Time for Blog Candy Again!

The new card post is below but I'm going to keep this on top all week so that noone will miss out.

Nothing like a little bribery and I have something I want you to do! I have a great offer in my monthly newsletter but you will never hear about it unless you sign up. So....I'm having a drawing for blog candy which will include TWENTY handmade Christmas cards with envelopes! Wouldn't it be nice to have twenty cards already to go? One of you will win and all you have to do is sign up for my newsletter here. I will not share your email address with anyone!

I know some of you are saying, "but Barbra, I'm already signed up for your newsletter, it's not fair that I can't enter the drawing!" Well, guess what, all you have to do if you already are on my newsletter list is to comment under this post that you are and you will be entered in the drawing too! It's easy! Good luck everyone! Winner will be announced next Friday, November 20th.

March Word Puzzle

I have a big weekend ahead of me! Tomorrow I'll be at the Ladies Night Out in Buchanan, Michigan showing off my products and job opportunity, and Saturday and Sunday I'll be at the Close to my Heart booth at Deer Widows Weekend '09 in Birch Run. It will be very exciting to meet so many scrapbookers and stampers and to share all the incredible stamp sets, papers and accessories that Close to my Heart makes. I hope, if you are attending either of these events, that you will stop by and say hello. In the meantime, here's another look for the Everlasting paper using the March Word Puzzle set. Remember that both this paper and the stamp set will be retiring at the end of 2009 so get them now! Click on the "Start Shopping right here" link to the right of this post and take a look at all of our great products. So many stamp sets, so little time.....

Cut your papers and distress with desert sand ink.

8 1/2 by 5 1/2 colonial white cardstock, fold in half
5 1/2 by 4 1/4 cranberry cardstock for card front
2 by 3 1/2 ponderosa pine striped pattern paper
2 1/2 by 4 1/4 floral pattern paper
1/4 by 4 1/4 ponderosa pine striped pattern paper
1 3/4 by 2 3/4 colonial white cardstock
Scrap piece of colonial white cardstock

Use the groove on your trimmer and your dry embossing tool, indent lines on your card front about one inch apart. Don't try and be perfect, you can see here that I added a second line in the center when I measured wrong. Sand to show off the white core cardstock and give you a different look.

This card will stand vertically so attach the floral paper at the bottom, flush with the edge with the opening of the card to the right.

Add striped rectangle flush with the upper left side of the card.

Glue the skinny striped strip of paper one quarter inch up from bottom of card.
Do the embellishment in two parts, first stamp the tulips in ponderosa pine on the 2 3/4 by 1 3/4 colonial white rectangle.

Next stamp the flower part of the tulips on your scrap paper in cranberry ink.

Cut out the tulip flowers and glue them over the stamped ponderosa pine image.

Glue that to the left hand side of your card, about 1/4 inch from the left, and top of card. Add four brads on the upper right hand side.

Using matching red ribbon, glue or use Tombow to attach to the middle of the floral piece, glue edges around back of card.

In another piece of ribbon, tie a knot, trim and glue to side of attached ribbon.

Use liquid glass on the tulip image, drawing the liquid glass on like you were using a pen.

Stamp "happy spring" in a couple of the dry embossed "blocks" you made. Let the liquid glass dry. It will make your tulips and your card shine!

All My Heart

All My Heart is a great name for a stamp set, isn't it? This particular set is full of hearts too. Please click on the link to see how many for yourself, I didn't get a photo of my own set this time. The same paper I've been using all week for Christmas cards works beautifully for Valentine's cards too. Everlasting paper is going to be missed when it retires at the end of December, you might want to try and stock up before that happens.

Cut it as follows:

8 1/2 by 5 1/2 colonial white cardstock, folded in half
5 1/2 by 4 1/4 cranberry cardstock for card front
1/2 by 5 1/2 ponderosa pine striped pattern paper
1 by 5 1/2 floral pattern paper
1 1/2 by 1 1/2 colonial white cardstock
1 3/4 by 1 3/4 ponderosa pine striped pattern paper

Distress if you like.

My photo for this part didn't turn out well, sorry. Using your paper trimmer's groove and a dry embossing tool to make indented lines in your card. I went in a 1/4 inch on each side then made four lines one quarter inch apart.

Attach the skinny striped paper under the second embossed line, about 1/2 inch down from top fold of the card. Add floral strip 1 inch from the bottom of card and the striped square one half inch from left and bottom, overlapping the floral paper.

Stamp one of the hearts on the colonial white square, use cranberry ink. Glue that heart to the striped square.

Stamp "Be Mine" directly onto the card front, avoiding the embossed lines (so your stamped image is nice and clear and not "bumpy). Use ponderosa pine ink.

One of the benefits of those embossed lines is that they are great guides to keep everything straight. Add 8 green brads to the four corners of your card sticking them right in the little mini-squares the dry embossed lines made. Now, that card only took you about 15 minutes at the most, right? Very little time but the receiver will be overjoyed!

In Case You Missed It - Stampaganza!!

Just want to remind everyone that Stampaganza is still going on. Buy two stamp sets and get one for free (of equal or lesser value). This is your chance to stock up on all those new stamps you've been dying for. I've been showcasing a new stamp set each day and will continue to do so. Find the ones you love and click on the Start Shopping button to the right to get yours!!

Art and Soul - The Sparkle of the Season

Want to learn how to use watercolor pencils with bamboo ink? Our new Art and Soul "tv show" is up on my Close to my Heart website. It's a video tutorial and it's free plus they always offer up some discounts so check it out here!

Childhood Portrait

Today I'm going to demonstrate a really special stamp set. When I saw the examples in our Close to my Heart catalog showing off this set, Childhood Portrait I was just in awe at how beautiful the little silhouettes are. I hope you'll like them too.

For this card you need Everlasting paper cut like this:

8 1/2 by 5 1/2 colonial white cardstock, scored and folded in half.
5 1/2 by 4 1/4 cranberry cardstock
1/2 by 5 1/2 ponderosa pine strip of pattern paper
5 by 1 1/2 floral pattern paper
2 by 1 1/2 colonial white cardstock
2 1/4 by 1 3/4 ponderosa pine striped pattern paper
1 1/4 inch colonial white cardstock circle (you should punch after stamping)

Distress all if desired.

I used a Cuttlebug this time to make my card embossed but you can make your own embossed paper without purchasing one of these, just see previous tutorials for how.

Here's this particular embossed look. I actually bought another embossing template and have misplaced it. I need to get out and get some more! This time I decided to use the back side of the embossed piece so the embossing is recessed.

Glue the ponderosa pine skinny strip down the left of the card near the fold, about a 1/4 inch away.

Next to the striped piece, attach the floral strip, just a touch away to let some red show through, center it between top and bottom of the card.

Stamp the little yo yo boy on your colonial white cardstock.

Attach that to the striped mat and thento the card about a quarter inch from the right hand side, about an inch from the top of the card.

On the circle you can stamp "Thinking of you," on some colonial white paper.

Punch it out with your circle punch, it's a little easier to do it in this order.

Attach to the bottom left corner of the boy stamped piece.

Add a window charm on top of the circle. Thread three green buttons with waxy flax and attach with glue dots to the bottom right of the card as shown. Now isn't this sweet?

My Newsletter

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