National Papercrafting Month

Whooo’s Your Valentine!

Spend $35 and get the exclusive Whooo’s Your Valentine kit for only $10!

Celebrate National Papercrafting Month with an incredible deal—our Whooo’s Your Valentine kit (CC1022) for only $10! Combine your love of papercrafting with the contents of this kit to create personalized valentines—perfect for classrooms and other group settings. This darling kit, which retails for $40,
can be yours for only $10 when you spend $35 or more in Close To My Heart products from the Autumn/Winter 2012 Idea Book*. 

This kit offers you a sneak peek at two new Spring/Summer
2013 products: the treat tubes and the silver glitter
paper! Decorate the die-cut boxes with the stamp
images, cardstock, and glitter paper. Then attach the
clear tube and fill with treats for valentines in a cinch!

* Products purchased can include stamp sets from the Spring/
Summer 2012 Idea Book, or any products live on any Online
Business Address (OBA) site through January. 

Shipping/handling may apply. Offer valid December 13, 2012—
January 31, 2013. Maximum of one Whooo’s Your Valentine kit per
qualifying order.

Kit includes:

• 12—Die-Cut Boxes (3 each of 4 colors: Blush, Hollyhock, Ruby, White Daisy)

• 3—12" x 12" Cardstock Sheets (Blush, Hollyhock, White Daisy)

• 1—Sheet Silver Glitter Paper—new product for Spring/Summer 2013!

• 12—Treat Tubes with Lids—new product for Spring/Summer 2013!

• 1—My Acrylix®

Whooo’s Your Valentine Stamp Set (D-size)

Please shop here.

Capture the Date November Promotion from CTMH

Capture the Date, Capture the Savings!
November 2012 Constant Campaign

To show our support of Red Cross relief efforts for those areas of the US severely affected by Hurricane Sandy, Close To My Heart will donate $1 for every Stamp of the Month set sold as a part of this promotion during November.

In November, you’ll get something extra when you buy the Stamp of the Month—50% off another stamp set! When you qualify for and buy the November Stamp of the Month set, Capture the Date, you’ll receive another stamp set* of your choice for 50% off—it’s like two promotions in one! The versatile Capture the Date stamp set is great for any layout, card, invitation, or calendar, and now you can choose another stamp set at half-off for more wonderful papercrafting. Get Capture the Date and then capture the savings today!

* Offer valid for A-E and M size stamp sets only; K-size, Workshops on the Go^®, Cricut^® collection, and Stamp of the Month stamp sets are not eligible for this promotion. Maximum of one 50% off stamp set per order.

Dates: Offer valid November 1–30, 2012

To start shopping please click here.  Please join my Gathering on the website ending November 30th when you shop.  Thank you.

Beverly

Studio J® Tricks to Add Flair to Your Layouts

This post is used with permission from Close To My Heart

Even though Studio J^® is fast and easy to use, it is helpful to know some great tricks that can make customizing your layouts even more exciting. Here are some Studio J tricks straight from our professional Close To My Heart artists:
1. Customize your background and texture paper. You can change the color and intensity of the background and texture paper included in whichever kit you choose. Simply select the piece of background and texture paper, change the color in the color selection tool, and increase or decrease the intensity of the color in that same popup box.
2. Crop My Stickease^® quotes, titles, and tags. The cropping feature on the My Stickease images allows you to select a section of a quote, title, or tag to use as a border or other embellishment.
3. Create a customized My Stickease image. If you have a specific image in mind to use as an embellishment on your page, you can create a customized My Stickease to fit your theme perfectly. Simply add a text box, photo hanger, ribbon, ribbon slides, and Stickease to create the little suitcase! So easy! Be sure to crop or send elements behind other elements when necessary, and add several elements together for a unique look!

4. Select more than one element at a time. If you want to move several elements of your layout at once, simply click and drag your mouse around the elements you would like to select. Let’s take buttons, for example. After the buttons have been selected, you can click the icons in the popup box to choose to align the buttons vertically or horizontally if you desire.
5. Make faux washi tape with vellum text boxes. To create the look of a piece of clear washi tape, make a small rectangular text box, filled with vellum background (this is the default color for text boxes). You can make the tape strips as large or small as you want, or even layer them for more emphasis.

6. Stretch one photo across multiple photo wells. If you have fewer photos than photo wells, instead of deleting the excess wells, try scaling the picture to a larger size and then copying the picture to other photo wells and matching the photos up until they align with an almost seamless image. This trick works best with photo wells that are adjacent to each other.
7. Create ruffled ribbon. Select “Ribbons” in the drop-down menu under the Embellishments toolset. Choose ribbon tab and rotate the tab so that it is vertical on the page. Then layer several tabs on top of one another, sending every other one to the back to create a ruffled look.

8. Create a jagged border with text boxes. You can create a jagged border simply by rotating multiple text boxes about 45 degrees and making them the same color as the background. Put these boxes on top of a long, rectangular box of another color, and you’ve got a jagged border!

9. Change the background of your layout. Sometimes you may like the photo and journal arrangement in a layout, and yet want to change the background colors. Because photos sit on top of everything else, this is easy to do. Simply pull a journaling box over the space you want for a different background and fill it with a color from the color selection tool or a patterned paper from the Papers toolset. Then, send it backwards until the photo wells are on top of your new background.
Bonus Trick! Use keyboard keys to make embellishments. Did you know that some of the best tools for creating custom embellishments are the basic keys on your keyboard? It’s as simple as typing into a journaling box with no background color. Use periods to make a polka dot pattern, angle brackets to create a trendy Chevron look, overlapping pound signs to make burlap, question marks to make rope, and so much more!


October is the perfect month to give these tricks a try on your own Studio J^® layouts because for every 9 layouts you create, you’ll get a 10th layout for FREE!

Get a free Studio J^® layout in October! In this special promotion, you will receive a free custom-printed layout when you buy 9 custom-printed Studio J layouts. To receive the discount, just add 10 or more layouts to your cart. You’ll see a discount reflected in your order total. And you can fully take advantage of this promotion by ordering in multiples of 10. Buy 9, get 1 free. Buy 18, get 2 free. Buy 27, get 3 free. Up to 4 free layouts! It’s a great time to use any Member Bonus layouts you may have. If you haven’t tried Studio J yet, now is the time to start! Click here to get started.

Discover the Possibilities of Cricut® Craft Room

This post is reprinted with permission from Close To My Heart

If you love your Cricut^® machine, then you are going to adore all of the fabulous things you can do with Close To My Heart Cricut^®cartridges in the Cricut^® Craft Room. Create layers, cut negative space in the shape of your choice, make borders, and link elements together for a connected look. It’s easy! We’ll show you how.
Here is how to get started with Cricut^® Craft Room:

1. Create a FREE account in a few easy steps.
2. Download and run the application for PC or MAC, depending on the type of computer you use.
3. Connect your Cricut^® machine to your computer using a Type B USB cable. (Note: For more info on this type of cable, see your Cricut^® user’s guide or your local electronics store.) Once you have connected your computer to your Cricut^® machine, the “Load Mat” button is the only button you will ever need to push on your machine in the entire process. Cricut^® Craft Room will do everything else for you.
4. Once inside the application, choose the type of Cricut^® machine you own.
5. Insert your Close To My Heart Art Philosophy or Artiste cartridge into your Cricut^® machine.
6. In the lower left portion of the application there is a tab that is labeled “Images/Cartridges.” Select “All Cartridges” from the dropdown menu. (Note: You must choose a cartridge that you own. You can also purchase individual images from the Cricut^®store.)
7. Scroll to find the Close To My Heart Art Philosophy or Close To My Heart Artiste cartridges you own.
8. The virtual mat in Cricut^® Craft Room is just like the mat you’ll load into your machine. And, it is oriented the same way that you will load your mat into the machine, with the arrow at the top.
9. To drag an image to the mat, simply click on the image in the image selection tool box and move it to the mat.
10. Once the image is on the virtual mat, you can adjust the placement by clicking on the image and moving it to any location on the mat.
11. Now that you know the basics, you can start creating and exploring the possibilities!

Follow these steps to create the negative space on a card base, like you see on this Cheer Up card, featuring images from the Art Philosophy cartridge:

1. Select the “Card” tab in the Art Philosophy images. Find the card base you prefer and drag it onto the mat. (We used Square 1 for the Cheer Up card.) The image will be cut in the exact direction and location that you place it on the virtual mat. At the top of the screen, or at the left under the “Shape Properties” tab, you’ll see size boxes. Enter the width and height for your shape. This is the size it will be cut on the machine, regardless of what size your machine indicates on the flip screen.

2. Choose an image to cut out of your card front. We have chosen a butterfly by going to the Basics tab, clicking the “Show Shift/Lock Images” at the bottom, and then selecting the butterfly. Drag the image to the right side of the card base, position it, and alter the size, as desired. Once the image is in place, you will see a cut-out image in its place. This Weld feature is automatically on unless you disable it, and allows you to see how the card base will look with your images cut out.

3. Select another image, drag it to the card base, and position it how you’d like it. Continue adding images to the card base, if desired.

4. To cut your finished artwork, load the mat into your Cricut^®machine and insert the corresponding cartridge. Next, press the green Cut button at the top of the computer screen and follow the prompts. The machine will cut the shapes as you have prepared them in Craft Room. If more than one cartridge shape has been added to the project, the machine and screen will prompt you with instructions.

Here are so more artwork examples that have been made using Cricut^® Craft Room software. Follow the instructions below to learn some more fun tricks we used in creating this artwork.

Birthday Greetings card

Here’s how to create the bracket frame as shown in this Birthday Greetings card:

1. Drag a card base from Art Philosophy cartridge and size it to be 9" wide and 4½" high.
2. Add a 1½" bracket frame (from the Basic tab) to the center of the right side of the card. So far, all of the shapes have been placed in Layer 1. You can add additional layers using the Layer feature located toward the top of the screen, directly above the mat. Each Layer will be cut from a separate sheet of paper and is indicated by a different color on the screen. Using the Layer feature allows you to fully design your Cricut^® shapes before cutting any pieces.
3. Add a second Layer by clicking the plus sign. Click and hold the Layer 2 tab and drag the tab to the left so it is first in the row. This allows you to see the second Layer on top of the first so you can visualize your finished project. Drag a 3" bracket frame to the card base and position it over the 1½" frame. Then, still using Layer 2, add a 1½" bracket frame in the center of the 3" frame.
4. Maneuver the Layer 2 frames so that they perfectly line up with the Layer 1 frame. Use your keyboard arrows for exactness.
5. Cut the pieces following the prompts on the computer screen and Cricut^® machine. Layer 2 will be cut first, so be sure to load that paper first. Then load a new sheet of paper for the Layer 1 pieces.
6. Embellish the card as desired.

All Boy page

Want to create a border that spans the entire length of your 12" page? It’s easy!

1. In Craft Room, change the mat size to 12" x 24" under Machine & Mat tab on the left of the screen.
2. Drag your selected border to the mat and rotate it so it is vertical.
3. Change the height of the border to 12". It will automatically change the width proportionally unless you click the aspect ratio button between the width and height measurements.
4. Whether you have a 12" × 24" mat or a 12" × 12" mat, you can use this function with a 12" × 12" piece of paper. Simply place the border as close to the top of the Craft Room mat as possible, but not exactly flush with the top.

5. Cut the piece following the prompts on the computer screen and Cricut^® machine.

To create the title with the letters joined together to form one piece instead of individually cut letters…

1. Drag your letters to the mat
2. Overlap portions of each letter to connect them
3. Use the Weld feature to join the letters together seamlessly.
4. Cut the piece following the prompts on the computer screen and Cricut^® machine.

There are so many possibilities to explore in the Cricut^® Craft Room using the versatile Art Philosophy and Artiste cartridges from Close To My Heart! If you have any questions about using Cricut^® Craft Room, visit www.cricut.com where a Cricut^® employee will be glad to help you. Be sure to get your Art Philosophy and Artiste Cricut^®cartridges today in order to create with them in this new and exciting environment!

The Internet Is a Wonderful Thing

Dear Friends,
For those of you that have noticed that I have not posted lately, I feel I need to give a bit of an explanation.  Some of you may have noticed that I took the Faithbooking For All blog down, as well.

I love the internet.  I love that it provides me with a way to share with people that I will likely never meet. What I do not love is that it also empowers some people to say things that they probably would not say in person.  And sometimes what people say hurts.  It could start as a stabbing type of a pain and then grow into a niggling/festering doubt that calls into question my ability, my motives, my efforts and my artistry.

So I am taking a break for a bit and will post again when my mojo has returned and my skin has toughened.

As far as the Faithbooking For All blog, it may go up again when/if I have the energy to provide the content that I want to provide and figure out how to positively deal with the negativity that my efforts seemed to have attracted.

Thank you for your well wishes and the emails that I received inquiring about my whereabouts.  For the 99.9999999...% of the people out there.... I am eternally thankful and grateful for you.

All the best,
Beverly

Studio J: September Love Your Layout - Using Photos For a Background

Studio J is CTMH's digital scrapbooking solution.  There are so many fun techniques that can be used with it.  Every month the corporate office is sharing ideas for using Studio J to it's fullest potential.  By incorporating some of these tips into your own layouts, they become even more uniquely yours!

If you would like more information about using Studio J please visit here.
Thank you for stopping by today.
Beverly

Art Journal - Forgive Yourself

I bought this book a few years ago to begin my art journaling venture and finally made my first entry yesterday!  Apparently, I am a slow starter!  Up until yesterday, the journal that I have been working in - off and on - is a cloth one that I made out of denim.  The bigger bulkier stuff that I seem to be drawn to fits in the cloth book a bit better.  But this paper based one is easier for me to work in.

I wonder if it is easier to add stuff to a book that has so many pages because I don't feel the same pressure to get it 'right' as I am working.  If I hate it, I guess I could rip it out, right?  A fabric book seems more permanent.

Fastenator Staple on Right-Hand Side

There are a lot of things on this page that were recently found as I was reorganizing my craft area.  I completely forgot about the Fastenator that I "had to have" a few years ago... and woohoo, it finally got to staple something!

Modeling Paste Dragon Fly With Crafter's Workshop Stencil

If you are working on projects that open you up to a new vulnerability, please be kind to yourself.  This can be a difficult thing to do.  And maybe I said that because I am struggling with this a bit myself. ;-)

Thank you for visiting!
Beverly
Supplies:
Manila shipping tag, CTMH Dotty paper, Bo Bunny packaging, Rub-ons from CTMH and SU!, Chipboard letters from K & Company, transparency, Golden Acrylics paints, Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist, Studio Calico Mister Huey's, JoAnn's acrylic craft paint, CTMH metallic markers, CTMH stamps and inks, PITT pens, ribbon

Pirouette Clean and Simple Card

CAS Black and White Standard Sized Card

 I love this stamp! In July I used this image on a shabby chic card and another somewhat rustic card.  Those posts are here and here.  The card posted today is almost on the opposite end of the card making spectrum! It is clean, simple and elegant.  It was also very, very easy to make.

CTMH Archival Ink on White Daisy Cardstock

Thank you for stopping by today!  I love visitors. :-)
Beverly

CTMH Supplies:
Pirouette Stamp
White Daisy and Black Cardstock
Archival Black Ink
Sparkles Black & Grey Assortment

Embossed Two- Step Stamping

Happy Monday!  Thank you for visiting.  Today I have a short video about two-step stamping. In it I explain what two step stamping is and how to do it using the So Grateful (B1395) stamp set from CTMH.  This technique can be used with many different stamps.  Take a look at your collection and see what you can create from your stash.

The other supplies used in the video and on the card are all from CTMH.
Exclusive Inks: Sunset, Autumn Terracotta, Olive, Desert Sand
Exclusive Ink Mini-Pigment: Black
Versamark Ink
Clear Embossing Powder
Cardstock: Colonial White, Olive, Autumn Terracotta
Sunset Baker's Twine
Foam Tape

Have a super day!
Beverly

Art Journal Entry - Working Through "Stuff"

White Denim Base With Gesso

 Last weekend, my family went to California to pay our last respects to my 56 year old cousin and share in her family's grief. Eight years ago she found out that she had cancer. During that time she celebrated many wonderful things.  She re-married, became a grandmother, witnessed one of her children graduating college and one graduating high school. She laughed and told jokes as she always had.

Tulle Wings and Ribbon Scarf

 I am not sure that her faith deepened so much as it was cemented even more firmly in her soul.  Her church family continued to grow.  The lives that she touched continued to feel her generosity.

Faber Castell Pitt Pen and HP Printed Text

 When I came home, I knew that I needed to process some of what I was feeling about this remarkable woman.  The part that kept coming back to me, more strongly than any other, was her indomitable faith.  Debbi was a very happy person who brought good humor and positive energy to any occasion. It was odd to be at a memorial service for someone who was so Full of Life.  It seemed surreal.

The Last Line From the Lord's Prayer

 This page is of a woman facing away from us.  Maybe looking into the light of what is to come.  She is wearing a scarf, with no hair underneath.  She sort of has wings.   Her denim skirt is simple and worn. The crocheted "belt" was made by my 7-year old daughter.  As was her paper shirt under the tulle wings.

Homemade Fabric Art Journal - Work In Progress

I was unable to work on anything else this week until I completed this page.  At least completed to this point.  Possibly more things will be added later, but it feels finished to me now.  The book is a work in progress and  I do not really know what direction it will take.

Thank you for visiting today.  Wishing you all the best!
Beverly

CTMH Alcohol-Based Markers

Ribbon and Background Mat Colored With CTMH Ruby Set of  Markers

Recently, Close to My Heart changed their marker formula from dye-based to alcohol-based inks.  The new markers are sold in sets of twos, with one lighter and one darker. For this card, I used the new Ruby color. 

Self-Adhesive Pearls Colored With Markers

With the new markers, I colored the glossy cardstock background mat, the Opaque pearl adhesive gems, and the seam binding ribbon.  It was a very fast coloring/drying time and I love how well coordinated everything looks.

Thank you for visiting!
Beverly

Frosted Designs Office Supplies Challenge

Reminder Board For Child

Office supply stores are one of my favorite places to visit; on the list just under bookstores.  Back-to-School-Time is also one of my favorites because all of the school supplies are on sale.  I think a lot of paper-crafters share similar feelings.  Which brings me to the challenge from Frosted Designs this week: Office Supplies. Whoo hoo!  I love it!

Three Pieces of Cardboard Packaging To Be Glued Together For Base

For the challenge, I knew I wanted to use shipping tags and binder clips.  I also knew that I was becoming weary of reminding my dd every single day to do some simple things.  It seemed a Reminder Chart was in order.  

The greatest thing about this project is that I used things on hand and things that would normally have been thrown into the recycling bin.

Cricut Art Philosophy Negative Cut Sheet 

After painting the cardboard base with acrylic paint, I adhered a piece of cardstock that was a leftover from a Cricut heart-cutting project that had been misted with pearl paint and water.

Binder Clips To Be Covered With Washi and Tissue Tape

On each side of the chart there are cute tape covered binder clips to hold the decorated shipping tags with the various reminders printed on them.  

Painted Tattered Angels Glimmer Mist Shipping Tag

The tags are regular manilla painted with Tattered Angels Tutti Fruiti Glimmer Mist.  After they dried I ran them through the printer and added washi/tissue tape to both ends.

Close-Up of Painted Chipboard Letters With Liquid Pearls

My seven year old is the princess of re-purposing. She noticed that the double-sided tape dispenser was empty and that some of the washi tape was the same size as the used-up tape.  She suggested that I re-use the dispenser.  What a great idea! See it pictured below.

Reusing Tape Dispenser For Washi Tape

The last addition to the board was ribbon.  The one used for hanging came from a gift and the other little ones are from my stash.

Bow Tucked Through Binder Clip

She has had this in her room for a couple of days and it has helped a little bit.  Now instead of asking her if she did each of the individual things, I ask her if she did the things on the board.  It is progress!  Once these items are habits, we can change the tags to new things.

Hanging In DD's Room

This is my last Frosted Designs Challenge as a Design Team member.  When the card challenges ceased, I opted to remain for my term as a Friday team member.  I love the women who are part of Frosted Designs.  They are talented, kind and very sharing.  I will miss being a part of this amazing group, but am excited to continue working on other projects.  Speaking of which, if you get a chance, please visit Faithbooking For All for this week's Faithbooking Friday post.

Thank you for visiting! Have an amazing weekend!
Beverly

Background Techniques - Washi and Tissue Tape

Washi Tape on Shipping Tag

Washi tape is so much fun to use.  It is somewhat transparent and re-stickable.  On the tag above you can see the manila color of the shipping tag.  Below is a picture of the two different colors of cardstock that the Tim Holtz Tissue Tape was placed on for the card background (which is pictured at the bottom of the post.)

 

Cardstock Colors Before Tissue Tape Was Adhered

The tissue tape is 1/2" wide.  This was the perfect size for a standard size card.  When it was done, I decided that it would be nice to see the light pink of the card base, so I cut the tissue tape background to a 4" x 5 1/4" rectangle.

Tissue Tape Strips On Alternating Colors of Cardstock

Tissue Tape Background for Standard Sized Card

The CTMH stamped images were stamped with CTMH Black Archival ink.

Thank you for stopping by!

Beverly

Background Technique - Crimp or Corrugate

Crimped Shipping Tag

There are hundreds of background techniques for papercrafters to choose from when working on any given project.  I am revisiting a bunch of them over the next couple of weeks. Also, I am starting a new page on my blog that is specifically for background techniques.  This way the techniques will be listed with commonly used names. I hope it is easy to locate the one for which someone may be looking. And maybe it will help those who are looking for something new or different to try. It should be ready by the end of the week.

 This card was made by using a Fiskars crimper horizontally on a piece of kraft cardstock and a piece of Ruby cardstock running diagonally.  The base is also CTMH kraft cardstock.

CTMH Cashmere Pigment Ink and Clear Embossing Powder

I layered the embossed sentiment over a piece of burlap ribbon and Ruby cs.  The edges of all pieces were either edge or ink distressed.

Thank you so much for visiting today.  Please stop back tomorrow when the background technique is all about using washi and tissue tape.

Beverly

Polished Stone Technique - CTMH Inks

CTMH Thanks Stamped with CTMH Black Archival Ink

 Background Technique Week continues with a third variation of the Polished Stone Technique.  Here is a video recap of the different materials and a quick demonstration of the technique using cotton balls and CTMH reinkers:

The reason why glossy paper works well for this technique is that the liquid needs to stay on top of the paper for as long as possible so that it can be moved around.  Some applicators work better than others for dispersing the ink and blending solutions. One of my favorites is cotton balls because they hold the liquid well and are inexpensive.  You can also try sponges, rags, q-tips and see what works best for you.  With the other applicators you may get a different look than polished stone, but it can still be pretty spectacular in appearance.

Polished Stone Technique with CTMH Juniper, Sky and Lagoon Reinkers

I tried using the silver metallic marker from CTMH on the piece above and discovered that the ink would not blend.  Good to know that it is a great medium for a permanent application.

Hambly Studios Washi Tape Toned Down the Intensity of the Pink Cardstock

The last picture is to show that the washi tape really changed the tone of the front.  The pink of the cardstock  is very bright.  Depending on the recipient, it may need a neutral mat added to the inside for the message and signature.