New Blog Summer Themes

I've created some new seasonal blog themes that offer a lovely selection of whimsical elements! With the summer heat now in full swing around here I'm just itching to get away to cooler locals and both of these offer the perfect summer solutions!

Treasures of the Sea offers an enchanting seaside escape with sand, shells, and waves it's a delightful seafaring ensemble and even includes a whimsical mermaid to watch over your summer blog posts.

Another of my favorite escapes from the summer heat is an enchanting Walk in the Woods and that's the title of my second new theme. Escape into cooler temps under a canopy of singing birds, shaded paths, and delicate mushrooms with this tranquil nature based theme.

You can view all of the blog goodies associated with these themes by clicking on the images or titles above.

Enjoy~

Effervescent ~ new blog theme

I'm excited to share a new blog theme with you titled Effervescent...


This was one of those themes where the idea just 'popped' into my head and I love when that happens. It includes a collection of bubbly images with fairies, butterflies and my favorite flower ~ Hydrangeas.

This theme also offers a new intro because I'm currently working on a new tutorial covering how to use the "Template Designer" and the "Simple" template with my themes. It's a tough tutorial to write, I'm currently at 7 hours of work and over 35 images but I think it's important to work with these new aspects of Blogger. I'll make the announcement once the tutorial is completed and I hope it will be helpful to all of you who want to give these Blogger features a try.

So hope on over to view this newest theme and all the goodies that come with it ~ simply click on the title or images above and as always...

Enjoy~

Win a Custom Blog Theme!

One of my wonderful blog friends is hosting a fabulous 3rd Anniversary Giveaway where each week she'll add a new prize to the pot. To kick things off she's starting with gifting one of my Custom Blog Themes to one lucky winner!

So stop on over to Craftin'Granny's Card Shack and enter for a chance to win ~ then stay for all the wonderful creativity and postings!

Enjoy~

Suburban Retreat's Giveway - custom PrL blog theme

I wanted to let you all know there's an amazing giveaway going on over at Suburban Retreat. The lovely hostess Lisa has decided to giveaway one of my custom blog themes to one lucky winner ~ I know... pretty amazing, right?!

Lisa's been away from blogging for quite a while and thought it would be a great way to reenter blogland. So stop on by Suburban Retreat, give a warm 'welcome back' to Lisa, and enter for a chance to win one of my custom blog themes. The giveaway will run until February 14th so good luck everyone!

Enjoy~

Seasonal Goodies

I was just updating the seasonal goodies section on my sidebar when I realized that Valentines Day must be one of my favorite days of year since to my surprise I have more blog themes for this day than any other seasonal celebration! Isn't it funny when we discover something about ourselves we didn't realize before?! I guess it shouldn't be a surprise though since I truly am one of those "can't we all just get along" types when you get right down to it.

Anyhoo... there are loads of lovely goodies to spruce up your blog for this time of year, from a selection of Valentines Day goodies to a smattering of themes to warm your heart during the colder winter months, so have a visit and peruse the offerings ~ you can find them scattered throughout the Special Occasions/Seasonal Themes or Complete Alpha Listing Themes sections or just follow the quick links listed on my sidebar under the Seasonal Goodies section title.

For those of you looking for just a simple background there's always something fabulous to be found in the Just Backgrounds section.

And for those button loving souls out there, I've got a wonderful selection of seasonal buttons just perfect for adding a little love to any corner of a blog ~ you can find them by visiting the Button Elements section of my blog.

Enjoy~

Gypsy Dreams Blog Party

Well the day has finally arrived and I'm simply delighted to be a part of this fabulous event! It's the first annual Gypsy Dreams Blog Party and what fun it will be! I'm really looking forward to visiting all of the party-goer's blogs and share some of my own hidden gypsy dreams, so off we go~

From a very early age I was a magical spirit ~ I loved dressing up and letting my imagination whisk me away to enchanting places and when it came to dress up and fun, there's wasn't much I wouldn't try.

But you see, I've been a gypsy at heart since I was very young ~ wearing my scarves and beads I would sit and tell fortunes in my grandparent's living room.

Although time passed and my life has moved away from my gypsy dress up days, my heart is still filled with the dreams of creating magic and now I share that spirit of creation with all of you through my graphic designs.

So in honor of this wonderful new event, of which I'm sure there will be many more for years to come, I feel it's only fitting to have a spectacular giveaway and what's more fitting for a fabulous blog event than to share with you...

´*•.¸(´*•.¸♥¸.•*´)¸.•*´
♥•.*a free Custom Blog Theme**.•♥
¸.•*´(¸.•*´♥´*•.¸)´*•.¸

That's right! One lucky winner will be selected to receive an original one-of-a-kind custom order blog theme created just for you!

But wait ~ there's a catch... the giveaway is ONLY open to those who are participating in this Gypsy Dreams Blog Party! So for all of you fabulous gypsies out there who've signed up to participate and are listed on the sidebar of the Gypsy Dreams blog ~ leave a comment and you'll be entered to win.

And... if you're selected as the winner but already have one of my original custom blog themes, then you'll receive a gift certificate for the value of a theme ~ that's $65, to be spent on anything in my Etsy shop!

The giveaway will close at midnight on the night of the full moon (September 12th✻) and I will announce the winner in a follow up post here on my blog.

(✻Update: Gee this weekend flew by and I've only had a chance to visit a handful of party-goers so I'm extending the deadline for my own giveaway to Saturday, September 17th at midnight EST. Hopefully that will give us all more time to get around and follow up with a posting of the winner on Sunday.)

So good luck to all you lovely gypsies out there, thanks so much to Celia for hosting this wonderful event, and for all of you who are participating ~ I'm looking forward to jumping in my gypsy wagon and meeting up with you this weekend~

Enjoy!

A Backup to the Backup

I wanted to write a followup to my earlier posting about backing up our blogs by saving the template. While this will save a copy of the general info & layout, it will not save a copy of your blog theme ~ in other words your banner and background images will not be saved.

Personally I keep copies of all of my customer's blog themes so that if they run into issues their images are safe but I know alot of custom graphic designers do not. Soooooo, if you love your blog theme and don't have a backup, here's how to save them....

Begin on your own blog and right click on the image you want to save,
Depending upon which browser you're using (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, Safari) a small pop-up menu will open up listing a number of choices.

You'll want to look for something that refers to viewing the background image, here's what it looks like using Firefox on my own blog...

I've highlighted the pop-up box in pink

Scroll down and click on the option that refers to viewing the image, this will bring up the image in a window all by itself such as in the example below...Next scroll over the image until you see a magnifying glass and the click ~ this will enlarge it to it's fullest version.

Next, right click on the image once again and now select the "Save Image As" option (again, this may be worded differently depending upon the browser you're using)...

From there, select to save the image in an easy to remember location on your computer.

That's it!

Remember that each browser can behave a bit differently and offer different options so if you don't see the exact choices, try to one that best relates to the situation and what you're trying to accomplish.

I can tell you that I originally tried this in Chrome but found that it didn't offer a "view image" option so I ended up using Firefox. Using multiple browsers isn't a bad idea either; it offers options for web browsing, so don't be afraid to try something new.

Enjoy~

Daydream Believer - new blog theme

In the mood for something fun & fresh? Here's a new theme to capture the teenage heart in us all! Whether you love the playful whimsy or are just young at heart there's loads of options and freebies with this new set...

Daydream Believer

I went with a doodle kind of feel for this theme and with four backgrounds in each size, 2 and 3 column, you can really mix things up. There are even a few fun badges for some added splashes of whimsy and one you can personalize by adding your own photo. I had loads of fun creating this new theme and I hope it brings you even more fun on your own blog!

To view all the elements simply click the title or image above.

Enjoy~

Seasonal & Festive Themes ~ spotlight

With a change in season or an approaching festive event it's always a great time to switch out your blog theme for something fresh and fun! So here's a little spotlight on some of my existing blog themes where you're sure to find something that fits your mood.

In honor of today's festivities and in case you're planning a gala nuptials event of your own there's~

Cherish

Whether you're an expecting Mom or a seasoned pro, celebrating the approaching US Mother's Day is whimsical and enchanting with~

Bundle of Joy

or

Tattered Garden

And it's never too late to jump into the joys of celebrating Spring with~

Whispers of Spring

Vintage Spring

Le Jardin

and

Sunshine Garden

Of course there are loads of other themes from my repertoire that fall into these categories as well, and you can always find them residing under Complete Themes or the Special Occasion Themes sections.

And if you're in the mood for something simple there are loads of freebie backgrounds to be found in the Just Backgrounds section, like this charming Songbird background~

I always working on adding more selections to my selection of blog themes so be sure to check back for more festive fun in the near future and as always...

Enjoy~

New Backgrounds & New Theme ~ Emporium

As promised I have a few new goodies to offer up for your blogging pleasure...

The first is this eclectic new blog theme appropriately titled Emporium...

This theme features 2 and 3 column backgrounds, 2 sets of sidebar tags in red and beige so there's loads of room to mix and match and a whimsical banner just perfect for personalizing. Simple click here or on the image above to view the entire set.

Next, I've been working on a whole new selection of blog backgrounds which can now be found in the "Just Backgrounds" section of my site...

These backgrounds are perfect for those who prefer a few less frills & elements and they come in a variety of colors and styles. To view the new selection simply visit the "Just Backgrounds" section or click here and as always...

Enjoy!

Recent Customer Shout Outs♥

I've had the pleasure of working on some wonderful projects lately and just had to give a little shout out to each. I'm always so delighted when I can help bring someones inner vision to life and working with fantastic customers makes that journey even better. So here is a glimpse of some of my recent projects and a special thanks to each of you who help me continue doing what I love most ~ namasté♥

for Paula of A Soulful Journey

I had the pleasure of creating a set of images including a large promotional piece, business card, and mailing labels. Paula requested her existing shop banner and avatar be the source of inspiration for the overall design.

for Dorothy of Daffodil Dreams

Dorothy chose to have me create a custom theme and requested a daffodil motif for obvious reasons. She was also experiencing some technical issues with her blog and elected to have me fix the layout with my Helping Hands add-on ~ I'm delighted to say after the removal of some pesky advertising all was good as new.

for Ilse of Roses of Yesteryear

Ilse originally selected my Rose Garden blog theme and then took it to the next level with a coordinating shop set and other blogging elements. We altered the look slightly with a new decorative center oval which added a one-of-a-kind quality to the set.

Rachael of Gypsy Angel Row Reviews

With this project Rachael's business theme was for book reviews. We created a series of custom images including the sweet little butterfly ratings system and coordinating Twitter background, all based off my Lavender Dreams theme.

for Marlene of Scribbles and Scrabbles

Marlene first inquired whether an existing blog theme could be made into an Etsy shop image set. With that done she decided to request a custom product label to coordinate.

for Kimberly of Stampin' Enchantments

Kimberly was looking for an all inclusive online business image, one which could be used for her blog, Twitter and Facebook accounts and so we worked together to create these modified images for her new business.

Thank you again to all of my customers, past and present, you are all such treasured souls in this world ~

New Valentine's Theme - Love's Elixir

With Valentine's Day a little over a month away I thought this might be a good time to add a new theme to the existing collection of festive heartware I designed last year and so I've created...

Love's Elixir

I have at least one more new V-Day theme I'm still working on and hope to have that completed a little later this week so do check back if you have a chance. And don't miss the other Valentine's Day selections I created in the Seasonal section of my backgrounds list.

Enjoy!