Wrapped Special

Good Morning Crafters!

I have just been having a whirlwind of a December, how about you?

I am still Christmas Shopping, my Mom leaves back to California after her 3 week visit. I am VERY thankful and lucky that my Mom was able to take the time and visit me and my kids and help me out, I can NOT thank her enough..

Back to my Project..

Today I am sharing with you a Christmas present I wrapped and used Pinque Peacock product on.. I love how it turned out! My next gifts will utilize Pinque Peacock Product as well.

I stuck with a color theme for our presents this year, and used all of my left over wrapping paper, all of my wrapping adornments and even pique peacock product to make the gifts look fabulous!

Pinque Peacock Products Used:

Fabric Covered Button

Pleated Petal White

Angel Stick Pin

Thanks for stopping by and checking out my project today! Look in your Pinque Peacock stash and see what you have to add to your Christmas gifts this year, it will add to the WOW factor I promise!!

Get in on the DEAL!

January 1, 2014 

There will be changes to Close to My Heart

one of the Changes is the Consultant Kit..

Purchase this Consultant Kit for $49.00 until December 31st!

This is a savings of 70%!!

Jan 1st, 2014 there will be a NEW Consultant Kit, however CTMH will NO longer have the price point option of $49.00. The Kit will have a price point of $99.00

So if you have been thinking about joining Close to My Heart, then I'd love to have you on board!

This is an AWESOME Kit with FABULOUS products!

Go to Join CTMH

Elegant Mini Albums

Artbooking Made Easy: Elegant Mini Albums

Today’s episode of Artbooking Made Easy is all about creating elegant mini books in various sizes to fit your own sophisticated style. Remember that all of the cuts in the Cricut^® Artbooking cartridge are linked, so you can cut all of the elements for an 8" album as easily as you can for an 8 ½" x 11" album – all with just a single turn of the dial.

The mini albums you’re about to see in this episode are made up of some uniquely-sized shapes, so pay close attention:

That 8 ½" x 11" Cherish Love Mini Album is so full of personality! It celebrates all the little moments that happen during an engagement photo shoot: everyone gets to see the final product in the announcements, but it’s nice to have a gorgeous little book that includes all those details!

Take a look at this page in the book. You can create the same look by cutting a collection of coordinating pennants and stitching them into a layered banner. A helpful trick is to stitch or adhere your shapes onto a strip or panel of cardstock first and then adhere the strip or panel onto the page itself. This helps keep your base pages free of mistakes while you are playing around with the positioning of the elements.

Another contributor to the fun personality of the album is the assortment of hand-drawn borders around many of the Cricut^®-cut shapes. Take your shapes and add a personal touch by outlining them with a black pen, adding a flourish here and there along the border.

Try outlining your title pieces, creating borders to help them stand out more. It also will help to tie in other handwritten elements on your page, like journaling. Also try printing your photos directly onto White Daisy cardstock and then drawing borders around them with a regular journaling pen.

I love how the artist of this album has mixed and matched mediums to create custom, mixed titles and sentiments. Titles cut with the Artbooking cartridge contrast nicely with the letters from the Keyboard Kraft Alphabet on this page.

The second album here, the 8" Special mini album is just as elegant and fun as the first.

See how the artist who created it used the negative space of overlays and other shapes in various ways. Many of them are backed withB&T paper or cardstock (as one normally would with the overlays). However, one specifically is simply left with the negative cut on the base page, giving a window effect.

We see plenty of great overlays backed with colored papers and cardstocks, but what kind of look would come if you backed one with a photo? It would stand out, indeed! Or, if you were looking for a way to help your overlay blend better with your base, you could sand the edges of your overlay to reveal the white core that would lay nicely on a piece of White Daisy cardstock.

You also see here some Artbooking collection stamp sets used with great elegance! The flourish and damask-patterned stamps have been used as borders around pages to create cohesion with the pages that have fancy overlays.

One of my favorite features of this mini album is its use of white! This photo has been printed on cardstock and the “lovely” sentiment stamped in White Daisy ink. The photo, the photo mat, and the flags that sit directly below the title have been sanded on their edges so that their white cores show through. The entire page is tied nicely together with the white theme—a very elegant touch indeed.

When you try some of the techniques and the very classy “elegant” keys of the Artbooking cartridge for yourself, you’ll have plenty of reason to bask in the beauty of your pages! And this week, when you leave a comment here describing the most elegant event you have ever attended, you’ll be entered into a contest for your very own Cricut^® Artbooking collection. I’ll announce the winner in two weeks. Happy elegant scrapbooking!

Recipes:

8 ½" x 11" Cherish Love Mini Album

Z1906 Cricut^® Artbooking Collection

Z1790 Cricut^® Artiste Collection

D1559 My Acrylix^™ Geometric Background

C1534 My Acrylix^™ Sightseer

X7171B Sarita Paper Packet

X7170B Laughing Lola Paper Packet

Z1830 Brown & Tan Glitter Paper

Z1853 Aqua Dots

Z1850 Lagoon Houndstooth Washi Tape

Z1732 Color-Ready Seam Binding Ribbon

Z1800 Colonial White Rosette Ribbon

Z1825 Kraft Alphabet

Z1852 Stitch Guide

Z1294 Sanding Kit

Colors: White Daisy, Black, Autumn Terracotta, Cocoa, Goldrush, Lagoon, Crème Brulee, Cotton Candy, kraft

8" Special Mini Album

Z1906 Cricut^® Artbooking Collection (cartridge and stamps)

X7173B Babycakes Paper Packet

Z1701 Bakers Twine Neutral Assortment

Z1817 Slate Polka-Dot Washi Tape

Z1825 Kraft Alphabet

Z1294 Sanding Kit

Colors: White Daisy, Blush, Cocoa, Sorbet, Sweet Leaf, Crystal Blue

In the Details & Day 5 Giveaway

Let me get some Housekeeping out of the way..

I am doing a 12 days of Giveaway for my Birthday which was 12/11/13.

I have been behind due to illness and my Birthday Weekend spent at Universal Studios..

Low Down Details on the Giveaway:

Q: How do I enter the Giveaway

A: Easy read the post on that day and follow the steps it says for the giveaway

i.e. like a Facebook page/share/ answer the question

Q: How will I know if I won?

A: All WINNERS will be posted on the Blog on Day 13, so make sure you follow, subscribe or set a reminder to come back and check the winners list!!

Q: Is this open Internationally?

A: Yes, unless noted on the specific Giveaway post.

So why am I sharing this with you? Well because Day 5 Giveaway is a

Studio J Layout!! Woo Hoo!! 

How do I get a chance to WIN this layout? 

1.) Share the Giveaway

a. There is a Tweet Button at the top of this post

b. You can use the Facebook share button at the top of the post

Leave a comment telling me how you shared the giveaway.. 

I am looking for two or three enthusiastic, passionate and committed crafters who would like to be a part of my Design Team. The design team term runs from January 15th - June 15th, 2014. Crafters of all skill levels are welcome!

As a Design Team member, you will be required to do the following:

• Create a minimum of 1 project per week 
• Have an active blog
• Promote myself (Heather Flaherty ) as your CTMH Independent Consultant
• Take Quality photos of your Artwork

What you will receive from:

• A sampling of Product Monthly, your to keep
• Design Team Blinkie to place on your Blog
• Link to your Blog on I Heart {ippity}

Interested applications should submit the following information by email:

1. Name
2. City/State
3. Your personal blog web address
4. 3 Projects attached to the e-mail (or links directly to project) – 1 card, 1 scrapbook page, and one ‘other’ project
5. Are you currently on a design team or have you been? And if yes, with who?
6. Why would you like to be a part of my Design Team?
7. Are you a Consultant with a scrapbooking/stamping company?  (I will not be accepting designers who are consultants for any company or in leadership positions with other scrapbook related companies)

DEADLINE IS  January 3rd at noon.  I will choose and announce on my blog and start sending product immediately.  The term will be run from January 15th - June 15th, 2014

Please submit your application to PCAHeather

Any other comments, questions, or concerns can be sent to PCAHeather

Thank you for your interest!

Just a Sniffle

 

 

So I have been up since 0300, my throat felt like glass was breaking in it my nose was making it impossible to breathe and I could not get comfortable enough to go back to sleep.

 

 

 

 

 

Am I at home enjoying broth, and laying in a warm bed, catching up on the sleep I missed?

Nope not me, being an actual responsible Adult I reluctantly got out of bed this morning had some broth, got myself ready for work and worked.. At about 10am this morning I wanted to crawl under my desk for a nap, but I resisted. Sometimes being a responsible adult sucks! LOL

 

 

Alternating Tylenol and Ibuprofen, drinking water, taking care of customers and getting my 8 hours of work in. Tomorrow is suppose to be a short day for me, we will see if that happens because lately it has NOT!

 

**This wasn't posted yesterday due to the fact that when I got home I slept for 13 hours!!!**

 

 

 Day #4 Giveaway

 

 

 

Enter the Giveaway By Answering this Question:

 

Q: What is your Favorite Family Tradition for the Holidays?

Giveaway POST!!

Ok So I am a couple days behind!! LOL!! I forgot to schedule my Giveaway posts while I was CELEBRATING my Birthday Weekend at Universal Studios Orlando..

I am a Harry Potter FANATIC, so my first day and last day were spent in the Harry Potter area..

Day #2 $15 Michaels Gift Card

Q: If you have been to Universal what is YOUR favorite ride? 

If not what is your FAVORITE Movie that you think should be a ride?

Answer the question above to be entered in the Day 2 Giveaway!!

Day #3 Giveaway

Project Life Grab Bag from the Amber Kit

Q: What is YOUR one MUST HAVE Christmas gift?

Answer for your chance to win the Day # 3 Giveaway

If you have not checked out the Pinque Peacock Blog Hop that started on Friday, then head over to Pinque Peacock HERE and start from the beginning of the HOP!! You do NOT want to miss out on all of the FABULOUS projects created by the talented DT Members.

Celebrate National Papercrafting Month in January

Celebrate National Papercrafting Month

January 1-30 2014

With the trendy & hip

Cloud Nine Cardmaking Kit

There are two ways to get the adorable Cloud Nine cardmaking kit: Purchase it for just $15 (retail value $46) with a minimum qualifying order of $35 during January 2014 in Or you can get it FREE when you enroll as a new Consultant in January and submit total personal sales of $300 or more.

Create 10 cute cards (2 each of 5 designs) using three sneak-peek accessories from the upcoming Idea Book, a new D-size stamp set, and exclusive papers!

Cloud Nine Card Kit Contents 

1 – My Acrylix™ Cloud Nine Stamp Set (D-size)

1 – Cloud Nine B&T Duos™ Paper

1 – Lagoon Cardstock Sheet

1 – Honey Cardstock Sheet

1 – 9" x 9½" White Daisy Die-Cuts Sheet

1 Roll – Gold Polka-Dot Washi Tape†

1 Roll – Teal Shimmer Trim†

1 Package – Durables Triangle Studs† 

10 – Card Bases & Envelopes

1 – Instructional Brochure Featured colors: Lagoon, Sunset, Honey, White Daisy 

†new product in Spring/Summer 2014 Idea Book 

*New Consultant’s total qualifying sales must be remitted no later than June 30, 2014, and the free kit will automatically ship with the Consultant’s order that achieves the minimum sales, or, if that order is a customer’s OBA order, it will ship with the next order going to the Consultant’s address. Orders must be Consultant-placed and the listed shipping address must correspond to an address listed on the Consultant’s profile in their online Personal Business Assistant. 

Offer valid January 1–31, 2014. Additional criteria may apply. Tax is based on the price paid for the promotional item. Shipping/ handling based on the full retail price of the card kit ($46).

Cross Stitch Wishes Jan. 2014 Stamp of the Month

When you qualify to purchase the Cloud Nine cardmaking kit, you’ll be eligible to purchase the January Stamp of the Month for just $5 saving you even more. Talk about being on Cloud Nine!

Day 1 Giveaway

Hello out there in Blogland!! Is Blogging still relevant? Have people switched to Vlogging or is it mainly focused on other social media such as Twitter and Facebook?

Clue me in!! Am I behind the times, and trudging along in an outdated platform for my sharing of my creative output?

Well, think about it and leave me a comment to let me know YOUR thoughts!

DAY 1 Giveaway!!

Woo Hoo!! Who is EXCITED? Do you want FREE Stuff?

Let me see this year I have given away the following items:

Cricut 14" Plushie (x3)

Cricut Vinyl Figurine (x2)

CTMH Artbooking Cartridge

CTMH Stamps

Paper Punch

Random Bag of Goodies

Here is how to ENTER the Giveaway!

It's really easy, just leave me a comment on what your favorite Current Close to My Heart Stamp set is.

You can view the stamps Online HERE

I bet your INQUIRING Mind is WONDERING what YOU Could WIN??

Well let me think on it a bit, then get back to you..

........Just Kidding.......

By leaving a comment about your FAVORITE Current Close to My Heart Stamp Set

You will be eligible to win a 

There will be no DOLLAR TREE items in the Bag I PROMISE!!

It will be quality crafty items that I myself would love to have!

Easy peasy entry just leave that comment!

Feeling a bit SCREW-ed

So I have contemplated writing this for a while now.. I just need to get it off of my chest..Because the picture above depicts how I feel about this situation...  A WELL KNOWN Blogger/Crafter was selling some of their supplies as they were moving.. Said person stated each box would have a retail value of $250 and were sold for $110.00 (includes shipping)  now that is ALOT of money to part with at one time for any person.. I gave in and purchased one of these random Grab Bag boxes GUARANTEED to have a value of $250 (this was in August).. The box arrived and it DID not have $250 value in it.. I photographed the box, emailed the seller of the box said person apologized stated someone else had packed the box and they would give me $75 credit to their store.. After numerous emails, checking on the credit I finally was able to get a response from the seller and seller stated send in your order.. Well I sent my order in several times it is NOW December and I frequently every couple of weeks email seller about the store credit which seller has just stated never given a code for or anything, emailed an order on 2 different occasions never received a response back from seller.

Now the thing is if and when I publish said sellers name I KNOW there will be backlash on me because of this persons standing in the Crafting Community, HOWEVER I HAVE ALL of the EMAILS I sent and all of the Correspondence the seller sent to me as well.. Nothing has been resolved and of course too much time has passed to issue a paypal complaint, which I should have done for the amount of store credit that was offered and then I would be done with this.. But alas, here I am, yes I received product not to the value of what was stated...

The original email sent, and I still have the contents of the box that I received untouched...  I have left sellers name out on purpose... (I was mistaken it should have been $250 in product value)

Im a bit disappointed in your grab bag box it arrived quickly I highly doubt though the contents of said box average out to 200-300$ worth of quality of product … only 4 of the stamps were not $1.00 bin stamps..
2 small paper punches 3 dies 3 stamping up pads (used) distress ink a roll of trim 2 small maya road packages (one of alphas one of flowers) and some tim holtz twine a roll of prima ribbon does not in my opinion
make a $200-300 Grab bag box.. i purchased from you because of your standing and popularity in the crafting community.. a little disappointed that is all

Sellers Response (again names removed)

 Omg, I just chatted with me xxxx and she filled that one! I'm going to give you a $75 credit at my online store. Would that be ok? I'm so sorry about that and I don't think she filled it like I did. xxx finished them that next morning because my train left early, I'm so so so sorry about this

screen shots of emails below... Name of Seller has been smudged out and Seller input over it..

• Initial Contact in August, seller responded immediately... August 12th...
• August 31st Questioned Store Credit
• September 7th emailed seller again re: store credit
• September 30th Seller Answered Question
• October 30th - sent order to seller
• November 7th - sent order to seller as no response from first order and now items were no longer available at seller store
• December 6th emailed regarding no contact 
• Here it is December 13th no parcel from orders sent from sellers store, no email response from seller...

Throw in the TOWEL??