A Winner and...

Thanks to random.org, my "resolution" winner is Karen, who posted January 6, 2010 9:58 AM. Karen, please contact me with your mailing info! In the meantime, I'll be looking to see what I have that may help you with your resolution to actually USE those scrapbook supplies!

Now, for the "and": I've finally gotten the DVDs and storage shelves out of my craft room! I got some nifty goodies at Ikea to help organize what I already have, and have started putting things back in the room. I'll share the complete setup with you when it's done, but for now I wanted to share a little organizational tidbit that also looks great!

I use the Cropper Hopper vertical paper storage system for most of my papers. In the past, I've always labeled them with my handy Brother label maker, but that looks, well, boring. Thanks to another CTMH consultant (I forget who, sorry), I decided to put the current Stamp of the Month set to good use. There are different "label" looking stamps in the set, along with some sentiments about friends. I stamped the distressed looking stamp (it was the easiest to cut!) in Twilight ink on Avery sticker paper several t imes, and cut each label out leaving a thin border. I then used a small alpha stamp set to stamp my categories on the labels in Black. My stamp set is discontinued, but good current sets from CTMH are Sans Alphabet or Tiny Typewriter. Depending on how you categorize, you could use a little larger alpha as well.

Here's how mine turned out. I hope this gets you curious about how the rest of it will look when it's done!

Winner Coming Soon...

Sorry I'm late getting a winner posted! I've had an awful cold, but I promise I'll get a winner picked today. It just has to wait until I at least get some kids out of the house!

Happiness is...

an organized pantry!


Some of you know that my resolution for this year is to continue decluttering our home & ORGANIZE! In fact,if I chose a word for this year, organize would be the one. Since I can't work on the room I really want to work on, I started in the pantry.

We are somewhat blessed with a large pantry in our house. I say somewhat because I really wish it wasn't in a shared space with the laundry/mudroom. Plus, I don't care for wire shelving, but this is what the builder installed. I'm too cheap to spend money on new, so I'm working with what I have. I did not buy anything new for this project, but I did buy a few things last year and even before, some of which I'm just finally using! Here's what I have done:

• I had a sheet of plexiglass cut to size for one shelf. I put things like extra spices on this shelf. I can't stand to have things tipping over or falling through.
• I have some thinner plastic sheets that are made for this purpose across 2 shelf sections. This is where my can racks reside so the legs don't fall through the wires.
• I purchased 3 can racks last year from LTD Commodities for about $4 each. They are a little flimsy, but once I figured out how to use the extra supports that came with them, they work pretty well. I use these for items we use frequently, but don't really buy a bunch of at one time. Each section has only one type of thing in it; I even had room to separate my light red and dark red kidney beans!
• I've picked up a couple of wire baskets at a garage sale. I use these on the bottom shelf for snacks & things so the kids can help themselves and I don't have stuff dumped all over the floor.
• Hubby got a great deal on canned veggies around Thanksgiving (like 50 cents a can for name brand - I HATE generic vegetables!), so he bought an entire case of each and brought them home in the boxes - what a smart man! Nothing tips over and they slid right in on the bottom shelf.
• I separated everything by type to make it easier to find. All baking items are on one shelf, pasta & rice on another, etc. Extra cereal & stuff I don't want the kids in go on the top shelf on one side, along with the ice cream maker, coffee maker, & other stuff I rarely use on the other side.

I hope this provides you with a little inspiration! Now I just can't wait for the DVD cabinet to arrive. Then I clear them out of the craft room, remove the shelving they're on to the basement, and take a trip to Ikea for my new workstations. Then, several days of reorg later, I'll be all ready for crops again!

If you've read this far, leave a comment letting me know your resolution/goal this year. A random person will win a prize! I'm not sure what it will be yet; let's see if I have something that will work with goal of the winner! I'll choose a winner on Tuesday, January 12th.

National Papercrafting Month

Did you know that January is National Papercrafting Month? Get a whole month of daily tips and daily giveaways at the official blog site! Close To My Heart is giving away a Felicity kit every day this month. If you'd like to buy one outright, or earn one free with purchase, check out all of the details here.

Don't forget to visit the National Papercrafting Month blog daily for your chance to win!

January SOTM Blog Hop

Happy New Year everyone! A new year means a new month, and that means it's time for another Close To My Heart blog hop! If you've come here from Barbra Otten's blog, you're on the right track. (And I hope my post measures up to her always spectacular work!) When you're ready to move on, the next stop is Brae Montgomery's blog.

I L-O-V-E this month's stamp set, as yet again we have a pretty versatile design. Yes, I know the sentiments are all "friendly", but these frames & such have a wide range of uses. You can see all 11 stamps up close by clicking here beginning January 1st!

I've chosen to show off this stamp set by combining it with the beautiful papers and stamps in Felicity, our special promotion for National Papercrafting Month. (Read on to the end of the post to find out more details on Felicity.)


First, I covered the front of my 4.25" x 5.5" card base with Barn Red textured CS and sponged the edges with Barn Red ink. Following sketch SC261 from Splitcoast Stampers, I designed my card front. I used the two Felicity papers that use the colors Sorbet, Barn Red, Desert Sand, and Chocolate for the two sections of the background in the sketch.

I stamped my chosen frame and sentiment in Barn Red on Sorbet CS, and distressed it using the black stubble texture tool with Desert Sand and Sorbet ink. I cut it out leaving a small border, and adhered it to the center of the card. Next, I stamped both sizes of flowers from the Felicity stamp set on Colonial White CS in Barn Red and Sorbet and distressed them. I cut them out, leaving a thin border on the large flower only. I adhered the flowers to the card front, popping up the center of the large flower and the Barn Red small flower with foam adhesive tape. I added (new!) Bitty Sparkles to the flower centers and the two frame corners (following the pattern from the stamp) to tie it all together.

Now you can either read on about Felicity, or hop along to Brae's Blog.

In celebration of National Papercrafting Month in January, we've created this versatile 12" x 12" Felicity Collection which includes 12 B&T Duos^®, 6 new B&T die-cut papers, an exclusive D-size stamp set, and an artwork brochure filled with ideas to rev your creative engines! Featured colors include Autumn Terracotta, Sorbet, and Twilight.

There are 3 ways to get the exclusive Felicity Collection:
1. Add the Felicity Collection to your cart at the full retail price of $34.95
2. Place an order of $60 US / $70 CAN or more in stamp sets (A, B, C, D, and/or E-size) and get the Felicity Collection FREE! (Qualifying stamp purchases do not include Stamp of the Month, Art & Soul^®, Workshops on the Go™, and customizable (K) stamp sets.) You'll be prompted to add your collection at checkout.
3. Place an order of $125 US / $145 CAN or more in Close To My Heart products and get the Felicity Collection FREE! You'll be prompted to add your collection at checkout.

This offer is available through January 31, 2010 or while supplies last.

December Christmas Card Challenge

I'm so excited! One of my favorite card challenge blogs is Christmas Cards All Year 'Round, and this month I am a guest Design Team member. This is my first time being on Deanna's DT, and I had a lot of fun playing for this challenge. Go check it out and play along!

The rules for this month are to create a card with the following:
~1 word sentiment
~2 different embellishments
~3 layers of paper

Here's the card you'll see on the CCAYR blog:
I'm going to include a closeup of the snowflake, because it has a little something extra that's difficult to see...

It may still be hard to see here, but it's a great effect in person. I cut the snowflake using the When It's Cold Outside mini cartridge for the Cricut. I used textured CS, then used the black distressing tool with Twilight ink to add a little color. Now, the fun part. I used some plastic packaging (like the cartridges come in) and cut the blackout image of the same snowflake. I attached the layers together using some eyelets, and added some Icicle Stickles on top.

Other supplies used are as follows: CS in Outdoor Denim and Twilight (CTMH), Aspen pattern paper (CTMH), sentiment stamp (retired CTMH), ribbon from my stash, and a ribbon slide (CTMH).

I also completed two other cards. The challenge is for 5 cards, but I haven't had time to complete those yet; I'll post again when those are done!

Here's another use of the When It's Cold Outside cartridge for the Cricut. This Nativity "snowflake" is just beautiful. I opted to use the Outdoor Denim CS again, and cut the blackout in Buttercup yellow. I thought this image had a great shadow or silhouette feel to it and these colors enhanced that. The other CS is Indian Corn Blue. (All CS from CTMH) Other supplies used include ribbon from my stash, a border stamp from CTMH to stamp the ribbon, sentiment stamp from CTMH, and some gorgeous brads from 7gypsies.

Here's another card using the recycled plastic packaging. I simply cut a piece the same size as my CS layer and embossed it with a Cuttlebug Folder. I attached it with a couple of glue dots where they would be covered by the star.

Supplies used are as follows:
Hobby Lobby - green card base from Christmas pack
Close To My Heart - Tulip CS, White Daisy textured CS, Ponderosa Pine stamp pad, Cranberry brads, chipboard element, white grosgrain ribbon, Jingle Borders stamp set ("merry christmas" from the sentiment border), and Shining Star stamp set.
Provo Craft - Cuttlebug Embossing Folder in Textile Texture


NOTE: I do receive compensation from Close To My Heart for products sold. I do not receive any additional complensation for using, reviewing, or recommending any of the products/stores seen here.

Have a Holiday Heyday and save 50-80%!

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, 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 $2 and My Reflections® paper packets from $5. But that’s not all—we have “grab bags” for $30, each filled with over $100 in retail products! Plus, great shipping deals on orders over $100. These products are only available while supplies last, so mark your calendar and be the first to fill your shopping cart!

Start shopping HERE.

*Sale continues through December 17 or while supplies last. Shipping/handling: US orders of $100+ have a flat rate shipping of $5 US. Canada and non-continental US orders of $150+ have a flat rate shipping of $10 US/12.50 CAN. Tax is charged based on discounted amount.