Fiskateer Blog Hop RAK Winner!

Hi there!  Just a quick note:  I went to Random. org and generated a winning number:  Groovy Deb, you're the winner of my RAK- which is a fun stamp set by Close to My Heart!  Congrats!

Katherine:)

Orange Blog Hop

Hi there!  I'm participating in the Fiskateers Orange Blog Hop this weekend!  I'm so excited to be a part of it - I love Fiskars products (who doesn't?) and they are so awesome to sponsor a great community of fellow crafters called Fiskateers!  

If you've come here from Regena's Blog  you're in the right place.  If you've just happened across my blog, you may want to start at the beginning at the Fiskateer's Blog and moving on from there!  We have over 40 fun Fiskateers participating in this hop!  Ok, on to the art:

Orange always reminds me of Halloween - so I could not resist making a few fall cards. 

Supplies all Close to My Heart:  Sunset Cardstock, Sunset Ink, Gypsy Cardstock, Gypsy Ink, Black embossing Powder, Sunset Mini Medley Accents, Pear Cardstock, Hooligans Paper Pack and Thriller Stamp Set.  Also used Versa Mark ink for embossing.

This funny Turkey is made using a Big Pinks Just Blooms flower by Close to My Heart.  Supplies include Pewter Brads, Say it in Style Stamp set, Cocoa Ink, Orange Re-inker, Bamboo, Barn Red, Cocoa and Vanilla Cream Cardstocks, Cherry O Creative Basics paper, pop dots all  by Close to My Heart.  Turkey die by Quikutz and Tuscan Sun Glimmer Mist by Tattered Angels.

The turkey's feathers really look more orange in person.  I used a waterbrush to add re-inker to the flower until it was the color I liked, then I added the glimmer mist on top.

This card is the "matchbox" card from Close to My Heart's how-to guide, Originals.  Supplies:  Sparkles - unknown, Versa Mark Ink, Sunset cardstock, Sunset Ink, Smokey Plum Cardstock, Black Embossing Powder, Black cardstock, Shimmer brads all by Close to My Heart and Silver glimmer mist by Tattered Angels.

I used the silver glimmer mist to add some shimmer to the paper before I embossed the card.  I am not thrilled with the way the photo turned out, I may have my dear husband try again and I'll repost the photo later.

Hope you enjoyed the projects - and please be sure to keep hopping over to Amy's Blog and see the wonderful art she's creating over there! 

Thanks for hopping along - have a great weekend! 

Katherine

PS  I do have a RAK that I'll draw a winner for on Sunday night and post back here.  All you need to do is leave a comment! (feel free to follow me, too!)

Sweet Sunday Sketch

Wow!  Where have I found the time to be so crafty?  Today's artwork is inspired by my favorite holiday, Halloween and the Sweet Sunday Sketch #84.  I just love following sketches to put my own spin on things! 

I really love the new Close to My Heart Colors of Lagoon, Pear and Sunset, which happen to be the colors I've chosen for my Halloween card.  This fun witch stamp and greeting are from Close to My Heart's Fright Night Set.

Supplies:  Fiskars border punch (wave), EK Success punch (spiderweb), B1359 Fright Night stamp set, pear ink, pear cardstock, lagoon cardstock, white daisy cardstock, sunset cardstock and Hooligans paper pack all Close to My Heart.

More Halloween fun to come!  Enjoy!

Stamptacular Sunday Distressing Challenge

Wow!  That makes it sound like it was a troublesome challenge! This week's challenge at Stamptacular Sunday's Challenge Blog LOL I love distressing:  adding ink, sanding, tearing - you name it!  These cards I made for my step son's 17th birthday and my brother's 30th which they both celebrate this weekend.  (my brother is still a kid at heart).

All supplies by Close to My Heart:  Sarsparilla paper pack, Game On paper pack, X-treme stamp set, black and desert sand inks, versa mark ink and black embossing powder.  The layers are inked, crinkled and sanded.

Happy Birthday, Boys!

September Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! We will be featuring September’s SOTM, which is D1442 Thriller, a set of 9 fun stamps. If you have come here from Carol’s Blog, you are on the right path!




This month we have over 65 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!

Products Used: D1442 Thriller, Black Cardstock, CTMH Olivia Paper Pack, NEW cardstock colors in Gypsy, Sunset and Pear. Gypsy, Pear and Sunset Inks, Versa Mark Ink and black embossing powder, licorice opaques and 3D foam tape.



Many of you realize that this stamp set is bound to be one of my faves – I love Halloween and this is right up my alley! I can’t wait to play more and make some other creations, so stay tuned and check back!



Now "Hop" on over to Melissa’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 September SOTM is only available until September 30, 2010. Contact your CTMH Consultant (or click here) to see how you can get this stamp set at a discount or even free!

August Stamp of The Month Blog Hop

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! We will be featuring August's SOTM, which is D1424 Something Splendid, a set of 13 stamps.

If you have come here from Cindy'sBlog, you are on the right path! I'm at the tail end of the swap, so if  this is your first stop, Kathleen's Blog is next so you can start from the beginning!

This month we have over 60 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!

Supplies:  Summer Carnival Textured Cardstock, White Daisy Textured Cardstock, Something Splendid stamp set, White Daisy grosgrain ribbon, Watermelon Ink and Fun Flock dyed with Sunny Yellow Re-Inker.  

Now "Hop" on over to Kathleen'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 August SOTM is only available until August 31st! Contact your CTMH Consultant (or click here) to see how you can get this stamp set at a discount or even free!

Time Flies!

Wow!  Is it really the last week of July aleady??  My birthday last week signaled what I have always considered as the "wind down" of summer.  *sigh*  Even though it's been hot, I am not ready for summer to end!! 

I have been absent this month on the blog - which I feel badly about.  I have tons of great art from CTMH convention to share, but haven't finished photographing everything yet.  Look out for the photos in the next few days! 

July Stamp of the Month Blog Hop

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! We will be featuring July’s SOTM, which is “Happy Forever” a set of 9 stamps.

If you have come here from Melissa's Blog you are on the right path! If this is your first stop, I’m the end of the hop, so go next to Helen's Blog and start from the beginning!

This month we have over 65 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!

This card was based on the pattern, from Wishes.  I used a paper piecing technique with the balloons, and did a double mask for the hedgehog - once for his "prickles" and once for his body.  I think these little hedgehogs are the cutest!! They are so much fun - flying a kite, playing with a butterfly and just plain ol' looking cute!

Products Used: Splendor Level 2 paper pack, Star Spangled Blue cardstock, Brown Bag Ink, colonial white brads


Now "Hop" on over to Helen'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 July SOTM is only available until July 31st! ! Contact your CTMH Consultant (or click here) to see how you can get this stamp set at a discount or even free!

A sincere thank you

This card is a thank you for someone who made my job easier by being thoughtful.  The papers are from Close to My Heart's Passages paper pack, the stamps are from the CTMH Card Chatter -Thank You set, and the embellishments are also CTMH.  The card is based on the 

 TESC117 sketch.  It also meets the criteria for the Magical Crafts Blog's Father's Day/Card for a man challenge!

Embellish Magazine Color Challenge

I LOVE color challenges - Embellish Magazine's challenge was brown, yellow and coral.  The other guideline was that the card have a tag/label.   I chose Close to My Heart's chocolate, buttercup and sorbet cardstocks to play with.  The label is from Quickutz.  Flowers and ribbon also by Close to My Heart.  More art to come soon!

A card for my friend

I found a fun challenge at Crafts and Me Challenges  to make a card for a special person.  Since I can't get enough of the Splendor paper pack by Close to My Heart, I wanted to use it to make a happy card.  This cute bird is from the Hot Diggity set, also CTMH.  I think he's so cute and it's such a happy card. happy and Day satmps are by The Stamps of Life.  My friend Amy has just decided to leave work to be a full time mommy to her beautiful daughter, Eva.  I am so happy for her!  (It's also her birthday Sunday, so it's a double duty card - thus Happy Day, not Happy Birthday!) lol!

Ahoy There!

When I found this stamp set on someone's blog, I HAD to have it! Everyone knows what a Close to My Heart Junkie I am, so it suprised even ME when I found a stamp from another company that I loved! This little guy is by My Cute Stamps called Pirate Boy. Maybe it's the idea of Jimmy Buffett's "A Pirate Looks at 40" but I really do love him! Used my copic markers to color and Fiskars punch for the waves. I also played with my Flower Soft Ultrafine fuzz... It is plasticky and feels like sand... I used the sand color on this card for the beach. FUN!!

Kwerner design color inspiration 3

This card was made for a Fiskateer friend of mine as a thank you. I used the colors

in kwernerdesign.com/blog/ . The colors were olive, celery, chocolate, deep eggplant, pale plum and cream. I had to improvise with my own inks. Stamp is by Close to My Heart Ms. Scrapbook.

Heart 2 Heart Challenge

I missed the deadline for Heart 2 Heart Challenge's sketch last week, but I made this card using a photo of my son at his first White Sox game, so it works for THIS week's challenge - art with a photo on it! This will be the thank you note to my brother, who took Evan to the game. Papers and stamps by Close to My Heart - Zippidee paper pack and Ticket to Ride Stamp set. Inks are Cranberry and Indian Corn Blue, also both CTMH.

SSSC 72 & Cas-Tastic CWC007

This is my first Sweet Sunday sketch - so excited to have found the blog at http://www.kgiron.blogspot.com/ . This also fits the bill for the Cas-Tastic challenge CWC 007 - using buttons! Papers are Material Girl by Cosmo Cricket, Cardstock is Goldrush and Tulip by Close to My Heart, Stamps and Accents by Close to My Heart.

Another Stamp of the Month Card

Just couldn't resist playing a little more with the set. Still one more coming soon!

June Stamp of the Month!

This is my take on the Close to My Heart's June Stamp of the Month, Wonderful Friend. I am not usually a shabby chic artist, but I love the pocketwatch and argyle stamps. This stamp of the month is only available through June 30th, so don't let it pass you by!

A fun Fiskateer Challenge

I am excited to share a layout I created based on a challenge set forth by Wendy Jo, a Fiskateer. She wanted us to use a quote from Alice in Wonderland, which is so much fun! I used CTMH Starstruck paper pack, Hodgepodge alphabet stamps and Fiskars punches. It's hard to believe it's been more than a year since this trip! Look for more art soon. This was TOO easy to post to!

Convention Application in the Mail!!

WHEW!! As some of you know, my application for teaching at the Close to My Heart convention was due postmarked yesterday. I worked on art all weekend, and Jim did my videotaped demo for them Sunday night. I have taught at our convention in the past, and it was such a great experience. This year, the classes will be twice as long as before, and I'll get to see more consultants than ever. I almost didn't have the nerve to do the video and almost scrapped the whole thing, but I LOVE teaching. I have such a blast with my clubs and workshops, and so now it's the suspense of waiting to hear if I'm chosen. I should've thought to post pictures of my art - but honestly, I didn't even take photos, because I wanted those things in the box and sent out! :)

I am going to post some other art later this week - I made a very blingy 40th Birthday card for my sister in law - and I like the way it turned out.

Happy Tuesday!