Everyone enjoys shopping the deals this time of year, and you’ll be tickled to learn that at Close to My Heart we are making more fabulous deals available to you. At 12:00 AM (MST) on December 1, we will add new items to the “While Supplies Last” section of my web shopping page. Among the new additions you will find a wide variety of paper and coordinating accessories, all with a substantial markdown. You will also find that most of the items that are currently available will also see a further markdown at that time.

To sweeten the deal even more, from December 1–31, all orders placed on my website that reach or exceed $50 will also include a free Bonding Memories® glue pen (Z553)—a $4.50 value!

Shop early, because these deals are only available while supplies last!

Click the "Shop with Me" icon on this page.

Enjoy shopping!

One of my club ladies has requested a special card making session with a few of her work friends.  I have 5 cards lined up for the event.

With this card I used "Flakey Friends" (C1506).  The colors of the card stock are Pacifica (X5759) and Gypsy (X5757). The ink colors are Black (Z2105), Pacifica (Z5759) and Gypsy (Z5757). The ribbon is from Michael's.

This card uses the same colors and stamp set, but I also added the Flurries at the bottom with a "Retired" stamp set.  Sorry!  The sparkle on the snow flurries was done with a clear glitter Roller Jelly pen.

The three cards below are from our Close to My Heart, Pear & Partridge Card Making Kit (G1043).  The kit comes with all the pattern paper, card stock, ribbon, gems and a special stamp set to create these three different cards.  Not to mention it comes with 15 pre-scored cards with envelopes.  Who could ask for more? The colors are Cranberry, Chocolate, Desert Sand, Colonial White, and Olive.



October Club Project

The design of the card to the left is from our new "How to" book "Make It From the Heart". We are using the Avonlea paper pack (X7155B) with the Quick Cards - Bountiful Season stamp set (A1130).

The card on the right is also using the Avonlea paper pack, as well as the New Champagne colored cardstock. We are using "A Little Thanks" stamp set (D1444). The sentiment is heat embossed with Cocoa embossing powder.

Welcome to October!

I love October! Halloween is my favorite holiday of the year. I dress up in my Witch costume, decorate the house, and enjoy the change in the season. Although, the temperature hasn't changed too much yet!! It is still hitting the 100 degree mark around here. This is the Note Board I made for my office door. Very festive. I made this with our Moonlight Workshop on the Go!(G1051) Everything, except the bats and the moon, is part of the stamp set that goes with the WOTG. The Bats and moon come from the "Creepy Creatures" (C1522) set.

I wish you and your family a safe and Happy Halloween!

Clearly the Best: Bend It, Curve It, Stamp It (S01E01)

September Club Project

What would this time of year be like if we didn't have Halloween just around the corner? Pretty Scary, right?

This month's club will be making a two page Layout dedicated to Halloween.  We are using the Moonlight paper pack (X7161B), Creepy Creatures Stamp set (C1522), Haunted Assortment (Z1741), and several items cut out by the new cricut Artiste Collection (only available through Close to My Heart).

Below is a close up shot of the skull brad from the Haunted Assortment, and I placed gems in the eye sockets.  They would have been red gems, but I didn't have any!

The spider below has another gem that is in the Haunted Assortment

BOO!, the cobweb, the spider and the spider web board were all cut from the Artiste collection.

Isn't my little man so cute.  These pictures were taken in 2004 when he was 2 years old.  Yes, I'm the "Witch"!

Birthday Cards

School has begun!  And already the room mother's must jump into action.  Here are two of the Birthday cards that I am preparing for the 5th grade class of St. Ann School.  I have one more to go for August, a boy card that I will hopefully post tomorrow night.  The celebration is this coming Friday.

The first card is made with one of our new paper packs, Avonlea.  Much nicer to look at in person.  The card is a gift card holder, cut out using our new Cricut Artiste Cartridge.  It has 700 images to choose from.  The really cool thing about this cartridge is that it makes 3-D items.  With seasonal items as well!

Avonlea - Lindsay

The second card is all card stock, and the flower pieces are all cut from the same cartridge.

Card Stock - Britney

Inside the card is a $5 Baskin Robbins gift card.

Sympathy Card

We lost a friend of ours recently to a congenital heart defect.  He was only 47 and far too young to have been taken away from his family.  He was well liked as I saw tonight.  Our local Pizza Factory had a fund raiser for his family to help with the medical and funeral expenses.  What I saw tonight at Pizza Factory brought tears to my eyes!  The place was packed, and there was a line to the door, over 20 people in line.  Everyone in that line had the fund raiser flyer in their hand.  The cashier told me they had been extremely busy all day and at lunch the line went out the door and it lasted for a couple of hours.  I’m here to tell you that at lunch time today the temperature in Ridgecrest was over 105, and it was very humid for the High Dessert.  So, people standing outside waiting to order food, well, what can I say?  This community can really come together when we need to and it is nice to know that we have so many caring people here.

This is the sympathy card I made for his wife and family.

The paper is La Belle Vie, the stamp set is Angelic Blessings, the sentiment comes from the Card Chatter - Sympathy stamp set.

New Club begin in September!

New clubs begin September 7th and 14th.

This year I’m trying something different.  I'm starting a card only club on September 7th and a Layout only club on September 14th. Below is the information on the clubs.  In the event that there are not enough crafters for the two clubs, I will combine the two and go back to the old format where the hostess will choose. Members will receive the Autumn/Winter Idea Book at the first meeting. :-)

Card Club:

·         The card club will make 2 cards at each gathering

·         We will meet on a Friday night (see schedule)

·         Each member commits to purchase $15 in product(pre tax & shipping)

·         Minimum party is $150 so hostess gets rewards

Meeting Dates: 

Ø  September 7^th 

Ø  October 5^th 

Ø  November 2^nd 

Ø  December 7^th 

Ø  January 4^th 

Ø  February 1^th 

Ø  March 1^th 

Ø  April 5^th 

Ø  May 3^rd 

Ø  June 7^th 

          Layout club:

·         The layout club will make a two page layout at each club

·         We will meet on a Friday night (see schedule)

·         Each member commits to purchase $15 in product(pre tax & shipping)

·         Minimum party is $150 so hostess gets rewards

Meeting Dates:

Ø  September 14^th 

Ø  October 12^th 

Ø  November 9^th 

Ø  December 14^th 

Ø  January 11^th 

Ø  February 8^th 

Ø  March 8^th 

Ø  April 12^th 

Ø  May 10^rd 

Ø  June 14^th

Please let me know by August 24^th if you’re interested in the club!

Joining in August Is in the Bag!

Join Close To My Heart in August and get a darling Damask Tote Bag free!

When you become a new Consultant in August, you will receive a FREE Damask Tote Bag (retail value $50), while supplies last. This handy, attractive tote with the Close To My Heart logo lets everyone know you are a Close To My Heart Independent Consultant—with class and style! Choose the $49 New Consultant Essentials Kit or the $99 Master Kit which includes more supplies and tools, and we will send you a tote bag free—only in August and only while supplies last.  Contact me for details.

Damask Tote Bag Features

• 17" x

17" x 6"

• Large exterior pocket for 12" x 12" paper packets

• Huge interior can hold a 12" x 12" album and more

• Small, zippered interior pocket

• Fabric is coated-canvas for durability and easy cleaning

• 2 water bottle pockets

• Wear on the shoulder, across the chest,

or as a backpack

• Large flap snaps closed

Offer available August 1–31, 2012, while supplies last. No tax

or shipping/handling is charged on the Damask Tote Bag. Tax

and shipping/handling is charged based on the price of the New

Consultant Kit that is purchased ($49 or $99).

New Idea Book ~ New Toys!!

     The new Cricut® Artiste collection takes your creativity over the top! With 700 images, the cartridge features themed projects, interactive cards, awards, and more. From robots and spooks to weddings and Valentines, your cupcake liners, invitations, and party favors will coordinate and quickly come together for any celebration! Cutting and assembling the numerous 3-D items is a snap using the project reference chart and separate, step~by~step assembly booklet.

When you purchase the Cricut® Artiste collection, you’ll get three coordinating exclusive stamp sets and three Dimensional Elements 12"μ 9" sheets that will help your artwork come to life, transforming the ordinary into amazing! Contact me today to get the entire collection— with a retail value of nearly $125—for just $99!

Cricut® Artiste Collection Includes:

1 – Cartridge (700 images: Themed Projects, Cards, Font, 3-D Items)

3 – My Acrylix® D-size Stamp Sets

3 – Coordinating 12"x 9" Dimensional Elements Sheets

(Awards, Quotes, Album Pages)

$99 (Retail value of nearly $125!)



August Stamp of the Month

Baroque Borders SET OF 5

Available August 1–31, 2012

Get the Stamp of the Month set for just $5 (S1208A) when you place an order of $50 or more in products. Jump-start the fun by ordering the items from the list below to create this artwork! You’ll find helpful assembly tips at my Online Business Address under Promotions.

Avonlea Paper Packet($9.95, X7155B, Autumn/Winter 2012 Idea Book p. 18)

My Creations® Display Album($7.95, Z1054, p. 132)

Slate Exclusive Inks® Pad($5.25, Z2173, p. 9)

Whimsy Exclusive Inks® Mini Pigment Pads Set($19.95, Z2500, p. 9)

Sparkles Clear Flourishes($4.95, Z1708, p. 127)

Slate Satin Polka-Dot Ribbon($4.95, Z1802, p. 124)

RECOMMENDED BLOCKS: 2” μ 3½” (Y1009), 4” μ 5” (Y1012)

Birthday Cards

Our Little man turned 10 this month.  Below is the card I made for the special occasion.  Right now he has his heart set on becoming a Navy Seal when he grows up, so commando is in!  He really loved the camouflage paper.  This particular paper is from the Victory Paper pack (X7150B).

The cup cakes on the front were cut on the cricut using the Art Philosophy cartridge.  Love my cricut!!! Thank you Honey for the wonderful gift! 

(Inside)

I added some hand written personalization to the inside after I took the picture. 

June's Project

June is already half over, and I'm way behind.  Had our first gathering last night for June and didn't have the project posted.  What a SLACKER!!  Anyway, here we go.  Club A Did the card and the right side of the layout, and club B will do the 2 page layout on the 20th.  This month we used the Pemberly Paper (X7148B), the stamp set from the Pemberly Workshop on the Go (G1033), and The Best Things stamp set (C1503). The colors are Outdoor Denim, Buttercup, Indian Corn Blue and Colonial White.

The Card (club A only)

The two page layout.

Right side (both groups)

Left side (Club B only)

Glad it's summertime!

Wow! These past few week of prepping for school year end have been killer.  So incredibly busy!  My Friend Lisa and I made 25 paper bag scrap books for the fourth grade and wouldn't you know it!  I forgot to take pictures.  But I must thank Lisa for the help!  Counldn't have done it without her!!

Scrapp'n Hearts "A" Club Project

Hard to see, but here it is.  We are using the Victory paper pack (X7150B), Pure Adventure (C1497), and the Workshop on the Go stamp set.  My example has a title, but the club will not have a title so that you can create your title when you figure out what you want to put on the pages.

May's Stamp of the Month

Share your relationships with a few Sunflowers! The May Stamp of the Month highlights friendships with phrases like, "your friendship means so much to me", "Treasured Friend", "Plant a seed of friendship; reap a bouquet of happiness", and "thank you so much".  All great words to live by!  The SOTM is shown here with the Pemberly paper pack.  What a nice compliment.  I can't take credit for the works of art you see here, they were posted by corporate!

Wednesday Club project!

Magic and Lucy together!

The paper is "Lucy" (X7149B), the layout is from the how to book "Magic" (9034).  The subjects in the photo are my grand niece and my dog Noel.  This was their first meeting in May of 2005.  I have a boy, so I need to search for girly photos and this one was Picture Perfect!  The stamp set used was Instant Memory (C1466).  Although yon can't see the detail here, the flower is on foam tape, the sign, "Picture Perfect" is on a Pin Clip (Z1612), and has the green ribbon tied around it.  I also have some Bitty Opaque Pearls on the swirls in the Sweet Leaf journelling block, and a Bitty gem dotting the I in Picture.

Scrappin' Hearts B

This is the one page layout my club will be making this Wednesday night.

April Club Project

For April, I thought I'd demonstrate some spring colors by using the Lucy paper pack (X7149B) along with this really adorable new dog stamp set A Bowwow (A1126).

Scrappin' Hearts A Project

 I'm also going to be a little "Fishy" with Footloose (X7151B) and these cute little fish in the Under The Sea (C1500) stamp set.

Scrappin" Hearts A & B Project

Scrappin Hearts B will also be doing a one page layout that I will add to this post sometime this week.

Scrappin Hearts A gathering is Thursday, 4/12/12 at 6:30pm, at my place.

Scrappin Hearts B gathering is Wednesday, 4/18/12 at 6:30pm, at my place.

April's Constant Campaign

CELEBRATE NATIONAL SCRAPBOOKING MONTH IN MAY

with the oh-so-cute Dotty for You paper packet.

There are three ways to get this exclusive Dotty for You paper packet, valued at $19.95*:

     • Place an order of $35 or more in products from the Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book between April 17 and May 31, and add the Dotty for You paper packet for just $5.

     • Host a Gathering with a sales total of $400 or more (excluding tax, shipping/handling, and Operation Smile® donations) between April 17 and May 31 and receive a Dotty for You paper packet FREE.

     • Join Close To My Heart as a new Consultant between April 1 and May 31 and receive a Dotty for You paper packet FREE.



CELEBRATE NATIONAL SCRAPBOOKING MONTH IN MAY

April's Stamp of the month

Superhero!!

Everyone has a favorite “Super”.  For my then 3 year old, his hero was Dash from the “Incredibles”.  He wanted to run as fast as Dash, super fast!  So for his 3^rd birthday, we had an “Incredibles” party. 

These layouts were created with our Superhero Workshop on the Go (G1037 - $29.95).   The workshop contains the following:

1 – My Reflections Superhero Paper Pack (X7152B)
1 – My Acrylix Superhero Stamp set (only available in the kit)
2 – White Daisy Cardstock Sheets
1 – Comic Badge Buttons (Z1688)
1 – Dimensional Elements Stars (Z1680)
1 – Instructional Brochure

March Project

This month both clubs have chosen cards, so here we are.  The Birthday card is a Spring-Fold card made with the Superhero Workshop on the Go (G1037) and Card Chatter - Birthday (D1475). The stamp set in the workshop is really cool!

The Easter Card is made with Card Stock (Sweet Leaf (X5639), Smoothie (X5763), Sunkiss Yellow (X5917, Combo pack only) and White Daisy (1385) and  Stamped with My Peeps (B1402) and Hooray Bouquet (D1491).



My Peeps

Introducing!!!!  Our new Adhesive Springs! 

Now our art work can spring out at the viewers!!

Scrappin' Hearts A - 6:30 March 14th

Scrappin' Hearts B - 6:30 March 21st

Look forward to seeing everyone!!!

Instructions for Superhero card:

Card base is a 12X6

Front B&T is 4 x 4

Base B&T is 5 7/8 X 2 7/8

White card stock for sentiment on base is 4 X 2

For 3 center triangles, I cut a 5 ¾  X  5 ¾  sheet of B&T diagonally to make the triangles.

FootLoose

I've really been anxious to use this new Footloose paper for some of our Fiddler's Cove Beach photos. So here is a two page layout using the Workshop On The Go and the Seaside Wooden Shapes (Z1693),  the Wooden Badge Buttons (Z1703), and Persnickety Journaling Spots (Z1734).

Right Side

Left Side

Sonoma Layout

This one page Layout was created with Sonoma Paper pack (X7143B) , the stamp set that came with the Sonoma Work Shop on the Go, and the Mini-Medley Accents Pewter Collection (Z1487), the flowers are from the Heirloom Assortment (Z1635).

This is our Goddaughter Ashley, who is now 19 but will be 20 this year!  Hard to believe time flew by so fast!

Sympathy Card

A friend of ours passed away this month.  So I created this card for the Wife and son to be delivered with the Pulled Pork dinner that we’ll be delivering this Wednesday. It is always sad to lose a loved one and nice to know you have friends that care and are there for you when you need them.

The card is made with the Florentine paper and Card Chatter - Sympathy (D1476).