Autumn Crafting Dreams Come True with Four Seasons Papers and Stamps!

Close To My Heart2022–2023 Core Products Catalog, autumn, autumn air, Autumn Blessings, cards, crafting, crisp, Crisp Air Warm Hearts, Distress Oxide™, fall, Four Seasons, Four Seasons—Autumn, It's Fall Y'all, leaf, leaf pile, leaves, Memory Keeping, mini page, Papercrafting, rock n' roll, scrapbooking, seasonal, stamping, Thankful Autumn, torn paper, video 5 Comments

You can never have too much “autumn” in your life, and at CTMH, we can definitely help with that! To fully immerse ourselves in the spirit of the autumn season, we’ll be showing off our fantastic Four Seasons—Autumn paper suite today, along with a few stamp sets from the 2022–2023 Core Products Catalog! With so much seasonal fun in store, we can’t wait to dive into this beautiful selection of patterned papers and stickers. We’ve got an awesome selection of art pieces to show you today to demonstrate all the amazing aspects of this collection, so without further ado, let’s take a look!

To start us off, we’re going to take a peek at a few first-rate cards, all of which were made with the Four Seasons—Autumn paper collection, and a few seasonal stamp sets from our 2022–2023 Core Products catalog. (Click here to view all the beautiful paper collections, stamps, and other exciting products included in this catalog!)

For our first card, we used a fun truck from the Seasonal Haul Stamp + Thin Cuts set. Along with the truck, this set also includes several adorable images to use to fill the bed of the truck. For our “Autumn Blessings” truck card, we chose a pile of pumpkins for the cargo, while also adding a fun “Happy Day!” sign in the front window. To add a splash of delicate color to our truck, its load of gourds, and the “Happy Day!” sign, we’ve used a light touch with our Watercolor Pencils. To preserve a more rustic feel, we chose not to use a waterbrush to activate the watercolor effect, leaving the slightly coarser penciled effect instead.

On the layer behind the truck, we’ve used patterned papers from the Four Seasons—Autumn paper packet to create a festive background and base for our card; in addition, we’ve also utilized a piece of White Daisy cardstock and added some subtle detailing by adding a dashed line with a Sepia LePen™. Once your card background has been established, we created some additional detail elements with a simple leaf stamp from the Seasonal Haul Stamp + Thin Cuts set, decorated with a bit of Copper Stickles™ Glitter Glue, plus a few pieces from the Orange & Yellow Dots collection.

To finish everything off, we’ve created our title piece with the Thankful Autumn stamp set. The sentiment was stamped on a dovetailed piece of White Daisy cardstock with Black and Toffee Exclusive Inks^™ stamp pads. Using two different colors of ink made it possible for us to layer the “blessings” image over the top of “Autumn,” for a unique, layered look. As a final touch, we gently sponged the edges of our dovetailed title piece with Toffee ink to increase dimension. We love our Autumn Blessings card, and it’s only the tip of the iceberg as we continue to delve into the creative possibilities available through the Four Seasons—Autumn paper packet!

Our next two cards really get into the autumnal spirit with their very own vibrant leaf piles! Both cards were constructed using our Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts, and the My Acrylix^®Thankful Autumn and Seasonal Haul stamp sets. Using this stellar combination, we were able to coordinate seamlessly with the Four Seasons—Autumn paper packet to create a gorgeous patchwork of patterns to form our background, clustered leaf accent in the mid-ground, and a polished title on top of our leaf pile cluster!

The leaves on these cards showcase a combination of two techniques—basic solid stamping, and rock n’ roll stamping for subtle color change within a single stamped image. This pairing allows for a nice variation between the leaves while using a relatively small number of stamps!

Moving right along, our next piece on display today is a 6” x 6” mini scrapbook page! We absolutely love this smaller memory keeping piece, and its size lends itself particularly well to the Four Seasons—Autumn paper packet and the Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts set, both of which were used to create this striking mini page. For our base page, we trimmed a 6” x 6” section from a dark wood grain patterned paper. On top of that, we layered a handful of other patterned paper and coordinating cardstock pieces from the Four Seasons—Autumn collection to further build this page.

From there, we used a variety of leaves from our Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts set and the Thankful Autumn stamp set to create some slight layering around the corners and bottom edge of our photo. Tucking the leaves beneath layers is a beautiful way to embellish the page with our very own leaf pile clusters without becoming too busy or cluttered.

This same layered leaf pile effect can also be seen at the bottom edge of our next piece, a 12” x 12” “Autumn Blessings” single page! This page started out with leaf patterned paper as the base, with a piece of dark wood-grain paper on top of that. We then used a few smaller pieces of patterned paper to frame the central photo. Calling back to an earlier favorite, we kicked things into gear with another fantastic fall truck! With a precious cargo of pumpkins, this classic pickup provides a colorful focal point, its rustic color coming from a light hand with our Watercolor Pencils. This truck also boasts a wood guard rail that is another fun way to customize your stamped truck accents.

Beneath our pickup harvest truck, we’ve finished things off with the leaf pile, made up of a handful of pieces from our Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts. This pile forms a great embellishment cluster for our title at the bottom edge of the page. The stamped leaves fit right in with the leaf pattern on the base page, with the end result being a lush layer of leafy goodness!

Our final piece is a 2-page 12” x 12” “Autumn” layout. A standout feature of this layout is the artistically torn section of Four Seasons—Autumn papers, sweeping from the top left corner across the upper edge of the page. This element serves to draw the eye across the page, making sure that the photos, title, and journaling sections are at the forefront of the viewer’s attention. Further visual interest is generated by sponged sections behind the photo sections on both pages. This pop of color near the photo mats allows for additional emphasis to be placed on the photo in a relatively simple fashion, without overwhelming the design. For some extra fun, we’ve also added just a spritz of Gilt Gloss Spray over the sponged ink, adding a bit of shine!

These sponged accents were created using Vintage Photo and Spiced Marmalade Distress Oxide^™ inks for a vibrant and seamlessly blended effect. Along with these sponged sections, we used a handful of stickers from the Four Seasons—Autumn Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, and a few stamps from the Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts set to further spice up the aesthetic of these pages. One amazing thing about the leaves in this stamp set is that they look fabulous whether they’re used with the accompanying Thin Cuts dies, or stamped directly on your base page!

To keep the party going, we utilized many of the fun patterns available through the Four Seasons—Autumn paper packet to create a layered effect that further serves to break up the stark background of our White Daisy cardstock base.

A final feature of this Autumn layout is the title section, created with the Thankful Autumn stamp set, with the letters carefully trimmed from the cardstock it was stamped on. This title utilizes an ombre blend of Distress Oxide^™ and Exclusive Inks^™ for a beautiful gradient color effect. By gently sponging Paprika ink at the base of the stamp, and gradually layering Spiced Marmalade Distress Oxide^™ ink up the length of the stamp, it’s quick and easy to achieve this polished look!
As you can see, there’s a wealth of creative opportunities available when you craft with the Four Seasons—Autumn paper collection and the autumn-inspired stamps featured in our 2022–2023 Core Products Catalog! To see even more of this creative power in action, check out this video, featuring the artwork we’ve showcased in this post!

We hope you’ve enjoyed this brief look into what can be accomplished with our autumn-inspired papers and stamps, and we can’t wait to hear what you plan to create with them! Leave a comment below to tell us about your autumnal crafting vision for 2022 and beyond!

Recipes:

12″ x 12″ Autumn Layout
Z4670 Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts, A1290 My Acrylix^® Thankful Autumn Stamp Set, X8036S Four Seasons—Autumn Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z1375 Kraft Paper, Z6536 Honey Buter Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6531 Mocha Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6510 Nectarine Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6515 Paprika Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6521 Sundance Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z2828 Toffee Exclusive Inks^™Stamp Pad, Z3829 Spiced Marmalade Distress Oxide^™ Ink Pad, Z4522 Vintage Photo Distress Oxide^™Ink Pad, Z5009 Gilt Gloss Spray, Z3886 Mini Ink Blending Tool, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Thread

12″ x 12″ Autumn Single Page
Z4670 Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts, A1290 My Acrylix^®Thankful Autumn Stamp Set, X8036S Four Seasons—Autumn Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, X6059 Shortbread Cardstock, X5950 Toffee Cardstock, Z6531 Mocha Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6510 Nectarine Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6515 Paprika Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6526 Scarlet Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6530 Shortbread Exclusive Inks^™Stamp Pad, Z6521 Sundance Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z2828 Toffee Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z4189 Intense Black Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z3630 Watercolor Pencils, Z3224 Small Round Waterbrush, Z4632 Orange & Yellow Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape

6″ x 6″ Crisp Air Page
Z4670 Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts, X8036S Four Seasons—Autumn Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, X6046 French Vanilla Cardstock, X6066 Honey Butter Cardstock, X6059 Shortbread Cardstock, Z2829 Espresso Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6536 Honey Butter Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6515 Paprika Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6521 Sundance Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z2828 Toffee Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z3787 Platinum Stickles^™ Glitter Glue, Z4575 Black LePen^™, Z4632 Orange & Yellow Dots, Z1985 Gold Shimmer Trim, Z5038 Die-cutting & Embossing Machine

4¼” x 5½” Autumn Blessings Card (Horizontal)
Z4655 Season Haul Stamp + Thin Cuts, A1290 My Acrylix^®Thankful Autumn Stamp Set, X8036B Four Seasons—Fall Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z6531 Mocha Exclusive Inks^™Stamp Pad, Z2828 Toffee Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z2805 Black Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z4604 Copper Stickles^™ Glitter Glue, Z3515 Black Journaling Pen (.01), Z3630 Watercolor Pencils, Z4632 Orange & Yellow Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z5038 Die-cutting & Embossing Machine

4¼” x 5½” It’s Fall Y’all Card (Vertical)
X8036S Four Seasons—Autumn Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z6510 Nectarine Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6515 Paprika Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6526 Scarlet Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6530 Shortbread Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z2828 Toffee Exclusive Inks^™Stamp Pad, Z3837 Pumice Stone Distress Oxide^™ Ink Pad, Z2517 Burnt Orange TriBlend^™ Marker, Z3312 Gold Glitter Gems, Z4572 Blending Brushes, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape

4¼” x 5½” Crisp Air Card (Vertical)
Z4670 Autumn Air Stamp + Thin Cuts, X8036S Four Seasons—Autumn Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z6531 Mocha Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6510 Nectarine Exclusive Inks^™Stamp Pad, Z6515 Paprika Exclusive Inks^™Stamp Pad, Z6526 Scarlet Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6530 Shortbread Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z2519 Gold Yellow TriBlend^™ Marker, Z3312 Gold Glitter Gems, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z5038 Die-cutting & Embossing Machine, String

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August 31, 2022Celebrate, Create, Memory Keeping

Get Into the Halloween Spirit with Fa-BOO-lous Crafting!

Close To My Heartbat, candy, cat, coordinating cardstock, die-cuts, Fa-BOO-lous, Fa-BOO-lous Workshop Kit, ghost, Halloween, halloween 2022, Melon Dots, Memory Keeping, Papercrafting, patterned paper, scrapbooking, skeleton, spider, spiderweb, spirit, spooky, Thin Cuts, treat holders, trick-or-treat, workshop kit Leave a comment

From the sweet to the spooky, Halloween is hands down one of our favorite times of year! And what’s not to love!? Free candy, imaginative costumes, and some good old-fashioned scares to get our hearts racing are a winning combination and create some prime subjects for memory keeping and papercrafting magic!

When wonderful memories and adorable photos come together, you need a selection of top-notch materials to create your scrapbook pages, and this year we’ve got a real treat in store with the Fa-BOO-lous paper suite! To show it off, we’ll be having some fun with a handful of scrapbook pages and an adorable selection of treat holders even sweeter than the candy inside!To start off, though, let’s take a closer look at the Fa-BOO-lous collection itself. This whimsically spooky suite lives up to its name with a variety of fun patterns, Halloween characters, and icons to bring more than a little spirit to your artwork. Right at the heart of this collection is the Fa-BOO-lous Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet.

The distinguishing patterns, characters, and icons that set Fa-BOO-lous apart are all reflected in the papers, while the sticker sheet brings some additional options and titles to the crafting table. The individual icons and images present in the patterned papers can even be snipped from the pages to create standalone accents if you like. When taken all together, the Fa-BOO-lous Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet creates a one-of-a-kind foundation for your Halloween scrapbook pages and crafts!
To help maximize your crafting ability when using Fa-BOO-lous, this collection also has a coordinating cardstock pack, with six colors to help you create beautiful designs and smooth transitions between patterned papers and solid colors. For the Fa-BOO-lous Coordinating Cardstock pack, we’ve included our Color of the Year, Melon, accompanied by Black, Linen, Paprika, Peach, and Seabrook cardstock sheets; these same colors can also be seen in the Fa-BOO-lous Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, so coordination between the cardstock and Fa-BOO-lous patterned papers is flawless every time! It is this whimsical color scheme that helps the Fa-BOO-lous collection capture just the right amount of playfulness for the Halloween holiday.

Cardstock is a staple in any sort of memory keeping or papercrafting project, and it not only makes an appearance in the scrapbook pages we’ll show you today, but is also used in the selection of treat holders we’ll be looking at later in the post. Whenever you craft with Fa-BOO-lous, it’s always a good idea to make sure you’ve got the Fa-BOO-lous Coordinating Cardstock pack close at hand! Along with the exclusive papers and stickers, Fa-BOO-lous also includes its own selection of Melon Dots! These dots are a great way to add a touch of pizazz to your pieces.

They have a slight shine on their finish to attract the eye, and each dot comes with adhesive already applied to the back, making it a simple matter to apply them to your artwork for an eye-catching accent every time! Whether you’re placing a single dot, or creating a cluster using varying sizes, the Fa-BOO-lous Melon Dots are an incredible addition to this collection!
Rounding out the Fa-BOO-lous collection is the exclusive Stamp + Thin Cuts set! These stamps and Thin Cuts metal dies are designed specifically to coordinate with the patterns and themes included in the sticker sheet and patterned papers. With an adorable cadre of ghosts, cats, skeletons, spiders, and bats, the Fa-BOO-lous Stamp + Thin Cuts set is a must-have for your 2022 Halloween crafting projects! This too-cute troop is joined by a jack-o-lantern with options for three different faces, a spider web corner accent, and a couple of title and accent options. As with all our Stamp + Thin Cuts sets, the Fa-BOO-lous stamps are accompanied by coordinating metal dies to effortlessly cut out your stamped images!

These stamps can also be used to create cute background accents, which you will see in a few places on the Fa-BOO-lous scrapbook pages. You’ll also notice that the Fa-BOO-lous Thin Cuts have been used to create central accent pieces for the treat holders. Regardless of where they are used, the stamps and metal dies of the Fa-BOO-lous Stamp + Thin Cuts sets are an invaluable asset as you craft with Fa-BOO-lous!

Now that we’ve given you a better introduction to the Fa-BOO-lous collection, it’s time to get a better view of what can be done with this incredible suite! Along with the awesome array of new Fa-BOO-lous products, the Fa-BOO-lous special includes an exclusive workshop with instructions for scrapbook pages and Halloween treat holders! These projects are a great way to get into the Halloween spirit and have some great crafting fun while you’re at it! (As an added perk, this workshop kit is available at a discount during the Fa-BOO-lous special, allowing crafters to save 20% on this bundle of exclusive Fa-BOO-lous products!)

The Fa-BOO-lous Workshop Kit includes instructions and materials to help you create a single 12” x 12” scrapbook page, two 2-page scrapbook layouts, and a dozen treat holders. Each scrapbook page includes multiple options for photos and journaling. Having a good balance between photos and journaling is a key aspect to consider when creating or designing your own scrapbook pages, and the pre-designed pages featured in the Fa-BOO-lous Workshop Kit do this well.

For example, let’s look at this single “Halloween Cutie” scrapbook page. It includes spots for seven photos and a central journaling section, putting your stories right at the center of this crafting project and allowing you to surround it with your favorite pictures to complement the experiences and memories you record.

By placing the journaling piece in the center and clustering photos around it, it not only draws the viewer’s eyes to the written story but allows for photos close at hand to fill in the context of your story. This page is an excellent example of an effective storytelling device, and with so much memory keeping potential in just one page, it’s easy to see that big things are in store with Fa-BOO-lous!

Like the single page, our other scrapbook layouts also have excellent options for showcasing your treasured photos and favorite fun moments. Another great example of this potential in action is this 2-page “Spooky” layout, with spaces for eight photos and another ample journaling section! Along with the fun photos displayed on this layout, the pages were designed to incorporate many of the stickers, Thin Cuts die-cuts, and stamps, layered onto the already vibrant patterned papers used for this pair of pages. Many of these accent pieces were attached with Thin 3-D Foam Tape for added dimension. This step is an easy one and can be incorporated into almost any project!

In this scrapbook layout, we see a more linear design at play, with the photos arranged more in rows than in the clusters we saw in the previous page. This approach allows for plenty of photos to still be used, but also presents a more straightforward design and places a greater emphasis on your pictures, as the journaling section sits at the bottom left corner. With the journaling in this area, the story flows naturally from left to right in both words and pictures. A design like this allows you to maximize your storytelling capacity while still incorporating a variety of fun stickers, die-cuts, stamps, and patterned papers for eye-catching embellishments and background accents.

The last scrapbook layout we’ll be looking at today focuses more on the photo inclusion, but still gives place for journaling. With four 3” x 4” photo spaces, and two 4” x 6” ones, this “Boo-tiful” layout is a great way to make your pictures the focus of the pages, and after all, a picture is worth 1,000 words! Another aspect of note when considering this layout is the relative simplicity of the base page design. The foundation of this layout begins with two Black cardstock pages, and additional patterns and colors are layered on with seven vertical strips of patterned paper. To cap things off at the top and bottom edges, zip strips from the edges of the Fa-BOO-lous Paper Packet have been added as tidy borders.

Once the patterned paper and zip strips have been adhered to the base pages, you’ve got a wonderful canvas ready to complete with additional stickers, Fa-BOO-lous Melon Dots, photo mats, and, of course, your selection of photos! With all these elements combined, your “Boo-tiful” layout, along with the “Spooky” layout and “Halloween Cutie” single page, are sure to be pieces you will look back on fondly for years to come!
We’ve loved showing off these Fa-BOO-lous scrapbook pages, but we’re not done yet! As we mentioned at the beginning of this post, the Fa-BOO-lous Workshop Kit also includes instructions and materials to create a selection of adorable treat holders for even more crafting fun! These treat holders are created with a few simple folds and a touch of adhesive to form a pocket, and are embellished with a handful of stickers and stamped die-cuts from the Fa-BOO-lous Stamp + Thin Cuts set.

A few of these treat holder designs even include simple inserts, allowing die-cut Halloween characters to peek out over the edge of the pocket. Each treat holder measures 2” x 3” when complete, allowing enough space for a fun size candy bar, or a handful of smaller goodies.

The pre-designed Fa-BOO-lous Workshop Kit contents supply you with the materials to create twelve treat holders—3 each of 4 designs. Thanks to their simple design and the step-by-step instructions in the workshop guide, it’s quick and easy to create these treat holders en masse for Halloween parties, small and festive gifts for friends, or to add a unique touch to your trick-or-treat offering!

We are in love with the Fa-BOO-lous collection and all the crafting potential it offers! This incredible suite and its accompanying workshop kit are available through October 31, so you can craft with it right up to the Halloween holiday itself! The instruction guide for the Fa-BOO-lous Workshop Kit is available for download on our website; click here to access it!

No matter how you choose to utilize the Fa-BOO-lous paper suite and workshop kit, this whimsical collection is the perfect way both to celebrate Halloween 2022 and commemorate those celebrations with stunning scrapbook pages and papercrafts. It’s an all-around winner of a collection, and we’re excited to see how the members of our amazing crafting community put it to use this autumn! What’s your favorite part of this collection, and how do you plan to use it in your own Halloween crafts? Leave a comment below and let us know! We can’t wait to hear from you!

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August 10, 2022Create, Inspiration, Learn

Papercrafting Autumn Leaves We Know You’ll Fall For!

Close To My Heartautumn, card, die-cuts, July–September catalog, leaf accents, leaf clusters, leaf embellishments, leaf overlay, leaf pile, leaf vein, leaves, page, Papercrafting, Simple Leaves Stamp + Thin Cuts, technique 1 Comment

Among all the wonderful things we love and look forward to with the autumn season, a standout favorite has to be the glorious display of colored leaves! As we draw closer to this magical time of year here at Close To My Heart, we are excited to showcase some artwork featuring beautiful leaf accents made with the Simple Leaves Stamp + Thin Cuts!

Taking a look at this unique collection of stamps and metal dies gives you an idea of the amazing artwork you can achieve! This set includes options to create fully layered leaf embellishments, simple outlines, stamped images, or individual leaf vein overlays. Just take a look at these leaves to see these possibilities brought to life!

But naturally, these colorful leaves look even better when added to artwork, like the scrapbook page pictured below.

As you can see, we’ve incorporated several different types of leaf embellishments on this page. The Simple Leaves Stamp + Thin Cuts is unique in the level of versatility packed into a single set, and this versatility is on full display in this scrapbook page! Take a closer look at the bottom right leaf cluster to see examples of layered die-cuts, leaves stamped directly on the base page (using the rock-n-roll stamping technique, no less!), more rock-n-roll stamping on our Ballerina cardstock leaf, more straightforward stamping with the small Rosemary berries, leaf vein overlays combined over stamped images and leaf outline die-cuts, and even a couple instances where the leaf vein Thin Cuts have been used to cut into the solid leaf creating an inverse effect.

Now jump into our other leaf pile in the upper left corner of the page to see what other variations you can spot!

Another way to create a striking effect when layering Thin Cuts is by using contrasting colors for the different layers. This card shows leaf outlines and overlays cut using colors selected to create contrast between darker and lighter layers:

To really bring our leaves to life with this technique, we amplified the effect by using coordinating cardstock and ink colors. By stamping our leaf shapes on the lighter side of our two-toned cardstock, we get even more color variation in the leaves before finishing them off with leaf vein overlays cut from a contrasting color.

We hope today’s artwork has inspired you to mimic the incredible variety of autumn leaves in your own upcoming crafting projects. What layering or coloring techniques are you most excited to try out? Tell us about it in the comments!

Recipes:

12″ x 12″ Autumn Page
Z8036 Simple Leaves Stamp + Thin Cuts, X7284B Crisp Air Paper Packet, X9042 Mix-in Paper Packet, X6036 Ballerina Cardstock, X6055 Desert Rose Cardstock, X5946 Linen Cardstock, X5947 Mink Cardstock, X6060 Mocha Cardstock, X6058 Rosemary Cardstock, X6045 Sage Cardstock, X5950 Toffee Cardstock, Z6501 Ballerina Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6525 Desert Rose Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6529 Rosemary Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3837 Pumice Stone Distress Oxide™ Ink Pad, Z5010 White Gloss Spray, Z4304 Silver Loose Sequins, Z6027 Wood Alphabet, Z3886 Mini Ink Blending Tool, Z2089 Glue Dots® Micro Dots, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z5038 Die-cutting & Embossing Machine

4¼” x 5½” What a Beautiful Day Card (Horizontal)
Z8036 Simple Leaves Stamp + Thin Cuts, X9042 Mix-in Paper Packet, X6046 French Vanilla Cardstock, X6062 Harbour Cardstock, X6066 Honey Butter Cardstock, X6063 Papaya Cardstock, X6044 Peach Cardstock, X6070 Pine Cardstock, X6033 Paprika Cardstock, X6068 Seabrook Cardstock, X6045 Sage Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z6533 Harbour Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6536 Honey Butter Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6534 Papaya Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6540 Pine Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6504 Sage Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z6538 Seabrook Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Z3563 Diamond Stickles™ Glitter Glue, Z4294 Harbour Shimmer Brush, Z3312 Gold Glitter Gems, Z1151 3-D Foam Tape, Z5038 Die-cutting & Embossing Machine

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May 11, 2022Inspiration

Celebrate National Scrapbooking Month with Hope & Kindness!

Close To My Heartfancy doilies, Hope & Kindness, mini album, national scrapbooking month, Papercrafting, scrapbooking, texture cardstock 4 Comments

Happy National Scrapbooking Month, friends! We kicked off our celebration last weekend with an incredible virtual crafting event! If you missed out on any of these awesome projects, and would still like to participate, the instructional videos are available under the past Events tab on the Close To My Heart (Official) Facebook page.

For the rest of the month, we’re keeping the party going with the gorgeous Hope & Kindness collection! This beautiful suite is designed with concepts of inspiration, self-affirmation, beauty, and growth at its core, and encourages you to find the best qualities in yourself and the people closest to you. We can’t wait to show it off, and today, we’re going to take you on a behind the scenes tour of all this wonderful collection has to offer!

At the heart of the suite is the exclusive paper packet, which features three full sheets of cut-apart sentiments, pattern sections, and icons. Not only do these patterned papers make crafting a joy, but the inspirational quotes included in the papers help to remind us to look for the best and have patience with ourselves as we continue to grow.

These papers are accompanied by a selection of coordinating stickers and kraft paper die-cuts that complement the paper packet perfectly and make the ideal finishing touches to treasured scrapbook pages and heartfelt cards.

Another stand-out feature of this collection is the coordinating cardstock pack. This cardstock pack includes 12 sheets with printed texture patterns on one side of each page, allowing for variation not only in the colors used but in textures as well!

Rounding out the Hope & Kindness product suite is the Hope & Kindness stamp set, Thin Cuts metal dies, and the Fancy Doilies Thin Cuts dies. These elements are coordinated perfectly with the papers, stickers, and die-cuts, but can also be used in other projects for years to come!

Along with the amazing new products available through the Hope & Kindness special, we’ve also designed three incredible workshop kits so crafters of all types can enjoy working with Hope & Kindness!

For our memory keepers, we’ve got a beautiful scrapbooking workshop kit, which includes all the exclusive papers you’ll need to create six coordinating 12″ x 12″ two-page layouts! Just imagine how spectacular your favorite photos will look incorporated into these pages!

Cardmakers can look forward to loads of crafting fun with the Hope & Kindness Cardmaking Workshop Kit! This kit includes materials to create 16 standard size cards (2 each of 8 designs).

With so many fun designs to choose from, you can easily create cards that are great for all types of occasions—birthdays, sympathy, expressions of thanks, or just because!

Last but not least, we’re thrilled to show off our Hope & Kindness Album Workshop Kit, which allows crafters to create an entire 6″ x 8″ mini album in one sitting! Many of the pages in this album incorporate Flip Flaps™ to accommodate even more photos and adds a fun, interactive element!

With so much fun in store with Hope & Kindness, it’s going to be an unforgettable National Scrapbooking Month! We can’t wait to celebrate all month long with this amazing collection and we’re looking forward to seeing all the awesome artwork you’ll create! What are you most excited to make with Hope & Kindness? Tell us about it in the comments below!

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May 4, 2022Inspiration

Spotting Techniques in Artwork and How to Duplicate Them!

Close To My Heartcatalog cover, Hope & Kindness, national scrapbooking month, Papercrafting, scrapbooking, technique 6 Comments

It’s officially May, and that means there’s a new Close To My Heart catalog to gush over! Make sure to visit our website to see all of the new papers, stamp sets, dies—and more!—that we have to offer, now and through June!

As you can imagine, so much goes into putting together these catalogs, especially the artwork that is designed and created from the featured products. Nearly every page displays a beautiful scrapbook layout or set of cards offering more than meets the eye at a quick glance.

Today we’re taking a deep dive into the scrapbook page on the cover of the May–June catalog and closely examining some of the elements and techniques that were used to bring it all together.

One of the first things you will notice on this page is the background. We’ve talked about repeating shapes to create a background before, in Creating an Intricate Scrapbook Page Is Easier than You Think! In that previous post, we mentioned that replicating one shape is not only a quick way to create a background but it’s also a great way to incorporate many different patterns and colors, so you can use as many of your favorite pattern paper designs without having to choose! (There are just so many pretty papers!)

In this case, a background made up of squares is a little extra special. Because the base page is also a square (12″ x 12″), we are repeating the shape again by filling it with the smaller 1⅞” squares. Even though it is the same shape, this approach is not only visually satisfying but visually exciting, as well, because the recurrence is with a variety of patterned papers and colors.

Can you find any other ways that we’ve used squares on this page?

If you said stitching, then you are right! When creating your art, consider lines, patterns, and shapes, as well as mixing media. A few stitched lines can quickly elevate a scrapbook page or card. If you’re not good with a sewing machine, you can easily draw “stitch” lines with a pen! (The number of rows and columns of background squares is also squared, 5 by 5!)

To create additional interest in our repetitive background, we also distressed our papers. Paper distressing happens when you alter the color or texture of the paper to produce a similar effect to it having been weathered by exposure to the elements over time. This real, authentic distressing (versus faux) is very popular and trendy, especially paired with the gorgeous patterns and colors from our Hope & Kindness collection. An easy way to distress the edges of your papers is running one blade of your scissors along the edges until the desired effect is achieved.

Now that we’ve got our background covered, let’s jump up to the next layer, and that’s the cluster of stickers and die-cuts we created for our photo. We know that the star of a good scrapbook layout is the story that it tells, whether it’s through photos, journaling, or a combination of both. For our already busy page, we needed to create a space that would draw and center our focus. This space is where we eventually want the photo and story.

Not wanting to cover up too much of the gorgeous background we created, we knew that we had to place our photo somewhere off-center, so we chose the bottom right. (We’ve been trained for things to resolve in the bottom and to the right, so if you’re ever in doubt, go for the bottom right!)

To begin creating the visual pull, we clustered several stickers and die-cuts just to the left of that space. Even though it may not look intentional, the way we placed and chose the pieces were very much so. For example, notice that we used three chipboard die-cut leaf stems. If you remember this simple rule when it comes to embellishments, you’re already ahead of the game: using an odd number of elements creates more dynamic art. This is known as the rule of odds.

Also, as you create a cluster of embellishments, keep it interesting by incorporating different sizes, shapes, and materials. Add even more interest to the grouping by popping a few of these elements off the page with some foam tape. If you look closely, you can see that in our cluster we only used foam tape on the left side of the stickers, creating another visual arrow towards where the photo will be with a downward slope.

Lastly, let’s quickly discuss the photo. Our cluster was ready, but our photo needed something more before it could be attached to the page. That “something more” was a photo mat. The purpose of the photo mat on a layout like this is to provide your eyes with a place to rest once they’ve arrived to where we’ve been pointing towards all along. That is why the mat on this photo is a solid-colored cardstock rather than patterned paper. It provides your eyes with a visual break from all of the excitement happening on the rest of the page.

You may have noticed that we also layered an additional White Daisy cardstock mat between the photo and the Papaya cardstock. This extra layer created the small white border that highlights our destination even more. White was a good choice because it’s a neutral bright color that is in the photo and in several of the patterns of the papers and stickers.

When you’re looking through any of our catalogs, we hope that you will discover lots of new concepts and ideas illustrated in the featured art. Taking a good look at the provided artwork examples is bound to reveal creative techniques or unique approaches to using a product. When you see a piece that stands out to you, flag it to return to later when you are ready to try it out for yourself. Our catalogs are so much more than product brochures, and we hope that you’ll use them as the full resource that they are and can be!

12″x 12″ So Beautiful Page
CC5224 My Acrylix® Hope & Kindness Stamp Set, CC5221 Hope & Kindness Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, CC5223 Hope & Kindness Coordinating Cardstock, X6036 Ballerina Cardstock, X6055 Desert Rose Cardstock, X6063 Papaya Cardstock, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z6533 Harbour Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, CC5227 Hope & Kindness Die-cuts, Z4235 Gold Loose Sequins, Z2089 Glue Dots® Micro Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Cricut® Basic Shapes, Sewing Machine

Cricut® Shape:
Basic Shapes
#M2AAB3D56

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March 2, 2022Inspiration

Papercrafting Party Time!

Close To My Heartbadge, birthday, Cake Day, cardmaking, cards, catalog, Celebrate, DIY, March–April 2022, Papercrafting, party 7 Comments

When March rolls around, it’s party time at Close To My Heart! Not only is it our Founder and CEO Jeanette Lynton’s birthday month, it’s also a time to celebrate all the things you love about crafting! Today, we’ll be taking you on a step-by-step journey through the process of creating an adorable celebratory card and a handful of festive badge decorations to help you get into party mode!

If the artwork we’re showing off today looks familiar, that’s because it is featured on the cover of our new March–April catalog, which we just released! This artwork is geared toward a birthday celebration, but you can easily switch out sentiments and embellishments to suit a variety of occasions. We’ll be looking at two party crafting essentials: cards and décor!

Papercrafting Party Time!#ctmh #closetomyheart #party #celebration #crafting #papercrafting #cardmaking #decor #DIY

When creating a birthday card, a standout design is key for creating a fun and memorable card! For this Happy Birthday Cake card, we used papers and coordinating colors from the new Cake Day collection.

A prominent feature of this design is the diagonal slit through the center of the card. This slit is only 1/8″ wide, but it makes a big impression! To achieve this look, you’ll want to first apply any detailing to the top piece of paper, like we’ve done with the stamped details and colorful splatters shown here. Then, you cut the piece diagonally from the top-left to the bottom-right corner.

Once the cut has been made, take each piece of paper, and along the cut line you just made, slice off half the width of the slit. Because we created this card with a 1/8″ slit, we cut off 1/16″ from each individual piece after the initial diagonal cut has been made. If the thought of cutting a 1/16″ strip makes you break into a sweat, consider recreating this look using a wider slit in the middle.

The thing that makes the slit work is choosing a fun paper to peek through it! For our card, we used Wild Berry Glitter paper and cut it to not only peep through the slit but also to provide a nice border around the top piece.

After selecting our papers, we created an embellishment cluster to place at the center of the card, comprised of a Cricut®-cut circle, a few stickers from the Cake Day sticker selection, some Gold Embellishing Thread, and a “Happy Birthday” sentiment and balloon die-cuts from the Cake Day—Cardmaking Stamp + Thin Cuts set.

Finishing up with a few Primary Sprinkles and Bitty Sparkles, this vibrant birthday card is sure to be an unforgettable part of any birthday celebration!

For the décor part of our art feature today, we’ll be going through the creation process for a selection of party badges that are sure to be a hit anywhere! For these badges, we’ve provided a downloadable Cricut Design Space™ file, which uses some basic element shapes to construct a few of these badges.

These badges feature patterned papers from the Cake Day paper collection as well as some of the coordinating cardstock colors. You can easily customize these badges by choosing a paper collection or cardstock colors that fit the theme of whatever you are celebrating. Cardstock is a great option for this kind of project because of how versatile it makes the final piece—and now is a great time to stock up on cardstock because our exclusive cardstock is on sale all month long during our Cardstock Carnival! Talk about reasons to celebrate!

You’ll need to attach a scoring tool to your machine to achieve the final, pleated look for the badge bases. Once you’ve cut all the pieces, gently remove them from your Cricut® mat to avoid tearing, and fold accordion-style along the scored lines. Create the badge shape by compressing the piece, holding the center section, and gathering the accordion fold into a circle shape. Secure the center of the circle and both ends with adhesive.

Once you’ve secured the ends and center of your badge base, you can attach any other embellishment pieces, like the dovetailed ribbon pieces on the “Party” and “Cake Time”, sentiments or stickers. You can even stack smaller pleated badge pieces on larger ones, like you see on the “Cake Time” and Wild Berry bow badges. Because these badges require relatively few process steps, it’s easy to cut and construct several at once, making them a project that not only is fun and simple to create, but is sure to wow wherever it’s used!

Don’t have a Cricut^® machine? No problem! These badges can also be made by hand by using a hand-held scoring tool. (In fact, four of the seven badges shown below were created using this method!)

To create badges by hand, cut a piece of paper with a width of half the desired diameter of your finished badges (e.g. For a 2″ finished badge, trim paper to a width of 1″). Once you’ve cut your paper to the desired width, you can either use a scoring attachment with a paper cutter, or you can use a papercrafting tool and a ruler to create your own score lines by hand. We’ve created our score lines 1/4″ apart, but you can use different measurements for larger or smaller pleats.

From there, you simply fold your paper accordion-style along the scored lines, compress the piece, holding the center section, gather the accordion fold into a circle shape, and secure the center of the circle and both ends with adhesive. Once you’ve constructed your badge, add a few embellishments, and you’re left with a beautiful, handmade decor piece!

We hope you’ve enjoyed this artwork showcase featuring some of our newest items from the new March–April catalog. Click here to view the catalog and all the exciting new products available through March and April. Happy March, and happy crafting!

Recipes

4¼” x 5½” Happy Birthday Card (Vertical)
Z4417 Cake Day—Cardmaking Stamp + Thin Cuts, X7278S Cake Day Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, X9038 Mix-in Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, Z2538 Wild Berry Glitter Paper, Z6513 Green Apple Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z6527 Wild Berry Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z2805 Black Exclusive Inks^™ Stamp Pad, Z3821 Fuchsia Gloss Spray, Z5009 Gilt Gloss Spray, Z3823 Turquoise Gloss Spray, Z2498 True Black Marker, Z4525 Primary Sprinkles, Z1263 Bitty Sparkles, Z4054 Gold Embellishing Thread, Z2089 Glue Dots^® Micro Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Z5038 Die-cutting & Embossing Machine

3″ Cake Time Badge
X7278S Cake Day Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, X9038 Mix-in Paper Packet, X2089 Glue Dots^® Micro Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Cricut^®Artiste Collection
Cricut^® Shape:

Artiste
#M467DF
#M3D95F

2¾” Party Badge
X7278B Cake Day Paper Packet, 1385 White Daisy Cardstock, X6056 Wild Berry Cardstock, Z5021 Wild Berry Loose Sequins, Z2089 Glue Dots^® Micro Dots, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Cricut^® Artistry Collection, Cricut^® Artiste Collection
Cricut^® Shapes:
Artistry
#M41686E

Artiste
#M467DF
#M3D95F

2½” Wild Berry Bow Badge
X5978 Glacier Cardstock, X6056 Wild Berry Cardstock, Z5011 Wild Berry Stitched Ribbon, Z3342 3-D Foam Dots, Cricut^®Artiste Digital Collection, Scoring Tool

Cricut^® Shape:
Artiste
#M467D

2″ Glacier Cupcake Badge
X7278S Cake Day Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, X5978 Glacier Cardstock, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Scoring Tool

2″ Wild Berry Polka Dot Badge
X9038 Mix-in Paper Packet, X6056 Wild Berry Cardstock, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Cricut^® Basic Shapes, Scoring Tool

Cricut^® Shape:
Basic Shapes
#M2AAB3EFD

3″ OMG Badge
X7278S Cake Day Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Scoring Tool

2½” YAY Badge
X7278S Cake Day Paper Packet + Sticker Sheet, Z2060 Thin 3-D Foam Tape, Scoring Tool

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January 26, 2022Inspiration

Color Match Embellishments by Coloring Them In!

Close To My Heartacrylic shapes, color, color match, coloring, cork shapes, crafting, DIY, embellishment, gems, glitter glue, liquid pearls, markers, Papercrafting, personalized, Stickles, TriBlend 8 Comments

Color Match Embellishments #crafting #embellish #glitter #accent #adhesivebacked #color #diy #markers #wood #acrylic #plastic #cork

When creativity strikes, it can do so in a full spectrum of colors! Our exclusive colors can be found in Exclusive Inks™ stamp pads and re-inkers, shimmer brushes, embellishments, and so much more. With these products, you can achieve effortless color coordination in all of your crafting.

Sometimes, however, the embellishments that we want to use in our artwork are only available in neutral colors, such as white, wood, or cork. The good news is that you can get crafty with your embellishments as well and color them to meet your color needs!

First things first, we absolutely love all of our embellishments and the colors that they come in. We wouldn’t have them any other way, and they serve us so well in lots of art projects, as you have witnessed in the many artwork examples shown on this blog, our catalogs, and our other social media outlets. The idea today is to show you just another amazing facet to these already incredible little embellishments that can make all the difference!

(Featured above: Clear Sparkles, Bright Pink Shades TriBlend™ Marker, Dazzle Liquid Pearls™, Hibiscus Stickles™ Glitter Glue, Wild Berry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, White Pearls, Gold Yellow TriBlend™ Marker, Bisque Liquid Pearls™, Platinum Stickles™ Glitter Glue, Sundance Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Silver Glitter Gems, Dull Green TriBlend™ Marker, Sage Liquid Pearls™, Cool Mint Stickles™ Glitter Glue, Avocado Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, white dots, Aqua Blue TriBlend™ Marker, Robin’s Egg Liquid Pearls™, Waterfall Stickles™ Glitter Glue, Lagoon Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad)

A lot of the color that we’ve added to our example embellishments can be added directly from the tool to the embellishment. For example, markers, shimmer brushes, and glitter gl u es, all have tips fine enough that can dispense the color right onto your choice of embellishment. When you are coloring with these sorts of tools, we encourage you to color the embellishment before adding it to your project. If it is adhesive-backed, color it while it is still on the backing sheet that it came on. For embellishments that are not adhesive-backed, use a small amount of adhesive on the back and attach it lightly to a piece of scratch paper. This way, you can color the embellishment to just the right color you want without worrying about making stray marks on your project. You can then place the newly colored embellishment after you’ve achieved the color or effect you were hoping for.

(Featured above: Wood Arrows, Pink LePen™, Bright Pink Shades TriBlend™ Marker, Watercolor Pencils, waterbrush, Wild Berry Shimmer Brush, Fuchsia Gloss Spray, Hibiscus Stickles™ Glitter Glue, Picked Raspberry Distress Oxide™ Ink Pad, Wild Berry Exclusive Inks™ Stamp Pad, Dazzle Liquid Pearls™)

Porous surfaces, such as wood or cork, will absorb a lot of the colors—gels, glues, and embossing powder are the exceptions—whereas the color media will sit on nonporous surfaces found on embellishments like dots and gems. Regardless of the embellishment you may be garnishing, always remember to allow the color to dry in order to avoid any unwanted transfer (onto yourself or other parts of your project).

(Featured above: Sweet as Honey Cork Shapes, White Gel Pens, Embossing Ink Pens, White Super Fine Embossing Powder, Hibiscus Stickles™ Glitter Glue, Wild Berry Shimmer Brush, Bright Pink Shades TriBlend™ Marker, Aqua Blue TriBlend™ Marker, Gold Yellow TriBlend™ Marker)

We will leave you with one final tip. If you are wanting to color match an embellishment with one of our exclusive colors, our Exclusive Inks™ are your answer! Depending on the embellishment, you may want to either use one of our stamp pads or re-inkers. If you are adding color to clear sparkles (see our Wild Berry Exclusive Inks™ example in the first set of embellishments, above), use a sponge or dauber with your ink pad. Ink the sponge, then gently dab the embellishment until the desired color is achieved. For embellishments that may require more detail, a re-inker paired with a waterbrush allows great control and precision. Place a drop of re-inker onto an all-purpose mat (or another nonporous surface that can act as your palette). Lift the ink with the brush to add color to your embellishments in a more controlled manner.

If you have any questions on any of these ideas that we shared, please let us know in the comments below and we’ll get back to you as quickly as we can!

There’s no limit to the creative ways you can add a pop of color to your artwork!

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January 12, 2022Inspiration

Step-by-Step Treat Holders for Your Loves

Close To My HeartCTMH Kids Crafts, Papercrafting, Smitten, treats, valentine, valentines day, virtual event 6 Comments

Whether you’re looking to make a set of Valentines for a classroom or to deliver a single, unique treat for a special occasion, these two darling paper projects are must-haves in your crafting repertoire!

We made the treat holders we are showing you today using our new Smitten paper collection, and we are simply head over heels for the results! This Valentine’s themed collection includes a gorgeous 12″ x 12″ patterned paper packet with double-sided designs, a coordinating 12″ x 12″ sticker sheet with captivating glossy UV-coated accents, and an incredibly cute stamp set with coordinating Thin Cuts full of sweet puns, all designed to brighten up anyone’s day.

Treat Pockets

Step-by-Step Treat Holders #ctmh #closetomyheart #smitten #valentinesday #valentine #craft #papercrafting #love #diy #candy #treats

Materials Needed (for one pocket):
Smitten stamp set*
Lemonade Exclusive Inks™ stamp pad*
Raspberry Exclusive Inks™ stamp pad*
black journaling pen*
6″ x 6″ patterned paper
1¾” x 1¾” or 2″ x 2″ White Daisy cardstock (based on the size of what you’re stamping)
Pencil and ruler

*These are the products we used to create our example but, the beauty behind these projects is that you can make them from whatever you have at home, too, and for any occasion!

Prepare:
Stamp sentiments/designs on the small White Daisy cardstock square and embellish as desired.

Assemble:
1. Fold the 6″ x 6″ patterned paper in half, diagonally.

2. Make a light pencil mark along one of the short edges of the triangle, at 2½” from the right angle, bring the opposite corner of the triangle up to that point, and fold. Do the same thing with the other side.

3. Open the two corner folds to return to the original triangle, then fold down the top layer of the remaining corner at the 2½” marks. Lift this fold back up and bring in the corners again.

4. Insert the top triangle fold into the space between the layers of the top corner fold, then gently use your finger to pop in and curve the bottom of the pocket.

5. Attach the prepared White Daisy cardstock square to the front of your pocket, with foam tape if you’d like some additional dimension, then fill the pocket with a note or a candy, or whatever treat you’re ready to deliver!

Treat Boxes

Materials Needed (for one box):
Smitten stamp set*
Intense Black Exclusive Inks stamp pad*
black journaling pen*
2⅞” x 6″ patterned paper (for mailbox “tunnel”)
4⅛” x 5⅝” Raspberry cardstock* (for inside drawer)
1½” x 2⅞” Raspberry cardstock* (for tunnel bottom inside)
1½” x 2⅞” Raspberry cardstock* (for tunnel bottom outside)
⅜” x 2½” Raspberry cardstock* (for flag pole/stick)
¾” x 4½” White Daisy cardstock (for flag)
Pencil and ruler

Prepare:
Fold the White Daisy cardstock in half and dovetail the open end. Stamp and embellish your newly created flag as desired. Then, attach the flag to the top of the ⅜” x 2½” cardstock.

Assemble:
1. Score the drawer piece horizontally, at 1⅜” and 2¾”. Then score this same piece vertically, at 1⅜” and 4¼”.

2. Cut along the 1⅜” vertical score lines, up to the first set of horizontal score lines, and then fold in along each score line.

3. Attach the 1⅜” corners to the inside of the long sides of the box, on both ends, to form a 1⅜” x 2⅞” x 1⅜” box.

4. Score and fold the tunnel patterned paper horizontally, ¾” from the top and bottom. Then, curve and attach the scored parts to one of the 1½” x 2⅞” cardstock pieces.

5. Attach the remaining 1½” x 2⅞” cardstock piece to the bottom of the newly created tunnel.

6. Insert the drawer and attach the prepared flag to the outside, and your mailbox is complete!

These fun treat holders are just two of the 16 projects in our Smitten workshop. On January 27, at 2:00 p.m. (MT) we will be creating the scrapbook pages and slimline cards of this workshop live on our Facebook page.

Join us to make these projects along with us, or simply to watch and then make the projects on your own at your own pace. Either way, we look forward to hosting you!

We will be creating the fun treat holders we walked you through today, along with several varieties of the same, on January 31, at 4:30 p.m. (MT), also live on our Facebook page. See you there!

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January 5, 2022Create, Memory Keeping

Memory Keeping with the True Story Album

Close To My Heartalbum, Flip Flaps, giveaway, interactive, january, Memory Keeping, mini album, national papercrafting month, npm, Papercrafting, scrapbooking, True Story 140 Comments

True Story Album #closetomyheart #ctmh #ctmhtruestory #scrapbooking #scrapbookalbum #papercrafting #nationalpapercraftingmonth #memorykeeping #ctmhnationalpapercraftingmonth #flipflaps

One of the best ways to make a lasting connection with friends and family is through sharing your favorite stories. Being able to share your best-loved memories with your best-loved people is such a treat—especially when the story is accompanied by the perfect photos!

As memory keepers, we’re passionate about creating showcase pieces for our most treasured pictures and stories. Our new True Story album makes it easier than ever to preserve and retell your own priceless stories. With beautiful pre-cut pages and fold-out sections throughout, this mini album carries more of your favorite photos and stories than you might expect based on its size!

The True Story project is designed to accommodate over 40 photos in individual Memory Protectors™ and Flip Flaps ™ while still leaving plenty of room for journaling to tell the stories depicted in the photos. This unique album is designed to fit in one of our Everyday Life™ 6″ x 8″ albums and comes with many of the pieces pre-cut and even pre-printed! It also includes a few clear acrylic pages and specialty die-cuts for an even more unique finish.

With so many exciting elements like no other, True Story is a joy to create and will be a treasured keepsake for years to come. To help you get the full picture of this project’s potential, including all the opportunities for journaling and photo display in the finished product, we’ve put together this short video, which shows off each page of this one-of-a-kind album. Enjoy!

We can’t wait to hear about all the amazing things our fellow crafters do with the True Story album! As a special treat, we’ll be giving away five True Story Album Kits to five lucky readers! To be eligible for this giveaway, subscribe to the Make It from Your Heart blog and leave a comment below and let us know about your plans for True Story! All entries must be submitted by 4 p.m. tomorrow, January 6 (MST). Winners will be notified via e-mail we use the email address you are subscribed with so make sure it is up to date to not miss out!).

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