Mad About You (December SOTM Blog Hop)

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop which features the Mad About You stamp set from Close To My Heart.  This stamp set contains some wonderful images to use for Valentine's cards or a special 'thinking of you' card.  As with so many of the new CTMH stamps, several of the shaped images can be cut using the Cricut-Art Philosophy cartridge. 

If you have come here from Jen's 'Roxybonds Scrappin' blog, you are on the right path! With over 60 Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their creations using this month's SOTM and other  CTMH products on their blogs, you should be able to find lots of great creative ideas to use for your own projects.  Blog Hopping is simple to do - just click on the link at the end of the post on each blog to move to the next one!

Wanting something bright and cheerful, I chose the color combo of Pansy Purple and Pear.  The shaped card and all the coordinating pieces were cut using the Art Philosophy cartridge, and simply selecting different sizes for each cut.  Two of the six flower shapes that can be cut using the Cricut cartridge are used on this card.  The flowers are so fun to create, simply cut the desired size, start rolling the flower from the outside until you reach the middle, then use some Liquid Glass to hold the flower together.  For the center of the card, a frame and sentiment from the Mad About You stamp set was used.  Even though it is difficult to see in the photo, some sparkle is added to the word 'sweet' using Glitz Glitter Gel.
 

Now "Hop" on over to Lori's 'Saving My... ' blog to see her work!  Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their blogs to get some great crafting inspiration and other fun ideas!  Remember, the Mad About You stamp set is only available during the month of December.  The regular price is $17.95, or you can purchase it for only $5 with a minimum order of $50 in other CTMH products.

If you get lost on the Blog Hop or find links that aren't working, there is a complete list of all participating blogs on Helen's 'Hooked on Stamping' blog.

Altered Clocks

Such a fun project!  Using an inexpensive (approximately $3.50) wall clock, remove the screws so that the back of the clock can be removed from the frame.  Then, gently remove the clock hands and set aside.  Decorate the face of the clock as desired, replace the clock hands and then re-insert the back into the frame.  You now have a cute, customized clock. 

The numbers on the clock face are cut from a self-adhesive vinyl using the Art Philosophy cartridge for the Cricut machine.   The large circles for the clock face were also cut using the Art Philosophy cartridge. 

This face of this red-framed clock was covered with a plaid paper from the Believe paper packet and then a piece of the cute Santa paper was also used.  The tree was stamped using A Timber and then cut out and placed on the clock.  There are Bitty Sparkles to add a bit of 'bling' to the tree. 

For the winter clock, a large sheet of snowflake paper from the Wonderland paper packet was used for the background.  For the large snowflake in the center, it was cut from Grey Flannel cardstock using the Art Philosophy cartridge.  Then, the entire surface of the snowflake was covered with glue and Prisma Glitter to give it plenty of shine.  There are also Bitty Sparkles on each tip of the snowflake.

All stamps and papers used are from Close To My Heart (CTMH).

S'more Box

Love this little S'more goodie box made using a My Creations Card Box from CTMH.  Even though it is difficult to see in the photo, there are score lines and dots on the Desert Sand cardstock to make it resemble a graham cracker.  The letters are from the Color-Ready Alphabets Cork and have been colored using a Smoothie marker.  The adhesive-backed letters are so simple to use - just peel and stick.  Plaid paper from the Roxie paper packet cover the sides of the box.  

Inside the box are all of the ingredients necessary to make a S'more, along with a microwave recipe.  This is going to make a great gift to send to my daughter at college.