Summer Crush!

Have you seen the incredible "Summer Crush" special that Close To My Heart is offering this month?! Well here's a little taste:

CTMH's My Crush® books are so fun to use. They are so user-friendly, informal, and un-intimidating - and there are now so many to choose from! I have the My Crush® Bluebird Book, which has 60 pre-printed 7" x 10" spiral-bound pages to fill to your heart's content. I used mine to chronicle the Disney Cruise we took 2 years ago. It was so easy to just paste things onto the pages - photos, journaling, ticket stubs, memorabilia - you name it. Here are just a few of the pages from my completed book:

(With Flip-Flap!)

What's really cool about this month's special is that you will receive the coordinating stamp set FREE with the purchase of a My Crush® Book and it's coordinating Assortment. Be sure to check out pages 150 - 157 of the Annual Inspirations Book for all of the fun selections!

{Please be aware - I just received the following notice from our corporate office: "The Summer Crush campaign has been a huge hit! Due to overwhelming popularity, the My Crush® In the Pink Assortment (Z2042) is no longer available for order; however, we don't want to leave the My Crush In the Pink books out of the campaign fun while they are still available in inventory. So for the remainder of the campaign—or at least for as long as the In the Pink books remain in stock—the My Crush In the Pink Clips (Z2048) will be available as a qualifying item for the In the Pink campaign combo. Simply order both the In the Pink book (Z2000) and the In the Pink clips and receive the accompanying My Acrylix® Glitter Glam stamp set (B1465) FREE! This offer applies only to the In the Pink campaign combo and not to any other qualifying combinations available as part of the campaign."}

I know you will enjoy these books as much as I do! This promotion, however, is only available until the end of June - and only WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!!

Need more ideas on how to use these fun books?! How about these from Michelle Snyder: 
"Pick any topic... things that make you happy, a book of possibilities, a book of quotes, a book of trip highlights, a book of silly things your kids do...anything. Start putting pictures, notes, found objects, etc on the pages and see how your story comes together as you add to each page. My Crush Books can become a perfect treasure to show how you live, what makes you laugh, and the people, places, and things you love. Those are truly blue sky kinds of things that you will enjoy reflecting on down the road. 
A place to start maybe with something as simple as a book of your favorite things. It is an easy theme that you can add to whenever and wherever. You can work on any page, in any order, and compile a book that features some of what makes you, you. What's your favorite type of movie, nail polish color, recipe to cook, destination to travel, etc.? The My Crush Books can become wonderful little capsules that record little things that make us special. Wouldn't you love to look through a little book about your grandmother and know all of these little things about her? I would. They might feel trivial while you are putting it together, but it's not. It's real. It's right now. It is about the things that make each of us unique."

Need I say more? Pick out yours today on my website - funforyou.ctmh.com

Artfully Sent – Exploring the “W” Key – Part 5

Well, here it is! The last installment of "Exploring the 'W' Key". The final feature on the "Artfully Sent" Cricut cartridge is "Pocket Card".

Like the two previous features, the Pocket Card allows you to cut two different cards - one that is 4" x 6" and one that is 3" x 4". These were designed specifically for Close To My Heart's "Picture My Life" Scrapbooking Program - a pocket scrapbooking program with specially designed Memory Protectors which have 4" x 6" and 3" x 4" pockets for photos, sentiments, journaling, and embellishments. Being a card-maker at heart, though, I chose to use these two pocket cards to make cards!

Both of the cards I created use two of my favorite things - Washi tape and the "Forever in My Heart" stamp set. Let's see the 4" x 6" card first:

I cut the 4" x 6" Pocket card from Lagoon cardstock. It simply has the arrow shape cut out of it. Next, I backed the card with a piece of white cardstock stamped with the striped "In The Background" stamp in Thistle ink. Using a 5" x 7" white cardstock base, I adhered a piece of Lagoon Hearts Washi Tape through the center, then my 4" x 6" Pocket Card on top of that. The rest is simply stamping and cutting out a couple of hearts from the "Forever in My Heart" stamp set, and a sentiment from the "This Moment" stamp set (no longer available).

Now for the 3" x 4":

My finished card is 4.25" x 5.5" Hollyhock cardstock with several strips of Ruby Chevron Washi Tape run through the center. I random-stamped the 3" x 4" Pocket Card, which I cut from Cranberry cardstock, with Cranberry ink and the small hearts image from the "Forever in My Heart" stamp set. I then backed it with white cardstock and embellished it with more stamped heart cut-outs and a sentiment.

Seriously, did you ever think you could get so many different cards from just one key on this "Artfully Sent" Cricut cartridge?! This thing is truly amazing. I am going to try and do a card workshop that focuses on another one of the keys - I hope to see you there!

Thanks for joining me in my "Exploration of the 'W' Key". Hope you'll come back real soon!

Artfully Sent – Exploring the “W” Key – Part 4

We’re heading into the home stretch! Only two more styles left to explore – that’s four more cards – all on this one key! This second-to-last style of card/function from the “Artfully Sent” Cricut™ Cartridge again contains two different cards. Today we’ll be looking at the Sleeve cards.

The Sleeve function has both a 4” x 6” and a 5” x 7” card – the former of which was designed to hold a 4” x 6” photograph. Both sizes will have the same pattern cut into the front of them – the 4” x 6” card, though, will fold into an actual sleeve, or pocket, whereas the 5” x 7” folds into a standard card.

Let’s look at the 4” x 6” card on the “W” key. I absolutely love the wood-grain pattern! After cutting the card from Chocolate cardstock, I folded on the score lines, glued the bottom and side pieces, and cut a piece of patterned paper to slip into the inside.

The back of this piece (not shown) has a bunch of journaling lines on it with the caption, “This Year’s Highlights”. After tying a piece of ribbon around the center, this would be the perfect addition to a scrapbook page! Or use it as a stand-alone card with a photo, invitation, or special message on the inside.

The 5” x 7” card was so simple. After cutting the card on the Cricut from Saddle cardstock, I simply backed the front of the card with Cashmere cardstock and embellished the front with stamped images from this past January’s Stamp of the Month set, “This Moment”.

How cute is that? There are SO MANY fun patterns throughout this cartridge – you will have such a blast discovering all of them.

Next week – the last function on the “W” key – the Pocket Card! Don’t miss it!

Artfully Sent – Exploring the “W” Key – Part 3

This next style of card/function from the “Artfully Sent” Cricut™ Cartridge actually contains two different cards. Today we’ll be looking at the Sentiment cards.

The Sentiment function has both a 5” x 7” and a 4.25” x 5.5” card within it. When you think of the sheer number of cards that this function alone allows you to cut from this cartridge, it’s mind-boggling! Let’s look at the first sentiment card – the 5” x 7” – on the “W” key. Many of the Sentiment cards on the cartridge cut a sentiment and an icon into the front of the card. This key happens to cut a sentiment only. You could simply back this with a piece of patterned paper or colored cardstock. But I wanted to go just a little bit further.

After cutting the card from black cardstock on my Cricut, I folded it and slipped a second piece of black cardstock, about 1/8” smaller on each side than the card front, into the middle of the card. I then took a pencil and lightly traced around the insides of the cut letters, so that my sentiment would be transferred onto my black cardstock insert. This allowed me to block out each word with a different patterned paper/color on the insert:

I continued covering the traced words with paper (for one I used shimmer trim!) until I had everything covered. I could then go back to my card and adhere the paper-covered insert to the inside front, thereby allowing the color blocks to show through the cut letters – and you see none of it on the inside of the card!

This is a fun and easy technique to really make your cards one-of-a-kind.

The vast majority of the second sentiment cards on this cartridge cut a border into the bottom front. For this key, it cuts a fun leaf pattern. This was a very easy card to make. Once the card was cut, I simply backed the cut with a strip of Topiary cardstock, wrapped a piece of Topiary Mini Chevron ribbon around the front, and stamped and mounted the tree image from the “Country Born” stamp set. Simple, yet beautiful! 

The next two function keys we will explore with the “W” key also each have two different cards within them. Next week, it’s the Sleeve function – it’s a fun one!

About Me

Over the years, I have posted MANY things to this blog. However, it recently occurred to me that I don't believe I've ever posted anything "about me". Many of you know exactly who I am, what I do, and why. But the vast majority of you may not have any idea. So, in the spirit of sharing, I thought a good place to start would be to share the "About Me" from my Close To My Heart website. So, here it is:

Michelle Morrissey

UXBRIDGE, MA  

aafaa@charter.net

Hello! My name is Michelle and I live in Uxbridge, MA with my husband of 21 years and my two beautiful children. As of April 2015, I am celebrating 13 years with Close To My Heart! I became a CTMH Consultant back in 2002 because I was a recently-new stay-at-home mom, I loved CTMH products, and I was extremely frustrated at not being able to find matching cardstocks and inks in my local craft stores. CTMH made it so easy - I wanted it all! So I joined the company, like so many others, for the discount! Thirteen years later, I have had so much fun meeting new people, going to Conventions (five of them!), holding workshops, and buying new products. Every new Idea Book release is like Christmas morning! I encourage you to experience and enjoy CTMH as much as I have!

So that's all "About Me"! Enjoy your evening!

Artfully Sent – Exploring the “W” Key – Part 2

OK. I like Pop-up cards a lot – I really do. But this next style of card from the “Artfully Sent” Cricut™ Cartridge is really incredible – the Scene card. When you see the expanse and variety of this type of card on this cartridge, you will be blown away. For this post’s purposes, however, we will be looking only at the Scene card on the “W” key.

The Scene card will have two pieces – the first will be the card base, and the second will be the “accent piece”, if you will. The Scene card on the “W” key is a tri-fold (dark aqua color in the booklet), and the accent piece is the light blue (cloud insert). I cut my base in white, but then added several other colors/pieces of cardstock to complete my “scene” (I cut the card again in green in order to make the front of the card green & not white). I actually cut the pop-up piece from last week’s card from brown cardstock and pasted it over the base-cut deer/rabbit piece – they were almost an exact fit! When the insert is adhered to the inside of the card, and it is folded up, this is what the outside looks like:

I added a little sentiment from the “Cuddly Salutations” stamp set and paper-pieced the tree branch and bird. Now the inside…

Instead of adhering the cloud accent piece to the inside of the card, I adhered it to the back of the front flap. This served two purposes – to make the card front more stable (it was pretty floppy with just the thin border to “hold it up”), and to give me more of the inside of the card for a sentiment/signature. I used a sentiment from the “You Mean The World To Me” stamp set, and the fun circles from the “Doodled Designs” stamp set.

I had a lot of fun with this card…but even more fun with the next card in the series – the Sentiment card! Tune in next week to see just how easy it is to make those designs your own!