A Little Thanks - 3 More Times

UPDATE:  For Thanksgiving week, the Heart 2 Heart Challenge is to share 'Thank You' cards, so here are three made with the the November stamp-of-the-month, A Little Thanks.

A piece of White Daisy cardstock was embossing using the Houndstooth Cuttlebug folder,  and then brayering the raised portion with Black ink so that the pattern is clearly visible. 

The bright green of the Pear cardstock is such a nice complement to the papers from the Olivia kit.  Added a corner detail using a stamp from The Present.

Using the large 'Thanks" stamp, I 'inked' it up with a Glue Pad and then put some bright yellow 'A La Mode' glitter on the image.  The yellow glitter on top of the Black cardstock actually looks more green, and goes with the bright patterned paper from the Hooligans kit.

Just a reminder - the CTMH "A Little MORE Thanks" special this month is that you receive this A Little Thanks stamp-of-the-month with any $100 order, and you also receive an ADDITIONAL stamp set for FREE with your $100 order.  Contact me if you would like a copy of the Autumn/Winter Idea Book.   

Christmas in October - card workshop

It's that time of year - the weather is getting a little cooler, and it is time to start thinking about Christmas cards!  You can get a headstart on creating your cards by attending this month's "Christmas in October" card workshop.  Classes will be offered on Friday evening, October 29 and also on Saturday afternoon, October 30.  Note that none of the cards use traditional Christmas paper or colors, and only two stamp sets are used for the front of all four cards. 

A cute prancing reindeer from the I Believe stamp set, with a shiny red Sparkle for a nose, appears to be ready to fly away into the night.  Cardstock used is Gray Flannel and Gray Wool, and the snowflake stamps are from the same stamp set.

Another monochromatic card using the Santa image from the same I Believe stamp set.  The green patterned paper is from the Passages paper kit, and is used with Olive ink and New England Ivy cardstock.   

A third card using the same I Believe stamp set.  This card is definitely more colorful, using papers from the Hooligans paper packet.  A small amount of Liquid Applique is added to the 'cuff' of the stockings, and a Bitty Sparkle is in the center of a snowflake on each stocking.

The inside of the stocking card is completed using a sentiment from the Peace On Earth stamp set.     
      

Finally, an adorable little tree from A Timber stamp set, paired with paper from Magnifique paper packet.  .    

The "Christmas in October" card workshop will be offered on Friday evening, October 29 (starting at 7 pm), and also on  Saturday afternoon, October 30 (starting at 1 pm).  You will create three of each of the four projects (total 12 cards) for a workshop fee of $10.  Allow two or three hours to complete your projects.  Please be sure to bring your favorite adhesive.  All other supplies are provided with the workshop fee.  All stamps and papers used are from Close To My Heart (CTMH).

As an added bonus, place a $50+ order from the Close To My Heart  Spring, Summer, or Autumn/Winter Idea Book - and your workshop fee is waived.  Depending on total orders received, there will be a drawing for Hostess Rewards - so you could earn $25 or more in FREE product from CTMH.

Please let me know if you would like to attend one of the "Christmas in October" card workshops.  Feel free to leave me a comment on this blog, send an email to sheilabennett@comcast.net, or call 913-485-4355.

Noteworthy Workshop - Create Something Cute for Notetaking

For something a little different, there are no cards for this workshop.  Instead, you can create three different notebooks at this month's Noteworthy workshop.  Even though the projects  have very different looks, they all actually use the same shade of green ink - the new, versatile Pear color from Close To My Heart.  Classes will be offered on Friday evening, September 24 and also on Saturday morning, September 25.  

Composition Book:   You probably remember seeing Composition Books at your local office supply store.  They have a black and white mottled cover, with lined paper inside the book.  For this project, a fun front cover is made using papers and cardstock from the Hooligans My Reflections kit and a sweet sentiment from the Treasure Life stamp set.  The large embellishment is created using the pinwheel technique, which I taught recently for Creative University Online.  

Jr Legal Pad:   This beautiful peacock is from the new Circle of Love stamp set, with background papers from the Magnifique kit.  Silver Pearl embossing powder was used for the image, and four new CTMH colors (Pear, Gypsy, Pacifica, Lagoon) were sponged over the top of the embossing.   This is a very quick and easy way to create a beautiful image.  And thanks to fellow CTMH consultant Tresa Black for sharing this great "embossing resist" technique recently on her weekly Fabulously Artsy Ustream show.

Inside of the folder holds a Jr Legal Pad (approx. 5"x7"), and has a pocket on the side.      

Sticky Note Holder:  A smaller project, this holds a 3"x3" pad of paper.  The beautiful fall colors are from the Olivia paper packet and the small flower is from The Present stamp set.  The Pear color is in the patterned paper, and also used to color the stem of the flower and around the edges of the stamped circle.   This clever design has a piece of ribbon threaded through a hole in the small flap so that a mini gel pen can be inserted into the ribbon loop to hold the cover closed.  Another CTMH consultant, Bobie Glassette, taught this class during the recent Creative University Online.  

The "Noteworthy" workshop will be offered on Friday evening, September  24 (starting at 7 pm), and also on  Saturday morning, September 25 (starting at 9 am).  You will create one of each of the three projects for a workshop fee of $10.  Allow two or three hours to complete your projects.  Please be sure to bring your favorite adhesive.  Note that a dry, tape runner type of adhesive will work better for these projects than a liquid adhesive.  All other supplies are provided with the workshop fee.

As an added bonus, place a $50+ order from the Close To My Heart  Spring, Summer, or Autumn/Winter Idea Book - and your workshop fee is waived.  Depending on total orders received, there will be a drawing for Hostess Rewards - so you could earn $25 or more in FREE product from CTMH.

Please let me know if you would like to attend one of the "Noteworthy" workshops.  Feel free to leave me a comment on this blog, send an email to sheilabennett@comcast.net, or call 913-485-4355.

CTMH Workshop-on-the-Go kits for Autumn/Winter

The new Autumn/Winter Idea Book from Close To My Heart was released on September 1, with new products available through the end of the December.  There are four new My Reflections scrapbook paper kits, with papers and colors themed for Fall celebrations and holidays.  Each of the four kits is also available as a Workshop-on-the-Go (WOTG) package that can be used to create scrapbook pages and cards - and each one contains an exclusive stamp set that is only available with purchase of the kit.  These kits are available ONLY during the 4-month cycle of the Autumn/Winter Idea Book which is September, October, November, and December.  The WOTG kits are featured on pages 24 and 25 of the new Idea Book - let me know if you would like your own copy.

Each kit contains a complete paper packet, an exclusive stamp set, a Workshop Guide, and a coordinating embellishment. Each item in the WOTG - except the exclusive stamp set and the Workshop Guide - can be purchased separately. However, if you purchase the basic kit for $29.95, you will be saving between 10% and 15% off the retail value. The Workshop Guide is a full-color 6-page brochure which has complete cutting and assembly instructions for 2 scrapbook pages and 6 cards (2 each of 3 designs). Also included are pictures of 2 additional scrapbook pages and 3 additional cards. More information about the additional projects is available in the Workshops On The Go section of MyCTMH website.

With the Troublemaker stamp set in the Hooligans WOTG kit, you can create your own adorable 'monsters' for invitations, birthday cards, or just a silly card to cheer someone up.  The three card designs for this WOTG are shown above, and the contents of the kit include the papers, stamp set, metal accents, and a "how to" guide.

The Magnifique kit has some really beautiful papers, and features some of the newest ink colors introduced by CTMH - Lagoon, Pacifica, and Sky, all shades of blue.  The Heart to Heart stamp set is a great multi-purpose set with flowers, hearts, and a great dotted swiss border stamp.

Olivia also features new ink colors - Pear, Smoothie, Sunset, a green, pink, and soft orange.  Papers in this kit are stunningly beautiful and the Timeless stamp set has some gorgeous leaf stamps.  

There is always something new for the holiday season, and this year the Mistletoe paper kit has traditional Christmas colors and coordinates wonderfully with the detailed ornaments in the All the Best stamp set. 

This is the sample 2-page layout which you can create following instructions in the Workshop Guide.

You can think of the WOTG kits as a "project in a bag" since the papers, stamp sets, embellishments, and instructions are all included - the only extras you need are adhesive, inks, and blocks to use the stamps. Chances are you already have these extras at home just waiting for a new project to work on!  Contact me to order your WOTG project - or order through the MyCTMH website.  All of the papers available in each kit can be viewed on the website.

CU-OL - Projects from Classes

Decided to create a couple of the projects that were taught during Creative University - Online.  During the live broadcasts, I was not able to watch very much of the classes.  So later, I visited the Fabulously Artsy ustream channel and used the classes as a tutorial to create two of the projects.  It was nice to watch the recorded video since it could be stopped at any time while I completed a specific step of the project, and then re-started to continue. 

Bobie taught how to make a cute Sticky Note Holder that is very quick and easy to create.  The ribbon is threaded through a round hole in the end flap, and then the ink pen slides through the loop to hold the flaps closed.  There is no stamping on this project, just papers from the Cherry-O kit and some ribbon.

Tresa demonstrated the Joseph's Coat Technique and made an absolutely adorable Composition Book.  My book is almost an exact duplicate of Tresa's.  There are a few very minor changes, and I decided not to add the flowers as I wanted the finished book to be able to be stored flat.  The technique was very easy to duplicate.  The super cute skeleton stamp is from Thriller (September SOTM) and the corner stamp is from Delightful Things.  Paper from the Hooligans kit is used along with some of the great new colored Sparkles which add such a nice finishing touch to a project.   

Boo to You! (New Product Blog Hop)

Welcome to our Close To My Heart New Product Blog Hop! Over 50 fabulous CTMH Consultants are celebrating the upcoming release of the Autumn/Winter 2010 Idea Book by giving you a 'Sneak Peek' of some of the great products available in the new Idea Book as of September 1st.

If you have come here from LaJeania's 'Scrap 'Til You Drop!' blog, you are on the right path! It is simple to 'blog hop' - just click on the link at the end of the post on each blog to move to the next one.

This 5"x7" card was made using fun, bright colors in the new Hooligans paper, The Boo Crew stamp set, and all eight inks from the newly-introduced colors in the Summer palette - Gypsy, Pacifica, Sunset, Cotton Candy, Lagoon, Pear, Sky, and Smoothie.  Another great new product is the Opaques, which are the shiny black embellishments.  These 'pearl' style flat-back gems are self-adhesive and are available in three color versions - Licorice (black, grey, light grey), Mocha (brown, tan, light tan), and Pearl (cream).  Each package contains 108 gems in 4 sizes, and the price is only $2.95. 

Now "Hop" on over to Traci's 'Creativetraci' blog to see her work! Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their Blogs to get some great ideas for using the new products available from Close To My Heart!

If you get lost on the Blog Hop or find links that aren't working, there is a complete list of participating blogs on Erin's 'Tazzygirl2000' blog.