10 New Tools & Products to Add to Your Crafting Arsenal

Close To My Heartcatalog, catalogue, christmas, Halloween, Holiday Expressions, idea book, New, new idea book, products, thanksgiving, tools 6 Comments

It’s an exciting time of year, folks! As promised, our Holiday Expressions idea book catalog was released just a few days ago and it is filled to the brim with new, cutting edge tools and products to add to your holiday and non-holiday crafting arsenal. We’ve gathered a few of our favorites for you below, but there just isn’t enough room to share “all the things,” so make sure to flip through the whole catalog so you don’t miss anything! 🙂

Love of Color

Must-have Papercrafting Tools #CTMH #CloseToMyHeart #HolidayExpressions #ideabook #catalog #catalogue #papercrafting #cardmaking #scrapbooking #musthaveproducts #musthavetools #LoveofColor #ThinCuts #SeasonofJoy #Cricut #HolidayKitchen #CutAbove #shimmerbrush #CTMHSugarplum #Sugarplum #colorbook #pigmentink #coloroftheyear ##BeautifulSoul #OperationSmile #shakerwindow #texturepaste

Never second-guess your color choices again with this new, inspirational color guide! Love of Color brings the exclusive Close To My Heart color palette to life with breathtaking artwork that illustrates how to create perfectly balanced color combinations. Organized by color, each spread focuses on an exclusive color shown in three different color schemes.

Pigment Pads

We now have pigment ink options available in our patented Exclusive Inks™ stamp pads! This acid-free, fade-resistant pigment ink dries quickly and permanently on most papers and porous surfaces after heat-setting. Available in our full-size ink pads, the new pigment pads feature raised pads that are approximately 3¾” x 2½”—larger than average and easier to use. Available in Candy Apple, Pixie, Sapphire, Clover, Espresso, Black, and White Daisy.

Texture Pastes

Build dimensional textures right on your artwork with texture pastes! Available in opaque matte, transparent matte, and transparent gloss, these pastes can be used alone with a palette knife or paired with stencil sheets to create more intricate patterns.

Shimmer Brushes

We loooove the effects created by our clear and gold shimmer brushes so much that we now have them in several additional colors—Sugarplum, red, black, and Mint. Take a look at the video below to see them in action!

Shaker Window Kits

Assembling a shaker window has never been easier! With these trusty tools, you are sure to get hooked on this throw-back trend!

Thin Cuts—Shaker Window & Confetti

Cuts a window and confetti shapes to use for a 2½” shaker window.

Gold and Silver Loose Sequins

Add some sparkle and shine to those shaker windows.

Shaker Window Foam & Acetate

New Thin Cuts

From decorative borders, to fancy tags, snowflakes, and merry sentiments, we are sure you will want these new sets in your crafting toolbox!

Season of Joy Cricut^® Collection

Prepare to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year with the dynamic shape designs in the new Season of Joy collection!

This collection features over 45 images and projects, including several seasonal icons, titles, and sentiments, as well as a collection of 3-D projects that you can create after a few simple cuts on your Cricut^® machine.

Holiday Kitchen

Because food plays such an important role in so many of our favorite holiday traditions, we couldn’t help but make another Cut Above^® recipe kit—this time with some holiday flair! The Holiday Kitchen Cut Above^® recipe kit includes everything you need to get all those recipes in one place together with the stories and memories that make them so special!

All Things Sugarplum

There’s a new kid in town and it goes by the name Sugarplum—our 2018 Color of the Year! This exclusive shade will only be available for a limited time, so make sure you get it in all of its available forms: stamp pad, pigment pad, re-inker, cardstock, glitter paper, shimmer brush, and more!

Beautiful Soul

We are on a mission to change the lives of as many children as possible by restoring something that no child should be without—their smile.

In recent years, Close To My Heart has annually dedicated the proceeds of one stamp set to the efforts of Operation Smile™, a non-profit organization that provides safe surgeries to repair cleft left lips and palates in children around the world. Starting with our new Holiday Expressions catalog, we are now dedicating one stamp set per catalog—that means three stamp sets a year—to this very worthy cause.

Purchase this catalog’s Operation Smile™ stamp set, My Acrylix^® Beautiful Soul, encourage others to do so, or simply get on our site and make a straight donation to Operation Smile™.

So what do you think of our 2018 Holiday Expressions line up? Which products are you just dying to get your hands on? Let us know in the comments below!

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December 28, 2017Create, Memory Keeping

What to Do with Christmas Cards After the Holidays

Close To My Heartcards, christmas, memories, Memory Keeping, mini album, photos, preserve 11 Comments

Phew! You can take a deep breath now—Christmas is over and you can calmly go about your business getting back to a “normal” routine. There are decorations to be put away, a tree to take down, presents to find places for, goodies and leftovers galore to eat your way through… but all in its own time.

One item that perplexes many is the stack of Christmas cards that you’ve received over the past few weeks (and which will probably keep trickling in over the next few weeks, too!). You’ve probably got a great system for displaying them when they come in, but now that Christmas is over what is to become of them?

We shudder at the thought of throwing away those cute photos and heartfelt greetings from loved ones and bygone friends, but the alternative of shoveling the stack into a box and shoving it onto an obscure and cluttered shelf under the stairs seems scarcely better. Luckily we have some great ideas to help you find a more fitting home for these keepsakes.

Flip Flaps™ Memory Protectors™ to the rescue! This Christmas cards 2017 layout gives you a beautiful place to preserve those photos. The layout itself uses neutral colors and simple design elements in order to give visual preference to the photos, which likely do not all conform to a unified color scheme. Cards that are larger than 4″ x 6″ can be trimmed to fit into the Flip Flaps, or you can even just trim out a part of the photo and add it to the page, discarding the rest of the card.

Christmas Cards #ctmh #closetomyheart #Christmas #cards #scrapbooking #memory #keeping #preserving #family #holiday #celebrate #merry #2017 #year #photos

Cards that do not include family photos can benefit from similar treatment, incorporated as design elements into a layout like this one. By using the Pocket Plus™ Memory Protectors, you can add these cards to a layout so that the designed card front looks like any other design element, but the card can still be pulled out and read for the message inside.

Another project that works well for pulling together different elements is a mini-album. Once again, you can include entire cards, trim them to fit, or cut out elements you’d like to preserve.

Christmas cards come in all shapes and sizes, and so do mini albums! Here’s another album idea that takes a vertical approach by binding all the cards together with a piece of ribbon threaded through punched holes in each of the pages.

Use this idea to incorporate all kinds of cards, from photo cards, to traditional, folding cards and notes, which can be tucked into basic pockets in your album. As the creator of your album, you can make it to fit the cards that you want to keep.

When your friends and family members go to the trouble of sending you a Christmas card, that is an act of caring that deserves better treatment than to be stuck on a fridge or a board for a month and then discarded! Now that we’ve given you some ideas of what to do with them, you have an alternative that will keep their warm holiday wishes around all year—and isn’t that what we hope will happen every Christmas?

Recipes

12″ x 12″ Christmas Cards 2017 Layout
A1182 My Acrylix^®Etched Alphabet Stamp Set, C1688 My Acrylix^®First Noel Stamp Set, C1689 My Acrylix^® Silver & Gold—Cardmaking Stamp Set, Z3312 Gold Glitter Gems, Z3274 Clear Sparkles, Z3231 Flip Flaps™ Memory Protectors™ 4″ x 6″, Z3389 Cricut^® You Are Here Collection, Sewing Machine

Cricut^® Shapes:
You Are Here
1½” <font> “2017”

12″ x 12″ Jolly Festive Holiday Layout
D1737 My Acrylix^®Silver & Gold—Scrapbooking Stamp Set, C1688 My Acrylix^®First Noel Stamp Set, C1689 My Acrylix^®Silver & Gold—Cardmaking Stamp Set, X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2835 New England Ivy Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z891 VersaMark™ Ink Pad, Z4038 Beary Christmas Dots, Z3312 Gold Glitter Gems, Z2066 Ranger™ Princess Gold Embossing Powder, Z555 Craft Heater, Z3242 Pocket Plus™ Memory Protectors™ Design 1

5½” x 7½” Merry Christmas 2017 Mini Album
D1737 My Acrylix^®Silver & Gold—Scrapbooking Stamp Set, C1688 My Acrylix^®First Noel Stamp Set, C1689 My Acrylix^® Silver & Gold—Cardmaking Stamp Set, D1743 My Acrylix^®Gingerbread Friends Stamp Set, B1567 My Acrylix^®Hallelujah Stamp Set, X7226B Silver & Gold Paper Packet, X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, 1386 Black Cardstock, X5975 Cranberry Cardstock, Z3239 Silver Glitter Paper, Z2850 Fern Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2835 New England Ivy Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2831 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z899 Black Memento™ Ink Pad, Z891 VersaMark™ Ink Pad, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z4038 Beary Christmas Dots, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z2066 Ranger™ Princess Gold Embossing Powder, Z2067 Ranger™ Silver Super Fine Embossing Powder, Z555 Craft Heater, Z3389 Cricut^® You Are Here Collection, Z3169 Cricut^® Artbooking Collection, Sewing Machine

Cricut^® Shapes:
You Are Here
1″ <font> “2017”

Artbooking
4¼” Shift+Border <TeamWork> (p. 83, #M46F6E)
1¼” <Merry> (p. 75, #M58114)

5¼” x 7¼” Beary Merry Christmas Card Flip Book
C1689 My Acrylix^®Silver & Gold—Cardmaking Stamp Set, C1688 My Acrylix^®First Noel Stamp Set, D1737 My Acrylix^®Silver & Gold—Scrapbooking Stamp Set, X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5955 Pebble Cardstock, Z899 Black Memento™ Ink Pad, Z891 VersaMark™ Ink Pad, X7225C Beary Christmas Complements, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z4038 Beary Christmas Dots, Z3361 Whimsy Ribbon Pack, Z2067 Ranger™ Silver Super Fine Embossing Powder, Z555 Craft Heater, Hole Punch

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December 25, 2017Community

From Jeanette: My Christmas Wish

Close To My Heartchristmas, Family, grandchildren, Jeanette, Jeanette Lynton, pajamas, personal, pj's, relationships 26 Comments

Lynton Family

What a wonderful time of year! I love the opportunity to celebrate the birth and life of our Savior with the world, and with each of you! I can say without a doubt that I have been blessed immensely this year to count you among my friends.

My beautiful grandchildren are a constant reminder to me of how simple and carefree life can be when we focus on the good things in life. Christmas through the eyes of a child is especially magical. There is so much anticipation, hope, and unconditional love in every moment. And if you’re fortunate enough, you may catch a glimpse of it through a quick twinkle in their eyes.

My hope for each of us both during this special season and any time throughout the year is to be more like children. Love unconditionally, forgive easily and often, and focus on all of the good—and there is so much good—in this world.

I love my grandkids with all of my heart for the innocent lessons they teach me on a regular basis. And, I love all of you. Thank you for being so much of the good that is in my life.

May your lives be merry and bright and full of unconditional love this Christmas!

Jeanette

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December 19, 2017Celebrate, Create

Kid Friendly Garland

Close To My Heartchildren, christmas, DIY, easy, garland, Holidays, kids, papercraft, Papercrafting, quick 3 Comments

We know what you’re thinking, with less than a week away from Christmas there’s no way we can convince you to start any more paper projects until well into January. But, we sure want to try! 😀

Children love making things with their hands. Creativity is an innate part of childhood. And, you love creating and making things, too—so why not share this passion and create something fun and festive together to add to your celebrations.

We came up with an idea to help you use up some of your paper stash while making valuable memories with the adorable little ones in your life.

A simple paper chain like this is a cinch to put together, making it the perfect project for this busiest of seasons. It’s also a great project for involving younger crafters, and keeping those tiny hands busy! Use whatever fun patterns and colors you or your co-crafters like, and display the finished product as a garland.

Make your garland any size and length you like, to fit your style and space. For ours, we made each link from 2″ x 9″ strips of paper. At first we used only an adhesive runner to keep the pieces together but as we started working with the thicker glitter papers, we realized that those pieces would need something extra if they were going to be links in our chain. So, we glued them first then added mini staples to make sure they stayed in place.

Mini staples, while securing the elements of your project, make for fun accents, too. We ended up adding extra staples to pieces that didn’t need them simply for the look.

The best part about crafting with children is not the project you are working on, but the moments you share with each other. That togetherness is especially wonderful during this time of year. Share your passion for creativity with the little hands in your life and turn that time into memories worth preserving.

Recipe:

Paper Chain Garland
X7224B Cats & Bats Paper Packet, X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, X7226B Silver & Gold Paper Packet, Z3350 Whimsy Fundamental Paper Packet, Z3352 Enchantment Fundamental Paper Packet, Z3241 Red Glitter Paper, Z3238 Gold Glitter Paper, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, 1386 Black Cardstock, Z3372 Adhesive Runner, Z2027 Mini Stapler

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December 14, 2017Create, Learn, Memory Keeping

Staying Ahead of Memories with Pocket Scrapbooking

Close To My Heartchristmas, Holidays, Memory Keeping, pocket plus, pocket scrapbook, pocket scrapbooking, season 6 Comments

The holidays are one of the busiest times of the year. Between the shopping, the parties, and the baking, it can feel impossible to find time for memory keeping! Pocket scrapbooking is a convenient solution for staying ahead during the season while still creating beautiful pages for your holiday album.

Holiday Memory Keeping #ctmh #closetomyheart #memory #keeping #pocket #plus #scrapbooking #scrapping #plan #ahead #holiday #christmas #december #story #cheer #season #mistletoe

With pocket scrapbooking, you can use Picture My Life™ cards and simple embellishments to quickly create your layouts. On the layout above, we added a little gold shimmer trim and a few gold glitter gems to give it some extra sparkle. A good rule of thumb with pocket scrapbooking is to try to have an equal number of photos and cards on your layout. This helps each page look balanced and complete.

Because of the way pocket scrapbooking works, you can make some of your Christmas layouts ahead of time, before your photos are even taken! We know, it might sound crazy, but with pocket scrapbooking it makes perfect sense! Line up your cards the way you like them and leave the photo pockets empty—or, if it helps to see where to put your photos as you create, use cardstock as a photo placeholder.

If you really like the idea of planning ahead, take it to the next level! Instead of just leaving blanks for the photos you will take, use sticky notes to add short reminders about what kind of photos you want to take to add to the layouts. That way you can have a plan for your scrapbook, have the pages ready to go, but then wait to print your photos after the holiday season when life is a little less hectic. Then, all you have to do is slip those printed photos into your Memory Protectors™.

Take the same approach with your journaling. You’ll notice that none of these layouts have the journaling yet. If you’re crunched for time, jot down some of the important parts on a sticky note. What do you like about your holiday traditions? What food did you eat? What is special about that moment? You don’t have to write down the entire story, just highlights to jog your memory. That will make it easier to add words to a journaling pocket card when you have time to come back to it.

The best part of this is that if you make your pocket scrapbook layouts ahead of time and then your photos don’t fit on your pages, you can easily adjust your design! That’s one of the things we love about this scrapbooking format: It’s easy to mix, match, and move photos and pocket cards to fit your story, even as it happens!

And, if you need some extra room for all of those photos you will be taking, simply add Pocket Plus™ Memory Protectors™. With Pocket Plus you get that extra space for photos and journaling without having to add an entire layout. It also adds a fun, interactive element to your pages.

As you celebrate this season, use the ideas we shared today to stay ahead of holiday memories, and don’t forget to keep these pocket scrapbooking tips in mind for any time life gets busy. Memory-making never stops. Preserve those memories as they happen with pocket scrapbooking.

Recipes

12″ x 12″ Merry Everything Pocket Scrapbooking Layout
Z4050 Picture My Life™ Cards—Beary Christmas, Z4051 Picture My Life™ Cards—Silver & Gold, X7225C Beary Christmas Complements, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z1985 Gold Shimmer Trim, Z3312 Gold Glitter Gems, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape, Z1950 Memory Protectors™ Design 3, Z1952 Memory Protectors™ Design 5, Z3243 Pocket Plus™ Memory Protectors™ Design 2, Z3245 Pocket Plus™ Memory Protectors™ Design 4

12″ x 12″ Reindeer Xing Pocket Scrapbooking Layout
Z4050 Picture My Life™ Cards—Beary Christmas, Z4051 Picture My Life™ Cards—Silver & Gold, X7225C Beary Christmas Complements, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z1799 Silver Shimmer Trim, 4113 Memory Protectors™ Design 2, Z1951 Memory Protectors™ Design 4, Z3242 Pocket Plus™ Memory Protectors™ Design 1, Z3244 Pocket Plus™ Memory Protectors™ Design 3

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December 12, 2017Celebrate, Create

5 DIY Gift Tag Ideas

Close To My Heartchristmas, Create, DIY, gift, Holiday, inspiration, presents, tags, techinique 5 Comments

We can think of no better way to dress up a gift than with a personalized handmade tag, so we came up with a quick list of ideas to help up your tag-making game this season!

1. Cricut^® Shapes

Select a few of your favorite shapes and let your Cricut^® machine do the rest! If you need to make a large number of gift tags, using a Cricut^® shape is an easy way to get it done.

2. Pocket Cards

If you have extra pocket cards, try trimming them into a gift tag. Your pocket cards can become the base paper or even the sentiment!

3. Cut Above^® Tag Kit

This kit was designed for tag making! Pair these tags with different ribbons, embellishments, and sentiments to change their original look, and voila! You have beautifully unique tags for the beautifully unique people receiving them.

4. Complements

Make use of any extra complements you have by sticking them on gift tags!

5. Stamping on Scraps

We all have scraps of paper lying around from bigger projects we’ve worked on in preparation for the holidays. Instead of throwing it away (or hoarding it! J) turn your scraps into little gift tags with some fun stamps and ribbons!

Who knew that so much cuteness could fit into such small pieces of paper! Make your gift giving that much more special this season with some personalized handmade tags!

Share your results with us in the comments below!

Recipe:

Gift Tags
Z4043 Silver & Gold Scrapbooking Stamp + Thin Cuts, B1574 My Acrylix^® I Made This Stamp Set, C1692 My Acrylix^® The Thought that Counts Stamp Set, D1744 My Acrylix^®Season of Sweetness Stamp Set, Z4048 Cut Above^® Card Kit—Merry Everything, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5959 New England Ivy Cardstock, X5975 Cranberry Cardstock, X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, Z4051 Picture My Life™ Cards—Silver & Gold, Z4050 Picture My Life™ Cards—Beary Christmas, Z3271 Archival Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2835 New England Ivy Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2816 Cranberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z4012 Black Shimmer Ribbon, Z3363 Enchantment Ribbon Pack, Z3364 Basics Ribbon Pack, Z3216 White Twine, Z3189 White & Gold Ribbon, Z4038 Beary Christmas Dots, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z3274 Clear Sparkles, Z3344 Thin Cuts—Basic Tags, Z3167 Cricut^® Artistry Collection, Cricut^®City Sidewalks Digital Collection, Die-cutting Machine, Hole Punch

Cricut Shapes:
Artistry
2¾” <Thksgvng> (p. 45, #MF644C1)

City Sidewalks (no longer for sale)
1¼” Snowflake (#MF644C1)
1¾” Holly (#MF647BC)

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December 7, 2017Create, Learn

Holiday Favorites

Close To My Heartcatalog, catalogue, christmas, cut above, die cuts, dots, embellishment, embossing, enamel, gift, gift tags, Holiday, Holiday Expressions, leaf, leafs, leaves, oh snap!, picture perfect, seasonal, Thin Cuts 1 Comment

As the end of the year approaches, so does the end of our current idea book, Holiday Expressions. And, even though it may a bit taboo to choose a favorite child, we went for it and picked out a few of our favorite products from this catalog to show you just how versatile they really are and that they can be used outside of the holiday season.

First up, the Tree Line Border Thin Cuts.

It’s easy to associate pine trees with Christmas, the majority of us have one dominating our living rooms for the entire month of December (or more!) every year. But, lets not forget that before they got all dressed up for the party these beautiful trees had a more rustic existence.

These tree line dies can be used in multiple ways to invoke a natural scene. Their design allows for you to use one border at a time or to stack the die cuts, as we’ve done here, creating a more dimensional setting.

Another favorite is the My Acrylix^® Oh Snap! stamp set.

If you’re reading this post, you’re hanging with the crowd that doesn’t need a holiday to preserve memories. We’re all about capturing life’s moments, no matter the season.

Next up, we chose a more subtle and less obvious embellishment—the Cats & Bats Dots.

We have black and Emerald enamel dots. Yes, they work perfectly with this year’s Halloween collection, but these little guys are a force to be reckoned with all on their own. Embellishments like these are great to have on hand to add a splash of color any time you need it. And the low price means you can really stock up on these babies and use them on project after project!

Find merriment in anything and everything with our Merry Everything Cut Above^®tag kit.

Gifts should be shared all year round!

For the last highlight, even though we love all of our children the same, take a look at what we did with our leaf embossing folder below.

We love so many of our products that will be retiring in just a few weeks, it was difficult to list just a few. Take advantage of your opportunity to snatch up these items while you still can and remember that just because they are featured in the Holiday Expressions idea book doesn’t mean you can’t use them outside of the holidays. Revisit your catalog and take a look at those products again, thinking outside the holiday gift box!

Have you used any of our holiday products in a non-holiday way? Share your creative ideas below! We love hearing from you!

Recipes

4¼” x 5½” Birthday Wishes Card (Vertical)
B1537 My Acrylix^® Birthday Sparkles Stamp Set, X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5954 Pewter Cardstock, X5955 Pebble Cardstock, Z3271 Archival Black Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3274 Clear Sparkles, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z3357 Better Together Complements, Z4037 Thin Cuts—Tree Line Border, Z3285 Cricut^® Flower Market Collection, Die-cutting Machine

Cricut^® Shapes:
Flower Market
3″ Flower-2 <7> (p. 7, #MD389A5)

5″ x 7″Reach for the Stars Frame
B1565 My Acrylix^® A New Adventure Stamp Set, X7226B Silver & Gold Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5954 Pewter Cardstock, Z891 VersaMark™ Ink Pad, Z3357 Better Together Complements, Z4037 Thin Cuts—Tree Line Border, Z2067 Ranger™ Silver Super Fine Embossing Powder, Z555 Craft Heater, Die-cutting Machine

12″ x 12″ Capture Life Today Page
D1748 My Acrylix^® Oh Snap! Stamp Set, Z3353 Basics Fundamental Paper Packet, Z3350 Whimsy Fundamental Paper Packet, X5955 Pebble Cardstock, X5946 Linen Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, Z3366 Silver Foil Paper, Z2831 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z891 VersaMark™ Ink Pad, Z4051 Picture My Life™ Cards—Silver & Gold, Z3355 Happy Moments Complements, Z3357 Better Together Complements, Z3312 Gold Glitter Gems, Z2067 Ranger™ Silver Super Fine Embossing Powder, Z555 Craft Heater, Z3285 Cricut^® Flower Market Collection

Cricut^® Shapes:
Flower Market
2¼” Flower-2 <7> (p. 7, #mD389A5)

5″ x 5″ Smiles Mini Album
D1748 My Acrylix^® Oh Snap! Stamp Set, Z3350 Whimsy Fundamental Paper Packet, Z3353 Basics Fundamental Paper Packet, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z3366 Silver Foil Paper, X5946 Linen Cardstock, Z2832 Pewter Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2831 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2841 Glacier Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3089 Grey Gems, Z3364 Basics Ribbon Pack

12″ x 12″ Happy Place Page
X7226B Silver & Gold Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5954 Pewter Cardstock, X5969 Emerald Cardstock, Z3357 Better Together Complements, Z4028 Cats & Bats Dots

Treat Bag Topper
D1731 My Acrylix^® Eat Cate & Celebrate Stamp Set, X7226B Silver & Gold Paper Packet, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, Z3366 Silver Foil Paper, Z2831 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z4028 Cats & Bats Dots

Merry Everything Gifts
M1188 My Acrylix^® Celebrate Stamp Set, C1684 My Acrylix^® Inked with Love Stamp Set, Z4049 Cut Above^® Tag Kit—Merry Everything, Z3351 Adventure Fundamental Paper Packet, X5980 Sweet Leaf Cardstock, Z2853 Sweet Leaf Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2812 Raspberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z3361 Whimsy Ribbon Pack, Z3362 Adventure Ribbon Pack, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z3285 Cricut^® Flower Market Collection

Cricut^® Shapes:
2¾” Background <z> (cut 2, p. 31)

12″ x 12″ Home Layout
Make It from Your Heart Vol. 3: Pattern 12, X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, Z3353 Basics Fundamental Paper Packet, X5946 Linen Cardstock, Z3367 Vellum Paper, Z3357 Better Together Complements, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z1799 Silver Shimmer Trim, Z3274 Clear Sparkles, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z4031 Leaves Embossing Folder, Embossing Machine

4¼” x 5½” Celebrate Card (Vertical)
D1731 My Acrylix^® Eat Cake & Celebrate Stamp Set, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5955 Pebble Cardstock, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, X5953 Charcoal Cardstock, Z2831 Charcoal Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z1799 Silver Shimmer Trim, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z4031 Leaves Embossing Folder, Embossing Machine, Sewing Machine

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November 30, 2017Community, Create, Memory Keeping

12 Days of Christmas Advent Calendar

Close To My Heartadvent, calendar, christmas, gift, Holiday 5 Comments

In the true spirit of Christmas, today on the blog we are excited to share this darling 12 days of service advent calendar using our handy dandy Flip Flaps™!

The “windows” are designed to flip open and reveal previously decided upon acts of service to perform for a family member, friend, or someone in your community during the 12 days leading up to Christmas. (If you need help coming up with ideas for these acts, check out the list we came up with last month in 15 Ways to Share a Smile).

The Flip Flaps were attached to the 12″ x 12″ paper first then the acts of service were attached underneath them, covering the adhesive strip of the Flip flap. Each act of service is printed on paper the size of its corresponding Flip Flap, so it can remain under wraps until it’s time to reveal it.

We kept it simple and made the little tags on each window using the smallest die from the basic tags Thin Cuts. They were stamped with a Splash of Color to add the subtle Pebble background behind the Cranberry numbers from the Pen Pal Alphabet stamp set. The finished tag was then attached to the outside of the Flip Flaps and topped off with a knotted piece of twine.

And, because this calendar was created in a 12″ x 12″ format, it can be transferred from its frame into a scrapbook once you’re done using it! Not only that, you’ve got built in spaces right inside those Flip Flaps to add photos of the activities you participated in, turning this Christmas service countdown into a beautiful scrapbook layout.

But how is it that those Flip Flaps are still flapping even though they are inside Memory Protectors™? Simple! We just used a craft knife to cut sections of the protectors out! This part can get tricky, because you don’t want to accidently cut your artwork—so here’s how to do it:

First—put your page inside the Memory Protector.

Second—with a pen, mark the four corners of each Flip Flap (about 1/8″ bigger for easy movement when cut).

Third—remove your layout from the Memory Protector.

Fourth—connect the dots with your knife, using enough pressure to cut the front of the protector but not the back. To play it safe, put some scrap paper in your protector while cutting.

Last—clean off any excess pen marks with your My Acrylix^® Spritz Cleaner.

Make your Christmas a little extra special this year with a service advent calendar! Promoting the true spirit of the season, make this cherished holiday tradition one of your own.

Recipe

12″ x 12″ Twelve Days of Christmas Advent Calendar
C1691 My Acrylix^® Beary Christmas—Cardmaking Stamp Set, B1560 My Acrylix^® Christmas Stamps Stamp Set, D1733 My Acrylix^®Splash of Color Stamp Set, B1539 My Acrylix^® Pen Pal Alphabet Stamp Set, X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, X7226B Silver & Gold Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5955 Pebble Cardstock, X5954 Pewter Cardstock, X5959 New England Ivy Cardstock, Z3239 Silver Glitter Paper, Z2835 New England Ivy Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2850 Fern Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2816 Cranberry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z2833 Pebble Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z899 Black Memento™ Ink Pad, Z891 VersaMark™ Ink Pad, X7225C Beary Christmas Complements, X7226C Silver & Gold Complements, Z4038 Beary Christmas Dots, Z3216 White Twine, Z3344 Thin Cuts—Basic Tags, 3505 Watercolor Pencils, Z2067 Ranger™ Silver Super Fine Embossing Powder, Z555 Craft Heater, Z3234 Flip Flaps™ Memory Protectors™ 3″ × 3″, Z3230 Flip Flaps™ Memory Protectors™ 3″ × 4″, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z3389 Cricut^® You Are Here Collection, Die-cutting Machine

Cricut^® Shapes:
You Are Here
1” <font> “Twelve Days of”

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November 28, 2017Create

O Christmas Tree

Close To My Heartchristmas, ornaments, papercraft, Papercrafting 10 Comments

O Christmas tree, o Christmas tree, how lovely are your…paper ornament decorated branches!

That’s right! We went there—decorated a full sized Christmas tree with beautiful ornaments made of paper!

Every year, the South Towne Exposition Center in Sandy, Utah hosts The Festival of Trees, where hundreds of uniquely decorated trees, wreaths, and ginger bread houses are donated and put on display after having been sold during a closed auction. The best part is that every cent raised goes towards “A Gift of Love” to benefit children at Primary Children’s Hospital.

With some help from our Consultants, Close To My Heart decorated a tree with some pretty stunning handmade paper ornaments and donated it to this generous event.

We want to publicly thank all of those who participated in making this gorgeous tree a reality and encourage all of you out there to continue making beautiful, inspiring things!

And since we are now in full holiday crafting mode, we’ve also assembled a handful of mini 18″ trees festooned with papercrafted ornaments for even more inspiration! These trees are the perfect size to display anywhere in your home, at work, or even to give as a gift.

For starters, let any doubts that you may have about making your own paper ornaments disappear. These little ornaments in particular are especially easy to replicate. With a little help from Cricut^® shapes and ready-made complements, you can have one of these trees done in no time!

Round ornaments are a must-have classic. We cut several circles using our Cricut^®(some 1″, some 1¼”) to make the ones you see here. The 3-D circles are four of these circles (all of the same size) folded down the middle then glued to each other. Before gluing the last piece, completing the sphere, add a loop of twine or ribbon to later hang it from the tree. The hearts, snowflakes, reindeer, even the “MERRY CHRISTMAS” garland, are all Cricut^®shapes (see the recipe at the end of this post for details).

Above, we ink embossed some circles with a dainty heart and sewed a bunch of other circles together to create a colorful garland.

Here’s another take on using Cricut^®shapes to decorate your tree:

One of the great things about all of these Cricut^® shapes is that you can make them any size you want—even large enough to decorate a full sized tree if you’d like!

This next tree uses both Cricut^® shapes and die-cuts:

Sometimes you just have to think outside the box, or kit. Do you recognize these gold glitter bows? They came from our Cut Above^® Merry Everything Tag Kit. And the red glitter ornaments? We used some of the Thin Cuts from the Christmas Paper Doll bundle!

Our Complements also make for some great (and easy!) mini ornaments!

The topper, “Merry Christmas,” and red glitter poinsettia shapes all came from our Silver & Gold and Beary Christmas Complements. Easy peasy!

Once again, we thank everyone that participated in creating our beautiful tree that was donated to the Festival of Trees—we hope all of our local readers will be able to attend—and we wish you the merriest of crafting as you create your holiday magic!

RECIPES

3D Circles Mini Tree
X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5975 Cranberry Cardstock, Z3237 White Glitter Paper, X7225C Beary Christmas Complements, Z3216 White Twine, Z3364 Basics Ribbon Pack, Z3389 Cricut^® You Are Here Collection, Z3285 Cricut^® Flower Market Collection, 18″ Tree

Cricut^® Shapes:
You Are Here
¾” Icon-5 <f> (p. 24, M27629F7)
¾” <font> “MERRYCHRISTMAS”

Flower Market
1″, 1¼” Flower-2 <7> (p. 7, MD38983)
1″ Shift + Title <Bracket> (p. 9, MD400B4)
1″ Shift + Icon <A> (p. 21, MD43349)
¾” Background <c> (p. 33, MD70813)

Circles Garland Mini Tree
D1748 My Acrylix^® Oh Snap! Stamp Set, Z891 VersaMark™ Ink Pad, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X5941 Bashful Cardstock, X5966 Pansy Cardstock, X5967 Pacifica Cardstock, X5984 Pixie Cardstock, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, X5979 Juniper Cardstock, X5970 Willow Cardstock, X5960 Fern Cardstock, X5971 Lemon Cardstock, X5983 Sorbet Cardstock, X5963 Poppy Cardstock, X5965 Ruby Cardstock, Z3237 White Glitter Paper, Z4014 White & Gold Twine, Z2068 Range™ White Super Fine Embossing Powder, Z555 Craft Heater, Z3285 Cricut^® Flower Market Collection, Sewing Machine, 18″ Tree

Cricut^® Shapes:
Flower Market
¾” Flower-2 <7> (p. 7, #MD389A5)
1¼” Shift + Icon <M> (p. 37, #MD71842)
2″ Shift + Icon <M> (p. 37, #MD71842)

Deer Mini Tree
1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z3238 Gold Glitter Paper, Z3239 Silver Glitter Paper, Z3216 White Twine, Z3167 Cricut^®Artistry Collection, Z3285 Cricut^® Flower Market Collection

Cricut^® Shapes:
Artistry
1½”<Thksgvng> (p. 45, #M58A32F)

Flower Market
¾”, 2″ Shift + Background <A> (p. 21, MD43349)
2″ Flower-1 <g> (p. 25, MD43349)

Gold Glitter Bows Mini Tree
Z4053 Christmas Paper Doll Stamp + Thin Cuts, X5951 Espresso Cardstock, X5950 Toffee Cardstock, X5959 New England Ivy Cardstock, Z3241 Red Glitter Paper, Z3329 Thin Cuts—Basic Stars, Z4048 Cut Above Tag Kit—Merry Everything, Z3285 Cricut^® Flower Market Collection, Gold Thread, 18″ Tree

Cricut^® Shapes:
1¼”, 1½” Flower-1 <g> (p. 25, MD67851)
1¼” Flower-1 <Holly> (p. 48, MD7AA86)
1¼” Shift + Flower-1 <Holly> (p. 48, MD7AA86)
1¼” Flower-2 <Holly> (p. 48, MD7AA86)
¾”, 1″ Icon <Ponsetta> (p. 49, MD7AF93)
¾”, 1″ Shift + Icon <Ponsetta> (p. 49, MD7AF93)
1″, 1½” Shift + Container <Ponsetta> (p. 49, MD7AF75)

Merry Christmas Tree
X7225B Beary Christmas Paper Packet, X7226B Silver & Gold Paper Packet, X7225C Beary Christmas Complements, Z3216 White Twine, Z3169 Cricut^® Artbooking Collection

Cricut Shapes:
Artbooking
1″ Icon <o> (p. 56, M3D45C)
1″ Shift + Icon <O> (p. 56, M3D45C)

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Season of Joy Cricut^® Collection