Newsprint Rub-Ons from CTMH

Find out what makes CTMH Newsprint rub-ons so easy to apply and fun to use. Plus, you'll discover why the booklet makes it super-easy to use just the letters you need. Get ready to be inspired by the beautiful artwork! Features a step-by-step tutorial.

52 Weeks of Wonder

Stamping to Add Glitz and Glam!

"Almost every girl I know loves something that sparkles and shines to brighten up life every once in a while. Adding a little bling here or a little glitz there just makes my heart happy. Glitz Glitter Gel can take an ordinary piece of art and turn it into something eye catching. I believe every piece of artwork deserves to be a little fun, sassy, and easy. One of the things I enjoy about using Glitz Glitter Gel is how simple and versatile it is to work with. The narrow tip on the bottle allows ease in the creation of small dots or lines that accent any stamp design.

~ add one drop of Colonial White Re-Inker with one drop re-inker color of your choice to a craft jar
~ then add a dime size dollop of Glitz Glitter Gel to the concoction
~ mix everything together until uniform (the stylus does double duty as a great mixing spoon and applicator)
~ add more color a little at a time until the perfect shade emerges

~ apply the colored Glitz Glitter Gel to the stamped polka-dot pattern in a random fashion using the larger end of the stylus

Sparkle, dazzle, or bling any way you put it, Glitz Glitter Gel is a great way to add shimmer to art projects and smile to someone’s day."
Jeanette Lynton

Isn't that cupcake wrapper adorable?  Jeanette has more gorgeous artwork throughout her blog post today.  Stop by and take a peek.

LeaderShare with CTMH

Love it when CTMH has a regional event right in my own backyard!  A LeaderShare day was held back in April at the KOP Convention center, and Carol and I had the chance to attend.  Carol is one of my team members and an awesome paper crafter.  We attended CTMH's Annual Convention in DC together last year and jumped at the chance for a day of scrapping and networking, but most of all, hanging with a bunch of fellow CTMH consultants.  We even made Jeanette Lynton's blog!  Carol and I are pictured below; check out my lime jacket and Carol is in white, right next to me. Who could have guessed wearing my TSC "Cheer Mom" jacket (chilly temps in the banquet room) would grab the attention of the photographer ;) 



And to top off the day, I went home with two "krafty kritters", one lime and one royal blue. Our fabulous host, Kathy Markloff, presented each attendee with a gift bag full of chocolates and an adorable stuffed gorilla. I snatched a royal blue one as I choose my seat, then Kathy was gracious enough to give me a second bag once she heard her "krafty kritters" were the exact colors of my daughters' all-star cheer squad. Kristen and Caitlyn were thrilled and I'm sure the kritters will be attending all future cheer competitions. Thanks Kathy!


Please jump over to Jeanette's blog to see a ton of consultant artwork donated for the Operation Smile silent auction. I've never seen such extraordinary artwork and generosity. Our group raised an amazing $3,000 for Operation Smile, which translates into more than twelve surgeries for needy children. What an incredible day!

Studio J®: Focus on the Photos

Learn tips and tricks that will make your beautiful photos the highlight of all your Studio J® layouts!

Studio J®: Personalize Your Layouts

Studio J has options galore for personalizing your scrapbook layouts! Change the color of your photos; swap the cardstock and patterned B&T paper in your layout; embellish with buttons, ribbons, and metals; and distress the surface or edges of your paper using a range of tools and colors. You'll love the way Studio J offers you incredible artistic freedom with the click of a mouse!

Studio J®: Photo Editing Tool

Edit your photos right in Studio J, including adjusting brightness; changing color balance and saturation; removing red-eye, blemishes, and wrinkles; and whitening teeth. Find out how easy it is in Studio J, CTMH's online scrapbook design software!

52 Weeks of Wonder

Stamp Stitching Guide

"I have often talked about my father and what an inspiration he has been in my life. He was a pattern maker by trade and could create the most spectacular things from wood. It really was his example that motivated me to start designing patterns for scrapbook layouts and cards—the patterns that ultimately became our entire library of how-to books!

Although stamps are not considered patterns, they can be used as such with the simple addition of a piercing tool, needle and thread. The technique is ideally suited to thin, line stamps—just stamp in a light color (I like Bamboo), and then use the stamped image as a stitching guide. Ta-da! An easy stamped pattern.

Stamp your image using Bamboo ink or using the color of ink you are going to stitch with. A fun tip: create the perfect color of embroidery floss by carefully coloring white or neutral floss using an Exclusive Inks Marker.

Determine how far apart you want the stitches to be, I like somewhere between 3/8” and 1/4” apart. I have found that most of the time it isn’t discernible to the eye if your stitches are slightly larger and smaller, however if you’re a stickler for precision and want very evenly placed holes, pull out a ruler and lay it next to the image that will be stitched. Then, use a piercing tool and mat, pre-hole the artwork prior to stitching.

Start your stitching without knotting the thread but by taping down the end on the back side of your project. This helps reduce the bulkiness of the thread.

Stitch along your pre-holed guidelines. A skip stitch run one way and then back the other direction will help the embroidery floss stay flat and look neat on the back of the project (however, a backstitch may also be used)."
Jeanette Lynton

I LOVE the look of hand-stitching on layouts and cards!  It's well worth the time it takes for that extra WOW it gives any project.  I'm off to scrap lift Jeannette's card shown above.  I have that gorgeous flourish in my stamp collection and never thought to hand-stitch the pattern.

Photography Cheat Sheet

Found this over on the Canon Rebel T2i forums and thought I'd share.  I got a kick out of the old Kodak Instamatic camera icon in the top left-hand corner.

FREE digital prints @ Target

Target has digital prints on sale this week for only 10 cents each (see weekly sales ad).  Plus, there's a coupon for $2.00 off 20 prints ... making them FREE.  I love FREE!

Finding Photo Freedom

Registration for Stacy Julian's re-vamped Library of Memories class, Finding Photo Freedom, is open!  And, I have two valid coupon codes that currently work to get you a 10% discount off the class fee: "paperclipping" through paperclipping.com and "springtrain" through ellapublishing.com.

"You have nice digital camera and you're taking plenty of wonderful pictures to spark happy memories and help you tell personal stories.

You own lots of beautiful papers and decorative embellishments and you've put time and energy into organizing these supplies so that they can inspire your inherent creativity.

You have a strong desire to make good on these investments and yet something is missing. You just can't seem to wrap your brain around the whole process of taking pictures, organizing stuff, finding time, making pages and projects, and feeling productive and satisfied when it comes to scrapbooking. You want to know that all this effort is making a difference, that you're doing it "right" and that what you create will have meaning in the future.

YOU NEED PHOTO FREEDOM.

You're invited to join BPC founder Stacy Julian in the newest iteration of her popular Library of Memories course, so that she can set you free to find what you want to find, when you want to find it, and to create what you feel inspired to create, when you feel inspired to create it. Specifically, Stacy will help you establish a digital workflow to prioritize and organize the thousands of digital images on your computer. She'll give you direction for the boxes of prints at the top of your closet and she'll introduce you to a wonderfully flexible and inviting system of storing and sharing memories that you can adapt to your personal goals and needs. All along the way, Stacy and her experienced team of coaches will encourage you to let go of unrealistic expectations and unnecessary rules, so that you can embrace the future of memory preservation with confidence."

I've registered and can't wait for class to start on June 2nd (the day before my birthday).  Let me know if you'll be joining me in class.

My Acrylix® Dreams Come True Stamp Set

Featuring the My Acrylix® Dreams Come True stamp set, this video is packed with inspiring artwork and creative techniques. Discover how to create a beautiful banner using the My Creations® Mix & Mingle album, learn how to use the embossed resist technique for gorgeous lettering, clip away part of a stamped sentence for a whole new meaning, build a card sentiment like a puzzle, and more!

52 Weeks of Wonder

Watercolor stamping

"Spring is in the air. Can you feel it? Spring brings a softness to the crisp harsh cold of winter. It makes me think of soft flower petals or walking barefoot through nice soft green grass. From time to time I like to pull this same softness into artwork using a technique called watercolor stamping. This technique gives a soft mottled look that lightens the ink color slightly in places and produces a less distinct line to stamped images.

The technique is simple and doesn’t require any extra tools—all you need are stamps, blocks, Exclusive ink and My Acrylic® Spritz Cleaner.

Create the look by:

~ ink your chosen stamp image, already mounted to a clear acrylic block

~ hold My Acrylix Spritz Cleaner 10-12” away from stamp and mist lightly

~ immediately stamp the image

Gorgeous, textured, and easy, isn’t it? Create those vintage, soft, or nature-inspired looks—or discover new twists all your own on the watercolor stamping technique guaranteed to add a little spring “wow” to any piece of artwork this season."

Jeanette Lynton

Isn't Jeanette's My Creations Journal shown above gorgeous!  I've altered a few of these myself and have one in my purse, camera bag, and even in my car for those quick notes or ideas that need to be documented.  

Focus

Stay Focused with Your Family Priorities by Jon Walker

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:1-2 (NIV)

Running the race with perseverance means we stay focused on our priorities. We don’t let other things step in and hinder us from the priority of deepening our relationship with Jesus. We don’t let other things entangle us, tying us up so that we no longer place priority on our families or our health.

Consider this -- One day the disciples saw Jesus walking on the water and Peter yelled out that he wanted to walk on the water too (Matthew 14:22-31). Jesus told him to come and so Peter, with all his focus on Jesus, stepped out of the boat and started walking on the water toward Jesus.

But then, the Bible tells us, Peter got distracted by the waves and the wind -- just like you and I can get distracted by all the good and bad things we come across everyday. And, once Peter’s eyes were no longer fixed on Jesus, “the author and perfecter of our faith,” he began to sink into the water.

We cannot walk on water while trying to focus on whatever we want -- sometimes Jesus, sometimes the wind and waves; sometimes God’s priorities for our lives, sometimes trivial pursuits; sometimes the purpose God created us for; sometimes “the sin that so easily entangles.”

What do you need to do to maintain the priorities in your faith, your life, your marriage, your family, and your health throughout this Decade of Destiny?

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day !!!

National Scrapbook Day at 2Peas in a Bucket

2Peas in a Bucket has a ton of activities scheduled for National Scrapbooking Day today.  There's an all-day online crop taking place, a project hop, designer challenges and tons of give-aways.  They've even created a special forum for all things related to NSD.  Enjoy the day!

Scallop Borders with Mayberry Workshops on the Go™ Stamp Set

Let us show you the secret for making a quick scallop border using a pear stamp image and a circle punch - who would have guessed? You’ll love this tutorial based on the Mayberry Workshops on the Go™ kit and artwork!

52 Weeks of Wonder

Paper Piecing

"Perfecting paper piecing can be a pretty perplexing project. Almost as tricky as saying that first sentence. However, let me give you some hints that are sure to make this great technique purely peaceful. First off, paper piecing is a more-time consuming effort but yields great results. Paper piecing is basically cutting and layering pieces of stamped images together to create visual depth. It makes the stamped images come alive when they are layered and gives dimension and color using a variety of papers.

Let me break down how this technique came together on the cupcake treat box. First, stamp the image you are going to paper piece on each color of cardstock that you will be using for the layers. Used here are White Daisy, Hollyhock, Vineyard Berry and Grey wool cardstock.

Now, cut the detail of the image from the other colors. I recommend using Close To My Heart’s Micro-tip scissors. These are a must have for any craft room because the sharp blade and fine tip make cutting detailed images a cinch."

Jeanette Lynton

I love the look of paper piecing!  It can be a little time-consuming, but the look is so worth it.  Become friends with your exacto blade and your projects will take on a whole new look.

Celebrate National Scrapbooking Month with CTMH

May is National Scrapbooking Month and it's the perfect time to celebrate the reasons why we love scrapbooking. Preserving our memories is so important and CTMH has made it faster, simpler, and easier. And today is the day you've been waiting for because you can join CTMH by purchasing a tailor-made consultant kit for 50% off.  Plus, CTMH has sweetened the deal even more by including a FREE You & Me Kit (shown above) in your new consultant kit.  That's a savings of over $99.00!  That's almost $350.00 in CTMH product and business supplies for only $64.50 (plus tax & shipping).

If you are someone who never pays full price and

is looking for a deal on papercrafting supplies

and online scrapbooking - this is perfect for you.

If you are someone who could use a little extra

money to pay for dance lessons or groceries

or a family vacation - this is perfect for you.

If you are someone who is looking for

a rewarding career with a multitude

of benefits - this is perfect for you.

If YOU have considered joining CTMH as an

Independent Consultant,  now is the time.

It’s our greatest start-up deal ever!

You’ll receive all the business essentials plus 3 “Choose Me” collections for 50% off, that’s only $64.50. CTMH Consultants enjoy something that is often elusive in the working world—flexibility. Besides being paid for doing what you love, Consultants are your own boss—setting your own hours, work around your priorities, and share revolutionary new products unparalleled in the industry. You’ll also receive discounts on the products you love and have the amazing opportunity to touch hearts and change lives through the joy of scrapbooking and stamping!

As part of this limited time offer, you’ll receive your choice of 3 of the following “Choose Me” collections plus the business essentials!

Choose Me 2

Use exclusive patterns and papers to create beautiful Studio J® layouts at deeply discounted prices with a 12-month Studio J membership.

Includes a 12-month Studio J membership. Retail value: $99.

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Choose Me 3

The lively paper, sunny ink colors, and cheery stamp sets in this collection will make your heart sing & your artwork shine.

Includes a Workshops on the Go™ Mayberry Kit, My Acrylix® Summer Days Stamp Set, Smoothie Exclusive Inks® Pad, Olive Exclusive Inks® Pad, Brads Pink Assortment, and a 2” x 3 ½” My Acrylix® Block (not shown). Retail value: $66.85.

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Choose Me 4

Cardmakers and scrapbookers alike will cherish this collection of vintage-themed products and versatile tools.

Includes a Workshops on the Go™ Lucky Kit, Lucky Level 2 Assortment, My Acrylix® Enjoy Life Stamp Set, Outdoor Denim Exclusive Inks® Pad, Desert Sand Exclusive Inks® Pad, Kraft Color-Ready Borders, Sponge, Edge Distresser, and a 2 ½” x 2 ½” My Acrylix® Block (not shown). Retail value: $78.55.

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Choose Me 5

Beauty meets practicality with this collection of two types of albums, ink, stamps, and a block.

Includes a 12” x 12” Dark Chocolate My Legacy® Faux Leather Album, Outdoor Denim Quick Pic™ Album, My Acrylix® Ciao Stamp Set, Chocolate Exclusive Inks® Pad, and a 4” x 4” My Acrylix® Block. Retail Value: $73.60.

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Choose Me 6

Get ready to create with three adorable stamp sets, two beautiful ink pads, and supplies to clean and maintain them.

Includes a Double Scrubber, My Acrylix® Spritz Cleaner, My Acrylix® A Tulip Stamp Set, My Acrylix® Spring Up Stamp Set, My Acrylix® Bless This Nest Stamp Set, A Tulip Exclusive Inks® Pad, Garden Green Exclusive Inks® Pad, and a 3” x 3” My Acrylix® Block (not shown). Retail Value: $75.05.

You might be thinking ... "Are there any strings attached to this phenomenal deal?"

Good question, and the answer is ... NO.  By purchasing this kit, you have the "opportunity" to get a discount on all your supplies or earn extra money or build a rewarding career. You also have the "option" of doing nothing else. A win-win situation.

You might be thinking ... "I have a busy life and a full schedule. Can I actually earn a little extra money without a lot of effort?"

Another good question, and the answer is ...YES.  Do you have 2 or 3 friends who would love to get together with you once a month to create projects or get caught up on scrapbooking? By setting aside one evening a month, you can have a girl's night out "with a purpose". And as they fall in love with CTMH products, their purchases will put extra money in your pocket - or at the very least allow you to get your supplies for FREE. Another win-win.

You might be thinking ... "Can I really turn my hobby into a rewarding career with substantial income?"

Again, good question, and the answer is ... YES.  CTMH has a very generous compensation plan that includes not only cash, but FREE product, exotic trips for two, recognition and rewards at all levels, online and regional training, annual events, the list goes on and on. As with anything, the more effort you put in, the greater your reward. Consistency over time brings results. We have the best products in the industry, our product line is diverse to appeal to even more people, and CTMH has the most talented and supportive staff and executive team in the industry working around the clock to help you succeed! So really, you can't go wrong.

To take advantage of this fantastic deal,

click here to join or click here to

contact me if you have any questions.

"Chairs To You" - CTMH's May SOTM

Want to join an exclusive club? Every month CTMH offers you an exclusive My Acrylix® D-size stamp set FREE or at a large discount. The stamp set is available to qualifying customers for that month only. It’s our way of saying thank you, and your way of getting fantastic deals on our amazing stamps!

 

May's SOTM, "Chairs to You", is adorable!  I've already made a ton of cards using the sentiments included in the set and know this will become a favorite "go to" set of mine.  Contact me to purchase your own SOTM by clicking here.