HELLO LOVELY!

Have you ever had the blahhhhhs and been unmotivated to do anything?  Well, that's where I have been lately.  But, the Blue Bonnets have bloomed and they have me in a new mood for Spring!  With that said, I have decided to get back into my Close To My Heart business with a lot of spring in my step (get the pun?).  

I'm really pumped about the summer products coming up in May. You will love them. But in the mean time don't miss out on this month's Constant Campaign. It is focused on quick easy layouts that can be completed in a few minutes. They are called Cut Above Kits and they are on 50% off this month. So, if you are new to scrapbooking or just to busy to invest too much time, go here to see them.

Also, to help me get restarted, if you book and hold a qualifying party with me during the month of April, I will reward you with a free gift valued at $6.95, in addition to the already great hostess rewards you will earn! Hurry, available dates are filling up fast!

September is National Stamping Month - Let the Stamping Begin!

Wow does Close To My Heart have a great special this month for National Stamping Month.  Check it out:

In a time that there is so much hate in this world, Close To My Heart wanted to encourage the consultants and customers to spread a little kindness around the world.  I love this idea.  You may think I'm one of those hippie baby boomers but I think that if we all just treated everyone with love and respect, so much crazy stuff just wouldn't exist.  All you need is love!  And maybe by sharing these mini cards with a police officer, or a student that seems down, or your waitress that is gruff, you will start a positive change reaction.  Like that?  Instead of chain reaction, let's start our own change reaction!  I challenge you all to go to my website and order this great kit that will allow you to create 24 mini cards.  Once you get it, see how fast they come together.  Then, for part 3 of the challenge, start sharing them  to spread some kindness.  Then, come back here and tell me how you used the cards.  I will also be doing this in September.  Keep your eyes open on social media for #createkindness to see other people's stories.

Picture My Life Fun!

Time for a Technique Blog Hop

This month we were challenged to use a Picture My Life (PML) card in an original creation. If you are coming from Kirsten Jade's blog, you are in the right spot.

I needed to make a birthday card so I reviewed my stash of PML cards and chose from the Gold Watercolor dotted card that I painted with my Watercolor Paints.  I also used some scraps from the Magical Paper Packet.  I finished the card with the Amusement Park and Kaleidoscope Cardmaking Workshop Acrylix Stamp Sets and watercolored them in with a very fine tipped paintbrush.  

Notice how the gold accents resist the watercolors?  Also, this was a 4x6 PML card but each pack includes some in the 3x4 size as well.  Even if you don't partake in pocket style scrapbooking, you will find so many other uses for these PML cards.  Hop on over to Helen Gullett's blog to continue to find more ideas.

CRICUT ARTFULLY SENT CARTRIDGE RETIRING 7/31/16

Today I want to let you know that Close To My Heart will be retiring 3 of their Cricut Cartridge Bundles: Artfully Sent, Art Philosophy, and Artiste.  So, if you have been waiting to order one or all of these cartridges, now is the time before they are GONE, that's right, GONE!

With over 700 images available on each cartridge, the options are limitless.  I was in need of a birthday card so I created the following card using the Artfully Sent Cartridge, Calypso Paper Pack, and some flowers from my stash.

Can you say ADORBS!

The other thing this particular cartridge will make are a variety of pocket style cards to add the extra flair to your pocket pages.

I used the cartridge to create the pocket card "Oh Happy Day" and the words "You Rock" in this layout using the Florence Paper Packet (available through August 30th, 2016).  

If you want to order these products before they are gone, head on over to my webpage.  Keep your eyes open for other soon to be retiring items.

CALYPSO SCRAPBOOKING KIT

I recently hosted my first crafting retreat weekend that was themed Pau Hana Retreat.  Pau Hana means "finished works" and yes some of the ladies did finish some of their unfinished projects while the rest of us did a bit more celebrating that our work was finished for the summer (we work for schools).  Anyway, with that theme, how could I not use the Calypso Scrapbooking Kit to create some original artwork.  I thought it would be great to create a mini scrapbook to put all the pictures we took throughout the weekend.  Here's what I created:

Isn't that just too cute?  If you order the Calypso Scrapbooking Kit Workshops Your Way on my webpage by July 31st, I will email you the directions to create this cute mini scrapbook.

Here are the products I used to create this mini album:

• Calypso Scrapbooking Kit Workshops Your Way   G1109*   
• Cricut Artiste Cartridge Z3170 #
• Cricut Artistry Cartridge Z3167
• Cricut Art Philosophy Cartridge Z3171 #
• Hawaiian Hibiscus Acrylix Stamp Set B1527*
• Watercolor Paints Z3132
• Watercolor Paintbrush Set Z3188
• 3-D Foam Tape Z1151
• One in a Melon Acrylix Stamp Set C1650*
• Scrapbook Queen Acrylix Stamp Set C1646*
• Tickled Pink Acrylix Stamp Set C1651*
• Tickled Pink Thin Cuts Z3228*
• Twine of your choice
• Black Momento Ink Z899
• Honey, Pear, Cotton Candy, and Pixie Ink

#These items are retiring July 31st and are available while supplies last.

*These items are retiring August 31st and are available while supplies last.

JULY SPECIAL

DO YOU LOVE PAPER CRAFTING, SCRAPBOOKING, OR CARD MAKING?

I sure do and I tell you what, I love being a Close To My Heart Consultant because I am able to supply my crafting needs with top of the line products by just holding a couple of crops and classes each month.  If you have been looking for the perfect at home business, doing what you LOVE, this is the month to sign up to be a Close To My Heart Consultant because they are offering a SPECIAL promotion that is good through July 31st.  Want to know what it is?  

You will also get $50 in Select Product Credit to choose products to help you customize your business.  This is the everyday Consultant kit that will be available for some time. 

NOW, for the added bonus for THIS MONTH ONLY, you also get your choice of a FREE Fundamentals paper packet* AND its coordinating Complements.  These brand new products won't be released to the public until August, so joining today is your chance to get them first!  Here's a picture of those sets:

You know you can't pass up this deal....just go HERE to order your Consultant Kit today!

 * Choose from Whimsy, Adventure, and Enchantment Fundamentals. No tax is charged for free items. Standard New Consultant Kit shipping rates will apply. No additional shipping/handling will be charged for this promotion

CTMH Paper Blog Hop - Magical

This month's highlighted paper pack for Close To My Heart is the Magical Product Line, and it sure is Magical.  It will work great for making vacation themed scrapbook pages, especially from certain amusement parks.   This post is a part of a team blog hop. So, if you are coming from Melissa Robinson's blog, you are in the right place.  Here is my creation using the Magical Paper Packet, X7209B.  Have I said I love the versatility?

I decided to create a birthday card, you can never have too many birthday cards:

If you want to recreate this card, here's a list of the products I used:

• Magical Paper Packet X7209B
• Happy, Happy, Birthday Occasions Stamp M1142
• Silver Shimmer Trim Z1799
• Thin 3-D Foam Tape Z2060
• Silver Metallic Marker Z1768
• ShinHan Markers: Marigold Z2457, Marine Blue Z2458, and Carmine Z2448
• Doodled Designs Flair Stamp A1170 (I did not use this stamp in the end)

Just go HERE to shop on my website.


Now to continue seeing some great examples using this Magical Paper Pack, go over to Katy Taylor's  blog, it's sure to be darling!

CTMH Technique Blog Hop - Color Your World

If you are coming from Wendy Kessler's Blog  you are in the right place.

This month our featured technique is coloring.  The idea was to use markers, watercolor paints, or watercolor pencils. Since I am ready to escape to a beach, I was inspired to bring a little beach fun to me but using the Beach Life Stamp Set that is in the Seasonal Expressions 2 catalog.   

First I used our medium round waterbrush along with the desert sand watercolor pencil to paint a background.  Once that was dry, I then stamped the sand castle on top of it using the Desert Sand Stamp Pad.  By using the water based ink as the last step, it does not fade or run.  I stamped the bucket using the Momento Black ink and then colored it using our versa mark markers.  The card was complemented using the Calypso Compliments.  Now I'm ready to hit the sand!

Now hop on over to Kirsten Jade's blog to continue seeing all the fun coloring techniques!

If you want to order this cute stamp set, please hop on over to webpage and get all your summer, beachy, vacationy stamps, papers, and compliments!

CTMH Paper Blog Hop - Calypso

Welcome,

Today my post is a blog hop for our team using our Calypso product line.  If you came from Tonya Whitehurst's you are in the right place.

I wanted to make a party favor using the Calypso paper pack and the Tickled Pink stamp set.  Have I told you how in love I am with the flamingos and the color palette of this line?  Here I used the pint size container that is now retired and made a little bucket to hold party favors.  I also used our Cricut Artistry to make a 3 dimensional pineapple to top it off.

I am the last of the blog hoppers but if you didn't start at the beginning, go to Melissa Robinson's blog to see the rest.

Pau Hana Day Crops in Mansfield!

Pau Hana means "finished work". I thought that could be an appropriate name for a retreat, whether it is because we are celebrating with being off work for the summer or celebrating that we WILL get lot's of UFO's finished this weekend, come join me for a guarenteed fun crop.  Although the overnight retreat spots are filled, there is still an opportunity to come spend the days with us to crop, play, and relax.  The days available are from June 23 - 27.  You can come for one or for all 5 days.  If you sign up and prepay for all 5 days, you will get a $15 discount, that's just $75 for 5 days of cropping!  Just go over to my events page on Sassy's Creations Facebook page to sign up and see all the details.  Space is limited so don't wait too long to sign up!

CTMH Technique Blog Hop - Let’s Interact

If you are coming from Wendy Kessler's Blog you are in the right place.

What a fun challenge this Blog Hop is this month. I have made explosion cards before but I needed a special card for a special kiddo from school so I made this slider type of card.  Let me explain.  We have a great kid that is at the school I work at and I always have a big cup from Lambert's Cafe with me.  He asked me one day what the guy on it was throwing.  I told him it was rolls, that there is this restaurant in Missouri that is the Home of Throwed Rolls.  They will actually throw rolls from across the restaurant to you.  He became fascinated with this.  So, one day, my cousin had posted some videos of her kids catching rolls there.  I showed my friend Q and he thought they needed to change the 4th grade field trip from the Texas Capital to Lambert's Cafe.  So, since he will be leaving Erma Nash this year, I wanted to get him his own cup to hopefully remember me by because I will most definitely remember my little Gamer Buddy!  He's going to be missed by all of us!  I used some scraps from the Urban Paper Pack and the new stamp set "Smarty Pants Occasions" along with my watercolor pencils and the new Waterbrush Medium Point for blending.

I am so lucky to work in an elementary school and get to have millions of smiles from great kids like Q.  I hope you all are as blessed to be touched by the innocence of children because there is nothing as wonderful!

Now hop on over to Kirsten Jade's Blog to continue the hop!

#AllTheAlbums

Some albums are Ruby and others Lagoon; they’re all on sale just for you! 

Now through the end of May*, Close To My Heart’s amazing My Legacy™ albums are on sale for 25% off through our #AlltheAlbums special! That is a savings of over $8.50 per album! Choose from a gorgeous variety of colors and patterns in both post-bound and D-ring styles. But this offer is only available while supplies last, so place your order early to make sure you get the styles and colors you love. They’re built to last and going fast—order yours today! 

*Offer valid while supplies last. Sale ends May 31, 2016 (11:59 pm MDT). Shipping/handling is calculated based on the full retail price of the discounted items.

Mistakes are Opportunities for Embellishments!

First off today, I want to give a shout out to Sara.  Sara hosted a great class for her friends last night and we all went away with learning something new.  And, just in case Tara is checking up on me, I am updating this blog today just for her.

Last night we had some first time stampers.  They learned the hard way not to rock your stamp block and to double check for the ink residue before you stamp.  Miranda ended up with a black line going across the middle of her card.  But, being the creative force that she is, she came up with a great solution that gave the card a whole different vibe.  I love it and I'm going to scraplift it, (she gave me her permission).

See the heartbeat between the two?  And, there was ink smudged that we covered up with beautiful glitter hearts from our Fundamental Assortsment pack.  Everything is better with bling!

If you would like to host a class for you and some of your friends, please contact me.  My May is full and I only have 2 dates left in June so you better grab those dates quick!  the summer will be gone before we know it!

National Scrapbook Month Makes for Happy Times!

Guess what?  May is National Scrapbook Month.  I don't know about you but with me that means more time with my scrappin sisters and lots of opportunities to spend money on scrapping supplies.  My husband hates May for that reason - LOL!  Well, I want to let you all know about a special crop I have planned for May 22 from 12 - 5pm.  You can go here to see all the details of the crop.

Oh and do you see the pretty picture above?  I used a special paper pack to create those cards.  Here's a couple of close ups:

Close To My Heart has released the Happy Times Paper Pack and a Happy Times Stamp set that will only be available in the month of May while supplies last.  Speaking from experience, these paper packs and stamp sets go very fast so hurry up and either secure your space now for the crop or order yours starting May 1st on my website.

How to follow our Cutting Guides - Regatta Workshop Your Way

Do you feel like you have a hard time cutting your paper correctly to assemble the layouts in a CTMH kit?  Well, Close To My Heart has developed a video series that is super helpful in taking you through the steps of one of our Workshops Your Way.  Here is the first video for the Regatta Workshop Your Way - Cutting Guide.

There are three more videos that show you how to assemble the layouts, Picture My Life layouts, and cards.  Just keep watching on YouTube.  If you are interested in ordering this Regatta Workshop Your Way, you better hurry on over here because it will only be available until April 30th.

SOON TO BE GONE!!!!!

Hurry before it's too late.  Products in the Seasonal Expressions 1 catalog are retiring on April 30th.  Go HERE to shop for the items.  Let me remind you of some of the cute Workshops Your Way.

We have the Charlotte, Penelope, and the Regatta Paper Packs.

And don't forget there are some really cute stamp sets that will be going bye bye as well so don't wait, order now.  Is there just too much stuff that you want but the budget is tight?  Host a Gathering with me before the end of the month and earn some goodies for free!! Just click LET'S PARTY

Crop Club Forming Now!

What is a Crop Club you ask?  

Well, it is a group of 6 - 10 people that love papercrafting and want to earn free products by hanging out with friends and crafting.

I don't have time?

This is a great opportunity to set aside a couple of hours each month for YOU TIME, YOU DESERVE IT!

How does it work?

As a group, you decide on your monthly spending committment, when and for how long we play, and then we rotate the Hostess Rewards among the members.

For Example:

I currently have a club that meets on one Saturday afternoon for four hours per month.  There are 9 members and they have committed to spending $35 each month.  The two months that they have met, the hostess's each earned $100 in free product and 2 half-priced items, averaging $152 in savings.

Great news is that we can meet at my house so noone has to clean or be worried about where to go with 10 people.

If you are interested in joining a club, please comment below with your email address and I will contact you.

Technique Blog Hop - RESISTING CAN BE FUN

If you are coming from Tammy Lubic's Blog you have come to the right place.

The challenge of this technique blog hop was to do the resist technique.  Here's my one page layout that I did of my husband's birthday celebration at TX Roadhouse:

I embossed the words CLICK! SNAP! SMILE! from the April Stamp of the Month Acrylix Stamp Set with White Embossing Powder.  Then, I applied a brushed hombre look over the embossing with our blue Watercolors.  FYI, the stamped camera is also from the April Stamp of the Month set.  Keep reading to see the full stamp set.

Here's the finished page!  I copied the layout from a past issue of our Idea Book.

Here's the April Stamp of the Month:

This stamp set can be yours for just $5, with a purchase of $50.  You know you can't "RESIST", (get the pun?).  You can shop for all the supplies you need to start using this great technique by going HERE

To continue to see other ideas, follow the blog hop by going to Belinda McLane's Blog .

Why I Love Being On This CTMH Team - Blog Hop.

 

 If you are coming from Katy Taylor's blog you are in the right place.  Now let me tell you my top 3 reasons I love being on the Heartfelt Sentiments CTMH team: 

1.  The Relationships 

The lines are blurred as to whether they are friends or customers but I definitely value the friendships more than the business!  My customers are the best friends ever!!!!

Also, the ladies I have met on the Heartfelt Sentiments Team are too much fun!  We live all over but get to come together for training and those have been some crazy times!  We are so in sync that when Melissa and Katy went to take the above selfie, the rest of us photobombed as if it were the natural thing to do!  

2.  My Upline:  Melissa Robinson

I have been in several direct sales companies and have never had an upline like Melissa.  She has been so supportive from the very beginning.  She will do whatever it takes to help me out.  She built my great blog and trained me on how to use it. She provides excellent marketing advise. She encourages my ambitious goals and visions. And above all else, she is a blast!

3.  Close To My Heart Corporate

In all my past direct sales endeavors, the Corporate Office has never been as supportive as Close To My Heart.  They provide mini trainings every quarter that are just a roadtrip away.  They provide simply everything you could need to make this a successful business from a free website, online training, marketing support, product support, creativity support, and annual conventions.  In addition, the home office peeps seem to be all about work hard but play hard too.  They actually played Pie In The Face on PI Day.  

If you have read through this entire post and find that you may be interested in joining our team, April is the right time to join!  The benefits are great.  Just $75 will get you started with this great team.  Talk to your consultant if you want to learn more about the April Recruitment Special.  If you don't have a consultant, I'd be happy to help you out.  You can contact me at cathy.bufano@gmail.com.

Now head on over to Debi's blog to see why she loves CTMH.