A Special Day

Do you have special photos on your walls or tabletops and special scrapbook pages in your albums? Why not have both on display?

Close To My Heart has several products to help you make your scrapbook pages part of your home decor. Whether you use canvas, mini-albums or display trays, your beautiful artwork depicting those special moments in your life deserve to be prominently displayed.

One of my family's favourite activities is heading down to the marina on a summer evening and "feeding the sea gulls"--a.k.a. fishing. (We mainly seem to catch brown gobi's, which are illegal to throw back, so the sea gulls have a feast!)

To celebrate one particularly memorable evening, I chose to use the Display Tray instead of making a traditional scrapbook page. The result is a beautiful record of something we all enjoy that sits in our living room for everyone to see.

Tommy papers were the perfect match for the theme of this project. The Tommy Assortment, cork and chipboard shapes add lovely touches.

The stamp set from the Tommy Workshop on the Go Kit was used to embellish the cork and chipboard as well as a little bit of Liquid Glass.

The Pure Adventure and It's Your Day stamp sets were also used--CTMH stamps are great for mixing and matching!

A final touch was added by adding some Outdoor Denim Chevron Ribbon on the hangers.

Did you notice I turned the Display Tray on its side? My photos were more suited to a landscape orientation and I knew the tray would be displayed on a tabletop rather than on a wall, so I just rotated the tray!

There are lots of possibilities when it comes to decorating your home with CTMH. Browse the Idea Book for more examples using the Display Tray, Hinged Display Tray and canvas art. Better yet, follow me on Pinterest and Facebook for daily updates and inspiration!

Happy Scrapping!

Dreaming of....

Dream Pop!

Dream Pop is CTMH's exclusive paper pack for National Scrapbooking Month. Only available during May, these bright and beautiful papers can be yours for only $10! Come back on May 1st for more details.

To get you Dreaming, here are a few cards I've made using Dream Pop papers and the May Stamp of the Month.

These are standard, 5 1/2" x 4 1/4" cards. In addition to the Dream Pop papers and stamp set, I used CTMH's new Washi Tape--one of my favourite new products. Instead of bling, I added sparkle with Glitz Glitter Gel. A finishing touch was added with Baker's Twine (from the Neutrals Assortment).

Here's a closer look at the cards with a few tips:

Add a little movement to a symmetrical design by adding  a few elements that are not straight. The Washi Tape and stars were added at an angle.

To wrap Baker's Twine around the front of the card, just cut a small slit in the folded edge of the card and carefully slip the Baker's Twine through. Be careful not to open the slit too far so it doesn't make an unsightly gap.






Layer the pinwheels with foam tape to add dimension to the card.

You don't need rhinestones and gems to make this card shine! Just add drops of Glitz Glitter Gel. The large dots on the right hand side of the card were created in 3 layers. Allow a few minutes drying time between layers.

Save yourself the hassle of measuring by using a single background over the entire card. Even though much of the background (orange) paper is covered, using an entire piece adds stability to the card as well as a little dimension when the other elements are layered on top.

To achieve the break in the handle of the pinwheel, simply stamp the sentiment first, then mask it with a piece of scrap paper. Stamp the handle then remove the mask.

Tie a cute bow with Baker's Twine and adhere with a drop of Liquid Glass.

Love the colours and textures of Dream Pop? come back to my blog over the next few weeks for more projects featuring Dream Pop.

Also, follow me on Pinterest for lots of inspiration using these great papers!

April Showers Bring....

A new Stamp of the Month of course!

Artwork featuring My Sunshine April Stamp of the Month.

Place a $50 order in April and you can order the Stamp of the Month, My Sunshine, for only $5.

This beautiful D-size stamp set features fun and versatile images including a sun, bird and sentiments. Perfect for spring and summer projects, this stamp set is a must-have!

Not placing a $50 order this month? You can still order the Stamp of the Month at the regular price of $17.95.

Place you order by April 6th on the Saturday Scrappers Gathering and you will be entered into the Mystery Hostess Draw for each item ordered. Order one item and your name is entered once. Order five items and your name is entered five times! One lucky winner will earn the Hostess Rewards for this Gathering--a minimum $25 value.

This Gathering is already half-way towards making the minimum Rewards mark! Place your order today through my website, www.susanagomes.ctmh.com--be sure to join the Saturday Scrappers Gathering--or email me to place your order.

My Sunshine, April Stamp of the Month

Circle Album

Have you ever taken part in a Circle Album? Or a Circle Journal? The idea is to get a group of scrappers together and each person contributes to your album. At the end, you have a completed album that has been crafted especially for you by your friends and fellow scrappers.

My scrapbooking club is undertaking such a project this year and I'm delighted to be taking part in it. Me and nine other scrappers will be exchanging albums monthly and by December we'll have completed the circle.

Each scrapper is picking a topic for the album. Mine is The Cottage. When it's done, I'll be taking my album up to the cottage and leaving it there for everyone to enjoy. I'm collecting pictures from everyone who uses the cottage--in laws, cousins, friends and other family--to include in the album. I'm really excited about this project and can't wait to get working on other people's albums.

The album starts off with a couple of pages created by the album owner.

A title page:

Featuring CTMH Back Country papers, Keyboard Uppercase stamps.

The first double-page layout (to appear soon).

A Sign In Page. This page is to acknowledge the people who worked on the album. I've created mine as a thank you page with spots for wallet sized photos of the contributors.

Featuring Clementine papers and stamps.

You know CTMH products will feature heavily in the pages I create for other people's albums, so look for monthly blogs about the pages I'll be making.

March Madness!

Valentine with inked Dimensional Elements Hearts.

March is a great time for shopping with Close To My Heart. Not only are there two great promotions on this month, Jump for Joy and Stamp of the Month, I have a special promotion just for my customers.

To celebrate my first year as a Close To My Heart Independent Consultant, I'm sharing some love with my customers by offering you a special free product! When you spend $50 or more, until March 31st, you'll receive a FREE Dimensional Elements Stars or Hearts!

Dimensional Elements are beautiful, white chipboard shapes that come in a 12" x 6" sheet. These sturdy shapes are ready for inking, stamping, distressing--pretty much any technique you can throw at them.

They're perfect for covering with Close To My Heart papers and adding to cards, scrapbook pages, home decor items and any other project you can think of.

Place your order, online or through me, by March 31st to receive your FREE Dimensional Elements!

Dimensional Elements Hearts

Dimensional Elements Stars

March for Stamps and Savings!

Create cards, layouts and home decor with the March Stamp of the Month!

With a new month comes a new stamp! The March 2013 Stamp of the Month is a beautiful series of blooming rose stamps with sentiments. This stamp set is a "base and shade" stamp set, containing a base silhouette stamp and a shade details stamp.

To create the roses and leaves, simply stamp the base stamp in a light shade then stamp the detail stamp in a darker shade. This works for different shades of ink (such as Sunset and Autumn Terracotta) or for generational stamping--use second generation for the base and first generation for the details.

However you put the flowers and sentiments together, you'll have an endless garden of colour!

As always, the Stamp of the Month is available for only $5 with a $50 order. Not ordering $50 worth of product but still want the Stamp of the Month? No problem! The Stamp of the Month is available for the regular price of $17.95. Don't miss out on this wonderful stamp set!

The Jump for Joy promotion this month offers you a wonderful way to stock up on your favourite Close To My Heart products at a discount. Simply host your own Gathering (in-home, online or a workshop) in March and when your sales totals reach $250 or more, as the Hostess you'll qualify to JUMP to the next level of Hostess Rewards.

Here is the special Rewards breakdown for March:
$250-$349 in sales = $60 in free products + 1 item at 50% off
$350-$449 in sales = $80 in free products + 2 items at 50% off
$450-$549 in sales= $100 in free products + 2 items at 50% off
And it keeps going up from there!

With the average customer order being about $50 (many people want to achieve the $5 Stamp of the Month discount price), you can see how easily the sales totals can add up to free Rewards.

This offer is only available until March 31st and dates are limited. Contact me today to book your Gathering!

Jump for Joy!

March is an excellent time to book your own Close To My Heart Gathering. From March 1st to 31st, Gatherings that reach the $250 sales level will jump to the next higher Hostess Rewards Level.

What does that mean for you? Additional free products and discounts!

Normally, at the $250 level Hostesses enjoy $40 in free product and 50% off one item. During March, Hostesses at this level will receive $60 in free product and 50% off one item. And it just keeps going up! Reach the $350 level and receive $80 in free product and 50% off two items!



Collection One: Chantilly



The 50% off Reward is great for purchasing big ticket items like organizers and E-size stamps. But you can also use your 50% off Reward to purchase one of four Hostess Collections.

 

Hostess Collections are a selection of coordinating products that have been put together for you and are only available to Hostesses. The collections feature paper packets and My Stickease, three or more stamp sets, embellishments, My Creations products, acrylic blocks, inks and more.



Collection Two: For Always



 Check out page three of the Idea Book for details on each Collection.



Remember, you don't have to have people over to host a Gathering. Try an Online Gathering and invite friends and family from anywhere in Canada. Products are ordered online, shipped directly to the customers and each sale counts towards your Gathering total.



Call me today to book your Gathering!

Collection Three: Buzz and Bumble



Collection Four: Surf's Up