Week 2: Too many photos!

Last week I recommended that you start your scrapbooking with a most recent event.  It is fresh in your memory, exciting to remember, and easy to find!  You can read about it here.  But..."I have so many photos!"you might say.

Tip #2  You don't need to use every photo

That's right!  Instead, narrow it down to a few of your favorites and focus on the best moments of that event.  

Digital devices makes it so easy to take LOTS of photos with our phones.  We want to make sure we get the right shot or save all the memories.  This causes us to feel overwhelmed when we look back.  Even I posted seven photos of my most recent event, White Christmas, last week and that doesn't include the photos I am waiting to receive from a friend.  

 So, when you weed them out and you still have more photos than you feel like fits on a page, what do you do?  Close to My Heart has a solution for that called Pocket Plus and Flip Flaps.  These products allow you to add extra photos that don't "fit" on the page yet you want to include.  

Here's an example of how you can use Pocket Plus.  

This is a scrapbook page from the Chelsea Gardens Workshop Your Way.  Beautiful right?  I has a total of 6 photos on it...including some little 2 x 2's.  If I had one more photo, I might add a flip flap to include it on the page but what if I have several more?  

 

Here is the same layout but in the center, you can see the Pocket Plus pages that allow you to add more photos AND journalling.  The cut apart cards included in the CTMH paper packets can be used to fill any "holes" that you don't have photos for and they help to continue the theme as well as give your eye a place to rest.  

Pocket Plus fit right into the binding of your scrapbook whether post bound or 3 ring, are the same sturdy weight as your page protector, and have easy slide in openings.  

 

3 x 4 Horizontal Photos Z3245

 

4 x 3 Vertical Photos Z3244

 

4 x 6 Horizontal Photos Z3242

 

 6 x 4 Vertical Photos  Z3243

If you are interested in learning more about Pocket Plus and how to use them, please feel free to contact me.  Want to purchase now?  Head on over to my website and place your order.  

And one final photo for my most recent event that I will be scrapbooking...

Michele

Flash Sale!

Close to My Heart is kicking off 2018 with a 24-hour flash sale on my website this weekend! The sale will begin at 3:00 pm (MST) on Friday, January 12, and end at 3:00 pm (MST) on Saturday, January 13!

30% of selected bundles of current products!  Shop now for best deals!  

 Happy saving!

Michele

Week 1 Scrapbook Tip

I found a great list of tips for beginner scrapbookers but I think going back to basics is good whether you are just getting started or are a seasoned scrapbooker.  So, I have grand plans to share a tip with you each week and even try it out myself.  Let's get started.

#1  Start with recent photos

Really, this is a great place to start.  You know where the photos are, you have recent memories to share, and you will be inspired to start here and not feel overwhelmed with the boxes or folders of past photos.

I will be choosing our photos of our white Christmas.  I am going to keep it refined to just the photos I have of snow and tell the story of the rarity of snow on Christmas day living in the Pacific Northwest.  

 What photos will you start with?  Spend some time this weekend choosing and printing photos!

Happy Scrapbooking,
Michele

One gift left to open!

There was one gift left to open this Christmas and I offered it to anyone who was interested.  It was opened by Jennifer and I am so excited about what she got.  Want to see what was inside?

You can open your own box too!  

New Year- New You!  Come join the FUN!
Discount on your crafty supplies and or paying your bills!! We have an amazing group of women who do both♥️
#youvegotnothingtolose
#thekitisfullofgoodstuff
#andyouget$50tospend

What are you waiting for? 

 Michele

Bloom & Grow, Jan SOTM Blog Hop

Welcome to the New Year, 2018 and a new stamp of the month. 

I hope you had a great holiday season with family and friends.  Are you ready to get creative?  I know I sure am!  You are on my page as a part of the stamp of the month blog hop.  If you have come from Tracie's blog, welcome.  After you have viewed my page, you will hop on over to Miss Carrie's Creations to see her inspiring artwork.

Setting down to play with this set brings a bit of spring to the deep winter feel.  A breath of fresh air!  I used the new Make It From Your Heart vol. 4 card design book to create these two cards.  The paper is from the new kit "Gimme some sugar" and the cute watering can is from C1714 Mother's Garden.  I love creating the "waterfall" with bitty sparkles.  The sentiments are from our January Stamp of the month. 

The flower packet feel of this set inspired my launch of our new catalog and the theme of having a Garden Party, indoors of course.  I can't wait to share all the fun things I will make for the party but for now it is a surprise.  If you are local and you want to join us Jan 20th, contact me for details. 

I hope you have been inspired to begin your new year creating!  You can purchase this stamp set from your Close to My Heart Consultant or you can visit my website and purchase it there as well.  This set is available only during the month of January and can be purchased for $5 with a minimum order.

Miss Carrie's Creations has something wonderful in store for you so don't forget to hop of over to her blog.

Here's to a creative new year!
Michele

Ish

No, that is not a spelling error but the title of a book that Stacy Julian read to us as part of her presentation at the Close to My Heart convention this past summer. 

Here's a video of a book reading.  

This really spoke to me.  I have been a memory keeper for many years but here is what I know.  I am not consistent.  I don't scrapbook in chronological order.  I have many scrapbook pages that don't have photos but I love the pretty paper and embellishments.  I have many scrapbook pages that have photos but no title or journaling.  My girls have always loved to look at their scrapbooks and Alli even brought them out at Thanksgiving to share with her boyfriend (does that mean this is serious?). 

After hearing Stacy share, I realized that "ish" was ok.  Her comment "you are doing better than your think" gives us permission to not feel guilty that all the photos are in a scrapbook, journaled about, in a page protector and finally snugged into an album. 

Here is a "conversation" I saw between two CTMH friends on Facebook yesterday. 

R:  I was going to do a December daily this year concussion slowed me down. Trying to decide if i should attempt to catch up. Or just skip it?

J:   Why don't you do a December week or 7 days of December?  That feels way less stressful!  Or just make a loyout of December memories.  One layout and use flip flaps for extra photos.  I will never forget Stacy Julian telling people that if you were feeling guilty about not having a scrapbook for your babies, make one layout with all the kids and their birth stories and BAM, you're done.  That is so freeing! 

WOW!  There are so many options of different ways to tell your story. What works for you? 

This month, CTMH offers a unique way of telling your story, Through the Year. 

This exclusive kit contains all the materials you need to create a complete calendar for 2018, including the My Creations calendar, papers, Complements, glitter gems, and custom gold glitter die-cuts—AND it is available at a 20% discount! Each month features a unique 12" x 12" scrapbook page that highlights different seasons or holidays. Just add photos to remind you of your favorite memories throughout the next year!

AND, if you want to add a bit more to this, you can join my "Year of Memories" workshop club.  After your initial purchase of the calendar kit, I will share a companion layout that you can add to have a complete double page spread.  Imagine having a completed album

I will have a monthly shopping list of items you will use to add a companion layout as well as teach you new techniques to keep your storytelling fast, simple and easy.  When you spend $25 a month, for 6 months, you will receive $25 in free product AND have a completed album for the year. 

You can work through 2018 or you can go back and tell the story of 2017.  If there is a new baby in your family or an upcoming graduate, you could use the calendar to document their year.

 If you are not local to me, but are interested in joining, I will have all the layouts with instructions as well as a video showing how to put it together. 

Let me help you tell your story! 

Michele

A Little Bit Pun: December SOTM Blog Hop

Are you ready for a little bit of stamping fun! This stamp set of "littles" brings a smile to my face each time I create with it. I can't wait to smile more as I hop through this set of wonderful artwork!

If you have arrived here from Miss Carrie's Creation blog, you are traveling through a big circle of artwork using the "A Little Bit of Pun" stamp set.  After your stop here, you will travel on to Wendy's blog.

These little stamps are perfect sentiments to share a smile with a friend or even create a Valentine greeting.  Kids will love to use these stamps to share little cards with their friends and classmates in February.

I started with the mermaid and of course, a shimmer brush when I began playing.  I used the peacock background paper from the Enchantment Fundamentals (wasn't that sale great last month?).

Although you can't tell from this photo, I shimmered each polka dot and the mermaid tail.  The Silver Glitter papers brings out the shine.

I just love these little light bulbs and the cute little pun that goes along with it.  The cricut cut light bulb is from the Artistry cartridge.

I am still playing with the fun set and will have more cards posted on my Facebook page. This set is only available to purchase during the month of December.  You can purchase it at a deep discount on your consultant's website with a minimum order.  If you do not have a consultant, head on over to my website and order this fun set.

Now remember you have many more cute ideas waiting on this blog hop.  From here, continue on to Wendy's blog.

Enjoy stamping!
Michele

Just for FUN blog hop

Close to My Heart has an awesome special going on during the month of November and you are not going to want to miss it!  After you see all the ideas in the blog hop, you will definitely be inspired to stock up on the Fundamental paper packs, complements and ribbon too!

If you have arrived here from Brandi's Blog, welcome!  To continue through the circle of artwork and inspiration, you will move on to Brenda's Blog next. 

What I love about the Fundamental papers and products is that no matter what your theme, color preference or style, there is something for everyone.  And the Fundamentals are easy to coordinate with other themed paper kits.  Versatility! 

Graduation was the theme for the photos I have on hand...and there were LOTS of photos.  I went with my daughter's school colors to start with and then added the gold (saffron) as an accent to the cords she earned. 

I also love that there is room to do some stamping with the larger patterns of the Enchantment Fundamental set so you can add your own embellishment or accentuate your own theme with the stamps. 

And then finally, adding glitter embellishments topped it all off.  Our glitter paper is so easy to cut on the Cricut that I didn't have any trouble cutting out the stars. 

Finally, remember that I have LOTs of photos?  I added the pocket plus protectors so I could easily add these photos and memories to my page. 

If you would like to take advantage of a 30-40% discount on all the Fundamental papers, complements and ribbons, head on over to your consultants website and order today!  These products are only available while supplies last and you won't want to miss out!  If you do not have a CTMH consultant, you can purchase these products from my website.

Thank you for stopping by and I hope you were inspired by what you saw.  Remember now to travel on to Brenda's blog. 

Michele

Christmas Card Blog Hop

Sometimes I have great intentions to make handmade gifts for Christmas but the time gets away from me and I either don't get them finished or I only get some finished.  But, I do love that I can add a handmade touch to the holidays with handmade Christmas cards.

Welcome to the Christmas Card Blog Hop.  If you have arrived here from Brandi's Blog, you will be continuing your journey through the big circle of artwork and inspiration.  After you have visited my blog here, you will travel on to Emily's Blog.

Now to share my cards.  Each Close to My Heart paper packet has a 2 sheets of Picture My Life cards.  These can be used in a variety of ways:  scrapbook titles, embellishments, card fronts, pocket scrapbooking and more!

For my cards, I used the cards to create gift card holders.

When you open the "gift,", the card pops up.  These are simple cards and make gifting "just a gift card" lots of fun.  I hve embellished these card with red glitter paper bows and shimmer using the shimmer brush.  They fit perfectly in a regular A2 envelope.

You can purchase the products to create these cards from your Close to My Heart consultant or if you do not have a consultant,  I would be happy to help you.  Your can shop directly from my website here.

Now remember, you will be traveling on to Emily's Blog to see what she has created.

I hope you holiday time is filled with family, great memories, and blessings.
Michele

Stamp of the Month blog hop: Through the Year

This stamp set is a bit unusual for our regular card makers but brings out the creative challenge!  I can't wait to see what people do!

Get ready for a fun run through inspiration alley!  If you have arrived here from Emily's blog, you are one your way through a big circle of creative artwork by several consultants.  After you have visited my blog, you will travel on to Tracie's blog.

Through the year stamp set includes the 12 months of the year spelled out in a script font and then 16 icons that represent different themes and seasons of the year.  If you enjoy planners or making your own calendar, this set is a staple for your collection. 

But, if you are also a card maker, these icons add perfect images for your greetings.

Here, I used the small sunshine icon and stamped in Goldrush and Tangerine alternately to create a greeting.  I colored white dots with the Shin Han marker to create an embellishment to add dimension.  I used the "Jennifer's Hand" alphabet to stamp the sentiment.  (Tip:  I have two of these alphabet sets because they are inexpensive and I always need more than just one of the letters to complete my thought.  I put both sets in one envelope so they are always together.)

Sticking with a weather theme, I created this card using the raindrops.  The clouds and the umbrella are cut from the Artistry Cricut cartridge.  The sentiment is from the "Stronger Together" stamp set.

Although I don't have a photo of this, I purchased a large desk calender that was blank and I loved using the month stamps to label each month with a pretty font, instead of my handwriting.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION!

This stamp set is also used the December special, Through the Year Calendar.  You will be able to purchase it with a kit in December OR save yourself some money and purchase it this month for $5 with a $50 order.  Then in December, you can order the kit without the stamp set and again save on your purchase.  These calendars are great gifts as well as ways to share your memories through out the year.

Thank you for stopping by.  You will be able to order this stamp set from your CTMH consultant through the month of November or from my website here.  The calendar will be available in December so watch for news from your consultant.

Now remember to continue your hop through the blogs by moving on to see what Tracie has created.

Michele