New Website

Well haven't I been foolish and forget to redirect to my newest website. It isnt' exactly new, but it's much newer than this one. So if you haven't made it over to Desjardin Digital Designs, go check it out.

I'm soooo bad . .

It has been sooo long since I've posted. I know, I know. Bad, bad blogger! I have been so busy lately. I have begun selling now at OScraps, since the closing of Addicted to Digital. I've been working like a mad-woman (yes, I AM a mad-woman, but that's beside the point). I have a new website right here ---> Desjardin Digital Designs <--- and it seems to be going well. I get to get up on my high-horse now whenever I want and put it in article form. Plus I get to share some samples and expound my vast wisdom. Alas there is no store, but that's okay, 'cause there are only so many hours in a day ya know and right now I'm trying to design like crazy. Anyway thought I'd pop over here and letcha know what's up. I suspect I'll be moving my blog over to my new site, though I don't know when I'll find the time to do that. I'll let everyone know when it happens!

Feeling nostalgic

I feel a little disheartened lately. I can't help but remember when I first started digi-scrapping and stumbled onto the little digi-community that consisted of one fantastic website and a couple of yahoo groups. There was no advertising, because nobody sold anything. We just learned to do it all on our own, traded elements and ideas and helped each other out. This is how I learned to design. Until I started selling my designs, I made 95 percent of my own products - the brads, ribbons, papers, buckles, photo corners, envelopes, pockets, paper clips, EVERYTHING.

Then the whole thing exploded and everyone went completely NUTS. Suddenly the things we had been teaching each other became trade secrets and helping each other out developed strings. I understand this is business and as much as anyone, I'd like to have a successful business of this someday. But I'm a little emotionally exhausted from the change of attitude in this business. Forums regularly turn into snarkiness and sometimes outright flaming. We are regularly bombarded by advertisting - mine included. What is lost in the mix is the ability to be nice, helpful and tolerant of each other. Of course, this doesn't include everyone, but it is what gets the most attention. It's human nature to click the controversial thread just to see what all the fuss is about. Frankly, I get exhausted just reading through the most popular forums just because of all the unnecessary DRAMA that gets played out on a regular basis. Why do I keep going back - well I guess because I want to be in the in-crowd too. I want to know what's going on, what the trends are, what the latest discussion is about. But the DRAMA -- that I could do without. I have enough DRAMA from my 4 and 2 year old daily to last me a lifetime.

Yeah, yeah I know - if I don't like the drama then don't click the thread. But we all know completely innocent threads get hi-jacked and morph into petty bickering and hurt feelings. Many, many times, I've clicked a posting with a very interesting title, then begin reading the posts, nodding my head, absorbing the helpful info only to be suddenly slammed with an ensuing argument. And often I find myself sucked into it, leading me places I don't want to go. I usually just close out the window, take a deep breath and try to cool my boiling blood. I will say it makes me a little more hesitant to click on some interesting looking threads. In my head, I'm thinking okay, what NOW!

The truth is that we're losing whatever "community" we once had. There is no going back, because like I said the business-side has exploded and that changed the course of matters entirely. But people are treating this business as though it were world hunger or nuclear weapons. This is just scrapbooking people. I love doing this as much as most people and even more than some. To borrow a phrase, I'm a dyed in the wool digi-scrapper. I want to succeed as a designer and have fun and make money and be taken seriously. But you know what - a little perspective is a fabulous thing.

Retro Funk

I've been aiming to do a boys' kit for sooooo long and now I finally did it. This is really grungy with lots of dimension and texture. I think it's gonna be among my faves. I have two little boys so every time I do a boys kit it feels like I'm doing it for them. I really like this one. Keep an eye out for it's impending release.

I'm Back . . .

From a very long weekend in Atlanta. It's so nice sometimes to go to a hotel, where you don't have to clean, do laundry or even make the bed. We had fun attending a couple of parties where I got to dress up a little. We also visited the Atlanta Children's Museum and the Georgia Zoo. Of course, it wouldn't be complete without some little flub - I had a minor fender bender in a parking lot. No one was hurt - unless you count my own dignity. Still feeling like a fool. I'm glad to be home where things are returning to normal. We put up the Christmas tree and hung the stockings last night. Starting to feel like Christmas 'round here. Now the house is finally clean too - after a morning of laundry, dishes, cleaning floors and bathrooms. Like I said things are returning to normal.

Christmas Wish if Finally Here.

Whoo Hoo! My latest kit, Christmas Wish is finally here and just in time for Black Friday, where it's 40% off at DigiScrapDivas. (Regular price is $5.25.) This is a beautiful page kit, complete with: 10 patterened, distressed papers 5 distressed solids; 1 row of stitching ; 1 string of beads; 3 holiday charms; 3 satin bows; 1 fabric Santa hat; 1 fabric holly decoration; 1 fabric gift decoration; 6 painted chipboard word tiles; 3 blank painted chipboard tiles; 2 metallic bookplates in silver and gold; 4 painted chipboard photo corners; 2 painted chipboard stars; 2 glitter swirls; 1 paper index tab; 2 paper journaling strips; 1 paper tag; 1 tag tie; 1 set of fasteners, silver and gold brads, staple and jump ring.

Scroll down for details on a free winter kit, Winter Wonder for customers who purchase $5 of my products and for a freebie Sparkle Alpha that coordinates with my Groovy Little Christmas kit available at Addicted to Digital. This kit is marked down half off for Black Friday - that's just $2.50.