Free Shipping Feb. 18-20!

Free shipping on orders of $75 or more are available February 18-20 HERE!  Combine orders with friends to reach the $75 (which also makes you eligible to purchase the February Product of the Month, Painted Illusions DSP, for only $5!).

Artiste & Ivy Lane Birthday Card

Last week I held a summer "stamp camp" for my customers to help me use up the retiring (and already retired) stash that I have on hand.  I'm not sure that we made a dent in my stash, but I did make this lovely (if I do say so myself) card for a friend who had a birthday this past Sunday.

My card uses the (retiring) Ivy Lane paper pack and the Ariste CTMH/Cricut cartridge and coordinating stamp set/collection.  Hollyhock and Smoky Plum inks are a great match for this pretty paper, which is only available until the end of the month!  The flowers are from my contraband stash, but I did add a CTMH pink glitter gem.

I am linking up my card to the Cards in Envy Happy Birthday challenge and the new Take Heart challenge blog.  Their first challenge is "anything goes," but I think my palette also matches their optional color challenge.  I love when a challenge (or two or three) inspires me to create!  I'm also thankful that I got to get some creating done before school started for me.  Can you believe teachers in my system went back to work yesterday?!?  Thank goodness this was a short week. ;)  Celebrate something this weekend, okay?

Gratitude Word Art (Printable Freebie) & Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends and family!

You can download this beautiful word art by Jill Paulsen at A Matter of Memories in either 5"x7" or 8"x10" for instant holiday decor.

Today was a furlough day for me instead of a teacher workday, so I worked around the house, did the grocery shopping, etc., to get ready for the big turkey day. We are eating with my in-laws Thursday evening and with my family Saturday evening. Life is good and bountiful. Count your blessings and remember an attitude of gratitude!

Wishing you the best always!

World Card Making Day FREE Card Crop

SAVE THE DATE! Saturday, October 1, 2011, is World Card Making Day, and what better way to celebrate than a FREE card crop? I will be hosting this free card crop at a convenient Blairsville location (TBA) on Saturday, 10/1, in the afternoon. Bring your supplies and your paper crafting projects for a little fun and fellowship! Get started on your holiday cards, make a few seasonal cards, or work on whatever projects that you’d like. You’ll be provided plenty of table space to spread out and create to your heart’s content. Also, I will be teaching a few card ideas throughout the crop to help inspire you, so be sure to bring some extra materials to participate.

This free crop will benefit our servicemen and women through donations to Operation Write Home, should you choose to participate. (Crop participants are not required to help OWH.) I will be collecting card donations for our servicemen and women. (If you’d like to help, you can make your cards at the crop or bring some that you’ve already made to donate.) The purpose of OWH is to provide handmade cards for our troops to use to send to their loved ones. There are a few simple card rules to follow for OWH:•A2 size (4.25”x5.5”)
•Handmade, not store bought
•NO GLITTER
•Dark cards need to have a liner on the inside
•Envelopes are preferred but not required
•Please write or stamp “Operation Write Home” on the back (a limited number labels will be provided at the crop)


In addition to a card drive, “Any Hero mail” is welcome. These are cards or letters of gratitude and encouragement for our servicemen and women. Often, these cards and letters begin with “Dear Hero.” For more information, visit http://operationwritehome.org/anyhero.html.

If you plan to attend the card crop, please RSVP by 9/30. I hope you’ll just me for an afternoon of fun, fellowship, and craftiness! Happy World Card Making Day!

New Blog Feature!

Starting right now, each month I am offering a free project idea, complete with instructions, here on my blog, up in the tabs at the top. (It is creatively named "This Month's Project.") If you'd like to join along, give the project a shot! There's also a place to link up your creation if you'd like to share it with me (and believe me, I'd love to see it!). I expect to have a new project uploaded within the first few days of the month for your crafting pleasure. I hope you'll give it a try! Thanks!

You may have seen this card already, but I am featuring it as this month's project with instructions for the pattern or sketch, called the "Top Band" from the Wishes how-to guide. Give it a try! You can go wild with embellishments or leave it clean and simple. It's totally up to you!

Stamp of the Month Blog Hop: Wicked (August 2011)

Welcome to the "Wicked" Close To My Heart August Stamp of the Month blog hop! If you're already hoppping, then you should have arrived from Tammy Lea's blog. Why don't you kick back, stay awhile (I have lots to share!), and then hop on to Tamytha's blog?

As much as I love Halloween and this amazing stamp set, I wanted to see how I could use it beyond its obvious intention. (You'll have to come back later this month to see me pull out the stops for Halloween and more! I promise something Wicked-ly good is coming!)



I love the two sentiments with this set, "Put your best foot forward" and "Hats off to you," so I decided to create the following cards with the feminine Sophia paper pack. I searched online until I found a shoe image that I liked, then I traced it on the back of Hollyhock card stock. A piece of B&T paper works as the toe strap, pinned down with a few pink sparkles. White seemed like the best backdrop for the gorgeous shoe. Do you think the sentiment medallion looks kind of like a buckle for the shoe? I cut it freehand after stamping the sentiment.

Guests at my card class on Sunday, 8/7, will be making this next shoe card for themselves. (Contact me if you'd like to attend or would like to order a kit.)


Next, I moved on to creating a hat card. It was so much fun that I made two different versions! (Guests at my Open House/Idea Book Unveiling on 8/5 will be making one of these cards.) In case you're interested in trying one yourself, the hat brim measures 3/4"x5-1/2", the top of the hat measures 1-3/4"x3-1/2", and the band measures 3/4"x3-1/2". I think the possibilities for trimming the hat are endless, don't you? I'd love to know which card you like best.

If you've already heard about the great NEW stamp of the month program, then hop on over to Tamytha's blog. First, the prices on ALL stamp sets have DROPPED! Isn't that fabulous, especially in this day and age? You can purchase any D-size stamp set, including the stamp of the month, for only $17.95. With the new stamp of the month program, when you spend $50 (before S&H/tax), you are eligibile to purchase the Stamp of the Month for only $5! Isn't that great?!?

Did you also know that Close To My Heart is offering an EXTRA! EXTRA! Special this month when you purchase the August stamp of the month? Check out this image!
Click HERE for the PDF file with the complete info. Contact me or your CTMH consultant to take advantage of this great offer!





If you'd like to come to my Open House on 8/5 or my card class on 8/7, just let me know. If you'd like to get your own Wicked stamp set (and possibly the A Type stamp set FREE), contact me ASAP!

Thanks for visiting! Now hop on over to see Tamytha's "Wicked" creation!

Happy 4th of July!

HAPPY 4th of JULY! Remember that freedom is never free. Enjoy your holiday celebrations!


{You can get your own free download of this beautiful image HERE.}

FREE Printable Paper

The FREE printable paper that you can find HERE would make great backgrounds, but you also might find something that you actually need, like graph paper or a yahtzee or cricket score card!