Twisted Gatefold Beary Christmas Gift Card Holder

I'm back a LOT sooner than I thought!  Actually, it's probably due to sheer will at this point, hahaha!

I really wanted to share this version of an amazingly simple fancy fold card with you before Christmas rolls around so you can put it to good use if you like.  Don't freak out yet--it totally fits in a standard size A2 envelope!  ;)  (If you missed my Thanksgiving version, head over to THIS POST for a link to the directions and my inspiration.)

Isn't that just the cutest thing?

I used the Thought that Counts My Acrylix stamp set from Close to My Heart.  This one has some crazy funny tag sentiments that I know my peeps will enjoy for years, check it out...

The inside of this card easily holds a gift card with a couple of glue dots!

LOVE it!

Gratefulness and Joy

Hey friends!  I hope and pray that this season brings you gratefulness and joy.  I have found lately that those two things can really get you through when things are hard...because seriously, life gets hard, it really does!  But WE CAN do hard things by practicing gratefulness and choosing joy!

I'm doing it my way, of course...soooooo I made this card to show someone how grateful I am...

This is the second version of this type of twisted gatefold card that I have made now.  I'll show you the other one soon...I just realized that I haven't even blogged it yet!  I found the directions for these amazing little cards on You Tube like any good cardmaker, lol.  Here's the link.  It even fits in a regular size A2 envelope!  :)

I used the Beary Christmas and Silver and Gold Paper lines from Close to My Heart for this one.

Bronze sequins?  Yes, please!

The Falling For You leaf and the Thin Cuts Leaf in vellum and gold foil were perfect for creating a more masculine leaning theme.  I added pops of color to the leaf with my ShinHan Alcohol Ink Markers in...

Here you can see the inside underneath the "twist" where I added another part of the sentiment...

Maybe I can help you out a little bit with some joy right now...today for Cyber Monday (I still can't believe this is a real thing, lol) Close to My Heart has organizational tools on sale up to 40% off on my website!  Here is the link to see what's available.  I know organizing brings me some much needed joy!  ;)

We Love You, Dawn! Official Blog Hop

I put everything else on hold today (well, yesterday too) and got my fingers inky for a VERY special reason...Dawn McVey.

Dawn is a sparkling light in the crafting community.  She designs for Papertrey Ink, which led me to her blog and eventually Instagram.  I have been admiring her gorgeous handiwork for years while also following and praying for her health struggles.  No matter what direction her struggle has taken, Dawn has been perpetually positive and has let nothing dull her amazing, sparkling smile.  She is an inspiration to everyone who has crossed her path, myself included.  It would be Dawn's fault completely that I am trying my hand at growing succulents, lol. She just makes it look so EASY!  ;)

Well, Dawn just received a new small intestine in one of the riskiest transplant surgeries available...and so far, thank the Lord, her body is accepting it!  It is an absolute miracle for her and her family, and the crafty community that loves her is coming together to brighten her room and keep her spirits high with as many cards as we can in the official We Love You, Dawn Blog Hop!  Here's mine!

I immediately knew which sentiment I was going to use on her card...because Dawn IS sparkle!  I wanted to use her Raspberry Suite Floral Sketches which are designed to add your own color...

I was able to successfully watercolor the flowers, and also added some more blooms from a separate sheet.  After it was all attached, I used my white gel pen and shimmer pen to add some flair.

I hope these watercolor blooms brighten her day as much as her constant positivity has brightened mine!  Here's the link to the rest of the hop!

Products I used...

-Papertrey Ink: Raspberry Suite Floral Sketches, Shakers and Sprinkles Make It Market Kit, Sparkle and Shine Stamps

-Lawn Fawn:  How You Been? Stamp set and coordinating Die

-Close to My Heart:  Sparkles, Silver Shimmer Trim, Charcoal and Black Exclusive Dye Ink, Watercolors, Watercolor Brushes

-Copic Toner Grey 0

Oooooooh My October and A Halloween BFF Layout

Oh. My. October.

Cubs. Baseball. NLDS. WINNING! More Cubs. NLCS. There's always LAST year! Frozen shoulder. Physical Therapy. At home PT. Crafty Souls All Day Craft-A-Thon! Rain, rain, rain. Water. In my craft cave. Cry, cry, cry. HELP!!!

Sooooo, yeah.  I've been a bit MIA from my blogging lately again.  While I am totally okie dokie with that fact, I DO want to be sharing (and actually CRAFTING with my toys!)  I actually have a few projects to share that I made before the madness began, thank goodness. You may have seen some sneaky peeks of this one over on my Instagram account.

I created this layout directly from the Holiday Expressions Idea book, page 18.  I adored it when I first laid eyes on it, and decided to give my hostess club members a treat with their Bats and Cats Workshop Your Way!

The Best Friends Forever My Acrylix stamp set was used to create the random (or not so random) stamped paper strip on the right of the layout.  I stamped two full sheets to use on our layouts!  SO worth the effort!

Have you ever re-created a layout from the Close to My Heart Idea Books?  :)

Just a few more days to grab this one!  :)

Sorry for the lack of links today--my Close to My Heart website is down for maintenance!  I'll get them up ASAP...which means after Parent Teacher Conferences tonight, lol!  ;)

Happy Bearthday with Punny Pals!

Today my baby is 14.  Ok, I said it out loud.  Or typed it, rather.  I guess now I have to ACCEPT it, lol.  I used the Jennifer's Hand Alphabet and Punny Pals My Acrylics Stamp to create a card to match her current interest--pandas!

You can get the Thin Cuts to match the Punny Pals this month only as part of the Share A Smile  fundraiser for Operation Smile! Round up your October order to donate even more, and you could win a NEW stamp set as a preview from the NEXT Idea Book!!!

I used a few other CTMH products for this card, and a GREAT Lawn Fawn grassy hill die and Polka dot paper.   

Can you see his little beady eyes made out of Black Dots?

I created the stalks of bamboo using Toffee CS (a mix of both the regular shade and the reverse side that is a tad lighter), my Mahogany ShinHan marker, and the super-cute Thin Cuts--Ribbon Border die.

Hope my Cubbies can pull off the win today to top off her birthday!  :)

Card Kit

Happy World Cardmaking Day!

It's that time of year again!  Every time World Cardmaking Day rolls around, I like to think that I will drop everything and make cards all day, but alas, we need clean clothes and groceries again, lol.  I'm sure I will get something made even if it's during the Cubs game tonight...ok, so maybe tomorrow!  ;)

I made this beautiful card using the same easy easel card as the turkey Thanksgiving place cards I shared on an earlier post.  I just adore this easy design!

I used the Basic Fundamentals, Espresso and Heather CS and inks, and Falling for You Paper Suite along with a retired gold foil dot paper, Gold Foil Paper, the Thin Cuts Leaf, and the Falling for You Cardmaking stamp and die set from Close to My Heart.

Love those Gold Gems!

 Here is the card when unfolded...

Finally, here are the super easy directions to create this card using a standard size A2 or 5.5 x 4.25 card base!

Share a Smile with Close to My Heart and Operation Smile!

Have you heard about Operation Smile?

Close to My Heart has partnered with Operation Smile over the years to provide free, life-changing operations to children around the globe.  Each year, they have offered several special products for consultants and customers to purchase and raise funds for this amazing organization from special stamp sets to T-shirts.

I am excited to share with you that in October, Close to My Heart has added a special Share a Smile Card Kit with exclusive Thin Cuts to match the current Operation Smile Stamp set, Punny Pals!

The kit is an unbelievable savings! It is just $39.95 (with a retail value of $48.69!)

Share A Smile Card Kit (stamp sold separately)

The stamp set is still available separately...

 As well as the thin cuts...

 And extra card bases and envelopes!

You can purchase the kit, or individual pieces all month to support Operation Smile while supplies last!

But that's not all!  Every time you place an order, you can round your order up to the nearest dollar, giving the extra as a donation to Operation Smile™. During October, your round-up donation will go even further, because Close To My Heart will be matching all round-up donations, up to $10,000 USD!

Guess what???  There's MORE!!!  When you participate in our Share a Smile promotion by purchasing any of these special items or rounding up your order in support of Operation Smile™ you will automatically qualify for a chance to win a not-yet-released stamp set from our upcoming 2018 Seasonal Expressions 1 idea book! We’ll be choosing winners throughout the month of October, so any time you place an order, you can be a winner!

I am so excited to get mine and post some projects for you to see, so come on back later this month!

Turkey Place-cards for Thanksgiving Planning

Hi again!  I had a fantastic little idea come together pretty sweetly recently, so I wanted to share it in case anyone is already planning ahead for hosting Thanksgiving this year.  I know, I know, here in the Midwest, with weather in the 90's it's pretty hard to even THINK about the seasonal holidays coming up, lol!  BEFORE the heat wave kicked in, I used some of the great new Thin Cuts from Close to My Heart to create this little Turkey Place-card out of an Easy Easel Card...

Isn't he the cutest little thing?  Guess what?  He is made entirely out of different leaf dies!  :)  I used the Falling for You Cardmaking Stamp and Thin Cut set and the Leaf Thin Cuts dies.  I chose Kraft CS, Fern, Goldrush, Saffron, Peacock, and Canary CS along with the Falling for You pattern paper.

That little leaf is popped up with a foam dot so it will catch the easel part of the card.

First I used glue dots to layer his body with those first three leaf shapes in the picture above to give it a bit of dimension.  The two leaf stems hang down to form his drumsticks!  :)  I used my Carmine and Marigold ShinHan Touch Twin Markers along with a black fine-tip pen and white gel pen to add some character to his facial features and legs.

Here is a picture of the easel card when it is closed...

I know what you want to know!  How did I make that easy-peasy easel card!  My amazing and creative friend, Shelly, showed me how to make this version over the summer...you just use a pre-made size A2 card base!  Here's a quick picture guide...

Gotta love the new features on PicMonkey!  :)

You might want to pick up this wonderful Stamp of the Month to go with your Thanksgiving crafting, too!

THANK YOU for stopping by today!  :)

Boo to You!!!

Welcome to my booooootiful blog!

You have probably hopped over from Wendy's Blog, so you are in the right place!  If not, be sure to keep clicking around the hop until you see her boooootiful layout!  ;)

This project is quite popular around the Pinterest boards, and you can find a million and one different versions.  It has been on my "to do" list for longer than I care to admit, lol.  I found a quick and simple tutorial HERE, cut my 6 inch paper square from the new Cats and Bats paper from Close to My Heart, and got to work.

I used a couple of Thin Cuts Dies to make his cutie pie face--the Heart Border and the Basic Circles.   I used my Black and White Dots for his eyeballs...and some retired Poppy Thick Twine for his mop of hair.  Those harmless choppers are made out of shiny Silver Foil Paper.  Here he is hanging out in my Everyday Life Stripes Album where I store my dies.

He's going to come in VERY handy to mark my place!

Here's a quick pic tutorial before you leave...

Doesn't he remind you of the abominable snowman from Rudolf without his teeth?  LOL!!!

You are now on your way over to Katy's Blog!  Don't be afraid...bwahahahahahaaaaaa!

Here's our entire Blog Hops with Heart lineup today...enjoy!!!

Kelly

Jayma

Stephanie

Wendy

Amie (that's me!)

Katy

 

See Ya Later, Alligator

When your daughter asks if you can make a card for her bestie featuring an alligator, you say, "OF course!"  Aaaaand then you create one for her with LOTS of alligators!

This was super fun to make...even with the monotony of the masking.  I stamped to gator on a separate piece of CS and cut him out carefully along his outline.  Then I started by stamping the very front gator.  The rest were stamped after carefully masking the over lapping image with this cut-out.  You have to work your way carefully from front to back--and I could have done more layering of the crowd by cutting out more alligators to mask, but I honestly did it at the last minute so had to manage my time.

I only planned on coloring in the little guy next to the word bubble, so I knew it wouldn't take long after that...

The cute little reptile image is found on a retired set from CTMH, and the sentiment is found in the current Short and Sweet My Acrylix.  I stamped him in Memento Ink, colored him in with my Tender Pink, Vivid Green, and Leaf Green ShinHan Alcohol Ink Markers, and matted it on a piece of Willow CS.  Simple, and fun!

September Stamp of the Month

From the Heart Card Kit

Happy National Stamping Month!!!

Oh how I love September!!!  There is SO much stamping goodness going on right now on all the crafty blogs and sales GALORE I might add on lots of different stamp makers' websites.  I haven't NEARLY enough time to soak it all in right now, but I wanted to share with you some of the crafty fun happening over at Close to My Heart before the month just slips away! 

First of all there is an AMAZING new Stamp of the Month for September called Feel So Blessed. I can't wait to ink this one up!

Also, just for National Stamping Month, Close to My Heart has a BEAUtiful From the Heart Stamp set and Card Kit available this month!  Purchase the kit to get a 20% discount on the products!!!

Oh my goodness, these layered floral images are just gorgeous!!!  SO many possibilities and SO many amazing sentiments included in this set!

FINALLY, we are excited to bring you the new products and papers in the Holiday Expressions Catalog!

NOW, I have a little teaser photo to get you coming back to my blog soon!  I crafted this adorbs little turkey guy on a super easy easel card my friend, Shelly, showed me this summer...

I'll have the directions up soon for you!  Thanks for stopping in today!  :)