Free To Be Me

It's National Scrapbooking Month.

Are you celebrating?

We are.  The May promo was created with this celebratory month in mind.

The Free To Be Me paper pack is chock full of luscious colors and happy spring-time patterns to get your creative juices flowing. 

 

Don't you just love those bright colors??  I know I do.  They're cheerful and spring-y without being pastel or girly.  (As a mom of all boys, this is important to me.)  The kit comes with specially designed patterned papers, card stock sheets with one side of each sheet embossed in a different pattern, and vellum sheets.  (As a CTMH junky, I hadn't yet played with vellum until I got this promo in.  I don't know why I waited so long - this stuff is cool!)  You can see an example below in the card I made with last month's stamp of the month.  (The 'talk box' pattern on the front of the tag is not one of the patterned sheets - that was a stamp that was a part of last month's stamp of the month, too.)

I edged all the patterned sheets in Lagoon ink (even the vellum sheet) and used the Antique Copper Studs from the Rosewood Mini Medleys to anchor the corners of the vellum sheet on the front of the card.  I got the card pattern from our Originals book.

This promo is only good for the month of May.  It retails for $11.95, but you can get it for $5 with a qualifying $50 order.  It really is too good to pass up.  Order yours here today.

This is one of those stamp sets that makes me wish I had a girl.  I don't know why.  I see this and for me it just screams "girl talk". 

Maybe it's the sayings.  Or the cute little thought bubbles.  Boys run in my family.  A LOT of boys.  I have 5 siblings.  Between us all, we've had 13 kids - 10 boys, 3 girls.  And the girls live far away from me.  Half a continent away.  So it's not like I can scoop up my older nieces and play.  I'd love to, though .  (And they're at that delightful age, where I'm sure they'd love for me to scoop them up, too.)

Isn't that layout ADORABLE???  And the card and tags are so bright and cheerful - just waiting to go on a springtime gift, or Easter basket, or baby shower present.  I can't get away with pastels with my own two boys - my teenager loves royal purple and my baby is all about some camo.

If you find that you have girls (or if this fits your boys), this is our April Stamp of the Month.  Make sure you add it to your order by April 30th, cuz once May Day gets here, it'll be gone.

This is NOT an April Fool's Joke!

Do you LOVE CTMH product?  (I do!)

Do you LOVE getting FREE CTMH product?  (The only thing better than CTMH product is FREE CTMH product!)

Are you a Cricut fanatic?  (Like me and most of the scrappers I know are.)

Close To My Heart is GIVING AWAY a FREE Cricut Collection to EVERY NEW CONSULTANT who signs up during the month of April!!!

You don't have to blink.  Or rub your eyes.  You read that right!  F.  R.  E.  E..  FREE!!

These collections retail for $99 each with a total value of $125.  So automatically you're saving over $100.

If you've never seen our collections, these are the three you can choose from:

First up, we have our Art Philosophy.  This is the Grande Dame that started it all.

Next up we have the Artiste Collection.

And finally, the baby sister..  The Artbooking.

As you can see, there are similarities between each collection.  They each come with three dimensional elements sheets that coordinate with both the stamps and images cut from the Cricut cartridge.  The three stamps that are included in each collection are exclusive to that collection.  Meaning they cannot be purchased outside of the collection they come with.  And each collection has a cartridge and image book containing over 700 images each!

But that's where the similarities end.  Each cartridge serves a different purpose.  The images on the Art Philosophy are geared for tags and layered embellishments.  The Artiste contains 3-D embellishments and projects (to give as gifts or display as home decor for yourself).  And the Artbooking is more for the scrapbooker who wants to take their layouts to unimaginable heights.

And then there's all the product that comes in the New Consultant kit.  

Oh, my goodness.  Look at all that!  Doesn't all that make you drool?  I know, me too.  When I see that, my mind races with all the creative projects I can do.

The kit is valued at $309.  But it retails at $99!!

So, for the month of April, every new consultant who signs up gets ALL the product above PLUS a FREE Cricut Collection of your choice. 

A combined value of $434. 

For $99!!

That's A LOT of free product. 

If you're interested, contact me here today for all the details.

You get a Free Cricut Cartridge! She gets a Free Cricut Cartridge! We all get a Free Cricut Cartridge!!

Ok, so I'm usually late to the party with my posts.  I usually log on somewhere around the middle of the month to post the current promotions and Stamp of the Month.

I don't do it on purpose.  I've got a hubby and two boys that always need something.  (And I have one on the way.  Another boy, not another hubby.)  I get busy and distracted.  My days are long and by the time I get to put my exhausted bones in bed, my lists of the next day's chores are dancing through my head instead of the much more pleasant visions of stamps and paper packs.

But when Close To My Heart announced on Saturday what the April promotion was going to be, it was TOO good to wait a month to tell everyone about it.

During the Month of April, EVERYONE who signs up as a Consultant will get the Cricut Cartridge of their choice - FOR FREE!!  (My chin really did hit the floor in shock when I read this!)

So, not only do you get ALL this AMAZING product for only $99 (valued at $309!)

 You also get your choice of one of our three Cricut Collections!  That's an ADDITIONAL $99 for FREE!  (The Cricut Collections are valued at $125 each.)  See them pictured below.

 We have the Artbooking Collection.

The Artiste Collection.

And the Art Philosophy Collection.

Each collection comes with a cartridge EXCLUSIVELY through Close To My Heart, three stamp sets that cannot be purchased outside of the collection and three dimensional elements sheets that correspond with the cartridge and stamp sets.

$434 in product for $99!!!  It's such an amazing deal, I can't believe they're doing this!

If you love paper crafting and you've been thinking about becoming a Close To My Heart Consultant, this is the promotion for you!

Click here to contact me for more information about joining my team, or click here to go ahead and order your new consultant kit today!

Artbooking Made Easy: Fab Frames

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Ok, this video is another perfect example of why I love Close To My Heart.  CTMH knocked it out of the park again.  The pennant frame Jenna is showcasing is new in our current catalog.  But the Cricut Artbooking Cartridge is not.

CTMH in their infinite wisdom is all about helping us maximize usage of our tools.  The pennant frame can be easily cut out with the Cricut Artbooking using Real Dial Size 9.  No fussy cutting.  (My fingers always have indentations after I'm finished fussy cutting.)  No white edges to cover or ink.  (Unless, like me, you like the effect that the inking technique brings to your paper crafts.

Not only that, but Jenna shows three darling examples of the finished product to get our creative mojo flowing.

I can't say enough great things about this company.

To create one of these adorable projects, click here to order yours today.

Little wooden dolls every where I look

When I was a little girl, my grandmother had this bookshelf next to her front door.  It was not very tall - it just had three shelves to it.  And it contained some books and little tchotckes and nick-knacks that my grandpa had picked up in his many travels across the country.  (He was an over-the-road trucker.)

On the bookshelf, she had this set of nesting dolls he'd picked up somewhere.  You know the ones - made from wood and covered in a sheer lacquer.  You had to twist them a little bit to get them to come apart.  They were all the exact same design and colors and there were maybe five dolls in the set.  The smallest doll didn't separate, she was the only solid doll in the set.  I spent hours opening them up, fitting them together, playing with them, putting them back in place.  She would only let us play with them where she could watch us because she wanted to make sure we were careful with them.  I loved those little things.

When I saw March's Stamp of the Month, I was immediately transported back to that living room. I could feel that ancient carpet under my elbows, smell the aroma of homemade bread baking in the oven

Look at how adorable those little nesting dolls are!  They really do bring back the best memories.

I don't know about you, but alot of my paper crafting is done from my heart and for those that I love.  I have a set of these on order (We've had a lot of sickness around my pad the beginning of this month, so I'm a little late getting my Stamp of the Month in.) and I can't wait to play with them!

You can order yours here, but remember these sweet little dolls are only available in March!  Hurry up to get yours today.

It's all coming up digital

Have you heard all the hype about digital scrapbooking? 

It is SO exciting!!

If your house is anything like mine, it's crazy-busy from sun-up to sun-down!  I have a toddler to chase, a work-from-home hubby who's in and out all day and a teenager with special needs.  Oh, and we're also expecting our third (and final) munchkin in July.  I am the CEO, Chef (hubby and teenager have special dietary needs as well, so we have no pre-boxed or processed foods in the house - it's all scratch made), chief purchasing officer, Maid, Activities Director, the list really does feel endless some days.

And our busy, bustling little house is truly little.  I do all my scrapbooking at our kitchen table.  So when I need a creative moment to unwind from the constant requests and demands from my family I don't always have the time or the space to pull all my goodies.

Which is why I LOVE that Close To My Heart's March Promotion is all about Studio J!

Have you tried it??

It is flippin' AWESOME!!!


Here's what I love about Studio J -
1. I have FULL creative power over whether I use one of the Express Collection Layouts that make it exceptionally easy to scrapbook on the go or design each layout myself from scratch.
2. Not only can I use all of the gorgeous current paper packs, I can also choose from any of the fabulous retired paper packs OR any of the specifically designed paper packs that are ONLY available through Studio J.  There are over 140 different paper packs to choose from!  Talk about knowing the way to a girl's heart!
3. I can embellish my layouts to my hearts content.  Ribbons - check.  Stickers - check.  Buttons, brads and bows - triple check!  It's all there to play with in every lush color CTMH has.
4. There is NO software to download to my computer.  I just have to log in here through my online account and all the layouts are stored safely until I'm ready to order them.
5. When play time is over, there's no cleanup!  I am waiting until the day comes when I can have my own craft room to play in.  But until that glorious day arrives, I do all my crafting in the shared family space.  With Studio J, I can save my unfinished layouts in my account until I can get back to them.  I don't have to worry about my toddler getting a hold of anything dangerous or tiny to hurt himself with.  It's all safely stored in my online account.
6. It doesn't cost a thing to create my layouts.  Not.  One.  Single.  Penny.  I only get charged when I am completely blown away with my creativity (this program makes even the newest scrapbooker feel like a crafty veteran) and I order my layouts.
7. My layouts are printed on the highest quality photo grade paper!  NO blurry pictures.  No fuzzy embellishments.  Every layout is crisp and every color is sharp and vibrant - just like when I created them.
8. You can even use Studio J as a photo printing option!  Yep.  You read that right.  Sometimes a layout will call for an odd-sized picture and you'll have to decide which side of your photo is going to have to be lost to the crafting room floor.  Not with Studio J's Photo Express Collection.  You can just put the pictures you want printed into whatever size your layout calls for and you get the whole thing!
9. During the month of March, layouts are only $5 each!  That's right.  I said it.  A two-page layout is yours for only $5!  That's insane!  $5!  (Sorry, it's just such an AMAZING deal, I had to say it again.)

If you've never tried it before, don't be nervous about dipping your toes into these digital waters.  We all love the smell of opening up a brand new paper pack.  (Unless I'm the only weird one here that likes that smell.)  Nothing replaces the feel of finishing a hand-made project.  But this is the kind of change that will elevate your love of scrapbooking to the next level.  You'll love that you can take your scrapbooking experiences everywhere you go. Which will make you love scrapbooking even more.

At least it does for me.