Monday, July 23, 2012

Mom's Latest Artwork

My mom is so very talented!  Everytime I see something she has made, I'm just overwhelmed with the thought and details that she puts into her creations.  She truly has a gift and pictures never quite do any justice to her art.  Despite that I thought I would go ahead post some of the cute cards she has made and one extremely gorgeous layout!  Enjoy!

First, here are some cute little cards she made for a swap that she participates in:






Second here are photos of the exquisite layouts she did using the Sonoma paper packet.  Notice the finer details in the closeup shots!  She's my hero!









Isn't she amazing???????

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Catching Up

Preparing for convention and attending has really put me behind!  However, I wanted to take some time to catch up on a bunch of things.  First, I know I've mentioned this to some of my customers but we have an online special going on - Perfect Pair!  If you're missing some of our retired favorite paper packs, this one is for you.  Place an online order of $75 or more in July and you'll receive a popular paper packet and coordinating accessory—a Perfect Pair—for free! Different Perfect Pairs are available on different dates throughout the month so you’ll want to place more than one qualifying order to snatch several Perfect Pairs.


The following pairs are available on selected dates:

Order Dates Perfect Pair Retail Value
July 1–5 Mischief Paper Packet (X7144B) and Midnight Felt Shapes (Z1462) $15.90
July 6–10 Dreamin’ Paper Packet (X7142B) and Harvest Charms (Z1633) $14.90
July 11–15 Fanfare Paper Packet (X7138B) and Fanfare Level 2 Assortment (Z1400) $17.90
July 16–20 Lucky Paper Packet (X7137B) and Lucky My Stickease® Assortment (X7137C) $17.90
July 21–25 Mayberry Paper Packet (X7136B) and Mayberry My Stickease® Assortment (X7136C) $17.90
July 26–29 Sophia Paper Packet (X7131B) and Sophia My Stickease® Assortment (X7131C) $17.90
July 30–31 Believe Paper Packet (X7145B) and Holiday Pockets (Z1486) OR Wonderland Paper Packet (X7146B) and Wonderland My Stickease® Assortment (X7146C) $14.90


Second, convention was great fun!  Lots of new products are afoot and here are the highlights:

Studio J:  Memberships are going away, but the company is making this a much more affordable and viable option for those of you who like to scrapbook from your computers!

New How-To Publication
:  We have a brand new publication "Make It From the Heart" (think magazine) featuring 16 two-page layout patterns, two single-page patterns, and 12 different card patterns. The patterns follow along with those found in the WOTG programs.

New Workshops on the Go: 
In addition to 8 brand new WOTG kits featuring all 8 of our newest papers, there are 5 ADDITIONAL kits that include a Halloween party supply kit, two fabulous card kits, a kit to create our new spool album (think giant antique thread bobbin), and a gorgeous Advent calendar kit!

Stamp Categories SimplifiedOur stamp categories are now simplified to include the following:
  • Holidays
  • Seasons & Nature (all things outdoors)
  • Flair (backgrounds, accents, borders, frames, tags, and the like)
  • Everyday Life
  • Occasions
  • Alphabets

Updated Color Palette:  Our color palette now includes 40 colors plus White Daisy and Colonial White. AND by popular demand, all 42 colors have individual cardstock packs of 24 sheets again!

Kit Exclusive Colors:  Some of the new paper packets have trendy colors included that are exclusive to those kits!
 
New Pigment Inks
:  We now have pigment inks available in sets of ten mini pigment cubes - one collection for each category of color in the color palette!

Organizers
:  The new organizer cases that are being introduced are a small and medium case. The small case can be augmented with a foam insert for either blocks or small craft boxes (available separately). The medium case includes removable dividers so that you can customize your case to carry your most cherished accessories!

New Cricut Cartridge
:  This is a "must have" product!  This cartridge has an emphasis on 3-D project suites with 698 unique shapes plus a circle and a square to balance out the collection. The keypad cover is designed in an alpha/numeric form to make it quick and simple to find the shapes you need and each key is themed to make a variety of projects. AND it comes with an additional instructions book on assembling your 3-D items!  Once again this product, the Cricut Artiste Collection, is packaged with 3 exclusive stamp sets and 3 sheets of coordinating chipboard. While the stamp sets are only available with the cartridge, the chipboard shapes are also available in the regular product line.

New Alcohol Markers:  We have a brand new collection of alcohol markers that are sold in pairs, one base and one shade, for each of our 40 colors. These markers are not considered to be a Copic competitor, have rigid (not soft) tips, no special paper is needed, and can be blended to create a huge variation of colors.

Product AvailabilityWhile most of the new products are available immediately, there are a handful of items that are not yet available for purchase. It is anticipated that they will be available on the dates below:

Available for purchase on August 1, 2012:
All Exclusive Inks® Marker Sets found in the Whimsy and Enchantment color palettes
Workshops on the Go® Scroll Album Kit (G1042)
 
Available for purchase on August 15, 2012:
All Exclusive Inks® Marker Sets found in the Adventure and Basics color palettes
 
Available for purchase on September 1, 2012:
Small Organizer (Z4138)
Medium Organizer (Z4139)
Craft Boxes (Z4137)
Craft Boxes Foam Insert (Z4140)
My Acrylix® Blocks Foam Insert (Z4141)
 
Available for purchase soon (watch the Weekly Corporate Update for updates):
Rub-On Tool (Z1796)
Quilling Tool (Z1795)

Retiring List: 
If you are stuck on some of our current products or just need to complete a collection, the Retiring List includes all items that are available until 7/31/12 or while supplies last (whichever is first).  Here is a list of the items retiring, so get them while you can!


Retiring Product
(not included in the Autumn/Winter 2012 Idea Book)

·      The following products are scheduled to be retired from the CTMH product line and are not pictured in the Autumn/Winter 2012 Idea Book.
·      Combo packs of cardstock are also being retired.
·      All of our How-To Books have been retired and are sold out.
·      BULK items, when retired, are usually available while supplies last. If there are items that you need, it is suggested that you order early.

Paper Packs/Stickease/Complements
·      Cruisin’ Paper Pack (X7154B)
·      Cruisin’ Complements Foil Images (X7154C)
·      Elemental Paper Pack (X7141B)
·      Elemental Complements Dimensional Elements (X7141C)
·      Footloose Paper Pack (X7151B)
·      Footloose Complements Dimensional Elements (X7151C)
·      Lucy Paper Pack (X7149B)
·      Lucy Complements Glittery Rub-Ons (X7149C)
·      Roxie Paper Pack (X7140B)
·      Roxie My Stickease Assortment (X7140C)
·      Sonoma Paper Pack (X7143B)
·      Sonoma My Stickease Assortment (X7143C)
·      Superhero Paper Pack (X7152B)
·      Superhero Complements Rub-Ons (X7152C)
·      Typeset Paper Pack (X7139B)
·      Typeset Complements Canvas Shapes (X7139C)

Workshops on the Go (Kits are available until 8/31/12 or while supplies last)

·      WOTG Cruisin’ Kit (G1039)
·      WOTG Florentine Kit (G1038)
·      WOTG Footloose Kit (G1036)
·      WOTG Lucy Kit (G1034)
·      WOTG Pemberley Kit (G1033)
·      WOTG Stella Kit (G1032)
·      WOTG Superhero Kit (G1037)
·      WOTG Victory Kit (G1035)

Papers/Inks/Reinkers
(Cardstock, inkpads, and reinkers are all included. Check your Idea Book or my website for part numbers.)

·      Amethyst
·      Baby Pink
·      Brown Bag
·      Dutch Blue
·      Garden Green
·      Garnet
·      Grey Flannel
·      Grey Wool
·      Heavenly Blue
·      Holiday Red
·      Key Lime
·      Lilac Mist
·      Moonstruck
·      Pansy Purple
·      Parchment
·      Petal
·      Spring Iris
·      Sunflower
·      Sunkiss Yellow
·      Sunny Yellow
·      Taffy
·      Tulip
·      Vanilla Cream
·      Vineyard Berry


Other Cardstock
·      Colonial White 6-pack (X5901)
·      White Daisy 6-pack (X5900)

Cards
·      Clear Cards 4-1/4” x 5-1/2” (Z1323)
·      Clear Cards 4-1/2” (Z1309)

Albums/Accessories
·      Quick Pic Album-Dark Chocolate (Z1406)
·      Quick Pic Album-Dark Cranberry (Z1405)
·      Quick Pic Album-Outdoor Denim (Z1404)
·      Snapease Album System 12x12 (Z4110)

Embellishments
·      Bitty Brads Basic Assortment (Z1367)
·      Bitty Brads Metal Assortment (Z1368)
·      Bitty Buds Assortment (Z1690)
·      Bottle Caps (Z1691)
·      Canvas Badge Buttons (Z1397)
·      Clear Sparkles (Z1104)
·      Color Ready Irresistibles - Lots of Dots (Z1261)
·      Comic Badge Buttons (Z1688)
·      Dimensional Elements-Ornaments (Z1337)
·      Heirloom Assorment (Z1635)
·      Hinges (Z1402)
·      Mini-Medley Accents-Honey (Z1488)
·      Mini-Medley Accents-Pacifica (Z1698)
·      Mini-Medley Accents-Sunset (Z1338)
·      Mini-Medley Accents-Tulip (Z1320)
·      Photo Hangers (Z1403)
·      Ribbon-Designer Pink Collection (Z1384)
·      Ribbon-Sw. Lf. Stitched Grosgrain (bulk) (Z1383)
·      Seaside Wooden Shapes (Z1693) (sold out)

My Creations Products
·      My Creations A-Door-Ables (Z1321)
·      My Creations All Sorts Mini Album (Z1224)
·      My Creations Cube (Z1152)
·      My Creations Mix & Mingle Album (Z1334)

Tools/Organization
·      Craft Tray (1764)
·      Distressing Kit (Z1299) (sold out)
·      Dotto Dots Dispenser (1766)
·      Dotto Dots Dispenser-Refill (1767)
·      Double Scrubber (Z1163)
·      Euro Personal Paper Trimmer (Z338)
·      Euro Replacement Blades (Z339)
·      Euro Replacement Blade/Scoring (Z340)
·      Microfiber Cloth (Z1006)
·      My Legacy Writer Black Pen Set (4275)
·      Shoulder Tote (Z4204) (sold out)

Finally, most likely, all stamp sets that were not shown as "New" in the Spring/Summer 2012 Idea Book will also be retiring.  

Questions?  E-mail me!

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

June 2012 Stamp of the Month

One of my customers asked me a question recently about "paper piecing".  She didn't know what the term meant, so in looking at the June Stamp of the Month, I had an "aha!" moment.  For me it was a perfect opportunity to showcase what paper piecing was all about.  As such I created the following card:


If you don't know what paper piecing is, it's a way of stamping and cutting paper such that you can get multiple layers and colors of paper on one image.  So for the sample I created above, I stamped the bird on the green Lucy B&T paper and cut him out (yes, legs too, for my consultant sisters who I went to Shrine Mont with :) ).  Then I stamped him again on the pink Lucy B&T paper and just cut the wing out.  I then adhered the wing to the green cutout bird.  The idea is that you are piecing bits of paper together to get a dimensional and beautifully colored affect.  OK, I know I went a little crazy with the paper piecing as I even did the feet, beak and eye!  Anyway, it was fun to do and now that I've posted the picture, I can give this to my customer and sister, Peggy!


Monday, June 25, 2012

Welcome!

Although I'm late to the game, I finally decided I needed to bite the bullet and finally set up a blog.  Being in the IT business, I spend so much of my life in front of the computer and really fought spending more.  But I also recognize that I want to keep an ongoing dialog with people who are passionate about the same things I am.

So welcome one and all who find themselves here!