Our Special Day

Wedding layout, using For Always paper and Stickease, embellished with washi tape, shimmer tape, a border punch, and the coordinating zip strips. Layout from April 2013 PageMaps.

Textile and Texture

This month's issue of Creating Keepsakes magazine had an article about using natural fibers and textures on your pages. Inspired by that, and a layout photo they had, I came up with this. It uses Chantilly papers and fabric, our burlap ribbon, and multiple fonts and colors in the title. With all that going on, very little embellishment was needed.

Kisses!

If you are able to make it out to the Open House tonight, you can bring this home: a little heart-shaped favor bag, cut using our Cricut Artiste cartridge from Chantilly paper. I think I may have talked my daughter out of using the store-bought Barbie Valentines she wanted, for her school party.

The new catalogs are in!

Isn't it pretty? Contact me today to obtain your Spring/Summer 2013 Close To My Heart catalog and idea book, full of new papers, stamps, embellishments, and more! Come to an open house tonight, my monthly workshop night on Thurs, Feb 28th at 6 pm, or e-mail me to schedule a home party, book party, or to host a workshop and earn fun free products from this catalog. Also, watch this space over the next few days, as I'll be posting photos of artwork created with our brand-new papers.

Also, for February, our Constant Campaign is a Studio J special! Our online digital scrapbooking program is so easy to use--no software to download or install, no subscription to buy in advance. You can just upload your photos and play today, creating beautiful layouts in minutes, and you don't need to pay for anything until you decide to print your creation. And this month, you can purchase any printed layout for only $5! Check it out by clicking the "Shop With Me" icon to the right, or just go to kerriestrong.ctmh.com.

Happy Scrapping!

PSA: Clean your camera phone lens now and then

OMG! Do you see the differences between the photos in those last 2 posts? So sorry about that!

I have a feeling all my other photos can benefit from this amazing bit of knowledge as well.

What kind of camera do you use most often? I desperately want a DSLR, but I have a nice P&S and still find myself using my phone more often than not because it is there. Handy, that. I think the best camera is the one you will use, right?

Running for Bagels

Two 2-page layouts, both with Olivia paper and Stickease. The first had a little stamping using the rock and roll technique to achieve multiple colors on those leaves. I love leaves.

Second layout, I had some pink in my shirt that I wanted to bring out, so I used some different B&Ts from the same pack, and based it on Smoothie cardstock instead of Colonial White. I used one of the old Sophia journaling spots.

That huge space is for my race bib, if I ever find it. New scrappers, come up with a good way to store memorabilia BEFORE you begin scrapping, OK?

With All My Heart

I wanted to post this layout without photos first, so you could see how it was put together. I have seen a lot of single page layouts with geometric shapes scattered across the page, but not many doubles, which is what I like to do for my clubs, and this was a hostess club project. So, I just cut one double-sided piece of Avonlea B&T into 2 inch squares, began in the bottom right corner of the left hand page, and alternated patterns to create a set of steps, leaving a sliver of space in between on all sides. I did the same with the right page, beginning in the top left.

Because I knew my squares were not going to match up all the time, I intentionally skewed a few squares here and there so it's not as noticeable. A 5-4-3-2-1 triangle on each page left me with 6 squares, so I added 3 to each opposing corner, cut our silver ribbon into pennants, and embellished with the January Stamp of the Month. My club wanted to learn watercoloring with pencils as this month's technique, and this stamp lent itself well to that. A quick addition of the zip strip along the bottom finished the page.

The perfect photos for this aren't printed yet, but they will go across the page in a single line, in the middle. I may use Slate cardstock to matte the photos, and will probably add a journaling spot, but I will update this post later when it's complete.

Embrace Life

There were children other than my own in these photos, so please forgive the old-fashioned judicious placement of lamp glare and scraps. I hope you can still see the basic layout, using Olivia paper, Stickease, and pearls.

Iron Girls

Fancy new paper from our new catalog, a doily, Keepsake alphabet, a wooden shape and some punched shapes. Layout was another simple one. :)

Alas, now I need to pack up. This made 23 pages; 2 more than I accomplished last year (thanks to this blog, I was able to go back and look that up.) I love this trip for getting stuff done, but I really love hanging with this great group of women. :)

Scaring Up Some Fun

Moonlight paper, my own layout, Moonlight complements and a few extras from a friend. Again, I made my own journaling spot. The embellished chipboard is a great way to add dimension. I love how our Complements have moved beyond flat stickers!

Happy Day

Fanfare paper, which I still love, and my own simple layout. There was a funny story here but I didn't want everyone to see it, so I created a hidden journaling tag. And I used the handy coordinating Stickease to embellish and as the title.

Another day at the zoo

Dotty paper, more Smoothie and Juniper. Layout from the CK 4x6 book, and lots of assorted wooden, paper and Cricut cut shapes.

It's fun being a kid

More Dotty, with papers I initially didn't like. Juniper and Sunset actually look pretty good together! Some stamping from the Childhood stamp set, Junipee ribbon stapled to the paper, and one more medallion. This was my own layout again, just a simple one.

Click

This was a series of photos taken of our photographer, that turned into a sort of filmstrip of a goose trying to attack my husband. This layout shows the progression of action. I was thrilled to be able to use this stamp set and paper pack. I also used the Cricut quite a bit, and am pretty pleased with the journaling tag I created.

Sweet Moments

More Dotty paper, Pagemaps layout, medallions, and punched butterflies crinkled to look 3D. A little trim from the green ribbon collection.

Night at the Drive-In

This was an easy layout, too! From the CK 4x6 book, Cruisin' paper and matching Stickease. I cut a retro rounded trapezoid shape for a journaling block-- taken from one of the shapes in the B&T paper I used.

The layout is a great way to fit a lot of photos on 2 pages. Onne page has just 6 4x6" photos (trimmed just slightly) on black cardstock. The other photos were trimmed to just less than 3" wide and 4" tall.  Quick and easy (but fun!)

Friend layout

Clementine paper, layout from my Creating Keepsakes 4x6 photo book. I used the Clementine assortment, a few stamps, and some Opaques. This went a lot faster; using the matching papers and complements helps a lot!

Labor Day layout

Space is at a premium here, so unless I find more, please ignore the background of the pages you see. :)

This is a layout from Make It From Your Heart, and the Dotty For You paper packet from last spring. I used the Cricut to cut the pennants for the title, and the gray stems for the pinwheel "flowers". I made all the pinwheels from matching scraps and coordinating buttons, and a few assorted stamps. It's a little busy, but was a fun layout.

Pages 3-4 this weekend!

First scrap night

I picked up a pack of blues and one of greens on clearance the other day at Joann's, and it was perfect for this layout. One of my homemade journaling spots, some hemp, and a line of blue buttons finished another quick Pagemaps layout. The title was stamped with three different sets: Glamour? lowercase, small Chocolate, and the one from Felicity.

Paradise found

First layout of the weekend (sushi dinner and drinks lasted far longer than anticipated). I used our Footloose paper, for probably the last time, and its associated chipboard complements. This is based on a Pagemaps layout, and I chose something quick so I could get one fast layout down. Now I am feeling better having one under my belt, and am ready to move onto the next one.

Four scrapping bags

That is all I'm bringing for 48 hours of scrapbooking. And not even my huge rolling tote--just 4 medium bags. 4 scrap bags, a suitcase, a tote bag for the car, and my purse.
I will be blogging all my layouts this weekend, so stay tuned!

Embellishing out of my comfort zone

I am going away for this weekend on a scrapping retreat. Normally, I like to work on a theme for the weekend: Disney, a wedding, etc. But this year I have nothing like that. I prefer to scrap chronologically, so I am just going to work on some generic summer photos.

My challenge will be embellishments: I love girly stuff: lace, bling, flowers. Most of these layouts won't have that. So I have been researching non-girly accessories to use. Pinwheels, suns, geometric shapes, starts, and fibers all seem to be pretty trendy. This way, I can use the paper I'm bringing and it cuts down on what I pack--bonus, since space is at a premium.

What about you--do you use themed stickers and paper packs or what strikes your fancy?

Happy Papercrafting Month!

Happy New Year! I have a confession: I have finally deviated from my traditional scrapbooking and occasional cardmaking, into some of our "projects". My thinking has always been: "I barely have time for scrapping, so I don't want to take time away from my scrapbooks to do other things."

However, for Christmas I used our beautiful 3-D star and embellished with Pear and Partridge paper and some Sparkles for a gift for someone; and my daughter and I embellished card boxes and made cards for quite a few people. It was a nice break from shopping from our family's wish lists, and we can both take pride in giving something home-made.

So, I am pretty excited about our new kit for National Papercrafting Month this January. This set of embellished treat tubes are adorable! And they come with glitter paper that I have absolutely fallen in love with. I think my daughter and I will take some crafty time and put these together for a few of the people in our lives this Valentine's Day. I hope you like them, too! When you place an order of $35 or more in Close To My Heart products, you can receive the Whooo’s Your Valentine kit for only $10. Qualifying purchases must come from Autumn/Winter 2012 Idea Book product (or products live on my website through January). 

Have a great day, and find some way to get a little crafty!

Out with the old...

With the new Idea Book coming out next month, Close To My Heart is preparing to retire a few items. The following items are no longer available, alas:

Stella and Florentine paper; Florentine and La Belle Vie Stickease; cutting knife, blue brads, festive velvet rub-ons, craft jars, and quite a few of our new marker sets are still unavailable but we hope to have them soon.

The following items are only available while supplies last, and are retiring at the end of the month (my apologies for the odd formatting; I am copying directly from our Excel spreadsheet):

2012 Autumn/Winter Idea Book Retiring List (closes January 31, 2013)
	As we run out of stock on retiring items, we will add them to the unavailable list found under Online Office > Corporate Communication > Reference Lists > Unavailable List. Check this list often so you will know which items are no longer available to order. Please remember that we are unable to accept exchanges for items included on the Retired list.
Item #	Item Description	Page # Autumn/Winter 2012 Idea Book
Z1349	Shimmer Designer Brads	127
Z1360	Rhinestone Designer Brads	127
Z1361	Brads Red Assortment	127
Z1362	Brads Pink Assortment	127
Z1363	Brads Blue Assortment	127
Z1364	Brads Green Assortment	127
Z1365	Brads Basic Assortment	127
Z1387	Wooden Designer Buttons	125
Z1391	Buttons Clear Assortment	125
Z1395	Irresistibles™ Eclectic Chipboard Die-Cuts (the alphabet)	130
Z1465	Irresistibles™ Make-It-Count Numbers	130
Z1681	Dimensional Elements  Numbers	131
Z1761	Dimensional Elements Ornaments	131
Z1762	Dimensional Elements Snowflakes	131
Z1765	Color-Ready Arbor Wooden Shapes	130
X7147C	Stella Complements Canvas Shapes	68
X7148C	My Stickease® Pemberley Assortment	68
X7150C	My Stickease® Victory Assortment	69
X7153C	My Stickease® Florentine Assortment	69
X7158C	La Belle Vie My Stickease® Assortment	38
X7160C	Flirty Complements Dimensional Elements	50
X7161C	Moonlight Complements Dimensional Elements	56
X7162C	Pear & Partridge Complements Glittery Rub-Ons	62
Z1464	Milepost Shapes	128
Z1466	Bling Assortment	128
Z1695	Urban Felt Alphabet	130
Z1696	Keepsake Felt Alphabet	130
Z1709	Just Blooms® Petals Paper Flowers	129
Z1460	Foundry® Ribbon Slides	126
Z1711	Foundry® Binder Clips	126
Z1712	Foundry® Number Plates	126
Z1461	Décor Journaling Spots	129
Z1687	Bohemian Assortment	128
Z1689	Timeless Charms	128
Z1692	Tough Tags	128
Z1694	Bouquet Assortment	128
Z1741	Haunted Assortment	128
Z1749	Autumn Lane Assortment	128
Z1763	Boutique Assortment	128
Z1772	Dimensional Elements In Color—Holiday	128
Z1393	Mini-Medley Accents Black Collection	126
Z1316	Designer Ribbon Cocoa Collection	124
Z1385	Designer Ribbon Blue Collection	124
Z1615	Designer Ribbon Red Collection	124
Z1616	Designer Ribbon Green Collection	124
Z1388	Newsprint Rub-Ons	130
Z1700	Dark Chocolate Tapestry Velvet Rub-Ons	126
Z1733	Black Tapestry Velvet Rub-Ons	126
Z1743	Festive Velvet Rub-Ons	126
Z1742	Parlor Velvet Rub-Ons	126
Z1407	6" x 6" Olive Quick Pic™ Album	122
Z1408	6" x 6" Pansy Purple Quick Pic™ Album	122
Z1054	My Creations® Display Album	132
Z1378	My Creations® Banner	132
Z1614	My Creations® Memory Game	132
Z188	Craft Jars	120
Z1352	4 1/2" Colonial White Circle Cards	123
Z1353	4 1/2" White Daisy Circle Cards	123
Z1731	My Originals® Sweet Surprises Card Kit	123
X7147B	My Reflections® Stella Paper Packet	68
X7148B	My Reflections® Pemberley Paper Packet	68
X7150B	My Reflections® Victory Paper Packet	69
X7153B	My Reflections® Florentine Paper Packet	69
X7158B	La Belle Vie Paper Packet	38
X7160B	Flirty Paper Packet	50
X7161B	Moonlight Paper Packet	56
X7162B	Pear & Partridge Paper Packet	62
Z1252	Cutting Knife	135
G1041	Workshops on the Go® Avonlea Cardmaking Kit	22
G1043	Workshops on the Go® Pear & Partridge Cardmaking Kit	66
G1040	Workshops on the Go® Spellbound Cricut® Kit	14
G1042	Workshops on the Go® Scroll Album Kit	23
G1044	Workshops on the Go® Advent Calendar Kit	67
G1045	Workshops on the Go® Avonlea Scrapbooking Kit	21
G1046	Workshops on the Go® Clementine Scrapbooking Kit	29
G1047	Workshops on the Go® Dakota Scrapbooking Kit	35
G1048	Workshops on the Go® La Belle Vie Scrapbooking Kit	41
G1049	Workshops on the Go® Scholastic Scrapbooking Kit	47
G1050	Workshops on the Go® Flirty Scrapbooking Kit	53
G1051	Workshops on the Go® Moonlight Scrapbooking Kit	59
G1052	Workshops on the Go® Pear & Partridge Scrapbooking Kit	65
Item #	Item Description	Page # Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book
A1104	A Tweet	90
A1111	A Tulip	68
A1116	A Melody	94
A1122	Bravo	92
A1128	Quick Cards—Shell	80
A1129	A Rainbow	85
B1365	Spring Up	71
B1369	Rosy Regards	67
B1374	Bee Happy	83
B1397	He Is Risen	74
B1402	My Peeps	72
C1439	Enjoy Life	95
C1440	Take a Picture	93
C1442	Tailor-Made	94
C1450	Eclectic Edges	99
C1452	Delight	71
C1455	Aspire	96
C1456	Heartfelt Treasures	68
C1457	Happy Camper	84
C1458	Paper Lantern	90
C1473	Remarkable Wreath	70
C1474	10 Things	105
C1485	Super Powers	47
C1498	Country Life	82
C1499	Perfect Day	80
D1195	The Works Alphabet	117
D1222	Tiny Typewriter Alphabet	117
D1296	Chocolate Alphabet Small	114
D1301	Hodge Podge Alphabet	114
D1303	Classmate Alphabet	114
D1462	Splendid Day	77
D1464	Card Chatter—Love	106
D1467	Trees & Things	76
D1472	Simple Memories	66
D1478	Bingo Alphabet	113
D1505	Roar!	89
D1508	Diverse Backgrounds	102
D1509	Magic Adventures	78
D1511	Kick Back	81
E1013	Field Trip Alphabet	114
Updated 12/4/12

Coffee date

My daughter and I are enjoying a ladies' day out. Her brother has been sick for a while and she has been craving some individual attention. We had a sushi lunch, and since my friends and I go out for coffee after our sushi lunches, she chose Starbucks for our dessert. I ordered an Earl Grey latte, and she decided on a white chocolate (decaf) Frappuccino. I may have created a monster here.

Speaking of which, off to Sephora, my happy place. I hope you all have a fabulous New Year.