Flirty Card - Heart 2 Heart Scrap Challenge

I am still sorting through all my stuff from convention.  Mostly the unfinished create and takes.  Like I mentioned before, there was way too much going on for me to try to get anything done while I was there.    One of our projects was a layout using our little mini flip flaps and the Flirty paper.  I'm not quite done with that one yet, but close. The  Flirty paper pack is one my favorites in the new idea book. The colors are bold and somewhat different.   I like it.  From the layouts, I moved on to the cards project we had.  We had the makings for six cards made with all new papers and some new Cricut Artiste cut cards.  I started trying to make these cards by direction.  I just wasn't feeling it though.  But I had all this stuff for these cards so nicely cut out and prepackaged.  So, what I ended up doing (because I can't follow directions to save my soul...lol) was combine a couple of these cards and threw in some scraps I had from my Flirty layout I wasn't quite through with.  This is what I came up with.....

This was a combination of cards #1 and #3 for those of you who were at convention. This is what I used: 

Paper:  Flirty B&T bamboo roses and the colorful roses, Flirty Raspberry cardstock (only available in the Flirty paper pack - great color!), Colonial White cardstock, and I'm going to guess that's New England Ivy cardstock around the tag

Inks:  Desert Sand, Olive

Embellishments:  Brown Sparkle Assortment (Z1753) sparkles, Autumn Lane Assortment (Z1749) pins

Stamps:  Angelic Blessings(C1507)

I love that raspberry color in the Flirty line. The colored roses B&T was a scrap piece from my layout project and the green paper behind it is actually some Colonial White I had leftover from something else.   I didn't have a green paper the right color so I grabbed the Olive ink and daubed it on.  It gave it a kind of green suede look.  It's hard to see from this picture, but this card has a scalloped edge.  This is cut with our new Artiste Cricut cartridge.  I can't wait to play with it more.  The little tag in the front is also cut from the new cartridge.    The sentiment is from the Angelic Blessings stamp set stamped in Desert Sand ink.  The pins  are from the Autumn Lane Assortment and are really neat, thick resin flowers.  That package has little roses in the raspberry color, too,  along with two adhesive backed badge buttons that say "Family" and "Autumn."  All of this stuff is from our new idea book that goes live August 1st!

It seems I did a lot of talking for such a small card.  It's only 4 1/2 x 4 3/4.  But I wanted to share with you it's origins.   And because it's made with scraps, it fits the bill for this week's Heart2Heart challenge.  It's a "use your scraps" challenge.   If you get a chance you should head over there and check them out.  They always have amazing artwork posted.   

That's it for me tonight.   I hope to be posting more this week, so check back soon.    Thanks for stopping by.  

Happy Scrapping!

Our New Colors

Close to My Heart is going live with their new idea book on August 1st.  I can't wait for everyone to be able to see all the new goodies. You will be able to view it that day on my website.  I'm sure you have seen some of these great products already from other posts on the web.  There was some big news announced at convention.  The unveiling of the new Artiste Cricut cartridge, new paper packs, more than ever Workshop on the Go kits, and the new color palette to name just a few.

The color palette went from our 60 colors divided by their season and then neutrals to a new 40 color palette divided into Basics, Enchantment, Adventure, and Whimsy.  They just sound fun :) The new colors that were introduced were five new Basics:  Slate, Whisper, Saddle, Cashmere, and Champagne and one new Enchantment color:  Ruby.  These colors are great.  At first when I heard, I thought..eh..three browns, two greys, and a red.  It didn't sound very exciting.  But when we got our create and take project at convention made with just the new color cardstock, I fell in love.  Our project had directions and supplies for a single page layout. I didn't have a chance to do it while at convention (way too much excitement there for me to work!), so after I got it home and started working on it,  I decided to make it into a two page layout.  The layout is actually the one from the WOTG for Pear and Partridge from the new idea book.  I simplified it a bit from what our instructions had.  This is what I came up with.  

Here's what I used: 

Cardstock - Slate, Whsiper, Cashmere, Champagne, Ruby, and White Daisy

Ink - Slate, Ruby

Stamps - Love Blooms (C1511) Amore numbers (retired)

Embellishments - Slate Mini Medley (Z1787); Irresistibles Houndstooth Alphabet (Z1779)

Mind you, my lighting is horrible.  The right side of this picture looks a different color than the left.  I assure you they are the same :) These new colors are gorgeous.  

I used the small bloom from the Love Blooms set with Slate ink on Whisper cardstock to create the patterned paper.  I inked all the edges with the Slate ink, as well.  I love the new Houndstooth alphas.  They are a great size.  They are irresistibles, so you just brush a dauber over them with the ink of your choice to reveal that great houndstooth pattern. I stamped three small blooms in Ruby ink on Ruby cardstock and cut two of them down to create a layered flower using 3d foam tape for the embellishment in the lower left.  The leaves were from the same set and stamped in Slate on Whisper cardstock.  The buttons were from the Slate mini medley set.  This layout could really be dressed up, but I just wanted to keep it simple for these pictures.  

I just loved these colors.  And I had so much left from these cardstock pages.  What better to do with your leftovers than make cards!  I told myself  I was going to really work on layouts today.  But inevitably, I find some reason to make a card..lol.  I made three, actually. 

Again, I apologize for my lighting.  It's all the same cardstock.  Here, I only used Whisper, Slate, and Ruby on White Daisy 5x5 bases.  The patterned paper is the same random stamping using the small bloom as on the layout.  For the bottom cards, I embossed the roses and the leaves with our Clear Detail Embossing Powder (Z821) to give it a little something extra.  Here's a closer look. 

The sentiments were stamped using the new stamp set, Words of Comfort (C1524) and  the Pemberly workshop on the go stamp set.  The frames were cut from White Daisy cardstock and are found on the new Artiste Cricut cartridge.  The stamp used on the frame was one we got at convention, Stars Shine Bright (D1532).  The Love Blooms stamp set is a shade and base stamp set.  So each bloom and leaf has two stamps to make it.  That's how I made the rose and leaves for the card on top.  I have a feeling this set is going to get a lot of use.  I used the tiny grey sparkles from the  Black and Grey Sparkle Assortment (Z1754) to add a little bling to all the cards. The doily looking white strip on the top card is a Martha Stewart punch. 

That's it for now.  I'm going to try to put my creating cap back on tomorrow and see what I come up with then.  Remember, there's only a few days left to order from the current idea book.  The Perfect Pairs campaign is still going on.  With every $75 qualifying order from my online shopping site, you get a paper pack and its complementary accessory for free!  And of course, with a $50 purchase you can get the stamp of the month.  The new book goes live August 1st!  And National Stamping Month is upon us, so there will be a campaign starting on August 15 which will include a limited time double stamp set for only $5 with a $35 purchase.   Stay tuned for more info!

Hope you have a wonderful rest of your weekend.  Thanks for stopping by.  Happy Scrapping! 

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Water Fun!

Another great challenge over at Heart 2 Heart Challenge blog.  This week it's water fun.  Seems fitting enough, we are in the middle of summer.   One of the first layouts I did with Close to My Heart was with the Footloose WOTG.   This paper pack is featured in the current idea book, which is on its way out on July 31st.  I'm a little sad to see this one go.  It was perfect for all the beach pictures we had.  I had posted my WOTG layout, but, as it was my first experience with the kits, I wanted to see just how far that paper pack would go.  I ended up with two 2-page layouts, two single layouts, and bunches of cards.  I still have some of this paper left.   Here is one of my single page layouts for this week's challenge.

This was from my daughter's birthday weekend at the beach last year.  This was the pool at the hotel where we stayed.  The water was a perfect match for this paper.  These were some of my leftovers from the WOTG with some added Footloose Complements Dimensional Elements. I used Lagoon ink and a dauber on white daisy cardstock letters to create the watery effect on the title.  Very simple page, but fun.  Farewell Footloose!

If you get a chance, head on over to Heart 2 Heart Challenges to see all the other great water fun art they have posted there.  I have a new layout and some cards featuring our six new colors I will be posting as quick as I can get it uploaded, so check back soon.  Have a great weekend!

Happy Scrapping!

Stepping Up Your Stamping!

Here's some great examples of what you can do with some of our new Workshop on the Go kits from the Fall /Winter 2012 book that goes live August 1.  I can't wait.

This weekend I plan on putting on my creative thinking cap.  Hopefully, it will be as productive as I have planned.  So check back soon to see some of our new products in action.

Thanks for stopping by!  Happy Scrapping!

The Liebster Award

I just realized I got an award..yay! My first blog award at that.   I am so very flattered.  A big thank you to Melissa Thompson for nominating my blog for the Liebster award.   If you haven't visited Melissa you should check out her Liebster Blog: My Love 4 Creativity.  It's filled with all kinds of crafty info.

A little about the Liebster.  This is how it works...

 ABOUT THE AWARD
Liebster is a German word meaning "Beloved," "Favorite," or "Dearest." This award is a peer to peer award in which fellow bloggers present the award to their favorite bloggers with less than 200 followers. The origins of this award is unclear, but is believed to have originated by a German blogger. This award was designed to be a blog award in the pay it forward fashion to share your dearest and most beloved blogs that have less than 200 followers.

RULES FOR ACCEPTANCE
Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to their blog.Post the award onto your blog.Give the award to five bloggers who you appreciate that have less than 200 followers.Leave a comment on their blog letting them know that you have given them this awesome award!

My five nominations are....

Michelle Battitori at www.michelleshandmadeworld.blogspot.com

Theresa Miller at www.thesassyscrapper.com

Eva Friesen at www.loveofcreating.blogspot.com

Julie Carriere at www.thescrapzone.blogspot.com

Amy McVey at www.clearlystamping.blogspot.com


Great work ladies.   Thanks for sharing your creative wisdom with us! Now it's your turn! Choose one of the following to post on your blog and then choose your five nominees to share it with.

New Advent Calendar and Scroll Album Workshop on the Go Kits

I  found this great little video from Close to My Heart corporate and thought I would share it with you.  Here are two new home decor workshop on the go kits that are featured in our new catalog that goes live on August 1, 2012.   The first is the Scroll Album Kit (G1042) and then the Advent Calendar Kit (G1044).

I'm still going through all my goodies that I got at convention and I'm trying to reorganize my craft room so that I can start making pretties with all this great new stuff.  So until then, enjoy the sneak preview to see just a little of what we have to look forward to.  

Thanks for stopping by and happy scrapping!

Look what's new!

It's that time of the year again.  Close to My Heart just had their annual convention in Dallas and unveiled loads of new stuff.  I was fortunate enough to get to attend.  The people and the artwork were amazing.  I have sooooo many things to tell from convention, but I'll give you the condensed version here.   This is the new idea book which will go live on my website August 1st.  

Some of the new and exciting things they announced:

• the new Cricut Artiste Collection (Click here to get a peek at the images on the cartridge.  It may take a minute to load because there are so MANY!)

• the new slimmed down  color pallet with six new colors
• the new alcohol ink markers
• the new mini pigment ink pad collections

• eight new paper packs and their Workshops on the Go
• two card Workshops on the Go
• three home decor Workshops on the Go
• no more membership fees for StudioJ and the introduction of the Express Collection
• new organizers for accessories, blocks and more
• the introduction of a new consultant kit for only $49

Those are just a few of the highlights.  The new book is filled to the brim with wonderful new artwork and products.   CTMH continues to provide something for everyone.  And with the new consultant sign up at only $49, it would be a great time to join the CTMH family.   If you want to learn more about joining just click here or contact me for more information.  If you would like to have a home gathering and earn some free goodies, just drop me a line. 

We only have a couple of more weeks to order from the Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book before the new book goes live.  Don't forget to take advantage of the free Perfect Pair campaign and the Stamp of the Month.  Remember, the four paper packs retiring are Lucy, Superhero, Footloose, and Cruisin'.   Stock up while you can!

As soon as I get my hands on the new products,  I'll be posting my creations here.  I can't wait!  Be sure to stop back by and see what's new.  Thanks for stopping  in.

Happy Scrapping!

Olivia's Frame

Finally, back online.  After our power being out for eight hours, everything is up and running again.  Thank goodness the storms took the edge off the heat outside.  The woman at the power company said that a tornado had touched down in a neighboring town and approximately 1500 were without power.  I'll take a little heat and no lights over being hit by a tornado,  any day.  In other words I feel very blessed we had no damage.  I hope everyone else faired as well. 

Now that I am back up and running, I wanted to share something I did for a friend of mine.  I wanted to make her something for her soon-to-be-here daughter Olivia's room.  I wanted to do a layout and I wanted to do a picture frame.  So I found a really neat 8x10 shadow box at Michaels.   I was trying to match her bedding from Cocalo. 

The picture above is just the page for Olivia out of the frame.  I had a hard time taking pictures of  it because of the glass.  Plus, you get to see more of it than in the shadow box.  Below is the finished product minus a picture of two cute little girls.  

For papers I used Cocoa, Sweetleaf and White Daisy.  The two shades of pink are from  Bazzill.  I used the Hooray Bouquet stamp set and randomly stamped the patterned paper with Cocoa, 2nd generation Blush, Cotton Candy, and Sweetleaf inks.   All the shapes,  save the flower pot, were cut from the Cricut AP Philosophy cartridge.  I used 3d foam tape and lifted some of them off the page for dimension.  With the addition of some liquid glass, some pearl adhesives, and a few glue dots, Olivia now has a new frame to sport her pictures of her and her big sister, Maggie. 

Don't forget about the Perfect Pairs promotion this month.  You will receive the Mischief paper pack and it's coordinating black felt shapes FREE with a $75 online order.  It's while supplies last.  Next up starting July 6th is Dreamin'. 

Thanks for stopping by.   Happy 4th of July to everyone.  Stay safe and enjoy your holiday!

Perfect Pairs

The July campaign from Close to My Heart is called Perfect Pairs.   Throughout the month of July, when shopping through the online site, you  will receive a free paper pack and complimentary accessory  with every qualifying $75.00 order.   These paper packs are retired.  So now is the perfect time to get a second chance at getting the papers you loved.  All depending on when you place your order as to which  pair you get.   I did a lot of copying and pasting, so forgive me if it comes out a little jumbled.

July 1-5 will be Mischief

I did find an example of a layout using Mischief.  Great fall colors in this pack.. Perfect for Halloween photos.



July 6-10 will be Dreamin'

July 11-15 will be Fanfare

July 16-20 is Lucky

July 21-25 is Mayberry

July 26-29 is Sophia

July 30-31 is either Believe or Wonderland

Each of these will come with one of their coordinating accessories.  These paper pack pairs will be a "while quantities last" offer.  So if there is a paper pack in the line-up you like, order early to insure you get yours.  All orders must done through the online site to take advantage of the offer. 

I will try to post these pairs as they become available.  Thanks for stopping by. 

Happy Scrapping!

Graduation Cards

July is already here?  Where did June go?  Time is flying.  I'm running a little bit behind on everything it seems.  I was about to put some graduation gifts in the mail and thought I would share them with you.  This year all my graduates were girls.  After seeing and falling in love with Lisa Stenz's little butterfly project for June I knew what I wanted to do for these girls.  So I whipped them up a set each of monogramed 3x3  butterfly cards.  I did one set in a rainbow of colors and the other two all in chocolate.   All in all I thought they turned out really sweet. 

In the image below you can see how horrible my lighting is.  Those cards are the same cards as the ones above. 

Thank you Lisa Stenz for such a wonderful project idea.  Of course, I did mine a little different, but the same idea.  Everything here is Close to My Heart with exception of the little clear boxes. 

Supplies: 

     Inks - Chocolate, and for my rainbow set Juniper, Gypsy, Cotton Candy, Sorbet, Goldrush

     Stamps -- Quick Card Butterfly, Token Alphabet

     Paper - Kraft, Colonial White ( I put an insert in to write on)

     Ribbon -- Dark Chocolate Striped Ribbon

     The round tags were cut from the Cricut AP cartridge

After getting those done I decided to try my hand at graduation cards.   Being new to the card making scene, I hadn't tried a graduation card.  I really liked how these turned out.  I hope the girls do.  I decided to do them as 6x6 cards.   I wanted to do them all different, but yet the same (makes sense right?)  I tried to get as close to their school colors as I could.

I used the Love Life stamp set and made the black and white patterned paper.  The For You stamp set was used for the strip on the right edge and for the sentiment on the far right card.  Those two stamp sets I find myself using over and over.   The cap and flourish was a silhouette image. I used 3d foam tape to lift the little cap off the paper to add some dimension.   The other two title/sentiments I typed in photoshop and printed out.   I personalized the inside of each one.  That's probably what I like most about making my own cards, aside from the fun of creating, is being able to personalize.

I'm going to go finish up my next project which I hope to have done and posted on here early next week. I'm making a photo frame for a little girl which is due to arrive sometime around the 4th.   So I have to hurry!  Lol.   Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Scrapping!