Bring Back My Pack — Urban Blog Hop

Welcome to the Bring Back My Pack — Urban Blog Hop featuring anything Urban! This is a special hop from the group that brings you the SOTM Blog Hops. On our Urban blog hop we have almost 10 participating bloggers. If you just happened upon my post, clicking the link to the next blog (typically found near the bottom of the page) will take you full circle.

Bring Back My Pack — Urban Blog Hop Badge

If you are arriving from ***Wendy Kessler's My Scrapbooking Blog*** then you are on the right track; a complete list of participants can be found at Melinda Everitt's If You Bling It.

I used papers I had left from the Urban paper packet that was released in Annual Inspirations 2015-2016 to create some birthday cards. I am in the process of using Urban to create some thank you cards which I will share in the next few days.

Bring Back My Pack — Urban Birthday Card

My cards are based on Pattern 26 from Make It from Your Heart™ Volume 2. I adjusted the sizes of the background pieces to use a zip strip. I used the Flatten tool in Cricut® Design Space to create the sentiment, then used the Print then Cut feature. Unfortunately the Silver Foil Paper that I used for one of the gears looks more taupe than silver in this photograph.

In case you are wondering about the color differences between the Urban paper packets...in Annual Inspirations 2015-2016 the colors were Champagne, Colonial White, Peacock, Saddle, Saffron, Sapphire, Slate, Whisper and in Bring Back My Pack — Urban pack the colors are French Vanilla, Peacock, Pewter, Saffron, Sapphire and Toffee.

Before you head to your next stop on the Urban Blog Hop, ***Miss. Carrie's Creations by Carrie Simonds***, the products I used to create the card are listed below.

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

• My Acrylix™ Stamps: Strokes of an Artist (D1887)
• Paper Packet: Urban or Bring Back My Pack — Urban
• 12" X 12" Cardstock: French Vanilla (X6046), Sapphire (X5957), Peacock (X5958), Saffron (X5961), Pewter (Z5954)
• White Cards & Envelopes Value Pack (X254)
• Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pads: Sapphire (Z2848), Peacock (Z2849), Saffron (Z2851), Pewter (Z2832)
• Silver Foil Paper (Z3366)
• How-To Book: Make It from Your Heart™ Volume 2 (9042)
• Cricut® Maker™ (available at the first level of Hostess Rewards; see Party with Us! or page 4 of Core Products) Idea Book & Catalog
• Cricut® Collections: Artbooking and Artiste - if you do not have a Consultant, please shop via my Cricut® Affiliate Link, otherwise ask your Consultant for their affiliate link - images used: Cog (#M3C6D9), Cog (#M3F34A), Cog (#M424E3), Cog (#M42CD2), Happy Birthday (#M58174); my Design Space project is here
• Supplies not from Close To My Heart: Cricut® Design Space, Canon printer, Paint Tube Wringer (used to crimp strip of Sapphire cardstock)

I have used Urban for some past projects too.

Urban, Georgie, Nevermore and Sangria were used to create this display tray for our family reunion auction:

display tray - left side

display tray - right side

I also used it on this layout created for the December 2015 SOTM Blog Hop where we featured the Candlelight Garden Stamp Set. My layout was created to remember the terrorist attacks in Paris on Friday, November 13, 2015.

Always Remember Paris layout - Candlelight Garden December 2015 SOTM Blog Hop

Urban was my go to paper for a vacation album I created when preparing for the June 2016 SOTM Blog Hop featuring The Long Way Home Stamp Set.

cover page of vacation album

In total I shared five pages on the June 2016 SOTM Blog Hop. To see my other pages, please visit the hop page.

Finally, I used Urban when I created my Father's last Father's Day card in June 2016.

Father's Day Card

If you are not already working with a CTMH Independent Consultant, you may purchase all of the supplies I used at my Consultant website. Urban items are available until January 31, 2020 while supplies last.

If you have a few moments, please comment as you hop letting us know what you think of our creations. Thank you for hopping with us!

So you do not have to scroll back up, the next stop on the hop is ***Miss. Carrie's Creations by Carrie Simonds***.

Strength & Hope Card

When I find a stamp set that helps me create sympathy cards, I do my best to add that stamp set to my crafty stash.

card created with Strength & Hope (C1797)

I had the need to create a sympathy card for the family of the neighbor about two weeks ago. I used the Hostess Rewards stamp set Strength & Hope (C1797) which was found in the September/October 2019 Idea Book.

I stamped on French Vanilla cardstock (X6046) with Intense Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z4189) and colored with the Pale Pink (Z2496), Dull Green (Z2486) and Light Green (Z2485) TriBlend™ Markers. Because I liked how they look together, and our current papers, Holly Jolly and Cedar & Pine, do not lend themselves well to a sympathy card, I used retired papers: Heartstrings and the ombré side of Sangria bulk paper.

To aid with cutting I used three die sets from Spellbinders: A-2 Matting Basics A and Basics B Card Creator Etched Dies and an oval die – I believe it is from the Scored and Pierced Ovals collection – the die made it into my stack before I noted the collection name. I ran the oval through my die cutting machine with an embossing mat to emphasize the edges.

We wish we never need a sympathy card, but unfortunately death is a part of life. I was fortunate that I had the Strength & Hope to help me create this card.

Thank you for stopping by my blog today.

First Day of CTMH Boxing Week Sale

Hello! I hope you had a fabulous holiday celebration yesterday. Today is the first day of the Boxing Week Sale from Close To My Heart.

Boxing Week Sale

Amazing deals will be had during the Boxing Week Sale. There is a new flash sale every day of the week; a different selection of sale items will be available for 24 hours. Sales feature current and retired products and quantities will be limited. I did see a peek at two new items which will be part of the sale: two 6" x 6" wooden albums which are sized to work with the 6" x 6" Memory Protectors™ (Z4233). The new albums are available individually or as a bundle and are scheduled be available each day of the sale.

To see which items will be discounted during the sale, visit the Promotions tab on my Consultant website at any time during the sale. All of the offers are only available while supplies last!

CTMH Corporate Newsletters will be emailed to all newsletter subscribers at the beginning of the sale to let them know when the sale has started. Typical Flash Sale "criteria" apply, e.g., shipping & handling is based on full retail value of items, orders must be placed on my Consultant website, purchases count toward earning the SOTM and Hostess Rewards.

Thanks for visiting during this busy holiday season. Have a fantastic day!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas! I hoped to have a new card to share with you today, but unfortunately illness has put me behind a bit this year. Fortunately it is just a cold (at least so far), but it has zapped my energy.

Here are some recent Christmas greetings that I hope you will enjoy.

card created for the Reindeer Crossing (December 2019) SOTM Blog Hop

card created with Christmas Memories Digital Art for Nov/Dec New Product Blog Hop

card created with Ornaments Digital Art for Nov/Dec New Product Blog Hop

cards created by Corporate artists with Cedar & Pine—Cardmaking

cards created by Corporate artists with Holly Jolly—Cardmaking

I hope you have a happy and healthy holiday season and a wonderful day celebrating with family and friends.

End of December CTMH Updates

It was just announced that Close To My Heart is having a Boxing Week Sale. Please mark your calendars for December 26th.

Boxing Week Sale

There will be some amazing deals during the Boxing Week Sale. There is a new flash sale every day of the week. Sales feature current and retired products and quantities will be limited.

The Boxing Week sale which begins at 2:00am EST on December 26 and will end at 1:59 am EST on January 1. Each day will feature a different selection of sales items which will be available for 24 hours.

To see which items will be discounted during the sale, visit the Promotions tab on my Consultant website at any time during the sale. All of the offers are only available while supplies last!

CTMH Corporate Newsletters will be emailed to all newsletter subscribers at the beginning of the sale to let them know when it has started. Typical Flash Sale "criteria" apply, e.g., shipping & handling is based on full retail value of items, orders must be placed on my Consultant website, purchases count toward earning the SOTM and Hostess Rewards.


It was also announced that an Intense Black Re-inker is now available.

Intense Black Exclusive Inks™ Re-inker (Z7518)

The Intense Black Re-inker (Z7518) is designed to refresh the Intense Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad (Z4189). The Intense Black Stamp Pad is recommended for use with watercolors and alcohol markers.


The CTMH Corporate Offices have some Holiday Closures later this month. In observance of the Christmas Holiday they will be closed on Tuesday, December 24 and Wednesday, December 25. In observance of the New Year Holiday they will be closed on Tuesday, December 31 and Wednesday, January 1. No orders will be prepared for shipment these these days.

November/December 2019 Idea Book & Catalog

In case you have been busy with holiday parties, shopping and other preparations, this past Wednesday I posted a reminder of the stamp sets, stamp sets + Thin Cuts and other items that are available, while supplies last, until 1:59am EST on January 1, the last day the November/December 2019 catalog is valid. Any items that are still in stock when 2020 arrives will be moved to the Online Only area of my Consultant Website in the days after the book expires.

I hope you have a great last weekend before the December holiday festivities are in full swing.

Two Weeks Until 2020!?

With the end of 2019 approaching, the November/December 2019 Idea Book is valid for only 14 more days. At 11:59pm MST on New Years Eve, Tuesday, December 31, the November/December 2019 Idea Book ends.

November/December 2019 Idea Book & Catalog

As I mentioned when the September/October 2019 expired on October 31, with the change to six 2-month catalogs, Close To My Heart will not be posting a retiring list at the end of each book. Items are available while supplies last and any items that are still in stock will be moved to the Online Only area of my Consultant Website shortly after the book expires.

There are three Hostess Rewards stamp sets on pages 2 and 3. I introduced you to them in early November. They will no longer be available in 2020 (the HR items in the Core Book remain available):

November/December 2019 - page 2

November/December 2019 - page3

In mid-November I did a deep dive of the Holly Jolly, Cedar & Pine and Mix-In Collections. In addition to showing you the papers, the coordinating stickers, embellishments, stamp sets and Workshop Kits (both Scrapbooking and Cardmaking) were featured.

Holly Jolly Paper Packet

Cedar & Pine Paper Packet

Mix-in Paper Packet

The November/December catalog has several wonderful Stamp Sets and Stamp Sets + Thin Cuts:

Holly Jolly—Cardmaking (C1800)	this space intentionally left blank
Holly Jolly—Scrapbooking without Thin Cuts (E1051)	Holly Jolly—Scrapbooking Stamp + Thin Cuts (Z3529)
Cedar & Pine—Cardmaking without Thin Cuts (C1803)	Cedar & Pine—Cardmaking Stamp + Thin Cuts (Z3535)
Cedar & Pine—Scrapbooking (D1878)	this space intentionally blank
Woodland Greetings (C1813)	Flower Burst Background (D1900)
Birthday Greetings (D1899)	Lovely Florals (C1815)
Merry Christmas Tree (C1804)	From Candyland (D1884)
Christmas by Aimee Ferre (D1892)	Joy to the World (B1695)
Christmas Words Tree (B1693)	Christmas Words Tree (B1693E) - alternate spelling
For the Tree (D1891) - coordinates with Custom Ornament TC	Custom Ornament Thin Cuts (Z3533) - coordinates with For the Tree
The Lights of Hanukkah (B1684)	Mini Merry & Bright (M1259)
The Savior Is Born (M1260)	The Saviour Is Born (M1260E) - alternate spelling
Holiday Trimmings (C1810)	this space intentionally blank
No Peekin' (D1898) - coordinates with Stitched Circles TC	Stitched Circles Thin Cuts (Z4181) - coordinates with No Peekin'
Beachy Little Christmas (D1897)	this space intentionally blank
Paper Pal Christmas without Thin Cuts (D1880) - coordinates with Paper Pal Base Stamp + Thin Cuts	Paper Pal Christmas Stamp + Thin Cuts (Z3541) - coordinates with Paper Pal Base Stamp + Thin Cuts
Santa's Sleigh without Thin Cuts (D1879)	Santa's Sleigh Stamp + Thin Cuts (Z3540)

There are some Thin Cuts, an Embossing Folder, digital art and vinyl in the November/December catalog:

Custom Ornament Thin Cuts (Z3533) - coordinates with For the Tree	For the Tree (D1891) - coordinates with Custom Ornament TC
Buttoned Up Thin Cuts (Z3524)	Buttoned Up Thin Cuts completed project
Snowflakes Embossing Folder (Z3518)	Holiday Loose Sequins (Z3565)
Ornaments Digital Art (Z3605)	Ornaments Digital Art completed project
Christmas Memories Digital Art (Z3604)	Christmas Memories Digital Art completed project
Red & Green Heat Transfer Vinyl (Z3583)	this space intentionally blank

There are specials ending on December 31 as well:

Best Friends Furever

Reindeer Crossing (S1912)

Thank you for taking this tour of stamps, Thin Cuts and more available in the November/December 2019 CTMH Idea Book. If you have any product questions or would like to host a Gathering to earn Hostess Rewards, please reach me via the contact form to the right. Have a fantastic day!