January SOTM Blog Hop!

Welcome to our CTMH Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! We will be featuring January's SOTM called  Find Your Style, a set of 9 gorgeous stamps. I am addicted to this butterfly!

If you have come here from Tamytha's Blog, you are on the right path! If this is your first stop, you may want to go back to Helen's Blog and start from the beginning!

This month we have over 50 Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their creations using this month's SOTM and other great CTMH products on their blogs. This is simple to do - just click on the link at the end of the post on each blog to move to the next one! Here we go!

I did a card with this beautiful stamp set for Mojo's sketch earlier this week, but I couldn't resist getting in another card with this beautiful butterfly. I used the butterfly B&T from the Wings papers to add a swirl of smaller fussy-cut butterflies trailing behind the larger stamped butterfly. Many of the wings are popped out with teeny slivers of 3-D foam tape. I stamped the larger butterfly using my baby wipe puddle pad inked with black and Vineyard Berry re-inkers, and stamped it onto B&T paper to bring in extra color. Then I pieced the body from the Black diamond B&T. 

I stamped the front background Colonial White cardstock with the main sentiment verse in Black ink, then repeatedly in 2nd and third generation in lots of directions to echo the feel of the distressing on the stamp set images. I stamped the back Colonial White CS layer with the butterfly image in Black ink all around the edges. I swiped everything with Black ink and assembled the card. Finally I spritzed the entire project with my NEW Spray Pen filled with water and 6 drops of Vineyard Berry re-inker.

Now "Hop" on over to Lisa's blog to see her work! Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their Blogs to get some great crafting ideas and other fun ideas! Remember, the January SOTM is only available until the last day of January! PLUS you can earn it for FREE along with super discounts on the new sneak peek stamps from the Inspiration Brochure! See the FAQ on my site for details. Be sure to ask your CTMH Consultant (or click here) to see the Inspirations Brochure - you're gonna love it!

Mojo Monday 171 - Round or Square

I'm making on of my New Year's Resolutions for 2011 to complete the Mojo Monday sketch challenge each week. I've been following and haphazardly completing the challenges here and there in 2010. I love the sketches, and the artwork is outstanding, and I want to be sure I'm stretching my artistic side this year! Check out their blog at http://mojomonday.blogspot.com/ .

Here's my card for this week's challenge using the beautiful new January SOTM...a sneak peek for you gals, if you will. The paper is from the new Wings pack - gorgeous!!

I distressed everything with black ink, and my fingertips may be slightly distressed for a week now! I also used the new pre-pleated twill ribbons at the bottom of the card, and popped the black background up with foam tape to allow for the ribbon to peek out from beneath.

I made a puddle pad using some baby wipes on a plate and inked it with Vineyard Berry and Black re-inkers for my focal butterfly. I stamped her onto the backside of the Alphabet B&T Paper, trimmed her out and swiped her edges with black ink as well. I also stamped just the antennae onto the top right square of my background so I didn't have to fussy cut them. The butterfly is adhere just on the body, with a bit of foam tape under the wings to make sure they stay popped out. Finally, you know I practically can't finish a project without adding something sparkly, so I busted out my Martha Stewart Chunky clear glitter and applied that to my butterfly's body with Liquid Glass.

Extra project for January club!

I swore to the club gals I'd finish this project last weekend...and I did. Then Ben, and John, and John's parents got that awesome stomache flue that's going around...and then Gabe and I caught it...so it took me a few days to catch up with posting! Anyhow, this project is gonna be a blast!

It's a framed bit of super big scrapbooking, with a little prepetual calendar at the top and a place to keep a shopping list or other to-do/reminder list at the bottom. You write on the glass of the frame with a white board or wet erase pen. Then at the end of the month you wipe it off and start again for the next month - super fun and so much cuter than those other perpetual calendars you buy at the office supply store! Check out the details on the workshop on my website: www.stampingrules.com 

Party Pennants!

Was up last night until an unmentionable hour completing the pages for our January club...sometimes, when you're scrapping the midnight oil, you get up in the morning and there's still a lot of work to be done. Today I looked at the completed pages and I thought, "I can't wait to get photos on these!" It's been a long time since I have put together a kit from scratch - WOTG was spoiling me! While I am totally looking forward to doing the CTMH Wings kit in February, this blast from the past "scratch" workshop was so much fun to build - it really stretched my brain. I hope you like it as much as I do!

Plenty for Twenty!

During December, when you place an order of $20 or more on my CTMH website, you’ll get a D-size stamp set FREE!  

That’s a $22.95 value!  WOW!

So let’s see…if you order the December Stamp of the Month (or anything else!) via my CTMH website, CTMH will select a random D-size stamp set to send to you…and you won’t have to pay shipping or tax on the bonus stamp set – how cool is that?!?

Are you inspired by this blog? One of the ways you can help support this blog is by ordering your Close To My Heart products through me. You can order from me 24/7 at: www.stampingrules.com