New Idea Book Premieres

September... signals the end of Summer, for many Back-to-School shopping has been done and the kids have slipped on their backpacks and posed for their First-Day-of-School photos on the doorstep. Or you've dropped them off at the dorm with boxes and pillows and said a teary-eyed goodbye as they take their first steps into adult-hood and college.

Before those memories fade, make notes while the photos are being developed, so that when you create those precious pages for your album, they are filled not only with pictures, but your words, and perhaps the points of view from your children as well.

Close to My Heart has a fabulous Special in September; You've Got Class. It includes 7 special Tru-Fit Folios, folders which fit inside the top-loading memory protectors and can hold drawings, class essays, grade reports, or extra photos.


September is also the time when Close to My Heart's New Idea Book Launches! The 2018 Holiday Expressions catalog is live as of September 1 and you can view it online here. If you'd like a copy of your own, you can add one to your online order, or contact me and order one.

I won't spoil the surprise by going through the entire catalog, but will tell you the new papers are lovely, the new ink colors are bright and fabulous and you will love the new embellishments!
However, here are a few of the treats you can expect:

 

The Color Palette - Amazing... One big family of Color 

Plus, if you look closely, you will see some of the new Thin-Cuts, cuts from the new digital Cricut cartridge, and some of the fun embellishments.

 Color of the Year - Sugarplum - this photo does NOT do the color justice!

Available in our Exclusive Ink, Pigment Ink, Shimmer Brush!, Cardstock and Glitter Paper.

Another September Special - More Magical! 

How about a Kit-of-the-Month program? 

Yep, we've got one. Craft with Heart - featuring Cut Above layout kits.

Keep your creativity flowing with Close To My Heart’s Craft with Heart™ club, where you receive regular deliveries of project kits that will keep you connected with your passion.

Available in subscriptions monthly, every 4 months, or yearly, you choose what works best for you and your crafting muse. 

So much more, but I will save some for my next post. Check out the Stamp of the Month page to see what the $5 special is this month. It's perfect to help you get a jump start on your seasonal cards.

Thank you for stopping by, you bless me with your support.

May... National Scrapbooking Month, Dads, Vacations, Here Comes Summer!

We all pretty much see May as the herald of Summer. For many of us the weather has already turned warm, though here in the northeast, it feels more like spring. I'm a little behind in presenting the offerings from Close to My Heart, and I apologize. Family stuff.

But speaking of family, and upcoming vacations, get ready to show off those photos in the most flattering light! CTMH has got a set up for you! Just for National Scrapbooking Month; Postcard Perfect! And it IS perfectly summery. The Postcard Perfect Bundle includes a paper pack, stamp set, complements, coordinating paper, vellum, and 12" x 12" memory protectors. 

Just look at those tropical patterns, the colors, the flowers. I am so looking forward to working with this set!

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For those special scrapbook pages and cards to honor your dad, granddad, or father to be, there is the "Dad is Rad" workshop. The workshop kit contains a special stamp set, cardstock, embellishments and instructions to create three scrapbook pages and four cards.

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And as always, don't forget our Stamp of the Month! May's SotM is called Classic Summer Bash  and features all the refreshment that a jar of citrus punch or lemonade can offer. Ink up your next BBQ invites with this tasty set. Click the link above for all the details.

If you are interested in any of these sets, please click a link to order, or click here to visit my website to contact me for more information about becoming a consultant or hosting a gathering (not to order, I cannot accept direct orders). Thank you for visiting, you are a blessing to me.

The New Seasonal Expressions catalog is here! Happy New Year!

The new Seasonal Expressions catalog is here, and with it come fresh papers, stamps, coordinating die-cuts, embellishments, complements, new organizational tools and a welcome breath of spring! (Something we could all use right now on these cold days) Check out this gorgeous cover art!

With every new catalog comes new papers: Let me make the introductions,

Chelsea Gardens - a pretty floral in soft greens and blues, perfect for those spring projects.

Making Waves - bright purple and teal with a mermaid theme

Stargazer - another bright theme, this time in blue and red.

Gimme Some Sugar - A fun theme in pinks and mints. 

All of these papers are available in paper packs, and Workshops for both scrapbooking and cardmaking. There are coordinating complements and ribbons as well as sequins or cork shapes or acrylic dots (depending on the kit). See the "Kits" section for more information.

In addition to the new kits and paper packs, Close to My Heart has re-designed it's traveling organizational system. Called Designer Travel, the system is modular, which means that the set-up is easier to lift than the previous one, and because it's modular, you can purchase the pieces as you need them, or only the ones you need. Though to be honest, if you attend crops, you will want them all.

There are inserts to hold paper, inks, markers, stamp sets, stamp blocks, and tools. You can use hostess rewards towards a special bundle of the set.

Speaking of hostess rewards, hostess only stamp sets are back! Hostess rewards start when your party reaches $150, and they just go up from there.

January's Stamp of the month - Bloom and Grow - is so pretty - it pairs beautifully with the Chelsa Gardens paper:

Each month you can purchase a new D-size stamp set, available for one month only, for just $5. When you place an order of $50 or more in Close To My Heart products, you qualify for this special Stamp of the Month pricing.

You can order any of the items listed above by clicking on the links listed, or by visiting my website here. Thank you for dropping by, I hope you will visit again. 

Crafty Holidays and a Year to Remember!

Here's wishing you all a Very Happy Christmas and a Merry 2018!

A quick note - there's still time to grab the Close to My Heart special calendar bundle "Through the Year" with step by step layout instructions for a simply gorgeous photo calendar that you can create and then have 12 pages for an album at the end of the year. The bundle comes with everything you need; paper, complements, a stamp set. Just add ink and adhesive...

Happy 4th!

I hope you all are having a fabulous 4th of July (long) weekend!! If it's anything like around here, there are already fireworks (legal or not) going off all around your neighborhood. Stay safe!

My life in June was crazy, and I missed out on 2 specials at Close to My Heart. The Album special and the Cardstock special. I think that was the universe's way of telling me to use what I have before filling my shelves with more... pffft on the universe, what does it know about crafters? lol I did manage to get emails out to all my regulars, so that was something at least...

Now it's July... and there are things you Close to My Heart fans need to know, or be reminded of if you don't already know. July is the last month for the Annual Inspirations 2016-17 Idea book, and there is a Stampaganza going on.

So here's the skinny... a whole lot of the Idea Book is retiring at the end of the month (you can find out what's retiring by visiting this section of my OBA), after July, bye bye.

BUT.. on the flip side of that is... if there are any stamp sets that you wanted, this is the month to get them! For the entire month, buy any two stamp sets (M-, A-, B-, C-, D-, or E-size) at full retail price and get a third stamp set of equal or lesser value FREE! Add stamp sets to your cart and qualifying sets will automatically be free!

In addition - an exclusive stamp set of 22 stamps just for Stampaganza - the January Word Puzzle set, is available for $17.95. While it's hot and humid outside, you can be stamping with thoughts of cool January.

Don't miss this opportunity to nab those stamp sets you've had your eye on. Just like the fireworks on the 4th, July will be fleeting and so will this Stampaganza! 

Contact your CTMH Consultant if you have any questions. (or click here if you need a consultant)

New Year! New (mini) Catalog!

Yes 2017 is finally here - and it's been a long while since I was glad to put a year behind me! I know many, many of us feel the same way! For lots of reasons.

Keeping to the subject of my blog - paper crafting - in 2017, I have plans. I have ideas. Ideas and Plans, yes. No resolutions. But lots of ideas, and plans. mhm.

Anyway - Close to My Heart has a new Seasonal Expressions catalog, it's full of new paper collections, some new stamp sets, and also full of ideas. (The difference, is their ideas have been acted on - mine are still in my head). It just breathes Spring!

Also, January is National Papercrafting Month - and Close to My Heart has a fantastic kit to celebrate this - You can purchase it for $18.95 or get it for FREE when you purchase $60 in other Close to My Heart products. (and you've also qualified for the gorgeous Stamp of the Month for only $5!)

It's really easy to put it together, I've added some photos below of when I assembled the wreath. There's NO cutting needed, and NO stamping if you don't want to (I added a little shading around the edges to add some depth to the leaves and change the color of two of the roses).

Here's the package as you get it, you can see a couple of the pages of leaves, ready to punch out.

 

This is a montage of the assembly process, Clockwise from upper-left: all the pages, plus a glimpse of the instructions; one of the roses, right after I had sponged all of the edges; a layered succulent, ready for curving the leaves; punched out leaves, ready for sponging the edges.

and finally, my finished wreath. This was a fun project, and there are enough gold letters to do just about any name, or saying. The flowers and leaves do not 'have' to be put right as the picture says, and I know mine aren't in the exact same place. I didn't sponge enough on my first rose either, but had already curled it up before I realized it. Oh well. 

To finish this project, you will need the following items: 

Liquid Glass (Z679 - $6.95) or other thick, quick drying adhesive. I prefer the Liquid Glass to anything else though - it dries right away, and it's got some other great uses.

Quilling Tool (Z1795 - $7.95) - you can use an embossing stylus (I did), or a bamboo skewer, but it's very difficult to hold the end of the flower on to get it started. I really wish I'd had the quilling tool this time around. (I will for the next batch of roses I make)

Inks and Sponge Daubers (Z726 $4.95) if you wish to edge the paper pieces as I did.

I used the color Fern and Sweet Leaf Exclusive Inks ($7.95 ea) for the different green pieces. I used those greens on the blue-ish leaves also, but I think Glacier or Juniper would be good if you wanted to be very precise. I used Canary on my roses (tip: if you are going to sponge your roses, you can do it before you punch them out, and sponge both sides of the paper, since both sides will show.)

This is such an easy kit, it would be a wonderful way to introduce paper-crafting to someone. Or a lovely project to take with you.

If you would like to order this kit, or any of the products mentioned, please visit my Online Business Address (OBA). I'd love to be your Close to My Heart Consultant. I'm happy to answer any of your questions about Close to My Heart or paper-crafting, Just leave a comment below and I will get back to you.

Just Crazy Blessed Team Blog Hop - Uptown & All About the Gold Fundamentals

Welcome to the Just Crazy Blessed Team Blog Hop!!! Thanks for joining us today! All of August and September, we are showing products from the new Close to My Heart Annual Inspirations catalog. I hope you enjoy this little peek at our creations.

This blog hop is a great big circle so you can start wherever you want and continue through to see all the wonderful artwork incorporating the week's theme, by clicking the next or previous buttons at the end of this post. If you are coming from XXX's Blog, you are on the right track!

This week we are highlighting  the "Uptown" and "All about the Gold" Fundamentals. 

The "All About the Gold" Fundamentals is an amazing set of 6 see-through overlays with gold foil designs. They make a great contrast to the black and white of the Uptown set. When you turn them over, they show silver through the plastic, and that makes a nice complement to either the black or the whisper side of the Uptown papers. 

The "Uptown" Fundamentals are some great basics to have in your stash. Three in black and white on one side, and Whisper and white on the other, and one in gold foil and white stripe. There are also two vellums in the pack; one with a subtle white diagonal, and the other with a gold confetti pattern (when you turn it over, it looks silver). You get two of each pattern for 12 sheets in the pack.

 I created a simple Thank You card with the Uptown paper pack using the My Acrylix "All the Thanks" stamp set. Another great basic to have on hand. Four different, simple Thank Yous, perfect for any occasion, from gifts, to thanking someone for house-sitting.

I made this card as an idea for use as a thank you after a long visit. I used the whisper side of the word background paper, then used the journaling pen to fill in two of the words, to make them stand out. It took a steady hand, and patience. :)

The products used to make this card:

White Cards and Envelopes, value pack (50) - X254 - $14.95

Black cardstock - 24 sheet pack - 1386 - $14.50

Uptown Fundamentals - Z3263 - $14.95

All the Thanks My Acrylix stamps - B1536 - $9.95

Journaling Pen - Z1979 - $3.25

Thank you for joining us on the blog hop!

If you would like to know more about the special this month at Close to My Heart, please continue to scroll down. If you would like to continue on, please use the buttons below to continue on the Just Crazy Blessed Blog Hop. I hope you enjoy what Janna has to share next!

There's only a few more days to get the Basically the Best Deal on Close to My Heart's New Fundamentals Paper Packs - 

If you take advantage of the above deal, you qualify for the Stamp of the Month, Purrfect Halloween, for only $5

Summertime and the deals are easy!

Sooo, here it is June again already! I hope you all are excited to be receiving your Happy Times paper and stamps if you haven't already. It really is such pretty paper. SO many people loved it, that it ran out!!

So, June brings us a new yummy deal from Close to My Heart! How about a Flash Sale? Every weekend, starting on Friday, CTMH will have bundles available for purchase. The sales will run from 3pm MDT Friday until 3pm MDT Monday every weekend in June. Bundles are only available while they last! So, watch the countdown and be sure not to miss the deals!

Since it's summertime, I want to point out one of our fabulous current paper packs - Calypso! It's featured in the current Seasonal Expressions mini- catalog. Below is a photo of a couple ways to use this fun, bright, summery paper. 

The flamingos on the card are created with the "Tickled Pink"  My Acrylix® Stamp Set, which is also in the current Seasonal Expressions 2-mini catalog. And there is a coordinating die set that will perfectly cut those cute birds out, saving you the fussy-cutting.

Of course, I won't leave you without letting you know about this month's Stamp of The Month... The Long Way Home. A D-sized My Acrylix® stamp set, you can purchase it for $17.95 USD, or for $5 USD with any $50 purchase. Fabulous for those Travel scrapbooking pages, or some fun cards.

I hope you are as excited as I am about the June goodies from Close to My Heart, and will contact your consultant as soon as possible. If you don't have a consultant, I would love to be yours! You can leave me a message, or get straight to shopping on my OBA here. 

It's StampaGanza-tastic!

Ok, so that title is a little over the top. I blame it on the beginnings of Spring Fever! It's been such a strange winter here in the north-east, I'm ready to be done with it. Bring on the budding trees and flowers!

But... It really is StampaGanza... from Close to My Heart anyway. For the whole month of March, when you buy two stamp sets, you can get a third one for FREE! Yes, I dared to say the "F" word - FREE! (disclaimer, lowest price stamp set will be the free one).
So, pull out that wish list you've had tucked in your journal, by the computer, or in your catalog, and go here, and bulk up your stamp stash!

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So I haven't been terribly creative lately; though I DID manage to put together a massive 36-card workshop designed my my wonderful upline Susan Williams (shout out, fist bump, she's awesome!).
I haven't "quite" finished it yet, because, silly me, I had forgotten to order the embellishments on my last order. Which causes me to point out... it's a great idea to ALWAYS have some extra embellishments on hand. I always order the new paper packs, because I never know what project I might be inspired to do, but I sometimes slack on ordering the embellishments. And this is where it leads. To not having them when I want them for a project. So, no pictures of it yet, though you can see it on her site if you are interested (she takes Much better pictures than I do - I'm learning).

However, I DO have a photo of the Adorable card I made with March's Stamp of the Month set "Sunshine Birdies" (yes, I think it's a touch out of focus). I just LOVE this set. This was for a set of baby shower thank you notes. It was just too perfect. (And they were appreciated). My materials list for this card is below the stamp set image. The "Thank you" stamp is from the 'Candlelight Garden' set, a past SOTM.

This stamp set is fabulous for coloring with our Shin-Han Twin Touch markers, Watercolor Paints, or Watercolor Pencils. 

For the card, I used; CTMH Exclusive Cardstock in Pixie, Pear and White Daisy, paper from the Kaleidoscope paper pack,  CTMH Exclusive Inks in Pixie, Pear and Gypsy, and a non-CTMH white card base with a deco edge.

The Stamp of the Month is only available in March, for $17.95 USD. Or, with a $50 (or more) purchase, you can buy this sweet set for only $5. If you'd like this or any other stamp set, or materials, please visit my OBA (Online Business Address), to make a secure purchase. If you have any questions or comments, please drop me a note, I'll answer as soon as possible.

Happy Spring and Happy Stamping!

A Cute little Sunday Card

I've been itching to play with this stamp set since I saw it in the Seasonal Expressions 1 idea book. It's the Stamp of the Month for February; an adorable set of Balloon Animals! A couple of folks I know are expecting babies soon, so this is a perfect set to make congratulations cards.

I knew as soon as I saw the stamp set that I would make the cards with one of the new bright sets of paper. I haven't received my Penelope paper pack yet, so I used some of my Kaleidoscope pack, along with Pear and White Daisy Exclusive cardstock.  These colors are brighter in person! And a bit of Gold Shimmer Trim for some shine. I used Gypsy ink for the saying and frame, Pixie for the balloon Doggie, and a combination of Pixie and second generation* Sorbet on the Monkey to get a deeper, but not too deep look. I decided to keep this card simpler; no extra embellishments. I want those cute animals to steal the show!

Look at the other animals in the set, so cute! Also, note that the frame can be cut using your Cricut (That's what the red line around any stamp image in the catalog means). That's handy if you are making a set of cards - no fussy cutting!

*Second generation stamping - for those of you who may not know, is when you ink up your stamp, then stamp it once on scrap paper, then stamp it again on your project, giving a lighter image.

This adorable stamp set is a D sized set and is available ONLY for the month of February, for $17.95 USD, or for $5 with a $50 order. Shop online with me and I'll send you the measurements for the card shown above as well as two other designs that are coming later this week.

So Much New...

Wheee! It’s August! The summer is flying by far too fast for my liking and there has been SO much going on. Most days I feel like I can barely catch my breath.

So… while I have been hugely busy at work (I know, I say that far too much. And July usually is not busy all the month, but this year was an exception.), there have been things going on with Close to My Heart that have also kept me busy. I briefly blogged about the Studio J Flash Sale, and I saw that a few of you took advantage of that. I hope you are enjoying your layouts! I got 17 done so far, and they should be arriving this coming week, I am very excited! The sale was extended until August 3^rd, so there are a couple more days to take advantage of the $5 per layout deal (minimum of 4 layouts needed to place an order, but still... that’s 8 pages for $20!).

Now… on to the August goodies! In the past, August has been the month that Close to My Heart releases the new Annual Inspirations catalog and idea book. An eagerly awaited event, to say the least. This year, it was pushed out until September. But to bridge the time – the month of August – not only was the 2014-15 catalog extended one more month (an extra month to get those stamps and papers and embellishments that will be retiring….), but some things were released early to whet your appetite for the 2015-16 catalog.

Below is a list, with catalog numbers, of the items that have been released starting TODAY! Included in this basket of goodies is a new Cricut cartridge and accompanying stamp sets,Artistry. I have seen the pictures of all the cuts, and wow, is it versatile! I can’t wait to get my hands on it! I already have the Zoe paper packet and the Coral shimmer trim, it’s so pretty! August’s Stamp of the Month is another one of those all-around useful sets (see picture below). And if you’ve gotten hooked on Studio J, you can use the Zoe paper kit there too.

Cricut® ArtistryCollection (Z3167)
My Reflections™ Zoe Paper Packet (X7197B)
Zoe Complements (X7197C)
Zoe Assortment (Z3082)
Coral Shimmer Trim (Z3088)
Enamel & Glitter Duos Green Triangles(Z3123)
Workshops on the Go® Zoe Scrapbooking Kit(G1096)
Framed – August Stamp of the Month (S1508)
Zoe Studio J® Kit
Zoe Studio J® Limited Edition Express Collection (Live until September 30, 2015)
Marker Roll-Up (Z3120) and Accessory Roll-Up (Z3121) as part of the August Get Organized Campaign

There is also a great Buy this/Get that deal going on in the month of August. Called Get Organized, when you purchase either the new Marker Roll-Up or the new Accessory Roll-Up at full retail price, you will get the Balloon Wishes stamp set (with the marker roll up) or 2 Base & Bling Style Sheets (with the accessory roll up) FREE. Checkout all the details here.

I’ve been super busy not only playing with Studio J(creating layouts for digital photos as far back as 2007!!), but my husband and I have been doing some big stuff around our house and getting ready for out of town visitors. I did get the Zoe paper, but I am going to wait until I get the Cricut Artistry set before I really dive into it. SO… I hope you've been enjoying the images from Close to My Heart.

Please visit my OBA and take a look at all the wonderful products this company creates to help YOU create. If you would like to create your own online party, drop me an email, and I will give you information on how you can do that and earn free products. If you live locally to me, I can cometo your home and share the CTMH products with you and your friends, and you can see for yourself how easy it is to create something memorable. 

And if you're interested in becoming a consultant yourself, again, drop me a mail and I'll get right back to you with more information. It's a great time to join, the new consultant package has just been re-done and is better than ever!

Oh, I almost forgot... in addition to the year-long catalog release on Sept 1, the Holiday Seasonal Expressions will also debut - the Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas papers, stamps and embellishments! The Halloween paper this year... is spooktacular!

Flash Sale and Retiring Colors

Convention is over, and I wish the catalog was going live sooner. There's been so much information flying about the airwaves! I'm still sorting out exactly what I can share when. The Annual Idea book does not come out until September, but some of the items are going to be available in August. Like a new Cricut cartridge, paper pack, some stamps... There are new colors... (which means some older ones are retiring-see below). As soon as I get my ducks in a row and know exactly what I can and cannot share, I will.

Meanwhile, Studio J, CTMH's online scrapbooking studio, is having a sale! If you've never tried it, or tried it and love it, you have two weeks to take advantage of a great price and some backgrounds that will be disappearing at the end of the month. I don't know for certain which ones. I am not sure that has been shared. I'm going to spend some time this weekend finally putting some of my older digital photos into layouts and moving forward with my long neglected scrapbooking. This is just such a good deal and a great motivator!

There they are, the magic seven... that are retiring. These colors are all from the 'Enchanted' group of colors, which in my opinion is good. It always drove me nuts trying to find the colors in the catalog out of a long list. Knowing these are all in one section saves some time. Retiring Inks.... Retiring Cardstock....

That's it for this post. The Jump on It In July deal is still going on; if you are interested in that, keep reading for details. Great way to stock up on some stamp sets!

Contact your Close to My Heart consultant for more information on any of this, or for joining the team. If you do not have a consultant, I would love to be yours! drop me a comment, or an email. To shop with me, simply follow this link to my OBA (online business address). Happy Stamping, Scrapping and Crafting!