Love of Color - CTMH Technique Blog Hop

Welcome to the December Technique Blog Hop. You may have arrived here from Lauren's blog, just keep following the links, hopping from blog to blog until you complete the circle. Please leave comments; we really appreciate them!  If you get lost, a complete list of CTMH consultants participating this month can be found at the end of  Melissa's post, which is also your next stop!
Since we're nearing the end of the fall/winter holiday season, I wanted to jump ahead and bring your attention to a stamp set that may have escaped your notice. You Have My Heart is on page 101 of the Holiday Expressions catalog. It may be a little early for Valentine's but this is the last month to order from this book and I don't want you to miss out! The main images in this set are large, and the example is a scrapbook layout, but it still works for cards. It also has a nice sized, non-fluffy "Happy Valentine's Day" sentiment.

I was thinking pink since February is one of the few times a year I get to use it, so I looked in Love of Color for the section with Ballerina,  new to the palette this year. The four color suggestion is Ballerina, Sugarplum, Carolina and Pewter. When this guide was introduced at convention, they emphasized suggestion. It's not set in stone. We were encouraged to swap one shade for a similar one, so I did! Instead of Carolina, I used Mint (see the three color idea on the next page?). And I didn't stick to Pewter, just grey in general.

The card design is Pattern #7 from Make It From You Heart Volume 4 - Cardmaking (MIFYHV4#7). I enjoyed mixing the papers together for this card, something I almost never do. I plan to do mostly mixing with the papers from the next Seasonal Expressions. I pulled the Mint B&T from Oh What Fun and the Wood Grain is from the Seasons Mix-ins. Do you recognize the heart border? It's a Zip Strip, also from Season's Mix-ins!

When I was making this card, I thought I would have to choose between the floral pattern and the sentiment to go on top of the heart shape. But I was able to layer ALL 3! The solid heart shape is stamped in Ballerina. Next, I stamped the floral design in Sugarplum and finally, the sentiment in Pewter. Remember, when using large, solid stamps, it is especially important to use the "squishy thing" (or VersaMat™) under your paper when stamping.

The first mat is Sugarplum glitter paper. Did you know our glitter paper doesn't shed? You won't be covered in fairy dust after working with it. I know, that's not nearly as much fun, but some people have an issue with it. Another tip, save an old cutting blade to use just when cutting glitter paper. I'm not sure the glitter paper dulls the blade, but you don't need a nice, new, sharp one for glitter paper, so why risk it? I also have a separate one for Kraft paper. It's easy to label the blades with a Sharpie. I always pull my blade toward me on the SureCut™ Trimmer. Someone, maybe Fiskars, told me NOT to cut back and forth as it wears down the wire. I also like to know which way I am using the blade, so when I switch, or it jumps out, I know which way to put it back.






On the inside I stamped the sentiment and some of the smaller stamps. I colored the floral spray with the Sugarplum Shimmer brush and then picked up Mint with a Waterbrush for the leaves.

Thanks for stopping by. When you are done here, hop over to Melissa's blog and check out her idea. I'm sure it's brilliant!










If you aren't already working with a consultant, you can shop here.













Here's a list of the products I used:

• D1796 You Have My Heart stamp set
• Z6501 Ballerina ink
• Z6500 Sugarplum ink
• Z2832 Pewter ink
• Z4189 Intense Black ink
• Z6503 Mint ink
• Z3224 Waterbrush - small
• X7238B Oh What Fun Paper Packet
• X9000 Seasons Mix-in Paper Packet
• X6027 White Daisy cardstock
• X5994 Ballerina cardstock
• Z4188 Sugarplum glitter paper
• Z4210 Shimmer Brush - Sugarplum
• 1772 Ultra-Thin Glue Dots
• X254 White Cards & Envelopes value pack
• Z1836 Non-stick Micro-tip Scissors
• Z3326 Tombow® Permanent Adhesive
• 9045 Love of Color guide (don't forget an Everyday Life™ album too)

Craft with Heart

Can you believe it's August? What happened to July? And June...and May and...???

Since returning from the Close To My Heart® Convention a month ago it's been very difficult to keep  quiet about all the new goodies we have in store. August may drag on and on! But there are a few things you can get your hands on early...

First is the More Magical special. This will give you a sneak peek of three of the new colors we're adding to the Exclusive Inks™ palette. You can read about that under Specials.

Second is an exciting new program: Craft with Heart™, featuring the wonderful Cut Above® kits!! [insert applause here] Everyone loves these kits because there is no cutting required! No fuss, no muss, scrapbooking starts and ends with our Cut Above® layout kits. With pre-printed base pages, paper pieces, die-cuts, stickers, and easy to follow directions, these kits help you preserve your memories in minutes. All you need is adhesive and a pen to complete the kit. What could be easier?

Automatic delivery right to your door!!

Craft with Heart™ is our new SUBSCRIPTION program!! You can have a kit for every month of the year. Each kit make two double-page scrapbook layouts. Of course, Memory Protectors are also included. The new Holiday Expressions catalog begins September 1, but you can see the Cut Above® kits and subscribe now. You don't have to wait!

We will be offering  three subscription choices in total. Only the 12-month subscription is being available early. With the TWELVE month option your will receive one box every four months. Each box contains four different kits. You will be charged once every 12 months.

• This option gives you a 20% discount on the kits.
• Shipping is FREE!
• PLUS receive a code from Persnickety Prints for 30 free 4x6 prints!

The 12-month option is the best price per kit, only $14.36.

The other two options will be:

• ONE kit shipped to you every month, billed monthly.
• FOUR kits in one box, billed and shipped every four months (each catalog cycle)
• This option gives you a 10% discount and saves on shipping costs.

Here's a chart comparing all three choices:

Subscribing is easy: 

• Follow this link to my web page.
• Click on the SUBSCRIBE button.
• Sign-in to your account (or create one).
• In August, only the 12-Month option is available. Click CONTINUE.
• Select or enter the address where the subscription will be delivered. Click CONTINUE.
• Select or enter the billing information. Click CONTINUE.
• Review your subscription information. Click SUBSCRIBE.

By subscribing in August for the 12-Month subscription, your first box will ship right away!

Craft with Heart™ can help everyone preserve their memories. This will help you have completed projects using quality CTMH products. The kits are exclusive and only available through the subscription. If you like the convenience of Cut Above® kits, you're going to love Craft with Heart™!

Operation Smile™

Here's the picture from the CTMH blog post of the Share a Smile Challenge winners. The beautiful young lady between President Monica (center) and Avis  (right) is an Operation Smile™ Ambassador. Chadlene stood up in front of her class at 3 years old to sing for them. Due to her facial deformities, the other children laughed and bullied her. Before that, she thought she was just like everyone else. She prayed for a miracle and Operation Smile performed the necessary operation. She used singing as part of her therapy. In 2013, Chadlene won a reality singing show in the Philippines. Now she tells her story and uses her talent as an instrument to help other children receive their miracles.

.Every year at convention there is an auction of items made by consultants. These items are amazing pieces of art! I will try to share them once they are made public. In addition to the auction, some teams have additional fund raising opportunities. At the 2018 North Convention, these combined efforts raised over $81,000, the largest amount ever raised at a single CTMH event!

Our customers have been a big part of raising money for Operation Smile™ too. Remember that we offer a special stamp set, currently Punny Pals, and when you purchase this set at the regular D-size price, $7 of the proceeds are donated to the organization. If  you haven't already purchased these cuties, do so now, they'll be leaving us August 31! I also have the matching Thin Cuts dies available. Another way to help is by rounding up your order every time you make a purchase. We also offer  Operation Smile™  t-shirts. For every one purchased, we will donate $10 USD of the proceeds.

Thank you for your continued support of Operation Smile™!!

News from Convention

The first bit of news is an adjustment to our Idea Book publication. We will have three issues of Seasonal Expressions, just like before, except that they will include all the current products so there's only one catalog per cycle. There will no longer be a large Annual Inspirations, year long book.  With this modification, the current Annual Inspirations will continue through August 31, 2018. Keep in mind that, as always, some products may sell out as we approach the retirement date, so shop early!

The NEW Holiday Expressions that was revealed to consultants at our annual convention this past weekend, will begin September 1, 2018 and run through December 31, 2018. This is the same Expressions schedule we have had for the "small books." The catalog has been beefed up and actually has more pages than last year's Annual Inspirations.

Let's talk colors! It should be no surprise that Bashful, the current Color of the Year will be departing to the great palette in the sky, but never fear, a new shade is on it's way! If you love this delicate pink though, don't be shy, make sure you order the re-inker for your stamp pad and stock up on the cardstock and glitter paper. 

10 additional colors will be leaving to make room for 10 new shades. Gone in the new CTMH year will be:

• Crystal Blue
• Juniper
• Flaxen
• Sorbet
• Pacifica
• Tangerine
• Blossom
• Cranberry
• Poppy
• Nutmeg

The mini-pigment pads are discontinued. Full size pigment pads are coming in select colors.

The Fundamentals line is retiring.

Be sure to keep an eye on my cloud based Retiring List where I've added notes and will update you as products sell out.

One of the many highlights of convention this year was having Stacy Julian, former DOTS consultant, back with us. Her new product line, Story by Stacy, expands in the 2018 Holiday Expressions. She made a quick video to give you a peek. When you're shopping STAMPAGANZA this month, be sure to add Colorful Texture and Quotable Words to your cart. Not only will you be able to get a 3rd stamp set FREE, but prices will be going up slightly on stamp sets for the first time ever.

Stay tuned for more updates and info on new products!!

More questions? Leave a comment!

New colors coming!!

Word from the Close To My Heart convention today is that new colors are coming in the 2016-17 Annual Inspirations (releases August 1, 2016)! We'll be saying good-bye to several shades from the Adventure collection:

• Topiary
• Gypsy
• Pear
• Honey
• Sunset
• Cotton Candy
• Hollyhock

Be sure to stock up on cardstock, finish out your ink pad collection and grab the reinkers before they sell out!

Welcome to my new blog!!

Over the years, we've had several different social media outlets. Right now I have My Online Business Account (OBA) or website, Pinterest and a business Facebook page. While there is a lot of overlap between all of these, I've decided to start a blog for more in-depth info and because they are easier to search than Facebook.

PLEASE, feel free to send suggestions and feedback. This is new technology for me so I'll be starting simple and expanding as I learn new things.  I'd be thrilled to hear someone say, "Let Me Show You How!"

At the end of June, I spent a few days at the Disneyland Hotel with 1,000 of my closest friends for this year's Close To My Heart annual convention.