Canadian Blog Hop: May/ June Catalogue Release

 Welcome to our May Blog Hop featuring artwork created using new and fabulous products found in our current catalog. To purchase any of the items seen in our blog hop today, contact your local consultant to place an order.

We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers....whether it was something that you really liked or some new technique that was used that you would like to learn how to do....by leaving us comments, we get to hear what you like, and what you want to see. Thank you… now on to our hop!

If you have just hopped onto my blog, you can start here as this is a circular hop, but if you want to start at the beginning join Michelle. If you came from Brae at "The Brae-er" then you

I am currently obsessed with the "You Are Enough" Paper and butterflies from the National Scrapbooking Month. The papers are stunning with beautiful patterns, and gorgeous rose gold accents. The only thing I still desired is a solid rose gold foil sheet to cut a title out of, but the sticker sheet is still pretty great. Add on my ongoing obsession with hexagons, and anyone who has been following me on Instagram will not be surprised to see this layout... other than the fact I haven't done a layout in forever!!

I created a 2 page layout featuring the large stitched hexagon thin cuts and wanted to create a corner border in opposite corners. I used a variety of the papers to do this, and I am not sure if you can fully appreciate this on the first picture.

There is something about the blue belle shade that attracted me , so I had to add a little more as the backing for photos. I felt like I needed a little more pattern in the back, but couldn't bring myself to cover up some of the paper. I took the stripped piece and cut it in half, so it only was in the open spaces.

I used the stickers for "Believe in Yourself" as a title. Here is a little hack if you are ever struggling with darts: use the hexagon die to do it! A square would also work, but wouldn't be as wide. I finished things off with the rose gold stickers, the butterfly sequins and 3 die cut butterflies.

The bonus card I made was a slim card, with more hexagons  for my amazing grandmother for mothers day. Similar products and techniques.

Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you love this paper as much as I do!

Your next stop on the Canadian Blog Hop is Kim at Scrappin With Heart . If you get lost along the way, you can head to Michelle S Blog, as she has the complete blog list.

Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. We hope you will join us again for our next hop, July 20th

Cross Canada Blog Hop October 2020 featuring Comfort and Joy

 Welcome to our October Blog Hop featuring "Comfort and Joy" Creations. To purchase any of the items seen in our blog hop today, contact your local consultant to place an order.

We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers....whether it was something that you really liked or some new technique that was used that you would like to learn how to do....by leaving us comments, we get to hear what you like, and what you want to see. Thank you… now on to our hop. You should be joining us from Michelle Stewart's blog, and if you get lost a long the way she also has the master list

I have 2 cards for you today, both using stamps from the Comfort and Joy WYW Cardmaking Stamp and thin cut set. They both also feature some of our new book plate dies because I have been waiting for CTMH to hop on that bus for a while!! The Stitched lattice Background plate is subtle in the background of the shaker card, but I like it.

Products Used

Comfort and Joy paper and coordinating cardstock

Stitched Lattice Background Thin Cut

Silver Star Confetti

Bright and Bright Bitty Beads (white and glacier blue)

Stitched Rectangle Frame Thin Cuts

Medium Rectangular Shaker Window Foam and Acetate

Carnation Red Liquid Pearls

Again I wanted to play with a different die, it has been a while since I have crafted!

This one I covered the olives with the liquid pearls to make it look a little more festive

Product's Used

Comfort and Joy paper and coordinating cardstock

Gold Foil paper

Olive Branch Background Thin Cut

Stitched Scallop Bracket Thin Cuts

Carnation Red liquid pearls

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Dorothy

If you get lost along the way, you can head to Michelle's blog as she has the complete blog list.


Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. We hope you will join us again next month when we will be featuring projects created using the not yet released"Jingle Joy" Collection. So mark November 10th on your calendars and hop along with us.

Cross Canada Blog Hop- September 2020 Featuring Bloom With Grace

 Welcome to our September Blog Hop featuring "Bloom With Grace" Creations. To purchase any of the items seen in our blog hop today, contact your local consultant to place an order. New core and season catty are out for September, so make sure you check all of them out!

We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers....whether it was something that you really liked or some new technique that was used that you would like to learn how to do....by leaving us comments, we get to hear what you like, and what you want to see. Thank you… now on to our hop. You should be joining us from Michelle Stewart's blog, and if you get lost a long the way she also has the master list

So as much as I love sunflowers, and wished that last fall's sunflower set had coordinating die cuts I could not justify buying another set. We will see how long this strength lasts, since the sets are super cute! So this little card features last fall's sunflower set, so please don't be mad. I am still obsessed with hexagons, and sangria ribbon. I am not really ready to move on to fall colours from summer yet, but if I absolutely must, this desert rose is a pretty great colour. 

Product's Used

• Bloom with Grace Paper 
• Desert Rose Cardstock
• Fern Cardstock
• Sangria Ribbon
  
• Canary, fern, expresso and toffee stamp pads
• Stitched Hexagon Thin Cuts
• Wood Grain Embossing Folder

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Pam Furlong

If you get lost along the way, you can head to Michelle's blog as she has the complete blog list.


Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. We hope you will join us again next month when we will be featuring projects created using the "Lovely" Collection. So mark October 10th on your calendars and hop along with us.

Bonus sunflower vacation selfie taken at "The Chuckwagon" in Orwell PEI. Listen, your burger was great, but that corn maze was intense. BRING BACK YOUR RIBS CRAZY PEOPLE!

September 2020 SOTM Blog Hop

Welcome to our Stamp of the Month Blog Hop!  We will be featuring September's SOTM, which is Here for the Memories, a set of 13 stamps.  If you have come here from Kathy Burrow's Blog, you are on the right path! The blog hop is a great big circle, so you can start here and work your way all around.  If you get lost along the way, you’ll find the complete list of participating consultants on Melinda’s Blog. 

This month we have Close To My Heart Consultants sharing their creations using this month's SOTM and other great CTMH products on their blogs. This is simple to do - just click on the link at the end of the post on each blog to move to the next one! Here we go! Don't forget to go check out ALL the new Core and Seasonal Goodies that just became available today. You will be wowed is all I can say.

Hello, welcome to my blog and happy September!!! The summer flew by even with all the crazy going on and me having a heavy teaching load in the fall. I had great intentions that this was going to be a double page layout of my friends and I playing "Settlers of Catan" with lots of amazing hexagons, more colours, and all that jazz. However time got away from me, and without the full craft room arsenal, the idea seemed daunting. I thought I could scale my idea down for what I had with me, and created a cute little hexagonal card that gets the point across. This is a very scrapbooker oriented stamp, but with a little creativity, can be used for other things!

Products Used

• Hexagon stitched thin cuts (I didn't bring my die cutting machine to the cottage, so I just traced!)
• Lagoon, mint, white daisy, lemonade and nectarine card stock scraps
• Wooden Buttons
• Journaling Pen

If you are like me, you are not ready for summer to be over at all. We are enjoying the last few weeks of the summer at the family cottage, and this was my view as I sat reading text books earlier this week. Hope everyone is safe, happy, healthy and getting crafty.

Now "Hop" on over to Brenda Lapps's Blog to see her work! Be sure to visit all the Consultants at their Blogs to get some great crafting ideas and other fun ideas! Remember, the August SOTM is only available until August 31st!  Contact your CTMH Consultant (or click here) to see how you can get this stamp set at a discount!

Dealing with Scraps Part 1/ Atlantic Hearts Sketch 382

If you are anything like me you are obsessed with patterned paper and want to hoard every scrap. I have done several posts about this before, but I definitely need to get more serious about practicing what I preach. So here are some things to consider before you pull out a new pack. 

1) Start with a "fresh desk". Do a quick stock of what is on your desk, and does it need to be there? For me this is a huge challenge, but I also know "out of sight, out of mind", so I am adjusting my scrap system into 3 piles. 

• Pile 1: Anything bigger than 6" by 8" goes back in the envelope with the rest of the patterned paper it coordinates with to be used on another project
  
  
• Pile 2: Card stock pieces that are midsize stay on my desk in the paper tray where I can see what it is, and use it up. I like to pull out patterned paper from this and challenge myself to create something with it. It is a great jumping off point.
  
  
• Pile 3: I have a small bin of paper that is big enough to die cut, create a small mat or stamp on, small mats or just add some interest. This bin should be regularly emptied (I will may some suggestions of simple ways to use things below, there are also a lot of amazing videos on Youtube)

2) Use it before you lose it!: I am notorious for creating one project out of a paper pack, then leaving it full of coordinating scraps, so lately I have been challenging myself to use an entire pack before I move on to something new. It takes some time, and if you have been following my Instagram you will see that almost everything I have posted lately has been from Summer Vibes. You will see some projects below of me trying to not have much left on my desk and there will be several more coming.

3) Sketches can help: So in a stroke of fortune, I was working on some "sunburst" designs to use up some 2" by 3" bits and got the notification for Atlantic Hearts Sketch 382 Challenge. There are many sketches available online as well as lots of card ideas in "Make it From Your Heart" Idea books. Cards using up far less paper than layouts, so you can usually get at least 3 double page layouts plus a good number of cards from a CTMH paper pack+ Coordinating cardstock, you just have to be creative. The other thing you may want to search for are "One Page Wonder" Card designs with cutting diagrams.

Some ways I use up smaller scraps: 

1. Triangle mosaics (these are all sunburst, but it doesn't have to be). These happen to be my submission for AHS 382 and the only one of these I have a decent image for.
   
   
   
   
2. Mosaic style backgrounds from die cut scraps. 
   
   
1. Try to stick with geometric shapes that you can piece together well
2. Can do for cards OR layouts, depending on volume
   
   
   
3. Add some texture to change things up, and then die cut 
   
   
   
4. Piece scraps together on a base, and die cut those. 

I will do more posts of cards made as I clean up piles, but for now I would love to hear how you all use up scraps! What are your favorite ways? Thanks for stopping by, and happy crafting.

August Cross Canada Blog Hop- Timber

Welcome to our August Blog Hop featuring Timber Creations. To purchase any of the items seen in our blog hop today, contact your local consultant to place an order. New core and season catty are coming for September, so make sure you order all the things you love now!

We hope that you will take the time to leave comments on our posts, as we love to get feedback from our viewers....whether it was something that you really liked or some new technique that was used that you would like to learn how to do....by leaving us comments, we get to hear what you like, and what you want to see. Thank you… now on to our hop. You should be joining us from Michelle Stewart's blog, and if you get lost a long the way she also has the master list

This card looks pretty simple gate fold card, but it has a surprise! I was inspired by a Youtube video by Jennifer McGuire to create this. So instead of just a single overlapped piece to close the card, there is a sentiment block hidden underneath!

Your next stop on the Cross Canada Hop is Pam Furlong

If you get lost along the way, you can head to Michelle's blog as she has the complete blog list.


Thanks for hopping along with us - we hope we were able to inspire you to get creative using some of the designs, products and techniques seen along the way. We hope you will join us again next month when we will be featuring projects created using the coming soon "Bloom with Grace" Collection (You all are NOT ready for the level of fabulous, so make sure you have something soft for you jaw to drop on when you see the new catties!!!). So mark September 10th on your calendars and hop along with us.

Atlantic Hearts Sketch 380 Challenge

Hi Friends,

I had some issues with scheduled posts, and the post reverting to previous drafts so I thought I would run a little test post. Bear with me if anything strange happens!

I thought this week I would use a sketch for some inspiration, and I would love if people would join in playing. This one if from the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge who post new sketches weekly to help people get crafty.

Since I already had some of Close to My Heart's featured paper pack of the month open on my desk (Timber), I thought I would use a little of it. If you would like more inspiration, stay tuned for this month's Cross Canada Blog Hop on August 10th. Also keep in mind that this is the last month for not only the current 2019/2020 Core Catty, but also the Seasonal Catty that this paper is from. Make sure you order soon if you have anything left on your wish list!

If you have been following me lately on Facebook/ Instagram (@colleenscraftyconstructions) you will probably have noticed that I haven't been into creating scrapbook layouts, so this is another card. It uses CTMH Value pack cards as the base, and then all sorts of flannel papers. Initially I had in some wood grain paper instead of the plain brown, but a little bit more texture was needed to balance out all the intense patterns. 

I wasn't super excited about this paper initially, so I didn't purchase any of the coordinating stamp sets since I couldn't see myself getting a lot of use from them. Instead I used the "Channel the flannel" sticker from the coordinating sticker sheet, so this card is pretty masculine but still suitable for a variety of occasions. 

Thanks for stopping by!