Close To My Heart product(s) – Taniesa Vlasak

The 30 day coloring challenge (5th edition!)

Published on August 3, 2016 by TaniesaLeave a comment

Hi Friends!

As a lot of you probably know this past 30 days has been The Daily Marker’s 30 day coloring challenge. It was the 5th 30 day coloring challenge that has been hosted by its creator, Kathy, artist and owner of TheDailyMarker.com. The point of this challenge is to get everyone coloring, even if it’s just 5 minutes a day. Coloring can help reduce stress and just exercise your creativity.

Now I have attempted this almost every time and sadly haven’t been able to follow through on the entire 30 days, which is completely okay… Some coloring is better than none right? This time though I was able to manage something nearly every single day of the 30 days and I wanted to pull some of my coloring together in one big post to share. Some projects spanned over a couple of days and some I did in one sitting. I had a lot of fun and even my 10-year-old daughter did some coloring with me too!

I challenged myself to use several different coloring mediums. I really enjoy them all so it is hard to pick a favorite. Here is a peek at my some of my coloring and projects.

I hope you enjoyed my 30 day coloring collection. I can’t wait for the next challenge. Be sure to check out Kathy’s Instagram HERE, for news on the next coloring challenge!

Have a COLORFUL day!

Candy Bar Treat Boxes

Published on November 5, 2015November 5, 2015 by jlopezdesigns1 Comment

Hi friends, Joann here today with you! Thank you so much for stopping by!

Today I am sharing with you something that I have been working on for a craft fair that I will be participating. I shared this project last year in December, a step-by-step on how to make the box treat, but this time around I used my Cricut and a couple of the CTMH Cricut Cartridges to decorate my boxes.

Here are a couple that I’ve made so far…

I used the CTMH Artistry Cartridge to cut out my snowflakes out of some glitter card stock and added some foam dimensional to add a bit of dimension to them.

I took the Treats of Friendship stamp set, also from Close to My Heart, to stamp the cute image on my tag.

The deer and the design behind the deer came from the CTMH Artistry Cartridge and the ornament was cut using the CTMH Artiste Cartridge. For the sentiment on the deer box, I used the CTMH Holiday Tags stamp set to add my sentiment.

I still have a few to finish, but I wanted to share the ones that were done and in case you were interested in the tutorial click HERE to read that post.

Thanks so much for stopping by, I hope you have a fabulous day!

“Happy Birthday” CTMH Build-a-Cake Stamp Set

Published on October 27, 2015October 27, 2015 by jlopezdesigns1 Comment

Hi, Joann here today sharing a birthday card with you using the Close to My Heart “Build-a-Cake” stamp set!

Here it is…

This is a really fun stamp set to have! I started off my stamping my cake image using CTMH Inks in colors Black, Honey and Cotton Candy! I did want to point out that the top layer image of my cake is part of the stamp set (the original image has some flowers, but after I stamped my image I took a blending pen and some of the Cotton Candy ink and filled those flowers in to give me a polka dotted cake layer). I then took a black gel pen to outline my cake and add some small details to my flower on top and simply layered my top panel to some pattern paper.

I completed my card by stamping my sentiment onto some vellum and adhered both my sentiment and some AWESOME TCP Relish Mix to my card. I know in the first picture my top left sequins look a bit purple but it’s actually pink, I think my light was hitting it a bit too much, but you can see the pink in the second photo a lot better.

Well that is all for today, thank you so much for stopping by! Have a fabulous day!

Here is a look at the stamp set I used!

“Grateful for You” CTMH Cricut Artistry Cartridge

Published on October 20, 2015October 20, 2015 by jlopezdesignsLeave a comment

Happy Tuesday, friends! Joann here today sharing a card with you using the Close to My Heart Cricut Artistry Cartridge.

Here is my simple card for today…

This cartridge seriously has some fabulous cut designs! I used the image on page 45 in the handbook to create my card with my Cricut. I started out by placing a 4 x 5 1/4 rectangle on my screen and placed the solid image (pg. 45 ) right in the center. I then hit the slice button to cut the image out, I used some CTMH Cardstock (this exact pattern is the retired one, but you could definitely pick up the new patterns HERE) to use as my top panel. I also cut the coordinating “Grateful For You” image from the same page out of some brown card stock.

I then took my card base and placed my top panel on top and traced my image to it to cut it out with a craft knife, I did this because I wanted to add some acetate to see through the card. So when I was done with that I glued my acetate piece to my card base then layered my top panel and finally glued my “Grateful For You” image right in the center.

I finished my card by gluing some TCP Relish Mix and added some Wink of Stella glitter to my image. Super simple card but I really like the way it turned out! It’s also a great card to make multiples of if you need several because of the simplicity of it.

Well thanks so much for stopping by, have a FABULOUS day!!

“Make It Merry” with Close to My Heart Stamp Set

Published on September 24, 2015September 24, 2015 by jlopezdesignsLeave a comment

Hi, Joann here today sharing two Christmas cards that I made using the Close to My Heart “Make It Merry” stamp set.

Here is my first card…

I used CTMH Artbooking Cricut Cartridge to cut my tag, which coordinates with this stamp set. I took CTMH Pear and Topiary Inks to stamp my image onto my tag (I tried to create an ombre effect, it’s acutally a bit more noticeable in person). I cut a piece of vellum a bit smaller than my colored card stock and then tied some ribbon to my top panel before gluing it down to my card base.

I finished it off by adding a bell to a bow I tied, scattered a few TCP Relish Mix and popped my label on some foam adhesive to add a bit more dimension to my card. That is all for this card!

Now my next card is mimicking a card that I posted on my blog a few days ago. I loved how it turned out, I did make a few changes to make it a little different.

Here it is…

I took some stitched circle dies I have to cut my circles out of some pattern paper. I stamped my sentiment, also from “Make It Merry“, onto some vellum with VersaMark and heat embossed it with some black embossing powder.

I drew some white lines and then glued my circles down, adding some dimension to 2 of them. I scattered some tone on tone TCP Relish Mix to match with the pattern paper. Super easy and simple!

Well that is all for today! Thank you so much for stopping by!

Supplies used

CTMH Artbooking Cricut Cartridge

Close to My Heart “Make It Merry” stamp set

CTMH Pear and Topiary Inks

TCP Relish Mix

VersaMark

Mini Note Card Set

Published on September 17, 2015September 17, 2015 by jlopezdesignsLeave a comment

Hi friends, Joann here today sharing some mini note cards that I created for my son’s teacher using CTMH Treats of Friendship stamp set!

I stamped my images on some watercolor paper and colored them in using some Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers. I stamped my sentiment and layered my top panel to some fun foam for some dimension and stacked that onto some colored card stock.

I finished my cards by adding a bit of glossing accents to my sprinkles…really liked the way they turned out. Well that is all for today, thank you so much for stopping by! Have a wonderful day!

Supplies used

CTMH Treats of Friendship

Zig Clean Color Real Brush markers

Glossy Accents

CTMH Archival Black Ink

Organizing Tip: Cling Stamps & 6×6 Paper Pads!

Published on September 15, 2015September 14, 2015 by TabithaLeave a comment

Good Morning! Today I’d like to share with you one of my favorite organizational products ever! And it just happens to be the My Acrylix Organizers from Close to My Heart!

As a former consultant for 5 years (and my best customer), and having been a loyal customer ever since, I have amassed quite the My Acrylix stamp collection! I absolutely LOVE the quality and versatility of the clear cling stamps–and with the CTMH My Acrylix organizers the stamps are so easy to store and access quickly when I want to sit down and craft. The containers are stackable, have a hinge-top lid with a handle (so you can pack up your favorite sets easily for crops!), and they retail for only $14.95 each. I have added to my container storage as I have added to my stamp collection and it has been well worth the investment to have a cohesive place to keep all my stamps neatly (especially since my craft room is also our family dining room).

Each container stores 15 CTMH stamp sets right in their envelopes!

And if you have collected other brands of cling stamps, you can make them fit to flip through them and store them in the containers as well. I ordered Avery Elle clear stamp envelopes to store my sets where the plastic packaging had ripped and they fit right in!

I have also recently discovered that my hoard of 6×6 paper pads will also fit inside of these handy storage boxes–which opens a whole new world of organizational possibilities! Think about putting together little “kits” with these boxes to make pulling one down and crafting quick and easy without having to dig through your whole stash! For example, you can put your Fall 6×6 pads, stamp sets, and a few embellishments all in one organizer! (Each organizer comes with 2 removable dividers that create 3 sections inside.)

I hope that you learned of a useful product on the market today that will help you get organized and therefore make it easier to access and use more of your stash! I really couldn’t live without these and it’s a system that really works for me!

Happy Crafting!

~Tabitha

Mixed Media PL cards

Published on September 10, 2015September 10, 2015 by carriebryantLeave a comment

Hi Carrie here to share with you today a fun Mixed Media project life card that I created. These are for a card swap that I am in for September over at ProjectLifeCardSwaps.com You can come check out all the Close to my Heart Products right HERE

I love the look of Mixed media Art projects. I do not create a lot of MM on a regular basis due to the mess and time involved in creating such cards. I am really happy with the results of this project and I hope my fellow swappers like them just as much.

I used this beautiful fall paper by Bazzill Basics for this project. I really like this pad of 6×6 paper because it is double sided so you get lots of options.

To create the background on my cards I tore strip of paper from several different patterns, I inked all the edges in Ground Espresso Distress ink and using my Tombow liquid adhesive I glued the pieces, layered on top of each other onto a 4×6″ sheet of Kraft cardstock.

Once all my edges were sealed to the cardstock I cut the 4×6 in half leaving me with 2 – 3×4 layered cards. I then edged the cards with Liquid Leaf paint in Renaissance Gold. I just wanted to add a touch of something special to my cards and this Liquid Leaf was just the ticket.

To created the bird for my card I used a CTMH “Close to My Heart” Hostess exclusive stamp and stamped it onto Kraft cardstock then fussy cut around the image. I fussy cut the wing from a different patterned paper and attached it using a 3D foam square. This added some dimension to my bird.

I added a brass paperclip with hanging date tag to complete my card.

If you ever thought about being a hostess for a CTMH online party you should give it a try. Online parties are the best because you do not have to clean your house or make tasty treats. All you need to do is invite all your crafty friends to shop online via your own hostess link and then sit back and rack in the hostess rewards. My last online party resulted in my earning $80 in FREE stamps, ink or paper and two half price items. Its a fantastic way to build up your CTMH stamp collection with very little effort. If your interested follow this link http://thecraftypickle.ctmh.com/ctmh/what-we-do/be-a-hostess.aspx you will see this at the bottom of the page. “Contact me to schedule your own Gathering today. ” Click it to contact Taniesa to set up your party.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope this post inspires you to get a little messy and try something new and to host your own online CTMH gathering.

I love you more than doughnuts!

Published on August 12, 2015August 12, 2015 by carriebryant2 Comments

Hello, Carrie here with a sneak peek at some New items coming soon to TheCraftyPickle shop this Friday.

Doughnuts are a big thing around our house with the teenagers. I recently purchased this adorable stamp from CTMH ( Close To My Heart ) Its called “Treats of Friendship”

I created this adorable card, embellishing it with one of the new release flairs. Notice the sweet sprinkle washi tape? This too will be available as part of the new release. We are adding a ton of washi and New design flairs to the shop so be sure to pop in on Friday.

Here is a close up look at my card. I added some glossy accents to my frosting on the doughnut for some dimension and shine. And of course a few pickle relish sequins to finish off my card.

See you Friday for the BIG release and Grand Re-Opening of the Pickle Shop.

Here is a little sneak photo for you showing the doughnut flair and a few other yummy new flair too!

Greeting FlairTastic Friday!!!

Published on July 10, 2015July 9, 2015 by kzfoug2 Comments

Happy Friday Everyone!

Every Friday though the summer months we will bring you a new idea/concept using flair. Your not going to want to miss these fun posts! These ideas will come from not only our designers but also super neat flairtastic ideas we find from our customers and other talented papercrafters. Make sure that when you share any of your projects on Instagram or Facebook using flair, that you tag it #FlairTasticFriday. You just might see your own photo featured here on our blog!

This week we will be showing you some awesome greeting cards by our wonderful design team!!! Each Design Team member uses flair differently to make a fun greeting card …and with this flair it is nice and flat to fit on any card!!!

Here is Joann’s super fun FlarTastic Greeting Card I love how she used the vellum as an overlay to soften the background paper …so great!!! And how she used the Something Shiny Slightly Cupped Sequin to follow your eye down the card for interest!!! And bunching the twine behind the Orange Pop of Flair …i am so going to steal that idea!!!

And next we have Carrie

I am sorry but Carrie makes the prettiest cards I know …they are just so lovely anyone would love to receive a card from her!!! Carrie used Watercolor Butterflies Flair for her fun and whimsical Thank You card!!!

Here is mine Kristin

I used this fun and fast birthday stamp, Washi tape pack from Close to my Heart Suprise Single Flair

How sweet is this card by Treasa with this cute big candle right on the front and the Suprise Single Flair

Next …we have Stephanie’s so sweet circle shaker box card with the red white and blue Star Spangled confetti mix

How will you use flair on a greeting card?????

Stop by The Crafty Pickle Etsy Shop if you haven’t been by recently. We will be releasing a few little things between now and our next big release. We will also be having a big TCP Birthday celebration this month with giveaways and a brand new exclusive foil flair coming mid July!

Dont forget to use the hashtag #FlairTasticFriday to play along with us!

See you for more FlairTastic Ideas next Friday!

Till Then….

Happy Crafting!