New Annual Inspirations Catalog

The new annual catalog is now available and includes loads of new papers and scrapbooking kits, card kits, and doodads. I can't wait to start crafting with these new items and all the great ideas from the new book.  You can download a copy HERE, or contact me for a copy.

Oh, Canada!

Did you know that Canada celebrated 150 year of Canadian Confederation on July 1, 2017?  In 1867, Canada was created with British colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick and then split into provinces.  Happy Canada Day!

One of the sneak peeks of the new 2017-18 Idea Books is in an exclusive product bundle that you can purchase during the month of July at 20% off the retail price! This bundle includes the brand new Canadian-themed digital Cricut® collection as well as a Canada 150 stamp set and 12 sheets of cardstock.

Express your moments in French or Spanish

We now have two Idea Books live with different projects to choose from. Did you know we have multiple language stamps? If you see a small black square with a little world next to a stamp set, that means it is available in English, French or Spanish. To see the translations, go online to my website at http://inkysquid.closetomyheart.com/ and search for "Spanish" or "French".  Here are a few examples, with many more on my website.

Contact me for your copy of the Idea Book!

Check this out Hostesses!

During the month of October, hostesses have another fantastic option for using your Hostess Rewards credit—you can apply it toward a New Consultant Kit! As a hostess, when your Gathering reaches $250 in sales, not only will you get 50% off a product of your choice, but you can also choose to use your $40 in Hostess Rewards credit to get a discounted New Consultant Kit! With higher Gathering totals, you can save even more! Take this opportunity to book an event with your consultant, so you can experience the Real Rewards of joining the Close To My Heart community!

Sea Glass: Color of the Year

 The new 2016-17 Annual Idea Book is out and the Adventure Color Palette has 7 new colors! CTMH also introduced another new comer to the color palette - Sea Glass. It is the exclusive new Color of the Year, and this beautiful, minty hue will only be available for ONE YEAR, so make sure to get it in all forms: stamp pad, re-inker, cardstock, and glitter paper. Sea Glass will show up in different paper packets, Complements, and other products throughout the year.

RASPBERRY	LEMON	EMERALD	BLOSSOM
WILLOW	TANGERINE	PANSY	SEA GLASS

Basically The Best

During the month of August, when you order our Whimsy, Adventure, and Enchantment Fundamental papers, you can choose to get either the Rustic Home or Uptown Fundamentals for FREE! Both of these Basics packs feature foil designs and specialty materials for making your artwork unique. Yep, this deal is basically the best! These fundamental packs are versatile paper collections that you can use for almost anything. They are general enough to work on their own. But because they use our Exclusive Color palette, the fundamentals also work well with our other specific themed paper packs to add depth and texture to your scrapbooks and paper crafting. Get yours today!

Introducing the New 2016-17 Annual Idea Book!

The new Close To My Heart 2016-17 Annual Inspirations Idea Book is here! It is chock full of new products, including our Fundamentals line, new ink colors, albums, organization, and more.

Products in this Annual Idea Book are available until next July. It has lots of great paper and embellishments, including loads of new ribbon, that will complement the Seasonal Expressions kits throughout the year.

New this year, CTMH is introducing a Color of the Year. Sea Glass is a wonderfully minty green color that is found in many decor and fashion statements.

Contact me for your copy of the Idea Book!

Winter Sports

Winter sports are well underway, and CTMH has some great new stamps to decorate your scrapbooks. Basketball and Hockey are only two of the many sports stamps that coordinate with Cricut cuts.Check out page 96-97 in the Annual Inspirations book and page 30-31 in the new Seasonal Expressions 2016.

Kaleidoscope Scrapbook

The Kaleidoscope My Reflections collection is a bright and cheery selection of papers and goodies that will help you get out of the winter doldrums.  Kaleidoscope is one of my favorite kits of the Annual Inspirations this year.  The patterns are general enough to match many different styles of photos, but can be used for specific events, such as Easter.

The assortment comes with 9 pieces of printed, faceted gems, already with adhesive on the back.  New enamel and glitter duos in the shape of purple hearts match perfectly with this fun kit.  The complements include coordinating sticker sheets and assorted chipboard die-cuts.

New Idea Book is Here!

Annual Inspirations 2015-16

The new 2015-2016 Annual Inspirations CTMH Idea Book is here! This book is packed with new paper themes, stamps, accessories, Base and Bling, Picture My Life, and organization. 

Several colors were retired from the last Idea Book to make way for seven new beautiful colors. Eggplant, Sapphire, Peacock, Fern, Saffron, Poppy, and Pomegranate join New England Ivy and Ruby as a part of the Enchantment color group. You can find all of the new colors in our Exclusive Color Palette tools, including stamp pads, reinkers, and cardstocks. The entire Enchantment line can be found in cardstock combo packs and Mini-Pigment pad sets.

Get your hands on your own copy by contacting me today!

Brand New Artistry Cartridge!

Tap into your creative genius with the Cricut® Artistry collection, which includes a dynamic cartridge, THREE exclusive D-size stamp sets, and an Enchantment cardstock combo pack—all for just $99! The Artistry cartridge is an artist's gold mine, replete with a glittering medley of banners, layered shapes, borders, backgrounds, and icons. Each key features its own unique theme, so you'll find a wide variety of choices within this extensive 700-image package, from maritime adventures and camping trips to newborn celebrations and holiday parties—and then some! In addition, the cartridge's unique font will add visual spice to any project you create!

CTMH Cricut Cartridge: Artistry

Get Organized!

During August, you can get your hands on the latest and greatest in organization products from Close To My Heart—with a few perks thrown in! For the August campaign, we are making the brand new Marker Roll-Up and Accessory Roll-Up available for purchase and throwing in some freebies when you and your customers purchase them.

When you place an order for the new accessory roll-up at full retail price, you’ll receive two new Base & Bling style sheets, Affirmations and Lovely Blooms, FREE! With multiple zipper pockets in a variety of sizes, the accessory roll-up is an ideal storage solution for all your Base & Bling pieces and other accessories!

 

Also, when you place an order for the new marker roll-up at full retail price, you’ll receive the new D-size stamp set My Acrylix® Balloon Wishes FREE! This is a brand new Cricut®-compatible set that really lends itself to coloring with the Shin-Han™ Touch Twin™ markers, which are a breeze to store using the new Marker Roll-Up.

WOTG: Wanderful

The travel bug was put into my head and heart from a long line of travelers. My parents love to travel and took us on many family trips around the country (and Canada too). Their parents were travels, and traveled the US and Europe. It's in our spirit to seek new cultures and see beautiful countrysides. Share those beautiful photos on scrapbook pages using this month's spotlight kit, Wanderful.

 

WOTG: Wanderful

Small Gifts with Tons of Color

When you are looking for an idea for a small gift or thank you, you can make a card with a small tea bag, like the card above.  If you want to give away something bigger, try decorating using a large coffee cup and fill with your favorite coffee or tea.

If you're having a party this spring and summer, check out the ideas below.  This card is super easy to make, filling in all the details of the party.  Then, fill little jars with homemade sugar scrubs as cute little treats to take home.

Have you checked out the Deal of the Day? Don't forget, we have a new Deal everyday during the month of April.

Paper Fundamentals

Paper Fundamentals is an expanded line of colorful paper packs with extraordinary properties. One side has an alternating color/white geometric design, while the other has the same geometric design but uses a glossy embossed surface. Use the paper as it is, or color the white parts with ink pads or markers. The embossed surface can be used for many things. Heat it and add embossing powder or glitter to stick to the paper. Use the glossy surface as a resist, and use ink to color the non-glossy areas with a darker color. The adorable strawberries on the front of the Seasonal Expressions II book are made from the Paper Fundamentals.

TBT: Stella

The colors in the Stella Scrapbook Workshop on the Go really went well with my next set of UM football photos.  And I could make it look less flowery pretty easily, with a few tweaks.  The first layout above includes Stella paper, but also a Picture My Life card from the Chalk It Up Scrapbooking Program.

The circle letter stickers used in all of the layouts are from the Magnifique Complements.  The two pennants are covered by cutouts from the Art Philosphy Cricut Cartridge.

Hidden behind the large photo of the score board is a printout from the newspaper.  This and many other hidden journaling can be found in the CTMH book called Magic.  I love being able to include newspaper articles, without taking up so much space.  If someone wants to read the article, they can. 

The first two page layouts are included with the Stella WotG.  The last layout sketch can be found in the Imagine How-To book.  It makes layout design so easy, and you can substitute photos for journaling blocks, like the Picture My Life journaling that I put in the bottom right corner.

Protect Your Surface

CTMH offers two mats to hep you protect your craft work surfaces: the VersaMat and the All-Purpose Mat. The VersaMat has two sides..a self-healing side for cutting and measuring and a cushion side, on the opposite side, for stamping and piercing. It is great for using as a cushion while stamp, for measuring spacing for exact placement, or for use with our piercing tool. The All-Purpose Mat has a non-sticky, heat resistant side and a sticky side that lays facedown on the table to insure that it does not move while working on messy projects. It is easy to clean with water and cloths. Both mats are lightweight and easy to transport to a workshop or crop.

 

Check out this video showcasing the VersaMat and All Purpose Mat.

Clap along if you...

Pharrell is on to something with his hugely popular hit, Happy, which is upbeat, catchy, and makes you smile.  The same thing happens when I look at this card.  Upbeat, colorful, pretty bold flowers. 

 Color My Heart dared us this week to use some unusual colors, Honey, Ruby, and Lagoon.  I've discussed here many times how much I love Lagoon, so of course I took the challenge!  The flowers were colored in using our new Shin Han Twin Touch Markers.  They are super smooth and easy to use, with rich bold colors. 

The papers included here are unusual too.  The Ruby paper is a Christmas paper, and the Lagoon is from Skylark and the Honey from Jubilee paper.  The flowers and "Happy" stamps are a part of a new stamp set called Happy Birds.