December 2015 CTMH Cross Canada Blog Hop - Where We Create!

Welcome to our December blog hop featuring where we create! If you need ideas about how to organize your supplies and your work space, this hop is for you.

We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers - Thank you… now on to our hop!

If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to follow us across Canada then please start at the beginning and join Michelle at My Creations With Michelle. If you came from Michelle's blog then you are in the right place!

I am fortunate to have two creative spaces is my home.  My craft room is located in a main-floor bedroom and it is jam packed with all my scrapbooking and card making supplies, along with fabric, yarn, candle-making supplies, cross stitch kits and supplies, a few odds and ends! The non-paper crafting items are in the closet...hahahaha! I hardly touch that stuff anymore now that I make cards and scrapbook.  This is the craft room:

And a closer look at my shelf holding flowers and some of my ribbon.  You can't see the book shelf to the right that holds all my stamp sets and the wall unit, that would be behind me if I was sitting in the chair, that houses my extensive paper collection!  I'll let imagination take you there.

 And then, there's the ribbon hanging on the front of the closet door, arranged by colour.....I think I have a little problem with ribbon!

The second space in my home is my classroom/studio area.  Once upon a time, I taught classes at my dining room table but we had this wonderful space in the lower level of our home that was not being used at all.  The natural light from the windows and the coziness of the wood stove in the winter makes this the perfect place to gather, teach, learn and have fun.

This room is L-shaped and so I can set up additional tables in that space for really large events.  Do you have a space dedicated to crafting or do you use the kitchen table?  As long as you have a spot to let your creativity flow, its all good.  If you are in Kingston, Nova Scotia feel free to drop in and see my classroom for yourself at one of my events.

Merry Christmas everyone!!!
Roz

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Nicky of Timeless Cottage If you get lost along the way, you can head to Michelle S Blog, http://mycreationswithmichelle.blogspot.ca, as she has the complete blog list. Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative in what ever space you have available to you!   We hope you will join us again next month when we will be feature Creating With Watercolours. Mark January 15th on your calendars and hop along with us.

November 2015 CTMH Cross Canada Blog Hop

Welcome to our November Blog Hop featuring how we prepare for Christmas.

We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers. Thank you… now on to our hop!

If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to follow us across Canada then please start at the beginning and join My Creations With Michelle  If you came from Michelle's blog then you are in the right place!

My preparations for Christmas always start with making cards and I host a Christmas Card Play Day every year.  Yesterday was that day and I had a few friends over to create 24 cards!  It was a wonderful day, we took our time creating our cards, had a delicious lunch and listened to Christmas music all day long.  We even indulged in a glass of wine in the afternoon. This day always puts me in a festive mood and yesterday was no exception....now I'm ready to decorate, shop, bake, and just be merry!  Here are the ladies, working hard *wink, wink*! I don't see any wine glasses, do you?

And the cards they created:

We created two of each of these lovely cards!   "There's A Feeling of Christmas" was CASed from Pam Wallace and the "Oh What Fun it is" from Dawn Montagano.  Here are closer looks at a few of the cards:

Washi tape fun!

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Krista's Simply Creating.  If you get lost along the way, you can head back to Michelle S's blog, as she has the complete blog list.

Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. We hope you will join us again next month when we will be feature Where we create . So mark December 15th on your calendars and hop along with us.

Helllloooooooo!

Can you hear me saying "helllllooooooo" in a high-pitched shrill voice?? That is what is stuck in my head after helping my Aunt Edna move earlier this month.  The packers that came in were wonderful, but one fella said "helllloooooo" in that high-pitched voice over and over and over and now it's stuck in my head!!!  I did want to pop in here to say "Hello" though, it's been a little while since I've posted - life has just been crazy. 

It started with a bout of Shingles, then helping my aunt move, then frantically prepping for my all-day card day before I head to Salt Lake City next week for Album Retreat.  My preparations for the retreat included uploading photos to 'Studio J' so that Home Office could print them for us....FREE!  We also received two bonus layouts, so I chose to do one with photos to send with our Christmas cards and this is what I created with the second:

You may notice that this collection is not one of our currently available paper packages.....'Studio J' has tons of our retired collections to create with and some exclusive collections as well.  So much fun to do and this layout took me less than 30 minutes!!  Go play.....it doesn't cost you a thing until you decide you want to order your layouts!

September CTMH Cross Canada Blog Hop

Welcome to our September Blog Hop featuring our favourite new paper packs. We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers....whether it was something that you really liked or some new technique that was used that you would like to learn how to do.   Thank you… now on to our hop!

If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to follow us across Canada then please start at the beginning and join Michelle. If you came from there  then you are in the right place!

My favourite paper collection is "Sangria" - I love the warm, fall colours and the prints in this collection.

I have only used the one patterned paper and coordinating card stocks on my layout,  and I love the bold chevron print. I made some Cricut cuts with our new "Artistry" cartridge and I've also used our stamp of the month, "Paper Garden"  I used the "rock and roll" technique to stamp the flowers and 2nd generation stamping in the bottom right corner.  This is the layout my hostess club will be doing next week, hope they like it!

Additional supplies used:  Fern Thick Twine, Foam tape, Cocoa, Poppy and Pomegranate inks. Glue pen.

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Nicky's Timeless Cottage  If you get lost along the way, you can head back to Michelle's blog as she has the complete blog list. 

Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. We hope you will join us again next month when we will be featuring our newest Cricut Cartridge, Artistry. So mark October 15th on your calendars and hop along with us.

Love CTMH's Zoe collection!

Hi there!  Today I just wanted to share some artwork featuring one of the new collections from the Annual Inspirations 2015-16 that is releasing on September 1st.  CTMH pre-released the Zoe suite of paper & embellishments and I am in love with this collection!  This is what my hostess club created with some of this collection:

This layout is from a workshop that Tina Lovell created and shared with consultants.  I made a few slight changes to accomodate my product availability....love all the doodling on this one!  Then of course I had leftovers and my group gets to create some homemade Picture My Life cards, so these are the cards we made, front and back. 

I just love the colours and the versatility the Zoe collection offers.  To purchase Zoe for yourself, go here: http://rozkelly.ctmh.com

See you next time!
Roz

August 2015 Cross Canada Blog Hop - Summer Fun

Welcome from Nova Scotia to our August Blog Hop featuring Summer Fun projects. We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers... Thank you!

If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to follow us across Canada then please start at the beginning and join Michelle at http://mycreationswithmichelle.blogspot.ca If you came from Michelle's blog then you are in the right place!

My summer fun thing to do is travel......well really, it's an all year thing for me, but I had hoped to travel a little more this summer since my husband is now retired.  It didn't quite work out that way, repairs to our home have kept us local but I did do a workshop with a travel theme.   Hopefully I will have some "wanderful" photos to add soon!  This first layout I am showing you is the last one created with my paper pack:

The workshop featured the Wanderful paper pack, Compliments, and accessories and a little stamping, and is perfect for my travel photos this summer.  I used the WOTG stamp set, along with the May SOTM - "Just Sayin", both retired.   I also used our Mini Stapler....love that thing!  The staples are so tiny....can you see them?  The next layout is one that I CASed from Brenda Rose and modified to fit my needs:

This one was lots of fun, incorporating our Black Arrow Washi Tape and a couple of cool techniques.  Love how the patterned paper is cut so that you don't loose the design in the bottom right hand corner!  Lastly, the workshop attendees did this layout that we made at our Thrive event with Brae Montgomery in Barrie, ON....

I love the layering of the papers and the use of so many of the compliments & accessories stickers on this layout!  No stamping at all on this one!   This workshop used the entire pack of paper and I  added a couple of sheets of colonial white and flaxen cardstock.  However, there is very little paper left over and I will be making PML cards with that!  Love it when I can use something completely....gives me the liberty to buy more! With our new catalogues set to launch in a couple of weeks, I will want lots more!!

Most of the products I've used are still available, some are retiring the end of the month. Just click on the products mentioned to purchase.  I have one kit left if anyone local is interested in it!  

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Nicky of Timeless Cottage.  If you get lost along the way, you can head to Michelle S blog, http://mycreationswithmichelle.blogspot.ca as she has the complete blog list.

Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. Join us again next month when we will be featuring our favourite new Paper Collections. Mark September 15th on your calendars and hop along with us.

Seaside - I can dream I'm at the beach

We have been having the worst summer weather here on the east coast....chilly temps and lots of overcast skies, rain here and there too and not much sunshine over the past two weeks.  When I decided to do my hostess club layout this month with  CTMH Seaside Paper, I was hoping I would have some great beach pictures to put on it....I can dream, right!?

 We have been doing a 12 x 12 layout, along with some homemade pocket cards so that in essence, we have two double-page layouts when complete by inserting the pocket page in between the two 12 x 12 pages.  We stamped images from this month's Stamp of the Month, S1507 "Life is Wonderful"  and also used C1594 Treasured Friendship.  Several distressing techniques were used as well - sanding, tearing, and inking.  I also cut the sea birds, fence, lighthouse, and pilings with a Sissix set that I have had FOREVER and hardly ever use....aren't they cute?

As well, Jessica will be thrilled to know that I used her leftover zip strips that I saved from the garbage on the 8 layouts we created as a club!  Thanks Jess!!

Retiring CTMH Stamp Sets

Good morning!  Today I want to share a list of retiring stamp sets - and when you purchase $25 in stamp sets, get a Hostess Rewards stamp set for $5 or the Stamp of the Month Free!  Get 'em now or you'll be disappointed:

A1147 Hanukkah Celebration 1-Sep
A1152 Joyful Wishes 1-Sep
A1153 Hope 1-Sep
A1155 Quick Cards—Japanese Blossom 1-Sep
A1157 Quick Cards—Island Greetings 1-Sep
A1161 Beyond Measure 1-Sep
A1162 Bright Spirits 1-Sep
A1163 Practical Planning 1-Sep
A1165 Capture the Day 1-Sep
A1166 Quoth the Raven 1-Sep
A1168 O Holy Night 1-Sep
A1169 Well Wishes 1-Sep
A1171 A Little Note 1-Dec
B1403 To You and Yours 1-Sep
B1432 Love This 1-Sep
B1442 Belated Birthday 1-Sep
B1452 Funky Blossoms 1-Sep
B1454 Thanksgiving Wreath 1-Sep
B1455 Be Jolly 1-Sep
B1456 Born to Roam 1-Sep
B1457 Tweet Me 1-Sep
B1458 Cuddly Salutations 1-Sep
B1459 Celebrate Love 1-Sep
B1461 Happy Mail 1-Sep
B1464 Puppy Party 1-Sep
B1465 Glitter Glam 1-Sep
B1467 You Mean the World to Me 1-Sep
B1468 Merriest Christmas 1-Sep
B1469 His Love 1-Dec
B1470 Love Ya Silly 1-Dec
B1471 Variety of Thanks 1-Sep
B1472 Love This Story 1-Sep
B1477 Exotic Flower 1-Sep
C1504 Fall Harvest 1-Sep
C1506 Flakey Friends 1-Sep
C1522 Creepy Creatures 1-Sep
C1533 Fabulous You 1-Sep
C1556 Paisley Perfect 1-Sep
C1557 Polar Bear Holiday 1-Sep
C1561 One-Way Borders 1-Sep
C1562 Mary and Babe 1-Sep
C1570 Lifting Spirits 1-Sep
C1576 Pick a Posey 1-Sep
C1585 Australian Salutations 1-Sep
C1586 Australian Thanks 1-Sep
C1587 Sing Glory 1-Sep
C1589 Lifetime of Happiness 1-Sep
C1592 World Traveler 1-Sep
C1593 Hats Off 1-Sep
C1595 Hello Summer 1-Sep
C1596 Happy Hexagons 1-Sep
C1597 Rainy Day 1-Sep
C1598 Noel 1-Sep
C1600 Happy Birds 1-Sep
C1601 Nursery Charms 1-Sep
C1602 Magical Moment 1-Sep
C1603 A Bunch of Thanks 1-Dec
C1606 A Thing Well Done 1-Dec
C1617 You're the Bomb 1-Dec
C1613 Paper Bird 1-Sep
C1614 Tagged with Love 1-Sep
D1469 Polka Dot Alphabet 1-Sep
D1507 Urban Alphabet 1-Sep
D1540 In the Background 1-Sep
D1541 Fast and Furious 1-Sep
D1543 Country-Born 1-Sep
D1544 Distressed Backgrounds 1-Sep
D1550 Happy Autumn 1-Sep
D1552 Magical Days 1-Sep
D1553 Yuletide Greetings 1-Sep
D1554 Christmas Village 1-Sep
D1559 Geometric Backgrounds 1-Sep
D1596 Outback Adventure 1-Sep
D1597 Hoppy Birthday 1-Sep
D1602 A Budding Friendship 1-Sep
D1603 Shreddin' the Slopes 1-Sep
D1608 Better with a Friend 1-Sep
D1615 Sweet As Sugar 1-Sep
D1616 Have a Happy Day 1-Sep
D1632 Amour 1-Dec
D1640 Celebrate Australia 1-Sep
E1026 Vogue Alphabet 1-Sep
M1043 Sprig Wreath 1-Sep
M1044 Spring Banner 1-Sep
M1045 My Happy 1-Sep
M1046 Guiding Heart 1-Sep
M1047 Timely Tidings 1-Sep
M1048 A Quick Hello 1-Sep
M1049 Blooming Heart 1-Sep
M1052 Mini Valentine 1-Dec

Cheers!

July 2015 Cross Canada Blog Hop - Operation Smile

Hello from Nova Scotia and welcome to our July Blog Hop featuring the current Operation Smile Stamp Set, "Happy Everything". When you purchase this stamp set , Close To My Heart will donate $3 to Operation Smile, a non-profit organization that performs life-altering surgeries that give children confidence for a lifetime. They have performed over 220,000 surgeries since being founded in 1982. To purchase any of the items seen in our blog hop today, contact your local consultant.

We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers..... Thank you… now on to our hop!

If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to follow us across Canada then please start at the beginning and join My Creations with Michelle    If you came from there, then you are in the right place!

I have been hosting a card buffet workshop and this is one of the cards I am offering.  It's a great masculine card that uses recycled and household items.....box board (from cereal boxes for example) and tinfoil! 

 The tinfoil is glued to the box board with our Bonding Memories Broad Tip Glue Pen, then folded over the edge.  I then embossed it with a basket weave embossing folder to make it look like a metal sheet. The stamped image is from the "Happy Everything" Operation Smile set, as is the inside sentiment - both stamped with Black ink.  CTMH card stock colours used are Black, White Daisy, and Whisper, all pieces were sponged with black ink.  I ran our black Shinhan marker along the edge of the tinfoil to distress.  Added a few black brads and voila, a masculine card for any occasion.

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Nicky's Timeless Cottage  If you get lost along the way, you can head to Michelle S Blog, http://mycreationswithmichelle.blogspot.ca  as she has the complete blog list.

Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way.  Join us again next month when we will be featuring  projects full of Summer Fun.  Mark August 15th on your calendars and hop along with us.

Picture My Life/Project Life Cards

Good Morning.....just a quick little post to share today with a few cute little cards you can use in your Picture My Life or Project Life albums.  I did these cards to go along with the layout using CTMH Blossom paper that I posted last month.  I love the hybrid approach to my albums, combining traditional 12 x 12 layouts with PML cards.  It's a great way to use up the leftovers from creating the layouts too!

Here are the four cards, front and backs, that are ready to slip into 12 x 12 Design 5 page protectors.  I used CTMH's Artfully Sent Cricut cartridge to cut some of the designs and stamped with D1555 All The Details and D1595 Hello Summer with Lagoon and Sunset inks. Added a little shimmer trim and some sequin embellishments to finish them off....easy!

More to come......I promise!

May 2015 Cross Canada Blog Hop

Welcome to our May Blog Hop featuring Jeanette’s How –To Books for scrapbooking.

If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to follow us across Canada then please start at the beginning and join Deanne at www.deannejacobs.blogspot.ca. If you came from Michelle of My Creations With Michelle  then you are in the right place!

I chose to use a pattern from "Imagine" to create my layout.  If you have not used our How-To books before, I have to tell you that they make scrapbooking so much easier.  I find that sometimes I just need a starting point and these patterns give me that.  I don't have to think....I just select the papers I want to use and start cutting.  The layouts come together beautifully every single time!

The pattern I chose is Swing Rhythm on page 112.  In "Imagine", it is pictured with fall colours but as you can see, just by changing the paper you get a whole different feel. I used the beautiful "Blossom" paper found in our Seasonal Expressions 2! (X7196B)

I almost didn't bother to ink the edges of the papers to keep the layout fresh, but at the last minute I just couldn't do it!!  Out came the Lagoon ink and the sponge. The title was stamped with E1030 Handwritten Print and B1416 Keyboard Uppercase.  The word PLAY is stamped directly on the white daisy card stock, the rest of the title was stamped on white daisy with Sunset ink, then cut out and popped up with 3-D foam tape (Z1151).

I also stamped with our Operation Smile set D1653 Happy Everything and A1172 Smiles Begin with You.  I added some clear embossing powder to the "Smiles Begin with You" image to make it stand out a little more.....even though I used the dye based ink, the powder still adhered....you have to move quickly though because the ink dries so fast. 

Other supplies used:  Z1918 Teal Shimmer Trim, Z3039 Glacier Extra Thick Twine, and Z3042 Coral Reef Sequins.  To purchase any of the supplies seen in my post today, shop online anytime at www.rozkelly.ctmh.com

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Nicky of Timeless Cottage  If you get lost along the way, you can head to Michelle S Blog, My Creations with Michelle, as she has the complete blog list.

Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way.  Please take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers....whether it was something that you really liked or some new technique that was used that you would like to learn how to do....by leaving us comments, we get to hear what you like, and what you want to see. To purchase any of the items seen in our blog hop today, contact your local consultant to place an order.

We hope you will join us again next month when our theme is Mini albums. Mark June 15th on your calendars and hop along with us.

National Scrapbooking Month—Taste of Summer

April CTMH Cross Canada Blog Hop

Welcome to our April Blog Hop featuring our Spring Theme, April Showers bring May Flowers. To purchase any of the items seen in our blog hop today, contact your consultant to place an order.

We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers....Thank you… now on to our hop!


If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to follow us across Canada then please start at the beginning and join Michelle at mycreationswithmichelle.blogspot.ca. If you came from Michelle's blog you are in the right place.

I have a couple of cards to show you today!  With a Spring theme, how could I not use "Brushed" paper to create a bright & cheery card?? I have wanted to try this "sunburst" technique for quite a while now, and one of my very creative shoebox gals (thanks Cheryl!!) brought this technique to the table.  That inspired me to use these papers for these cards:

By just changing out the sentiments and ink colours, I have three slightly different cards.  I used M1043 Spring Wreath and C1605 Happy To Be Friends with black and pear inks to stamp the sentiments.  I like the bright colours on the black cardstock, it reminds me of stained glass.

I also wanted to do a Mother's Day card and after seeing a class photo from the Cutting Garden in Halifax, I was inspired!  I loved the card they had offered so much, and knew I could duplicate it with CTMH products (although this stamp set is retired).  No patterned paper on this one, just stamping, embossing, and Cricut cuts!

I started with a piece of White Daisy cardstock and embossed it with Z1927 Damask embossing folder.  The next step was to stamp B1418 Love Doily (retired) with Versamark ink and heat emboss it with White Daisy embossing powder.  A little ink applied with a finger dauber lifts the image right off the cardstock.  The sentiment comes from our Artfully Sent cricut bundle stamp set - The butterfly and small flower were cut with our Art Philosophy cricut cartridge ....then added a white daisy cardstock banner, a little bling and a paper clip!  


Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Nicky's blog - www.timelesscottage.ca. If you get lost along the way, you can head back to Michelle's blog

Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. We hope you will join us again next month when our theme is Scrapbook layouts from CTMH How-To Books.  Mark May 15th on your calendars and hop along with us.

Deal of the Day with CTMH

Love a great deal? How about 30 days of great deals? During the month of April, you have the opportunity to score a deal every day with Close To My Heart! What deals are we talking about? Each day during April, while supplies last, we’ll feature a random grab bag filled with current and retired Close To My Heart products available for purchase at a major discount. To grab your bag, simply place any current, full-priced item in your online shopping cart through my online shopping site and you will then be eligible to purchase as many grab bags as you wish (while supplies last)! Grab bags will be featured at five different price points throughout the month, ranging from $55 to $160. Some grab bags will contain product with more than DOUBLE the retail value of the price you pay! Grab bags will be available for 24 hours starting at 3:00 pm MDT each day and only while supplies last—so visit often and early! Contact me for more details or click on the "SHOP NOW" button on my side bar! 

Happy shopping!

Up to $600 in Free product when you Become a Consultant!

I have been with Close To My Heart for almost 6 years - I started selling these products when I moved to Winnipeg, away from my consultant in Ontario. That consultant became my upline and one of the best friends I could ever ask for. I have met so many people over the past 6 years and forged many friendships as a result. Customers are so much more than customers....they are my friends. Some of those friends have joined my team! And then there is the sisterhood with other consultants - we share ideas, artwork, successes and failures. So for me, it's not just about the generous discount/commissions, the free product I earn, the trip incentives the company offers, or the events that we are able to attend.....it's all about the relationships that have enriched my life. Here are our brand new consultant kits - the first one is for cardmakers, the second one is for scrapbookers, plus you will receive the shoulder tote free this month only. Sell only $300 in your first 40 days and you get the rolling tote free as well!! If you think this is something you would love to do, either to get your personal suppies at a discount, to sell to friends & family, or to build a business....click here for more information: http://rozkelly.ctmh.com/ct…/what-we-do/be-a-consultant.aspx

Hopscotch - It was my favourite game!

When I was a girl, I loved playing hopscotch.  I spent hours with my friends, drawing with chalk, tossing rocks to land on the squares, and hopping up and back on the board.  And now my favourite CTMH paper pack is named Hopscotch....seems fitting to me. 

I was challenged by Brae, my fearless team leader, to create a layout that highlights an activity done as part of our CTMH business for my team album.  There is also a challenge on the Close To My Heart blog to create a Picture My Life layout!  Now, I am not a big pocket-style scrapbooker, but it is a lot of fun and I find that combining traditional scrapbooking with the pocket style appeals to me!  These layouts are also what I am teaching for my scrapbooking class.

Here's a closer look at my homemade PML cards.  I opted to not round the edges so that they would blend with the traditional layout.  Great way to use up the leftover bits of paper from creating the 12x12 layout!

Hope you like Hopscotch as much as I do, and that I've inspired you to start creating your own PML cards to supplement the PML cards you can purchase as well.  See you next time!
Roz

February 2015 CTMH Cross Canada Blog Hop

Welcome to our February blog hop featuring Card Creations made using CTMH How-To Books.  To purchase any of the items seen in our blog hop today, contact your consultant to place an order.  We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers!… now on to our hop!

If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to follow us across Canada then please start at the beginning and join Michelle. If you came from Michelle's blog,  then you are in the right place!

This month we've decided to make cards using the patterns from our How-To books....we have several books to choose from.  I decided to go to the "beginning" and use "Originals".  I love that our How-To books are now coil bound - it makes it easy to open to the page you want and if space is a problem, they fold over themselves and stay open.  We were also asked to use one paper pack, so I chose  "Hopscotch" (Z7194B).  Here are my creations:

 I used the "Balance it Out" pattern on page 102 of Originals for this card, and D1616 Have a Happy Day stamp set.  Ink and cardstock colours are Flaxen, Smoothie, Glacier, Ponderosa Pine, and Sunset.  I used some Gold Assortment Sequins (Z2012) and Aqua Dots (Z1853) and Thin 3-D Foam Tape (Z2060) to adhere the stamped flower.

This one is made with the pattern on page 99 called "Winning Combination"  I embossed the Sunset cardstock with our Chevron Embossing folder (Z1925), then sanded is lightly with a sanding block (Z1294)  I also used our Edge Distresser (Z1297) on the cardstock pieces. The stamp set I used for this one is D1627 Your Own Kind of Wonderful with Ponderosa Pine ink.  Ribbon is our retired Seam Binding ribbon and I embellished with a few Sparkles (Z1752). The butterfly was fussy cut and adhered with 3-D Foam Tape (Z1151), here's a closer look:

This card was the first one I made, using the "Lucky Three" pattern on page 59.  I used Sorbet cardstock for this one, instead of the recommended Smoothie and I really liked it.  I embossed the cardstock with our Scallop embossing folder (Z3021) and inked all the edges of my papers with Chocolate ink.  The sentiment is a combination of two stamp sets:  A1170 Doodled Designs and B1467 You Mean the World To Me, stamped at the same time with Versamark ink on Flaxen cardstock and the heat embossed with black embossing powder.  A little bakers twine from our retired basic colours and finished off with a couple of Triangle Studs (Z1928)

Lastly, I opted for a change in size for this card and used the "Log Cabin" pattern on page 84.  Again, I inked the edges of my papers with Chocolate ink before attaching them to my card.  A line of Gold Shimmer Trim (Z1985) adds lots of sparkle to this card, along with some Gold Sequins.  The sentiment, M1051 Make A Wish, was stamped with Versamark and embossed with Gold embossing powder (Z2066).  The cake is from B1442 Belated Birthday, stamped in Smoothie ink and fussy cut out to remove the flags on top and adhered with Foam Tape.  I used our Clay ShinHan marker (Z2451) to make dots along the edge of the Flaxen cardstock, like the dots around the circles on the paper.

These cards all came together really quickly, thanks to the help of the patterns from our "Originals" How-To Book.  When you need ideas for your layouts or your cards, our How-To Books are your best resource!

Ink Colours used:  Z2111 Chocolate, Z2145 Ponderosa Pine, Z2641 Glacier, Z2196 Smoothie

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Nicky's blog  If you get lost along the way, you can head back to Michelle S Blog, http://mycreationswithmichelle.blogspot.ca, as she has the complete blog list.

Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. We hope you will join us again next month when we will be featuring Easter Fun creations.   Mark March 15th on your calendars and hop along with us!

Take care,
Roz

February Special - Album Allure

Our special this month is "Album Allure". When you purchase one album at regular price, the 2nd album is 1/2 price! What a great time to stock up! You won't find our gorgeous new albums in our idea books, but you can see them on my website. Why buy our albums? Here are the reasons why you can't pass up this deal:

• Albums protect and display artwork.
• Come in three colours and patterns: Lagoon Chevron, Ruby Floral and Black.
• All colour/pattern combos come in both post-bound and D-ring styles.
• Fabric covers have special coating designed to prolong durability and prevent stains. Can be easily wiped clean from minor spills and dirt.
• Album structure has been reinforced for extra durability.
• Specifically designed to perfectly fit all of our Memory Protectors™.
• Albums can fit anywhere from 25 to 50 pages, depending on thickness of layouts.

D-Ring Albums
• Easy to quickly insert pages into.
• 1 ½” D-ring is strong and holds pages in tightly. Album has an overall sturdy structure.
• Works well for divided Memory Protectors™ with raised seams. (PML)

Post-Bound Albums
• Post-bound structure combined with signature Memory Protectors™ with lay-flat seams allows pages to sit without a gap.
• Adding in pages takes a little longer, but once they are in, pages are extremely secure.
• New posts feature a fixed handle so you can unscrew them with ease.
• New magnet component to close and secure flap over posts for easy concealment of the album’s inner workings.

To purchase yours, visit http://rozkelly.ctmh.com/…/promotions/campaigns/1502-album-…