March SOTM Bloghop - Choose Happy

Welcome to March's Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! This month, we are featuring the stamp set "Choose Happy" - a set of 14 stamps. There are frames, flourishes and sentiments in this stamp set, and many uses for this set as the bloggers along this tour will show you, so sit back and enjoy the tour. You should have arrived here from Wendy Coffman's blog. If you get lost, a list of all blogs can be found here. 

The stamp set looks like this.

I chose to create some gift bags for my project this month. The frames in this stamp set lend themselves perfectly to this type of project. 

The first photo shows the Slate Paper Bags with White Daisy Cardstock stamped with a couple of the frames. I used our ShinHan markers to give the frames a little bit of detail. Our Mini Stapler is perfect for sealing these bags! 

My second set of bags are the Muslin Drawstring Bags. I stamped directly on the bags with Pigment Inks and then added some of the White Enamel Stars, coloured with our ShinHan markers, along with some Bitty Sparkles. They are perfect little gift bags for something small but meaningful. 

I hope you enjoyed my projects. The next blog on the hop is Nancy Womersley's blog. I'm sure she has something wonderful to share with you! 

You can get this beautiful stamp set for just $5 this month with only a $50 purchase. Visit my shopping site here. Remember this stamp set is only available until March 31st! 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock

Stamps: Choose Happy

Inks: (all Pigment Inks) Gypsy, Pear, Lagoon, Thistle, Sunset, Pacifica

Accessories: Muslin Drawstring Bags, Slate Paper Bags, Mini Stapler and Mini Staples, Corner Rounder, ShinHan Markers (Marigold, Cerulean Blue Light, Peacock Green, Peony Purple, Leaf Green), Bitty Sparkles, White Enamel Stars

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Mika's Card for her Sitter

A good friend of mine looks after Mika when I need a dog sitter. Mary has known Mika since the day I brought her home when she was just 8 weeks old. Mika simply adores Mary and the feeling is mutual. Mika can just sense Mary's presence and she recognizes her name from any other. I can list off dozens of names with no response but when I say "Mary", Mika's ears perk up and she goes bananas! She just knows... and Mary just loves her! 

Mary is looking after her for a full day for me shortly and I thought that it would be nice if Mika gave her a card as a thank you. So, here it is. Mary doesn't have a good picture of her "baby", so that's included as well. 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Heartstrings Paper Pack, Lagoon Cardstock, Teal Glitter Paper
Stamps: None
Inks: None
Accessories: Artfully Sent Cartridge, Heartstrings Complements, Clear Sparkles, ShinHan Markers

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Heart 2 Heart - Think Pink Challenge

This week at Heart 2 Heart, the challenge is to Think Pink... and Close To My Heart has some wonderful pinks in their collection! I chose to create a card for a friend of mine who is going through a difficult time at the moment and I wanted it to be a very feminine card (so what better colour to use than PINK?!) However, I just couldn't justify pink leaves for the flower, so they are green (but I almost made them pink as well...)

Won't you join us and show off YOUR PINK at Heart 2 Heart this week?

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: White Daisy Cardstock, Pixie Cardstock, Cotton Candy Cardstock, Hollyhock Cardstock, Sweet Leaf Cardstock, Pink Glitter Paper, Pixie Paper Fundamentals Cardstock
Stamps: Your Own Kind of Wonderful
Inks: Pixie, Hollyhock
Accessories: Art Philosophy Cartridge, Artbooking Cartridge, Spray Pen, Pixie Reinker, Base and Bling Gems - Pink (ret.), Thin Foam Tape

Enjoy,
Alyson

Card Kit for a Special Friend

This card kit was created for a special friend who is is need of a little TLC at the present time. I'm hoping that it gives her a bit of a lift and cheers her up at least a bit :)

The kit is based on Lisa Stenz's awesome monogrammed card kit from a few years back - I just used a different holder for the cards and created eight cards instead of four.

Although this photo shows only four cards, there are four additional cards that look exactly the same as these ones. 

Here is a close up of one of the cards. 

This shows the lined envelopes and the seals for the envelopes. 

And finally, the box that holds it all! 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: Heartstrings Paper Pack, Cranberry Cardstock, White Daisy Cardstock, Whisper Cardstock, Bulk White Daisy Cards and Envelopes
Stamps: Perfect Fit - Frames, Monogram C
Inks: Lagoon
Accessories: Art Philosophy Cartridge, Journaling Cards Box, Foam Tape, Thin Foam Tape, Pleated Grey Ribbon (not CTMH) 

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Atlantic Hearts Sketch 95

This week's sketch at Atlantic Hearts is one that can be simple or very detailed... I chose to create a very detailed project. My card is created of several layers and I have to say that the evening that I chose to work on this card was one where my brain and my hands decided not to co-operate with each other. It was one of those nights where my mind was on one wavelength but my hands were on another planet, I think... It ended up taking me almost 5 hours to finish this! I think we have all had those creative times when things just don't come together as easily as we would like - for example, it took me it took me forever to tape the edges of the fabric to create the bow - I ended up doing it four times in total to try and get it straight and even this piece didn't end up straight but I finally had to give in as it was past 2am at that time... 

So, here is the final project - I am pleased with how it finally turned out 

(even though I got to bed at 3am).

The card size is 6x6 inches. 

Come and show off your artwork this week at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge.

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated:

Paper: Chantilly Paper Pack (ret.), White Daisy Cardstock, Cotton Candy Cardstock, Pear Cardstock, Ruby Cardstock, Buttercup Cardstock (ret.)
Stamps: Have a Happy Day
Inks: Pear
Accessories: Artiste Cartridge, Artbooking Cartridge, Chantilly Textiles (ret.), Sparkles Flourishes, Green Copic Marker (not CTMH), Pink Flower Button (ret.), Buttercup Waxy Flax (ret.), Foam Tape, Licorice Opaques (ret.)

Enjoy, 
Alyson

It's a Starry, Starry Night...

I have had this 3-D Star sitting in my supply closet for such a long time... and finally decided to do something with it! It now graces one of my doors. Done in my favourite colour scheme, I couldn't let it sit around any longer. 

The photo below shows a close up view of the centre and the shimmer trim plus the twine. 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: Skylark Paper Pack, Lagoon Cardstock
Stamps: None
Inks: None
Accessories: Teal Shimmer Trim, Paradise Baker's Twine (ret.), Teal Base and Bling (ret.), White Gathered Ribbon (not CTMH), Sparkles Flourishes - Small

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Display Tray - Featuring Mika!

I have been wanting to create a display tray for a long time and I wanted to use Mika, my puppy, as my feature. She is so adorable and I thought she would be a perfect subject. The Brushed Paper Pack is one of my favourites and I decided to focus on the pink, green and a little bit on the yellow for this project.

I turned the photos into primarily black and while with a few minor exceptions - there are some hints of colour here and there. I wondered why the pink glitter paper seemed so dark and as I was putting my supplies away, I noticed that I had actually been using PURPLE glitter paper... no wonder it seemed so dark! A few stamp sets with beautiful sentiments, some specific Cricut cuts, some appropriate embellishments and this didn't take very long to come together at all!

It now has a special place in my home for all to see.

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: Brushed Paper Pack, White Daisy Cardstock, Pixie Cardstock, Canary Cardstock, Pear Cardstock, Purple Glitter Paper, Green Glitter Paper
Stamps: Polka Dot Alphabet, A Little Note, Big Hug, Your Own Kind of Wonderful, Happy Thoughts (ret.), Cricut Bundle - Sweet and Lovely
Inks: Black Pigment Ink, Canary Pigment Ink, Pixie Pigment Ink, Pear Pigment Ink, Pear, Cotton Candy, Pixie, Canary
Accessories: Artiste Cartridge, Artbooking Cartridge, Pixie Extra Thick Twine, Stuck on You Puffies, Junebug Puffies, Brushed Assortment, Pink Shimmer Trim, Chevron Border Punch, Scallop Border Punch, Foam Tape, Thin Foam Tape, Sparkles Clear Flourishes - Small, Sparkles - Clear Assortment, ShinHan Markers

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Heart 2 Heart Challenge - Share the Love the CTMH Way!

This week's challenge at Heart 2 Heart is to Share the Love the Close To My Heart Way! That means to share your favourite CTMH product. Anyone who knows me knows that I LOVE the colour turquoise. My home is decorated in turquoise, my office is turquoise, white and black and about half of my wardrobe is turquoise! So it probably isn't any surprise that my favourite Close To My Heart product is our Lagoon paper and ANY of our turquoise products - the Teal Shimmer Trim, Teal Glitter Paper, teal gems, Glacier cardstock (it's pretty close to turquoise in colour)... You get the idea. 

For my project, I totally CASEd a card that I saw on Pinterest. I fell in love with this card and I have to give credit to the creator, Dianne Beans. For my take on the card, I decided to pull out one of my favourite older paper packs as well - For Always. One of the reasons I love this paper pack is because I can pair it with any colour and it looks awesome. So I chose to colour one of my favourite pieces of patterned paper in this pack with - you guessed it - Lagoon ink! I paired it with some of our Teal Glitter Paper and then used my Cricut to cut the flowers and leaves. Some retired gems and that's it... I LOVE my turquoise card! 

What's YOUR favourite CTMH product? Share the love with us at Heart 2 Heart Challenges! 

Products used are all Close To My Heart

Paper: For Always Paper Pack (ret.), Teal Glitter Paper, White Daisy Cardstock, Lagoon Cardstock, Glacier Cardstock
Stamps: Have a Happy Day
Inks: Lagoon
Accessories: Art Philosophy Cartridge, Foam Tape, Teal Base and Bling Gems (ret.)

Enjoy, 
Alyson

Atlantic Hearts Sketch 93

This week's sketch at Atlantic Hearts is one for which I decided to dig deep - deep in my stash for some old paper, that is! I used some Avonlea paper from WAY back! The teal colour of this paper was perfect for what I wanted. Unfortunately, my camera just doesn't seem to like these colours when it comes to photographing my artwork... 

I decided to interpret the flower part of the sketch a little bit differently and use ribbon accents instead. I created three ribbon banners facing upwards instead. 

I also separated my scalloped bottom from the base of the card for a little more interest. 

I discovered after some  experimenting that Glacier ink matches the mint design in the Avonlea teal paper almost exactly! I still have some of this precious paper left so that's good to know :) 

Won't you join us at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge this week and show off your artwork? 

Products used are Close To My Heart unless otherwise indicated: 

Paper: Avonlea Paper Pack (ret.), Colonial White Cardstock
Stamps: Perfect Fit - Frames 2, Perfect Fit - Birthday
Inks: Glacier, Slate, Twilight (ret.)
Accessories: Artiste Cartridge, Aqua Dots, Foam Tape, Scallop Punch with holes (not CTMH), Grey Lace (not CTMH), Teal Gathered Ribbon (not CTMH), Grey Satin Ribbon (not CTMH), Teal Satin Ribbon (not CTMH)

Enjoy, 
Alyson