FLASH SALE - All Month Long!!!

Throughout the month of June, be sure to check out my website each Friday at 5:00pm EST for a huge set of SALE items!!!  The list changes every week, so set a calendar reminder! Just go to "Shop", then "Flash Sale" to view all the terrific products that will be offered that weekend - for a very limited time!! I have no idea what will be included in the bundles each week (it's a surprise!)...but here is what I do know:

"During the month of June, we’re offering great deals on bundles of discounted Close To My Heart products every weekend! Check back each Friday during June to find a new set of bundles. There will be lots to choose from at various discount levels and price points, but you’ll need to snatch them up quick, because they’re only available through the following Monday while supplies last!"

Here are the dates and times:

Friday, June 3, 2016 at 5:00 pm (EST) – Monday, June 6, 2016 at 5:00 pm (EST)
Friday, June 10, 2016 at 5:00 pm (EST) – Monday, June 13, 2016 at 5:00 pm (EST)
Friday, June 17, 2016 at 5:00 pm (EST) – Monday, June 20, 2016 at 5:00 pm (EST)
Friday, June 24, 2016 at 5:00 pm (EST) – Monday, June 27, 2016 at 5:00 pm (EST)

ALSO!  I hear that Close to My Heart will be bundling products that work well together in these Flash Sales...and there will be little sneak peeks into what they will be over on the CTMH Instagram and Make It From Your Heart Blog!!

Speaking of which, if you pop over there right now, you can see some adorable projects made with two of the home decor items on sale this weekend...if they haven't already sold out! Oooo - I can't wait to see what they'll offer next week!

Fun Folds!

I love getting cards in the mail, especially when they are unexpected and for no other reason than to say hello. I received one of these cards the other day from a fellow Close To My Heart Consultant, Judee Ramsey. Not only was the card unexpected, but so was the design! It had a very unique fold that I would love to show you how to do. Start with a piece of cardstock 12" x 5.5". I have written on the diagram pictured below where to score and where to cut:

Once you have scored and cut, you are going to make the folds. From left to right, and NOT including the middle piece created by the cuts, alternate mountain fold, valley fold, mountain fold, valley fold. For the two score lines through the center piece, the one on the left is a mountain fold, and the one on the right is a valley fold (see below):

Once you have all of that, you can start embellishing your card with fun patterned papers! I used the "Happy Times" paper packet that I got FREE with my $60 order. There are SO MANY fun patterns to work with in this set - 14 to be exact. If you would like your own, you'd better ACT FAST!!! It's only available through MAY! Here is how I decorated mine:

So fun, right?! Oh, but the fun didn't stop there. I also just got myself a set of one of CTMH's newest products, "Thin Cuts". I bought the "A Bunch of Love" Thin Cuts and the coordinating "A Bunch of Love" stamp set. I love this set not only because I don't have to hand-cut the stamped image, and the images are just gorgeous, but I also get to color them any color I want to match my project. Let me show you how easy it is! First, stamp your image on a piece of cardstock:

Next, put your stamped image on the bottom piece of your die-cutter's "sandwich" and position the coordinating Thin Cuts die directly on top of your image (red arrow indicates the Thin Cuts die):

Carefully place the top piece of the "sandwich" on top of the die and roll through your die-cutter:

Carefully remove the cut piece from the die:

Now you can color! I have used CTMH's ShinHan™ markers in colors to match my papers:

OK, that was fun - and easy! When I was done, I had used both of the floral bunches and the "The Best Thing..." sentiment from the "A Bunch of Love" stamp set, and a frame from the Cricut "Artistry" Collection stamp sets. Here is the front of my card when it is folded - folded size is 4.25" x 5.5" (Note: I embossed my images with black embossing powder before coloring, hence the shininess.):

And here it is open:

Gorgeous! I might embellish a little more with some bling, but I am pretty happy with the result as it stands.

I hope you have as much fun with this design as I did. And who knows....maybe YOU will be the next person to receive one in the mail!

Happy Memorial Day weekend!

"Celebrate with Cake" - Part 2

I just wanted to share another card I made using this month's Stamp of the Month, "Celebrate with Cake", and "Picture My Life™" Black Overlays - so fun! I love being able to "build" my own cake image and then color it to match my color scheme using our ShinHan markers. I can't wait to make more!

Happy Times!

May is already almost half over! Time is running out to pick up this Exclusive "Happy Times" Paper Pack, created especially for National Scrapbooking Month! There are two ways to get it - you can purchase it for the retail price of $14.95 OR get it for FREE with a qualifying $60 order (did you know that there was a brand-new Seasonal Expressions to drool over?! Check it out online!)! PLUS, pick up the Exclusive coordinating Stamp Set for $17.95 - but ONLY THIS MONTH and ONLY WHILE SUPPLIES LAST!! Shop online at http://funforyou.ctmh.com

Check out this Close To My Heart video to see the products up close, and some of the gorgeous artwork you can create with them!

Celebrate with Cake!

There are so many occasions to celebrate with cake - birthdays, weddings, baby showers, and more. So why not a brand-new Stamp of the Month with the very same name! "Celebrate with Cake" is May's Stamp of the Month - and it's a fun one!

I absolutely LOVE being able to build and create your own images. So much to stack and color! I have been dying to use Close To My Heart's incredible "Picture My Life™" Gold & Silver Overlays on a card, so I did just that:

I began with color-blocking the base of the card with a piece of Pixie cardstock and a piece of Hollyhock cardstock. Then I cut one of the 4" x 6" Gold Overlays to size and used a spray adhesive to adhere the overlay on top of the colored cardstock. I loved it already! Then I stamped my cake, banner and sentiment. I colored the cake with CTMH's ShinHan™ markers, along with the Gold Metallic Marker. I also used the Gold Metallic Marker to outline both the card base and the piece of cardstock that the cake is stamped on. I cut out the banner and adhered it with 3D Foam Tape. So simple, yet so fun and festive! I can't wait to find other ways to use these overlays on cards - and, of course, in some pocket scrapbooking!

If you would like to create your own fun cards and scrapbooks with this month's Stamp of the Month, "Celebrate with Cake", go to my website at http://funforyou.ctmh.com to order online. It's just $17.95 or ONLY $5.00 with a $50 purchase!

"Life in Pictures" - April's Stamp of the Month

It's almost GONE! Tomorrow is the LAST DAY that you will be able to order your "Life in Pictures" stamp set! This stamp set has been the most fun to play with - and there are so many card and scrapbook applications. Here are a few more cards that I created with "Life in Pictures":

This design was taken directly from a very dear CTMH Consultant friend of mine, Michelle Snyder (only she had used red for her accent color).

I don't know what it is, but I absolutely love circle cards! So I did two! This one I particularly like because the pattern of the "La Vie En Rose" paper matches the pattern on the camera exactly - and I only noticed it after I was done! How cool!

This card uses the other side of the piece of "La Vie En Rose" patterned paper that I cut off from the piece that I used in the first circle card (I just love the dual-sided patterned paper!). There is also a piece of patterned paper from the "Kaleidoscope" paper pack in the background.

For this fun card I created my own background paper with the cool stamps! My focal point is a "Picture My Life" card from the "Through the Year" set, backed with some Honey cardstock. A strip of patterned paper from the "Penelope" paper pack finishes this card off nicely.

Thought that "Picture My Life" Scrapbooking Program cards were just for scrapbooking? Well, think again! Here is another card using one of the PML cards from the "Through the Year" set backed with some Glacier cardstock and accented with a stamped image from "Life in Pictures"! The background paper is from the "Kaleidoscope" paper pack - the colors match perfectly!

Man, I have really enjoyed using this stamp set - it is very retro and vintage - which is very hip! Be sure to get yours before it's too late! You can ONLY get this set in APRIL - ONE MORE DAY! Go to http://funforyou.ctmh.com to order yours! Have fun!

Dry Embossing - Three Ways!

I have had so much fun playing with this month's Stamp of the Month from Close To My Heart, "Life in Pictures". You saw it in my last post about the embossing resist technique. This week, I am going to use it to show you three different ways to showcase your dry embossing - so let's get started!
First, you will gather your materials - a machine that you can crank your embossing folder(s) through, embossing folder(s), white-core cardstock, a piece of sandpaper or sanding block, and a coordinating ink pad.

I have gathered three different CTMH dry embossing folders for the three different techniques - Dot, Chevron, and Quatrefoil. Place a piece of your cardstock inside of one of the embossing folders, place the folder between the proper plates (according to your machine's recommendations), and crank/run it through.

How beautiful! (I love dry embossing.) Do this for each piece of cardstock.

Nice. Now we're going to kick it up a notch! First, let's use the sandpaper/sanding block. This is where it becomes really important to use cardstock with a white core, which is a special feature of CTMH cardstock! Simply rub the sandpaper across the top of the embossed piece:

Wow! That sure does make the design POP! A very simple way to really bring out the pattern of your embossing - much less subtle.

Speaking of less subtle, let's try a different way of accentuating that embossed pattern - ink. This direct-to-paper technique takes a very delicate hand and some trial and error, but with a soft touch, it can work really well for you. Otherwise, you will simple have a very shabby-chic looking piece - nothing wrong with that! Simply swipe your ink pad across the top of the dry embossing to transfer the ink to the raised portion of the design only (hence, the light touch needed):

I used Honey ink on Honey cardstock. This technique is not even or perfect, so don't expect it to be! What might be fun is inking sections of the design with different colors of ink...oh, I just might have to try that next.

So, now that I have three pieces of very different dry-embossed/sanded/inked cardstock - let's see what I did with them! Straight dry embossing first:

As I stated earlier, the stamps are from "Life in Pictures", April's Stamp of the Month, and there's just a hint of the "La Vie En Rose" paper pack snuck in there. Now the sanded piece:

Oh, how fun! I used the same pattern of paper from "La Vie En Rose" to match the Quatrefoil embossed pattern, along with a strip of Silver Shimmer Trim. And lastly - the inked piece:

What a great accent piece that makes! And did I mention how much I LOVED this stamp set?! I am about to do another post right after this one (unheard of!) that will simple showcase more cards that I created with the "Life in Pictures" stamp set - so stay tuned for it!!

I hope you enjoyed learning new ways to ramp-up your dry embossing. If you want to have as much fun with this stamp set as I have, you'd better HURRY! There's only two more days to get your set - pay full-price of $17.95 OR pay only $5 with a $50 purchase! Go to http://funforyou.ctmh.com to order directly online. And if you have other fun dry embossing techniques that you've tried, please share!