Cutie Pie December SOTM Blog Hop

Welcome to the Cutie Pie December 2014 Close To My Heart Stamp Of The Month Blog Hop. This month there are over 60 bloggers participating . If you are new to hopping, grab your favorite beverage, click the link (typically near the bottom of each post) that will take to the next blog and enjoy the creative projects from everyone.

  

You should have arrived here from ***Michele Rowley's Evergreen Memories and Art***. Please note that if you ever get lost along the way, a complete list of participants can be found at Melinda Everitt's If You Bling It.

The SOTM for December 2014, Cutie Pie, is a D-size set of 11 stamps that is only $5 with a qualifying purchase.

I have to admit it took me a while to think of an idea for using this stamp set. My first thought was a layout, but I could not find a good photo. I always carry a notebook with me so I can jot down my ideas and thankfully I did make some notes and drawings when I thought of something or I might still be creating. This month I created a card. This is the card front:

And this is the inside:

Before you visit the next stop on the hop, ***Katie Hessel's Zig and Zag***, additional information about how my project was created is below. If you have the time to comment, I would love to know what you think of my card.

Close To My Heart products used are:

• December 2014 SOTM: Cutie Pie (S1412)
• March 2015 SOTM: Choose Happy (S1403)
• Handwritten Print Alphabet (E1030)
• Cricut® Artfully Sent Collection (Z3017)
• 12" x 12" White Daisy Cardstock (1385)
• 12" x 12" Glacier Cardstock (X5770)
• Hopscotch Paper Packet (X7194B)
• Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z2641)
• Indian Corn Blue Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z2130)
• Smoothie Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z2196)
• Archival Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (44751)
• Thin 3-D Foam Tape (Z2060)
• 3-D Foam Tape (Z1151)
• 3L® E-Z Dots® Adhesive (Z3022)
• ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ markers in the following colors:
• Peacock Green (Z2461)
• Turquoise Blue (Z2465)
• Barely Beige (Z2445)
• Carmine (Z2448)
• Pastel Green (Z2459)
• Pastel Peach (Z2460)
• Tender Pink (Z2464)

My card is a non-standard size. I knew I wanted a bigger canvas than the 5½" x 4¼" cards that come in the Value Pack (X254). I was given a box of envelopes for larger cards so I opened a pop-up card from Artfully Sent in Cricut® Design Space, ungrouped and deleted the elements I did not need, then used hide contour to close some cuts, then resized the card so it would fit into the envelope. I had to unlock the image so I could change the proportions.

I curved the banner stamp when I placed it on the My Acrylix® block. It curved just enough for the look I was going for. I think the stamped banner looks like fabric floating in the breeze. I used painters tape to mask so I could use individual letters from the "my little cutie pie" stamp inside the banner.

I originally thought I would use the cupcakes for the ShinHan Marker Blog Hop in October. I am happy I saved them for this hop.

Thanks again for visiting today. So you do not have to scroll up, the next stop on the hop is ***Katie Hessel's Zig and Zag***.

If you are not already working with a CTMH Independent Consultant, you may purchase all of the supplies I used at my online business address.

CTMH December 2014 Stamp of the Month: Cutie Pie

I had to update this post because I just learned new information:

Cyber Monday Only: 20% Off All Cricut® Collections!

 For the first time ever, Close To My Heart is offering a Cyber Monday Sale on Monday, December 1, 2014. There has never been a better time to buy Close To My Heart’s exclusive Cricut® Collections for 20% off the retail price. Whether you love scrapbooking, cardmaking, or creating 3-D projects, our four exclusive Cricut® collections make the perfect addition to any craft room! Sale starts at midnight (MST) on December 1 and ends at 11:59 pm Monday night.

Enjoy extra savings on Close To My Heart's exclusive Cricut® collections this Cyber Monday!

If you would like more information about any of the Close To My Heart's exclusive Cricut® collections, you will find in here on my blog or on my OBA. Because there are so many tips and ideas for using Artbooking and Artfully Sent, I have special pages for those cartridges. Purchasing one Cricut® collection qualifies you for the SOTM for only $5 and the Deal of the Decade (see below).

In addition, I will extend the offer I made on the Artfully Sent collection to the purchase of any Close To My Heart’s exclusive Cricut® Collections:

Every person that orders Artfully Sent or any other Cricut® Collection from my Online Business Address, aka OBA, will receive their own copy, if I have not already given you one, of Annual Inspirations (a $6 savings). In addition, for each cartridge you purchase, you can choose two M-size or one A-size stamp set (please do not add the stamps or Annual Inspirations to your online order; they will be shipped separately directly from me). Once you place an order for the cartridge(s) of your choice, send me an e-mail with your selection of stamp(s) and I will arrange shipment to you.

If you purchase two Close To My Heart’s exclusive Cricut® Collections, you can select four M-size, two A-size or two M-size and one A-size stamp sets, but you should contact me about setting up a Gathering so you will also quality for hostess rewards.

The Close To My Heart December 2014 Stamp of the Month is Cutie Pie.

Cutie Pie (S1412) is an exclusive D-size stamp set of 11 stamps that you can only purchase during the month of December 2014. The stamp set can be yours for $5 when you place an order of $50 or more in qualifying Close To My Heart Products. Alternatively you can purchase it for $17.95.  Recommended CTMH My Acrylix® Blocks are: 1" x 1" (Y1000), 2" x 2" (Y1003), 2" x 3½" (Y1009) and 2" x 6½" (Y1010).

Items created with the stamp set by CTMH Corporate artists are this card and layout:

If you would like a list of the products used to create either of the above items, you will find the information in the Recipes (clicking the link will open a PDF in a new tab), a booklet that works hand-in-hand with the Idea Book to provide details to re-create projects at home. Also check my Pinterest Board CTMH 2014 12 Dec SOTM Cutie Pie for additional ideas for using this stamp set.

Please stop back tomorrow for the Cutie Pie Stamp of the Month Blog Hop.

December 2014 also brings us Deal of the Decade.

When I read about the December special I was bowled over. I am so excited about this offer because there is no limit on the number of eligible stamp sets you can purchase at the discounted price. I guess you would like to know what the offer is...

December is the ten-year anniversary of CTMH's industry-changing My Acrylix® clear polymer stamps. Place a qualifying purchase of $50 during the month of December and you will ALSO be eligible to purchase ANY C- or D-size stamp set from the Annual Inspirations idea book for only $10! And as I mentioned above, there is no limit to the number of eligible stamps you can purchase from the Annual Inspirations idea book at the discounted price.

CTMH Corporate created a list of qualifying stamps which I put into a Google documents spreadsheet. I added columns that I thought might be helpful to you: the page the stamp appears on in Annual Inspirations, a place to check if you already own the stamp, a place to check if you want the stamp, if the stamp is Cricut® compatible, and, if so, which cartridge the cut is on.

The spreadsheet of qualifying stamps is sorted by item number. If you want to sort by any of the other columns, just click on the column, go to Data > Sort Sheet (or Range) by column [this will be filled in based on the column you selected] followed by ascending (a to z) or descending (z to a). When you are done with that view, just click the x in the gray bar in the upper right. You can also download the file to your computer and then you will be able to print it (be sure to use the option "Shrink Oversized Pages" if printing a PDF from Adobe Reader).

Because I like to see photos of things I am interested in purchasing, I also created a Pinterest Board of the qualifying stamps so you can quickly see all 72 stamps that are part of this offer.

Seasonal Expressions 1

December 1 is the first day that you may purchase items from Seasonal Expressions 1 where you see this new Cut Above™ Valentine Treat Bag on the cover:

Items in Seasonal Expressions 1 include two new paper packs with coordinating embellishments, one new cardmaking WOTG and one new scrapbooking WOTG, several new stamp sets, new embellishments (shimmer trims, twine, etc.), new Picture My Life™ and Cut Above™. Honestly there are only a couple of stamp sets in SE1 that I do not have on my wish list, but I bet once I see some more items created with them I will be changing my mind. In addition, items purchased from Seasonal Expressions 1 count toward the Deal of the Decade qualifying purchase.

Please stop back on December 7 for the Seasonal Expressions 1 Blog Hop.

December Giveaway

Finally, anyone that purchases from me between December 1 and December 31 will have their name put into a drawing for your choice of one the following new in the package stamp sets: Reel Life (B1431), Love This (B1432) or A Friend Like You (B1410; retired). Your name will be entered for every $20 (before tax and shipping) you spend and, just like the Deal of the Decade, there is no limit on the number of times your name can be entered. Shop my OBA anytime. I will complete the drawing on January 2 and post the results here on January 3, 2015.

If you are ready to place an order or would like to research any product, the Shop Now button will take you there.

If you have any product or promotion questions, do not hesitate to email me. You will also find me on Facebook at Brenda's Paper Crafts.

4 Weeks Until Christmas and Happy Thanksgiving

First, let me say Happy Thanksgiving to everyone celebrating today. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. And if you cannot be together to celebrate with your loved ones I hope you found a chance to have a nice long chat on the phone.

For the It's The Little Things November SOTM Blog Hop I shared two of the "place cards"/treat boxes I created for Thanksgiving dinner. Here are all of the completed boxes with a peek inside one of them.

If you like the It's The Little Things stamp set I used, it is only available for a few more days. Once the clock strikes midnight on November 30 the stamp set will be gone forever.

Today I am sharing a few Christmas projects I created over the past few days. Last Saturday I attended Cara Miller's Cricut U November 2014 Edition (actually I watched the recorded videos - the major Internet providers have decided it is not financially rewarding for them to bring DSL or Broadband to my neck of the woods) and over the course of the day we learned tips and tricks for creating projects using Cricut Craft Room and/or Design Space with Anna Griffin's Christmas Kitsch cartridge. We created a card and envelope, gift tags, a mini album and glass etching using vinyl (though I did not get a chance to etch the glass on my ornament).

Any my creations from the class...

I added a holly image from the My Acrylix™ Yuletide Greetings stamp set (D1553) inked with New England Ivy Exclusive Inks™ (Z2135).

The writing on the gift tags was done with the Cricut® Midnight Antiquity Pen.

When I decide which photos to include on the pages I will cut photo mats that will look good with the photo and the mini album. I also plan try to add journaling spots if space permits.

I ran out of time to use etching cream on my square glass ornament. I used the CTMH/Cricut Artbooking cartridge (Z1906) for this project. "Merry Christmas" is cut from black vinyl; 2015 on the reverse side will be etched into the glass. I plan to fill the ornament with garland.

I hope to link my card to Decosse's Dynamite Doodles 12 Months of Christmas Card Link Up. Thanks for stopping by today.

5 Weeks Until Christmas

The past week has been so busy that I wasn't sure I would get a card done in time. I will not take the time tonight to post all of the card details, but I will update this post in the next few days in case you are curious about any of the items used (the post is updated with supplies used).

Today I am sharing a card that I made using Christmas tags (2x) by digistamps4Joy.

I used the following materials to create this card: Christmas tags (2x) by digistamps4Joy printed on Georgia Pacific white cardstock. The image was  colored using Lyra Rembrandt 72 Polycolor Fine Art Coloured Pencils for Artists.

Edited to Add: I used Cricut Design Space and image #M40D3B (window) from the Christmas cartridge. I used several features to try to make it look like windows overlooking a hillside and I cut it twice; once from Kraft cardstrock and once from Teresa Collins' Noël: Cards & Notes. I should have used a different color for the "wallpaper" because it is hard to see the snowy tree covered hill outside (that paper is from a stack that I think I purchased at Michaels). I used a light grey cardstock from my stash for the snow on the window panes.

I plan to link my card to the digistamps4joy Monthly Christmas Challenge November 2014 and Decosse's Dynamite Doodles 12 Months of Christmas Card Link Up.

I am happy that you had a chance to visit today. If you have the time, please leave a comment. I would love to know what you think about my card.

6 Weeks Until Christmas

Is crafter's panic starting to set in? I hope you are not experiencing it and have had time to get a head start on your Thanksgiving and Christmas (or Holiday) crafting. This year has been a new experience for me – I actually might not have to be up late (or all night) this year. I am feeling great about that.

Today I am sharing a card that I made using Christmas tags (2x) by digistamps4Joy.

I used the following materials to create this card: Christmas tags (2x) by digistamps4Joy printed on Georgia Pacific white cardstock. The image was colored using ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ markers in the following colors: Cherry Pink (Z2450), Lavender (Z2453), Turquoise Blue (Z2465), Cerulean Blue Light (Z2449), Clay (Z2451), Golden Yellow (Z2452), Leaf Green (Z2454), Marigold (Z2457) and Sap Green (Z2453). I used Cricut® Design Space to modify the Window Box (image #M397E5) from the Spring Cottage cartridge. I cut the file from Kraft cardstock using the Explore. I also used the Woodgrain Embossing Folder (Z1996) on the front of a white card.

The My Acrylix® Merriest Christmas stamp set (B1468) provides the sentiment. It was stamped on Kraft cardstock using Ruby Exclusive Inks™ (Z2170).

I plan to link my card to the digistamps4joy Monthly Christmas Challenge November 2014 and Decosse's Dynamite Doodles 12 Months of Christmas Card Link Up.

Thanks for visiting today. I would love it if you have a chance to leave a comment and let me know what you think about my card.

Artfully Sent Collection Blog Hop

Welcome to the Artfully Sent Collection Blog Hop. There are about 45 participating blogger/crafters. If you just happened upon my blog post, clicking the link to the next blog will take you the full circle.

You should have arrived here from ***Papercrafting with Kelly Janes***. If you get lost along the way, a complete list of participants can be found at Melinda Everitt's If You Bling It.

The Artfully Sent Collection (Z3017) includes the cartridge, the overlay, the image handbook, the assembly instructions handbook, three coordinating D-sized stamp sets (Curlicue Alphabet, Curlicue Frames and Just to Say) and a package of 12" x 12" White Daisy cardstorck.

Since the Artfully Sent Collection is geared toward cardmaking, I am sure you will see many cards on this hop, but with the talented crafters on this hop I bet you will also find the cartridge and complementing stamp sets used in a variety of other ways.

I used Artfully Sent with Cricut® Design Space and the Explore. I stuck with a "standardish" card due to time constraints. I said "standardish" because I used the hide contour feature to hide the script "Beautiful Day" on the card. Then I added the phrase using the Artbooking font, welded and attached it to the card front. I also created a "label" to stamp and color in using ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ markers so I did not have to worry about the color bleeding through and being visible when the card is open - ask why I thought of that trick. :-) Here is the front of my card:

And this is the inside:

In case you are wondering, this is what the inner layer looks like when the left side is attached to the outer layer:

I hope if helps you if you have gotten "stuck" wondering how to fold the inner layer. I found my Score Board helpful making deeper score lines and getting a nice crisp edge on my folds.

Your next stop is ***Sarita Schraeder's Blessed Scrapper***, but please read on if you want a little more information about my card.

Products used - all from Close To My Heart:

• Cricut® Artfully Sent Collection (Z3017)
• Beautiful Day [Pop-up] Card - Design Space image code #MFCD58
• Frame Sleeve Card - Design Space image code #M1011A9; used hide contour, duplicate, resize, changed a cut to score and attach features
• Just To Say... (D1629) - stamp set from Artfully Sent collection
• Cricut® Artbooking Collection (Z1906) - font
• 12" x 12" White Daisy Cardstock (1385)
• 12" x 12" Glacier Cardstock (X5770)
• 12" x 12" Pixie Cardstock (X5773)
• 12" x 12" Canary Cardstock (X5772)
• Score Board (Z1937)
• My Acrylix® Lifting Spirits stamp set (C1570) 
• Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z2641)
• Archival Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (44751)
• ShinHan™ Touch Twin™ markers in the following colors:
• Black (Z2446)
• Peacock Green (Z2461)
• Turquoise Blue (Z2465)
• Clay (Z2451)
• Golden Yellow (Z2452)
• Marine Blue (Z2458)
• Tender Pink (Z2464)
• Warm Grey 4 (Z2467)
• Warm Grey 7 (Z2468)
• Colorless Blender (Z2469)
• Thin 3-D Foam Tape (Z2060)
• 3L® E-Z Dots® Adhesive (Z3022)
  

If you would like to see my other creations using Artfully Sent, just click on the Artfully Sent label below. In addition to cards (and other paper creations in the future), you will find some tutorials and links to cheat sheets.

Thank you for visiting today. So you do not have to scroll up, the next stop on the hop is ***Sarita Schraeder's Blessed Scrapper***. If you have a moment please leave a comment and let me know what you think.

7 Weeks Until Christmas

Have you started decorating/crafting for Thanksgiving here in the USA yet? I have. It is only three weeks from today. I created some treat boxes in the shape of a pie or cake wedge decorated with fall colored flowers. I am happy with how they turned out and I think the recipients will love them. I think they will based on their reaction to the Easter baskets they received in the Spring.

While there are 7 weeks remaining until Christmas, I feel like we are down to the wire. It always seems to me that the last two months of the year fly by. For this reason I am so happy that I got an early start on my Christmas cards. Today I am sharing a tag I created.

I used the following materials to create this card: Christmas tags (2x) by digistamps4Joy printed on Georgia Pacific white cardstock. The image was colored using Lyra Aquacolor Water Soluble Wax Crayons and blended with a water brush. The Baker's Twine is from King Arthur Flour.

Quick and simple. That's what we need with our busy lives.

I plan to link my card to the digistamps4joy Monthly Christmas Challenge November 2014. I am happy you got a chance to visit today. Thanks for stopping by.

Artfully Sent - Finding Icons in Design Space

I often see posts on Facebook and message boards that people are having trouble finding Icons on the Artfully Sent (Z3017) cartridge when they are using Cricut® Design Space. I hope this post will help those people.

I will use the Celebrate Pop-Up Card (image code #M101344) found on page 7 in this example. When you add the card to your mat in Design Space, the four elements that make the pop-up card are grouped.

At this point, if you were making a card, you would resize the card to 10 inches in height (since this is a top fold card) and be ready to cut.

If you only want to use some of the images that create the Celebrate Pop-up card, click the Ungroup button while the card is selected. In the image above, the card is grouped and in Layers all elements are highlighted; below I only have the cupcake selected so you can see what it looks like in Layers.

To delete everything but the cupcake, select the unwanted images in Layers as shown in the screen shot below.

When the images are layered like this, it is easiest to select the elements in Layers. Click on the first image you do not want, then press and hold the Ctrl key (on Windows; it is known as the Mac Key or Command Key on Macs) while you click on the other items you do not want. When you have all of the unwanted elements highlighted, press the delete button. In case you do not know, score lines are automatically selected if they are attached to the shape you click on.

Size the cupcakes to the size you need for your project and cut.

I hope you found this information and the screen shots helpful. If so, please let me know by leaving a comment below. If you have any questions about Artfully Sent, feel free to ask in the comments or send me a message. I am still exploring the features available in Artfully Sent and learning all there is to know about Design Space and the Explore. It is comments from visitors and purchases on my OBA which encourage me to keep pushing my boundaries, learning new crafting techniques and tools and sharing them here.

Click the Shop with me link if you are ready place an order. Contact me if you have questions about how you can purchase the cartridge for 50% off.

Artfully Sent - Oh My Scene Card

I recently needed a birthday card for my cousin so I turned to the CTMH/Cricut® Artfully Sent (Z3017) cartridge. This is one of the Scene cards called Oh My. The key for this card is found in the third row to the far right (or search for #M131757 in Cricut® Design Space).

I edited the card in Cricut® Design Space. I use the hide contour feature to remove "Oh My" from the inside layer. Then I used the slice and weld tools in Design Space to create the frame behind the candles and for the layer behind the sentiment. The images used to create the frames are #M3A5BE from Creative Cards and #M43C87 from Just Because Cards. I traced the cutout so I can try to create an SVG file to make a frame exactly like on the card - I hope to try that later this week.

All products are from Close To My Heart: Lagoon (X5762) and Thistle (X5769) cardstock and a B&T Duos™ from the Confetti Wishes Paper Packet (X7189B). I stamped images from the My Acrylix® stamp set Lovely Birthday (B1462) using my Outdoor Denim Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z2140). I used 3L® E-Z Dots® Adhesive (Z3022) in the larger areas and the layer behind the sentiment, but I used Liquid Glass (Z679) to attach the layer behind the candles. Though it is hard to tell in my photo, I was inspired by Life of a BZscrapper to add Liquid Glass to the candles and Gold Shimmer Trim (Z1985) for the flames.

If you have any questions about Artfully Sent, feel free to send me a message. I would be happy to assist you and would be delighted if you make a purchase from me.

Click the Shop with me link if you are ready place an order. Contact me if you like to learn how you can purchase the cartridge for 50% off.

Artfully Sent Cheat Sheets for Design Space

If you have found using the CTMH/Cricut® Artfully Sent Collection (Z3017) with Cricut® Design Space a little challenging, I hope that these links and tips will be the beginning to the end of your frustration.

Narelle Darley, The Non-Crafty Crafter, and an administrator of the Facebook Group Cricut Lovers Guide to Design Space (send a request to join, it is a great group), edited the Cricut® Cartridge Handbook for Artfully Sent to include the Design Space code for each image. You can download the PDF from Narelle's page Handbooks and Design Space Image codes. Also on the page she explains what Design Space codes are and how to use them. While you are there be sure to check out her other posts that provide tips for using Design Space.

You will also want to visit Paige Dolecki's Stampologist site. Paige created an Artfully Sent Explore Design Space Sizing Cheat Sheet that she is sharing. Paige's cheat sheet has guidelines for adjusting the sizing in Design Space to create any size card.

Please be sure to thank Narelle and Paige for sharing their hard work with us. I have found both of their downloads very helpful and they save me much time.

I also made a cheat sheet. This is for the Artfully Sent shapes that coordinate with the My Acrylix™ Curlicue Frames stamp set (D1631) that comes with the Artfully Sent Collection. In Design Space when you search for a pop-up card and add the image to your mat all elements of the pop-up card are added. You need to ungroup the card and delete the three elements that you do not need.

Also, if you sized the images as if you were cutting a pop-up card (height at 10 inches for a top fold card and width at 10 inches for a side fold card), the shape that coordinates with the Curlicue Frames Stamp Set is not the correct size. In the image below you will find the Design Space image number, which stamp it coordinates with and what size to set the height of the frame so the stamped image will perfectly fit on your cut.

On December 1 please check my OBA or your copy of Seasonal Expressions for two new stamp sets that coordinate with Curlicue Frames. The new stamp sets are Flowers For Mom (B1473) on page 23 and Handmade (B1475) on page 29. It looks like the sizing will be the same for the sentiment stamp in Flowers for Mom (#M10102A2), but it looks like the sizing for Homemade will be a bit different. I believe we will set the height to 1" for Handmade (#M1067B4 and #M101344); after I receive my stamp set I will confirm and, if needed, will update this post.

I hope you found the links and tips helpful. If you found the cheat sheet for cutting frames to use with the Curlicue Frames stamp set, please let me know by leaving a comment below. If you have any questions about Artfully Sent, feel free to ask in the comments below or send me a message. I would be happy to assist you. I also would be honored if you make a purchase from me.

Click the Shop with me link if you are ready place an order. Contact me if you have questions about how you can purchase the cartridge for 50% off.