Need assistance finishing up some projects? Here are some suggestions that might help: We’ve created some new FREE predesigned pages: Sweet and Simple 12x12 Digital Predesigned Pages Sweet and Simple 11x8.5 Digital Predesigned Pages We also have a wide array of oldie-but-goodie free templates that can be downloaded here (US|CAN). The Basic Black and Basic White Predesigned Pages are a great choice if you want to create a very simple, quick storybook with lots of photos. You will also find a variety of Calendar templates. Click and Fill Digital Pages are available for purchase for in 12x12 (US|CAN) and 11x8.5... Continue reading

Efficiency and consistency are two of my very favorite things, and the Sample tool in StoryBook Creator 4.0 [US|CAN] is a mini-miracle when it comes to both of those. I know I’m not the only one who tweaks and re-tweaks (ok, and re-re-tweaks ...) the font being used in a project. I’m also guessing I’m not the only one who wants the font formatting to be consistent throughout a project. Here’s a hint for making that update quickly: 1. Select the text box with the style you'd like to apply to other text boxes. 2. Click the Sample button on... Continue reading

Julie Lindstrom got her first camera in fifth grade and she’s been passionate about photos ever since. “My father died when he was just 35,” she explains. “Not having many photos of him has always made me really aware of how important it is to take, keep and celebrate those pictures.” She’s always loved taking pictures … she’s just never been all that great at it. “I’m not terrible,” laughs Julie. “Just nothing special. I point. I shoot.” So a few years ago when her nephew Wiley started showing her some of his photos, she had a wake-up moment. “Wiley... Continue reading

Like most grandmothers, Arleen Nicholls adores her 7-year-old granddaughter, Alexandra. And naturally, she cherishes the time they get to spend together. So, to keep track of all the fun and special memories they create, Arleen bought a small journal, which happened to have a bird on the cover. When she showed the journal to Alexandra, her granddaughter came up with a different idea for the book. “She wanted us to write a non-fiction story called The Bird Book. When I asked her if she knew what non-fiction meant, she said, ‘Oh yes, Grandma. It means it’s true!’ How can you... Continue reading

A couple years ago, Consultant Julie Krehbiel was on a Habitat for Humanity home tour when a volunteer idea broke free inside of her. As a mother of three in an already bustling household, Julie knew it was pretty unrealistic to think she could dedicate much time behind a hammer or a nail gun. But, compelled to pitch in, she decided to put her energy where her heart and talents naturally intersected—preserving people’s precious memories. Julie wanted to create an album for the family building the Habitat house. It would capture the entire process from groundbreaking through the dedication ceremony... Continue reading

Thank you for joining us today for the Baby Blog Hop! We're going to be hopping to ten additional blogs today, visiting many of our Design Team members on their own blogs to see some projects they've created using the new It's A Boy (CAN) and It's A Girl (CAN) collections. Even if you don't have a baby, you'll find ideas for using these vibrant collections in other projects! Let's get started with projects Melissa Ullmann from the Home Office and Member Melissa Marti from our Design Team! I can't believe that it has been ALMOST 17 years since we... Continue reading

Congratulations on completing the Baby Blog Hop! (Unless you just happened upon the end by chance...in that case you'll want to go back to the beginning!) We appreciate you hanging out with us and hopping to some of our Design Team's blogs. For our final blog, we wanted to give you a closer look at a new product we are releasing next week - the iPhone Case! There seriously isn't a better way to show of the little love of your life everywhere you go. (US/CAN) Available for iPhone 4, 4s or 5, our new Phone Cases will put the... Continue reading

Paula Moses always had a thing for photos and journaling. When Paula was 10 years old, her parents were tired of her monopolizing their camera, so they bought her a neon pink Concord 110 mini … the kind you had to wind between pictures. Paula was ecstatic. She would write captions and stories on the back of the photos and put them in makeshift albums. Shortly after she graduated from college, Paula discovered Creative Memories through a local Consultant. “I thought, ‘where have you been all my life?’” recalled Paula. Exposed to even more ideas and resources for capturing memories,... Continue reading

Join us on April 10-11, 2012 for a Blog Hop! What's a blog hop? A blog hop is a bit of a scavenger hunt, hopping from blog to blog. For ours, we will "hop" through our Design Team member's blogs, starting from our Traditional blog! What will we see? We'll see LOTS of inspiring projects - both traditional and digital - by the Creative Memories Design Team, using two of the NEW It's a Boy and It's a Girl Baby Collections. You'll have the chance to check out some new blogs that feature Creative Memories products, plus see some non-baby... Continue reading

Bonnie Schmidt was a police officer in Arlington, Virginia, when an injury forced her to retire at just 27 years old. Not able to work a traditional job, Bonnie spent her time volunteering at her church. And for the most part, life was good. But something was missing. When Bonnie got pregnant, she thought being a mom would fill the void that plagued her. But it didn’t. “I wanted something just for me. Something that made me feel good about myself and made me feel I was really contributing to my family’s income,” says Bonnie. She became a Creative Memories... Continue reading

Anyone who’s applied for a job they really, really wanted knows how stressful it can be. Now imagine the application had to include photos and personal stories … and the job you were applying for was the most important role of your life – becoming a mother. That’s the kind of pressure Kristi Voeller faced when the social worker at her adoption agency told Kristi and her husband they needed to create a personal album that birth mothers could view online. If viewers liked what they saw, she and her husband might be chosen to adopt a baby. If not,... Continue reading

Being the giver of sweet, unique gifts is awesome. Being the giver of sweet, unique personalized gifts is even better! Now imagine if the personalization part of the gift creation is super easy AND the gifts are on sale?! Yeah, that's where we come in :) April 1 - 30 we're discounting our favorite photo gifts (US|Canada)! You know, the kind you click into, then drag and drop a photo into and you're done? Our predesigned templates make these gifts a snap to create and order, plus the recipient will feel extra special because they're totally personalized. Here are a... Continue reading

Being a Creative Memories Consultant for 17 years has always been special to me and has brought many special people into my life. I do not say that too lightly... it seems there is always just the right someone to come into my life at just the right time. Consider my customer, Aleta. She found me on the Consultant Finder back in December of 2007. She shared that she would like to complete a scrapbook of her mother's life within the next six to eight weeks. Her mother suffered from dementia and was, at that time, in a skilled nursing... Continue reading

Hippity, hoppity...Easter's on it's way! Have some fun creating special treats for the special somebunnies in your life. And there's no need for you to start from scratch, either. Remember these easy Click and Fill Party Favor Templates (US/CAN) from Halloween and Valentine's Day? Fill them with some Vintage Chic digital artwork (US/CAN), print and assemble. Easy! To create them, simply download the templates and install them into StoryBook Creator 4.0 Software. New to digital? Try a free 30-day trial of our software (US/CAN)! Start a new project and choose the Local Printer category. Choose 8.5x11 Page (Portrait). Click Next,... Continue reading

We often get asked about the testing our products go through to ensure photo safety, so we went right to the source - Roger Olson, Director of Technical Resources Group. Here's what he has to say! "Creative Memories is committed to confirming via testing that everything we sell is safe, functions as labeled and meets customer expectation for reliability. We live by the old quality adage: In God we Trust, all others bring data. What was once the Technology Lab has evolved into a key component of the Technical Resources Group. We have a Senior Scientist and two Senior Engineers... Continue reading

When Lisa, my Creative Memories Consultant, offered me the opportunity to host a party, I said yes. I had been her customer for three years at that point and was thrilled she wanted to do a party for me. I knew we would have fun and I would receive free and discounted products. I was totally in! I love a deal! While planning my party, Lisa offered the business opportunity to me. I flat out said no. I even giggled because, my idea of "selling anything" was = to being a used car salesman! I also thought I wouldn't be... Continue reading

Welcome to Creative Memories’ ongoing series of blog posts highlighting quick and easy StoryBook Creator 4.0 tips for using the software to its fullest potential. Mike Pleice, Creative Memories Go Digital Facebook Fan Page Admin, has agreed to share fun tips like this with us monthly - yay! Check back often, and be sure to share the information with your StoryBook Creator loving friends. A paper is a paper is a paper. Not always. Papers can be used in other ways than simply just the backdrop for your digi page. Below are a couple of ways that I use them... Continue reading

So... Leanne Bailey has been busy again! This time, she created a super sweet way to commemorate her baby Rylan's first year of life - with an adorable Metal Photo Panel (US|Canada): I LOVE this project! In fact, I'm going to have one like this on display at my wedding featuring photos of my fiance and I over the years! (With different embellishments, of course.) ;) And, the very best part is that Leanne shared the blank template with us all for easy creation of the project! Visit the project center for full instructions and to download the template. Enjoy!... Continue reading

My friend Leanne Bailey always has the cutest ideas - if she isn't creating a fun-filled design for her daughter's room, she's creating something digitally that showcases the photography of her wonderful little life and family. And, since I LOVE it when she shares her creations with me, most of the time I ask if she minds if I share them with the rest of you for inspiration. Lucky for us, she always happily agrees. I would almost even bet it's even safe to say that Leanne and her family have inspired a good number of us to create something... Continue reading

The Easter Bunny is busy right now, getting all those baskets ready for the Easter holiday later this month! I thought I might just help him out with this adorable little treat bag. You will need a piece of Carrot Cardstock. (How fitting!) Cut your cardstock to measure 5" x 6". Roll into a tube shape, pressing the ends together to adhere. Add Precision Point Adhesive the the inside edge of one end of the tube. Add clip to hold shut until the adhesive is dry. Fill with candy. (Jellybeans are a favorite in our house.) Press the top closed... Continue reading

After reading an article in the local newspaper about Consultant Gretchen Naumoff and her brother donating Simply Said Books to the Akron Children's Hospital, Vanessa Swank reached out with a mission of her own. Vanessa had lost a brother at a young age and, knowing what it's like to lose a sibling, she really wanted the brothers and sisters of the children lost at Sandy Hook Elementary to have albums with which to remember their siblings. Teaming up, Gretchen and Vanessa set to work gathering volunteers to attend a “Crop of Love and Healing" to create an album for each... Continue reading

Hi there! Gretchen here today with a layout to share using the fun (and my new favorite!) Candy Shop line and the brand new Shape Maker System! I used the 2" Circle Shape Maker Cartridge (it comes with the Shape Maker System, along with a 2" Square Cartridge!) to make the scalloped borders for this layout. I punched a bunch of circles out of a couple of sheets of red Candy Shop Designer-Print Paper. Then I just cut each of the circles in half. And I lined them up to create a border above and below the picture. I cut... Continue reading

Can you believe that in some parts of the US (but NOT in Minnesota!) buds are starting to pop up out of the ground? One moment it's -11 degrees or even 32 degrees and a few days later the temps are as high as 74. What is happening to our four seasons? Even though I like a good winter season, especially when there is snow around so my kids can build snowmen or make snow angles, there is nothing like spring. It's my most favorite season. I love every moment I get to open the windows allowing for a cool... Continue reading

Story submitted by Lisa Smith, Creative Memories Consultant About five years ago, my parents were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. Because they had eloped when they got married, they never had the hoopla of a big wedding. So, I wanted to do something extra special for them. As a Creative Memories Consultant, this was a no-brainer – I would make them an album! I decided to get family and friends involved in the project. My brother and I – along with our children – each created several pages that included long letters. Plus I sent out two journal-sized boxes of... Continue reading