A Tutorial of Sorts...

Happy Thursday, all!

Last week I had the pleasure of guest blogging over at the fantastic Scrapbook & Cards Today blog (I know, I know - trust me, I see the irony here, but at least I blogged somewhere!) where I got to share a little about using themed papers in ways vastly different than how they were originally intended. I had such a great time working on it that I thought I'd repost it here for those that might have missed it. I hope you enjoy it and perhaps get a little something out of it, too!

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Since I’ve been talking to you this week about the wonders of summertime, I wanted to expand that just a bit and focus today on all seasons – or more specifically seasonal or themed scrapbooking products. While I am the first to admit I completely hoard Valentine’s themed papers (I can’t get enough of them. It’s a sick addiction, really!), I mostly do just that – hoard them. After all, there are just so many Valentine’s parties or love-dovey things you can scrapbook about, you know? And sadly I find the same holds true for Christmas, Halloween or any other holiday. Yet I can’t stand to let those seasonal or themed papers just sit there and not get used, it completely goes against my nature as a paper conservationist! So my solution to that problem is to challenge myself to use the line completely contrary to the way it was intended - a pet-themed paper line becomes a page about teenage girls, a Christmas line becomes a baby layout. You get the idea! It’s a lot easier to do than you might think and it gets those papers we love off your shelves and into your scrapbook albums!

Here are a few of my favorite examples to inspire you and get you started:

This first page is about my beautiful nieces. They are 13, 15, 17 and 19 (at the time) and I just love them to pieces. They aren’t overly girlie girls so I couldn’t see scrapping this picture in pinks and frills. Instead, I went with the gorgeous, rich colors in BasicGrey’s Max & Whiskers line – a very PET themed range! While I purposely chose papers that didn’t have animals on them (a huge benefit to double-sided lines), if you look closely, you can still see the “pet” influences where the flower leaves have dog bones or the “best friend” writing on the chipboard around the title and so forth. But all this is secondary. The focus is on that photo and the beautiful girls in it.

Supplies: BasicGrey patterned paper, Lace Doilies, Take Notes, Bloomers, buttons, brads, chipboard shapes, chipboard alphas, alpha stickers; Uni-ball pen (white); Pentel pen (black); Colorbox (Clearsnap) chalk ink.

Here’s another fun example using BasicGrey’s Halloween line, Eerie:

While the Eerie line has a plethora of cobwebs, skull and pumpkins adoring it’s papers, I choose the more subdued patterns (can you find the spiders?!) to scrapbook a layout that was all about me. Notice how I still managed to keep the tradition “Halloween” hues of orange and black present without making it scream “Halloween!” (As a side note, this layout was done based on one of Scrapbook & Cards Today’s own Becky Fleck’s Page Maps. Becky does an amazing job with her sketches and they are such an excellent resource into getting your photos scrapped!)

Supplies: BasicGrey patterned paper, chipboard shapes, alphabet overlays, Lace Doilies, Olio rub-ons; Pentel pen; Fiskars scalloped scissors; Creative Memories corner rounder.

And finally, one last project before I go.

This page features Wassail, BasicGrey’s holiday offering a couple of years ago. Wassail has wonderful vintage images of holly, partridges, candy cane stripes and more. But here, rather than Christmas, I used it to scrap the six-month portraits of my youngest son. I love how the vintage feel of Wassail gives the photos such a timeless feel and quite frankly I almost think I like it better for these types of photos rather than ones from the holidays!

Supplies: BasicGrey patterned papers, Element stickers, Opaline pearls, chipboard alphabets; Zig pen; Colorbox (Clearsnap) chalk ink; jute; Miss Elizabeth’s scallop scissors.

So let’s see it! Make a graduation page from baby-themed papers, change Birthday papers to a layout about your pup! I hope I’ve shown you that anything is possible!

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As a final reminder, you have until midnight TONIGHT to enter into the giveaway a couple of posts below! Be sure to leave a comment if you're interested!

Have a great day!
xoxo,

k.

*Enabler Alert*

Hello, everyone!

A very Happy Wednesday to you all! (Wow! Here I am, two days in a row!) In my true effort to be better about blogging, I had to share a small enabler alert with all of you!



BasicGrey has been very fortunate to team up with Northridge Media to bring you two separate technique-based kits, one in the gorgeous Origins line and the other in the playful Sugar Rush range. These kits are designed by me and are jam-packed full of enough BasicGrey goodies to make the three layouts shown as well as plenty of extra for any other projects. All kits come with full-color, step-by-step instructions as well and are just $18.95! This is a limited supply offer and when they're out, they're out, so hurry and get yours today!

One quick reminder - the giveaway in the post below is still open until midnight tomorrow night! Good luck!

Happy Scrappin'!
xoxo,
k.

Quick Giveaway!

Hello, everyone!

I know, I know, I've been horribly absent lately. I hate to play the "busy" card, so I won't as we've been having a lot of fun while I've been missing! Let's just say that for a work-at-home mom that has her three boys home all summer, something has to fall a bit behind and apparently it's been this! Ugh. Soo....I'm going to *try* and be better (no promises, though!) and to play nice, I have a little something for you!

I recently met a lovely lady named Lisa who is starting her own project-oriented kit club called Paper Fashions Boutique (I know, cute name, right?!). She has generously agreed to give away this beautiful kit you see above - her canvas and candle kit - featuring BasicGrey's Green at Heart line to one of my awesome readers.

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Here's a small bit from Lisa about what makes her club so special:

1. I do all the shopping for you.

2. I have pre-cut some of the items in the kits.

3. I spend all the time coordinating the materials in the kit so you don't have to.

4. I have done all of the design work for you.

5. I have created a complete set of step by step instructions including photos.

6. I carefully packed each supply needed to create the project shown so it is all in one convenient place for you.

You simply order the scrapbook kits you want and I carefully pack them up and ship them to your front door so you can sit right down and begin creating! Each month I release new kits on my site. There will be a variety of mini albums, layouts, altered items/home decor, and card kits. So a little something for everyone!

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So what do you have to do? Simply pop in over at Paper Fashions Boutique and browse around the site, then come back here and post a comment telling me which Basic Grey Green at Heart kit you like the best! Please leave your comment by 11:59 PM Eastern Thursday, July 15th (I'm sorry, US and Canadian addresses only) and I will draw a random winner on Friday, July 16th from all of the comments posted in this thread. Enjoy browsing and come back to see if you won next week!

Happy Tuesday!
xo,
k

My Summer Cover Boy

Hi all!
Just popping on for a few to share some really fun news! Check out my sweet (but incredibly scruffy!) boy on the cover of the new Scrapbook & Cards Today's summer issue!! I'm so excited. A huge thank you my uber-talented friend, Summer Fullerton, for making him look so good with her fantastic cover. Be watching for it to hit newstands (and downloads) the 25th of this month!

Happy Thursday!
xoxo,
k.

"Just the Basics" - June edition

Hello, everyone! I hope you're having a fantastic Friday!

I have a few things to share with you today, the first being that our June edition of BasicGrey's "Just the Basics" is now available for your viewing pleasure. :) Simply click here or if you prefer, you can get the newsletter directly to your inbox starting next month. To do that, either visit our Facebook page and click the "Newsletter!" tab or visit our website and sign up there. Any back issues you've missed can also be accessed at our website via the link provided.

This month we featured the gorgeous wedding-inspired line, Cappella. But I want to show you that it doesn't just have to be limited to weddings or special occassions. For my sketch, I used it to scrap Turner's 1-year smash cake portraits. I love how this line looks with black & white photos. So very rich!

Here's my Layout:

Supplies: BasicGrey Cappella, Bling it on, Element Stickers, Mini Mono Stickers, Micro Mono stickers, Lace doilies, and chip sticker shapes; Pentel pen.

And the BasicGrey Digital template it was based on. There are about 15-20 digi templates in our digital section and they're awesome. We even include a tutorial in BGTV for those of you new to using templates.


I also wanted to put out there that my friends at Bazzill have let me know that they still have some spaces available for this year's Creative Escape. By visiting www.creativeescapeaz.com it is easy to find out info about the event and how to sign up. They have some absolutely spectacular teachers, fabulous projects, unbelievable sponsors, delicious food, wonderful surprises, and really good times. As a past teacher, I can tell you that this is an experience of a lifetime! You'll love every minute and I do hope they'll see you there! :)

And last but not least, I'll be teaching locally this weekend and there are still a few spots available. If you're in the Louisville/Lexington/Frankfort area in Kentucky, I hope you'll come join us at Memories ala Mode - the best little LSS around! You can contact the store at (502) 695-3477. Tonight's class is a Boy's Triple Double - three double-paged boy-themed layouts featuring BasicGrey's Max & Whiskers. Tomorrow is an all-occasion card class and an all-about-me mini album class!

Have a wonderful weekend!
xoxo,
k.

So sorry for the delay! And the WINNER IS....

Hi, all!

Happy Thursday! (It took me three times typing that to get the day right, THAT'S how things are going here! Ha!) I'm so sorry for the delay in announcing my "Welcome Summer" giveaway winner. I'm still going nuts adjusting to our new schedule of having all the boys home full time again. Insane doesn't even begin to describe it!

So without further ado, a huge CONGRATULATIONS goes out to JENNIFER MOORE!!! Please contact me at kelly(dot)goree(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize!

xoxo,
k.

Last Chance! (CONTEST NOW OVER)

******************CONTEST NOW OVER. WINNER TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON! THANK YOU! ********************

Hi, all!

Just a quick reminder that tonight (at 11:59 pm Eastern) is the last chance get in on winning a huge goodie box especially for you from me! :) You can get entered on THIS POST! Good luck!

Happy Friday!
xoxo,
k.

Ella Cover Girl

Supplies: Fancy Pants patterned paper, diecuts, buttons; Fiskars border punch; BoBunny Cardstock; Colorbox (Clearsnap) ink; Uni-ball pen (white), Zig pen (blue)

Hi, all!
This month I had the huge honor of being the June cover girl (or, um, Carson the June cover boy :)) for Ella Publishing's eZine, Scrapbook Ellaments. I had such a wonderful time working with Wendy and Angie over at Ella. Those gals really know how to put together an amazing magazine each month. This one is a tribute to Summer and all that makes summer fantastic so I hope you'll take a few to check it out here. You can even learn a bit more about me and some of my favorite layouts if you're so inclined as they put me through a little quiz to share with you all.

Have a wonderful and happy Thursday!
xoxo,
k.

Let's here it for SUMMER!

******************CONTEST NOW OVER. WINNER TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON! THANK YOU! ********************
So sorry for being missing in action lately! The end of May/first of June means the end of school and an insane (if fun!) schedule. And even though my kiddos are still in school (until the 8th thanks to all the snow we had here in Kentucky this winter!), we're getting into summer fever here! That includes trips to the pool, home improvement projects, popsicles, sprinkers AND spring, er, SUMMER cleaning!

Which means - I have a huge box of miscellaneous goodies that are looking for a good home! They range from BasicGrey to Lily Bee and then some!

To make this box yours, just enter your name along with what you're summer plans on in the comment section by Friday, June 4th at 11:59 PM Eastern! I'll draw a winner no later than Monday morning!

Have a fantastic (short) week!
xoxo,
k.

UP!

My favorite animated movie of all time is UP! - the Disney Pixar release from last summer all about life and its adventures. To make the movie even more special, it included scrapbooking and if I wasn't hooked before, that did it! I love the story line, the colors, the emotion, just everything.

Yesterday Kristina Werner posted this link on her twitter page and I started jumping up and down! Everything I loved about the movie came rushing back to me...and then some because this time it was related to photography, my 2nd love. I mean, really - how AWESOME are these photos??! I can't get over the sweetness. The clever studio that did them is Wildflower Photos (click on their name to see their site) . What an incredible job they id with this adorable couple's vision. It totally makes me want to be 20-something and just getting married all over again!

Enjoy!

This & That Monday

Today is a hodge podge of all kinds of things going on! I'm trying to get them all under control and stay on top of it, but I'm afraid one or two are going to skip out on me! Here are a few things I wanted to share with you.

First, the May issue of 'Just the Basics' is now available. We've been having some difficulty keeping the correct link online as we're changing email services so I wanted to make sure to share it here with you! This issue features the adorable Max & Whiskers line as well as some brand new digital templates we're offering in our BasicGrey digi shop! In fact, the gals that did sketches this month using one of our brand new templates! Here is the one we used this month as well as my layout based on it. You can see I rotated mine a bit and changed it to a single photo to fit my needs!


That photo is of Carson who still loves to pick his mama all the weeds in the yard because they're pretty. :) He'll stop that soon enough so I had to make sure I got it down while I could! :) I used mostly the Green at Heart line here because I'm in love with those oranges and purples. (I NEVER thought I'd say that about purple!)

And speaking of Green at Heart, my friend Andrea is giving away a collection pack of either that or the BasicGrey JuneBug line along with a white Uniball Signo pen and some other BasicGrey goodies to a lucky winner on her blog. Andrea found me on Scrapbook.com ages ago and through Facebook found out that we had mutual friends (NON scrappy related) and then discovered that we live near each other AND went to the same high school (at the same time!) CRAZY small world, isn't it?!! So be sure to give her some love! Simply click this link: HERE, leave her a comment and follow her blog and you'll be entered to win! It's that easy!

I also have to make sure I send a special shout out to Beck Caithness! Beck is a wonderful woman I met in New Zealand when I was teaching at Autumn Escape. She is working tirelessly to raise money for the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation (a cause near and dear to her and who currently gets no government funding or help at all from The Cancer Society). She is auctioning off a TOTE she hand-made (it's tons of quilted goodness, you all!) to carry your scrap goodies (or anything else you might want to lug around). What's even more special about this tote beyond the fact that it features BasicGrey FABRIC (hee!) is that it also features the signatures of many scrappy people from around the world (me included if you can believe that! Check out who my name is next to ;)) that they personally autographed just for this cause. It's truly special and absolutely beautiful!
Here is an image of this tote:

I told you, right?! And here are the amazing people that have their signature on this bag:

* Ali Edwards (http://aliedwards.typepad.com/)

* Kelly Goree (http://kellygoree.blogspot.com/)

* Claudine Hellmuth (http://claudinehellmuth.blogspot.com/)

* Kristina Werner (http://www.kwernerdesign.com/blog/)

* Jessica Sprague (http://spraguelab.squarespace.com/)

* Becky Higgins (http://www.beckyhiggins.com/blog/)

* Rachel Greig (Darkroom Door) (http://www.rachelgreig.typepad.com/darkroomdoor/)

* Nic Howard (http://nichoward.typepad.com/)

* Susan Weinroth (http://susanweinroth.typepad.com/)

* Donna Downey (http://donnadowney.typepad..com/)

* Rachel Tucker (http://www.rtscraps.typepad.com/)

* Jennifer McGuire (http://jennifermcguireink.typepad.com/)

* Tim Holtz (http://www.timholtz.typepad.com/)

* Stephen and Carolyn Kaiser (Kaisercraft) (http://www.kaisercraft.net/)

* Jenni Bowlin (http://jennibowlin.blogspot.com/)

* Trina McClune (http://www.trinamcclune.typepad.com/)

* Teresa Collins (http://teresacollins.typepad.com/)

* Becky Fleck (http://www.pagemaps.com/blog.php)

* Jill Geraghty-Groves (http://jillgg.typepad.com/)

* Tamar Bostock (http://www.tarisota.com.au/)

So to make this bag your own, here's what you need to do:Visit Beck's site at Crop for a Cause 2010 and purchase some tickets. They are Tickets will be $4 each, or three tickets for $10. (Keep in mind this is NZD - New Zealand Dollars - so the exchange rate will be slightly ifferent for those of you not in NZ). Good luck to you all and the lucky winner better send me a picture of herself using this bag!!

One last thing! BasicGrey is trying to reach 5,000 Facebook fans! We're almost there and as soon as we get there, we're holding a drawing for 5 of our random friends to win a $25 gift certificate to BasicGrey.com! How fun is that! So if you haven't signed up as our friend on Facebook, click this link (or the one on my sidebar) and get in on the fun! Not only do you have a chance to win some GC's, but all kinds of fun updates are posted to the page weekly if not daily! It's a great source of info!

You all have a wonderful (and busy) Monday!
xoxo,
k.

It's Official!

It's SUMMERTIME! It's SUMMERTIME!

Summer officially began at 8:47pm Saturday night with our first trip to this adorably quaint (and rural) mom & pop store for some homemade ice cream! And trust me, we weren't alone! It seems like everyone else had the same idea, too, after a picture-perfect weather kind of day! I hold by the premise that absolutely nothing screams summer like a huge cone of homemade goodness! (The only problem we had was deciding what kind to get!)

I hope you had a summer-y weekend as well!
xoxo,
k.

Child's Play with BasicGrey!

Whooo hoooo! It's finally time! I can now announce the two latest lines from BasicGrey - Meet OLIVER & OLIVIA!

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Press Release:
When did life become all about the kids? When the kids became as cute as Oliver and Olivia and when our embellishments became the precocious, adorable additions that every crafter craves! After a busy (and long) winter, it’s time to play with our new “kids” and enjoy the youthful, spirited, tempting additions to the BasicGrey family.

Our new Olivia™ is pretty in pink. Gorgeous in green. Wonderful in white. She’s the pick of the posies with flowers, plaids and even a few furry friends to take along on this perky play date. Containing eighteen double-sided papers, the Olivia Collection—It’s what a girl wants.




Just when we adjusted to having Olivia in our office, Oliver™ showed up! This rough and tumble, rambunctious mix of playful polka dots, checks and stripes comes alive in overalls-blue, fire-truck red and leapfrog green. Ahh-mazing, ahhdorable eighteen double-sided papers. Whatever your project, let our adorable Oliver keep you on the right track.




We’ve also gone back to BasicGrey Basics™, our new collection of never-boring, neutral products that mix and match with virtually any BasicGrey line, but they’re casually classy enough to use alone. Utilize this cool gathering of Basic Manila, Basic White and Basic Kraft collection packs and embellishments to create the perfect NOT-so-plain-Jane addition to your pages.

Want to add big style to a project? Then add Small Details™. These fantastic self-adhesive faux-fasteners in coordinating collections (like Olivia, Oliver and Basics) add that took-me-ten-hours-to-do look without the labor.
File our new Office Tabs™ under “Fabulous” or “Favorites” (or both!) These self-adhesive tabs help you keep pages organized while adding that perfect pizzazz to your pages. Awe-inspiring Office Tabs coordinate to all of our new collections!
Have you seen the other amusing assortments of embellishments we’ve added recently? Be sure to check out all of the accompaniments to Olivia, Oliver and Basics like Gummies, Clips, Woolies, Pops, Canvas Tags, chipboard alphas and elements, stickers (alpha, die-cut and Epoxy), Ribbon and standard Doilies, Cozy Posies, Bloomers, Writer’s Block, Take Note, Pieces, brads (Glazed, Stitched and Standard), buttons, rubons (Sparkling and Olio books), and stamps (Bitsy and
full-size) Phew . . . that’s a lot of creativity for one play date!
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The tentative ship date for these new lines is mid-June! It can't come soon enough!
Happy Thursday!
xoxo,
k.

Coming Soon!!

BasicGrey's 2nd Quarter releases are coming soon! Be watching at an LSS or online store near you!! Here's a small peek to tide you over!

Ohhh, so yummy!

Happy Tuesday!
xoxo,
k.

Memories Ala Mode

Good morning, all!

I just want to take a minute to share with you that I have the honor of teaching a weekend of classes June 11^th and 12^th at one of the greatest LSSs I've ever been in – and I'm fortunate that it just happens to be MY local LSS – MEMORIES ALA MODE! This store is located in Frankfort, Kentucky and is absolutely phenomenal! I talk about it and the owners Mendy and Lois every chance I get because I'm so proud of the job they do and the store they run.

They have graciously invited me to teach three classes during the course of the weekend – a layout class, a mini album class and a card class. The details about each are listed below. We'd love love love to have you join us for the entire weekend (or even a day if you'd prefer). Lois and Mendy are offering special deals (including a divine lunch) if you sign up for the entire weekend. Please contact them at the store at 502-695-3477 or by email at memoriesalamode@aol.com to find out more and secure your spot in my class! I'm looking forward to seeing all of you there!

Class 1: "HERstory" (Album Class)
As scrapbookers we are often overlooked when it comes to our own albums, photos and story telling. This class will focus on YOU - your goals, your childhood, your life - all captured in an adorable mini-album. Join me as I take something everyday and repurpose it into an album you'll be proud of. Add your story and the album is complete - nothing like a new twist on days gone past!



Class 2 "8- count All Occasion Mod Cards" (Card Class)
This class consists of a beautifully fresh and modern card kit—customizable to any event, season or greeting and perfect as a hand-made gift! Using Offbeat paper and chipboard accents, students will make eight fun cards in standard greeting card size. Suggestions for greetings included!




Class 3 "The Boy's Triple Double" (Layout Class )
As a Mom of three boys herself, if any one knows about scrapbooking for boys, it's me! In my Triple Double class, you'll create three (yes THREE!) double page layouts that are clean, classic and full of color! These layouts only use the standard 4"x6" photo size so you'll also be able to re-use the designs again and again for all those prints you've been hoarding!

And before I go, I wanted to announce the winner of the Ella Publishing eBook - PICTURE PERFECT! It goes to GabyAngel! Congratulations, Gaby! Email me at kelly(dot)goree(at)gmail(dot)com to claim your prize!!

Happy Monday, everyone!

xoxo, k.

Happy Mother's Day!

It is looking like it's going to be a fantastic one for me - sleeping in, a ginormous breakfast, ferns for my front porch and homemade cards...

oes this kid know his mama or what?

Heading out to MY mom's a bit later to scour an art festival together and munch on some yummy pizza.

Yep, it's going to be a great one!
Happy Happy to all you moms out there!
xoxo,
k.

And so it begins...

Last night was Cub Scout Night at our local minor league park. It was tons of fun, they had all kinds of activities going on and the kids even got to walk the bases before the game began.






We saw things like them combing the dirt to get it ready for the game, the Bats' mascot, Buddy the Bat, some cute ball players ;)and even a home run or two.

But all my middle son saw, the ENTIRE game? Was this...





Oh yes...it seems he and his buddy were smitten with a couple of cutie little girls. And so it begins...

Happy Saturday!
xoxo,
k

Picture Perfect: An Ella Publishing GIVEAWAY!

Good morning, all!

I have something exciting to share with you today! My sweet friends over at Ella Publishing have generously allowed me to give away a copy of their latest eBook to one of my fabulous blog readers! I'm absolutely thrilled as the subject matter of this particular eBook is near and dear to my heart - tips and tricks to help you take fabulous portraits of any subject! It's called Picture Perfect and was a collaborative effort from three of my favorite photographers - Becky Novacek, Kelly Noel, and Elisha Snow. These three ladies are so talented and they give you some of their best tips in how to capture beautiful portraits in just about any situation. I read it from cover to cover last night and I was completely inspired to get out there snapping away today! (I just have to wait for my boys to get home! Boy are they going to love me ;))

Here's what Ella says about their book:
"Picture Perfect to the rescue! Organized into nine relevant sections (babies, toddlers, kids, teens, pets, adults, duos, trios, and larger groups), this eBook is packed with practical advice that will help you take your photographs to the next level.

Several of the tips are geared toward those with some experience with semi-manual or manual modes on a DSLR camera. But even if you're a DSLR beginner (or you use a point-and-shoot), you'll learn how to improve your photographs dramatically."

So, here's what you need to do - to get in on getting a copy of this book for yourself, simply leave me a comment on this post between now and Sunday, May 9th (Mother's Day - What a gift, no?!) at 11:59 pm Eastern telling me why you need a copy of this book/what you hope to learn from it! It's that simple! I'll draw a winner on Monday morning!

Good luck and Happy Friday!
xoxo,
k.

Announcing Scrapbook PageMaps 2!!!

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am to help announce the brand new Scrapbook PageMaps 2 by Becky Fleck!

Seriously! I am jumping up and down because I loved Becky's first one so much that I am over the moon to let you know that the second one is on it's way and that I had a small hand in working on it with her. Amazon just made the official announcement of its release and you can find it here. Even more exciting is that F+W has moved up the release date from November to October so that it will absolutely make the perfect holiday gift! Hurry over and get yours on pre-order!

That's my enabling for today! Happy Tuesday, all!
xoxo,
k.