Come Have Your Say! Voting for Challenge #6 now open!

Hello to you all. I hope that you all had an exceptionally good weekend. For those readers who live in the incredibly beautiful country of Canada, Happy Thanksgiving!

It is time to get the voting underway for Challenge #6. Now unfortunately, we only had 11 people enter our challenge so we had to make a decision as to whether to have a top seven or not. The consensus of the team was to not choose a top seven and to open up the voting to every single participant; so, all the entrants have the opportunity to be chosen as the Voter's Choice.

Now, unfortunately Inlinkz doesn't allow you to visit the blog until AFTER you have voted.  This makes things difficult because voting on this challenge blog is all about the project OR post that inspires you most and the person may not have created anything at all but instead had an incredibly inspiring story to tell in their post.  That is especially true in the case of Pat M.'s second entry this week so please make sure you go read what she had to say and not just place your vote based on the image that comes up in the linkup.  In the future I am going to provide links to each top seven entry so that you have the opportunity to actually  head over to the blogs and check out each post to help you with your voting.  For this week however, since there is no top seven, I am simply going to list each of the entrant's names which is linked up to their blog (order is reflective of how they entered the challenge and nothing else).

aNNie

Jackie C

Pat Martin

~DEANNE~

Edwina Brown

Tip Top

Nancy Parker

Pat Martin

Julie Gleeson

D~DesignsByDragonfly

Mimi

 

Have Your Say!

It is time for you, our readers, to vote for your favourite entry.  So take a look at all the entries linked up above by heading over to the blogs and checking out their posts.  Which participant most inspires you?  Remember, you are not necessarily voting on a creation that was made.  You might simply find what the person had to say in their post to be inspiring and optimistic.  For this particular challenge, the theme was all about HONESTY.  Which participant best conveyed this concept to you?  Please let us know who your choice is by placing your vote below using the Inlinkz feature. 

Voting open for 10 days:

October 14th to October 24th

So, come have your say in determining the Voter's Choice for Challenge #6!  Don't forget to leave a comment after you have voted.  There will be a prize for one lucky voter who leaves a comment (chosen randomly).  Why not pay a visit to your favourite and let them know how they inspired you.

Good luck everyone!

Important  Note:

Please note that in order for this to work, I must add all the entries but I can only do this AFTER I have published this post.  So there will be some overlap time between when this post is published and when you will be able to vote.  Once I have uploaded the entries there will be a total of eleven images below on which to vote.  If there are less than eleven, it means that I am still in the process of adding the images and you should come back in a little while to make your vote.  Thank you for your patience!

Challenge #7--HOPE: October 7 - November 3, 2013

It is the first Monday in October and that means it is time for the next challenge to start. This time around, for Challenge #7 the theme is "Hope".  Show us your interpretation of what hope means to you.  You can make any sort of project and/or post as long as it is positive in nature and relates to the theme.  Now how cool is this.  It is our 7th challenge, and it is starting on the 7th AND there are currently 7 DT members on this team.  That must mean we are extra blessed this month and with the theme of HOPE to boot, I am sure that we are in for an awesome challenge.  I can't wait to see what you all come up with.

Don't forget when you link up your project and/or post, to please leave a comment letting us know how your creation relates to the concept of hope if it isn't readily clear within the design itself or clearly written somewhere else in your post. Remember, the creation must be positive/inspirational/motivational AND adhere to the theme of hope in order to be considered eligible for this month's prizes.  While you may easily see how hope relates to your creation, it may not be as apparent to me or the DT members.  That is why we ask that you clarify it somewhere, whether here or in your blogpost.  This way it clears up any ambiguity that may exist.

This month we are fortunate enough to have two guest sponsors so Creative Bug Digitals will be taking a break this month from providing the winnings for the person who gets the most votes.  In their place, it will be the awesome Floppy Latté Designs (FLD) stepping in to take care of that prize.  They also provided our Design Team with some images to work on too.  Let's meet them...

Hi. I'm jessica (or FLOPPY) of FLOPPY LATTE DESIGNS. I  design digital stamps and papers, and also rework old woodcuts and drawings and put them into digital stamp form...and i'm stef (or GLITTERBABE) as i'm known in blogland. I also design digital stamps but not quite as intricately as FLOPPY does. Together we're the LATTE LADIES, or better known as FLOPPY LATTE DESIGNS.   Jess is the more serious one and stef is the clown – always trying to make people laugh. ok. So she likes the limelight. Keeps me (jess) in the background creating. Together we offer a variety of stamping and scrapbooking images and items reaching out to everyone's tastes (so we think). Do drop by FLOPPY LATTE DESIGNS (www.floppylattedesigns.com/catalog) and have a look around. We are sure you'll see something you like and we guarantee it'll put a smile on your face!

Our second guest sponsor for the month, taking care of the random prize, is the ever fabulous Fresh Brewed Designs (FBD) who also also provided the Design Team with some images to work with.  Here is a refresher on what FBD is all about...

If you are looking for some freshly brewed inspiration, then you have come to the right place.  Fresh Brewed Designs (http://www.freshbreweddesigns.com) is a small on-line company that has been offering a wide variety of digital images and rubber stamps since November 2010, designed to meet the needs of paper crafting addicts everywhere.  With over 30 categories to choose from and several new additions to the store monthly, our range of products is expanding all the time. Whether you are looking for one of our uniquely designed coffee inspired images or something entirely different, you are sure to find something to please.  We'd also love for you to visit us over on our blog (http://freshbreweddesigns.blogspot. com) where inspiration is always percolating.  We have a digi release at least once a month and other events as well.  Come see us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fresh-Brewed-Designs/139388879447210) too.  You never know what other goodies you may find there.

Owned and operated by Heather Dennis, loving wife and mother to two home-schooled children, you can always expect personalized service.

At Fresh Brewed Designs we always have a fresh pot of creativity brewing. So stop by and join us for a cuppa whenever you want!

Since we had two sponsors, each team member got to choose the image they wanted to work with.  I've included the information about each of these images below the project it appears on.  If you are interested in purchasing any of the incredible images I'm about to show you, clicking on the watermark will take you to their location in their respective stores.

Now, check out what my amazing Design Team came up with to inspire you.  Clicking on the team members' name will take you to their blog where you can check out the details for their inspirational creations...

Vicky chose this Floral Corner Arrangement from FLD for her project.  I love the versatility of corner images because you can do so many different things with them.  You can also never go wrong with flowers as they are great for almost any kind of concept.

Check out this gorgeous flower called Blossoms & Butterflies from FBD that Desíre has chosen to go with in her project.  I love the incredible detail in this flower and the butterflies are the perfect addition to the image.

Sandy chose to use Funky Floral VII from FLD for her project. Funky is the perfect descriptive word for this image with its unique shapes and configuration.  Once again florals come through!

 

 For her project Samara has gone with the image Latté Awareness from FBD.  With October being Breast Cancer Awareness month, this image and the theme of HOPE go hand in hand together.

 

Ike has joined us full time and we are so thrilled to have more of her.  For this project, she has gone with this cool monogrammed letter called Floral Cap Nouveau H from FLD.  Monograms are a great way to bring attention to a concept; H is for Hope in this case.  Monogram images are also great for personalized note cards and for making someone feel special by using the first letter of the person's name.  Once again you have an image that gives you so many different opportunities to make use of it.

Suze chose to work with Heart Hot Air Balloon from FBD. I've loved this image for awhile and hope to work with it myself soon.  There are so many occasions where this image would be perfect and paired with the concept of HOPE is certainly one of them!

We are also pleased to have Edwina from  Edwina's Creations joining us this month...

Hi, I am Edwina Brown. I was born in Kentucky USA. I live in New Jersey USA now. I started crafting as a small child. I loved art from the time I got my first box of crayons. In 1996 I started oil painting classes and then watercolors in 2001. I finally learned Pastels and Acrylics too. I learned about scrapbooking in 2003 and finally started making cards as well. I did not get into using digis till 2010. I am addicted to them now. I see an image then I think “Oh that will make a great card”. Next thing I know I am making a card. Sometimes I do not know till the card is finished what it will look like. I love trying new things and I think doing things out of our comfort zone improves our ability and mind. Making cards and other craft items have become a full time thing for me now. I am on 3 DT’s and love working with all 3 ladies. Crafting has introduced me to some very special people along the way. I now call some of them friend. I am thankful for them as they have helped me grow.

Here is the gorgeous card that Edwina came up with for us...

Edwina chose to work with the image, Thinking of You--Girl in Window.  If it looks familiar it is because a couple of our DT members used it in the last challenge that FBD sponsored us for.  I just love this image.  As I wrote last time we showcased it, I get captured in the feeling of longing and wishing that this young girl exudes.  Along with these feelings you can also gain a sense of hope too which of course is exactly the concept that we are trying to get across this month.

Once again my design team came through with gorgeous creations all conveying a sense of HOPE within them.
 
So what are you waiting for?  Create a project and/or post that is positive AND relates to hope, provide an explanation of how your project and/or post relates to the theme somewhere in your post or come over and leave a comment with the explanation.  Easy, peasy!

If you have some time, please visit other people participating throughout the month.  I've included the summary of the challenge details below.  If you are new to this unique challenge, you can find out the impetus behind why I started it under the 'Introductions' tab and all the details you need to know in order to participate, in the 'Challenge Details' tab (both tabs located at the top of the blog).

I hope to see you back on Monday, October 14th when voting will start on the Top Seven for Challenge #6.

MOTIVATIONAL QUOTE ON HOPE
If you need some motivation to get you started, I've provided a quote for you, which you can find below.  With October being Breast Cancer Awareness month, I've included a couple variations of the quote that would suitable for those types of projects.

Credit Notes For This Creation:
© 2013, Lisa L. Décosse. PUO. However, you are allowed to use the sentiment on handmade projects that you intend to sell on a small scale basis provided credit is given. You also need to include a credit note and a link to this blog should you use any of my images in your creations and post them on your blog. Please be sure to familiarize yourself with my full terms of use found in the 'Download Instructions & T.O.U.' tab at the top of this page. Of important note:  Please do not share my images with family, friends, etc. Additionally, do not post any images to file sharing services like Box®, 4-Shared®, etc. Instead, please direct people to my blog so they can grab the image for themselves. If you would like to post a watermarked version of the image, please contact me to obtain one.

Font Information:

• Foglihten font created by gluk
• Herald Square font created by Nick's Fonts

Click on the font name to take you to a download location.  Both these fonts are free for commercial use.

All three quotes are the same size, I just kept the bottom two smaller in this post. You will notice that the sentiment may appear huge depending on what software program you download it into.  You can always reduce the size without distorting the overall look.

CHALLENGE DETAILS SUMMARY
Whether you are new and need to familiarize yourself with all the details,  or a returning participant and just need to refresh yourself, you can always find out everything you need to know in order to enter this challenge in the 'Challenge Details' tab at the top of the page. I've provided a quick summary below.  Please note that dates and times listed below are for this particular challenge only:

• Each Path of Positivity challenge will remain open for approx. a full month.  Entries for this challenge will be accepted from October 7th to November 3rd.
• Link up your inspirational post below using Inlinkz. You will be able to submit your link up to 11:55 p.m. on November 3rd.
• When you link up, leave a comment summarizing what it is about your post that you feel is inspirational  / positive / motivational and how it fits into the theme if you have not included this information somewhere within your post.
• Don't forget to come back throughout the month and visit others that have participated.
• Voting for this challenge will begin once the top seven have been determined.  There will be a separate post detailing the top seven.  You will then have the opportunity to vote on the creation or post that you have found to be the most inspirational of the chosen seven.  Be sure to leave a comment telling us what it was that inspired you or something in general if you uncomfortable disclosing any details of your vote.
• This month, prizes will be the following:
• $6.00 coupon from Floppy Latté Designs, one of our guest sponsors, for the person out of the top seven who receives the most votes during voting week.
• Three digital images from Ike's World  for the post or project that the DT deems most inspiring of the bunch.
• Three images from Fresh Brewed Designs, this month's other guest sponsor, for a person chosen in a random draw based on all entrants.
• One digital designer paper from Décosse's Dynamite Doodles for one lucky voter who leaves a comment.
• One digital sentiment for every single person who enters the challenge.

GENEROUSLY SPONSORED BY...

Please show your support to our fabulous sponsors by going over and checking out their work and saying hi if you have the chance.  In addition to Floppy Latté Digitals and Fresh Brewed Designs, our guest sponsors for the month, we also have our regular sponsors:

 

That is me and I'd love for you to visit me

on my personal blog.

If you ever have any questions be sure to EMAIL ME or just leave me a comment.

We look forward to seeing you participate!

Inlinkz collection begins below:

Design Team Delights for Challenge #5

The entries into Challenge #5 were really incredible and I am sure that I am not the only person who thought so.  In fact, I know of at least a handful of others who were inspired by the creations they saw--my amazing Design Team.  As always, in each challenge you, the readers, get to voice your opinion by voting for your favourite.  I couldn't do any less for my Design Team now could I?!!!  It is important for them to have their say as well and that is why we have a special DT Delights post just before we launch the new challenge.  Those of you who enter our challenges certainly don't make choosing easy on us.

Thank you to every ONE of YOU who joined along our Path last month for Challenge #5.  While it was definitely a difficult decision, here are the creations that really stood out and inspired the team this month...

Pat M.--chosen by Desíre and Samara...

Desíre stated this:
"Pat is my choice for most inspiring not only from the beautiful art journal depicting a loving home, but also for her own motivation for entering our Optimism Challenge."  Desíre was particularly moved by this passage from Pat's post:

"I found this very cool blog today called path of positivity.  They spread positive thoughts, ideas and motivation, which I think is fantastic.  They also offer monthly challenges, this month's theme being "optimism."  I'm entering my art journal page in the challenge with a short description of why this page offers optimism to me: When  I step into my home, I feel a surge of optimism that my day will finish off on a good note.  I know that the night will not be full of roses and fairy tale goodness, but it's MY home and MY family and there is love.  And wherever there is love, there is hope, a beacon of optimistic light piercing whatever dark thoughts I picked up throughout my day."

Here is what Samara had to say about the same project:
"The reason I chose this was because I felt Pat really threw in all she had to this!  She put every element there is into the home...all who would grace the house - the energy in the homemade house was amazing!   And if that wasn't enough, she has her little person walking away carrying the doodling (which is fantastic), a sentiment (which is stellar) along with her.  The key is just the topping, unlocking all that is truly hopeful, all that is truly part of what speaks to the core of Optimism- HOME.  I just Loved it!"

To see the details of Pat's card and read more of what she had to say, click HERE.

 Jackie C.--chosen by Suze...

 This is what Suze had to say:
"I was inspired by these two sentences":

"We try very hard to stay perky and optimistic. We feel negativity is so draining and depressing."

To see the details of Jackie's card and read more of what she had to say, click HERE.

 Nancy--chosen by Vicky...

Vicky had this to say:
"My choice is Nancy.  I really love that she is referring to her mom in her post and the teachings that she has brought to her".  This is the passage that Nancy wrote about her mom, that Vicky is referring to:

"Even though she doesn't feel very well, she tries to make cards and send them out to her friends and others she feels needs them. She think about the person she makes the card for, she prays for them, and then she sends them off with lots of hope and love. She is the most Optimistic person I know and has taught me so much about how to live a good life (just wish I would have listened to her more in my first 30 years - LOL)."

To see the details of Nancy's card and read more of what she had to say, click HERE.

 Pat M.--chosen by Sandy...

Sandy was really torn as to which of Pat's creations was her favourite.  While she was really drawn to the same one as Samara and Desíre, and particularly to Pat's description of why the journal page offered her inspiration (see the quote from Pat's first project above to see exactly the point I am referring to), it was Pat's other project that won out in the end as being Sandy's favourite.

Here is what Sandy had to say:
"I love the whole feel of her post and that she is so so proud of her daughter… this paragraph in particular":

So I had to create this mixed media canvas in celebration of her flight, and in anticipation of many more to come.  She will soar to newer and higher heights in her life, and that turns my own fears and doubts into Optimism with a capital "O" is so fitting with Optimism.  

"I can just feel her love and excitement at her daughter’s progress.  Additionally, I love that with both her pieces, she maintains such a fabulous perspective".

 To see the details of Pat's other card and read more of what she had to say, click HERE.

Donna--chosen by Lisa (that's me)...

Not only is Donna's card stunningly beautiful, she hit the nail on the head with what she had to say about Optimism.  Here is a quote from that post:

Despite what others may say or do, despite the hardships or circumstances which come into our lives, despite our emotional reactions at situations, our Souls can rise above.  Some call it Hope, or Optimism, or the Silver Lining - ability to see the good in everything.  Some call it "The Peace That Passes Understanding", and others call it a knowledge that we can bring Love, Peace, Joy, Harmony (or whatever is necessary), by simply "being our true selves".

It has been said that Optimism is the "ultimate survival tool".  It is filled with Hope and a certain expectation that in the end, all will not be "merely" well, but it will be beautiful, in its own way.

Donna reflects on a very important part of optimism--we need to try and stay optimistic DESPITE everything around us trying to create deleterious conditions. It is easy to stay positive when everything is going wonderful but what happens when we come up against a brick wall or several of them?!  Sometimes it can be extremely difficult to remain optimistic given the hands we are dealt but there is so much glory to be had by staying positive as it effects every aspect of our self.

To see the details of Donna's card and read more of what she had to say, click HERE.

Creative Congratulations to all of you!

Thank you to everyone who played on our Pathway during the month of August.  You all did an amazing job.  The hard work you put into your creations was obvious.  Now if you were chosen as a DT Delight, then we have a special treat for you.   Not only are you eligible for a special DT Delight badge, we will also be having a draw at the end of the year for a special package of digital goodies.  So, if you are chosen as a DT Delight during any of our challenges, your name will be entered into the draw.  You get one entry per choice; so, if two members picked your card, you will earn 2 entries.  The draw will take place around the anniversary of when the Path of Positivity came into existence which will put the draw date sometime in April 2014.  The winner at the time will be notified by email.  In the interim you are more than welcome to copy your framed card above and add it to your blog to share with all your readers; and, don't forget to EMAIL ME for a copy of the special Challenge #5 DT Delight Badge.

Thank you for stopping by today.  We hope that you will join us again tomorrow to learn what the newest theme for Challenge #7 will be.