May 2014 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to the May 2014 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop featuring You've Got a Friend, a set of 5 stamps.  Whether you've come here from {Wendy's} blog or are just getting started, just click on the link at the end of each post to go to the next post in the hop.  I mustache you, are you ready to see what more than 50 Close To My Heart consultants have created with this set?

I've made a card following the Mojo Monday sketch 342.  I wanted to combine the quirkiness of the moustache with the formality of the damask pattern.  This card has a quirky, formal, and sparkle all combined to make a cute "thank you" card.

Remember, You've Got a Friend is available during May 2014.  Contact your consultant, or click {here} to get one for yourself (or for a friend).  

Now hop on over to {Mary's} blog to see her creation.

Thank You Cards from my Scrap Weekend

My plan for my scrap weekend was to make greeting cards for my guys in Afghanistan (where I would be now if I weren't in Okinawa), and to try to finish off some paper packs.  I sent them a greeting card organizer from The Container Store a few months back, and I wanted to keep them stocked with cards to send to their family and friends.

I would LOVE to tell you the name of this paper pack, but I threw out the label over the scrap weekend.  I can tell you that I got this CTMH paper pack at my very first scrap weekend in October 2006, and I used a good portion of it on a layout I did shortly thereafter of the annual Naha Tsunahiki.  I didn't quite finish off the pack yet, but I will soon.  All I can remember is the word "Country" is in the name of it...

Papers: CTMH, CTMH Cardstock in Autumn Terracotta and Dutch Blue

Inks: CTMH Autumn Terracotta and Dutch Blue

Tools and Techniques: Crosshatching, direct-to-paper edge distressing, CTMH  Brads, CTMH flowers, Prima flowers
Stamp Sets: CTMH Thank You, CTMH A Little Everything, CTMH Card Chatter-Thank You, CTMH  From Me to You, CTMH For Every Occasion

July 2010 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

It's hopping time again!  If you just arrived from Melissa's blog, you are on the right path.  If you are just starting here, no worries.  Our hop is a round-robin, so you can jump in anywhere and still see EVERYTHING!

This month we are featuring the July Stamp of the Month Happy Forever, a set of nine stamps.  This set features the most ADORABLE little hedgehogs, along with a few sentiments.  These cute critters are sure to be great for a variety of projects for many occasions. 

This is only my second crafting project since I've arrived in Okinawa a month ago.  I'm still getting settled in, and haven't had much time for crafting.  I made this card following this sketch from Sweet Sketch Wednesday.  I used the Cherry-O Creative Basics paper pack, which includes that adorable Cranberry velvet ribbon.  Other challenges include Xtra Dimension at The ABC Challenge Blog, Paper Cutz Challenge #47, and Stampin' B's Challenge #64.  This is intended to accompany a gift for a friend.  But anyone who knows me knows I have postal issues, so this will definitely be posted before I actually get it postal!

Papers: CTMH Crystal Blue, Sweet Leaf, Tulip and White Daisy cardstock, CTMH Cherry-O Creative Basics

Inks: CTMH Chocolate, Crystal Blue, and Tulip, CTMH markers in Tulip (kite bows) and Chocolate (accents in hedgie's scruff), CTMH Re-inker in Blush (large flower)

Tools and Techniques: Paper piecing (kite), crosshatching, direct-to-paper edge distressing, CTMH button, CTMH Just Blooms, CTMH ribbon, CTMH Watercolor Pencils, Waterbrush, 3-D Mounting Foam
Stamp Sets: CTMH Happy Forever


Directions for coloring your paper flowers with re-inkers follows below.  Remember that Happy Forever is only available July 1st-31st 2010.  Contact your CTMH consultant, or click here, to find out how to get this stamp set for a discount or even for FREE!

Now hop on over to Debra's blog to check out her creation!! 

Coloring paper flowers with re-inker is fairly simple.  I recommend a shallow container with a mostly-flat surface (a shallow bowl or plate is perfect), tweezers (like these reverse-action tweezers from CTMH), and rubbing alcohol.  Simply drip some re-inker into your container, add a little bit of alcohol, and mix.  Paper towels are a quick way to get an indication of your color.  Simply dip a small piece of paper towel into the mixture.  If it is too dark, add a little more alcohol.  Too light, add more re-inker.  Once you've found your desired shade, grasp the edge of your paper flower petal with the tweezer and quickly dip in the mixture.  The flower will absorb the mixture quickly, so be prepared to move it quickly to achieve complete coverage, and then get it out of the mixture as quickly as possible and put it on a paper towel to dry.  If you leave the paper flower in the mixture for too long, some of the "texture" or dimension of your flower may be lost.  So work QUICKLY!!!!  You can probably also do this with water instead of alcohol, but the alcohol dries much faster.  This technique will give you flowers perfectly matched to your project!

All Boxed Up Card set

I found a great template for a card box from Lauren Meader at Papertrey Ink. You can purchase the template here. I made a set of assorted cards following the September '09 PageMaps sketches. This is a fun and quick (and useful) gift to make.

Paper: CTMH Emporium, CTMH Cardstock

Inks: CTMH
Stamps: CTMH Thank You, CTMH Many Thanks, CTMH Connections, CTMH Treetops

Ribbon: CTMH Cocoa, Vineyard Berry (from Emporium Creative Basics) and White Daisy Ricrac

Tools and Techniques: Fiskars Threading Water punch, Marvy Uchida circle and scalloped circle punch.

Autumn Many Thanks Card

I had to get my scrapping fix in today, so I checked out the sketch challenge at OCC. I wanted to break in one of my (too many) stamp sets that I got this week, so decided on a thank you card. I also wanted to kick out a bunch of Christmas cards, but I don't see that happening today. I still have homework to do. :(




Stamps: CTMH Many Thanks
Papers: CTMH cardstock, CTMH Enchanted
Inks: CTMH Autumn Terracotta, Garden Green, Smoky Plum and Sunflower
Techniques: DTP ink distressing, emboss resist
Other: 3-D Foam mounting squares, Marvy Uchida scalloped punch, MM spirals

National Cardmaking Day

Today is National Cardmaking Day, so I had an excuse reason to tear myself away from my Business Management paper to make a card. Technically, this card is related to my Business Management paper. The paper is based on an interview that we had to do with a business owner. So I chose a local business (Truly Madly Sweetly Bakeshop, which has the most delicious cupcakes and mini cheesecakes) to do an interview with. I was so pleased when the owner agreed to sit down with me. Because she was such a fantastic lady (as well as a fantastic pastry chef), the chat was really easy for me. So, I was going to write her a thank you note, and then I remembered that today was National Cardmaking Day, and instead decided to make a card. The inspiration for this card is from the colors of her shop (white and light pink, with striped walls up top). I followed Mojo Monday Week 106 sketch.

Stamps: Cupcakeabella, CTMH Thank You
Papers: CTMH cardstock (Blush, Chocolate, Hollyhock), CTMH More to Adore
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black, CTMH markers, Copic markers, CTMH Hollyhock, Prismacolor marker
Embellishments: CTMH ribbon, CTMH brad (Cranberry), Liquid Applique, Round sticker from More to Adore Stickease
Techniques: Paper piecing, heat gun-puffed Liquid Applique, shadowing with Cool Grey marker

Here is a closer view of the cupcake. I was careful to keep the Liquid Applique off of the stamped lines of the icing so they would show when it was finished. To puff up the Liquid Applique, simply use your heat gun just as you would for heat embossing. The sticker stamped with "Thank You" was mounted on a 3-D foam mounting square. To remove the stickiness from the back of the sticker, I simply sprinkled it with baby powder and tapped off the excess. That way it won't stick to the card when I mail it.

September Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! We will be featuring the September SOTM, which is Treasures, a set of 13 stamps. If you have come here from Kristie's blog, you are on the right path!

This month we have over 60 Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their creations using the September SOTM and other great CTMH products on their blogs. This hop is simple to follow - just click on the link at the end of the post on each blog to move to the next one! Here we go!

I made a 6X6 Thank You card, following the Open Outline pattern from Wishes Card Confidence Program. As usual, I took slight liberties with the sketch. Instead of adhering the vellum to the inside of the back of the card, I adhered it to the inside of the front. The vellum was random stamped in White Daisy ink, which I set using my Craft Heater (caution - when using your craft heater to set the ink on vellum, make sure you don't get the heater too close, and keep it moving so you don't scorch the vellum). The card base is Sweet Leaf cardstock, and the patterned paper is from the Emporium Level 2 Paper Pack. Circles were cut out using Coluzzle Circle Template. The patterned paper was sponged around the edges with Twilight ink, and the Sweet Leaf cardstock was sponged around the inside of the circle opening using Sweet Leaf ink. The sentiment on the inside was stamped using Twilight ink. The White Daisy circle was cut with Nestabilities, sponged with Bamboo ink while still in the die and the image was second generation stamped in Twilight ink. The scalloped circle was also cut with a Nestabilities die. The scalloped circle was mounted using 3-D Mounting Foam. The adhesive pearls in the top left corner are the new-for-Autumn Connections Club award, available exclusively through your Close To My Heart consultant.








Now "Hop" on over to Wanda's blog to see her work! Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their blogs to get some other fun ideas! Remember, the September SOTM is only available until September 30th! Contact your CTMH Consultant (or click here) to see how you can get this stamp set at a discount or even free!

For a complete list of participating blogs for this month's blog hop, visit Jena's blog.

A sketch for you to try

So, while avoiding algebra taking a break from college work, I came across another fun challenge on Jen's blog. It just so happened that the base caught on fire today and it took me 85 minutes just to get off base (2 hours and 45 minutes for my entire commute). So I had to get my neighbor to pick up K from camp. I couldn't believe that I was going to be late picking him up on the first day of camp. Luckily, she was able to pick him up on time, saving me a dollar for every minute late I would have been (45, by the way). So I decided to make her a quick thank you card. I followed the Sketch for You to Try (SFYTT) 19, and used some of the Basic Grey papers I picked up at CKC this past weekend. I was DYING to break in some of my new stuff!! And of course, the butterfly is mounted with 3-D Mounting Foam.

Papers: Bazzill cardstock, Basic Grey Eva

Stamps: Unity Stamps, CTMH (Thank You)

Inks: Memento, CTMH, Copic

Getting my Mojo back

I made it through the ENTIRE week last week without making a single card. It certainly wasn't for lack of desire to make a card, or lack of inspiration. I actually had quite a few challenges that I fully intended to do last week. I even went so far as to choose inks, stamps and papers for a few cards. Somehow, time managed to get away from me and the next thing I know it is Tuesday, and all of last week's challenges went unfulfilled. So, even though I should have been doing classwork (this week is the first week of my college algebra class), I decided to make a card.

This card was made following this week's Mojo Monday sketch. I used the CTMH Animal Cookies Creative Basics papers, Clover Meadow, Sunflower and Tulip cardstock, Tulip ink, and the new Thank You stamp set. Embellishments were Bella's Baubles (I have NO IDEA what the color is--I split a pack with a friend. It may be apricot jam from the Tutti Frutti bauble set) and stitched ribbon from my stash. Circle and scalloped circle were cut with Nestabilities, and the rectangles were mounted with 3-D Mounting Foam. When the Summer Idea Book came out, I wasn't a big fan of the Animal Cookies paper. After seeing it in person, especially the Creative Basics pack, I actually like those papers a lot.

Teacher Appreciation

So, apparently last week was national teacher appreciation week. Which I didn't find out until late one evening (I think Wednesday). I won't say anything about my teacher BB's not telling me in a more timely manner. Anyhoo, so on Thursday I made a Thank You card for K to sign and take to his teacher. Then today I get an email from our classroom parent that NEXT WEEK is Teacher Appreciation Week. I have NO idea why our district is doing it during a different week, but I guess I'll be making another card. I don't mind, though. For now, here is the card I made for teacher.



I used the sketch from Card Positioning Systems for this card. Papers used were CTMH Animal Cookies and CTMH cardstock in Clover Meadow, Dutch Blue and White Daisy. Buttons are CTMH, and the ribbon is unknown from the stash. Tools used were Cuttlebug with Nestabilities and EK Success Corner Rounder. Sentiment is from For Every Occasion and is stamped in Sunflower.

Easter Thank You Card

Yesterday K was pleasantly surprised to receive an Easter card from his grandfather in the mail. He absolutely LOVES getting mail. It was even better when he opened it to find a gift card inside. So, we needed a thank you card. I combined three challenges for this card, Card Patterns CP Sketch #9 (which I had to modify slightly because of the size of the eggs), Our Creative Corner OCC Challenge (Use your favorite Easter stamp) and the inaugural Color Chef Challenge. I used all CTMH products for this card. Cardstock colors are Sweet Leaf, Breeze (unfortunately now retired) and White Daisy. Sweet Leaf ricrac ribbon is from the Designer Ricrac Collection, stamps sets used are For Every Occasion and Easter Eggs. Inks used are Sweet Leaf and Breeze. Tools used were Marvy Uchida punches (for the scalloped ovals) and CM corner rounder (probably one of the first two scrapbooking tools I ever owned, so it is pushing twelve years old). I sincerely hope that this doesn't just end up in a trash can. But, I'm sure K will write an adorable thank you that his grandfather will want to keep.

Thank you neighbor!

My neighbor spent most of February at their condo in the Caribbean, and I was keeping an eye on things for them...you know, take in any packages, make sure the trash cans were taken out, keep an eye out for dead animals left by the hawk or the cats who love their yard, turn off the sprinklers when it rained. Normal neighbor stuff. Well, Catherine brought back from the Caribbean this lovely silver hook bracelet, which she gave to me yesterday. She even got the perfect size for my tiny wrist. So today I made her a thank you card (since we went out for a fabulous dinner last night, after which I was too stuffed to scrap). While bloghopping today, I found a new (to me) weekly challenge at Mojo Monday. This is made from the week 78 challenge (tomorrow will be week 80). I made this in standard A2 size, using the CTMH Perfect Day paper pack, Tulip cardstock which was ink distressed with Tulip ink, Colonial White cardstock which was ink distressed with Bamboo ink, and Cocoa cardstock. The stamps used were CTMH Butterfly Wings (March Stamp of the Month) for the flourish, which was second-generation stamped in Juniper ink and Say it in Style (which was a SOTM last year, and I'm hoping that it will be brought back in the Summer Idea Book). I also used CTMH Cocoa ribbon.