CTMH: September Stamp-of-the-Month Blog Hop

Welcome to the September SOTM Blog Hop!  If you came from Judy's blog, you're on the right track.  If this is your first stop, just keep clicking the links in each post until you get back here and you will have experienced all the amazing artwork that consultants have created for you.

What a whirlwind this week has been!  I almost forgot that I didn't have a project made for this hop.  My kids start school next week, and Nathaniel will be starting Junior Kindergarten, so exciting!  We've been really focused on the last bits of potty training.  Yeah, not so fun, but necessary.  Arianna is looking forward to having her little brother join her at "her" school.  Anyway, that's been my focus and the reason I raced down to my craft room, during the half hour quiet time I could get out of the kids this afternoon, to create this card.  It really didn't take much time, thanks to the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge which did the cutting for me.

I used Roxie Level 2 kit to create this card.  In fact, every piece of paper besides the base is from the patterned paper in this kit.  Love it.  I also used Just Blooms Paper Shapes Flutter (Those butterflies make me happy!), Foundry Ribbon Slides, and Designer Ribbon Red Collection, along with some retired Twill ribbon.  I stamped the tag in Sorbet, Cocoa and Desert Sand inks and everything was sponged with Desert Sand ink.  Then I added in some Clear Sparkles for a little extra bling.

Since I had paper in the Cricut, I decided to cut some pieces for journaling spots.  This stamp set is perfect for that.  Here are the two I stamped, ready to add to a card or layout.



The edges have been sponged with Desert Sand and the lines stamped in the same colour.  I also stamped some images in Cocoa and Barn Red, in first and second generation.  Can't wait to use them!

It's now time to hop on over to fancyMelissa's blog and see the stunning artwork she's got for you to drool over.  I know it's going to be great!

Happy Creating!

CTMH: You and Me, Part 2

As promised, here are the rest of the cards I made with the leftovers from the You and Me Kit sold in May.  I did add a bit of cardstock and all the card bases as well.

I had a lot of fun creating these cards.  Sometimes I used a pattern in the How-To book, Wishes.  Sometimes I followed someone else's idea and sometimes I just made it all up myself.  And most of the time, those last ones are my favourites!  I don't often do things all on my own when it comes to paper crafting and I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one.  I always have such a sense of accomplishment when I love how my own ideas work out.
Feel free, though, to use these ideas to get you creating.  ;)

It's almost time for the Stamp-of-the-Month blog hop, so stay tuned!

CTMH: You and Me

I really loved the You and Me kit we sold to celebrate National Scrapbooking Month in May.  The layouts were gorgeous and the paper, wow!  I cut the paper for my layouts very sparingly so I would have leftovers to make cards.  Some of these cards are completely cased from other consultants, but I made them quite a while ago, so I don't remember who made them initially.  Here they are!

 This next photo shows the inside:

I'll post some more tomorrow, so come on back then.  I hope these inspire you to crack open your You and Me Kit and get crafting.  I know some of you haven't opened it yet, I just know it!  ;)

Happy Creating!

Cricut Card Workshop

Come on out for a fun afternoon, playing with the new Cricut cartridge, Art Philosophy.  We'll be creating a slight variation on the Bonus Project from the Typeset Workshop-on-the-Go kit.  I'll provide all the materials.  You just need to bring $12 along with your favourite adhesive, dimensional adhesive and a pair of scissors.  Your fee includes a 1/2 package of Milepost Shapes as well as all the other embellishments you'll need.  We'll even get to do some messy painting.

When?  Saturday, August 27, 2-5pm.
Where?  My basement studio
RSVP by Wednesday, August 17.

Here are the cards we'll be making:

Call or email me today to reserve your spot.
Happy Creating!

CTMH August SOTM Blog Hop

Wow, what an exciting time to be a consultant for Close To My Heart!  The new Autumn/Winter Idea Book goes live to customers tomorrow (Aug 1) and there are so many incredible changes.  I'm quite sure as you go through this month's hop, you'll see lots of gorgeous new papers and embellishments.

This month we have over 60 consultants participating.  It's a cyclical hop so if you've come from Michelle's blog, you're on the right path.  If you're starting here, just keep clicking links until you get back here and you'll have seen it all.

August's Stamp-of-the-Month is very Halloween-y.  As I've said in past years, I'm not real big on Halloween.  So I decided to use the stamps in a different way, although I have to say that I do think the rest of the set is super cute.  Here's what it looks like:

Here is the card I made:

I used our brand new 6x6 Kraft cards and envelopes, one of my favourite new paper packs, Typeset, Milepost Shapes and Complements Canvas self-adhesive images.  I used the border and sentiment from the stamp-of-the-month.  I rubbed the star over my Vineyard Berry ink pad to add some colour.  Everything was sponged in Desert Sand or Black ink.  Here's another view so you can see how neat those card bases are.

And since these have got to be my favourite new accessory, I had to include a close-up.  They're so neat!

Now, you're ready to keep on hopping over to Terrie's blog. 

Happy Creating!

Retiring Items

My friend, Carla, has a fabulous post outlining all the retiring items.  These will not be available after July 31, and I'm putting in an order on Saturday night.  Check out Carla's post and email me with your order.  (I'll be at a 12-hour crop all day on Saturday, so please don't phone an order in.)

Another Sneak Peek!

Check out this video about the new Dreamin' Workshop-on-the-Go kit with added Cricut fun.

Then come see this paper in real life at my open house. 

Dates: Thursday, August 4: 8-9pm
          Friday, August 5: 8-9pm
          Saturday, August 6: 2-5pm.  Come at this time for a make 'n' take, too!

Please RSVP, especially for Saturday.  See you then!