Friday, April 26, 2013

Flash Friday Sale!

Happy Friday!! I am celebrating the end of another week and a Friday closer to summer with a Flash Friday Fifteen Sale :) Everything in my little TpT store is 15% off today. Grab some goodies if you are planning to create this weekend!

Sunday, April 21, 2013

With a {Freebie} Cherry On Top!

I love food. I don't try to deny it and I've just found ways to control my lack of self control when it comes to food :) Perhaps my newest coping strategy is to fuel that love into my clipart sets.... Check out my newest "sweet" clips:
I wrote a post WAY back about my love of cupcakes and the crazy burst of cupcake clipart that is in my store now, so if you want more sweet treats, check out that post {HERE}. I'm trying to make my clipart more versatile and easier for teachers to create their products, so I made this set mix-match pairs for centers or worksheets. Teachers can stack as many ice cream scoops on top of the cones as they want to create activities for fact families, word sorts, synonyms, etc. 

I also posted a new Little Artist Kids clipart set that I have already made some additions to in order to make it more "TpT creator" friendly :)

My bloggy friend had a great suggestion about the paint cans and paint splashes to make them more useful for sorts and activity-making. She suggested that I make cans without the handles so teachers could have more room for labels for sorts and make paint blogs with a little more space for words, too. I thought it was a great suggestion! So I added these modified images- bringing the total of this $4.50 set up to 54 images!!
AND...last but not least, I'll end this quickie post with a "Cherry on Top" 
with my newest {FREEBIE} clipart set, Cherry Bunches :)
I thought there would be a lot of possibilities for counting activities for little learners, all the way up to multiplication and division activities for the older kiddos! Snatch it up if you want!

I'm off to tackle the work that I have not been motivated to finish yet. Amazing how the weekend flies by so fast....

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

$1.00 Sunglasses Clipart for 1 Day!

Hi all! Just popping in to let you know that I whipped up some sunglasses clipart and I want to offer it up to you for $1.00 just for tomorrow (Thursday)! It is regularly priced at $2.50. There are 15 images total, including the color and blacklines.
Check 'um out {HERE}
Hurry if you can use these! It will go back to regular price on Friday! 

Friday, April 12, 2013

Putting Happy Faces on all my Images!!

Ever since I finished my newest Put on a Happy Face clipart set, I have been spending WAY too much time playing around with my images from other clipart sets and adding smiles.....check out the instant "makeover!"
BEFORE
AFTER! Smiles all around :)
 I have made hundreds of images of clipart since I started last summer, so if I keep putting smiles on all of them....I'm going to have a BIG problem haha Nothing brightens my day like some happy clipart :)

If you are wondering where those images above came from the carrot, watermelon and apple are from my Alphabet Pictures Clipart Set that can be used for MUCH more than alphabet activities.


The blue ribbon is part of my freebie Award Ribbon Pack.
What do you think of the rainbow stripe border on the makeover images above? 
I just finished up that new Color Striped Borders tonight and think they would be really useful for product covers, task card borders or end-of-the-year certificates. I have included each color with a transparent center, as well as a white center :) These previews are part of the same set, I just couldn't fit them all on the same page. 

 I already have a handful of additional face doodles that I will be updating my Put on a Happy Face set next week! Just can stop doodlin'! If you have purchased the set, you will get the revised number of images for free!

Thursday, April 11, 2013

How to Almost Double your Clipart Library for just $3.00!

Have you ever had a clipart image and thought, "Wow, this would be really cute if it had a goofy little smile on it and it became a little character?" Well if you have, I got you covered... haha

I just finished my Put on a Happy Face clipart set and this set is a TpT seller must....and here's why. With these 12 transparent face doodles, you can turn ANY clipart object into a little character! You can practically double the use of your clipart library (which we know is already probably enormous if you suffer from clipart addiction like me).

Check it out....

 Here's how it works....easy peasy!
It's that simple! It's only $3.00 in my store right now! Click on the images or links above to check it out and DOUBLE your clipart library in seconds :)

Wednesday, April 10, 2013

New Clipart Set: Character Doodle-A-Face!

Check out my newest clipart set! Character Doodle-A-Face Clipart! It is something completely different than what I already have in my store, but I thought it would be fun to make and I thought it would give teachers a lot of options for creating resources.

I thought these images would be great for character analysis, behavior reflections, lessons on feelings, inference lessons about character feelings/emotions, etc!

What is also different about this set is that it is a GROWING SET! I have never posted a clipart set like that before where I will be continuously adding images to this set and if you purchase it now for $5.00, you will always be able to download new face templates as the product is updated. If you purchase the set and there is a certain looking character that you would need a face template for, I will do my best to add it in a timely manner :) The price of the set will go up as the image count increases....so buy it while it is at the lowest price right now!

There are 15 face templates (including one bald one where students could also doodle the hair of the character). There are 8 girls and 7 boys right now.....although I have already thought of a couple more hairstyles and doodled them since I posted it....so I am already working towards my updated edition!

If you want to check it out and snatch it up at the low price and get unlimited access to ALL future face templates, click {HERE} or on the image above!

Thanks for checking it out- I hope you are as excited about it as me and don't just think they look like creepy mannequin heads haha Happy Wednesday to everyone!


Sunday, April 7, 2013

Being Thankful

Welp, it's Sunday night and that means my spring break is officially over in about 4 hours....my gosh, amazing how those breaks fly by so much faster than the work week does!

I flew to Chicago for break and had an awesome week visiting my family- it. went. way. too. fast. It was a great little bubble away from reality for a while. Being with my family reminded me of just how much I have to be thankful for.  No matter how crazy my life gets or how many places I move to for school or work, they are the one thing that stays the same.

It was while I was visiting family that I saw a lot on the news about the Sandy Hook families working towards stricter gun laws. When I was at my sister's house, I saw articles in People magazine about the families who lost children. It just seemed like there were a lot of reminders about the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary. Maybe that is part of the reason why I was so thankful that I had the time with my family.

It reminded me that I never did a follow-up post about my Angels Among Us clipart set that I created shortly after the tragedy. All the profits from this set have gone to helping the families/children in crisis. I want to thank everyone who has supported these families by purchasing this clipart set!! It is because of you that I was able to make a donation to the Sandy Hook Elementary School Fund through the Network for Good Organization.


All the sales from this set will continue to go to Sandy Hook Elementary and families affected by this tragedy. I wanted to make sure that you all knew that your donations are helping families. If you haven't snatched up this set, it is in my store and I will be making my next donation after the next quarter ends on TpT.

Thanks so much for helping me support Sandy Hook!

Friday, April 5, 2013

Friday Freebie: Award Ribbon Clipart!

Super fast post to give you a heads up on a new freebie in my TpT store :) A fun, friendly set of award ribbons that might help take the edge off of state testing- or at least help celebrate when it's over!

I am going to make some "classic" colors of these images, too.... in case you have any use for the regular ribbons for 1st, 2nd, 3rd place, etc. I just didn't have time to make them today. Happy Friday to everyone! 

Thursday, April 4, 2013

Alphabet Picture Clipart has FINALLY arrived!

Oh. my. goodness. Have you ever had that project that you are working on and you are super pumped for the entire thing, except for the very end? This is the love-hate relationship I had with my newest set of clipart. I had been asked to do an alphabet picture set of clipart a while ago and had doodled a few images here and there. I had been meaning to make one for a while, so I was glad to get the request and get going on it :) I decided with the week off for spring break, it was time to get this baby done.

Oi- my goodness - vey. If the alphabet had 20 letters, I think I would have been golden, but those last 6 letters were a doozy. Nevertheless, it is finished and posted :) Looking at these clips, it makes me want to teach Pre-K or kindergarten :) BUT if you don't teach those grades, look at the images in this set and you might be surprised how many you can use in any grade level for a variety of seasons/holidays. This is my biggest variety pack (in a sense) if you are looking for images to plug into themed centers or seasonal products. There is a little taste of a lotta things in this set!

Drum roll please.....

Thank you for humoring me in my celebration of this project finally being done! 
Check it out {HERE} if you'd like :)

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Dollar Store- You have my heart AGAIN!

So if you have been reading my blog for a while, you already know that the Dollar Tree and I have a special relationship. My last great Dollar Tree find were these little Eye Spies/Finger Trackers that I thought of tons of classroom uses for....here's a picture and {link to that post}.....


Well, the Dollar Tree has my heart again. I give you....Sandwich Cardboard Coasters!!

I was so excited when I found these that I bought at least 8 sets.....I have no idea what I am going to specifically use them for, but they were just so stinkin cute. Also, my kiddos know I love to teach with food, so I figure this is a good compromise to using REAL food all the time :) Each set of coasters comes with nine cardboard photos of sandwich toppings, cheese, lettuce, onion, tomato....well just look at the picture below and you'll see :) 


There are so many ways to use these in the classroom and I figured that $1.00 was cheaper than printing out all of these pieces in color ink- although it did get me thinking about drawing Sandwich Clipart :) Here are just a few of the ideas that I thought of for these tasty treasures:

Writing Ideas:

*Technical Writing- Give students the pieces and have them as ingredients to help them write the steps for making a sandwich. Especially with younger kids, I think it might help them having the pictures and  pieces to put in a sequence first and then write the details with transition words and such :)

*Descriptive Writing- Give a group of students a set of coasters and have them work together to think of descriptive adjectives for each ingredient and then write a poem with them.

Math Ideas:

*Least to Greatest- Put numbers on each of the ingredient coasters with white labels and have students order them from least to greatest. The two bread pieces would be the least and the greatest numbers so it would be a good guide for our littlest learners. For older kiddos, it could help them see the concept of range. The range of the number would be the difference between the bread slices....all the sandwich topping in between the bread would be INSIDE the range of numbers. Then you could have students find the mean, median and mode depending on the numbers you choose for the coasters. 

*Build a Sandwich- Use labels to put a price on each ingredient (coaster). Have students come up with different sandwich recipes that add up to a certain cost. For example, they might have to create a $3.00 sandwich.... a slice of bread might be 50 cents, so they would need two slices for a sandwich (three slices for a double decker!) and then add multiple layers of the different ingredients to create a sandwich that adds up to $3.00. Does that make sense? I thought it might be a fun twist for practicing money. Hold the phone! THEN the students could do technical writing on how to assemble their specific sandwich creation. Math and writing combined....perfect!

What other ideas do you have for these coasters? If you share in my passion for a good deal and teaching with food, you won't want to pass these up! Post your ideas/grade level in a comment below!!

And no...Dollar Tree does not pay me for advertising....although they should :) Oh! I found these coasters on the bottom shelf of the wall with all the kitchen appliances. I only spotted them by chance...so you will have to look carefully so you don't miss them!

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Free Font: Vacation Doodles and New Clipart Sets

Some people go to spas when they are stressed. I go to coffee shops. It is a poor girl's version of a facial to get an iced coffee with two shots of espresso. Both are going to jolt your face awake one way or the other. Downside is, I don't think this iced coffee I'm drinking right now is going to do much moisturizing for my skin.

I am on spring break this week, so I'm actually in Wisconsin right now. Makes perfect sense right? haha I have been visiting family outside of Chicago and in Wisconsin over Easter and this week. Ironically, I am currently sitting at a coffee shop, away from my family, about ready to pour myself into some work that I NEED to get done or I'm looking at a potential melt down when I get back to Dover. I'm hoping that if you are reading this you are a teacher, too, because then there is no need for me to explain any further why I would be pounding coffee, doing work, in Wisconsin....on spring break. :)

I use the phrase "pouring myself into work" loosely at the moment because I just finished up a free font that I wanted to share with you and give you a heads up on some new clipart sets that I actually had time to work on finally! Clearly not focused on my lesson plays yet. After this...then....I will get to work :)

Here's my new free font for ya....appropriately named "Vacation Doodles." Hopefully you will think of  summer vacation when you use it in your lesson materials. Oh sweet summer vacation....where art thou?


Nothing fancy, but a little whimsy and fun for your personal or commercial use ;)

Speaking of summer....can you tell I had the beach on my mind when I was creating clipart this week...

What is really cool about my Ocean Commotion set, is that I have made some background digital papers and ocean scenes for you to use with the clipart....they are included in the set :) You can build your own coral reef! I guess the sand one would actually work really well with my Beach Vacation clipart bundle, too. The possibilities are endless....you decide :) 
Click on the pictures to see more details about the sets in my store.

    

Alright, I'm definitely not hearing sounds of the ocean, but work is calling my name and I gotta get down to business. Enjoy the freebies and check out my new clipart sets. If you aren't somewhere warm this spring break, you can at least create some lesson materials with a warm-twist :)