12/31/12

{goodbye 2012} here we come 2013

Hello there! It's the last day of 2012. Wishing you a very happy and safe new year celebration tonight. Here we come 2013!


12/26/12

{spread kindness} facebook timeline cover image freebies

Hello there! Happy Wednesday, Happy Boxing Day and Happy Kwanza! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas day yesterday. Today I saw this fabulous image and quote by Martin Kornfeld and just had to share it. I'm participating in the #26Acts campaign in honor of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy and am making one of my goals for 2013 to help spread kindness.



"If we all just do one random act of kindness daily we just might set the world in the right direction." ~Martin Kornfeld

I was inspired by this quote to create a new timeline cover image for my Facebook pages and thought it would be nice to share them with all of you as a digital freebie! Download the full size image and use it on your Facebook pages to help spread this important message. Let's all work together in 2013 to spread kindness and make the world a better place for everyone. Cheers!

Download full size image


Download full size image


12/25/12

{holiday 2012} merry christmas

Merry Christmas! I hope you are having an amazing day filled with happy spirits and good cheer. It's been a long a wonderful day and we're  relaxing by the soft glow of the Christmas tree lights and checking out our new goodies. Wishing you the happiest of days and all the best in 2013.


12/24/12

{holiday 2012} merry christmas eve

Merry Christmas Eve! I hope you are enjoying a lovely Christmas Eve day filled with music, treats and loved ones. Enjoy this fun playlist of holiday songs from the legendary Rat Pack.




Have Yourself a Marry Little Christmas performed by Frank Sinatra

Jingle Bells performed by Sammy Davis Jr

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!  performed by Dean Martin

Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer performed by Dean Martin

I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm performed by Dean Martin

Santa Claus Is Coming to Town performed by Frank Sinatra

The Christmas Song performed by Sammy Davis Jr

White Christmas performed byDean Martin

12/22/12

{holiday 2012} personal christmas card mail out

Happy Saturday. I hope you are enjoying a relaxing afternoon with the smell of home baked goodies wafting through the air. We are headed out to get our Christmas tree today... we're a little behind, but I wanted to share our holiday mail out. I love the way everything turned out and hope the recipients will enjoy getting them too.



I designed the card which is available in both my Etsy and Zazzle shops in addition to matching postage. I also addressed the envelopes using the same typefaces as in the card. And as an extra little detail, I sealed the envelopes with a cute piece of green chevron washi tape!

Wishing you a wonderful holiday season and all the best in 2013! Happy Holidays!!!

12/20/12

{spread kindness} #26acts & printable freebie

Hello there! I hope you are having a lovely Thursday. Today I saw the PSA below for #26Acts of Kindness and read about Ann Curry's tweet asking people to commit to performing 26 acts of kindness to honor the children and teachers lost in the Newtown, CT school tragedy. I'm in love with the idea of healing from this atrocious act & honoring those lost by spreading love and kindness to one another. And just maybe we will all be filled with such joy by spreading kindness, love and goodwill that we will continue to do so each and every day. It doesn't always have to be something big, sometimes it's those little acts that are just as meaningful. A smile, a wave, a hug... just make an effort to spread a little cheer. This is such a beautiful and inspiring movement, I'm definitely in. 





Today I was so inspired by this movement that I wanted to create something to help spread kindness so I designed these cute little cards to leave in random places for people to find. Download the file, cut out the cards and then take them with you and leave them in random places like with the tip when you pay for a meal, at the grocery store, attach to a vending machine, leave in a restroom, in a waiting room, on a park bench, etc! Just maybe you'll make someone's day or lift someone's spirits.

Let's heal the world with kindness.




DOWNLOAD FULL SIZE FILE




TERMS OF USE FOR PRINTABLE FREEBIES by The Spotted Olive™
All printable freebies are copyright by The Spotted Olive™ and are intended for non-profit personal use only. Our printable freebies are not to be used for any profitable or commercial purposes whatsoever. We would love it if you would send people to visit our blog (http://www.thespottedolive.blogspot.com) to download their own copy of our printable freebies, but please do not distribute or post the files to any other websites or blogs. By downloading our printable freebies, you agree to all of these terms and conditions of use. Thanks so much for your support.


12/17/12

{new in the shop!} from our hearts to yours valentine's day photo cards

Hello there! I just designed these sweet Valentine's Day photo cards and I'm really loving them. Aren't they cute? Featuring darling hearts and the words "From Our Hearts To Yours. Happy Valentine's Day" in a handwritten typeface plus a placeholder for your photo. Easy to customize these 5" x 7" stationery flat cards with your picture, the year and your family name or individual names. Adorable!


12/15/12

{instagram snapshot} holiday joys

Hello there! I just finished up getting our holiday cards addressed, stamped and sealed while enjoying a tasty latte that my hubby made for me. I also printed and cut out the darling printable freebie holiday gift tags I recently designed as a giveaway to readers of this blog. They turned out great and I can't wait to snazz up my packages with them. Visit my post here to download your copy for personal use.



12/12/12

{printable freebie} holiday gift tags

Hello there! I hope you are in full holiday mode and are ready for a super nifty printable freebie. I designed these fun holiday gift tags last night and am giving them away as a printable freebie for personal use.

Just download the full size PDF by clicking on the image below, print on heavy card stock, cut out, hole punch the little circle, add a little glitter for some sparkle and attach to your holiday gifts with ribbon or twine.



Download Full Size PDF

Send us some photos of these cute little holiday tags on your packages and we'll post them right here on our blog! Cheers and enjoy! Happy Holidays.


TERMS OF USE FOR PRINTABLE FREEBIES by The Spotted Olive™
All printable freebies are copyright by The Spotted Olive™ and are intended for non-profit personal use only. Our printable freebies are not to be used for any profitable or commercial purposes whatsoever. We would love it if you would send people to visit our blog (http://www.thespottedolive.blogspot.com) to download their own copy of our printable freebies, but please do not distribute or post the files to any other websites or blogs. By downloading our printable freebies, you agree to all of these terms and conditions of use. Thanks so much for your support.

{happy 12.12.12 day}

Hello there and happy 12.12.12! Hope you are having a wonderful day.


12/7/12

{instagram snapshot} my cute new leopard print shoes

Hello there and happy weekend! I just got my cute new leopard print shoes in the mail today. I just love them. Aren't they darling?


12/1/12

{new in the shop!} christmas cupcake exchange party invitations


Do you love Christmas? Do you love cupcakes? Do you love parties? Why not put them all together and have a Christmas Cupcake Exchange Party! How fun would that be? I just created these super cute Christmas Cupcake Exchange Party invitations and they are now available in the shop.

{hello} december

Hello there! Can you believe it's the first of December already? Christmas is only 25 days away and the new year is just around the corner. Are you ready for the holidays?

May all your days be bright during the month of December!

11/29/12

{inspiration} be brilliant peacock

Isn't this pretty? I love the colors. So bold and vibrant. Too gorgeous not to share!

11/28/12

{new in the shop} nautical stripes save the date cards

Hello there! Hope you are having a wonderful Wednesday. I'm happy to announce that The Spotted Olive™ is now including Save The Date cards in our product offerings! I have just added the Nautical Stripes Save The Date Cards to my Zazzle shop where they are easily personalized with your photo and text details. I'll be creating and adding more Save The Date card designs to the shop soon.


This design will also be added to my shop on Etsy as a DIY Digital Printable where I design it and you print it!

11/23/12

{black friday deal} $10 off ipad mini cases

Hello there! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. It's Black Friday and I know many people are out shopping for some great deals! But for those who are shopping online, The Spotted Olive has a super fabulous deal on our new iPad Mini cases!! Save $10 on iPad Mini cases today with coupon code: BLACKFRISALE.



SHOP iPAD MINI CASES

$10 of the case and/or sleeve net sale price will be deducted when one or more qualifying case and/or sleeve items are purchased and the coupon code BLACKFRISALE is applied at checkout. Offer is valid through November 23, 2012 at 11:59 PM PT. This offer does not apply to past purchases and may not be combined with any other Zazzle promotional or volume discount offers. If a volume discount applies to your order, you will receive either the discount set forth in this offer or the standard volume discount, whichever is greater. Offer valid on Zazzle.com only.

11/19/12

Add an extra personal touch to your Christmas card mailings this year with this festive chalkboard typography holiday postage from The Spotted Olive™. Featuring a trendy chalkboard background and the words "Happy Holidays" in fun chalkboard typography. A stylish way to dress up your envelopes!



20 stamps per sheet. Choose from thirteen postage denominations:

$0.32: Post Card
$0.45: 1st Class Letter, 1 oz
$0.65: 1st Class Letter, 2 oz or 1 oz odd
$0.85: 1st Class Letter, 3 oz or 2 oz odd
$0.90: 1st Class Large Envelope, 1 oz
$1.05: 1st Class Letter, 3.5 oz or 3 oz odd
$1.10: 1st Class Large Envelope, 2 oz
$1.25: 1st Class Letter, 3.5 oz odd $1.30: 1st Class Large Envelope, 3 oz
$1.50: 1st Class Large Envelope, 4 oz
$1.70: 1st Class Large Envelope, 5 oz
$1.90: 1st Class Large Envelope, 6 oz
$5.15: Priority (up to 16 oz)

11/18/12

{fun stuff} creating my own handwritten fonts!

Hello there! I hope you are enjoying a relaxing Sunday afternoon. I've had a lovely day with chocolate filled croissants and a hot latte for brunch. And I foresee a nap in my near future!

I recently discovered a very cool app for the iPad called iFontMaker that allows you to create your own handwritten fonts. I've been having a lot of fun with this app and love that I can easily create fonts based on my handwriting.




Below are a couple of the fonts I've made with this app.

















































I'm looking forward to working with this program and getting better at creating my own custom fonts. It's really easy to use and so much fun!



You can purchase iFontMaker at the App Store for $6.99.

10/29/12

{holiday 2012} our most popular christmas card of the season

Hello there! I hope you are having a wonderful Monday. I've been busy with a bunch of things in the works! Today I discovered that my Chalkboard Typography 2012 Christmas Photo Flat Card has sold over 20,000 copies to date making it our most popular holiday card ever. I'm so excited and thrilled that so many people like this card.

 

Shop The Spotted Olive's Christmas Card Collection.

I have had quite a few requests from customers wanting their photos converted to black & white and I'm happy to announce that I would be delighted to provide this service for a fee of $10 per photo. You must provide a high resolution photo that fits within the available space. Billing will be through Paypal. Just send me an email if you are interested!

10/15/12

{now open!} the spotted olive digital printables shop on etsy

Hello there! Hope you are having a nice Monday. I've finally taken the plunge and opened a shop on Etsy for digital printables of holiday cards, invitations, announcements and more. I design it, you print it! If you prefer not to deal with the hassle of printing cards, invitations and announcements, you can still order printed versions from my shop on Zazzle. Feel free to shop by and check out our new shop on Etsy! http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheSpottedOlive


10/10/12

{yay!} our christmas card designs featured in zazzle's holiday card groupon deal

SPECIAL GROUPON HOLIDAY CARD PROMOTION

Hello there! Hope you are having a nice Wednesday!! I'm very excited to let you know that several of The Spotted Olive's 5" x 7" Christmas photo card designs have been featured in Zazzle's latest Groupon offer!



Get the Groupon Deal, then choose from our cards shown below! Just click on the image of the card you like and you will be taken to the product page to customize it! :)




 

5”x7” Personalized Holiday Photo Cards

Send personalized season’s greetings to friends, loved ones, and evil twins with photo cards from The Spotted Olive™ and Zazzle, all printed with high-quality, full-bleed color on both sides. After selecting a template, upload a photo to add a personal touch to cards wishing happy holidays.
  • Six paper types
  • High quality
  • Full color
  • Matching white envelope for each invitation
  • Full-bleed printing on both sides
  • 110-pound cover-weight paper 
Stop by the special GROUPON PROMOTION section in our shop!

10/1/12

{new in the shop} retro modern polka dots flat christmas card

Hope you are having a nice Monday! There are only 84 more days until Christmas and I've just added this new fun and fresh personalized photo Christmas card design to The Spotted Olive™. This cute holiday card design features a red polka dot pattern with a mint green contrasting color block and the words "Season's Greetings." Retro modern fun! Available on a variety of paper stocks.  Easily customize this fresh holiday card by adding your own photo and text.

Shop trendy Christmas Cards by The Spotted Olive™.

{welcome} october

Hello there! Hope you are enjoying this first day of October. It's a lovely day today and the fall foliage is beautiful and vibrant.




Enjoy this video of U2 performing their song "October" followed by "New Year's Day" at Red Rocks in Morrison, Colorado—one of my favorite concert venues.


9/25/12

{new in the shop!} holiday 2012 card collection

Hello there! Hope you're having a great Tuesday. I've been busy working on some new Christmas Card designs for the upcoming holiday season. Here's a preview of some of the latest designs that are now available in the shop (www.thespottedolive.com) as flat cards and are available on a variety of paper stocks. Folded cards, 4" x 8" premium photo cards and postcards in these designs are coming soon.


9/17/12

{new in the shop!} chevron stripes monogram iphone 5 cases

HOLIDAY GIFT IDEA! I know a lot of people who are very excited about the announcement of the iPhone 5 last week and thought I would get a head start on designing some cute cases for this new gadget. Yesterday I worked on this fresh line of monogrammed chevron iPhone 5 cases. This fashionable design is available in 12 trendy color choices and on two Case-Mate styles—the Barely There™ and Vibe™.




Right now through 9/24/12 you can save 30% on cases for the new iPhone 5 with coupon code: PRICESRFALLN at checkout.

30% of the case net sale price will be deducted when one or more qualifying products are purchased and the coupon code PRICESRFALLN is applied at checkout. The coupon code PRICESRFALLN must be entered during checkout to receive the offer. Offer is valid through September 24, 2012 at 11:59 PM PT. This offer does not apply to past purchases and may not be combined with any other Zazzle promotional or volume discount offers. If a volume discount applies to your order, you will receive either the discount set forth in this offer or the standard volume discount, whichever is greater. Offer valid on Zazzle.com only.

9/13/12

{color trends} the 2013 pantone fashion color report is here!

Hello there and happy Thursday! I'm super excited to see the Pantone Fashion Color Report for Spring 2013 has been released. I downloaded a copy last night and really love some of the colors! I especially like the creative names like tender shoots, lemon zest, monaco blue and red poppy.



I really enjoyed reading about how the designers incorporated these colors into their collections. I know Spring is a long ways off, but it's fun to see the upcoming color trends and get inspiration for next year's designs. Thanks for stopping by!

9/11/12

{in the shop} sending good cheer chevron flat christmas cards

Hope you are having a nice Tuesday! Here's the latest personalized photo Christmas card design now available at The Spotted Olive™. This stylish design features a trendy chevron stripe pattern  with a bold contrasting color block and the words "Sending Good Cheer Throughout The Year!" Easily customize this fresh holiday card by adding your own photo and text. Available in a variety of color choices and paper stocks. Shown as a flat Christmas card, this design is also featured on folded Christmas cards.


Shop trendy Christmas Cards by The Spotted Olive™.

9/6/12

{in the shop} merry & bright holiday stripes folded christmas cards

Hello there and happy Thursday! Hope you are having a nice and productive day. I've been working on new holiday card designs and wanted to share one of our fun holiday card designs that is available at The Spotted Olive™. The Merry& Bright Holiday Stripes Folded Christmas Card design takes a twist on "May your days be merry & bright" and changes it to "May your holidays be merry & bright!" This stylish photo card features a bold typeface, sweet snowflake and retro modern stripes. Easily personalize with your photo and message. A super cute way to send your holiday greetings to friends and family. Available in a variety of color choices and also as a flat card.


Shop holiday cards by The Spotted Olive™!


And don't forget now through September 16, 2012 holiday cards & invitations are 50% off with coupon code: HCARDSAVINGS at checkout.


50% of the invitation and/or greeting card net sale price will be deducted when twenty five or more qualifying invitations and/or greeting cards are purchased and the coupon code HCARDSAVINGS is applied at checkout. The net sale price is the price of the product (excluding shipping and taxes). Offer is valid through September 16, 2012 11:59pm PT. This offer does not apply to past purchases and may not be combined with any other Zazzle promotional or volume discount offers. If a volume discount applies to your order, you will receive either the discount set forth in this offer or the standard volume discount, whichever is greater. Offer valid on Zazzle.com only.

9/5/12

{in the shop} halloween invitations & cards and an early bird sale

Hello there and happy Wednesday! Can you believe Halloween is just around the corner? Get ready for a spooky good time with personalized Halloween invitations & cards now available at The Spotted Olive. Available in a variety of designs, color choices and paper stocks. Click on the image below to shop Halloween invitations & cards now.

And now through September 16, 2012 you can save 50% on cards and invitations with coupon code: HCARDSAVINGS at checkout. It's a great sale to stock up on cards & invitations for the holidays!

50% of the invitation and/or greeting card net sale price will be deducted when twenty five or more qualifying invitations and/or greeting cards are purchased and the coupon code HCARDSAVINGS is applied at checkout. The net sale price is the price of the product (excluding shipping and taxes). Offer is valid through September 16, 2012 11:59pm PT. This offer does not apply to past purchases and may not be combined with any other Zazzle promotional or volume discount offers. If a volume discount applies to your order, you will receive either the discount set forth in this offer or the standard volume discount, whichever is greater. Offer valid on Zazzle.com only.

9/4/12

{award winner!} joy peace & love christmas letter folded holiday cards

Hello there! I'm thrilled that The Spotted Olive™ received a Zazzle Today's Best Award for my Joy Peace & Love Christmas Letter Folded Holiday Card design on August 28, 2012. This festive Christmas card design features my own handwriting of the word "Joy" and the words Peace & Love is a fun handwritten font plus a placeholder for your photo. The inside of the card is set up as a template for a small holiday letter. Available in a variety of color choices.


Shop holiday cards from The  Spotted Olive™.

9/3/12

{handmade} mini tote bag

Hello there! Hope you are enjoying the holiday weekend. Real life has kept me away from my blog lately, but I'm trying to get back into the swing of things. I've been wanting to expand my creative endeavors so I recently purchased a beginner sewing machine from IKEA. The first project I made was a cute little mini tote bag a few days ago. It's not perfect but I'm pretty happy with it. What fun projects have you been working on?



8/24/12

{happy weekend}

Wow! The weekend is already here. This week sure has flown by. Really, the summer has flown by.  It's been a very stressful Summer for us so my hubby and I have decided that we need to try and make it a point to do at least one fun thing each weekend. Today we are heading out to the Farmer's Market to get some fresh produce, pretty flowers and handmade goodies. I can't wait. What are your plans for this weekend?


8/23/12

{check us out} over at pingg!

Hello there! Hope you are having a nice day. I wanted to let you know that The Spotted Olive™ is now on pingg.com, a website offering online invitations, announcements, save the dates and party guest management! I have a variety of designs for birthday parties, bachelorette parties, baby showers, bridal showers and parties that are currently free to send. And I'll be adding more fun designs in the near future. Stop by The Spotted Olive's studio on pingg and check us out!



8/20/12

{hello foxy} happy monday to you!

Hello there! Hope everyone had a great weekend. My nephew and his wife were in town visiting and we had a wonderful time together. Here's a snapshot of the sweet little fox we saw while having dinner at one of the local creekside restaurants. Needless to say my nephew and his wife were thrilled! Happy Monday. Wishing you a productive and fun week.


8/18/12

{happy weekend}

Hope you are enjoying a relaxing and peaceful weekend.


8/16/12

{win this!} rickshaw zero messenger bag designed by the spotted olive

Hello Lovelies! Hope you are having a wonderful Thursday. The Spotted Olive™ has partnered with All Women Stalk for their Big 40K Giveaway and you could win this stylish Rickshaw Zero Messenger Bag featuring our exclusive Retro Modern Flowers design.

Just visit the All Women Stalk Big 40K Giveaway page on Facebook and leave a comment on this image saying what you love about The Spotted Olive™ and you will be entered to win.



You also have a chance to win other great prizes from Pop of Chic, The Lucky Elephant, 365 Hangers, Instyle Swimwear, Swanky Press, Cake Pop Fusion, Ribbon Revelry, LC Vintage, Life is Balance, Beach House Living and Printable Girl.


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8/4/12

{award winner} sweet stripes baby shower invitation

Happy Saturday! I hope you are enjoying a beautiful morning. I was very happy to learn that my Sweet Stripes Baby Shower Invitation design in green received a Zazzle Today's Best Award today. It always makes me smile to get a little recognition for my work so a big thanks to Zazzle for the feature.


This fun baby shower invitation design by The Spotted Olive™ features bold lime green stripes and the words "Baby Shower" set in stylish typefaces with two little hearts. Easily customize with your event information. Available in a variety of color choices and paper stocks from The Spotted Olive™. 

This design is also available as a FREE e-invitation from The Spotted Olive's studio on pingg.com. Have a great weekend!


pingg.com Invites & eCards

8/3/12

{in the shop} retro modern holiday ornamanets christams photo flat cards

It's hard to believe that we're already a few days into August! This year has really flown by. We've got a busy month ahead so I know September will be here before you know it. I've been working on new holiday card designs lately but wanted to share one of The Spotted Olive's most popular holiday card designs—our Retro Modern Holiday Ornaments Christmas Photo Flat Card. This fun and festive design is available in a variety of color choices and paper stocks.


I know many people have already started planning for the holidays and have actually gotten some holiday shopping done. I have to say that I'm not organized enough to be one of those people. Have you started your holiday shopping yet?