CTMH July SOTM Blog Hop

Happy Canada Day to all my fellow Canadians!  How exciting to be celebrating this fun day with a blog hop featuring a stamp set that's perfect for today (okay, tomorrow since this is up on Thursday night instead of Friday morning).  If you came here from Vickie's blog, you're on the right track.  Remember that this is a cyclical hop, so keep hopping until you get back here and you'll have seen everything!

Here is the Canadian version of this stamp set.  Yes, you read that correctly.  There is a Canadian version and an American version.  How neat is that?   



I'm expecting lots of patriotic projects this time around.  Since there are lots of American consultants on this hop I thought I'd better put the Canadian side of things on display.  Here is my project:



I have had this event calendar for quite some time and haven't done a thing with it, until now.  I used only the SOTM along with Cranberry, Black, Gypsy, Lagoon, Grey Flannel, and Pacifica inks.  All the fireworks and stars are stamped second generation so they don't interfere with anything I need to write on the calendar.  I also kept it pretty plain, with no embellishments so the calendar will hang nice and flat when I finally finish it and put it up on the wall.  (Who knows how long that will take!)

If you'd like to see another project I've made with this stamp set, just scroll down to the next post.

Now it's time to keep hopping over to Shirley's blog and check out what's she's created.

Happy Creating!

Summer Card Camp!

I won a registration to Summer Card Camp!  It began on Monday and has been lots of fun so far.  I don't have a lot of time to create now that both kids are home every day all day, but I did get a chance to complete a card yesterday.

I love this colour combo!  So bright and cheery and very summery.  Here's the card I made:

I used only Close To My Heart products.  The stamp set is actually the July Stamp-of-the-Month, so you're getting a little sneak peek.  The images are stamed in Gypsy, Sky, Sunset, Cotton Candy and Black inks.  Then I sponged the same colour inks on the background to fill it in a bit and edged the front piece in Black.  I also used Jennifer's window technique as well, cutting into the card front inside the epoxy frame sticker, which came from the Sweetheart Level 2 assortment.  The letter "u" is one of our Irresistibles Eclectic Chipboard Diecuts, inked in Black.  To finish it off, I added a few Bitty Sparkles since I didn't have any larger circle ones left.  Here are a couple other angles to show you the window.

Happy Creating!

My Free Studio J Layout

I completed this layout for free, completely nothing.  It was so fun to create it and play on my favourite online scrapbooking program.

(click on photo to see it larger)

We visited Uncle Rob at the Canadian Forces Base in Trenton on June 5 and I've already got this very fun event scrapbooked.  I love how quickly I was able to finish it.

You've got a few days left to make your free layout.  After it's complete, you can print it the same way you would do your photos for your classic layouts.  Just visit my website and start getting caught up or even just create a layout to celebrate a recent event.

Happy Creating!

Another great video from CTMH and a winner!

Congratulations, Arlene, for identifying the Dreams Come True stamp set.  I'll get a card out to you soon.

Here's a great video from the CTMH corporate office.  Do you use pigment ink?  They use it in a way I've never thought of before!

Enjoy.  Happy Creating!

Bulk Birthday Cards with Mayberry

I made these cards a few months ago for a workshop.  It was so easy to follow the instructions in Wishes, using the Just Because workshop.  The workshop shows you how to cut just a few sheets of patterned paper and cardstock to create 20 cards.  2 each of 10 designs.  Then it gives you the layout and instructions for each card and a completed example for inspiration.  I was going for quick, simple stamping, and easy to mail.  I can't even tell you all the stamp sets I used!

I did each card two different ways using the same paper, just to show off the versatility of our papers.  There are a few brads and some foam tape and ribbon, but that's it for embellishments.

I'm offering some blog candy with these cards.  If you can tell me what one stamp set I used on the first four cards, I'll send you one of them.  Just comment or email me, but do it quick because this offer ends on Wednesday!

Happy Creating!

Paper Rose Topiary

Wow, what a lot of fun this project was!  I had a picture in my mind of what I wanted it to look like and it turned out exactly like I thought it would.  That doesn't always happen for me.  I created this topiary to be put in a silent auction for a Crop for the Cure I'm attending on Sunday.  (Yes, I'm skipping out on church. ... Shhh!) 

Here it is:

I bought this bucket from Michaels in their garden decor section.  Just used my hot glue gun to add some buttons from CTMH's pink button assortment.  The fill is pear cardstock put through our shredder.  I spritzed the pile with water and then scrunched it up in a ball and let it dry.  Then I spritzed it again a little before putting in the bucket; I wanted to make sure it wasn't going to pop out and show the floral sponge I have in the bottom!

The dowel was cut from a piece I had lying around.  The ribbon bow was made with CTMH's sweet leaf ribbon and one from the Designer Ribbon Pink Collection.

Most of the flowers were made from a Sophia Level 2 paper pack.  I added in a few made with pear, blush and hollyhock cardstock.  I also had to add 4 made with Sweetheart Level 2 because I ran out of Sophia paper!  And to fill in the spaces, I also made little flowers with the other ribbons in the Pink Collection.  The only thing holding those flowers on the styrofoam ball base is some pearl-topped pins.  I've spend about a month off and on creating the flowers.  I've actually used up quite a bit of Liquid Glass!  There are about 80 paper flowers and 10 or 12 ribbon ones.

Did you see the little surprise hiding on the side of this photo?

  

There she is!  I used a Martha Stewart punch to create this little butterfly and then added some Pearl Opaques to the body.

I love how it turned out!  Even my hubby, who sometimes doesn't react very much to my artwork, was impressed.  I think I'm going to have make one for us to keep, maybe to put on our mantle.  We'll see.

Wondering how to make these roses?  It's really quite simple. 

1. Cut a piece of paper in a square.  I used 5x5 for the big full ones and threw some 4x4 ones in there, too.  Freehand cut a circle and follow the curve to cut a spiral right to the middle. 
2. Then, using a quilling tool or just a pair of tweezers like I did, begin at the outside and roll the spiral up tightly.  As you get to the middle of the spiral, the paper will begin to look more flower-like.
3. Place it on your table, positioning the rolled flower on the centre circle that was left when you cut into the middle.  That's your base.  Hold it gently with your finger on the top of the rolled flower and allow it to unroll to the point you're happy with.
4. Squirt some Liquid Glass under the rolled flower on the base, press down lightly and then add a big dollop to the very middle.  I like to add some down some of spaces formed when you unroll the flower, between the "petals", just for some added stability.
5. You can stick a sparkle or opaque down the middle to finish it off.  My pins did that job for me.

Happy Creating!

Studio J: Free JPGs and a Very Helpful Video

Hello everyone!  Can you believe it's June already?  It's the last month of school which means teacher gifts need to be made, my daughter is now officially 6, summer is pretty much here, and convention is only a month and a half away!  So many things are going on around here right now, I'm pretty busy and my head is spinning.

Close To My Heart knows that it's a busy time of year, so they've come up with a wonderful promotion to help you get some scrapbooking done despite all the other things you need to do. 

For the month of June, create a layout (that's 2 pages) in Studio J and get free jpgs to share your layout online or print it yourself.  You'll get a low-resolution jpg of both pages together, and one high-resolution image of both the right and left pages.  So, that means you can play for free and have a finished product to show off or print!  It's all free, no strings attached.  Go to my website to check it out.

And to get those pages perfect, check out this awesome video to help you put your embellishments in just the right place:

Happy Creating!