How to Build a Spinning Card!

Close To My Heartcandy machine, card front spinner, how-to, I Chews You, rainbow, Rainbow Wishes, spin, spinner, spinning, Thin Cuts Leave a comment

We are having too much fun with the new Card Front Spinner Thin Cuts and their coordinating stamp sets! With multiple, revolving sentiments, spinner cards are a great way to incorporate some interactive fun into your cardmaking, and definitely puts a new “spin” on the cards you know and love. 🙂

The Card Front Spinner Thin Cuts is a set of 3 metal dies that allows you to create an interactive spinning card front. As you spin the wheel on the side, part of a hidden message is revealed in the cutout window.

Take a look at the video below to learn, step-by-step, how to make a spinning card using the Card Front Spinner Thin Cuts paired with our Rainbow Wishes stamp set.

The I Chews You stamp set coordinates seamlessly with the Spinner Card Front Thin Cuts to add a fun, interactive spinner element to your cards. This second stamp set has coordinating Thin Cuts that build on top of the card front spinner for even more spinning fun! The I Chews You Stamp + Thin Cuts helps you create a sweet spinning candy machine card that’s sure to be a treat!

Because the I Chews You stamp set can be paired with its own set of coordinating Thin Cuts, in order to create a spinning candy machine card, you will have to cut a few additional pieces to layer on top of the Spinner Card Front die-cuts.

For the most part, you still follow the same process to build the spinning base. For an I Chews You spinner card, however, the window piece needs to be turned upside down, where you end up spinning the wheel from the left side instead of the right. This allows you to get the intended full candy machine effect as you turn the spinning mechanism.

So, what do you think? Are you loving these spinning cards as much as we are? If you have any comments, questions, or any fun ideas, please share with us all in the comments section below!

Recipes:

4¼” x 5½” Rainbow Birthday Card (Vertical)
C1823 My Acrylix® Rainbow Wishes Stamp Set, CC12011 Oh My Heart Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2828 Toffee Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2844 Pixie Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2851 Saffron Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6506 Lilac Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6511 Julep Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3626 Card Front Spinner Thin Cuts, Z4304 Silver Sequins, Z3627 Silver Brads, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z2089 Glue Dots® Micro Dots, Die-cutting Machine

4¼” x 5½” Treat Yourself Card (Vertical)
Z3644 I Chews You Stamp + Thin Cuts, X9011 Mix-in Paper Packet, X6036 Ballerina Cardstock, X6037 Bluebird Cardstock, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, X6031 Green Apple Cardstock, X6035 Lemonade Cardstock, X6041 Lilac Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6513 Green Apple Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6506 Lilac Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2851 Saffron Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3626 Card Front Spinner Thin Cuts, Z4304 Silver Sequins, Z3132 Watercolor Paints, Z3224 Small Round Waterbrush, Z3627 Silver Brads, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z2089 Glue Dots® Micro Dots, Die-cutting Machine

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February 11, 2020Celebrate, Create

A Stamptacular Sale with 5 Exclusive Stamp Sets!

Close To My HeartCard Chatter, Card Word Puzzle, discount, exclusive, Hooray Bouquet, laugh, live, love, Love Life, my acrylix, promo, Remarkable, sale, stamp, Stamptacular, Sympathy, Thin Cuts, wreath 5 Comments

Our Stamptacular sale is here, and we are loving it! For the entire month of February, we’re putting on a stamping extravaganza with savings up to 50% on Stamp + Thin Cuts bundles and 35% on dozens of stamp sets. Stamptacular is a month-long stamp party with great deals for everyone! One of the most exciting parts of this sale is that there are five exclusive stamp sets included! These stamp sets are popular favorites from the past that we’ve brought back just for this sale. Today, we’d like to share a few fun ideas of how these sensational stamps can be used to make truly Stamptacular artwork of your own!

The first one we’ll take a peek at is the Remarkable Wreath stamp set. With options for a festive winter wreath, a springy circlet, and a summery garland, this stamp set is great for cards and layouts for all occasions. Just look at this gorgeous “Thank You” card with a sparkly, winter berry wreath. Isn’t it beautiful? 🙂

The creative possibilities are endless with the, next, Love Life stamp set. With the fifteen fun and distinctive stamps included in this set, you can put your own personal touch on any piece of artwork, from cheery cards to lovely scrapbook pages like this one.

Stamptacular Sale #ctmh #closetomyheart #sale #stamps #diy #cardmaking #scrapbooking #papercrafting #stamptacular #myacrylix #thincuts #diecutting #cuttlebug #lovelife #livelaughlove

Like the Love Life stamp set, the Hooray Bouquet stamp set is another great way to add unique elements to your artwork that can quite literally pop off the page. Hooray Bouquet is a versatile set that can be used in conjunction with a multitude of other stamp sets. In this example, we paired the Hooray Bouquet stamp set with three of the other exclusive Stamptacular sets—Love Life, Card Chatter—Sympathy, and Card Word Puzzle—to create a one-of-a-kind celebratory layout.

The Card Chatter—Sympathy and Card Word Puzzle stamp sets are the last two exclusive sets included in our Stamptacular sale. These stamp sets each feature a variety of sentiments and phrases that are easy to mix and match to great effect in your projects, as you can see in the two cards below.

These five sets are just the tip of the iceberg, friends! With so much stamping fun and such great deals to be had, make sure you don’t miss our great Stamptacular sale, going on right now and through the end of the month!

Do you have a favorite stamp set? Let us know, old or new, retired or current, which one you absolutely love or can’t craft without in the comments below.

Recipes

4¼” x 5½” Thanks Card (Vertical)
C1473 My Acrylix^® Remarkable Wreath Stamp Set, X7253B Spruced Up Paper Packet, X9011 Mix-in Paper Packet, X6046 French Vanilla Cardstock, Z6516 Sangria Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z8003 Espresso Exclusive Inks™ Pigment Pad, X7253E Spruced Up Die-cuts, Z4191 Silver Glitter Gems, Z4196 White Ribbon, Z2475 Brown Grey TriBlend™ Marker, Z3562 Silver Stickles™ Glitter Gel, Z2089 Glue Dots® Micro Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Corner Rounder

12″ x 12″ Live Laugh Love Page
D1482 My Acrylix^® Love Life Stamp Set, X7252B Celebrate Today Paper Packet, X6039 Carolina Cardstock, X5984 Pixie Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z6508 Bluebird Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z4189 Intense Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6510 Nectarine Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2844 Pixie Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2812 Raspberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3562 Silver Stickles™ Glitter Gel, Z3515 Black Journaling Pen (.01), Z3342 3-D Foam Dots, Cricut^® Art Philosophy Collection

Cricut^® Shape:
Art Philosophy
#M45BEB

12″ x 12″ Hip Hip Hooray Layout
D1482 My Acrylix^® Love Life Stamp Set, D1491 My Acrylix^® Hooray Bouquet Stamp Set, C1494 My Acrylix^® Card Word Puzzle Stamp Set, D1476 My Acrylix^® Card Chatter—Sympathy Stamp Set, X7252S Celebrate Today Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, X9011 Mix-in Paper Packet, X6029 Julep Cardstock, X6044 Peach Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2823 Goldrush Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6510 Nectarine Exclusive Inks Stamp Pad, Z6502 Peach Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2851 Saffron Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z4189 Intense Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3566 Julep Loose Sequins, Z3515 Black Journaling Pen (.01), Z2089 Glue Dots® Micro Dots, Cricut^® Art Philosophy Collection, 1″ Hole Punch, ½” Hole Punch

Cricut^® Shapes:
Art Philosophy
#M3EB66
#M4356A

4¼” x 5½” You Make Me Smile Card (Vertical)
C1494 My Acrylix^® Card Word Puzzle Stamp Set, D1491 My Acrylix^® Hooray Bouquet Stamp Set, X9011 Mix-in Paper Packet, X6036 Ballerina Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z4189 Intense Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z4191 Silver Glitter Gems, Z4213 Silver Embellishing thread, Z2481 Coral TriBlend™ Marker, Z2486 Dull Green TriBlend™ Marker, Z3554 Pink Taffeta Stickles™ Glitter Gel, Z3515 Black Journaling Pen (.01), Z2089 Glue Dots^® Micro Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape

4¼” x 5½” Just Thinking of You Card (Vertical)
C1494 My Acrylix^® Card Word Puzzle Stamp Set, D1482 My Acrylix^® Love Life Stamp Set, D1476 My Acrylix^® Card Chatter—Sympathy Stamp Set, X9011 Mix-in Paper Packet, Z6511 Julep Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z4189 Intense Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3507 Julep Glitter Gems, Z3609 Julep Shimmer Trim, Z3630 Watercolor Pencils, Z2089 Glue Dots® Micro Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape

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February 4, 2020Celebrate, Create, Inspiration

Galentines with Aimee Ferre!

Close To My HeartAimee Ferre, air mail, care package, DIY, folk-art, fries before guys, Galentine, handcraft, heart box, love, snail mail, treat box, valentine 3 Comments

Today’s post is written by the talented, handcrafted lifestyle expert, Aimee Ferre! Follow along as she shares her unique designs and style while creating a beautiful gift for a special gal in her life. ❤

During the cold month of January, with cloudy and dark skies, I start feeling restless for brighter and warmer days. Just when I think I can’t take one more day of gloom, February peeks her head around the corner and offers feminine shades of pink and red for Valentine’s Day. The love and sweets that she offers act as a “hold me over” until spring returns. I do love Valentine’s Day, but I have to admit, I love Galentine’s Day even more!

One of my favorite gal pals lives several hundred miles away. Her marriage last year took her all the way to Los Angeles to finish schooling. It’s my daughter Elsa. Now as an adult, she is a favorite gal pal even though we are so far apart.

When my three daughters were little, I always had “Cupid” come and bring them valentines and sweets in handmade boxes and fabric bags. It’s become a tradition I don’t want to ever let go of, no matter how old they are. So, this year, I thought of designing a beautiful care package to ship off, and not just in a red, white, and blue Priority Box from the United States Postal Service.

I want to send something like we sing about in the My Favorite Things song, “brown paper packages tied up with strings.” That’s what I was going for, with the addition of sweet ink stampings covering the outside of the box, giving a hint of the treasures that could be inside. I couldn’t wait to begin designing Elsa’s Galentine’s package with my Close To My Heart stamp sets!

My Acrylix^® Snail Mail by Aimee Ferre:

My Acrylix^® Air Mail by Aimee Ferre:(Outlined images coordinate with Thin Cuts metal dies.)

I am drawn to the large heart candy boxes of yesteryear with the oversized satin bows. For the past several years, I’ve made variations of these candy boxes for girlfriends. Sometimes I’ve hosted a swap where we all bring items to exchange and put in the heart boxes, and some years I provide the treasures inside. This year, I loved the way I could really embellish and personalize the heart boxes, the stationery, and even the shipping boxes using the Close To My Heart stamps and Thin Cuts paired with a few other materials.

This air mail sparrow card used Mint, White, and Ballerina cardstock. I stamped the designs with Glacier, Candy Apple, and Smoothie Exclusive Inks™. I glued Julep sequins pieces inside the stamped hearts and on top of the “cloud.” The cloud was made from a small sampling of loose quilt batting that was then machine sewn on using a straight stitch all the way around the edges of the cloud. I used 3-D foam tape to stick on the air mail sparrow. The envelope was sealed with the “Sealed with a Kiss” heart that was hand trimmed and glued halfway onto the envelope flap.

I found a 12″ heart box from the local craft store made of brown paper mâché and a smaller paper mâché heart box perfect for a bag of favorite candies or small jewelry piece. (You could also recycle any commercially made heart candy box.

Using a good quality paint that has primer included in the mix, I painted 2-3 coats on each box. Hardware stores now offer sample paint containers of whatever color you want for a few dollars, so I chose a color that went well with the Close To My Heart exclusive colors I planned on using: Ballerina, Glacier, Candy Apple, and Smoothie.

On the smaller heart box, I stamped the two leaf sprig stamps from the Air Mail by Aimee Ferre set directly on the box. I love that the banner in this stamp set is left blank to hand letter a recipient’s name or a sentiment inside. I stamped the banner in Candy Apple red, used the coordinating Thin Cuts metal die to cut the shape out, and attached it to the box with 3-D foam tape.

Once my large box had a base coat, using coordinating colors, I freehand painted some simple folk-art designs on the lid. To beautify the inside, I lined the box with parchment paper.

Every Valentine’s Day, I bake my famous fortune cookies dipped in chocolate to share with friends and family. I knew Elsa would feel close to home if I baked her a few to include inside along with some favorite candies of dark chocolate truffles, peppermint white chocolate pretzels, and, her favorite, sour gummy hearts.

I painted the rims of plain white paper baking cups with watercolors and stamped the bottoms using various designs from the Air Mail by Aimee Ferre and Snail Mail by Aimee Ferre stamp sets. Some of the cups I trimmed off a half inch to create a layered tutu look when nested inside each other. I even machine stitched a couple cups together at the bottom using coordinating thread.

I nested cellophane bags of sweets in the paper baking cups. Once the box was filled, I tied it up with a red and white striped ribbon. Using the scalloped heart stamp that coordinates with one of the Thin Cuts dies, I created a gift tag and tied it to the box.

Plain white or brown shipping boxes can be decorated as well. Make opening the package part of the excitement and experience of receiving their package. Measure the rectangular box flaps on the side that you plan to put the address label on, and then cut 4 sheets of cardstock one inch smaller all the way around to mount on each of the inside box flaps. It makes opening up the package a fun surprise!

You could write personal messages, poems about friendship and love, write memories or sweet sentiments on each of the flaps. You could even include fun photographs. I used a mix of hand painted folk-art designs and hand stamped artwork from both of the Aimee Ferre stamp sets to decorate the flaps.

I love the 3 small parallelogram stamps that are used to create the “Air Mail” border. Space them out carefully. I used Candy Apple and Glacier ink as the coordinating colors to create this border.

Brown paper packages, sweet treats, and hearts can all say, “fries before guys” to those gal pals that are some of the sweetest relationships in your life. I hope you find yourself thinking of those powerful women who influence your life for the better, and then create something special for them that will keep them close to your heart.

Hugs, Aimee Ferre

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January 28, 2020Create, Learn

10 Heat Transfer Vinyl Tips for Beginners

Close To My Heartalbum cover, cricut, easypress, free, giveaway, heat press, heat transfer, htv, vinyl 48 Comments

Heat transfer vinyl is one of the newest products to join the Close To My Heart ranks. We are absolutely loving working with it and are eager to help anyone who may be new to vinyl discover practical tips, tricks, and uses for this awesome material! Whether you’re applying it on an album cover or directly onto your cards or scrapbook pages, heat transfer vinyl is an awesome, multi-use medium, and it’s definitely one of our favorites. To address some tricky questions or to simply just get you started on the road to using heat transfer vinyl in your own crafts, we’ve put together a list of ten tips for vinyl beginners.

1. Keep the carrier sheet intact. The carrier sheet is the film backing on the vinyl that is there to keep your vinyl designs together. It is important that you do not cut through it. If you do, you may end up with various separate pieces that make up your design, which will make it a lot harder to position and apply to your project. To keep the carrier sheet intact, always make sure that the shiny side of the vinyl is facing DOWN when you position it on your cutting mat and that your cutting machine is set to vinyl.

2. Use a scraper tool to remove any bubbles and smooth your vinyl on your cutting mat. Having bubbles in your vinyl will potentially result in messy application. As you apply vinyl to your cutting mat, gently glide a scraper tool over the surface for a flawlessly smooth cutting surface.

3. Always cut the mirror image of your vinyl designs. When applying heat transfer vinyl onto a project, the carrier sheet will be facing UP. That means, when you cut your designs with the carrier sheet facing DOWN (as discussed in tip #1) you’ll want to cut a mirror image of how you want the final image to appear on your project. Otherwise, you’ll end up cutting all your project pieces backwards. This is mostly a problem if you’re using words in your design.

In Cricut Design Space™, you can accomplish this by inserting your images or text on your Design Space canvas, and selecting the “Flip” option, located on the toolbar at the top of the page. By flipping your image horizontally, you’ll be able to cut the mirror image of each desired shape without jeopardizing the carrier sheet.

4. Once you’ve cut your image in the vinyl, you’ll need to remove the excess vinyl from the carrier sheet before applying it to your project. This process is called weeding. To make weeding easier, heat your work surface for a few seconds, then weed over the heated surface. The heat will loosen the vinyl from the carrier sheet, making it easier to peel off the excess.

5. For better results, heat your project for a few seconds before placing the vinyl on it. To ensure that you don’t scorch your project, use a protective sheet between your heat source and the project surface. You will need to purchase a protective sheet separately from most heat presses. If you don’t have ready access to a protective sheet or you don’t wish to purchase one, you can use a thin t-shirt or towel to shield your project. If desired, you can also use this protection as you apply the vinyl to your project.

6. When you get ready to apply the vinyl to your project surface, use a little bit of pressure on the heat press for better and faster application. You don’t need to put your entire weight onto your press, but a small amount of pressure is recommended.

7. Don’t over-press your vinyl by keeping heat on it for too long. Start with 10–15 seconds and add more time if needed. Most heat presses come with an adjustable timer to help you keep track of your time.

8. If you’re using an iron, you’ll need to keep a closer eye on your project to prevent scorching. Since heat settings vary, start on a lower heat setting and work up as needed.

9. After applying heat transfer vinyl, you can peel the carrier sheet away from the project’s surface while it’s still hot. If you’re working with glitter vinyl, however, it’s best to peel it when it’s warm. (Just be sure you don’t burn your fingers!)

10. If you want to layer your vinyl, you can! However, we recommend that you don’t put any layers on top of glitter vinyl. The surface of the glitter vinyl will prevent any other vinyl placed on top of it from adhering and sealing properly. You can layer glitter pieces over other types of vinyl, but if you’re incorporating glitter vinyl into your projects, leave it on top, as you see in the photo below.

We hope this closer look at vinyl has helped you get excited about this awesome material! As a special treat, we’re giving away a custom vinyl pack to three lucky readers! These custom packs will include one 11.8″ x 12″ sheet of each of the four different heat transfer vinyls featured in today’s blog artwork (1 White, 1 Black, 1 Silver Glitter, and 1 Galaxy Black Glitter). For a chance to win, make sure you’re subscribed to this blog and leave a comment below telling us what you are creating or want to create with heat transfer vinyl! All entries must be in by 2 p.m. Wednesday, January 29, MST. Contest winners will be notified via email. Good luck! 😉

Recipes

12″ x 12″ Moments like This Layout
D1903 My Acrylix^® Celebrate Today—Scrapbooking Stamp Set, X7252S Celebrate Today Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, X6036 Ballerina Cardstock, X5974 Raspberry Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z3571 White Heat Transfer Vinyl,Z3578 Galaxy Black Glitter Heat Transfer Vinyl, Z3271 Archival Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2812 Raspberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z4304 Silver Loose Sequins, Cricut^® Flower Market Collection, Cricut EasyPress™ 2, Sewing Machine

Cricut^® Shapes:
Artistry
#M410373

Flower Market
#MD383BA
#MD6F435
#MD428B5

8½” x 11″ Happy Birthday Album Cover
Z5309 Ballerina 8½” x 11″ Everyday Life™ Album, Z3571 White Heat Transfer Vinyl, Z3572 Black Heat Transfer Vinyl, Z3576 Silver Glitter Heat Transfer Vinyl, Cricut^® Artistry Collection, Cricut EasyPress™ 2

Cricut^® Shapes:
Artistry
#M4187B1

Basic Shapes
#M36989A

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January 21, 2020Create, Inspiration

DIY Décor to Make Over Your Boy’s Room

Close To My Heartboy, Boy's Room, Bring Back My Pack, Chipboard, city, Decor, DIY, epic, frames, guitar, monogram, national papercrafting month, Skateboard, Skater, Urban, vision board Leave a comment

We’re at it again! Last week we shared a fun way to dress up a girl’s room using beautiful large paper flowers, and, as promised, today we’ve got some inspiration on how to use papercrafting to decorate a more boyish space. (It can be done!)

The Urban paper collection is one of our absolute all-time favorites. We love it so much, in fact, that we brought it back for a second time around! Whether you missed it when it made its debut, or you love the designs just as much as we do, now is your chance to stock up!

DIY Boy's Room Decor #ctmh #closetomyheart #ctmhurban #frameitup #urbanframes #diydecor #boysroom #skater #skateboarding #rustic #epic #guitar #chipboard #monogram #visionboard

We paired these classic Urban patterns with a few of our other go-to products and came up with some really fun, trendy, and even purposeful, décor pieces. Take a closer look.

Our chipboard frames and monograms are a great way to showcase personality in any given space. The patterns found in the Urban papers and stickers provide just the right amount of warmth, edge, and attitude to do just that!

We backed this third frame with some cork board to effortlessly add or move photos, notes, and other mementos around. With a little bit of personal thought and inspiration, you could easily turn one of these framed pieces into a vision board!

As a reminder, the Urban collection is here for a limited time! That includes the paper packet, coordinating cardstock, and the My Acrylix® Urban Flair stamp set. Make sure to get yours before it is gone for good!

My Acrylix® Urban Flair Stamp Set

For those of you who, like us, also love all things scrapbooking and cardmaking. We put together a workshop that uses these designs to create this stunning artwork:

Download the free instructions, here.

We love National Papercrafting Month, and we absolutely love with our Urban collection. Don’t forget, you only have until January 31^st, while supplies last, to get your hands on this go-to classic!

Recipe

16″ x 16″ Urban Frames
CC12194 My Acrylix^® Urban Flair Stamp Set, CC12191 Urban Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, X6046 French Vanilla Cardstock, X5947 Mink Cardstock, X5950 Toffee Cardstock, Z2849 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Set, Z2829 Espresso Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2825 Mink Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2828 Toffee Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z4088 White Alphabet Foam Stickers, Z4221 Mink Twine, Z2478 Earth Brown TriBlend™ Marker, Z2479 Gold Brown TriBlend™ Marker, Z3580 Chipboard Frame + Overlay, Z3430 Chipboard Monogram—R, Artiste Cricut^® Collection

Cricut^® Shape:
Artiste Collection
#M3BCAC

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January 14, 2020Celebrate, Create, Learn

Make Your Very Own Paper Flower Unicorn Wall Décor!

Close To My Heartcricut, Decor, DIY, floral, flower, Flower Market, free, free template, girl, gorgeous, national papercrafting month, papercraft, template, unicorn, wall 20 Comments

If you haven’t gotten down and crafty yet this year, now is the perfect time to start. For our second week celebrating National Papercrafting Month, we created this beautiful, large scale, floral wall décor and are giving you our Cricut Design Space™ file, FREE, to recreate this very same project at home!

(Click on the individual images for a closer look!)

In order to keep things simple, we manipulated shapes from just one of our Cricut^® collections, Flower Market, while designing our arrangement. If you don’t own the Cricut^® Flower Market Collection, contact your Close To My Heart Consultant (or find one near you, here) to get started.

To give you an idea of the physical size of this project, the center French Vanilla flower is 20″ in diameter, both Peach flowers are 17″, the Lilac flowers are 14″, and the smaller Mint flowers are 13½” each.

When you open the file in Design Space, you will find some hexagon shapes among the petal shapes. These are your bases for each of the flowers. Attach the petals of each flower, layering them from largest to smallest, to these bases. You will also notice that the eyelashes are quite large. They are so large, in fact, that when you attempt to “make it” the program will tell you that you need a 12″ x 24″ mat. We did not use a longer mat to cut these, so there is a way around it! When the prompt comes up, all you need to do is select the image and rotate it to make it fit diagonally in the 12″ x 12″ square.

We don’t want any of our readers to feel left out, so for those of you who do not use Cricut^®, a few months ago, our very own Jill Broadbent visited Studio5 and shared how to make similar large paper flowers without a cutting machine.

Download the PDF below for a template to make large paper flowers without a cutting machine.

Paper Flower Template

Every little (and grownup) girl deserves to know just how gorgeous she is! Happy crafting!

Make sure to stop by next week to see what we’ve got in store for a boy’s space using our Urban collection!

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January 7, 2020Celebrate, Create, Learn

All Around Creativity: Adding a Splash of Color

Close To My HeartAll Around Creativity, Be Kind, Create, Decor, embossing, Exclusive Inks, floral, flower, giveaway, grateful, National, national papercrafting month, npm, Papercrafting, sponging, Stay Awhile, techniques, VersaMark™ 37 Comments

We’re jumping right into the new year and celebrating National Papercrafting Month with the All Around Creativity special, featuring four gorgeous wreath kits that are only available from Close To My Heart through the end of the month. There are so many different ways to embellish these beautiful wreaths, so we figured we’d have some fun and share with you four simple ways that we’ve added color to the plywood bases.

Adding color to wood doesn’t need to be super messy or take a huge amount of time. It can be quick, easy, and clean. To start off, we’ll take a peek at one of the easiest wood-coloration techniques. This method uses an Exclusive Inks™ stamp pad and will only take you a few minutes from application until it’s completely dry!

Simply select the ink color you’d like to use and gently swipe the stamp pad over the surface of the wood with quick, dabbing motions, going with the grain. Going with the grain helps you to emphasize the natural beauty of the wood, while also protecting your stamp pad from getting scratched up or caught on the wood. As you’ll see in the video below, we left some of the wood grain visible for a more stained look, but you can make it as light or as dark as you’d like.

To achieve a softer, mottled look, try sponging the ink onto the wood.

Cut a Round Sponge into quarters. While gripping the point of one quarter with your fingers, gently load your sponge with ink by pouncing it on your stamp pad. Because the sponge absorbs the ink, it may not look like you have a lot on there, but you’ll have more ink than you think!

Once you’ve got your sponge inked and ready to go, use the same pouncing motion you used on the stamp pad to apply the color to the plywood. The ink will dry lighter than it looks while you apply it. For a darker, richer tone, you will have to apply additional layers of ink.

This next technique uses TriBlend™ markers. When using an alcohol-based marker to color wood, you’ll want to go in the direction of the grain and use a steady hand to achieve even color throughout.

Because you have greater control over color distribution when you use this method, you also have more control over the appearance of the colored wood. For instance, if you want a softer, lighter look, use a light hand and don’t go over the same spot too many times. For darker and richer tones, add more color layers to really get the pigment into the wood.

If you’re going for a darker color, don’t jam the marker tip into the wood, as this may damage your marker. Instead, go over the same area of the wood multiple times for color layering and try using a lighter shade of your TriBlend™ marker.

The last technique we’re showcasing today adds a bit of sparkle to your art. Heat embossing! (We went there, and it’s beautiful!)

First, place your wreath over a piece of scratch paper so you can catch any excess embossing powder. Then, begin by rubbing the surface of the wreath with an anti-static pouch. Apply VersaMark™ ink to the wreath, a few sections at a time, using the same pouncing motion you saw in our first technique. While the ink is still wet, sprinkle embossing powder over it, shake off any excess powder onto your scratch paper, and heat set with a heat tool. (Use your scratch paper to easily funnel your excess embossing powder back into its container for future use.)

We absolutely love these wreaths and National Papercrafting Month, because it really gets us thinking outside the box! We can’t wait to see all the different ways you choose to add color to your wreaths.

Remember, you can only get these gorgeous wreath kits until January 31, and if you buy four or more you even get a discount! Make sure to take full advantage of the All Around Creativity special while you still can. For a few of you who may be on the fence, we are giving away four of these kits to four lucky readers! For a chance to win, you must do two things. First, make sure you are subscribed to this blog. If you are not, find the blue button on the sidebar that says “Subscribe to list” and follow the prompts once you’ve clicked it. Second, leave us a comment below telling us what types of crafts you like to work out, outside of scrapbooking and cardmaking. You have until 12 p.m. (MST) Thursday, January 9, to submit your entries. All winners will be notified by email. Good luck and happy crafting!

Recipes

Create Wreath
CC12017 Create Wreath Kit, Z2848 Sapphire Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad

Stay Awhile Wreath
CC12019 Stay Awhile Wreath Kit, Z6512 Evergreen Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z697 Round Sponge

Grateful Wreath
CC12018 Grateful Wreath Kit, Z2478 Earth Brown TriBlend™ Marker

Be Kind Wreath
CC12016 Be Kind Wreath Kit, Z2850 Fern Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2835 New England Ivy Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2844 Pixie Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2812 Raspberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z891 VersaMark™ Ink Pad, Z3293 Clear Shimmer Brush, Z4235 Gold Loose Sequins, Z697 Round Sponge, Z4249 Gold Tinsel Embossing Powder, Z4220 Anti-static Pouch, Z4252 Heat Tool

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December 31, 2019Celebrate, Community, Create, Learn

An Inside Look into Our New 2020 Catalog!

Close To My Heart2020, All Around Creativity, catalog, catalogue, february, january, New, new product, New Year, Oh My Heart 3 Comments

Happy New Year’s Eve everyone! It is officially the last day of the year, can you believe it? Tomorrow not only brings with it renewed aspirations and hope in new beginnings but, also, a brand new Close To My Heart catalog filled from cover to cover with new pattern papers, stamp sets, embellishments, new and original ideas, and much, much more!

Since the products in the new January–February 2020 catalog will be available for viewing and purchasing immediately after midnight tonight, we just had to ring in the new year a little early and share! Celebrate with us and take a sneak peek into just a few of our new favorites that have us excited for what’s to come!

Holographic Paper

This new eye-catching holographic paper is a must have! We’ve got two reflective colors to choose from, Oasis (on the left) and Dreamy (on the right). Take a close look at this new product and some additional artwork examples with our Art Studio Director, Karen, in the short video below.

Card Front Spinner Thin Cuts

Both stamp sets shown here, My Acrylix^® Rainbow Wishes and My Acrylix^® I Chews You, coordinate seamlessly to add a fun, interactive spinner element to your cards.

Stitched Bracket Thin Cuts

The Stitched Bracket Thin Cuts are an easy way to mat photos, journaling, and anything else you may want to highlight in your art. This set is just one of MANY Thin Cuts sets available in this upcoming catalog.

Two New Shimmer Brushes

We are adding two new colors to our line of shimmer brushes, Lagoon and Raspberry! We just love adding some colorful shimmer to artwork!

All Around Creativity

Our National Papercrafting Month special is so sensational that we’ve included it in our January–February catalog just to show it off in as many places as we can! This special features exclusive wooden wreath kits. Each kit comes with a 16″ plywood base of your choice ready to embellish with paper flowers, leaves, patterned background papers, and even a paper bow!

Oh My Heart

Can you feel the love coming from this workshop made especially for Valentine’s Day? The Oh My Heart Workshop will not only guide you through creating a single-page and a two-page layout, but also in easily making 40 unique 3″ x 4″ cards! Make the cards even more special by having that special kiddo in your life participate in the assembly process. (They really do come together that easily!)

Stamp Sets

Our new catalog is brimming with great new stamp designs—here is just a small sampling:

You’re Not Old Stamp + Thin Cuts

Life in Boots Stamp + Thin Cuts

My Acrylix^® Floral Borders Stamp Set

Country Animals Bundle

For the first time ever, we have M-size stamp sets with coordinating Thin Cuts! Each of the country animal stamps seen here are available alone, with their coordinating die, or all together in the Country Animals Bundle!

Happy Birthday Shaker Window Thin Cuts

Making a birthday shaker card just got easier! This set of dies cuts a window overlay with a happy birthday banner, as seen here, and triangle confetti shapes to mix in with your sequins or use alone. To create the window, be sure to pair these dies with the Shaker Window Foam & Acetate. Don’t stop there. If cardmaking or shaker windows aren’t your thing, use the happy birthday overlay in your scrapbook pages to frame a picture of a birthday boy or girl.

Craft with Heart™—Subscription with Heart!

Be ready to preserve memories as you make them with new kits from the Craft with Heart™ scrapbooking subscription! As a subscriber, you’ll receive regular deliveries of Cut Above^® layout kits, each kit featuring two beautifully designed two-page layouts. Your layouts come together in minutes thanks to pre-printed base pages, with complementary die-cuts and stickers to help you preserve your memories in style.

And don’t forget!!! There’s a new Cut Above^® cardmaking kit coming out in January, too!

Each delivery includes materials to create a set of beautiful, handmade cards, that will come together in a snap thanks to pre-printed card bases, die-cut shapes, and more. Each delivery also includes an exclusive My Acrylix^® stamp set, complete with stamping block and mini ink pads, so you’ll have the tools you need to create your cards just the way you want them. Keep up with all the occasions in your life with a Craft with Heart™ cardmaking subscription!

There are many, many more products worth taking a look at in our new January–February 2020 catalog. Make sure to contact your Close To My Heart Consultant to see what else 2020 holds in store!

May you have a safe and happy New Year! ❤

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December 24, 2019Celebrate, Community

From Jeanette: Never Stop Dreaming!

Close To My Heartchristmas, dreaming, dreams, Japan, Jeanette, Jeanette Lynton, New Year 10 Comments

Merry Christmas! As is natural at the end of a year, I have been reflecting lately on what the year has brought to me and to this company. This has been a wonderful year of celebration for me as we have commemorated my 35 years in business milestone. I have truly enjoyed celebrating throughout the year, and especially at our Conventions in Brisbane, Australia, and in Provo, Utah! I express my appreciation to everyone who has shared in the celebrations with me this year.

In addition to the 35-year celebrations, I have also seen the realization of two dreams that I have had for a very long time. One dream that I have had since almost the very beginning of this business has been opening in Japan. I have so much love for the culture and the people there, that it has always been a goal of mine. This year, with the help of some very dedicated individuals, we finally made it happen: we have officially opened in Japan and have our very first Consultants there! This has been a dream come true not only for me, but for many people in Japan who have just been waiting for this day to come!

The second dream that I have seen become reality this year is the opening of our very own event space right in the Home Office building! We built this building over twenty years ago, and I have always thought it would be wonderful to have a space set aside that we could share with Consultants. Just last month we held our inaugural Home Office Album Retreat to officially open the space and we had Consultants from all over in attendance. We have another retreat coming up in January, with more planned for future months as well. I am so excited to be welcoming Consultants and their friends to join us for fun creative time right here at the Home Office.

As you can tell, it has been a wonderful year—another one of many wonderful years that I have had as the leader of this company. I am deeply grateful to everyone who plays a part in making Close To My Heart what it is. We have another exciting year ahead of us, and I can hardly wait to see what new dreams and successes it will bring!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

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Holographic Paper

Card Front Spinner Thin Cuts

Stitched Bracket Thin Cuts

Two New Shimmer Brushes

All Around Creativity

Oh My Heart

Stamp Sets

Happy Birthday Shaker Window Thin Cuts

Craft with Heart™—Subscription with Heart!

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