cottage Christmas set, so stay tuned!The final picture is a close up of two of the large box sides so you can see a little more of the art in these products.  If any of you do food gifts or food crafts, would you please leave me a comment with any special requests, things that you do a lot of etc.?  It would be very helpful for me 🙂

Please be praying for the California Wildfires.  I lived through the Cedar fire in 2003 which came 1200 ft from our home in Valley Center.  The fires that are happening right now in San Diego are much, much worse (4,000 homes were destroyed in So. Cal in the 2003 fires).  There are 8-10 separate fires being driven by 70 mph winds and over 250,000 people have been ordered to evacuate their homes.  More than 100,000 acres have burned already and the winds aren’t scheduled to subside until 3 PM tomorrow.

Please pray for a break in the weather, strength and protection for the firefighters and residents in our State. 

A Busy Woman’s Approach to Scrapbooking Family Memories by Audrey Jeanne Roberts

If I asked each of you, "Is it important to capture the wonderful moments of your family, document the history of those you have known and loved and share a little bit of your heart with those who will come after you?"  I believe I would hear a giant, resounding "YES!"  If I asked a follow up question and said, "Are you actively doing that in any way?"  I would probably hear a deep sigh and a guilty-sounding "No… I should but I just don’t have the time."

Instant mini album 6" scrapbookI am in exactly your same position as a wife and mother.  As an artist, I have a leg up on you in that I can go to my computer and access close to 1,000 gigabytes of artwork to scrap with, but do I?  Not as often as I would like.  I’ve done more this year than last year and I hope that I will do more yet in 2008.  I’m MAKING TIME (because FINDING time hasn’t seemed to work very well) a little here and a little there.  I’m choosing to take a day that I might go spend in the garden endlessly weeding a patch that will only be filled again with more weeds, to do something instead that will be permanent and even possibly last beyond my lifetime. 

Every day we make choices.  Do we clean the cupboards, mop the floors, weed the garden or do something that has some permanence to it?  All of these activities are of course important, but they are not timeless and permanent.  Perhaps we can let our houses go slightly untended for a day so that we can tend to our heritage.  If we stop and think in those terms, perhaps the task will take on a new meaning.

Instant Scrapbook Album for girlsThe second issue that I always hear about scrapbooking is that "I get overwhelmed even thinking about it!"  Do you go into a scrapbooking store and have your eyes glaze in about 30 seconds?  Do you look at all the choices and freeze?  Do you look at a scrapbooking magazine and see fantastic layouts executed by graphic designer geniuses that you know in your heart you could never duplicate and just decide never to start? 

I spend a lot of time thinking about who my audience is and what her life looks like.  Most of you are warm, wonderful, extremely busy people with wonderful families, more creativity than the average person (but you don’t think that you’re very creativeat all!) and you love to touch the lives of those around you with tenderness, emotional warmth and beauty.  You make a gift with your hands as a way of showing how much you care and how deeply you love. 

My goal in creating each art kit, craft project or scrapbook album is to make it as easy as possible to achieve those goals.  My new "Instant Albums" are designed to make the only thing you have to think about what pictures and occasions you want to document in your scrapbooks.  I’m working at creating kits that work together without necessarily being "matchy-matchy" in look and feel.  When I put them together for you, I want it to be so easy that it’s impossible for you to do a "bad" page!  And I want to do it at a price that is so affordable that you just don’t have any excuse not to get started doing a little at a time!!! 

If you’ve never made a scrapbook and given it to someone, you’ve missed one of the most wonderful feelings in the world.  When I made the scrapbook that I gave to Jacqui on her 21st birthday at the beginning of this month, her face lit up with such excitement and joy that I realized I need to do it much more often.  The most interesting thing was that I didn’t put any pictures in it, I just made the album and am having her put the pictures that are most important to her and write her thoughts about that special day.  You know what I discovered?  It was FUN!!!  It wasn’t a burden and it went so fast I couldn’t believe it… maybe if you start a little project like that you’ll discover the special joy of scrapbooking and just might join me in the ranks of the addicted 🙂

 

 

Creating a Brag Book Scrapbook for Children or Grandchildren With Digital Clip Art by Audrey Jeanne Roberts

gingerbread man, house, christmas scrapbook brag book kit digital art

(UPDATE: This kit is now available for $6.98 at Daisie.  Simply click on the first picture and it will take you to the store)  Coming next week to the DAISIE COMPANY is the first of many Instant Album kits for creating the perfect brag book for yourself, your mother or grandmother to carry in a purse!  This kit was so much fun to put together.  It brought smiles to my heart every step of the way.  This book’s finished size is 4" x 6" and can easily hold 18-20 pages of photos.

hybrid scrapbook layouts from brag book, christmas, gingerbreadThe kit will be coming to the store next week and will be priced at  only $6.98 for 66 pieces.  There is a PNG format photo template that you simply drop your photos behind and then cut out in the perfect shape and size to coordinate with the colored and patterns mats that are included.  Also included are 3, 8.5 x 11" papers to print the back side of your pages or use for papers in other projects.

scrapbook layout gingerbread house children grandchildrenI’ve intentionally chosen to create this kit as a "hybrid" kit.  If you do not know what that term means, it is a digital kit that you print, cut and then mix together with your trims, ribbons, jewels and other goodies to create a physical layout through normal scrapbooking processes.  Many of you aren’t quite skilled enough yet to do a digital layout, yet you own great graphics and have a desire to scrapbook your memories inexpensively and easily.  Imagine never running out of a favorite paper!  Imagine being able to write your journaling, edit it and print it in a wonderful font to clearly and easily communicate your thoughts and emotions.  Hybrid scrapbooking is the very best of both worlds!  If you have a good scanner, you might even consider creating a hybrid layout and then scanning it to use in a digital album!brag book christmas mother grandmother grandchildren children

I’ve shown an example of how you can also create standard sized scrapbook pages at 8" x 8" or 12" x 12" using the pieces contained in this kit.  If you can print 12" papers, you can buy my matching paper kit and print your own full size scrapbook papers, if not the same kit can be used to print 8" square pages and you can easily make a small album.

Scrapbooks, brag books and kid’s photographs are the absolutely BEST CHRISTMAS GIFT EVER for anyone!  No grandma is too rich to want more pictures of her grandchildren, and no mother ever has enough pictures either!!

I hope you will enjoy this kit as much as I enjoyed creating it for you.

THE PROVERB OF THE DAY: Prov 18:7-10  A fool’s mouth is his undoing,
and his lips are a snare to his soul. The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man’s inmost parts.  One who is slack in his work
is brother to one who destroys. The name of the LORD is a strong tower;
the righteous run to it and are safe.  NIV

A Winter Snow Freebie For You Today! By Audrey Jeanne Roberts

children with snowman link to downloadI received a very sweet note from a reader in England who notice a little typo in one of my kits from last year (OH MY!!!)  So any of you that purchased "Warm Winter Memories" either late last year when I first came to DAISIE or when it recently went on sale will need these replacement files.  So, I thought I might as well make it available to everyone as an early winter celebration!  Think SNOW!!!!! 

I admit it, I’m a little touched in the head, but I just LOVE SNOW!  Part of that is growing up in San Diego, California and living there for 46 years.  It snowed twice during those years (and of course didn’t stick)  So when I moved to the mountains 3 years ago, I am absolutely in heaven.  My husband (ex-Minnesotan that he is) is sure that I’ll get sick of it one day, but I really don’t think so 🙂

 To download your files, all you have to do is click on these links and they will take you to the download page.  http://www.4shared.com/file/26706002/a66fbe7a/AJROB_TEXT_childhoods_fleeting.html

http://www.4shared.com/file/26706008/46ba5764/children_w_snowman.html

Preview of Warm Winter Memories Clip Art Kit, snow, snowmen, snowman, girngerbread manThe kit at left is the kit that these pieces are sold in.  If you are interested in seeing what else is available in the kit for purchase, you can click on the kit picture it will take you to the DAISIE COMPANY store.  It’s a very fun kit for winter projects like snowman soup and other food goodies!

When you arrive at the download links look in the bottom right hand corner and you’ll see the very small download button.  The Terms of Use on Freebies is personal use only (unless you have purchased the kit at Daisie and then the usual Angel Policy applies).  Feel free to let anyone else know about the freebie that you think would enjoy it, but please point them here rather than share the file directly.

THE PROVERB OF THE DAY: Prov 17:9-12 9 He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends. A rebuke impresses a man of discernment
more than a hundred lashes a fool. An evil man is bent only on rebellion; a merciless official will be sent against him.  Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool in his folly. NIV

COMMENTS:  to cover over an offense as spoken of here doesn’t mean to cover up a crime or anything similar it means to have someone offend you and not to make a big deal out of it, or to see someone doing something embarassing for instance and not running around telling people about it.  The person who gossips, who runs and tells others about it stirs up contention and brings shame on the individual.  A rebuke is another term for a correction (the word rebuke sounds harsher than it is  meant to be).  The man or woman who wants to discern right from wrong, good from evil appreciates being corrected and takes it to heart where a fool can be beaten almost to death and not get any wiser.  Have a great day!

 

The Blog Contest Winner For Today is…

one of two comments on a post on the 4th of the month, Miss KittyDog!  Once I saw there were only two comments on that day I had an entirely impartial friend who is over this morning pick for me so I wouldn’t feel guilty because both of the ladies that posted are such sweet people :-)!

KittyDog wins a set of my Gingerbread Cottage Alphabet, CONGRATULATIONS, Abby!  Thanks to all who posted comments I soooooo enjoy reading them.  The second half of the month contest starts today.

Creating a Special Christmas Contest at DAISIE COMPANY by Audrey Jeanne Roberts

For those of you that are not aware, we have a special contest challenge going at THE DAISIE COMPANY  here’s the link to the instructions: http://www.daisiecompany.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=21135  The goal we had in creating this contest was to get you crafting for Christmas so that you won’t be behind and racing crazily (like I always am) in the last week or two before the holiday 🙂

The prize for the winner in each category is one of my brand new cookbooks that were created for Brownlow Gifts.  See these posts to check them out: http://www.daisiecompany.com/blogs/audreyjeanne/?p=222   There will also be prizes for the second and third place winners in each category.  The categories are the best of  1. General Craft   2. Scrapbook Layout and 3. Greeting Cards (any greeting card qualifies, doesn’t need to be Christmas).  The only requirement is that your creation could be used as a Christmas Gift (doesn’t have to be Christmas designs) and that you use my digital art kits that can be found here: http://www.daisiecompany.com/cart/index.php?manufacturers_id=32&main_page=index.

If I can figure out how to do it, I’ll try to post some of the creations that are already entered.  I can’t seem to right click and copy them so if any of my wonderful wizard friends at DAISIE could tell me how to do that I’d be very grateful!!! 

 THE PROVERB OF THE DAY:  Prov 15:7-10  The lips of the wise spread knowledge; not so the hearts of fools. The LORD detests the sacrifice of the wicked, but the prayer of the upright pleases him. The LORD detests the way of the wicked but he loves those who pursue righteousness. Stern discipline awaits him who leaves the path; he who hates correction will die.  NIV

Comments on today’s proverb.  Often times people can feel that the church is full of hypocrites — that we should be perfect before we call others to reach higher, be better and try to live a better life.  I love this particular scripture because it shows how God looks at things.  He doesn’t care so much  that we’re perfect, but that we’re PURSUING righteousness.  He doesn’t want us to do a series of sacrifices or appear good on the outside and still be wicked at the heart,  he loves a pure heart, a tender heart and humble heart.  The prayer of the upright in heart pleases him.  He loves to answer the honest heart — don’t be afraid to ask Him for anything you need and for help for anything that you are facing today! 

Gingerbread Cottage Alphabet by Audrey Jeanne Roberts

Gingerbread house, cottage, cookie alphabetAs I started working with my gingerbread house sets, I realized that this was definitely a project that needed a matching alphabet to really make it pop. (UPDATE: now available for $2.48 at Daisie.  Just click on the picture to go to the store)

I like my Audrey Jeanne’s Whimsical font’s feel with the kits.  I haven’t released yet this font to DAISIE yet, but will sometime in the next month.  It is the font that I  used to create the gingerbread cookie with icing letters that make up the alphabet.

This alphabet is complete in two pages of png format.  I have left wide spaces around each letter so that you can simply use your selection tool, copy and paste the letter into your file.  I find it so much easier and faster to work that way than to have to open every single letter file separately.  It also makes the cost to you much less as it requires less time in the creating process.  This alphabet will retail for $2.48.

I also created a Friday Freebie containing 5 gingerbread cookie gift tags.  It will be released at some point in the future at DAISIE so watch for it.

THE PROVERB OF THE DAY:  Prov 13:9-11 The light of the righteous shines brightly, but the lamp of the wicked is snuffed out.  Pride only breeds quarrels,
but wisdom is found in those who take advice. Dishonest money dwindles away,
but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.  NIV

 

 

Gingerbread Cottage Digital Clip Art Kit Series Starting Next Week

Gingerbread House Cottage Christmas Village Clip Art

(UPDATE: now available at Daisie for $5.98, just click on this first picture to go to the store)  Creating Gingerbread houses is such a traditional family activity for the holidays.  I remember having oooey goooey sticky fingers that just HAD to be licked!  We tended to make ours the simple way, using graham crackers, but we thought they were quite spectacular anyway.  So when I decided earlier this year that I wanted to create an entire collection of Gingerbread Cottage art, I was drawing upon my own childhood memories to maybe help you start a new tradition with your children or grandchildren.

This past couple of weeks have been some of the most fun designing I have done in a long time!  Each of my gingerbread kits work seamlessly together for all your Winter crafting needs.  I have so many kits coming that there will be a kit previewed almost every day next week. 

Gingerbread trees, house, fence, gateThe first kit in the series will debut on Tuesday at THE DAISIE COMPANY.  I previewed it here last week.  This kit I am showing now will debut the following Tuesday and has 32 pieces that you can use to create gingerbread scenes for a gingerbread village.  Used together with the first Gingerbread Cottage Christmas kit which has rooflines, windows, doors and all sorts of other items to personalize these blanks you can make and entire village of different houses, churches, and other cute structures. 

Layer them together as I’ve shown here and you can create a Christmas Card, food packaging for gingerbread cookie mix, a recipe card or a hundred other creations!

Plain Gingerbread men, cookies, gingerbread houses and moreThere are decorated pieces and pieces that are plain gingerbread for you to create your own unique snowmen, houses and signs.  If only I could figure out a way to include the scent of baking gingersnaps in the kit!!!!  Then you’d be instantly transported back to your childhood and right into the heart of the spirit of Christmas (just like I was as I created them).

Additional kits that are coming are a paper pack with 14 papers to compliment all of the sets, a gingerbread alphabet, A gingerbread cottage candy decorations add on kit, a gingerbread cooking add on kit with really fun mixing bowls, measuring spoons etc., the plain gingerbread three dimensional house box and the decorated gingerbread house box that I previewed earlier this week (both houses debut on Friday).

If you see anything that I’m missing that would be helpful to you in your creation process, please be sure to leave me a comment.  This kit was created in direct response to my questions to the ladies on the message boards at DAISIE COMPANY, thank you ladies for providing me with so many wonderful and inventive ideas!

Audrey Jeanne Roberts