New Year? GAME ON!

Whew!  Four Christmas dinners in four days is a LOT ... a lot of fun, a lot of noise, a lot of food, a lot of presents and a LOT of chaos!!  Sorry to be MIA for the past couple of days - just lots on the go and trying to keep my 3 year old from melting down after being out of routine.

Today is a day of de-compressing, de-stressing and loads of laundry!!  Hoping to get my scrap on at some point soon too.

I know that it is only Wednesday but I just can't resist giving you a sneak peek of Connie's January 2012 grab bag a day early.  It is going to be an instant classic, I promise!  PLUS you'll now be getting SIX amazing products for only $5.00 and it just doesn't get any better than that.

This bag (and a few add-ons) releases on Friday and I'll be back to show off some CT goodness and probably toss in a freebie for you too.

As 2012 approaches, consider investing in a kick-start to your photography, scrapbooking or even couponing projects!  Gotta Pixel has a series of super workshops available during the month of January.  You can find all of the options and details in the Gotta Pixel store under Workshops.  I highly recommend the Clustering workshop with Tamara (one of Connie's CT members) - I took this as a study along course in the fall and it was fascinating.  I learned so many things and really improved my confidence using shadowing and layering techniques in PSE.

Connie was kind enough to come by the blog yesterday and share her last set of weekly holiday deals - RADIANT IN RED.  I love this kit because it is so versatile.  Great for holiday pics and great for other classy occasions as well!  Here's a little CT inspiration for you:

Today's FREEBIE is a re-release of a cluster frame that was available on the blog about a year ago when this collection originally released.  Hope that you like it!

DOWNLOAD HERE

Cluster crazy!

I have to admit that I've gone cluster crazy this weekend - yep, you read right. I've been taking one of the Gotta Pixel workshops - THE ART OF CLUSTERING with Tamara - and I've learned so much that I just want to practice all the time! I used to be so afraid of using leaves, branches and other "real" items in a layout because they would never look right for me ... but, now, I'm much more comfortable in my clustering ability! If you'd like to learn more about clustering from a true master of the craft, be sure to sign up for Tamara's September workshop series at Gotta Pixel. There are three September workshops in total and you can sign up for full access or study along access.

All of these preamble is leading up to something ... can you guess? How about a cluster FREEBIE that I made during my practice sessions this weekend? I figure that you can expect to see more of these from me now that I have found my cluster groove! For today's cluster, I used Connie's super STRAWBERRY LEMONADE kit that you can find at any of the following store links:

Gotta Pixel - Scrapbook Bytes - Ginger Scraps

DOWNLOAD HERE

Workshops are coming to Gotta Pixel!

Have you been looking for a little extra help with your clustering technique? Want to take your camera off of the AUTO setting? Love the idea of hybrid projects but don't know where to begin? Gotta Pixel has got the perfect thing for you. During the month of August, GP is running FOUR fabulous workshops just for digi-scrappers. I'm already signed up - how about you?

Here are the links for the details and registration options for the workshops:

Basics of Photography

Art of Clustering

Templates for Beginners

Basics of Hybrid

The Art of Clustering workshop is taught by Tamara - a member of Connie's CT. Take a look back through the blog posts that feature CT layouts and you'll drool over Tamara's layouts - I know that I do every week when I post them here! I can't wait for her to share all of her secrets and unlock my inner cluster queen! :)

Today's freebie is a beautiful QP from Cate. She puts a lot of effort and talent into these so please be sure to leave a comment thanking her and Connie for their generosity if you download! For this beauty, Cate used Connie's GLOBETROTTERS collection which is available now at Scrapbook Bytes.

DOWNLOAD HERE