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Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Merry Christmas to all....

“This is my wish for you: peace of mind, prosperity through the year, happiness that multiplies, health for you and yours, fun around every corner, energy to chase your dreams, joy to fill your holidays!”

—D.M. Dellinger

Sunday, November 27, 2011

2011 Christmas Gift Card Folder

Every year I design a Christmas Gift Card Folder. For 2011 I have used my Cricut and cut tri-fold cards and matching envelopes from Kraft cardstock. The pretty green cutout behind the poinsettia flower and the label are also cut with the Cricut machine. Tie a pretty trim around the envelope and your package is finished. And remember, when you use Close to My Heart papers and inks your colors will always match. So, even if you are giving a gift card you can still make it a pretty package! 

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Julian Town Hall Craft Sale - Nov 25 - 27 - Julian, Calif

I will be participating in the Julian Town Hall Crafters Thanksgiving Show this year and these are some of the things I will have for sale. I'm calling this Tim Holtz meets Close to My Heart! I have used my favorite products from both companies! I have mini chipboard photo albums, bookmarks, notebook portfolios, Christmas garland, Christmas gift tags, my newly created 2011 Christmas gift card folder with matching envelope, boxed chocolates and lots more so come see me!

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Happy Thanksgiving

This card uses the CTMH Dreamin' Papers and the So Grateful stamp set. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Friday, November 11, 2011

Remembering our Veterans

Heading to Phoenix this morning we stopped at a rest stop just east of Yuma. I saw this white rock path off in the distance and was curious so I walked the few yards from the parking lot to see what was there...

this plaque was what I found. Today is Veteran's Day. From the dates on this plaque we can see it took some time for this memorial to be placed. And look how young these men were. I am grateful to live in this great nation and value my freedoms everyday. Thank you to everyone past and present who have served to project our nation and preserve our freedoms. God bless America and all of our military and their families.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Art Philosophy Scrapbook Embellishments

I'm creating a layout with the Sonoma papers and need some embellishments. Everything you see here was cut on the cricut with the CTMH Art Philosophy cartridge from scraps! If you use your leftover scraps you are getting the best value from your paper pack and creating perfectly coordinated elements. The only limits are your imagination and the size for your scraps! TIP: Cut with speed set on slow when choosing elements with cutouts & use a glue stick as your adhesive.

Monday, October 31, 2011

Happy Haloween!

from Doug & Patty Smith - we won 2nd place for our Blues Brothers costumes!

Saturday, October 29, 2011

HOLLYWOOD!

Here I am standing outside the Hollywood Museum in Hollywood, CA! If you know me well, you probably think I've seen the movie Pretty Woman too many times! To celebrate my birthday this year Doug & I drove up to Hollywood yesterday to see the Lucille Ball exhibit. The museum was amazing! If you are a fan of the old Hollywood days you might want to make this trip yourself. There are old black & white photos hanging floor to ceiling on every wall. There are old cars, old costumes that include Michael Jackson, Bob Hope,Sonny & Cher and many, many others. Old movies play in a lot of the exhibits. The basement of the building is the location of the scene in Silence of the Lambs where Jodie Foster walks down the hallway to visit Hannibal Lecher in his jail cell. This layout uses the Roxie papers with the zip strip added to the left side to create the fancy scallop. I've also used the Pewter Accents.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

It's Halloween! Look what my friends have made...

It's so fun to have papercrafting friends who are so talented! The Boo card at the top left of this collection was made by Heather Plotzke using one of the Art Philosophy card shapes and a Studio J jpg image printed as a 4"x6" photo. The card bottom left uses the new Mischief papers and CTMH stamps and was made by Denise Anderson Turley. The wine bottle in the center was also created by Heather. She used a combination of techniques to give the stamped image a 3-D effect. The framed scene on the right was created by Dawn Heuft. Dawn combined stamped images, shapes cut with the Art Philosophy cartridge, liquid glass and the some fun rub-ons. Thank you to all my wonderful friends! & Happy Halloween!

Saturday, October 22, 2011

More fun with the Cricut and CTMH Art Philosophy Cartridge!

Are you getting ready for fall entertaining? Well don't forget about your Cricut! I cut this lace doily from a sheet of SB paper using the Layer Font Fluer d'Lis key on CTMH Cricut Art Philosophy Cartridge. The image was cut to Fit Page and was the perfect size for the glass tray. I will be adding homemade pumpkin tarts and the pumpkin dish in the center will hold the whipped topping. There are also square shape lace doilies that can be cut from this same cartridge. 

Friday, October 14, 2011

Cricut Art Philosophy Paper Napkin Rings

These paper napkin rings are a fun way to dress up your table. I have cut one of the borders from the CTMH Cricut Art Philosophy Cartridge 1" x 6" using the new Dreamin' papers. Organdy ribbon has been woven in the lace cutout. The lace cut out is attached to a CS strip with brads. You will want to cover the inside of the ring with a paper strip to cover up the prongs on the brads. When all of the strips are made overlap the ends about 1/2" and glue with Liquid Glass. You really do need to use Liquid Glass for this step so the rings will hold. After applying the Liquid Glass hold together for a few seconds then use a close pin and set aside to dry.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Studio Scrapbooking - have you tried it yet?

Do you have digital photos of a special celebration sitting on your camera card or in your computer? Most of us do! One of the best ways to enjoy those special memories is to scrapbook them. The scrapbooking experience itself will be so enjoyable as you recall all of the special details and conversations that made up the day. These photos tell the story of long lasting relationships, and remind me that the sum of all the years has added up to the love and respect and admiration that we share with each other. The people you see here are very special to me. Make the most of  technology and become a Studio Scrapbooker and enjoy your special moments! Click on the image above to see the layout full screen.

Studio J is very user friendly and gives you lots of options. 
The 2 large journaling boxes in the bottom corners were photo wells that I changed to text boxes by just clicking an icon. 
Digital stickers were used for embellishing and journaling. 
When you use Studio J your photos will automatically be resized to fit the the photo well, no cropping necessary.
Digital distressing can be added to your layout to give a 3 dimensional look. 

I hope you'll give Studio J a try - I think you'll like it! OH! These jpg files you see here are included FREE and can be shared on blogs, Facebook and other social media. 

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Cricut Art Philosophy Paper Flowers!

Look at all the pretty Fall flowers! I used 3 different flower shapes in 3 different sizes from the CTMH Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge to make this pretty bowl of flowers. 
The flowers have been attached to wire stems and wrapped with floral tape. 
Most of the flowers also have a leaf attached. The leaves were also cut on the Cricut! 
Some of the leaves have been stamped with VersaMark Dazzle to add a little sparkle and sheen.  
A lot of the flowers were cut from the CTMH Dreamin' paperpack. The leaves are cut from Chocolate and Desert Sand cardstock. Since the Dreamin' papers were a little dark I also cut some of the flowers from Colonial White CS and sponged the edges. 
Fall is my favorite season! I love the colors, I love seeing the change from summer days to fall days.

Sunday, September 4, 2011

LIMITED EDITION , Sept Stamp of the Month

This stamp set is perfect for cardmaking and for making journaling tags for scrapbook pages.
With a $50 purchase during September the stamp set is only $5. Available until 9/30/11.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

Cricut Art Philosophy - Card with cutout mat







This is another way to add dimension to your handmade cards.Stamp an image, then cut a mat & mount it over the stamped image. It's so easy to create a mat any size with the CTMH Cricut Art Philosophy Cartridge. TIP: Attach the brads before adding the mat to your card and they will not show through on the inside of your card.
The Cricut Art Philosophy Cartridge is available exclusively from Close to My Heart Consultants.

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Cricut Art Philosophy - Photo Mats!


With the CTMH Art Philosophy cartridge you can create any size and shape photo mat you need either for a framed print or for a scrapbook page! How exciting is that! To the left you see a 5" x 7" photo that has a mat created with the Shape 7 cut at 5".  TIP: mount your photo on your layout, then mount the mat on top of the photo.
I have 4 small pictures for this layout and will create mats for them at the 2" size. 
There are so many possibilities to really customize you scrapbook layouts and make them spectacular by just choosing a shape and pressing a button!
If you have any questions please email me.



Monday, August 8, 2011

Typeset Card






This card is inspired by the cards on page 17 in the new Idea Book. I used the Blue Ribbon stamp set and the Vintage Type stamp set on page 18.

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Typeset WOTG, Typeset Complements & Sept SOTM, Limited Edition



No matter what your scrapbook style, you are going to love the NEW CTMH paper packs.  All of the printed B&T Duos papers are 2 sided cardstock weight and make great base pages.This layout was created with the Typeset Workshop On The Go and the NEW Typeset Compliments Canvas Stickers. The journaling tag was stamped with the September Stamp of the Month, Limited Edition. There are some great images in this set.
Let me show you how to celebrate your relationships through discovering your creativity to preserve and share the moments that matter most.

Monday, August 1, 2011

It's here! the brand new CTMH Autumn/Winter Idea Book!


New Paper Packs - with printed Card Stock!

Lower Stamp Set Prices!

CTMH Exclusive Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge, stamp set, dimensional elements package!


August SOM FREE Bonus stamp set!

Click this link!
http://pssmitty.myctmh.com

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Cricut - Art Philosophy - CTMH Exclusive!

Brand NEW! CTMH has an exclusive Cricut cartridge! This is my very first project! And it was so easy! This is going to be so much fun! Everything you see on this card was cut on the Cricut with the Art Philosophy cartridge. The sentiment is stamped with one of the stamps included with the Art Philosophy package.
The Art Philosophy cartridge is available only from Close to My Heart Independent Consultants starting Aug 1st. Made to use with the Cricut Expressions Machine.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

New Products!

This is actually a work in progress. I need to mount this on a black CS base, add a photo and do my journaling on the tags. Pictured here you see papers from the NEW! Roxie paper pack, the NEW! Bling Assortment, the NEW! 10 Things Pocket with Journaling Tags, pleated ribbon from the NEW! Red Ribbon Collection, and stamping done with the NEW! 10 Things stamp set. Click on the photo for a larger view.
All of these new products will be available on Aug 1st.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

2011 CTMH Mad Hatter Un-birthday Party!

Tomorrow I am off to Disneyland for the 2011 Close to My Heart Consultant's Convention!
The festivities start with our Mad Hatter's Un-Birthday Party! We will share our un-birthday gifts and wear our un-birthday hats while we wait for Extravaganza the next day and see all of the brand new products and the brand new Idea Book! I promise to share all the happy news with you as soon as I'm back!

Monday, July 4, 2011

H2H Inspire Challenge

The H2H challenge this week is inspiration. How does the photo above inspire you?
I was inspired by the colors, the flowers, the 3 panels and even the black borders, to use the Wings Level I kit to create this layout.


 Photos have been trimmed to 3.5" x 6". I used a corner punch and some scoring and sponging to make the Vineyard Berry CS  photo corners. The title has been computer printed and a stamped border was added. Button brads finish the LO.

Thursday, June 30, 2011

H2H Color Challenge

The Heart 2 Heart Challenge this week is a color challenge. Make something patriotic using bamboo, barn red and the blue of your choice. I choose Pacifica. I decided to make a simple flag with paper strips and a punched stars. 
Stamp sets used are A Little Everything (D1408) and Pennant Alphabet (E1018) from CTMH.
Have a safe and happy 4th of July!  

Saturday, June 25, 2011

H2H Bingo Challenge!

  
We are going to a tropical theme birthday party today and this is the card I've made.
Following the H2H Bingo Challenge rules this week I have used border punches, flowers and buttons. See the H2H sketch below for all the bingo choices.
The flowers are pictured in the paper, the crochet ribbon has been threaded through one of the border punches, the buttons have actually been placed on the card face down, I just liked that look better on this card. The right side of the card is layered with another border punch.
Cardstock base and borders are Kraft CS, border punches are Martha Stuart. Paper, buttons & crochet ribbon are CTMH. The card edges have been scissor distressed.


My choices of flowers, border punch and buttons make a bingo from top to bottom center.
To see all the H2H Challenge entries go to http://heart2heartchallenges.blogspot.com/

Thursday, June 16, 2011

H2H Challenge - Random Stamping

This week's challenge is to random stamp a background and use it to make a card for Dad. 
I have used a Kraft CS base and 6 of the stamps from the Live Inspired stamp set.
The edges and background of the Kraft base were sponged with black for an aged look then mounted on black CS and adhered to the card base. The sentiment is cut out and also mounted on black CS.
All supplies CTMH.

Monday, June 13, 2011

You & Me Scrapbook Kit! Only $15 - nothing else to buy!

You & Me Scrapbook Kit still available! Only $15.00
No quantifying purchase necessary! 
CTMH is donating proceeds to the American Red Cross to assist recent victims of the tornadoes.
These kits contain a D size stamp set that is perfect for scrapbooking or cardmaking. Scroll down a few posts and you will see a LO and a card that I made with this kit.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Studio J FREE-FOR-ALL!

This is the Studio J layout I just created tonight! I used the Sideline Surprise pattern and the Fanfare paper. One of my favorite things about Studio J is just being able to drag & drop photos and have them automatically sized for the layout pattern. There are 10 photos on this layout, a title on each page and a large journaling box. Buttons, brads, a My Stickease sticker, and ribbons have been added. The entire layout has been sponged distressed, which gives a really nice look to the background in the journaling box on the right side.
Now it's your turn to create something fun! The magic of studio scrapbooking with Close to My Heart is ready for you to discover now. 
Free jpg file has a $3 value. Use your free jpg file to post your layout on Facebook to share with all your family & friends! You can also have the layout printed by any online photo service, I had mine printed at Costco. So go start discovering Studio J NOW! Just click the link on the right. Click on the photo above to see the layout full size.

Studio J Love Your Layout - Video & FREE OFFER!

Watch this video then go to my website and create a Studio J Layout and get the JPEG FREE! There is absolutely nothing to purchase! (If you choose the option to watch the video on You Tube you will be able to watch it full screen)
Use the JPEG to post on Facebook, post to your blog, or even print your layout!
See all the many options for papers, pattern, digital embellishments, photo sizing and much more. All very user friendly! Just click the link to your right and your are ready to start!

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

More Red, White & Blue!

I really love this stamp set! I've made a few different cards with it and it's so easy to make each one different! This card will be going to one of our Heroes via Operation Write Home.
To make this card cover the card base with patterned paper. Stamp the grid, stamp the letters, hearts & stars. Cut out the grid, add the star brads. Mount the grid on the card with glue dots.
All supplies are CTMH:
Bingo Alphabet Stamp Set D1478 - (Also comes with numbers)

Fanfare paper pack

Monday, May 30, 2011

Memorial Day 2011 - Fort Rosecrans - San Diego, California

This is one of the prettiest places in San Diego. Today there is an American flag next to each grave marker here. So many of our troops for so many years have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation and our freedom. God bless them all and God bless America. 

Saturday, May 28, 2011

OWH Missing You Blog Hop

This card was really quick to create. I wanted to make a simple card that was just a little different so I used a border punch on the front edge and added some organdy ribbon.
All supplies CTMH: Kraft CS base, Dreams Come True stamp set and TLC stamp set. If you make cards using dark paper be sure to line them with a white or very light colored CS inside. Next hop is to Jennifer

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Update - Hope For Japan

On 3/24/11 I posted about the "Hope for Japan" stamp set that Close to My Heart was offering at a special price, with proceeds being donated  to the Red Cross relief efforts in Japan to assist with the recovery there after the devastating earthquake and tsunami. Today I would like to let you know that Close to My Heart made a donation of over $80 Thousand Dollars as a result of the sales of these stamp sets! I would like to add a great BIG thank you to Everyone who purchased one of these stamp sets. I am absolutely amazed that a $5 stamp set generated such a significant amount of monetary aide.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

National Scrapbooking Month campaign update—


50% off for new Consultants in May!
Our Constant Campaign for National Scrapbooking Month in May is getting even better. We’re sweetening the deal for new Consultants who join Close To My Heart in May. Now they’ll get 50% off the $129 price of their New Consultant kit in addition to one FREE You & Me scrapbooking kit (Close To My Heart’s exclusive National Scrapbooking Month kit)!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

You & Me National Scrapbook Stamp Set - Making cards......

The card making possibilities using the stamp set that comes with the You & Me Scrapbook  Kit are endless. So next time you want to wish someone a Happy Day for any reason, at all just grab this stamp set and your card will come together perfectly! Paper used for this card is from the Mayberry paper pack. Colors are Smoothie, Chocolate, and Olive.

You & Me! Celebrate!This layout took no time at all to create!

You are going to LOVE this kit! The reversible papers are cardstock weight, there are tons of embellishments, including this chunky ribbon, and a perfect stamp set! The You & Me Scrapbook kit was absolutely perfect to use for these little girls who are part tom-boys and part princesses! These little girls live miles apart and seldom get to play together so it certainly was a day of celebration for them. The stamping and journaling tell the story of the fun they shared and how being part princess makes feeding a goat seem not so cool!
What will you create with the You & Me kit?

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Happy Thoughts

Do you sometimes see striped paper and wonder what to use it for? This card was inspired by one I saw in the July issue of Cards Magazine. The punched shape is one of the papers from the Mayberry Paperpack. To give the paper some stability I adhered it to a piece of plain cardstock before I punched it out. The button was sewn on with embroidery floss. The sentiment inside the card is ..."coming your way". The sentiments are from the CTMH Card Chatter - Sympathy stamp set (D1476).

Sunday, April 3, 2011

My Creations Photo Cube

I have used the My Creations photo cube to make a display of photos from a family wedding. The wedding colors were silver and white and the reverse side of the Bliss papers were perfect! Some of the photos are mounted on chipboard bases for extra dimension. All of the photos are covered with the Top Coats transparencies. The Bookplates Dimensional Elements were heat embossed with Silver Pearl to frame the photos of the bride and groom dancing. A lot of the journaling was done with stamps. I added a chipboard page from the Mix & Mingle mini album to the front of the cube and this gave me a place for 2 additional photos. This was a fun project to make and will be a treasured keepsake.

Thursday, March 31, 2011

FREE! Petite Perks Stamp Set! My gift to you for.....

placing an order for $100 in April, May or June 2011.

The stamped images on this card are made with the Petite Perks Affectionate stamp set that is only available from your consultant. This free stamp set is my gift to you and is not a CTMH promotion. 
If you place an order in April you will also receive 2 FREE items from Close To My Heart! The April SOTM, Blessed and a FREE Level 1 Scrapbooking Kit! You will be able to choose from the Sweet Home, Passages, Topstitch, Perfect Day, Veranda, Splendor or Zippidee patterns. The Level 1 kit has 4 pre-printed cardstock pages, 2 patterened papers, 2 sheets of cardstock and 2 sheets of stickers. 
The Total Value of these FREE items available in April is $36.85! 
Colors in the card above are White Daisy, Pear, Tulip and Creme Brulee. The paper is from the Sophia Level 2 paperpack.

Monday, March 28, 2011

Life is good! H2H Sketch Challenge





The challenge on the H2H blog this week is a sketch challenge. 
This card was fun to make, probably because it has so many of my favorite products!
I started with the new Kraft CS as the base of my card. The B&T papers are from the Lucky paperpack. The tree is from the Life is Good stamp set and has been stamped twice, once in cocoa and then in olive. I cut out the olive tree top and adhered on top of the cocoa stamping.
I used a short piece of crochet ribbon and Opaque Gems from the mocha collection.
There is a piece of olive B&T adhered to the card base before the Kraft Color-Ready borders were applied. These are so fun and easy to use and really add a nice finishing touch.
Now it's your turn to try the sketch! Have fun! 

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Quote


Saw this today and thought I would share it with you. Sometimes when I see a quote I get curious about the author. Turns out Mr. Butterworth was born in Winnipeg Canada in 1916 and served as Senior Minister of The Unity Center of New York City from 1961 to 2003.



Thursday, March 24, 2011

Hope for Japan

Hope for Japan a new Stamp set from Close to My Heart - Only $5.00 !!! and all proceeds go to the American Red Cross to benefit relief efforts in Japan.
CTMH has created this special stamp set (A1118) to recognize the tragedy in Japan and support the survivors.
This stamp set will only be available until 4/30/11 and can be ordered on my website https://pssmitty.myctmh.com/Retail/Product.aspx?ItemID=6083 or contact me at pssmitty@cox.net 

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Oh Baby! H2H Challenge

This week's theme is babies. I've made this quick card by stamping letters from the Posterboard Alphabet stamp set on B&T from the Sweetheart paperpack and cutting them out. The cute images at the top of the card are from the Happy Holidays stamp set. They are stamped on White Daisy CS and punched out and mounted on Cotton Candy CS that was also punched out.
Anyone who uses CTMH products is welcome to join this challenge and there is even a monthly prize! So visit http://heart2heartchallenges.blogspot.com/ every week and join in!

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I have made 2 cards using the same stamp set and the same paper pack! St. Patrick's Day may be just one day of the year but Love should be celebrated Everyday! Close to My Heart products are so versatile, making them a great value.
Colors: Pear, Hollyhock, White Daisy
Stamp Set: So Lucky (C1390)
Paper pack: Sophia (X7131B)

Monday, March 14, 2011

H2H Challenge - From Our Heart to Yours - Home Decor

Isn't it fun when it turns out you are a little ahead of the game! This is a re-post of a collage I made and posted a couple weeks ago. I really love putting together bits of this and that to create something with personal meaning. In high school I took French with is not really anything special but when you consider I grew up on the central California coast in a community that was supported  by agriculture and went to school with classmates who spoke Spanish you have to realize it would have made a lot more sense to be taking Spanish classes! But French it was! On my list of things to do someday is visit Paris. But until I can make that journey I will just dream about it. A long time ago a good friend told me the only two things in life that are really free are smiling and dreaming. We need our dreams to keep us smiling, so keep dreaming.
All of the stamps used in this 5x7 collage are from Close to My Heart. The stamp with the Eiffel Tower is from the new Caio set. I inked the stamp in gray then sponged black on the Eiffel Tower and on the word romance. The Paris postmark is from a retired set called Air Mail and was stamped on a piece of B&T from the Wings paperpack to add a little background interest to the stamping.
The colors are Black, Colonial White, Olive and Vineyard Berry.
The metal accents are from various Tim Holtz collections.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Times 3 - H2H Challenge

The H2H Challenge this week is to use 3 stamps and create a card with a scene. I have used the Daydream stamp set. Everything is stamped with Desert Sand ink. The ocean is colored with the blending pen and the Lagoon and Pacifica inks. The beach and sky are sponged with Desert Sand and Sky.The foam on the wave is Create-A-Shade paint with a little Prisma Glitter mixed in, this was applied with a toothpick! I also sponged a little bit of the paint over the sky, ocean and beach. Then I added Pacifica re-inker to the paint and applied it to the umbrella stripes. The sentiment comes from the TLC stamp set.
note: this card was inspired by the artwork on page 62 of the Spring/Summer 2011 Idea Book