Valentine's Day Sig Tag.

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone. Here is a siggie that I would like to share with all those who like such things. It was made from one of the graphics that I created for my 'Love Is In the Air' Valentine's scrap kit, which can be found in one of my earlier posts, for those who would like to have that. The sig tag graphic was mouse drawn by me. You may add a name if you like, but please do not recolor, or claim as your own. A link back to this blog would be nice, but is not a requirement of use.

New Alpha, Pearls for Michelle

My granddaughter, Michelle, will be turning 18 in June, and since her birthstone is a pearl, I decided to make this alpha for her; her favorite color is (or was -- with a teenager, these things can change from day to day! *laughs*) purple, so with the help of Color Schemer, I cobbled up a theme on that and complimentary colors.

The idea for the alpha came from Shawna's Wire Word Tutorial at Scrap Stuff with PSP. She has some of the coolest tutorials I have seen, both for Paint Shop Pro and for Photoshop. My only disappointment is that she hasn't posted any new tutorials in a while, but I keep hoping to visit some day soon and find some new things to amaze me!

As said in the post below, the usual rules apply, so I won't repeat them because that gets SO boring... but if you need a reminder, my TOS is in the right hand column just a bit down the page. The preview of the alpha and the 4shared link are below. I hope you enjoy the alpha!

Pearls for Michelle by Blue Nile Scrap and Alpha Design

Love Beads Alpha

Hello, all! I know it's been a while since I have posted anything new, but I have been going through something of a creative drought, not only with my scraps and my alphas but with my writing as well. Hopefully my new alpha, Love Beads, will cause the drought to dry up, so to speak, and I can get back to all of my creative endeavors with a new spark of inspiration!

Love Beads is intended to be a Valentine alpha, but you may use it for other projects if you wish. The usual rules apply... do not tear the alpha apart, use it in combination with other alphas, claim it as your own creation, blah, blah, blah...

If you are only collecting, I hope you enjoy the alpha, but if you are using it on a web page, a link to my blog is a requirement of use. You may use it for sig tags or extras, but when sharing those, I would be most grateful if you would share my link so others can visit, and I can increase traffic to the blog. Preview of the alpha is below, as is the link to the zip on 4shared. Enjoy!

Love Beads Alpha by Blue Nile Scrap Design and Alphas

Got involved with this new site called CrowdTap. It's a place where you can express your opinion about a number of different products of your choice, and you have the opportunity to win cool prizes, like gift cards for Amazon.com and other online stores. So far, I've won three Amazon.com gift cards, which keeps me in books, and a gift card for Sephora. I'm also participating in a sampling opportunity for Truvia, where you get some free samples of the product, and them make a report on what you did with them. Not sure that there is a prize involved with this, but you do get the free samples of the product.

The Crowdtap program is fairly uninvolved and doesn't require a lot of lengthy surveys, which is what I like about it, and of course, winning prizes is always fun! Try it for yourself; I'm sure you'll like it!

 

Halloween Song Poll

With Halloween a little over two weeks away, I thought I'd add a little haunting fun to the blog by hosting a little Halloween poll to it. If you are unfamiliar with any of the songs in the poll by name, you can listen to a sample of it by going here. All of the ones with the exception of 'The Monster Mash', which I am sure everyone knows is there for you to listen to in advance of making your selection. There will be a small gift for those of you who select the most popular song in the poll, so vote and have fun!

What do you consider the anthem of Halloween songs?

Congress Behaving Badly

I try not to be extremely political as a rule, because along with religion, politics is one of those subjects that can cause folks to lose their religion; however, what is going on with the members of the United States Congress and the shutdown of the government calls for Americans to be outspoken in their opinions of this outrage. Gallup polls show that so many Americans are angry with this situation that they are signing petitions for reduced term limits and severe pay cuts for Congress. I am one of those people. While more than 58 percent of Americans live below poverty levels, members of Congress have an average salary of $174,000 per year, and if you count the $110,000 in taxpayer-funded fringe benefits Members receive (including plush retirement plans, paid time off, and contributions to Social Security and Medicare taxes), they’re earning close to $285,000 per year. I don't know about you, but I would certainly like to be able to live within those standards!

If you are an American voter who is also tired of Congress behaving badly, here are a couple of ways to express your opinion. There is a petition to impose stricter term limits on members of congress here: US Term Limits and one to impose a reduction of pay and benefits for them here: Pay Cuts for Congress. It's time to remind them that they work for us, and we have the right to censure them when they do not. I'm sure our forefathers would be very much disappointed in the fact that what they saw as a public service has become a way for some folks to get rich. Let's get Congress back to the way they intended it to be!

Are YOU a Pinner?

Help! I've fallen into Pinterest and I can't get up! LOL! Seriously, I am completely obsessed with my various boards and I can't stop pinning. I have found this to be a wonderful way to share my very eclectic interests with others, and I know I am not the only one. If you are a pinner and would like to share you boards with me, you can find me at Lady's Boards.  I'll be happy to return your visit... I'm sure we will have something in common!