My Memories Suite - A Software Giveaway!

A couple of weeks ago, right in the middle of Hurricane Irene, I got an email from Liz Gardner at My Memories - a Digital Scrapbooking website.  She'd seen my Blog, and wanted to send me a complimentary copy of their software to review.

Always a knock-over for Free Software...

When you think about it, all Bloggers make Digital Scrap Books.  We select information bits and photos that are of interest to us, write about it, edit everything a couple of times, and publish a Blog Post.

Memory Makers does something similar for folks who don't have a Blog, or who don't have or want to use Photoshop or Photoshop Elements to lay out their Scrapbooks.  Memory Makers' Digital Scrapbook templates already have it laid out...all you do is pop in the photos and text.  It's easy, and not expensive.

So, I figured I had nothing to lose - and I love new toys!  After downloading my complimentary software, I started rummaging through it to see if I should just toss it - or not.  Well.  This is a pretty amazing package for the price they are charging at full retail - about $40.00.  It's easy to install, and here's how it works:

When you open My Memories from your desktop, you're given the option to create a custom book, or you can use one of their free templates - I chose one of their templates to begin with:

This My Memories template is called "A Day in The Life", and has its own graphic design color style, and page layout.  As I quickly learned, you don't have to keep that complete template...you can customize all their templates.

Once I had selected this template, it presented me with a "suggested" Book - with multiple pages, each one already laid out and waiting for me to just upload photos and write my text.  This is what it looked like straight out of the box:

This is the first page...obviously screaming for your own personal touch.

These are my pages after just a few minutes of messing around:

You can see that I deleted some of the pre-packaged elements, and added new ones.

I couldn't resist customizing one of their standard frames with my Coral repeat...I'll show you how to do this in the next post.  I also completely removed their Polka Dot background and put in solid color - two quick clicks!

This is a screen shot of the next page...you can see all the options on the right-hand side of the page.

There were several more pages available in their "package", but once I had played around with these pages, I was comfortable moving on to putting the program through the hoops.  What I discovered was a pretty powerful little tool.

Even if you aren't a Scrap Booker, any Artist or Designer has tons of digital files - photos, custom designs, and things we've snipped off the internet that could use Digital Organizing. This software can lay all that out Really Fast - into one cohesive Journal - without having to build Text Boxes, Layers, and Backgrounds.  It's all already there.  Just click.

It's easy to add Video, Music, or Audio - it's all already programmed into the software  - just click the button, and off you go!

If you like, you can also upload your project to Memory Makers, have it printed and bound starting at $10.00, plus shipping.  A custom library to flip through!  Liz tells me that it takes about 5 business days to print up, and then a couple of days or so for shipping.  I'm envisioning my own shelf of books...

For previewing their software, My Memories gave me one free copy of their software to give away -  

Here's how to enter to win the free copy of Memory Makers Suite V2:

~ Leave me a comment - be sure that your email address is on whichever account you use to comment with so that I can contact you.  Be sure to visit the  My Memories Website and let me know what you think about their software.  I'll pick a winner out of the comments and announce the winner on Monday!

~ Also, My Memories gave me a coupon code for any of my readers to get $10.00 off the purchase of the My Memories Software, PLUS $10.00 off anything purchased at the My Memories Store - $20.00 total, back in your pocket!

Copy and paste this code at checkout to get the discount:  STMMMS97941.

That's it!  Next post, I'll show you how to use your own artwork to create frames and gadgets to add to your My Memories Digital Scrapbook/Journal.

Mountains, Clouds, Blogs & Being Passionate

We are famous for "Blasting Off" for a road trip on the absolute spur of the moment.  So when we got up on July 4th, stuck our arms outside to test the temperature (Hot) and humidity (Muggy) and considered that we had no coherent plan (again) for the July 4th Holiday, it was a lock that a Road Trip was imminent.  As in, immediately.

We went to the Blue Ridge Parkway last year and were delighted to find that even in August, the temperatures were lovely.  Not to mention that the view from the Pisgah Inn, on top of Mt. Pisgah, can be awe-inspiring when the clouds move in.   A quick call confirmed that they had two rooms left, and that there was a cold front coming.  After arranging for the room on the top floor (of course!) we roared out of town.


Upon arrival, we stepped out of the car to mist, clouds, and 64 degrees Fahrenheit, a solid 30 degrees cooler than the Coast!!  First thing I did was flee to the gift shop to purchase a sweatshirt.  With the forest still dripping after the storm, we slid through the foliage just to get wet and be chilly.  So refreshing, so lush! After a lovely dinner overlooking the valley below, we watched fireworks that were far, far below, then drifted to sleep under two blankets...


Next morning, this was the view from our balcony.  (I decided to do my photographs in Black and White for once)

Although the sun was brilliant, the clouds were gathering across the way.

Looking the other way, there was a stately old tree skeleton decorating the Horizon...

Two Winters ago, the temperatures were so frigid on the mountain that many trees simply died of the cold.  We were told that when the workers arrived to open the hotel for the Spring Season, it took over a week to clear all the fallen trees off the Parkway so that they could get to the hotel.  The forest is dotted now with these ghostly skeletons, which have a beauty of their own.

 After a vigorous morning of hiking for my husband, reading for me, and lunch, the storm clouds began to move in swiftly:

This is what I love about being on top of the mountain - you are literally residing in the clouds.

Since our balcony looked South, I was protected from the wind and rain, and could watch the storm in cozy safety.

You can see the swirl of the updrafts...

 The storm took its time, which was fine with me since I had a ringside seat to watch something that few people ever get to see - I could have watched all afternoon.

And then,  the storm gathered her skirts and marched off to the South:

You can see the steam already beginning to rise from the Valley in certain spots...

 I wanted to walk through the remnants of the clouds and feel the cool air, so I set off with my camera - and found so many happy plants, and  so many happy critters drinking down the raindrops!

After seeing all of this, walking in the clouds, and sleeping in the mists, I can hardly wait to get back in the studio and create something!

I spent my time on the mountain top resting, reading, and remembering how to See what I am looking at - a skill I quickly forget when Life intervenes.  But, this time, I was helped out not only by our trip to the Mountains, I was also inspired by a new Blog I found quite by accident while searching the internet for postings by Japanese writers.  I found Keiko, a story- teller from Nara, Japan.  And One Time One Meeting is her blog. 

Her inner eye is wide open and engaged, and her readers are treated to lovely photography which she uses to support her history and cultural lessons - which she is Passionate about.  My shoulders always come down from their perch up around my ears when I read her posts.  And I stop being guilty about being Passionate.  Because if one isn't, then why bother?

Now, I'm off to create something!     

Beach Cottage Re-Do - Minus Bin Laden!

Those of you who know me understand that I am usually in bed by 9:30, 10:00 at the latest.  Last night, I was up a tad later, finishing my overdue Blog Post.  I never even considered checking the news when I signed off (who wants to go to sleep on that stuff??),  and although I missed the excitement of the announcement about Bin Laden's Smack Down, I'm glad I didn't hear until this morning.  I would have stayed up until midnight, and I guess my thinking is this:  that idiot kept me up enough already.

Bin Laden has been planted on the bottom of the sea - where he will be finished off in tiny bites by creatures with sharp little teeth.  What a great finish to a real Scum Bag.


Thank you, Seals and Special Forces; Thank you, President Obama.  Now I can finish my Beach Cottage Re-do with a lighter heart.

So, to turn to the job at hand, today I got HUGE progress in the form of cabinets roughed in, bathroom with studs for walls, and finally picked my paint colours. 


Here's the kitchen today:

Monday night.  Looking more like cabinets.

And, here is the new refrigerator home and custom pantry tonight:

Just a little leveling to do - the fridge goes where the tools have been stacked.

Turns out that within 12 feet, the floor slants down 3 inches!  But this crew knows how to handle it.  My granite will be supremely level.  Here's a shot of that:

Kashmire Gold - it should pick up the floor color AND the stainless range.

This slab came in a little more orange than I wanted, but I think it will work beautifully - I had to go to a new shade of paint for the Bead Board walls, but it's gonna be beautiful!  I'm so tired, so I will sign off now for some good sleep before my 5:00 "outta bed" tomorrow morning!  Because, THIS is one of the things facing me tomorrow:

The much-dreaded basement organization so I can haul the old cabinets in there!

Tomorrow, I'll show you what happened to my sweet little sewing room and my graphic design studio - Much, much work to do there also.  Goodnight, sweet readers.