April Stamp of the Month Blog Hop!

Welcome to our CTMH Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! We will be featuring April 's SOTM called Blessed, a set of 12 swoopy swirly flower and bird stamps. There's a lot of two step stamps in this set, where a, easy to fill in shadow stamp matches a more detailed outline stamp!

If you have come here from DEBRA'S BLOG you are on the right path! If this is your first stop, you may want to go back to Helen's Blog and start from the beginning!

This month we have dozens of Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their artistic creations using this month's SOTM and other great CTMH products on their blogs. 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! Here we go!

For April I used my stamp set in a couple of ways on this sweet standard sized card. I Random stamped the Bamboo CS background with the medium flower image in Garden Green Ink to coordinate with this beautiful Creative Basic paper. Then I punched 1 1/4" circles with my new punch and stamped the butterfly outline image once on each circle. I stamped it again four times on some scrap Colonial White CS, then filled it in with the coordinating shadow stamp. I stamped the shadow with a Rock N Roll Technique - stamping the first inking off onto scrap paper, then rolling the edges into the ink again before stamping it on my project. Finally, I cut just the wings out of my four extra butterflies and adhered the wings over the butterflies stamped onto my CS circles for more dimension. And, of course, I accented the borders and butterflies on my card with lots of Glitter Glitz gel!

I made the card based on a cute sketch from Taylored Expressions that you can find here!

Now "Hop" on over to CARLA'S BLOG to see her work! Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their Blogs to get some great crafty ideas for more fun projects! Remember, the April SOTM is only available until the last day of the month!  Be sure to ask your CTMH Consultant how to get yours FREE (or click here) - you're gonna love it!

April Workshop: Mother's Day Frame

Hello, stampers! I've been hibernating this month, getting ready for the CK show this week. Are you going to be there? Look for a coupon and more detail in your email tonight! We have a fabulous booth planned, with awesome (and affordable) hands-on projects, adorable page kits, and outstanding products, of course! Hope to see you there - I'll have a gift in my pocket for the forst 25 of my stampers who come visit me at the booth!

I've also been a busy bee working on our workshops for April. Monthly Memories club pages for April are Sophia - so adorable! Those will be up on my website later today. For now I want to share the Mother's Day Frame project we'll be doing at the crop day on April 30th. I just LOVE this project!

We'll be learning to make three different kinds of paper flowers, and tips for pleating that yummy extra wide Stitched Sweet Leaf grosgrain ribbon. You can even change the title to whatever you need for your gift! Best of all the project will be $7 or 2 for $12 - an affordable, beautiful, handmade gift from your heart!

I'm only planning to make 24 kits for this frame project, so RSVP asap to reserve your gifts! I can make them up as a take home kit if the date doesn't work for you too. See ya at the show!!

March Stamp of the Month Blog Hop!

Welcome to our CTMH Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! We will be featuring March's SOTM called Sensational Season, a set of 10 adorable Bunny/Easter stamps. I was a little nervous about these, since I'm not usually a color-it-in kind of gal, but the bunnies are so hoppin' cute!

If you have come here from LISA'S BLOG you are on the right path! If this is your first stop, you may want to go back to Helen's Blog and start from the beginning!

This month we have dozens of Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their artistic creations using this month's SOTM and other great CTMH products on their blogs. 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! Here we go!

For March I made an adorable little paper basket, inspired by one I saw done by Mary Thompson on the CTMH cruisers loop. I built the basket out of cardstock. You cut a 5 x 5 square, and score it at 1 1/2" on each side. Then you snip one side of the square at each corner to create flaps. Adhere the flaps all around to create the basket.

TIP: I like to attach the handle (ribbon, or I used a decorated cardstock strip) with brads on the outside of the basket before you glue the flaps together so that the brads won't show on the inside of the basket.

I decorated my basket handle with a flower that I fussy-cut out of that yummy Mayberry paper. I set 5 Antique Copper Bitty brads into the flower center - gotta love the dimension!

I used my awesome new 2" scallop and 1 1/4" circle punches to create the basket front embellishment, as well as the candy covers pictured below. I stamped the bunnies in Cocoa ink and colored them lightly with Bamboo, Baby Pink, Honey, and Heavenly Blue markers. I pierced all around my scalloped punch for the basket front embellishment, and tucked a fussy cut "For You" sign that I trimmed off another stamp from the set into the medallion.

The candy covers are so simple - just punches, with more spotlighted bits of the bunnies stamped and colored...but they hide little peppermint patties! It's like an adorable little oreo sandwich, only filled with minty, chocolatey goodness. I'm so sending these baskets along to Gabe's teachers at school before Spring Break!

I freehand cut the purse handle from my card base for the front and back - it's attached along the top of the handle. Then I covered it in Sorbet CS that I swiped with an acrylic block inked in Sorbet and Juniper inks to give it more texture.

Now "Hop" on over to HELEN'S BLOG to see her work! Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their Blogs to get some great crafty ideas for more fun projects! Remember, the March SOTM is only available until the last day of March!  Be sure to ask your CTMH Consultant how to get yours FREE (or click here) - you're gonna love it!

Last Day for Studio J - FREE ALBUM!!

 Just a Friendly Reminder: LAST DAY! CTMH is running a Studio J Members Only promotion during February – create 10 layouts, buy 9 and get the 10th one free!  You can even do multiples – buy 18, get 2 free, and so on.  So…I thought since I know how much you'll  LOVE your Studio J membership, and you’ll have a GREAT opportunity to get caught up on scrapbooking…you’ll be needing a new album – so how 'bout a…

Free 12″ x 12″ Faux Leather Album!

Purchase a one-year Studio J membership (through me) TODAY, February 28 and receive a 12″ x 12″ CTMH Faux Leather Album the color of your choice: Black, Dark Chocolate, Outdoor Denim, Hollyhock, Dark Cranberry or New England Ivy (not shown)…FREE!  I’ll pay the shipping & tax to get it to you!  Over $25 value!

Give Studio J a try.  It’s totally free to go in and play around. You don't have to be a member to try it - there's no credit card to enter, no purchase required. I think you’ll be pleased at how fast, simple & easy it is to create gorgeous layouts in minutes.

If you love it…then get the 12-month Studio J membership & get a free album too!

Get your 12-month Studio J membership today!

Missed my Mojo...

OK - We'll I lasted a month, then I missed completing the Mojo Challenge on time this week...on the plus side, we put an offer in on a house today, so cross your fingers for me! Perhaps next week I'll be less distracted...

While I might not have scrapped or stamped as much as I like this week, I did finish a bunch of Studio J layouts. The awesome February special is buy 9 layouts, get one free, plus with my membership it's free shipping for up to 20 layouts, so it's apparently a digital month for me!

These pics I took of Ben just lounging outside of Gabe's school and spilling water onto his face on purpose. I love the new drag and drop photo feature - you can switch photos between wells without reloading, easy peasy. I pulled these papers from the Caboodle Kit, and found my layout using the search feature that only shows the layouts that fit the number of pics you have.

I'll hop back on the Mojo horse next week - and I've got lots more Studio scrapping to share too. Happy Super Bowl!