"May all your dreams come true!" by Daniela

Supplies: Elle's Studio Birthday Cut Out and Chic Journaling tags
Is March over already?! Wow... this month went way to fast! Daniela made this card for us today and I thought it was the perfect way to end our month long birthday celebration :) We've had such a blast with you all this month and our dreams really have come true!

Thank you all so much for making these last three years so much fun! We've made so many wonderful friends and met so many amazing people - we are so thankful for each and every one of you :)

And, huge thanks to our Design Team for keeping us inspired all month long and showing us how to use our Birthday Cut Outs to make some super cute cards and tags! You ladies are awesome!

We love you all!
xo, Elle

Happy Birthday To You! by Paige

Paige made this little cutie for us today! I love how it looks like a flower - the layers are just yummy! And, I like how she used the Lollipop Tag as the background layer, and put the Birthday Cut Out on top!

Thanks so much, Paige, for keeping us inspired! Love this little card :)

We have an update on the Grab Bags we posted about yesterday! They are going FAST! We are down to less than 10 on the medium and we only have 14 left of the Xlarge - so if you were thinking about getting one... don't delay! I'm not sure when we'll be doing these again... but it probably won't be for a very, very long time! And, don't forget! All orders (including grab bag orders) in March receive a FREE Birthday Cut Out!

We also wanted to say a huge "Thank you!" to those who already purchased one! Half of them have already shipped and should be arriving soon and the other half will be shipping first thing tomorrow morning :) We hope you love them! When we packed them up we made sure that if we were the one receiving the package that we'd be happy, so we hope you are, too!

There is one final birthday card to share with you tomorrow and that will be wrapping up our amazing month long birthday celebration!
xo, Elle

Birthday Card Tutorial with Ruffled Ribbon By Samantha

Today we have a super sweet card tutorial by Samantha! She makes making ruffled ribbon look super easy :) We love it!

Let's get started:
1. Gather up your supplies, you will need a ribbon that has a stitch running through it. I used a ribbon from Pebbles Inc.
2. On one end of your ribbon, pull a couple of inches of the stitch. I needed a pin to pull this stitch out.
3. Begin pulling the thread out. Make sure you don’t pull the entire thread out.
4. You will have a ruffled ribbon like this.
5. Cut a rub on doily in half.
6. Rub on to your card surface.
7. Affix your Elle’s Studio tags with a tiny bit of Helmar adhesive. You don’t need a lot since these are going to be stitched down with a machine. Keep the adhesive away from the edges, you don’t want it on your machine’s needle.
8. After stitching the tags down use a generous amount of Helmar 450 Quick Dry. Let it set for about a minute. Glue your ribbon down, I played with mine and made a figure 8-sort of.
9. One of the great things about this glue is that it does not set instantly , so you can play around with your ribbon a little to get the result you desire. Add buttons to the centers of the flowers.
10. Let your card dry for 20 minutes.
Tada! You're finished and now you have a super sweet card to share with someone special! Love those ribbon ruffles, too! So much fun!!

Thanks so much for inspiring us today, Samantha! It is awesome!
xo, Elle

P.S. Just wanted to thank you for the amazing response to the grab bags! Two-thirds have been sold, so if you're still thinking of getting one... don't delay!

Our First Ever Grab Bag Sale!

We are super excited to announce our very first Grab Bag sale... ever! Here's a little peek at what the Grab Bags look like:
We decided to have two sizes available: Medium and XLarge! Both sizes contain an amazing amount of items for their price!

What's in a grab bag? Well... we can't tell you exactly what's in them :) But, we can say that they may include journaling tags, stamps, and cut outs! Bags contain newer, semi-old and even some retired and maybe out-of-print items! Holiday items will be kept to a minimum and you will not receive any double items! We promise each bag will have a great mix of items and each bag will be unique!

There's only one catch... our Grab Bag supply is very limited! So don't delay... order today! (LOL! Sorry, I couldn't resist the rhyme!)

Happy Creating!
xo, Elle
p.s. A fun tutorial will be coming tonight :) Two blog posts in one day? Woohoo!!!!

Raffle Winners - Week 4

Today is our very last birthday raffle drawing :( We have had so much fun sending these presents out to the winners! To end our celebration with a bang, we decided to draw SIX tickets!! We were going to do five, but today while drawing we decided six would be even better! So grab your tickets and check them to see if you are holding any of these numbers:
If you have a ticket with any of those numbers, email us as soon as possible to claim your present! We'll get them shipped asap :) Also, we are looking for a couple ticket holders from last weeks post, so double check that one, too! And, for those who purchased over this weekend, we pulled your tickets out before the drawing, so when your package arrives in the mail, make sure you check your tickets to see if you're holding any of the above numbers :)

This month was so much fun and so inspiring! This has been the BEST birthday so far and we hope there are more to come :) Thank you all so much for making it the best, ever! We still have a tutorial and two more cards to share with you in the next three days of March.

Also, for the last three days of March, we will still be shipping the Birthday Cut Outs FREE with every order, but since the raffle drawings are over, there will be no more raffle tickets shipped out after today's orders. And, tomorrow, check here at 8:00 am PST for the Grab Bags!!

Happy weekend!
xo, Elle

Weekend update :)

Hey everyone!

I'm writing a more personal blog post tonight :) There has been so much going on around here it's been crazy, but we are still having a blast!

My mom called me earlier this week and wanted to know if I would come over and help her dye Easter eggs! I could hardly wait for the weekend!
My mom and I had a blast dying the eggs - we dyed some for my grandparents, dad and me... the only egg eaters in the family. She had bought the kit with the "glittery spray" but it didn't really work to well... so we tried some other things! She then put them on this cute plate and made it all pretty for my grandparents :)
After that, I went back to the studio to do a little catching up - we have some more fun coming, soon! First, we have put together a VERY LIMITED quantity of Grab Bags that will go up for sale first thing Monday morning. They are packed full of items at AMAZING prices but extremely limited! They will go live 8:00 am PST time.
And, another exciting thing is we are in the final proofing stages for our new items! We have set a tentative launch date for mid April - should have a more exact date very soon :) We can't wait! Look out for sneak peeks coming soon!

Hope everyone is having an amazing weekend! Our last raffle drawing is tomorrow and we decided to make it a HUGE one! We'll be drawing five names, instead of just three :)
xo, Elle

Birthday present from Laurie!

Supplies: Birthday Cut Outs, XOXO Journaling Strips and Bazzill cardstock.

It opens!
Laurie made this cute and interactive card for us today! I love how it opens - That is so clever, Laurie!! Plus, the brown and pink is one of my favorite color combos ;)

Totally inspired for the weekend, now! Thanks so much, Laurie :)
xo, Elle

Birthday Tag by Daniela!

Supplies: Elle's Studio Birthday Cut Outs, Crepe Paper, ribbon, button and tag.
Daniela made this super cute tag that would be perfect for a present topper! Love that pretty pink flower on the top, too! Lots of fun! And, if you look closely, she has stamped a fun texture on the tag - love that extra touch!

Thanks so much, Daniela!
xo, Elle
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We are celebrating our birthday all March long! Each order will ship with a free Birthday Cut Out and a raffle ticket for every item you purchase! Raffle drawings will take place every Sunday in March! You can read more details about our celebration here.

March Blog Challenge Entries!

Today's the day we get to share the challenge entries with you and we are super excited! This was a pretty tough one, but everyone that entered did a great job! Here are some of the entries we received:

By Melanie:
By Nita:
By scrappininak:
By brainybairn:
By Amy:
Those are some great ways to use nine photos on one layout! Thank you all so much for participating in our challenge - it was lots of fun to see all the entries! Stay tuned for another challenge on April 2nd!

The randomly drawn (from all the entries received) $30 prize goes to brainybairn!! Congrats brainybairn, please email us at info(at)shopellesstudio(dot)com to claim your prize!

Love you all!
xo, Elle

Happy Birthday To You by Jenni!

Supplies: Birthday Cut Outs, Granny's Doily Journaling Tags, and Lollipop Journaling Tags. Jenni made this super cute card to inspire us today! Love how she used three of our tags and layered them together - along with the matching ribbons! And, the stitching that frames it all is the perfect finishing touch!

Thanks so much, Jenni, for the inspiration!!
xo, Elle
P.S. Don't forget about our March scrapbooking challenge! You still have a couple days left to enter - check out all the details here!

Raffle Winners - week 3

Today is our third raffle drawing and we have four winners to announce this week! Pull out your raffle tickets and check your numbers! We have special birthday presents for the four people who have the following number(s) on their raffle tickets:

If you have a ticket with any of those numbers, email us as soon as possible to claim your present! We'll get them shipped asap :)

Thank you all for playing along with us this week! For those who didn't win, make sure you hold on to your tickets! Our next and last raffle drawing will be next week on Sunday!

Stay tuned for more birthday card inspiration this week :)
xo, Elle
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We are celebrating our birthday all March long! Each order will ship with a free Birthday Cut Out and a raffle ticket for every item you purchase! Raffle drawings will take place every Sunday in March! You can read more details about our celebration here.

March Galleries!

The March Galleries are live and FULL of amazing layouts, cards and even a cupcake mini book! We want to do something new this month and highlight an item from each gallery - but make sure you still go check out the rest! There is tons to see!
Card by Jenni - Supplies: Lollipop Journaling Tags, Granny's Doily Journaling Tags, and Prompts, Patterns, and Journaling Tags.

This card is perfect for spring, love the colors she picked out to use, and that little butterfly is perfect! She has more photos of this card and two other beautiful layouts (for one she used our XOXO line, showing the versatility of that line, and the other is perfectly vintage!) in her gallery and we just love what she did with those! Thanks, Jenni!

Layout by Paige - Supplies: Scalloped Journaling Circle Tags, Granny's Doily Circle Tags, and Greeting Circles.

The quilted patterned on this layout is genius! Love how it runs right over the tags! So amazing :) She has more photos of this layout, another layout made with our stamps and a super cute card in her gallery!

Layout by Laurie - Supplies: Birthday Cut Outs

Love the way Laurie used the Birthday Cut Outs as the flower center! And, it goes perfectly with the paper she picked out - so cute!! Laurie has more photos of this layout, another layout and an awesome and amazing mini cupcake book in her gallery that incorporates our Number Flashcards as candles!

Card by Mel - Supplies: XOXO Journaling Tags, XOXO Papers, and XOXO Sweet Word Circle Tags

Love how Mel made a cupcake out of our tags and mini papers! That looks soooo adorable! She has more photos of this, and another really fun layout in her gallery!

Layout by Samantha - Supplies: Holiday Journaling Tags, Date and Place Strips, and Birthday Cut Outs

Love how Samantha made a little college out of our tags at the bottom of her layout and how she showed the versatility of our tags by using a tag from our Christmas line on her layout! She has more photos of this layout, another very cute layout and a fun project for you home in her gallery!

Card by Daniela - Supplies: XOXO Papers, and XOXO Journaling Strips

We love this little card! The butterflies and ribbon across the card add so much to it, too! Lots of fun! She has more photos of this card, and two amazing layouts (one even has kites made from our Chic Note and Date tags!) in her gallery!

There is SO much more to see! Make sure you check out the rest, here! And, if the gallery hasn't worked in the past, we definitely have all the bugs worked out now :) plus, the best part about our new gallery system is if you missed last month, they are all still there, under each persons name!

We hope they inspire you like they have us! Happy weekend, everyone!
xo, Elle

Birthday Card by Paige!

Paige has made this cute card to inspire us today! She made the pennants out of our packaging backing and some papers from our digital downloads! Then, she added a Birthday Cut Out and a Date and Place Strip - so fun!

Thanks so much for inspiring us today, Paige! It's so creative and cute!
xo, Elle

Gallery Sneak Peeks! +winners

We have some sneak peeks from the March gallery that will be live on the 20th! And, I have to say, the ladies totally out did themselves this month! I know, I say that every month, but really, these ladies are amazing! Every month they inspire me so much, and this month is no exception!

Make sure you check out the gallery on March 20th, we can hardly for you to see :)

It was SO FUN reading through all your favorite birthday moments! I have a toss up between two of my favorite birthday memories... When I was 5 or 6 my mom and dad had an M&M themed party and made these amazing treats. I don't remember exactly what the treats were, just that they had M&M's in them and they tasted soooo good! Then, my other favorite memory is when I turned 13 and my mom and dad surprised me with a Magician! He entertained us with a 30 minute show and gave us each our own magic trick. I was really into magic tricks back then, so it was the most amazing experience!

Anyways, enough of my stories, let's get on to the winners, LOL! We have two winners from our giveaway post below! The winners are:
AllyW at March 16, 2010 11:56 AM
Jenn at March 17, 2010 7:22 AM

Please email us your mailing address and we'll get your presents shipped asap!

Stay tuned for more birthday card inspiration! And, don't forget! All orders, placed in March, will receive a FREE Birthday Cut Out and raffle tickets (one for each item purchased) for our raffle drawings that are taking place each Sunday in March!
xo, Elle

Designer Spotlight: Samantha Sibbet

Hi, my name is Samantha Sibbet and I live in San Diego, Ca. I grew up in Santa Barbara County and after attending San Diego State University, I decided to stay (my husband will never leave). I taught kindergarten in the inner city for 8 years and taught a few semesters at a small college. I am currently on a long leave of absence so that I can stay at home with my lovely little girls.
I will be celebrating my 10 year wedding anniversary in just 3 weeks! Wow, 10 years already! I love being married and being a mom is way better than I could have ever imagined.

What is your favorite color combo?
I can not get enough of aqua, red and pink. I recently painted my bathroom aqua and I am now considering it for my kitchen table...wouldn't that be pretty with red roses!

What is your favorite scrapbooking supply?
Oh, I think all of the patterned papers are so irresistible. Just when you think you have seen the most fabulous paper ever, another comes along and I am in awe all over again! I can't live without Beacon's 3 in 1 craft glue, my paper piercer, Art Institute Designer Dries Clear glitter glue and my Martha Stewart crystal fine glitter.Why do you scrapbook and how did you get started?
I was a card maker first, I only made cards for about 5 years. I started scrapbooking so that I could do something with all my photos instead of throwing them in a box in the closet. I was drawn to the the pretty patterned papers of course. I was a simple scrapper, flat pages, always 3 or more photos per page until 14 months ago...I discovered scrapbooking blogs and inspiration on the internet, oh my!

Who inspires you?
When it comes to crafting and making pretty things, I have found some amazingly strong and inspirational people on the internet to draw my inspiration from. Lisa Leonard, Stephanie Howell and my friend Katie Watson are just three of my favorites. Each create from their heart and encourage others to be incredible!
Do you record every moment or just special ones?
Well, to be totally honest, I record the moments that I have great pictures of! If the the photos are everyday photos of my daughters, I will use the pictures as an opportunity to journal something that I have had in heart and I want my daughters to know or tell a story about them that I never want to forget.

What is your favorite thing about scrapbooking?
I have always been a girl that loves beautiful paper. I was a hoarder of good stationary forever. As a little girl I loved collecting stickers and as I got a little older I enjoyed making collages on text book covers and notebooks. It was the scrapper inside of me! I love playing with paper and all of the pretty accouterments that come along with this hobby. I know that writing my feelings down about my children will mean so much to them and me in the future. I think I forget the details to stories quite quickly, so getting them recorded is important.

I have met the most talented and amazing women through scrapbooking. I have new friendships that are so dear to me thanks to this hobby.

Thanks so much for sharing with us today, Samantha! It was great getting to know you more and we feel blessed to have you apart of our Design Team!