Super Quick Take to the Sky Birthday Card

Recently, I needed a birthday card, fast, for a little fellow turning two.  I grabbed a pack of Stampin' Up! notecards and envelopes that I got, which measure 3 1/2“ x 5“, and come with envelopes to fit.  From my Take to the Sky DSP pack, I used one of the 3 x 4 cards and then added a strip of coordinating DSP to make the rectangle front. 

My new Labeled with Love stamp set and die bundle was the perfect sentiment and accents for this card.  (The presents are easily fussy cut.)  I did use Close To My Heart's Sapphire and Paprika inks, which are very similar to SU!'s Night of Navy and Copper Clay.

Creating meaningful cards doesn't have to be complicated!

The Monument to the Discoveries and Jéronimos Monastery Layout

For this layout, I continued to add Stampin' Up!'s Take to the Sky paper to the retired Close To My Heart Let's Go Anywhere suite.  I also used CTMH's two-tone cardstock with white core for the technique.

Again, I was able to add more photos with the addition of a pocket page between the two main pages.

Do you like how I highlighted Portugal on the map with the arrows?  A subtle but fun addition to the layout/story!

{Layout 31/52}

Malaga Cathedral Layout

This two-page layout because a four-page layout with the addition of pocket pages 12"x12" Memory Protectors Design 3, which allowed me to add journaling and 13 more photos.

The base pages use Peach cardstock and again the recently retired Are We There Yet? collection.

I love how the triangle Thin Cuts from the scrapbooking stamp set are used as embellished without the corresponding stamp from the stamp set.

Be sure to look at the shapes of your Thin Cuts to see if they can be used in additional ways!

Over Malaga

One of the many perks of being a CTMH Maker is the opportunity to receive products early with project instructions (and Facebook Live events to make them with CTMH Corp).  This layout came from the Jan.-Mar. Idea Book catalog launch event featuring the recently retired Are You There Yet? collection.  I can rarely participate live, but they are recorded (which is still lots of fun). 

Because I had so many photos, I decided to add five more 4"x6" pictures using a Pocket Plus Memory Protector (Design 1).  Here is the left page with the additional Pocket Plus Memory Protector.  (You can find all our options for pocket scrapbooking HERE.). I love that they really don't add any more "bulk" to your books.  Also note how I added a skinny journaling strip directly to one of my photos to tell a little more about that particular one.

Here's the back of the Pocket Plus Memory Protector and the right page.  I did add an Are We There Yet? Picture My Life 4"x6" journaling/artwork card.

Consider adding more photos with Pocket Plus pages!

Let's Go: Sevilla Cathedral Layout Left Page (Post 2 of 3)

 Here is the left page in detail:

Fortunately, I had a pack of 4 x 4 flip-flaps, so I was able to add even more photos in the original layout called for.

And a few more…

The striped paper gave me perfect journaling lines to use! 

Come back tomorrow for the right and final page post.  How many photos do you think I was able to add?

Let's Go: Sevilla Cathedral Layout Preview (Post 1 of 3)

This layout is my absolute favorite so far from the February album retreat!  There is so much to share that I’m going to spread it out over three posts. Can you guess how many photos I was able to squeeze onto this layout?  Be sure to count carefully!  Leave your guesses in the comments!

The color scheme starts with a base of Charcoal cardstock (light side).  Each of the large squares measures 5".  You can see two light Peach, two light Honey Butter, two light Seabrook, and two Glacier (on the true/dark side), plus a pop of Papaya cardstock.  

The embellishments were from the February album retreat stamp set, some exclusive white acrylic shapes, and the lovely rainbow acrylic hearts collection.

So, what's your guess for how many photos are on this layout?

Seville’s Alcazar Layout

Here is another beautiful layout from the February album retreat.

I probably would not have chosen this beautiful color scheme of Nectarine, Sundance, Papaya, and Melon, but it’s quite lovely!  Here's a close up of the left page.  Instead of using the Irresistible Alphabet Stickers for my titles, I used a favorite (retired) alphabet stamp set.

Because I had so many photos, I added a Memory Protector (Design 2) page in the middle.

And the right page:

And finally, a close-up of the right page.  (I decided not to make the pockets interactive.)  Instead of using four 4"x3" photos, I used two 4"x6".

This design was so much to make and would be really easy to recreate, with or without the pockets.

Barcelona: La Sagrada Familia

Touring the wonderfully unique and beautiful cathedral was a highlight of our visit to Barcelona. I’m so glad that we scheduled a tour of this unusual house of worship.

I'm really glad I was able to afford to purchase/attend the recent CTMH (virtual) Album Retreat with a travel theme.  I'm finally able to make time to start making my layouts, and this trip is perfect for the pages!

On the left page, I added a 4"x6 flip flap to have a total of four pictures on the page.

In addition to the seven 3"x3" photos you see on the right page, the center piece is actually a mini album, so there are three more photos there!

I didn't show them in these photos, but I used a Design 5 Memory Protector to add even more of my photos of this beautiful, sacred space.

If you are loving the "Are We There Yet?" collection as much as me, be sure to get yours ASAP!

Title Page Challenge

As I am working on getting myself organized this year, I've been inspired to create more (which is a great thing) and am working on better systems to manage my creations (still a work in progress).  I have several albums started that lack title pages, so the current Lasting Memories Layout Challenge #633, to create a title page, was just the inspiration I needed.

I pulled two favorite family photos from 2021 off my bulletin board by my craft desk.  These (retired) Close To My Heart "Lovely" Picture My Life cards matched really well, so I played around with the design and mounted everything on (retired) Blue Bell cardstock.  I added Blue Bell shimmer trim and glitter gems, plus stamped the year with my (retired) Daisy alphabet.

It feels really good to get (somewhat) organized and to create a layout that immediately went into an album!  If you're also a scrapbooker, then I know you can appreciate my sense of accomplishment right now.  

As always, thanks for letting me share with you!

National Scrapbooking Day: Good Vibes

Don't miss out on the awesome Good Vibes National Scrapbooking Day, available while supplies last!

I used my kit to create the layouts pretty much as the guide directed.

This kit paired perfectly with our recent spring break beach trip photos.  Grab yours before it's gone HERE!

H2H Challenges: Anything Goes

Heart 2 Heart Challenges is kicking off the month of April with an "anything goes" challenge!  I decided to share a layout that I made with our Craft with Heart scrapbooking subscription program.  (We offer both cardmaking and scrapbooking subscriptions; learn more HERE.)

In addition to the beautiful layout that you can make with the subscription, I added in a pocket page and additional coordinating cardstock to be able to showcase all of our photos of our visit to Bryce Canyon National Park last summer.  I love how well our products work together!

You can see how I added my stamps and cardstock to stretch this kit a little further!

Be sure to visit the Heart2Heart Challenge blog and join us with "anything goes" in April!

As You Grow Wyoming Layouts

One of my current big projects is to continue scrapbooking our travel photos from our trip out west this summer (plus two other big trips from years past...).  I really liked how well the As You Grow collection paired with photos from our time in Wyoming at Jackson Hole and Yellowstone National Park.

On the left page, I used an old gold metal clip to attach the bulletin from the church service we attended.  I am kicking myself for not getting a picture of my mom and me to mimic the one my dad took when I was about two years old at the same location!  In our defense, it was really cold that morning!  

The right page for this layout (which is also the left page of the next layout) uses a 12"x12" Memory Protector #4.  I used a few Picture My Life cards plus patterned paper.

I used stickers from the collection also as embellishments and my Daisy Alphabet stamp set to help add to my layout.

As you can see, the As You Grow collection isn't just for babies and toddlers!  I love how it looks with my travel photos too.

2021-22 Core Catalog New Product Blog Hop

September marks the beginning of the Close To My Heart year with a brand new, incredible Core Catalog!  Our blog hop group is featuring our favorites from the Core Catalog, which will be available through August 2022.  Grab your wish list and hop along to see so many amazing new products and ideas. (If you're already hopping, you've probably arrived from amazingly creative Katy's blog.  From here, you'll visit my Heart2Heart Challenges teammate Lauren's blog next.)

I finally decided to use the pretty As You Grow paper pack, sticker sheet, coordinating cardstock, and Picture My Life cards to scrapbook my aunt's memorial service this past weekend.  You'll notice that I haven't journaled (yet) because my thoughts are too private for the world wide web.  (Thanks for understanding.)  I do want to stress how important journaling is to document the stories and people behind your photos.  No one wants to inherit "strangers in a box."

I embellished both pages with NEW Papaya shimmer trim.  Though this collection has a baby motif, I thought that the "love you forever" sums up my love for my aunt and my extended family.  My aunt loved to garden, so the botanical theme is perfect to celebrate her life.

Since it was hard to get 23 of us to look at the camera (especially since two are under four years old), I wanted to use two of the many family photos.  Flip flaps of course came to my rescue, and on the 4x6" Picture My Life journaling card, I will document who exactly was in attendance- and who had to attend virtually unfortunately due to COVID-19.  Also note that the actual service bulletin can be pulled out of the top-loading page protector.  The poem is adhered at the middle and bottom to provide a pocket to pull out the bulletin.

Thanks for letting me show you a little bit of the pretty As You Grow collection.  If you only saw babies, I hope I've inspired you to think again!  Please leave a comment before hopping to Lauren's blog next.  

{Click HERE for all the hop participants and their blogs.}

National Scrapbooking Month Blog Hop

 Close To My Heart just keeps cranking out the hits, I mean, kits!!!  In addition to the five National Scrapbooking Day bundles, they are also offering an amazing National Scrapbooking Month collection, You Are Enough, which is the focus of this blog hop.  You will get so many great ideas!  (If you're already hopping, then you've probably arrived from Maureen's blog.  From here, you'll visit my creative friend Cat's blog next.)

You can get the various pieces of the You Are Enough collection individually or purchase bundles to save.  I ended up getting a bundle because my wish list cost more than the bundle, but the bundle gave me more products for less money!  (SCORE!)  My bundle really came in handy for this hop because due to unforeseen events, I didn't get the crafting time I was expecting this weekend.  (Life, am I right?)  I decided to grab my Picture My Life cards (which I probably wouldn't have purchased outright but were included in my money-saving bundle) and use some of the 3"x4" cards on actual standard-sized greeting cards.

My first card uses a Blue Belle PML 3"x4" card that I layered onto a 4"x6" PML card (cut down to 4"x5.25" to fit my card front).  I added a strip of Sangria cardstock with the pretty rose gold pattern from my You Are Enough bundle and the pretty butterfly You Are Enough sequin.  (They catch the light and change colors in such a pretty way!)

For my second card, I followed the "be you" motto and embraced the crookedness (although if I had realized it was crooked, I would have added a bit more slant to make the crookedness work).

The top of this image shows one side of the 3"x4" PML card, and the bottom left shows the other.  I trimmed off 3/4" off of each end and turned them over to build my card sentiment.  I added strips of Blue Belle shimmer trim (not included in the You Are Enough bundle) AND I die cut the smaller butterfly from the You Are Enough collection from Blue Belle glitter paper (also not included).

For my third card, I cut down the "You Sparkle" card and then layered it onto a Glacier 3"x4" card, also trimmed down.  I adhered it to a piece of the Sangria rose gold cardstock (4"x5.25") and then added another butterfly sequin.  It didn't sparkle as much as I would have liked, so I swiped my clear shimmer brush across the sentiment.  (Unfortunately, my picture doesn't do the sparkle justice.)

Hopefully your takeaway is that you don't have to use products exactly as they are intended (and that you can create something pleasing even when you're short on time).  I'd love for you to leave a comment before you hop on to Cat's blog next.  Thank you!  Remember, YOU ARE ENOUGH!

{Click HERE for all the hop participants and their blogs.}

New Product Blog Hop: July/August 2020

In addition to our core (yearly) idea book (which expires as the end of next month), Close To My Heart is offering a new idea book every two months.  This blog hop features exciting new products from the July/August Idea Book.  (If you're already hopping then you've probably arrived from Lauren's blog.  From here, you'll visit Gina next.)

All of my layouts use the Summer Vibes collection and feature my family's visit to Dortmund, Germany, where our daughter studied abroad last summer.  (Her dad, sister, and I flew over at the end of her summer semester to travel with her through parts of Europe.)  My first layout was inspired by 12x12 Sketch 155.

One of the perks of being a CTMH consultant is that I have access to project guides, which I used to create many of these layouts.

The little Picture My Life card on the right page is actually from the (retired) Stitched Together collection!  While it doesn't match Summer Vibes exactly, they have enough of the same colors to be able to pull in a few of those pieces.

In addition to the cute Summer Vibes stickers, have you noticed the pink and yellow acrylic shapes?  I also used black & white dots to accent my layouts. Don't worry if you don't have beach pictures for this collection!  I think it blended nicely with our travel photos.

TIP:  Use a ruler to trace the diagonal to cut the squares in half for this layout.

Use Page Protector Plus pages to add more photos to your layout.

Another Stitched Together PML card to accent this Summer Vibes layout (sketch from Make It From Your Heart, Vol. 3).

I had to use the red checkerboard pattern for my food layout!

Thanks for letting me share part of our trip with you and the NEW Summer Vibes collection!  I will be showcasing cards from this collection soon, so please come back.  Please leave a comment before hopping on over to Gina's blog.  Thank you!

{Click HERE for all the hop participants and their blogs.}