Springtime and The 'Brushed' Collection

Spring is one of my 2 favorite times of the year (Fall being the other!).  And the 'Brushed' Collection just resonated with me because of the gorgeous color palette - Pixie, Canary, Juniper, Pear, Hollyhock and Flaxen!  They simply scream wonderful Springtime sunshine and light breezes!

I can hardly wait to get pictures printed of my sweet grandchildren working in my dad's (Grandpa's) vegetable garden!  They were totally amazed at the food that actually came from the ground that Grandpa had 'farmed a garden in'!!  (in the words of Maddie Claire!!)  It was so special to capture the happy wonder on their faces and to hear their giggles as they dug fresh Irish Potatoes, picked Squash, Cucumbers and Tomatoes!!  Oh the pride they felt!  SOOOO, this Brushed Paper Pack will be used to showcase those pictures!
Following a cutting guide that I purchased from a CTMH sister consultant, Susan Williams, I tore into my Brushed Paper Pack!!  It was so hard because it is so pretty and I've been hoarding it!  Susan has such a talent for designing layouts and cards and creating cutting guides that use only the basic supplies - these appeal to those crafters without a large inventory of stamps, inks, accessories or those who don't own a Cricut machine.  Well I DO own the Cricut Explore, all the ink pads and a good inventory of our beautiful My Acrylix stamps BUT I LOVE LOVE LOVE Susan's simple yet stunning designs!!  Once your cutting is all done, putting the layouts together is pretty quick and the results are awesome, especially after you get your cherished photos on them!

I got all the paper cut and in piles according to layouts (there are 6 included in this custom workshop).  But there are also designed cards with a cutting guide so I decided to put those together first since I needed a couple to mail out!  They're simple but beautiful!

I decided to use the stamp set Finding the Words D1646 for my greetings.  This set is so versatile and has many choices for greeting cards.  I like the combination of the bold script words along with the smaller, slender, all-caps font.  It also coordinates with the Cricut Artiste Cartridge for the Banner.





And here's the first card -- I made one with top fold and one with side fold.  Simple yet lovely!!

Don't you just love this gorgeous Springy paper pack 

that Close to My Heart named BRUSHED???

I'm excited to get the other 2 card designs made tomorrow, THEN get the beautiful layouts put together to add my fun Spring photos to!!  

Pictures to follow!

Supplies picture above:

X7190B Brushed Paper Pack

X7190C Brushed Complements

Z3013 Brushed Assortment

Z1829 Glitter Paper (Black & Gray)

X3035 Pixie Thick Twine

D1646 Finding the Words

Shop from your seat at http://jenniferlee.ctmh.com and please let me know if you have any questions!

Stay Tuned for more Brushed artwork  . . . . . . . . .

Jenn

Introducing . . . . Artfully Sent . . . . Our NEW Cricut Cartridge that's Available Today!!

What's Artfully Sent all about, you ask??!!

This brand NEW Cricut® Cartridge Exclusive to Close To My Heart, makes Cardmaking SO much easier and LOTS more fun!  With our newest Cricut® collection, you can make handmade masterpieces in no time at all. Choose from cards that have sentiments cut directly into them, or combine several cutouts to create your own pop-up scenes.  This cartridge features more than 25 different card themes and 5 different card formats including dynamic interactive designs - It truly has a card for any and all occasions, even those "just because" occasions!!  The card styles include pop-ups, scenes, sentiments, sleeves, and pocket cards.

In this Collection, you'll receive the following:

1 – Cartridge (700 images: Cards and Font)

3 – My Acrylix® D-size stamp sets

1 – 12″ × 12″ White Daisy Cardstock Pack

Recommended blocks for included stamp sets: 1″ × 1″ (Y1000), 1″ × 3½” (Y1002), 3″ × 3″ (Y1006), 2″ × 3½” (Y1009).

BUT wait – It's not JUST for Cardmakers!!  You can do more than just traditional cards!!  The images included and cut out sentiments can be incorporated into scrapbook pages with ease, as well as Home Decor Projects!!

Order yours here today!!

Christmas Card using Mistletoe Paper Pack - my favorite!!

I'm just enjoying our Christmas paper pack this season called Mistletoe!!  It has quickly become one of my All-Time Favorites!

Products used:
* X7130B   Mistletoe My Reflections Paper Pack Level 2
* D1388      My Acrylix Stamp Set - Card Chatter - Christmas
* Z1330      Mistletoe Assorted Accents
* Z2135      New England Ivy Ink Pad

Jenn

Look what I won - mailed straight from Idaho!!

I just had to share this awesome card that was sent to me by my friend and Close to My Heart sister, Nichole Lewno in Idaho!!  I was so excited to win a hand-made card from her because she is so artsy and creative.  

Nichole is hosting video classes on U-stream twice a month on Tuesday evenings (which I have so thoroughly enjoyed), and after the broadcast thru until Sunday, you can leave a comment on her blog and a winner is randomly chosen!  Yeah!!  I won the very card I had my eye on while she was presenting her class! 

This is a Flip-Top card that Nichole demonstrated in, I believe it was, her first U-stream class a few weeks ago.  She did a great job and I was so happy to receive it! 

Thanks Nichole for sharing your talents and generous spirit with me and all you come in contact with! 

To check out some of Nichole’s artwork and a glimpse into her life, head on over to her blog by clicking on her name!  You'll enjoy your visit! 

My First 'Topstitch' Cards!

I had a great time today (during Madalyn's nap!) crafting with the Close to My Heart 'Workshop on the Go' kit, Topstitch!  I see why everyone's been blogging about and sharing artwork they've created with this kit!  The patterned paper is gorgeous and the color palette is great - Chocolate, Baby Pink and Heavenly Blue!

First, I created one of the cards from the Card Workshop portion of the Workshop Guide that comes in the kit.  I really liked this one but seeing the finished project, in person, is gorgeous!!  Jeanette Lynton and the Art Department at Close to My Heart are so very talented, it's amazing the designs and patterns they come up with!

So here's a replica of Card #1 from the guide:

Supplies used:
X7120B Topstitch Level 2 Paper Packet
Z2102   Baby Pink Ink Pad
Z2111   Chocolate Ink kPad
Z1276   Mini-Medley Accents Colonial White Collection
Z1104  Clear Sparkles
Z1096  Embroidery Floss Neutral Assortment
Z1114  Piercing Tool Kit
Z697   Sponge
Workshop stamp set is 'Love Is in the Air'  (available only in the Workshop Kit)

And . . . this second card is my attempt to create something without a pattern!!  Like I've said in previous posts, I'm creatively challenged, which is why I absolutely LOVE Close to my Heart's Program Books which contain beautiful pictures of the artwork along with the blueprints and full instructions to make gorgeous cards and scrapbook pages!!  So here's my custom creation!!

You can order all the supplies to make cards like these plus many more PLUS beautiful scrapbook pages!!  Just click here to shop right where you are and you'll be crafting with 'Topstitch' in a few short days!

Jenn

Cards made from the Twitterpated Paper Pack!

* I'm not creative at all and that's why I'm so appreciative of our 'How To' program books at Close To My Heart! They are jam packed with beautiful artwork as well as blueprints and detailed instructions to have you creating extraordinary cards you'll be proud to give away!

* BUT this time, I decided to wing it on my own, just to see if I could do it!! I took out my Twitterpated paper pack that I received at Leadership Conference this past summer and decided to take the advice of a sister consultant, Nichole by taking 1-2 pieces of cardstock, 1-2 pieces different B&T paper, coordinating inks, 1-2 stamp sets and a couple embellishments and give myself 30 minutes to create and assemble 2-3 original cards!! And I did it!! They're nothing extravagant, rather simple but I'm sure the recipients will enjoy just as well! I actually wanted to incorporate the Crystal Blue into the color scheme but I'm away from home on a business trip and that's the ONE ink pad I didn't have with me! YES, I brought along my AWESOME new rolling tote from CTMH !! It's a beautiful organizational piece and I take it with me on any trip I go on!! Keep it pretty packed too.

* Well, I hope you enjoy the cards! Hop on over to my CTMH web-site to view this Twitterpated Paper Pack and see the other gorgeous papers included in it. It's great for Fall pictures and just as soon as I can sit my family down outside in this beautiful weather we're having, I'll be able to finish the 2 page layout created with the Twitterpated Paper pack and a few embellishments - then I'll post those as well. You'll love the layouts! The guide with the blueprints and instructions is included in the Kit of the Month Kit along with embellishments and a B-size stamp set!

Jenn

Loving' the new Jingle Paperpack

I so enjoyed working with this Jingle Paperpack last night!! I like the traditional Christmas colors but this variation is so nice especially with the addition of Hollyhock and Blush, two of my favorite CTMH exclusive colors!!

With my Christmas music playing on my IPhone and a few of my PartyLite French Vanilla candles burning, I was inspired to get these sketches out of my head and into some artwork! I like how they came together and hope you enjoy them!

Supplies include:

Jingle Paperpack

Tulip, Creme Brulee, Juniper and Black inks

Clear Sparkles

Juniper Grosgrain Ribbon and
Embossing ink and white embossing powder

Very simple!!

Off to my day-job!!

Jenn

A Peek at my old art work!!

Since I haven't been able to squeeze in any craft-time as of late, I thought I would share a few pics of some of my ancient art work! I came across them as I was going through my scrapbooking supplies to hand down some to my daughter-in-law who has begun to scrapbook!

It was actually fun seeing these cards and remembering the inspiration I received from our monthly publication, back when it was called 'On the Dotted Line', as well as from past Idea Books.

These first two cards were my very first swap submissions back in 2001. That was so much fun but I was so nervous because I felt really intimidated by all the talented consultants!

Hope you enjoy!

Jenn

Thank You Card Set - 3x3s

I'm posting my artwork for the first time! I began this little project last month when I wanted to have some smaller 'Thank You' cards to hand deliver to someone instead of mailing the bigger size. I had seen a picture in the SplitCoastStampers Gallery of something similar - it was made using a clear 6x6 memory protector but it was for Christmas and had Christmas 'To' / 'From' tags in it. I took that idea and made the little holder for my 3x3s!! Colors used are: Sorbet, Creme Brulee, Tulip and Colonial White. Embellishments include the Designer Brads - Pewter, Sparkles and Colonial White Grosgrain ribbon. I'm really thinking the flap on the holder needs something else but I was at a loss. Someone help!! Give me some ideas on what else I could do to the flap ~

(This was fun ~ I've been so nervous about posting my project but it wasn't so bad!!)

Jenn