CTMH Australasian Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - September 2014 - Family is Forever

Hello and welcome aboard our Close to My Heart Australasian Stamp of the month Blog Hop. If you have arrived here from Margaret's Blog, Stamps n' Cards, then you are in the right place. If you landed here by accident, no problem, please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

Today I would like to share with you a couple of special projects that feature the September Stamp of the Month - Family is Forever, available exclusively throughout September for $27 or for just $5 when you spend $75.

The tree image is very prominent on this stamp set, and further down a share a little project I made at my recent craft retreat, making it into a 3 dimensional tree. I thought many consultants would use the tree in their projects, so I wanted to do something a little different with other components of the set.

But first, my card features two of the sentiments "mashed" together, and the die cut heart from the Artiste Cricut cartridge.

 

 

I inked only the is Forever from the Family is Forever sentiment, by masking off the first word while I inked up the rest with Slate ink, then removed the mask and stamped near the bottom right corner. I then inked up the Love with Pixie ink, and "rock and rolled" the edges in Cotton Candy ink to get the two-tone effect.

 

The die cut hearts were stamped one each with Pixie and Cotton Candy and mounted with foam tape. I really love this new Pixie colour, it is a lovely soft pink and goes great with Cotton Candy. I thought the card needed a touch more Slate to balance it out, so I took the cluster of 3 small hearts and stamped it in the top left corner. Then I rounded the two opposite corners of the White Daisy card to give it a different shape.



Are you ready for my 3D project?

The craft retreat is run by a dear friend of mine in mid August, and this is the third time it has run here in QLD (she also runs one in March in NSW). Each year, she gives us a "challenge" item at the start of camp, that we have to do something crafty with, and on the Sunday morning, each camper gets to vote on their favourite entry. For some very strange reason, my creation seemed to be a favourite :-)

 

 

 

The challenge item was the golf tee, that I have coloured green with our Shinhan alcohol markers, and attached some branches, turning it into a tee tree :-) I made a little open fire, using rolled brown cardstock (well, orange, actually, sponged with Chocolate ink) and the flames are Orange Fruit burst wrappers - gotta use what you have, right?

 

 

 

After that, the tent, the billy, the logs and the 3D Family tree came together quite quickly. I also used a stamp from the Timberline WOTG kit to put the tyre tracks onto the background stamped green cardstock base. It was great fun to make, and as we love to camp and 4WD, its a great representation of our family as well.

 

If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you may have seen this project "staged" with a gummy bear, a lolly snake and a little lolly man sitting on the log watching the fire, There was also a caption that read - Welcome to the Australian Bush. Please look out for Drop Bears and Hoop Snakes. 

 

 

S1409 Family is Forever is only available until 30 September 2014 from your CTMH consultant.

I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop,  Jenny Gilbert's Blog, Jen's Creative Classroom.

Yours in Craft,
Monika

CTMH New Product Blog Hop - Annual Inspirations 2014-2015

Hello and Welcome to the CTMH Blog Boosters Blog Hop for new products, released in the Close to My Heart Annual Inspirations book 2014-2015. These are now available and you can browse and shop here.

This new book is valid for a whole 12 months, and there are over 250 new products to share with you! Over the next week, I will be posting a few projects I have created with these, so keep checking back to see what is new.

At the bottom of my post, you will also see a Linky listing, of other CTMH consultants from around the world, participating in this blog hop. Please click on the thumbnails and check out what they have created, and leave some blog love for all of us!

My first project is a set of cards and matching envelopes that can be used for almost any occasion. I used the same technique but with different stamp sets and different ink colours. You can find the recipe at the end of my post.

 

I masked off a 1.5 inch area across the front of the card with post-it notes, and filled the area with images from the stamp set in three to four ink colours. I worked from large stamps to small, making sure the space was filled in and stamped across the masked area as much as possible, to define the space.

I then removed the mask, and used our new Score Board to create raised lines on the front of the card to frame this stamped section (by scoring from the inside front of the card). I then used one of the ink colours and a sentiment on the bottom right hand corner of the card.

These cards are very simple to make, and can be reproduced quickly. My next project will be a little package to put them into for gift giving. Stay tuned :-)


INGREDIENTS:
Cardstock:
X1410 5 1/2" X 4 1/4" Colonial White Cards & Envelopes, 50 pack
Stamps:
C1600 Happy Birds
D1602 A Budding Friendship
D1627 Your Own Kind of Wonderful
C1594 Treasured Friendship
Ink pads:
Glacier, Crystal Blue, Lagoon, Smoothie, Gypsy, Goldrush, Hollyhock, Pixie, Ruby, Sweet leaf, Topiary, Desert Sand, Cashmere, Bamboo


Yours in craft,
Monika

 

CTMH Australasian Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - August 2014 - What a Hoot

Hello and welcome aboard our Close to My Heart Australasian Stamp of the month Blog Hop. If you have arrived here from Jenny's Blog, Jen's Creative Classroom, then you are in the right place. If you landed here by accident, no problem, please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

Today I would like to share with you this special birthday card which features the August Stamp of the Month - What a Hoot, available exclusively throughout August for $27 or for just $5 when you spend $75.

At first glance, you would think this is very much a "Halloween" stamp set, but I beg to differ. Owls of all shapes and sizes have been in style in crafting for a while now, and I for one am a little obsessed :-). When I saw the line drawn owls on this set, with options for eyes and hats, I knew I wanted to do a little paper piecing.

I took colour inspiration from my first favourite paper set out of the new Annual Inspirations book, called "Brushed". I absolutely love these prints and colour combination.

I stamped the standing owl onto the B&T paper, using the more subtle pattern for the body and the large print for the belly. Then I stamped the wings and the party hat onto a small piece of Olive cardstock. I stamped all the images in black ink to emphasise the paper piecing.

I used the Cricut Artbooking cartridge to cut the branch and the title. The images are actually from a Nursery layout (p.84), and the title says "Look Whoos here" but I trimmed off the last word by hand, so I could add the numbers for the age birthday. The titles are cut from Cranberry cardstock.

I love that all the Cricut cartridges from Close to My Heart are so versatile, with over 700 images on each, that be used in so many different ways.

Both the branch and the tree on the left side of the card were embossed with the new Woodgrain embossing folder, using colonial white cardstock as the base. Then I swiped Chocolate ink over the top of the embossed lines, and filled in with the Chocolate ink and a sponge dauber.

The base of the card is Champagne cardstock. I stamped some light clouds in the background from the C1570 Lifting Spirits set, with Glacier ink. Most of the card was assembled with flat adhesive, but for the 40 and the party hat I used a bit of foam tape to give the card some dimension. A little bit of sequins and sparkles finished the card - you always need a little bling, right?

I had tons of fun making this card, and hope the recipient likes it as well. 40 is the new 30, apparently lol

S1408 What a Hoot is only available until 31 August 2014 from your CTMH consultant.

I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop,  Lauren Moore's Blog, CTMH Craftings.

Yours in Craft,
Monika

CTMH Australasian Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - July 2014 - Circus Alphabet

Hello and welcome aboard our Australasian Stamp of the month Close to My Heart Blog Hop. If you have arrived here from Anne's Blog, Mummy you made this?, then you are in the right place. If you landed here by accident, no problem, please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

Today I would like to share with you these cards which feature the July Stamp of the Month - Circus Alphabet, available exclusively throughout July for $24 or for just $5 when you spend $75.

 I love Alphabet stamp sets, they are so versatile, allowing you to make your own greetings and titles, and to highlight your journaling. This one has a very whimsical feel, and the design also means you can colour them in if you wish. There are 68 stamps in the set, and he tallest image in the set is approximately ⅝" in height.

Do you find with alpha stickers you always have the same few letters left over? With my two girls, all the A, S and L stickers are gone - assuming there is enough in the packet to start with! With a stamp set, you can use each letter as often as you like, and pick whatever ink pad you have on hand to use - colour coordinated with your cardstock!

I needed to create some Thank You cards to have on hand, and this stamp set was perfect to create my own greeting. I used the upper case letters for the Thanks, and the lower case for the á bunch'.

I used the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge to cut the greeting pieces out of scraps of My Reflections scrapbook papers, and the backing from plain coordinating cardstock.  I stamped the greeting pieces and the base card in either Black ink, or a colour to match the backing piece - Gypsy, Cotton Candy, Ruby or Outdoor Denim. I then embossed these backing pieces with our embossing folders in Dots or Stripes, and used the sanding block to expose the white core and give them some more texture.

I adhered the backing piece directly to the Colonial white card, and then used foam tape to raise the Thanks piece onto the top. Very quickly I had 8 thank you cards ready to go, with a variety of colour schemes.

I love making cards in bulk as it saves time, but I also get bored with one design very easily, so this way I have a little variety in my stash!

Circus Alphabet is only available until 31 July 2014 from your CTMH consultant.

I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop,  Lauren Moore's Blog, CTMH Craftings.

Yours in Craft,
Monika

CTMH Australasian Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - June 2014 - Kaboom



Hello and welcome aboard our Australasian Stamp of the month Close to My Heart Blog Hop. If you have arrived here from Savannah's Blog, Savannah Scraps, then you are in the right place. If you landed here by accident, no problem, please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

Today I would like to share with you these cards which feature June Stamp of the Month - Kaboom, available exclusively throughout June for $24 or for just $5 when you spend $75.

This is a very festive set, all about parties and fireworks - great for any celebration!

For my first creations this month I used CTMH Kraft 12x12 cardstock cut into 3 - 2 pieces of 6 x 8 inches for a side folding card, and a 4 x 12 inch top folding card - all three cards closed are 4x6 inches, and fit into a standard envelope.

I stamped both cards with White Daisy Pigment ink, and left the ink to dry. Pigment ink takes a bit longer to dry than dye ink, as it does not absorb into the card like dye does. You could also heat set it with a heat gun if you have one.

I left the first card like this, as I love the white on craft look, and the pigment ink is opaque, showing up really well on darker cardstock.

For the second card, I coloured over the white ink with Alcohol markers. You can see how vibrant the colours are in the Kraft, with the white ink underneath them. You could also use coloured pencils for this technique. Just be aware of how dark some of the alcohol markers are, and how wide the tip is - my purple fireworks are a little over-done lol

By this stage I was a little excited about different colour combinations, so I thought I would try a white background card with coloured inks for the fireworks. I stamped them all over the card as a background, and highlighted the sentiment by raising it on a flag shaped card with foam tape, and just lightly sponging the edges with Lagoon ink.

I used Ruby, Goldrush, Lagoon and Pear exclusive inks. I love that the set also includes the small star you can use to fill in any spaces.

 Kaboom is only available until 30 June 2014 from your CTMH consultant.

I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop,  Patricia Manhire's Blog, Patricia's Creative Corner.

Yours in Craft,
Monika

CTMH Australasian Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - May 2014 - You've Got a Friend



Hello and welcome aboard our Australasian Stamp of the month Close to My Heart Blog Hop. If you have arrived here from Savannah's Blog, Savannah Scraps, then you are in the right place. If you landed here by accident, no problem, please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

Today I would like to share with you these two cards which feature May Stamp of the Month You've Got a Friend, available exclusively throughout May for $24 or for just $5 when you spend $75.

I love the greetings in this set, and the "moon" one in particular is very special to our family. Sam McBratney's Guess How Much I Love you? has been a firm bedtime reading favourite for almost a decade now.

For the first card, I inked up the various parts of the sentiment in 3 different colours. I used our Pigment inks for this, mainly because the pads are small and can be walked across only parts of the stamp if you wish.

I then used a partial embossing technique with the chevron embossing folder for the top and bottom of the front panel, and separated the three portions with a double scored line from the back, so it would be raised on the front. Then I just used the Gypsy ink again to colour the edges of the panel, and mounted it with foam tape onto a white daisy card base. Some purple adhesive gems left over from a Laughing Lola kit completed this card.

The second card was made in a similar way, but I embossed the two ends of the front panel first, and hoped the sentiment would fit :-).  I used the Quatrefoil embossing folder and only a single reverse scored line. I also kept this card more monochrome, with a Lagoon mat, and some Aqua Dots. Some baker's twine hemp (left over from this kit) adds some extra texture.

 You've Got a Friend is only available until 31 May 2014 from your CTMH consultant.

I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop,  Jenny Gilbert's Blog, Jens DigiScrap.

Yours in Craft,
Monika

CTMH Australasian Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - April 2014 - S1404 Balloon Talk



Hello and welcome aboard our Stamp of the month Australasian Close to My Heart Blog Hop. If you have arrived here from Lauren's Blog, CTMH Craftings, then you are in the right place. If you landed here by accident, no problem, please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

Today I would like to share with you these two cards which feature the April Stamp of the Month S1404 Balloon Talk available exclusively throughout April for $24 or for just $5 when you spend $75.

The first card uses just one of the stamps from the SOTM for the sentiment, and there are a great variety of speech bubbles with and without words in this set - 24 in total. The main images on the card are from C1540 Hello Blooms, and the Pear background piece is embossed with Swiss Dots.

The second card was inspired by the actual packaging of the SOTM. I wanted to make a monochrome card with various speech bubbles in the background, and then one raised up for the actual sentiment of the card. I used Outdoor Denim ink and the coordinating Chevron ribbon for this card.

A bit of fun - did you notice that the top left stamp is "start here" and the bottom right stamp is "carry on"?

You could make any number of these cards with the background technique, and then have different sentiments you can apply with foam tape to finish the card. You could also do a tone on tone look with ink to match your card stock.

Balloon Talk is only available until 30th April from your CTMH consultant. I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop,  Mandy's Blog, Hall of Indulgence.

CTMH Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - January - Cross Stitch Wishes

Hello and welcome aboard our Australasian Close to My Heart Stamp of the Month (SOTM) Blog Hop for January. If you have arrived here from Lauren Moore's blog, then you are in the right place. If you landed here first, the blog hop is a circle, so please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

The SOTM for January is called Cross Stitch Wishes, and almost every image is made up of cross stitches, so I automatically thought of a sewing theme. I am also a sewist and a quilter, so this stamp set appeals to me, and I can make cards and layouts based on those hobbies.

The first project is a simple card and matching envelope I made to send to a fellow quilter, using just two colours, Slate and Cotton Candy. I like the Slate for a neutral as its not as harsh as the Black. I added a piece of slate and white twine to the needle to give the card some texture.

The second card I made for an upcoming celebration, Valentines day. I used Twilight, Lagoon and Sky for the ombre effect, and Cotton Candy for the accent. You will notice a subtle border around the outside of the card front. This was created by scoring from the back at 1/8 inch intervals.

And the final card for today is for Mother's day. I used Lagoon ink for the Best Mum, Gypsy, Cotton Candy and Twilight for the flower heads and Pear for the stems and grass. I folded part of the You are the Best stamp over the edge of the block and masked it to get just the word I wanted - another great benefit of acrylic stamps :-)

This exclusive  stamp of the month is only available during January. It can be yours for just $5 with a qualifying order of $75 or for $24 if ordered separately from your CTMH consultant. If you do not have a consultant please contact me or place an order in my online store here.

Did you know that January is National Papercrafting Month? CTMH has a gorgeous Cloud Nine Cardmaking Kit you can purchase for just $20 when you spend $55. So again you can qualify for 2 promotions with just one purchase. Ask me how to get yours today!

I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop, Jenny Gilbert's Creative Classroom.



Yours in craft,
Monika

CTMH Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - December - Special Care

Hello and welcome aboard our Australasian Close to My Heart Stamp of the Month (SOTM) Blog Hop for December. If you have arrived here from Jo Armstrong's Blog, then you are in the right place. If you landed here first, the blog hop is a big circle, so please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

The SOTM for December is called Special Care and is a set of 6 stamps with a "washing instructions" theme. My first thought when I saw these stamps was for baby or children-inspired cards or scrapbook pages.

I have been a bit remiss with scrapbooking pages for Isobelle, as all her photos are digital and I don't often print them out any more. These pictures were taken by an amateur photographer friend of mine when Isobelle was just 3 weeks old, on 27 November 2009.

I wanted to keep the focus on the photos, so used colonial white card for the base pages and photo mats and embellishments in Cotton Candy. I also stamped in Cotton Candy and Slate, and added a touch of bling with the silver washi tape out of the Sparkle & Shine pack. The shapes come from the Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge, and the title is from Artbooking, both exclusive to Close to My Heart.

I used one roll from each of the special Washi tape packs we currently have, the Party and the Sparkle and Shine packs. Each roll in this pack is 15 yards (13.7 metres) so the pack is great value.

This exclusive  stamp of the month is only available during December. It can be yours for just $5 with a qualifying order of $75 or for $24 if ordered separately from your CTMH consultant. If you do not have a consultant please contact me or place an order in my online store here.

The Washi tape and many other Christmas themed items are from the Holidays with Heart Gift Guide, available now through December 31 from your CTMH consultant whilst stocks last. Some items are in short supply so order early to avoid disappointment.

Orders totalling over $130 between now and 31 December 2013 can choose one starred item from The Holidays with Heart gift Guide for free so it is an ideal time to get your hands on one of our Cricut Collections or some Workshops on the Go (WOTG) kits for yourself, or as gifts, and be able to claim some lovely Christmas products, and your purchases will count towards 2 promotions!

I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop, Marianne Lamont's Blog.

Products used:
1388 Colonial White cardstock pack
X5760 Cotton Candy cardstock pack
S1312 Special Care
Z2173 Exclusive ink - Slate
Z2193 Exclusive ink - Cotton Candy
Z1908 Party Washi Tape - 3 pack
Z1907 Sparkle & Shine Washi Tape - 3 pack
Z1701 Baker's Twine - Neutral Assortment


Yours in craft,
Monika

CTMH Stamp of the Month Blog Hop - November - Illuminate

Hello and welcome aboard our Australasian Close to My Heart Stamp of the Month (SOTM) Blog Hop for November. If you have arrived here from Patricia’s Blog,  Patricia Manhire, then you are in the right place. If you landed here first, the blog hop is a big circle, so please join in by following the link at the end of this post.

The SOTM for November is called Illuminate and is a beautiful collection of lamps, lights and related phrases.

I designed this card in the Cricut Craft Room (CCR) which allowed me to get all the layers to match and the little windows to line up. The inspiration for this card actually came from my DH who suggested the window and light shining through it.

I used the Sparkle and Shine paper packet for the front layer, and colonial white card for the base.
The images come from the Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge, exclusive to Close to My Heart.

I have saved the ccr file, so if you would like a copy of it, please leave a comment and I can email it to you as a little gift from me for visiting my blog!

I love that even though this is a "Christmas" themed paper packet, it can suit many other themes as well, and the damask print on this paper is subtle but beautiful.

The Sparkle and Shine paper and many other Christmas themed items are from the Holidays with Heart Gift Guide and are available now through December 31 from your CTMH consultant whilst stocks last. Some items are in short supply so order early to avoid disappointment.

This exclusive  stamp of the month is only available during November. It can be yours for just $5 with a qualifying order of $75 or for $24 if ordered separately from your CTMH consultant. If you do not have a consultant please contact me or place an order in my online store here.

Orders totalling over $130 between now and 31 December 2013 can choose one starred item from The Holidays with Heart gift Guide for free so it is an ideal time to get your hands on one of our Cricut Collections or some Workshops on the Go (WOTG) kits for yourself, or as gifts, and be able to claim some lovely Christmas products, and your purchases will count towards 2 promotions!

I'd love you to leave a comment before heading off to the next stop, Noni’s blog, Live, Crop, Share.

Products used:
X7176B Sparkle and Shine paper packet
1388 Colonial White cardstock pack
S1311 Illuminate
Z2173 Exclusive ink - Slate
Z2110 Exclusive ink - Buttercup

Yours in craft,
Monika