Thursday, December 24, 2009

Merry Christmas

I know I promised to post some more artwork before Christmas, but I spent the day with my family today instead of taking photos of my creations. So, you will have to wait a little longer for my projects. (My family thanks you!)

In the meantime, I wanted to stop in and wish you all a VERY merry Christmas and a blessed New Year! I hope you enjoy spending time with your families during the next few days and focusing on what this beautiful holiday is really about—the birth of our amazing Savior, Jesus Christ! I know it is somewhat of a cliché, but He really is the reason for the season!

I will leave you to enjoy this beautiful card that my sweet friend Barbara sent to me. (Love ya Barb!)
Check out the gold embossing and the sparkly red berries. Barb sure is talented!
Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!
XOXO

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Yummy Christmas Gifts

Hi All! Did you think I dropped off of the face of the Earth? I have been so preoccupied with Christmas preparations that I have neglected my poor blog and all of you my friends! I am so sorry.

I wanted to share the gifts that I gave to my neighbors this year. As most of you know, I am really not good in the kitchen and homemade (edible) goodies are not my forte. I actually tried it last year and attempted to make some peppermint brownies and what I thought was an easy Chex mix type thing. Indeed they were both easy to make, but they didn't turn out too well. As I delivered them to my poor neighbors, I felt I had to apologize for their gift. So sad. LOL!Anyhoo, this year I opted to share one of my FAVORITE treats with my neighbors. They are Dark Chocolate Pomegranate Candies I found at Costco. Oh, they are just so good I really need to get the rest of them out of the house before I eat them all!

As I was creating the project for my September Creative Club, I had the idea that I could fill up the tins with candy and give them as gifts. That is exactly what I did. The CD tins came from Specialty Bottle and, as I mentioned, the candy came from Costco. I decorated the outside of the tins with cards from the Around the Holidays Card Kit. The best thing was that my gift doubled as a card.

Just look at that heavenly row of yummy chocolate.
Here is a picture of the chocolate bags so you know what to look for on your next Costco run. (wink)
I was able to write a little message to each family inside the attached card.
I hope to post a couple more things before Christmas so be sure to check back soon. *Ü*

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Celebrate National Papercrafting Month

January is National Papercrafting Month, but Close To My Heart is starting the celebration NOW! This year's kit is beautiful! Not only do you get a stamp set that includes a complete alphabet, flourishes, birds, argyle patterns, flowers, leaves, but also twelve 12" x 12" B&T papers in 3 different color schemes along with six coordinating 12" x 12" die cuts perfect for scrapbook layouts or cards, boxes, journals and other papercrafting projects! In addition, you will receive a two-sided, full color brochure giving you project ideas along the recipes for each!

There are FIVE ways to get the Felicity Collection*:
  1. Purchase it at full retail price for $34.95.
  2. Place an order of $60 or more in full-retail priced stamp sets and receive one collection FREE!
  3. Place an order of $125 or more in full-retail priced Close To My Heart products and receive one collection FREE!
  4. Host a home gathering or workshop with a minimum sales of $400 and receive one collection FREE!
  5. Join Close to my Heart between January 1-31 and you will receive the collection FREE in your New Consultant Kit.

*This promotion is while supplies last from December 15, 2009-January 31, 2010.

Click here to place a Close to my Heart order.

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Huge Online Clearance Sale - Holiday Heyday!

Boy oh boy, do I have a treat for you! Close to my Heart is having an amazing online clearance sale staring at 8:00 am (Pacific Time) December 2nd!

Sit back and relax. It's OK to start your holiday shopping a little late this year, because the best deals start in December! You can buy everyone on your list a gift and stock up on much-needed supplies for yourself, leaving you time to enjoy the festivities! Beginning December 2*, you’ll want to get in on the amazing deals like My Acrylix® stamp sets from only $2 and My Reflections® paper packets from only $5. But that’s not all—there are “grab bags” for $30, each filled with over $100 in retail products! Plus, great shipping deals too. How about $5 flat rate on orders over $100? What a deal! These products are only available while supplies last, so mark your calendar and be the first to fill your shopping cart!

My sweet friend Melissa compiled the following list of just a few of the great deals. (Thanks Melissa!)

15+ Level One Kits: (favorites like Vintage Travel, Laid Back, Free Spirit & more) $5.00 (regularly $9.95)
10+ Level Two Paper Packs (Caprice, School Zone, Expedition) $6.50 (regularly $12.95)
10+ Stickease $4.00 (regularly $8.95)
35+ Stamp Sets from $2.00 to $8.00 (Let Us Adore Him, Lets Play Ball, Precious Alphabet, Card Sentiments, and other greats)
Embellishments like brads ($3), ribbon rounds ($4), chipboard ($3)
plus lots more!

Click here to start shopping!

*Sale continues through December 17 or while supplies last. Shipping/handling: US orders of $100+ have a flat rate shipping of $5. Tax is charged based on discounted amount. Sale has quantities restricted to FIVE per item to provide a smooth shopping experience for all customers.

Christmas Boutique

You are invited to a
Christmas Boutique

If you are in the Southern California (San Diego, Riverside) area,
please join us for our third annual Christmas Boutique!

If you want to find the perfect gifts, while still enjoying what the season is all about, you won’t want to miss this fun day. Come hand pick, design, or even create your gifts without crowds or stress!

You will enjoy great food, free creative make and take projects,
a free 5 minute massage, door prizes, and more!

Saturday, December 5th • 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
(Contact me for directions)

Featuring Gifts Galore from:
Close to my Heart Stamping & Scrapbooking
(Get some great discounts on my cash and carry products)
Homemade Gourmet
Pampered Chef
Dani’sHandcrafted Jewelry
Unique Children’s Accessories
Hand Painted Portraits
Arbonne International
Simply Fun Family Games
Lori’s Massage
and more!

Come make this fun card during the make and take session.
I am giving away these cute little bags which include a mini card and a mini stamp.
We would love to see you on Saturday! Contact me for more details.

We have a winner...

The winner of my November Creative Club contest is Marlene Spencer who created Project #3! Congratulations Marlene! You win a $10 gift certificate. I will give it to you at our next club meeting. Thanks for playing ladies! (And thanks to those who voted.) *Ü*

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

December Club Project - Mini Album Ornament

December’s Creative Club project will be a fun Mini Album Ornament. We will be using Close to my Heart’s Kraft Colored 3x3 Mini Albums to make ornaments to showcase some “year in review” family photos. You can also choose to make it into a little brag book as a gift for Grandma or for yourself. (They are the perfect size to keep in your purse to show off your adorable kiddos at a moments notice.)
The first page of the club kits will be stamped with the border as shown below without the type. You can choose to hand write, stamp, or use a computer font to personalize your title page.
There are 16 pages in this cute little album. Every other page will have a stamped border and journaling lines for you to fill in. The facing page will have a mat to place your photo. Below are a few examples from my sample mini album. Because I made mine into an ornament, my photos and journaling are vertical. You may choose to make yours horizontal if you do not plan to hang it on your tree.
I choose to use a photo of my wonderful hubby and me to finish off the book. (I am never fond of my profile pictures, but I thought this one was kind of cute in spite of my big nose. LOL!)My Creative Club meets the 2nd Wednesday of the month at 7pm at my house, however, you do not need to be local to be part of the club. My long distance members get their kits mailed to them and any orders they place, get drop shipped to them directly from the Close to my Heart office. (Sometimes they even get their orders before the local gals!) Next month’s club is on Wednesday, December 16th. If you would like to attend or order a kit, please contact me no later than December 5th so that I have enough time to order the supplies and prepare your kit(s).

Click here for more details on this super fun club! Contact me at lisa@myctmh.com for more information, to sign up for next month’s class, or to order your own club kit(s).

All supplies are from CTMH unless otherwise noted.
Cardstock
Colonial White, Cocoa, Dessert Sand, Foam Tool
Stamps
Frame of Mind, Vintage Christmas, Card Chatter - Christmas
Inks
Cocoa, Garden Green, Chocolate for distressing
Other
3x3 Mini Album (Kraft), Cocoa Grosgrain Ribbon, Cranberry Brads, Waxy Flax, 3-D Foam Tape