Martha Stewart CraftStudio App for iPad

I'll be honest, I haven't been a real big fan of most of the "crafty" cell phone and tablet apps out there in the past, but recently I came across one that I am really loving and I thought I'd share it with you!

The Martha Stewart CraftStudio App for iPad is normally $4.99, which is a good price for what you get, but I was lucky enough to get it for free when they were running a promotion recently on iTunes.

It just so happens that around the time I purchased my iPad, (which was near the end of June this year), this app was just being released, so the iTunes App store was featuring it for free for a limited time.

This application is so easy to use, yet delivers great results, especially considering it is a tablet app, which one would assume could not have all the capabilities and options of a full-blown computer software application!

This is the first thing I made, when I was experimenting with the app and I did it in about 2 minutes.

Of course, this design is pretty simplistic, but it's still cute and creative, which is what I was going for.

There are many options to choose from, including 4 different themes that come with the app, "Everyday", "Birthday Party", "Doily Lace" and "Nature"

.

Under each theme there is a selection of the following:

Background Papers

Stamps

Glitter

Text/Type Tool

Pens

Stickers

Punches

So, the creative possibilities are huge and if you decide to purchase any of the additional themes (in-app purchase), the options are practically endless!

Here is a screen shot of what the design interface looks like (where you design your project):

Of course, the icons are clickable and contain much more than you see in the screenshot, but I just wanted to give you an idea of what it looks like.

I was pretty impressed with the overall design of the application and the nice graphics!

The application is designed and produced by a company called Happy™, for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc. ©2012

I found this app incredibly easy to use, but just in case you do get confused (that's me!) or need help...there is built in audio tutorials at the click of a button and they are even fashionably narrated by Martha Stewart Herself! ("It's a Good Thing") LOL!

Here are some more examples of projects I have made using the Martha Stewart CraftStudio App for iPad:

All of the above were made using only the themes and tools that are included with the initial application.

I just downloaded some of the additional/new themes today, so after working with those a bit, I will post some new projects so you can see the new themes!

Here are the additional themes available to date:

Elegant Celebrations

Spring

The Great Outdoors

Vacation Adventure

Summer Fun

The cost for the add-on themes is $1.99 per theme and can be purchased "in app".

If you are having a creative block and need to be inspired, there is a Inspiration section right next to your "gallery" of projects that you can click on and get templates for projects such as:

Invitations

Greeting Cards

Announcements

Memory Keeping

Stationery

Postcards

After you are all done, you have many options to save, share or print your project.

It can be shared through: e-mail, Facebook, Twitter

It can be saved to your Photos on your device

You can send it to Snapfish to be professionally printed

You can print it at home (air print with iPad)

Here is a video from the Happy Studio NYC Company showing the app in action:

If you go to the Martha Stewart website here, there is a video that details some of the features of the application.

Hope you enjoyed my quick review of the Martha Stewart CraftStudio App!

Thanks for stopping by!

Disclaimer: The views/opinions expressed in this post are those of the author/owner of this blog, myself (Lisa Hall) and no one else. 

I have not received any compensation either monetary or otherwise to write this post or comment on this product.

This project/post is linked-up to the following sites/link parties:

Dr. Seuss Birthday Invitation and a GIVEAWAY!!

Our Grandson "A"s Birthday was coming up and when I heard that our daughter "S" was going to do a Dr. Seuss themed party, I was really excited!

I've always loved Dr. Seuss books and couldn't wait to help out with the preparations.

I had been wanting to try my hand at creating a custom invitation and just recently realized that the "My Memories" Software could assist me in this, when I made an invitation for my Granddaughter's Birthday last month.

I asked "S" if she would mind me making up some sample invitations and if she liked them, we could use them and if they were a big fat "Fail"...(LOL!), we could order some digitally from the many sellers on Etsy that have them.

She has a lot of faith in me and let me do it!

I went to work using the My Memories Software Suite and was AMAZED at how easy it was to make the invitations!

In the past, I had attempted projects like this using Photoshop and just went away frustrated and confused!

Here are the two examples I came up with:

(Click on the pictures to enlarge)

To make these, I used the My Memories Software Suite, some digital papers I purchased from Great Graphics on Etsy and a Dr. Seuss inspired Digital Graphics Set I purchased from my bloggie friend Nikki at Melonheadz Illustrating.

I made them 5x7 in size, so that there was room for everything and so that it could be read clearly.

The invitation that "S" chose for the final one to send out was the first one.

I went to Walgreens online and uploaded the jpg file of the invite and ordered all the copies we needed for our guests.

(You can of course do this at any other photo place also, such as Snapfish, Shutterfly etc...the reason I chose Walgreen's is because it is closest to me and we needed them quickly...they will print them in an hour in most cases!)

Just be sure to upload these to the photo site as a stand-alone photo (.jpg format).

It won't work if you go to their "create a card" section, because those are pre-set-up templates that the photo sites have and you can't put your own design in there. 

(At least that is what I found with Walgreens, Snapfish and Shutterfly...I can't speak for any others.)

You can view several different tutorials on the My Memories YouTube Site that can help you make an invitation.

I am thinking about making a tutorial myself on exactly how I made these invites, but I've never attempted a tutorial yet and I'm a bit hesitant to try and compete with all the great ones that are out there! 

If I do decide to make one, I will update this post with a link to it.

Now, for some exciting news...My Memories has graciously agreed to give a FREE copy of this awesome software to one of my loyal followers!

If you would like to be eligible to win a copy of this Digital Scrapbooking Software Program, then here are the requirements:

1. Be or become a follower on my blog.

2. Go visit the My Memories site at: http://www.mymemories.com/ and make note of your favorite template or kit, then come back here and leave a comment stating which is your favorite from the site. (Be sure to include an e-mail address or a way to get in touch with you in case you win!)

3. For a second chance entry, please "Like" their Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/MyMemories/140359372717593

4. For a third chance at winning, please follow the My Memories Blog at: http://www.mymemoriesblog.com/

5. For a fourth chance at winning, please follow My Memories on twitter at: http://twitter.com/#!/MyMemoriesSuite

(NOTE: After doing steps 3,4 and 5, make sure to leave a comment for each, saying that you completed the step...this is to make sure you get your extra entries!)

Remember to be eligible to win, you MUST do at least steps 1 and 2, all other steps are for extra entries!

This giveaway opportunity will be open through Tuesday May 8, 2012 and I will choose a winner via Random.org on Wednesday May 9, 2012.

Even if you aren't the lucky winner...you can still get a great discount on the software as My Memories has authorized me to offer $10.00 off the software by clicking on the blinkie below and entering the special code.

CODE: STMMMS91285

This awesome software was recently featured on the Lifetime Television show "The Balancing Act", if you'd like to see the clip of the show where they featured the software, you can view it here.

They are also running a *Free* Photo Book Promotion right now and you can get the details of that by clicking here.

Good Luck to All and Thank-you for reading my post!

I have linked this post/project to the following sites/Link-up Party's: