Autumn/Winter 2013 New Product Blog Hop

The new Autumn/Winter 2013 Idea Book from Close to My Heart is officially released today, August 1.   In order to introduce the new products, a select group of CTMH consultants will be sharing their creations in this Blog Hop.  A thumbnail of each participant's creation is shown in the Linky list below.  Simply click on one to go to their blog post with detailed information.  

And we all LOVE to read comments about our work, please 'give us some love' by leaving a quick comment telling the artist your favorite part of their project.

It is always difficult to choose a "favorite" paper packet, but this time Sarita is definitely one at the top of my list.  The fun mixture of bright colors and crazy patterned designs creates a very unique look.  If you like the look of cross-stitch and embroidery, the Stitch Wonder stamp set will be one of your favorites.  The card pattern was easy to create using a pattern from the new Make It From Your Heart-Volume 2, which is an essential guide for creating beautiful scrapbook layouts and cards.  Each pattern includes detailed blueprints, cutting diagrams, full-color artwork, and helpful hints for creating the projects.

You may have noticed a fabulous new embellishment on the card - those are Aqua Dots.  For only $3.95, you receive 108 adhesive-based enamel dots in three sizes and three shades of aqua.

Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their blogs to get some great crafting inspiration and other fun ideas!  

This Blog Hop is open for member of the CTMH Blog Boosters.  Please do not enter if you are not a member of the group. 


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

	Sheila Bennett Close To My Heart Independent Consultant (913) 485-4355

A Chocolate Affair (August SOTM Blog Hop)

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop which features A Chocolate Affair stamp set from Close To My Heart.   When you place a minimum order of $50 during August, you'll receive the Stamp of the Month, A Chocolate Affair, for free!  This stamp set includes 16 images and sentiments to add some flavor to any layout, card, or 3-D item.  Browse the new Autumn/Winter 2013 Idea Book, place a qualifying purchase of awesome products, and score a delicious Chocolate reward free!   

If you have come here from Michelle's 'Scrappy Hour' blog, you are on the right path!  With almost 60 creative Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their projects, you will see a variety of uses for this stamp set.  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!

A fun zig-zag patterned paper from the Sarita pack is used on this Cotton Candy pink card with stamps from A Chocolate Affair.  The card pattern is from the new Make It From Your Heart-Volume 1, which is an essential guide for creating beautiful scrapbook layouts and cards.  Each pattern includes detailed blueprints, cutting diagrams, full-color artwork, and helpful hints for creating the projects.  The Art Philosophy cartridge was used to cut the scallop squares for the stamped images, and a corner rounder was used to soften the corners of the card.

Now "Hop" on over to Shirley's 'Mom 'n Me Scrap' 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!  

FREE this month with a $50 CTMH order

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.

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

	Sheila Bennett Close To My Heart Independent Consultant (913) 485-4355

Always Grateful

This week's Heart 2 Heart challenge is to use "shadows and shades."    On Saturday, I spent the day stamping with some fellow CTMH consultants and we shared ideas with each other.  Mary Gunn taught us how to create this 'sunset' card and it fits perfectly with the H2H Shadows and Shades challenge.  

To begin the sunset, some Honey ink is sponged in a circular area with Slate ink sponged from the edges towards the middle.  Then Sunset ink was sponged to blend the colors together.  Finally, some Black ink was used on the very edges to frame it and the birds are simply V's written with a black Journaling Pen.  The beautiful trees are from the Always Grateful stamp set in the new Idea Book.  There is also a small piece of patterned paper from the Huntington kit underneath the Jute Ribbon.

Contact me if you would like to receive a copy of the new Autumn/Winter Idea Book.  I have several posts planned for this month to show some of our new products. 

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

	Sheila Bennett Close To My Heart Independent Consultant (913) 485-4355

In A Man's World

Do you sometimes feel as though you are a woman living in a man's world?

The male and female stamp images are from the Sightseer set.  And the inside quote from Marilyn Monroe is available in the Scrapbook Sentiments-Women stamp set.  Used with a fun print from the Sarita paper packet, this card is sure to brighten the day of any woman who needs a smile. 

Thanks to Tamytha Jenkins for sharing this creative idea on her Paper HeARTIST blog.  All papers and stamps are from Close To My Heart (CTMH).

	Sheila Bennett Close To My Heart Independent Consultant (913) 485-4355

CAS(E) Time

"Clean and Simple" cards are my favorite, so I love the weekly sketches on the CAS(E) This Sketch! blog.  

For this "clean and simple" card and coordinating envelope, I used the One-Way Borders stamp set which is being introduced in the CTMH Autumn/Winter Idea Book on August 1.  The set has six different border stamps that are great to accent any project.  To create this card, just one of the stamps was used with Cotton Candy, Goldrush, and Lagoon inks.  The sentiment is from the Joyful Birthday set and is embossed using Outdoor Denim pigment ink with Clear Detail Embossing Powder. 

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

	Sheila Bennett Close To My Heart Independent Consultant (913) 485-4355

Another Pajama Party!

Close To My Heart is teaming up with Big Picture Classes again to bring you a live webcast with step-by-step instructions for making this layout using the Cricut Artbooking collection.  Purchase the collection beginning August 1 and revolutionize the way you scrapbook!

Stacy Julian will introduce you to some of the exciting features of this new cartridge and associated products, plus share tips-and-tricks for using the cartridge with your Cricut machine.  Learn how to create adorable projects including layouts, cards, and artbooks using photo mats, overlays, titles and embellishments cut with the Artbooking cartridge. 

The FREE webcast will air Wednesday, July 31 at 8:00 pm (Central Time).  During the presentation, you'll learn to make several projects from a variety of sponsors, including Close To My Heart's Artbooking layout, as CTMH VP Kristine Widtfeldt walks you through the steps - and sneaks the Artbooking collection!

The Pajama Party class will be available for FREE at BigPictureClasses.com on July 31, and will be archived after the event for future viewing.  If you would like to interact on the message board, participate in live chat, post to the gallery, download handouts, or enter any contests, you will need to log in to the Pajama Party "classroom" by creating a free account on the Big Picture Classes website.  If you have already created an account or if you registered for the first Pajama Party in May, you are all set!  You will not need to create another account or register again..

To make our "2 of a Kind" Artbooking layout, you will want to have the following items - or similar products - on hand:

• Cricut Artbooking collection (available to order on August 1)
• Bamboo cardstock
• Colonial White cardstock
• Honey cardstock
• Lagoon cardstock
• Slate cardstock
• Sweet Leaf cardstock
• Twilight cardstock
• Twilight ink
• Slate ink
• Aqua Dots (available to order on August 1)
• Silver Shimmer Trim
• 3-D Foam Tape
• Sanding Kit

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About the stamps, stamp cleaners, accessories, and tools:

Aqua Dots (Z1754, $3.95)
108 adhesive-backed enamel dots: 7mm, 5mm, 4mm; 3 aqua shades.

Silver Shimmer Trim (Z1799, $4.95)
Adhesive-backed, sturdy. 5 yards, 3/8" wide.

Cricut® Artbooking Collection (Z1906, $99)
A revolutionary new, exclusive Cricut® collection by Close To My Heart. Use just one or two keys and one dial size to create 12" x 12" layouts in 15 themes plus 10 themed mini books in various sizes. It's scrapbooking at the touch of a button! The Artbooking collection includes: 1 - cartridge (700 images: font, icons and pages for mini books, and icons and titles for layouts), 3 - My Acrylix® D-size stamp sets, 3 - 12" x 9" Dimensional Elements in coordinating shapes. Try our Artiste and Art Philosophy collections for even more Cricut® fun!

3-D Foam Tape (Z1151, $5.95)
Double-sided foam tape. 2 rolls per package, 3/8" and 1/4" widths, 75 inches per roll.

Sanding Kit (Z1294, $3.50)
60-, 100-, and 220-grit 4" x 4" sheets, 4-sided sanding block, emery board.

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About the paper and inks:
Our cardstock sheets and background and texture papers (also called B&T Duos® papers) have a white core, so distressing and tearing our papers lets the white peek through for a million different looks! Plus, most of our beautiful cardstock colors are available in stamp pads, re-inkers, marker sets, and mini pigment pad sets for perfect color coordination and beautiful, unified projects!

Bamboo Cardstock (1301, $14.50)
24 - 12" x 12" Bamboo cardstock sheets with a white core.

Sweet Leaf Cardstock (X5639, $14.50)
24 - 12" x 12" Sweet Leaf cardstock sheets with a white core.

Lagoon Cardstock (X5762, $14.50)
24 - 12" x 12" Lagoon cardstock sheets with a white core.

Honey Cardstock (X5668, $14.50)
24 - 12" x 12" Honey cardstock sheets with a white core.

Colonial White Cardstock (1388, $14.50)
24 - 12" x 12" Colonial White cardstock sheets with a white core.

Slate Cardstock (X5930, $14.50)
24 - 12" x 12" Slate cardstock sheets with a white core.

Twilight Exclusive Inks® Stamp Pad (Z2160, $5.25)
Twilight dye-based ink in patented swivel-top stamp pad.

Slate Exclusive Inks® Stamp Pad (Z2173, $5.25)

Slate dye-based ink in patented swivel-top stamp pad.

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

	Sheila Bennett Close To My Heart Independent Consultant (913) 485-4355