This Week's Perfect Pair

Until tomorrow - with every ONLINE CTMH order over $75 - get the fabulous summer paper pack Mayberry, as well as the coordinating Stickease pack for FREE!

Don't miss it - - this Perfect Pair is gone after July 25th!

Looking for some Mayberry inspiration?  You can find some of the many projects I created using this great paper pack HERE.

Mom

My layout today is all about my Mom!!  Our new playlist song this week at Scrap it with a Song is the very beautiful "For Good" from the Broadway musical "Wicked".  The song lyrics inspired my journalling on this layout.

"I know I am who I am today because of you . . . so much of me is made from what I learned from you."  

My Mom is truly the best and she is my role model as far as what kind of mom I want to be to my kids & these song lyrics convey that perfectly.

The sketch is from Once Upon a Sketch and their journalling theme this month was "Mum".

Materials Used:

CTMH paper - Passages, Mayberry (retired)

CTMH velvet "Tapestry" rubons

CTMH pewter designer brads

CTMH - Passages clip

CTMH Passages stickers

Recollections flowers

AC Thickers

Tag cut with CTMH Art Philosphy cartridge

CTMH cardstock: Black, Colonial White, Bamboo

Hope you'll join us this month at Scrap it with a Song - - we have some great songs on the playlist this month - you can play along with any of them before May 31st & link up to us -- we are looking for guest designers - so show us what you've got!

CTMH Kit Club

***STILL TIME TO ENTER MY GIVEAWAY FOR A $100 CTMH SHOPPING SPREE! CLICK HERE TO READ ALL OF THE DETAILS!***

Did you know that CTMH runs a monthly scrapbooking kit club?  They call it "Workshop on the Go"!

Every 6 months - they produce 8 different kits to choose from! Lots of selection and lots of variety!  You can pick which months you'd like to do which kit!
I love the CTMH workshop kits because they help me 'keep up' with my scrapbooking.  Quick & easy scrapbooking when you don't have to come up with the design on your own!

Each kit contains a full paper pack, a colour workshop guide (with complete 2 page layout instructions and additional 'suggested' artwork), a C-sized stamp set, and coordinating embellishments - - all for just $29.95 (plus applicable tax/shipping)!

I can't wait to show you the new Workshop on the Go kits from the upcoming Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book after February 1st!  But in the meantime, I thought I'd show you a few of the layouts I've done in recent months using past kits:

Sonoma:

Lucky:

Mayberry:

Fanfare:

To see the Workshop on the Go kits that are CURRENTLY available to order - visit my website HERE.   You can check out the featured artwork (layouts and additional projects i.e. cards & 3D gift items) for each kit right inside the Idea Book.  The current Idea book can be viewed online HERE.

Stay tuned - - on February 1st I'll be announcing a new Workshop on the Go Kit CLUB with special bonus offers!  (I'll also be announcing a brand new Creative CLUB for those of you who prefer to mix & match your CTMH products and aren't interested in the monthly kits).  Watch for that in my monthly newsletter & here on the blog!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Time for a new song on the playlist at Scrap it With a Song.
This week we have the 80's classic "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun".  

I have another layout from my Vegas girls' trip!  The sketch is #59 from Sketches in Thyme.

Materials Used (all CTMH, except as noted):
Mayberry Level 2 Paper Pack
Kraft Cardstock
Colonial White Cardstock
Thickers (AC)
Kaiser flower embellishments
Bazill Basics alpha stickers

Be sure to stop by Scrap it With a Song - - the rest of the DT has some fabulous layouts to inspire you!  Hope you'll play along with us too - - the deadline to link up is November 30th!

Birds of a Feather

Not often, but every once in a while - I do a quick & easy layout with just stickers & paper!  No stamping, no distressing, no embellies - - keepin' it simple!  It is the only way I'm ever going to get all those Rubbermaid buckets full of photos scrapped!!

My other time saving technique  . . . SKETCHES!!!  I would say 90% of my layouts begin with a sketch of some kind!  My favourite sources for sketches - CTMH's How-To Books, Sketch blogs (I have several listed on my blog sidebar), and magazines (I especially love the sketches in Creating Keepsakes - lots of multi-photo 2 page spreads!).  I find the 'where to start' with a layout to be the hardest part so using sketches saves me soooo much time!   (Before I discovered sketches & patterns I used to sit & stare at my pile of photos and papers for endless amounts of time before I could move forward with a direction or idea of what to do!!)

So - my artwork for you today is just such a layout - - just stickers & paper & based on a gorgeous sketch (this one is from Sassy Lil' Sketches)!



Materials Used (all Close to My Heart):
Mayberry Level 2 Paper Pack
Mayberry Level 1 Scrapbooking Kit
Mayberry Stickease

Just Cruisin'

Hey all!!  Hope you are all enjoying the last days of summer, as I am.  Actually, this is the hottest week we've had all summer in Calgary and I've spent most of it sitting in a cold hockey arena!!   My daughter is in hockey camp this week and despite missing out on some of the amazing weather - I do love watching her play! 

Haven't had much time to craft over the last few weeks - but when I have - I've been scrapping some of our fun summer memories from years past!

This photo is from several summers ago!  Whenever we visit my family farm - the kids love getting a chance to 'drive' around the yards.  (Just like I did when I was a kid!)  This is my daughter at age TWO driving on my Mom's lap! 

Layout pattern is "Bottom Border - Title" from the CTMH book "Reflections".

Materials Used (all CTMH):

Mayberry Level 2 Paper Pack

Chocolate Alphabet stamp set

Lots of Dots Color Ready Alphabet Stickers

Cocoa Buttons

Colonial White waxy flax

Antiqued copper photo corners

(the flower/leaf embellishments were simply cut out from the Mayberry patterned paper)

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Larger than Life

Our challenge song for you this week at Scrap it With a Song is "Larger than Life" by the Backstreet Boys! 
I created another layout to chip away at my Hawaii vacation photos!

Layout design is Sketch #131 at the Scrappiest.

Hope you'll come play along with us this week at Scrap it With a Song and let "Larger than Life" inspire you!  (You can find the lyrics HERE).

Materials Used (all Close to My Heart):
Mayberry Paper Pack
Hodge Podge Alpha Stamp Set
Basic Button Assortment
Hemp
Circles and Postage Stamp Frame cut with the Art Philosophy Cricut Cartridge
Heartfelt Die Cuts (retired)
Mayberry Level 1 Alpha Stickers (retired)
Moon Doggie Stickease (retired)
Cardstock: Kraft, Cocoa
Ink: Cocoa

Those Cheeks!

My second week as Guest Designer at Sketches in Thyme!  Another fabulous sketch by Tiffany!

And my take on it:

Hope you'll stop by the Sketches in Thyme blog to see the fabulous layouts by the Design Team and to play along with us if you get a chance! 

Materials Used (all CTMH):
Mayberry Level 2 Paper Pack
Togetherness acrylic stamp set
Eclectic Alpha - embossed chipboard
All Out Adventure Rubons
Irresistibles Pizzazz Chipboard (retired)
Crystal Blue Bigger Brads (retired)

Life's Good - Celebrate

A quick & easy birthday card for you on this rainy Monday morning!

Materials Used (all Close to My Heart):
Mayberry Level 2 Paper Pack
Colonial White Card Bases
You & Me Kit stamp set  (entire kit available for $16.50 while supplies last!)
Color Ready Kraft Borders
Ink: Cocoa, Smoothie, Olive

If I had a flower . . .

The ladies at my recent weekend retreat enjoyed this card as one of the make & take projects we offered.  I taught them how to use the CTMH Kraft Color Ready Borders in lots of different ways! As I told everyone at my retreat - these borders are my favourite product in the Spring/Summer Catalogue.  You can use them on so many projects and they come with 50 in a package (2 each of 25 different designs) for just $6.50Cdn!!  Love them!

This card uses an inked-up Kraft Border strip as the flower stem.   Participants also enjoyed learning how to make their own paper flowers with punched scalloped circles - - simply spritz with a little water, crumple up in a ball, un-crumple, ink the edges & voila - - a pretty flower!!  Layering adds even more dimension to your flower!  

Materials Used (all Close to My Heart):
Mayberry Level 2 Paper Pack
Kraft Color Ready Borders
Rosy Regards stamp set (leaves)
Thoughts of You stamp set (sentiment - retired)
Gold Bigger Brad (retired)
Inks - Olive, New England Ivy, Cocoa

More Mayberry

I liked the clean and simple look of my last card HERE so much - that I gave it another go - with a few different papers from the Mayberry line and switching out a butterfly in place of the bird.  This cute butterfly is from the Sweetheart workshop kit stamp set. 

Still trying to 'think spring'.  There appear to be some warmer temps in the forecast for this week!! Woohoo! We may even get above zero, LOL!!

Have a great week!!

A Touch of Spring!

Maybe if we keep thinking spring - it will actually show up!!  Getting pretty tired of the chilly temps here in Alberta!  Crazy!!

So here is a little something to help you 'think spring'!!

I was inspired by a few challenges for this card:
Cute Card Thursday - Signs of Spring
Creative Inspirations - In the Garden
Papertake Weekly - Anything Goes with Something Old  (my something old was the scalloped punch that I hadn't used in a while!)

My card design is from the CTMH card book "Originals"

Materials Used (all Close to My Heart):
Mayberry Level 2 Paper Packet
Hot Diggity stamp set
Cocoa Designer Ribbon
Ink: Olive, Smoothie, Cocoa
Cardstock: Colonial White, Cocoa, New England Ivy

Have a great weekend! Thanks for stopping by!