Winner selected for Elle's Studio giveaway

I have a winner to reveal today, randomly selected by my daughter.

Congrats Nora! Please e-mail me your shipping address and I will have Elle mail your prize to you. You can reach me at Washingtontransplant (at) gmail (dot com.

One Little Word 2015: Step

Happy Monday! First of all, I wanted to say thank you so much for all of the awesome congratulations on Saturday. Y'all are so darn sweet! I was quite surprised when Elle from Elle Studio contacted me last fall about joining her Design Team for 2015. Shocked I tell ya. I love Elle's Studio products, and being asked to design for this team is a real dream come true. I was excited to finally be able to tell everyone my news after keeping a secret for so long...and such a big secret.

Today I am sharing the word I selected for One Little Word and discussing why I chose it. Last year, I chose the word "Flourish" and I do feel like in many ways this word and focusing on it, really helped me reach some of my goals. One of my goals was to get on a manufacturer design team. The other was to start regular intentional exercise. I was asked to be on Elle's Design Team and I successfully lost and kept off 20 pounds. I still have a ways to go on the weight loss front, but it is a great start!

For those of you that follow me on Instagram, the fact that I have chosen "Step" as my word for 2015 should not come as a surprise. Honestly, the word chose me. Wherever I looked for words this year, I was continually faced with this selection. I am a Fitbit addict and that word fits perfectly for my goal of moving more and living a healthier lifestyle. I love that the word step can be interpreted so many different ways.  These are my goals for 2015

1. Literally take more steps.  I will walk at least 365000 steps in 2015. This will be documented via Instagram with #365000in2015. Please fell free to join me on this journey, and use and share the hashtag as well.
2. Take steps (series of arrangements) to grown my business.
3. Step in and be more present and in the moment
4. Step out of my comfort zone. This includes; taking fitness classes at my gym (yes I joined a gym,) being more social in person and get to know more people in my community (versus just online.) Trying a new hobby (knitting.)
5. Step on It. Increase my fitness activity level. Continue walking and learn to run. Sign up for and try Zumba classes and Spinning.
6. Keep step. Continue with my daily chores and work around the house, but do so in a more organized fashion. I have streamlined my cleaning and organizing with daily and weekly chores, as well as coming up with a zone cleaning schedule. I love being organized and this is really allowing me to whiz through my responsibilities at home.

What did you pick for your word this year? Have you decided yet? I would love to hear your thoughts and your word selection? I will be back tomorrow with some Project Life pages to share from 2014. I am currently only weeks away from completing my album for 2014. I plan on sharing all of the remaining weeks on the blog this month with multiple posts.

Until next time...

Happy Scrappin'

xoxox

Toni

Design Team Announcement and a Giveaway!

I am beyond excited to share some news with y'all today...I am on the Elle's Studio Design Team for 2015!!! I could not be more thrilled or feel more honored to be chosen amongst such a talented group of ladies. I love Elle's Studio products and am having a blast already working with Elle's Studio.

Here is the list of ladies I am working with with links to all of their blogs. :-)

Alissa Fast http://alissafast.typepad.com/

Daniela Dobson http://danieladobson.blogspot.com/

Danielle Flanders http://danielleflanders.blogspot.com/

Jennifer Chapin http://jenchapin.blogspot.com/

Jessy Christopher http://www.jcchris.com/

Jill Sprott http://wordplaywordwork.blogspot.com/

Kay Rogers http://rogerskk.typepad.com/

Lisa Dickinson http://lisadickinson.typepad.com/

Meghann Andrew http://www.meghannandrew.com/

Melissa Mann http://melissamann.typepad.com/

Michelle Wedertz http://michellewedertz.blogspot.com/

Pam Llaguno http://organizedbypam.com/blog/

Rachel Izakowicz http://seizethestamp.com/blog/

Stephanie Buice http://mybitsofsunshine.blogspot.com/

Toni From http://tonifromdesigns.blogspot.com/

We also have four blog contributors, and I am just thrilled that Paige Evans has joined Elle's Studio as well!

Here is a sneak of one of my projects that will be live on the Elle's Studio Design Team Gallery on January 10th. Did you know that on the 10th of every month that Elle's Studio has exclusive kits and extras that are available for purchase? That is also when the Design Team Gallery goes live every month. While I can't show you the January kit yet, I CAN tell you that it is adorable and that you are definitely going to want it (plus the extras too!) You can purchase monthly kits and other fabulous Elle's products everyday at http://shopellesstudio.com

Here is a sneak of a project I made using the January monthly kit and extras by Elle's Studio.

Guess what? Not only do I have some great news to share, but I also have a giveaway. Elle has generously donated my four favorite items currently in the shop for a giveaway to one of my blog readers. Want to see what you could win?

All you have to do to be eligible is to leave a comment below. I will draw randomly choose a winner and post the results on January 7th. Good luck!

Until next time...

Happy Scrappin'

xoxox

Toni

Pocket Pages using Toni From Designs Flair

Happy Monday! Can you believe that Christmas is in only three days? The end of the year is just flying by, and there is so much to document. Jen Boumis is up on the blog today, showing you how she used the Christmas Icons flair set to embellish her adorable pages full of December memories in the snow. Take it away Jen...

The day before Thanksgiving brought a major snow storm to our area. My husband was thrilled because he was able to use his brand new snow blower for the first time. The kids were thrilled because, well, they are kids. I was thrilled for perfect scrap material! I created the two pages here for my December album using a bunch of on-hand supplies and Toni From Designs Christmas Icons flair.

I love the wood grain background of this flair set, paired with white silhouettes:

Here's a closer look at my pages and the flair details.

You can find this flair and so many other great sets in Toni's Etsy Shop! Use code JENBOUMIS for 10% off any order of $10 or more.

I hope you all loved seeing Jen's adorable pages. It makes me almost wish we had a lot of snow in North Carolina...almost. :-)

Until next time friends,

Happy Scrappin'

xoxox

Toni

December Memories using Elle's Studio

Hello. Happy Tuesday! I have a new blog post up on the Paper Issues blog this morning, using some fun goodies from Elle's Studio.

I am working on finishing up my December Memories album from 2012. Yup, you read that right, I am working on my mini album from 2012.  We bought a new home and moved in December of that year, so I am just now finally documenting that season. That month was absolutely crazy and I did not have time to take photos every single day, but I did manage to document quite a bit, including; packing and moving into our new home, holiday preparations, and some of our family coming to visit us from Washington State. Considering we didn't close on our home until December 10th, I am considering that a huge win for 2012!

Regardless, of when you work on your holiday projects, I hope this post inspires you to dive in and have some fun during the holidays, and document what you are doing. Remember any kind of documentation is better than none. You don't have to make a December Daily album or take a photo every single day. Remembering to take some pictures and journaling about anything you do that month is more than enough!

This photo of Elliot and Isabelle is so darn sweet. When I see this photo 

I am reminded that this was the last year that Isabelle still 

believed in Santa Clause 

My mother and Isabelle love crafting together.

Games are a big part of family life, as well as taking naps. :-)

Morning messy, head cuddles are just simply the best!

For this mini album, I used many elements from the Elle's Studio Good Cheer Collection. The fun colors, stamps, wood veneer, and adorable bits and pieces has sure made putting these pages together a snap and a lot of fun as well. I also incorporated some sequins from the shop, a few elements from my stash, an some fun machine stitching as well.

If you have any holiday shopping to do, don't forget to use code "TONI" at checkout and you can save 20% off your entire order!!!

I hope y'all have a blessed and safe holiday season,

xoxox

Toni

Mischief Under the Tree: A Layout using Toni From Designs Flair

Happy Monday! Kathy Skou is here today to share a gorgeous and holiday-filled layout with all of you. I just know you will love it! Take it away Kathy.....

Hi Everyone, it's Kathy today with a layout I created using the new Snarky Christmas Flair Set.  

This set is perfect for these pictures of my "naughty" kitty Daisy playing under the Christmas Tree. 

Here's a peek at the entire set, I'm sure just about everyone can relate to these!

And here are some close-ups...

 Make sure to stop by Toni's Etsy Shop to pick up Snarky Christmas and the other Holiday sets. Use code KATHYSKOU and receive 10% off your order of $10 or more!  That's it for me today, I hope you all have a wonderful and safe holiday season!

I hope you enjoyed seeing Kathy's layout today. It is so adorable and such a perfect subject for the naughty Christmas flair set. I will be back tomorrow with some pages to share from my 2012 Christmas Memories book with all of you. I am also very overdue to share some December Daily pictures from this year. Those will also be shared on the blog later this week. I hope to see you back here and until then...

Happy Scrappin'

xoxox

Toni

Welcoming Brenda Smith to the Creative Team

I have the pleasure of introducing you to the talented Brenda Smith today. She is the newest member of my Creative Team. Brenda has a very clean style with layered bits and pieces and stellar photography. I love how she groups embellishments and is a whiz with white space. I am thankful that she is here today to share an amazing layout with all of you.

Here is Brenda's post:

I have some more exciting news today.  Toni From Designs has asked me to be on her design team!!!  Toni has the most fabulous flair in her Etsy shop.  When I saw these, I could not wait to create something with them.

Christmas Icons Flair Set

Supply list: Flair - Toni From Designs | News Print Paper - DIY Shop | corrugated paper - paper studio | bag+gold doily+tag+dots - Studio Calico | gold word sticker + hearts - Heidi Swapp
 sequins-paper issues swag bag

See that reindeer!  Sigh...he totally has my heart.

Brenda

Thanks of sharing your work with us today Brenda, welcome to the team!

xoxox

Toni