Share The Love Operation Smile™ Blog Hop

Before I start my post I want the folks in the path of Hurricane Matthew to know our thoughts are with you. I hope our hop gives a brief break from the storm. Please stay safe.

Welcome to the Operation Smile™ Blog Hop featuring the stamp set True Love. When you purchase the True Love stamp set from an Independent Consultant in the USA, Close To My Heart donates $7 of the proceeds to Operation Smile™. Similar donations are made to Operation Smile™ when purchases are made from Independent Consultants in Canada, New Zealand and Australia.

There are approximately 15 bloggers sharing projects they created with the True Love Stamp Set (D1711). Our blog hop is circular so visiting the next blog will take you back to where you started.

On the back cover of Annual Inspirations 2016-17 is where you will find the stamp set True Love (D1711). It is a set of 9 stamps. Recommended CTMH My Acrylix® Blocks for this stamp set are: 2" x 2" (Y1003), 3" x 3" (Y1006) and 4" x 5" (Y1012). The heart coordinates with a cut from the Flower Market collection.

You should have arrived here from ***Darlys Rucker's Crafty Happy***. If you get lost along the way, Melinda Everitt keeps a list of participants on her blog at If You Bling It.

Before I share my project, I would like to tell you a bit more about CTMH's relationship with Operation Smile™. Since 2008 CTMH has provided support to change the lives of over 1,500 children and their families. If you are looking for other ways to help Operation Smile™, "Make Someone Smile" t-shirts are available from your consultant.

For every shirt purchased, $10 is donated to Operation Smile. Both styles are available in grey and red. To find them on your consultant's online business address, look in the teal green bar at the top of the screen for What We Do then choose Operation Smile. Under the photo of the shirts is a size chart. When I was choosing a size for myself, I took a shirt that I loved how it fit on me and laid it out flat on the bed. Then I measured from side seam/fold to side seam/fold about one inch below the armholes. The woman's shirt is more fitted than the shirt I used, but I am happy with the fit. In my opinion I could have sized up without the shirt looking too large on me. Take the same steps if you are purchasing a men's shirt, just look at the correct size chart for the style you are purchasing.

Every time I looked at the decorative heart in this set I thought of quilts I've seen in Kutztown, PA or at The Windmill in Penn Yan, NY. It inspired me to make this card that looks a little like a quilt.

I am surprised I took on the challenge of such a fussy card because I typically do not like to try to align so many pieces. Normally I would cut squares by hand to save paper, but to speed things up I cut the bulk of the shapes on my Explore. Only the XOXO strip and Raspberry cardstock the sentiments were stamped on were cut by hand.

There are so many sweet words in this stamp set that I wanted to use all of them, but I had to keep telling myself less is more. I did decorate the inside of this card with one of them. I also used the balloons the boy is holding.

Before you head to ***Terrie Shortsleeve's Inky Hearts Papercrafting***, the supplies I used to create my project are listed below.

All supplies are from Close To My Heart except where noted:

• My Acrylix™ True Love Stamp Set (D1711)
• 12" × 12" White Daisy Cardstock (1385)
• 12" × 12" Pixie Cardstock (X5773)
• 12" × 12" Raspberry Cardstock (X5788)
• Raspberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z2812)
• Blossom Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z2810)
• Black Memento™ Ink Pad (Z899)
• 3L® E-Z Dots® Adhesive (Z3022)
• Thin 3-D Foam Tape (Z2060)
• Cricut® Flower Market Collection - with physical cartridge (Z3285) or digital collection without a physical cartridge (Z3290)
• Heart - #MD70813 - page 33 - 1.05" (this size is fit for the decorative, not the size for the outlined heart)
• Supplies not from Close To My Heart: Cricut® Design Space, Cricut® Explore
• If you have the Cricut® Explore and the Flower Market cartridge linked to your account, here is my Cricut® Design Space file so my may quickly re-create this card; if you cut everything on the mat, you will have enough pieces for two cards; I have a grouped image to remind me how to place the pieces and I have attached the hearts and squares to save paper when cutting
• I also created a file to cut a full page of hearts (77 hearts) that coordinate with the outlined heart; you will find that file here

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.

Before you leave please leave a comment letting me know what you think of my project. So you do not have to scroll back up, the next stop on the hop is ***Terrie Shortsleeve's Inky Hearts Papercrafting***.

Thank you for hopping with us. I hope you are enjoying the projects created with True Love.