Friday, December 23, 2011

Watch What "Rock the Block" Includes

This week snuck by me! I'm guessing that many of us are busy wrapping up last minute Christmas details. So, I'll leave you with a fabulous video highlighting the Rock the Block special and I'll be back next week with more artwork.

Have a very blessed Christmas!


Sunday, December 18, 2011

Rock the Block - Christmas Magic Photo Tray

After using all my blocks from the Rock the Block special, I couldn't see letting the tray go to waste. It worked out perfectly as a shadow frame.

To start I mixed up some Create - a - Shade Pearl Paint with Pear Re-Inker to paint the edges, the perfect combination with the Believe Paper Packet. My embellishments were inspired by a darling mini album my fellow CTMH Consultant, Tresa Black made: painted corrugated stars, bling and silver embossed cork letters.

Rock the Block - Perfect for Ornaments

Our new special "Rock the Block" starts today. Place a minimum order of $25 from the Autumn/Winter 2011 Idea book and get two new products for just $15; an exclusive My Acrylix Rock the Block E-size stamp set and the My Creations Collage Cubes ( a new Spring/Summer 2012 sneak-peek product).
With My Creations Collage Cubes and coordinating stamp set, one of the project I created are ornaments for our Christmas tree. The blocks are made of sturdy light weight chipboard, so they won't weigh your branches down and will last for years to come.

To cover the cubes I painted each side with mod podge, laid it down on the paper (I used the Elemental Paper Packet), gave it a minute to dry and then cut off the excess paper using my cutting knife.  After I applied all the base paper, I went over the seems with a little more mod podge, after all my ornaments are likely going to be handle by my kids over and over again. To personalize each ornament I cut out initials (and a couple of flowers) with my Art Philosophy cartridge, added a fitting stamp from the Rock the Block stamp set  and two darling photos.

Christmas day I'll be taking our big family photo and I can't wait to order another Rock the Block set to make our annual ornaments for the family!



Tuesday, December 13, 2011

A Little Art Philosophy Take Out

Did you know that Close To My Heart now carries Kraft Cardstock? It's the perfect neutral. For this quick gift box, I cut the Art Philosophy take out box out of kraft, added a wee bit of stamping using Party Pennants and Love Life and finished it off with my favorite ribbon.

Tip: Rather than wrapping the ribbon all the way around the box and tying the bow on top, I wrapped a piece of ribbon just long enough to go around the box and tape under each side flap. Then I tied a pretty bow and attached it to the top. This way the recipient can open the gift, close it again without having to worry about tying another bow and still have it looking pretty. What I like best about this method is that the original recipient is likely to reuse it and I'm all about my crafts being used forward. 

Thursday, December 8, 2011

It's the Presentation That Makes the Gift

Looking for a cute way to spruce up a simple gift? The fry box decorated with a rolled paper rose from Close To My Heart's Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge offers the perfect presentation for anything from a set of handmade cards to gift cards to hot cocoa packets. 

You may notice that the outside paper comes from the Elemental Paper Packet, while the insides comes from Typeset. Here's a tip, before cutting your shape, adhere your two pieces of paper with a spray adhesive and then you'll only have to cut once.

Finished off with my favorite ribbon, stamped images (Harvest Happiness - cut with AP) and pins from the Bling Assortment I simply can't wait to fill it and brighten my son's bus drivers day with it!

Thank you Lisa for hosting the Art Philosophy blog hop!

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Art Philosophy: Perfect Finish for our Teacher's Christmas Gifts

Each year, I try to come up with something unique for the boys teachers. This year they will be receiving candy dishes decorated in buttons and crayons and finished with an Art Philosophy paper flower bouquet. (want another idea, see what I made for the end of the year gift)
Create custom sparkles with an inexpensive set of Bic Mark It permanent markers. You can even blend colors. The light gold wasn't dark enough for me, but the orange was too orange. I scribbled with orange on the carrier sheet and picked up some of the color with the light gold to make my own custom "gold" color.

For the flowers I used the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge and cut out Flower7 (pg 3) in Cranberry and New England Ivy in increasing 1/2 increments starting at 2.5". Attached each layer with foam tape for dimension.

To make them sparkle, I lined the edges with Red Glitz Glitter Gel. Then I finished them off with three sparkles in the center of each flower.


For the flower stems I used bamboo skewers and dyed them with our Close To My Heart New England Ivy reinker. Put a few drops in a bag to coat the skewers. Then roll them out onto paper towels to soak up some of the ink and make them dry faster.

Create a custom candy dish by gluing crayons around the outside of a glass dish with hot glue. My recommendation is to stick with a round dish wish straight upright sides and go smaller. I was amazed at how many crayons this took to complete. I bought the biggest box and used over half. Not as cost effective as I had intended, but still cute. You might want to consider stocking up on crayons at the beginning of the school year when they are on sale.

*I sprayed the bottom of the dish after the crayons were glued on with a clear spray paint to seal the crayons.

For the second candy dish I pulled out my stash of buttons. Honestly, I think I like the button version even better. Which one is your favorite?



Thursday, December 1, 2011

Still Here

I'm still here, even though I've disappeared for awhile. Right before our annual craft retreat I found out some exciting news, we are expecting. Our newest family member is anticipated to arrive May 26th. 

Things have been so different with this pregnancy. I'm just starting to feel semi-normal again. Some may say that it means I'm having a girl, but a big part of me thinks that it has more to do with being older this time around and having two other boys who keep me hopping. Although, I'd be happy to have a girl too, we'll find out in January.

Speaking of the boys, they are super excited. We created a video to share the news with distant family and our friends. Check it out, the boys are so cute, if I do say so myself.



While I have been taking a break, I have to say I've discovered just how much I love what I do and am really missing it. Sometimes we need to pull back from what we are doing to realize just how much it means to us.

Thank you for sticking with me. I'll be back, matter of fact, I've been working on a couple of tutorials that I hope to have up next week.


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Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Funny Story: Following the Rules

Normally, I am such a rule follower. From time to time, I wish I wasn't so concerned with the rules, because it does mean that I miss out on some of the fun shenanigans that my friends, who feel that rules are simply bendable guidelines, get into.

On Friday, I took my Mom out to a local garden. We missed the turn and while turning around, we saw a big Keep Out sign. It brought up this discussion about following the rules and if you can believe it, my Mom is one of those who believes that some rules are bendable. We laughed about how a sign like this probably wouldn't keep her out.

Flash forward to Sunday. My husband and his friend wanted to go hiking up to the old historic town of Taylor. Now I know the rules that keep Taylor off limits, but then I hear all the time about people who have hiked out to it without getting into trouble. I also know that we had no ill intentions of checking out the town (some head out to take remnants, not that there is much left). So, after reflecting on my discussion with my Mom, I decided that we'd go.

We parked right at the gate, after all if we were "caught" up there, I didn't want to appear that I was even trying to be sneaky. It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed several hours of hiking up to the town and around the limited proof that the town even existed.

On our way out, a truck came barreling up the road and the ranger jumped out of the truck. Before heading up, we had joked that if we were stopped, I'd do the talking (funny, the rule follower is in the one that would have to do the talking). I quickly stepped up and greeted the ranger, whom gruffly asked us if we knew where we were. He then proceeded to explain the seriousness of the situation and that he had collected our license plates (no need to worry, I won't be back) and that we were receiving a verbal warning. As if that wasn't enough to have me shaking inside, he then told us that he would be escorting us back to our cars. It was quite a hike in and now we were going to be escorted all the way out. He hopped back in his truck to turn around and we set off. Quickly, we discovered what he meant by "escorting" us out. He followed less than 5' behind us in his truck for more than a 1/2 mile. It felt sort of like a march to our doom... quite intemidating to say the least.

So, next time my hubby suggests we ignore the signs/rules, I can remind him of why I follow the rules and won't be joining in any more shenanigans. This one experience was ENOUGH!

*I do wish I had a picture of the ranger, but I thought it highly inappropriate to ask him to pose with me and the sign that told us to keep out in the first place. ;)

Thursday, September 1, 2011

My Updated Scraproom

Awhile back, I made a few changes to my room including updating the color to True Turquoise, which reminds me of a brighter version CTMH's sky blue. In Washington, we have a lot of grey days, now I have my own happy blue skies. I'm loving the change!

To share, I have created a new video. The lighting is a little wonky, but I'm guessing you'll get the idea. :)


Thursday, August 25, 2011

Fab Deal - 3 Free CTMH Stamps Sets

There are only 6 days to get over $40 in stamp sets FREE and another $17.95 stamp set for only $5!

Spend $50 on your favorite CTMH product (before tax/sh). Add on the August Stamp of the Month (a $17.95 value) for only $5. You'll receive the bonus Typeface Alphabet set (a $6.95 value) for free!
Add another $20 in goodies to your order to reach the $75 mark (before tax/sh) and receive Close To My Heart's first ever DOUBLE stamp set called Pair-a-Phrase (a $35.90 value) FREE!


The Close To My Heart / Cricut Art Philosophy Collection would be the perfect item to purchase and claim all three of your FREE stamp sets.  For only $99, you'll receive the phenomenal cartridge with over 700 images, 3 coordinating D size stamp sets (exclusive to the bundle) and 3 sheets of coordinating Dimensional Element chipboard shapes.
You can only combine these deals through August 31. Head to my website to order right away!
*Purchase $75+ and you'll be prompted to add all 3 stamp sets during check out.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Where have I been?

Have any of you missed me? I know I have been missing! A couple weeks back I fell and hurt myself (learn from me that a folding chair does not make a good step stool). As I healed, I spent some time focusing on my new exciting adventure.
I'm taking a leap of faith and officially stepping into the world of professional photography. Stop by my new website www.ChristineDavidPhotography.com and my facebook page and say "hi."

No fear, I'll be back to posting Close To My Heart goodness here, very soon!

 

Friday, August 19, 2011

Celebrate National Stamping Month with 3 FREE Stamp Sets

Celebrate National Stamping Month - Get a FREE My Acrylix double stamp set with your qualifying purchase!


GET A FREE MY ACRYLIX® DOUBLE STAMP SET WITH YOUR QUALIFYING PURCHASE!

To celebrate National Stamping Month in September, we are offering our first-ever double stamp set! You can get the exclusive My Acrylix® Pair-a-Phrase double stamp set FREE when you place an order of $75.00 US/$82.00 CAN from August 15 through September 30, 2011. You’ll love this double set—two D-size sets in one envelope—which includes lots of clever phrases and coordinating images you’ll use in your handmade cards all year. And with a retail value of $35.90/$39.90, this set drastically increases the value of your qualifying purchase! Have double the fun stamping during National Stamping Month with our new Pair-a-Phrase double stamp set!
Celebrate National Stamping Month - Get a FREE My Acrylix double stamp set with your qualifying purchase!

- - -  Add the September Stamp of the Month for just $5 & Receive a Bonus Stamp Set  - - -


FREE BONUS STAMP SET IN AUGUST!

In celebration of our newly updated Stamp of the Month program, we’re throwing in a little something extra: a FREE* bonus stamp set! In August, when you place an order of $50 US/$55 CAN or more in products and purchase the August Stamp of the Month set, Wicked, for just $5.00/$5.50, you’ll receive the My Acrylix® A Typeface bonus A-size set FREE (retail value $6.95/$7.75)! Think of it as two promotions in one—qualify for and purchase the discounted August Stamp of the Month set, and we’ll throw in a second stamp set FREE! It’s Extra! Extra!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

See it all 700 images here - CTMH Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge

I've received quite a few requests to see all 700 images that the new Close To My Heart Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge will cut. I'm happy to oblige! After looking at these images, I am sure you'll agree that it is a pretty amazing cartridge.

Right now I'm hosting an Art Philosophy special, but you'll have to visit my Facebook page for the details (while you are there, "like" my page to hear future specials first).

Ready to get your hands on this new cartridge? Shop online at www.CreatewithChristine.com

- click on the images to see full size -



Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Extra! Extra! New Stamp of the Month Program


FREE BONUS STAMP SET IN AUGUST!

In celebration of our newly updated Stamp of the Month program, we’re throwing in a little something extra: a FREE* bonus stamp set! In August, when you place an order of $50 US/$55 CAN or more in products and purchase the August Stamp of the Month set, Wicked, for just $5.00/$5.50, you’ll receive the My Acrylix® A Typeface bonus A-size set FREE (retail value $6.95/$7.75)! Think of it as two promotions in one—qualify for and purchase the discounted August Stamp of the Month set, and we’ll throw in a second stamp set FREE! It’s Extra! Extra!

Friday, July 29, 2011

Close To My Heart Extravaganza Mischief Artwork

When I received my big box of Extravaganza goodies, this paper packet was my favorite. While the main theme is Halloween, I see this paper packet being very versatile. When I look at it, I see heirloom layouts and masculine cards. My absolute favorite paper in this kit is the one used on the card directly below, it is a full sheet of vintage labels. Although all the great sayings on these labels are thanks to the creative art department.  
 

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