December Paper Trail blog hop - Roxie!

I'm late! I'm late! I'm late for a very important date!

December Paper Trail blog hop has started and I am still working on my contribution!  I'm so sorry and I hope you'll stop by tomorrow to check it out as I PROMISE I will have it posted by then.  I'm finding that the project I decided to do is just a tiny bit trickier than I anticipated.  But I think you'll like what you see when you come back!

So if you've arrived from Linda's blog, The Paper Taylor, never fear, you are indeed on the right track.  

And to keep you on track, hop on over to If You Bling It by Melinda Everitt.  She is our guest blogger this month and she's got an awesome project for you.

And until tomorrow when I post my "real" project, here are some things I've done with Roxie already.  I may or may not have shared them before....

Gift card holder, inside

 

2nd gift card holder

Recipe/treasure box

Don't forget to come back tomorrow!

Ciao!

Let Me Make You an Offer (or 2) You Can't Refuse!

Have I ever mentioned just how much I love Love LOVE Close To My Heart?

Well, I do!

Here are two more awesome reasons why!

One for now:  Holiday Wishes!

When you place a minimum order of $25 in My Acrylix^® stamp sets in November, you can purchase a new D-size Holiday Wishes stamp set for only $5! That’s significant savings off the full retail value of $17.95. And here’s a bonus: many of the images in the set coordinate with our Cricut^® Art Philosophy cartridge for added cutting and stamping fun! Offer valid November 1- November 30, 2011.

And an offer for later:  Rock the Block (I can't wait for this one!):

My Holiday Wishes is on it's way and I can't wait to show you what I create with it.  As for the Rock the Bock....  tapping my fingertips on the table..... If you want these amazing offers yourself, order them at my Close To My Heart site, Paper Boutique or contact me at betsygully@gmail.com. 

Starting to Feel a Lot Like Christmas

I know, it's too early for Christmas, right?  But for crafters it's a holiday we think about and plan for all year long.  We may not have our homes decorated the day after Halloween, but our minds are busy with ideas and plans!

With that in mind I am going to share some photos of my class projects for A Very Cricut Christmas I: Bags & Tags.  These were all assembled by my very talented daughter and fellow consultant, Alyssa.  Some items are from our Idea Book and others are her own creations.  Enjoy!

Dreamin' of a Paper Trail Blog Hop

Hi, and thank for stopping by! If you arrived from Terri's My Frame of Mind blog you are on the right path. If you are just getting started, enjoy!
 
This is the November Paper Trail blog hop and this month we are featuring "Dreamin'."  It's one of my favorite Level 2 Paper packs by Close to my Heart.  I love Love LOVE the rich fall colors and warm textures.

I have so much I want to share this month but I may have to do it in smaller blog bites. Lets get started with this:

I love making these boxes that feature four more little "drawers" inside.  They are so easy to make despite how complicated they appear.  This one was made as an auction item for the Highpoint Crop benefiting Operation Smile.  It would be great if you could join us!

I have to tell you, though, I got a little excited at the Detroit Regionals last month and gave it away to be auctioned off there.  Oops!  I can happily tell you it raised $65 for Operation Smile.  The great thing is I can make another for Highpoint!

Next up is Mary's Road to Peace of Mind or Escape? blog.  Enjoy your travels, these ladies have some great stuff to show you!

Studio J Layouts

I'm preparing for the Close to my Heart Regional Celebration in Detroit. Part of the registration is a 5 pack Studio J gift to be completed & picked up at Regionals.  Oh what fun I had making the layouts according to their directions and then redoing them to suit my photos and my tastes.  In fact I had so much fun I decided to share. 

You can click on any of these layouts to enlarge it and see more detail.

If you haven't played with Studio J, you really should!  It's so much fun and so easy.  And it cost you nothing to play.  You only pay when you decide to order what you've designed.  How easy and risk free is that?

Get a Fab Freebie in October

  Get a Fab Freebie in October

Become a Consultant in October and get one add-on collection FREE*!

SIGN UP AS A NEW CONSULTANT BETWEEN OCTOBER 1–31 and receive one New Consultant Kit add-on collection of your choice FREE! Add-on collections are priced at $40 each and have a retail value of up to $130, making this an incredible deal!

For just a $99 enrollment fee, you'll receive a New Consultant Kit packed with business essentials and new products valued at over $280, plus a FREE add-on collection to enhance your kit! Then you can choose to buy one or both of the other add-on collections for just $40 each. It's an incredible deal!

 Roxie Add-On Collection

Includes a Workshops on the Go™ Roxie Kit, Rhinestone Designer Brads, Foundry® Pin Clips, My Acrylix® Instant Memories Stamp Set, My Acrylix® Unscripted Stamp Set, Tulip Exclusive Inks® Pad, Cocoa Exclusive Inks® Pad, and a 2" * 6 V" My Acrylix® Block.

 Elemental Add-On Collection

Includes a Workshops on the Go™ Elemental Kit**, Dimensional Elements Banners, Décor Journaling Spots, My Acrylix® Love Life Stamp Set, My Acrylix® Happy Clusters Stamp Set, Olive Exclusive Inks® Pad, and a Desert Sand Exclusive Inks® Pad.

**Cricut^® Art Philosophy cartridge required to complete workshop layouts and bonus project.

 Studio J^® Add-On Collection

Includes a 12-month Studio J® membership and five Studio J layouts (must redeem within first 3 months).

This is too good to resist!  To join my Stamp Scrap Fever team sign up here or contact me at betsygully@gmail.com

Paper Trail - Believe

Welcome to the October Paper Trail blog hop. If you arrived from Connie's blog, Scraps & Stories, you are right on path. If you are just getting started with me let me tell you, you have some great art in store! 

This month our featured Close to my Heart paper packet is "Believe." I know, I know, it seems a bit soon to be bringing out the Christmas papers already. However, as an experienced paper crafter, you know that when it comes to Christmas, it's never too early to start! 

I'd like to share the Christmas Activity Box we are making in one of my October workshops. The My Creations Memory Game is a box filled with 24 chip board "coasters." I made a pocket on each coaster to put a little tag in. The tags have an activity for every day from December 1st to Christmas eve. What a great way to build excitement through the season and make the focus on whatever you wish by the activities you include. 

My numbers, shapes and tags on each coaster, as well as the "ho, ho, ho" on the lid are all cut with our cricut Art Philosophy cartridge. Can I just tell you my cricut has had such a work out since I got this cartridge?  I am loving it! 

Finally, here is a broad view of the papers included in the Believe Level 2 paper pack. I love the fun & brightness of this holiday paper! 

Now follow the trail on over to Pam's blog, P-Inks, for some more holiday inspiration!

Sonoma, September's Paper Trail Blog Hop

Welcome to the Paper Trail blog hop featuring Close to my Heart beautiful papers!  If you came from Field's Finery you are on the right track.  If you are just getting started let me just say you have some amazing artwork ahead!

Our Sonoma paper pack is full of  deep rich colors.  I have been having so much fun playing with them and mixing and matching the patterns.  Every combination is so pretty.

 My contribution to the Paper Trail blog hop is the My Creations Card Box and cards to fill it.  My box was inspired by the sample on page 120 of our Fall/Winter Idea Book. My intention was to copy it.  But as usual it wasn't long before I was off on my own direction. 

Top/front view

With the release of our new Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge there was no question that I would be using it in some manner with my Sonoma creations.  I had to keep myself from getting carried away.  I cut a beautiful swirl and embellished it with Mocha Opaques and two flowers also cut from Art Philosophy.

Front of box

The pretty gem dangling from the front closure and the third smallest purple flower on the top of the box are from our Heirloom Assortment.  I love the elegance the gem drop adds.  The metal corners on the front are from the Pewter Mini Medley Accents.  Sweet, right?

Flower detail

How gorgeous are those flowers showcasing the complementing front and back of the background/texture paper? 

Flower detail

I can't get enough of them....

Open box with cards

This card box can easily hold 10-12 cards and would make a sweet gift for a friend or just a darling box of cards for your own use. 

Card inside

And inside my card is a bit more Art Philosophy.  Note the swirlies in the corners.  I am love Love LOVING my Cricut more than ever with this new cartridge!!

Thank you so much for dropping in. Now, please hop on over to My Frame of Mind and see what Terri has created for you.  See you again, soon, I hope!

Close to my Heart Customer Testimonial

I really don't like posting a blog without any artwork or photos so here is a card created by CTMH Consultant Mary Jane Bedel.  She doesn't have a blog to share her beautiful artwork, but she soon will. This card is made using our Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge.

What I want to share with you is this testimonial by my friend, Capri.  Many of us have wanted a Cricut and have waited... for the price to drop...  for the technology to get better...  for someone to gift it to us...  for a lot of different reasons.  One of which, for me, was to wait until I decided I really needed it.

Capri is one who has waited.  I just love that the exclusive Close to my Heart Art Philosophy cartridge may have been her tipping point! 

Didja Notice Anything New?

My blog has some new features that I'd like to bring to your attention.  Just below my blog title is a dark stripe containing tabs to other pages.  The first tab after the Home page tab says Workshops, Classes & Crops.  If you left click on that tab you will be taken to my calendar of upcoming events. How cool is that?

When you are on my calendar page each event that is highlighted and italicized has its own page.  If you left click on an event you will be transported to that event's page with all the details you need to know about it.

The tab bar remains visible no matter which page you are on and you can easily return to my mail blog just by left clicking on "Home."

Do you like it?  I sure do!

Art Philosophy, the Cricut Cartidge That Comes with a Whole Lot More!

If you are looking for the perfect cartridge to complement all your projects look no more!!  Art Philosophy and CTMH have teamed up to bring you just what you've been asking for!

What can one little key on the Cricut key board do for you?  Just look!

That's just one key, there are 49 more! And that swirl isn't just a swirl, it's a flower!  Check out this petal box:

 That pinkish rose is made from just such a swirl.

And of course the petal box itself is an Art Philosophy cut!

3x3 card combining Art Philosophy cuts with our matching stamps.  So easy & so cute!!

What do you get in the bundle?  3 My Acrylix stamp sets ($53.85 value), 3 Dimensional Elements chipboard sets featuring a variety of shapes to match the stamps ($14.85 value), and of course the Art Philosophy Cartridge ($89.95 value)

Shop for this amazing deal at my CTMH website, Paper Boutique.

Until the last day of the month, August 31st, you will also receive, for just $5 more:

Wicked Stamp of the month ($17.95 value), so cute!

A Typeface font stamp set ($6.95 value), sweet!

Pair-a-Phrase ($35.95 value), so versatile!

That a value of $60.80 for only $5!! So what are you waiting for??

Wedding & Roxie Gift card

These are cards I made when on my trip to Seattle last week.  This first one is for my nephew's wedding.  I was told their colors were brown & teal so I chose Chocolate, Twilight & Colonial White CS.  The pattern for this card is in our Wishes book.

I did two cards with Roxie papers.  These are gift card holders and I love the design!  The first is for our niece and her husband who were our fabulous hosts during our stay in Seattle. 

 

The second is for show & tell at my upcoming open house.  And yes, you are invited!

 

 Thanks for stopping by!  If you are in the Northern Kentucky/Cincinnati area I hope to see you at my open house.