Sneak Peek: Day 1

Welcome to the Sneak Peek for the upcoming Autumn/Winter 2013 Idea Book! Visit my blog daily over the next 10 days for a sneak peek at my favourite new products. On August 1st, The Big Reveal, you'll be able to browse the new Idea Book online.

Can't wait? Receive a FREE Idea Book with your July order! Remember, this is the last month to order many of the amazing products in the current Idea Book--they'll be gone as of July 31st. Place your order ASAP! (Just visit my website and join the Last Chance Gathering for a chance to win the Mystery Hostess Rewards!)

Washi Wonder $10 (D-size)

The Party Is On $8 (C-size)

Family Photo $6 (B-size)

Speaking of Hostess Rewards, the exclusive new Hostess Stamp Sets are one of my favourite new products!

When you host your own Gathering (online or in person) and earn Hostess Rewards (starting with only $150 in sales), in addition to the Hostess Bundles you've seen before, you can chose to use your Rewards to purchase exclusive Hostess Stamp Sets. These beautiful stamp sets are offered at reduced price and start at only $4!

 

Bright All Night $4 (A-size)

Whether you want to make quick cards or create fabulous pages, the Hostess Stamp Sets offer you a range of designs for a great

price.

And you don't have to wait until the new Idea Book comes out to book your Gathering! Contact me right away to book your summer or fall Gathering!





Victory!

Sometimes great layouts come about despite my having a completely different idea of how they should look.

For this Adventure layout, I followed the July 2013 sketch from Canadian Scrapbooker's It's a Sketchy Challenge. (If you've never tried the Sketchy Challenge, you should! It's a great inspiration!)

I have a ton of camping-outdoor-scouting themed papers, but when it came time to do this layout, could I find any of them? (I've just moved and my scrapping stuff is mostly still in boxes.) So I had to make due with what was at hand. i.e. Stuff I still had packed in my scrapping tote from my last scrap night out at the beginning of June.

Thankfully, I found part of a packet of Victory paper and stickers from Close To My Heart. This paper line was available in 2012 and has a very masculine feeling. It had exactly what I needed: 1 sheet of cardstock, 1 full sheet of patterned paper, a bunch of scraps and coordinating stickers. Just add some inks and a Milepost corrugated shape and voila! A layout I really like.

For me, this layout reminded me that often the fun in scrapbooking isn't in following a map and doing exactly what was planned; rather it's in finding creative ways to use what you have.

Circle Journal: Lori

Lori's idea was to have a scrapbook filled with places for the armchair traveller to go. Places the contributors have visited and loved. As soon as Lori revealed her theme, I knew exactly what I wanted to create. A page about the place my family came from: Terceira, Azores, Portugal.

For me the page is special, because it documents a place I dearly love.

It's just a simple layout, but the embellishments give it interest. The clip at the top pulls out an 8.5" x 11" sheet, hidden in a pocket behind the layout, containing extensive journaling. The colour scheme is also simple: Blue (Pacifica and Indian Corn Blue), white (Colonial White) and red (Cranberry). These colours are evocative of Portuguese culture and are perfect for a layout about an island.

Except for the patterned paper (which could easily be created with stamps!), all products are from Close To My Heart. Many of them are now on the While Supplies Last area of my website, so get them while you can!

The title was stamped with Old World Alphabet which is one of the E-size stamp sets being discontinued. You have until July 31st to order it!

Ink-sprayed flower

To create the three embellishment clusters, I used paper flowers, Milepost Shapes and Canvas Badge Buttons.

The large blue flower was originally white. I sprayed it using a CTMH spray pen, Indian Corn Blue ink and a little Pearl Paint for shimmer.

To add a little more colour to the layout, the Cranberry ink used in the title is repeated on the Milepost Shapes.

Cranberry ink on Milepost Shapes

Canvas Badge Buttons are perfect for stamping! The heart stamps are from the Whoo's Your Valentine stamp set. (Get it out of your stash! It's not just good for Valentine's!)

I had a bit of trouble with the hydrangea. I knew I wanted one on the layout--they are an iconic flower of the Azores--but I didn't  have a hydrangea stamp nor could I find one anywhere.

Finally, the night I was putting the layout together, I tried clustering the tiniest paper flowers on a cardstock circle. I spray-inked it with the same Indian Corn Blue ink as the large flower. When it was dry, I fluffed up the flower edges a bit and finished it off by stamping leaves in Pear.

Cluster small flowers to create a hydrangea

The result was much nicer than a flat hydrangea stamp!

I'm partial to simple layouts to being with, but I'm really happy with the way this one turned out! It has inspired me to create layouts for myself about this special place.

I hope Lori likes it and gets the chance to travel to the Azores some day.

July Specials

Stamp of the Month

The July Stamp of the Month is so delicious! Beautiful fruit images with sweet sentiments. You'll use this stamp set over and over for cards and scrapbook pages.

This stamp set is available only during July for $5 with a $50 purchase

.

Big Discount! 

 The Workshops on the Go^® canvas art kit includes an exclusive stamp set, a 12" × 12" canvas display, Cashmere baker’s twine, clear Sparkles, Sparkles flourish, Dimensional Elements in two colour schemes, and an instructional brochure. The workshop is perfect for making as a group or on your own. The Workshops on the Go^® canvas art kit has a retail value of $39.95 but is only $19.95 during July.

There is no qualifying purchase or minimum necessary!

Hurry! This is a "while supplies last" offer.

Patriotic Stamp Set Still Available!

If you missed it on your June order, there's still time to order the Patriotic stamp sets. When you purchase these exclusive patriotic stamp sets, Close To My Heart will donate a portion of the proceeds to either the USO (for the US) or the Canadian Hero Fund (for Canada), charitable organisations that support military families.

Order any of these great products through my online store, www.susanagomes.ctmh.com, or contact me to hold your own Gathering and earn Hostess Rewards.

Out with the Old to make Room for the New!

Buzz & Bumble WOTG artwork.

I've been aware of the Spring 2013 Retiring List for a while. This is a list CTMH publishes to let Consultants know what products will no longer be available. But it wasn't until today that I examined it in detail.

Now, I know products are retired to make room for new and exciting things, and I really am looking forward to the unveiling of new products with the Fall/Winter 2013 Idea Book which comes out in August...BUT...I'm sad to see some of my favourite products go.

Claire WOTG artwork.

Of course, there are always paper packs that are not carried over to the next Idea Book. The papers not being carried over this time are Buzz and Bumble, Later Sk8r and Claire. Of course, the accessories that accompany them will not be carried over either.

Also, after July 31st, you will no longer be able to order Avonlea, Dakota, Clementine or Scholastic paper packs.

Later Sk8r WOTG artwork.

If you need brads, now is the time to stock up. It looks like CTMH won't be carrying them anymore--at least not the assortments they have now. The same goes for all the button assortments, Mini-Medley Accents and the Pewter and Wooden Badge Buttons.

If you enjoy making mini-albums and 3D items, you may want to stock up on  the My Creations Bookmark Album, Milk Carton, Canvas Journal and Paper Pouches.

Cardmakers will be saying goodbye to the 6" x 6" Kraft Die-Cut Cards and Envelopes and Kraft envelopes in all sizes.

Under tools and storage, the Accessories Organizer, Exclusive Inks Organizer Carrying Case, 2" scallop circle punch and corner rounder are also retiring.

By way of stamp sets, all E-size stamp sets (the big alphabets) and personalized stamps (single name stamps, address stamps and custom stamps) will no longer be available. There is also a long list of individual stamp sets that are retiring (such as School Rocks, Tea Time, Love Blooms, Christmas Love and many more). If you've had your eye on a stamp set, now may be the best time to get it. Remember, all stamp sets from the current Idea Book (with the exceptions noted above) will be available when the new Idea Book comes out. Also, any stamp sets that are marked as a Cricut Art Philosophy or Artiste set will continue to be available.

 So it's out with the old to make room for the new! There will be lots to look forward to with the next Idea Book and some exciting rumours are flying about what the new products are. Make sure to follow my blog so you don't miss the 10 day countdown to the new Idea Book in July. I'll be blogging about the new products at the top of my shopping list.

In the mean time, send me an email with your wish list items and I can let you know if they're being retired.

Remember, you can shop for all your favourite products on my website 24/7. You don't have to wait for a Gathering or invitation. Shop anytime!

Circle Journal: Justine

I have to admit to being a little intimidated by this page. Not only was it for friend and scrapbooker extraordinaire Justine, the challenge itself was a challenge. It required more than printing and pasting.

The theme of the album is Alphabet Photography. The challenge was to make a page based on one of the words from her list, using her photos, including a poem, quote or saying related to the theme, and making a title with at least the first letter being an alphabet photograph image. (Justine, you know I have a full-time job, right? ;-)

What is alphabet photography? You've probably seen it in a posh shop somewhere--a frame with the word "love" or "family". It's where a word is spelled using images of objects. Like a flower becomes an "O" or a chain link fence becomes an "X".

I decided to pick the word "Laugh", because I think that's just something that defines Justine. (Though, I think the word on her list may have been "Laughter"....) Then I headed out to the wilds of Wilmot Creek hoping to find natural elements that would spell the word. It took some hard looking and a few twisty camera angles, but I managed to do it...with the help of my DH who moved some logs for me to get the H.

I focused in on the shapes of the letters, by using the "loomish" feature in my photo editing software to shade the edges and really zoom in on the letters. That led to my heavily inking the edges of the papers and other photos to add a little more black to the page.

Adding "live" and "love", with Keepsake Alphabet stamps, finished off the title.

I'm sure you've noticed by now, that the paper is not from CTMH. (I do have a stash that pre-dates my career as a Consultant.) It is a Basic Grey party paper, and I thought the bright colours and fun patterns were a perfect match for the page's theme.

A little bling and some more stamping finished off the page.

The quote wasn't hard to find, but it was hard to decide upon. Google "laugh quotes" and you get a lot of funny and interesting hits. I decided to go with this one:

Nothing feels as good as laughing incredibly hard.
~Steve Carrell

And I think that just about sums it up, in scrapping and in life.

Happy Scrapping!

June Specials!

Wow! There is so much happening in June! Feel like you deserve a little reward for all the hard work you're doing this month. CTMH makes it easy to treat yourself with FOUR great offers in June.

STAMP OF THE MONTH

June Stamp of the Month

Every month, CTMH offers a gorgeous D-size stamp set for only $5 with a $50 purchase. This month's stamp set is perfect for colours, cards and scrapbook pages.

MAKE IT A BANNER DAY!
This month only, with the purchase of $25 in product that includes a stamp set, you get the My Creations Mini-Banner for FREE! This cute mini-banner can be used as a home decor item, on scrapbook pages and cards and even to make a mini-album. The sturdy chipboard can be inked, distressed or just covered in patterned paper. For fun ideas on using the mini-banner, check out this YouTube video.

THANK YOU!
Close To My Heart is making a new Autumn/Winter 2013 stamp set, A True Thank You, available

immediately and will donate 100% of the profits from the sales of the from May 23 to June 30 to the American Red Cross to aid the Oklahoma victims. Help CTMH provide relief to those affected by the devastating Oklahoma tornadoes by purchasing A True Thank You stamp set for only $2.95 today!

STRONG AND FREE
Show your support of troops and country with new patriotic stamp sets—available only from June 1 to July 31, 2013! As a show of our support, Close To My Heart will donate $3 from each B-size My Acrylix® Courage stamp set and $5 from each D-size My Acrylix® Strong and Free stamp set to the Canadian Hero Fund, which supports spouses and children of fallen Canadian military troops by providing post-secondary education. Show your support
today—stamp style!