February 2014 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Whether you just started here or landed here from {Krista's} blog, I hope you're enjoying the February 2014 Stamp of the Month blog hop featuring Wild About Love.

Sorry for no new artwork, but between a major inspection at work this week and losing 25% of our crew to pre-deployment training I've been working extended hours all week.  Semper Gumby.  Hop on over to {Pamela's} blog to see her project.

Studio J Layouts

I am horribly behind on my scrapbooking, but I actually managed to get this year's Christmas photos scrapped before New Year's Eve using Studio J.  There are SO many advantages to using Studio J, and the price is hard to beat.  You can choose from current papers or retired papers, and there are tons of layout options to accommodate your photos.  Plus, the embellishments and Stickease are available for every pack and color, making it possible to embellish your pages without spending a bundle.

Here are my Christmas 2013 Layouts.

Oh yeah, did I mention the free jpg files you get when you order Studio J layouts?

Visit my {website} and look under "Products" to find out how to get started with Studio J.

2013 Crafting Totals

Well, another year has flown by.  I didn't realize how quickly it passed until I went into my garage in December to get my Christmas tree, and realized that I never did get it put away on the top shelf of the garage when I took it down last year.

I wasn't very productive in terms of crafting, but I did accomplish a lot at work, completed my junior year of college (and made the Dean's List in the spring and fall), and did a little bit of volunteer work.

I remember that there were a few occasions when I had trouble updating the count gadget, but these numbers are fairly close.

Pages complete: 1

Cards complete: 7

Altered Items: 5

Digital Pages complete: 20

Sewing Items: 0

Crochet Items: 4 (one VERY INVOLVED in progress, about 75% complete)

Miscellaneous Items: 2 (a shadow box for a co-worker's retirement that I really must blog, a super cool geeky Christmas tree decoration that I also must really blog)

Once again, my expenditures far exceeded my production for the year, but I plan to do a better job of scheduling craft time into my schedule in 2014.  What are your crafting goals for 2014?

January 2014 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to the January 2014 Stamp of the Month blog hop featuring Cross-Stitch Wishes, a set of 13 stamps.  Whether you've arrived from {Michelle's blog} or your just starting here, simply click on the link at the end of each blog to follow the hop and see the creations of over 40 Close To My Heart consultants.

My card was made following the sketch at Mojo Monday and using the retired Magnifique paper pack.  It's been a while since I've done a Mojo Monday sketch early enough in the week to post it to their page.

Papers: CTMH Colonial White cardstock, CTMH Magnifique
Inks: CTMH Chocolate, Pacifica, and Sky
Tools and Techniques: CTMH Dark Chocolate and Colonial White ribbon, CTMH Pacifica brads, direct-to-paper ink distressing, cross-hatch edge distressing.

Remember, Cross-Stitch Wishes is only available January 1-31, 2014.  Contact your consultant, or click here to get it for yourself.

Now hop on over to {Sheila's blog} to see what she's created.

December 2013 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to the December 2013 Close To My Heart Stamp of the Month blog hop featuring Special Care, a set of 6 stamps.  Whether you've just arrived from {Michelle's blog} or this is your starting point, just click on the link at the end of each post to go to the next blog in the hop.

This month's SOTM is a great set of tags that have potential for so many different projects:  gift tags, cards, layouts, or a wide variety of altered items.  I chose to make a small shadow box that would be perfect for a child's bathroom.  The image was cut out using the Art Philosophy cartridge, stamped in Pacifica, and mounted using several layers of 3D mounting foam to give it depth (the deep shadow box allows for lots of variation in layers).  The box was painted with Create-a-Shade paint in Pearl, and lightly brushed with Pacifica while the paint was still tacky.  Buttons and ribbon add a little bit of bling to the inside without detracting from the adorable kiddo or the overall project.

Remember, Special Care  is only available December 1-31, 2013.  Contact your consultant, or click here, to get this set for yourself.

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

If you find any broken links along the way, Melinda has the complete list here.

November 2013 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to the November 2013 CTMH Stamp of the Month Blog Hop, featuring Illuminate, a set of 15 Stamps.  If you've just arrived here from {Jen's} blog, you are on the right path.  If you are just starting here, just jump in and enjoy our circular hop, which has over 50 participants this month.  When you reach the end of a post, click on the link at the end to go to the next post in the hop.

**My apologies for technical difficulties preventing the upload of my card.  Check back for image.**

Now hop on over to to {Dawn's} blog to shed some light on her project!

October 2013 Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

It's OCTOBER, and that means a Christmas-themed stamp set for the Close To My Heart stamp of the month!  Whether you arrived from {Krista's} blog or are just starting here, simply click on the link at the end of each post to go to the next blog in the hop.  This month we have over 50 consultants participating in the hop which features Scandinavian Wishes, a set of 12 stamps.

This stamp set has coordinating shapes that can be cut from the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge, so I decided to make some ornaments or gift tags.

I used the Art Philosphy cartridge to cut out a few of the ornaments.  One great thing about the stamps that coordinate with the various Cricut cartridges is that the cartridge name, image size and page are listed on the stamp carrier right next to the image, making it virtually fool-proof.

I cut out the images, then stamped them with Versamark ink.  For two of them I used a colored embossing powder, but for two of them I used clear.  After allowing them to cool, I used a sponge to color the two that were heat embossed with clear powder (which allows the paper color to show through).  You could do a bunch of different things with these:  use ribbon or twine and hang them as ornaments or gift tags, add them as a dimensional element to a layout or card, put a bunch of them on a length of twine to create a garland (you could even use one alone to be a simple bookmark).

Remember, the October Stamp of the Month is only available from October 1st through 31st. Contact your Close To My Heart consultant, or click here to find out how to get this stamp set for yourself.

Now hop on over to {Kim's} blog to see what she's created.

If you find any broken links along the way, Kathleen has the complete list of hoppers here.