Take Time to Record Your Thanksgiving Moments

Thanksgiving is over and you’ve made it through the first weekend in December. Now is a good time to get those Thanksgiving moments committed to paper so in the frenzy of the next several weeks you forget the little details like giving your two year old a turkey leg that seems bigger than she is!  The Close to my Heart paper pack like for this occasion is Greatful Heart (X7237B).  If you are not familiar with our paper packs, you get 12 sheets of paper ( two of each double sided sheet) which are the perfect thickness for your paper trimmer or your favorite cutting machine.

Tomorrow is Mojo Motivational Monday. This is where I post your scrapbook sketch challenge of the week and you can win prizes for sending me pictures of your creations I can post here to inspire others. I will create a sketch with lots of photo spots to catch all your Thanksgiving fun!

Leave me a comment below and share your funniest Thanksgiving story, or a tip you’ve found to get your holiday photos scrapped.

 

Are you Ready for the Three F’s?

Are you ready for Thanksgiving? For  most people, this means food, friends and family.  I remember those days fondly. Now that we have relocated to Arizona it’s different, since it is just my husband, myself and my youngest son. Since he doesn’t want to pull his son away from the family activities on his mother’s side of his family. I still haven’t decided if I am cooking or if we will go out and grab something. It will probably be determined by whether my son has plans or not. He is 32 now, but I remember when Thanksgiving morning meant mud football.  He would meet up with a bunch of friends and play at the field closest to the house. It seems there was always mud this time of year. He came home exhilarated and ready to eat lots of turkey.

Here is a sketch for saving those great memories.

Scrapbook Sketch for 7 photosI have left the box sizes off because you can vary them according to what photos you have available and size needed.

The background paper is from the Grateful Heart Paper Pack (X7237B).  I chose this paper because it would go so well with muddy football.

Adjust the boxes as you need them to create your scrapbook layout.  Come back tonight and I will show you what I created with this sketch.

Remember, e-mail or text me (801-597-4896 ) a copy of your finished page so I can share it with everyone. Each submission name is submitted to win the prize of the month.

My Favorite One Hit Wonder, What’s Yours?

What is your favorite one-hit wonder
isolated over white background.

Happy National One Hit Wonder Day!

I was given the challenge to write a post about my favorite one hit wonder. Before I share my favorite with you, I want to explain what exactly what constitutes a one hit wonder for those of you who have never heard of this, especially outside of the United States.

Taken from Wikipedia:

A one-hit wonder is a musical artist who is successful with one hit song, but without a comparable subsequent hit. The term may also be applied to an artist who is remembered for only one hit despite other successes. This list contains artists known primarily for one hit song in the United States, who are described as one-hit wonders by the media. To qualify, an artist had to have – or sing on – just one national Top 40 Hit.

I had a good idea that the song I chose for my wedding in 1979, “You Light up My Life”  by Debby Boone would be on there (#2) since I couldn’t remember anything else the artist did, and a secondary song, “Loving You” by Minnie Riperton,  from our marriage was on there too. The marriage didn’t last either (things that make you go hmm.) I did a google search and found a website that listed the top 100 one-hit wonders (link at the bottom of this article).  As I read the songs my youth flashed before my mind. So many of these songs I knew and sang along with too.

Do you remember the Macarena? Yep #1, and if you are older, like me you might remember a song called “Short People” by Randy Newman which in today’s environment would be very politically incorrect!  Have some fun checking out these and more at http://forgottenhits.com/top_100_one-hit_wonders.

I told you I would share my favorite one-hit wonder with you, it was #42 Harper Valley PTA by Jeannie C Riley.  I guess it shows a dark side somewhere in my mind LOL.

Leave a comment below and tell me what YOUR favorite one-hit wonder is.

 

 

Make Your Holidays Shine

The NEW Close to my Heart Holiday Expressions 2018 is HERE!

While iCTMH Holiday Catalog 2018t may seem early, I love when the new Holiday Expressions comes out! Christmas is certainly my most favorite holiday to decorate and craft for and this catalog is no disappointment. We have five new paper packs with an additional “Seasons Mix In” with complimentary papers to round out all your paper packs. This is the first time I have seen a package like this and they have done a good job putting this paper pack together.

Introducing the Season Mix-Ins

Beautiful papers to mix with all the paper packsIntroducing our new Mix-in papers designed to coordinate with every other paper collection in this idea book, giving you added flexibility and creative freedom in all your crafting projects. Available in a pack of six 12″ x 12″ patterned paper sheets and a custom cardstock pack. To see these beautiful papers just click here.

Alternate Uses for Patterned Papers

I especially like the grey fence paper in the bottom left, perfect for masculine birthday cards and the blue watercolor just above it. I see so many possibilities with these papers, I look forward to sharing them with you in the next several months. I think it is always important to see what else can be created just by thinking a bit outside the box. What I mean is, just because it is a Christmas Paper Pack, it doesn’t mean it can only be used for Christmas. As you can imagine, I have a LOT of patterned paper and I really want to use it.

As a result of having so much paper, I am bringing back Throwback Thursday. I will be creating with older paper packs and some older colors that are no longer available. I am happy to sell these colors if someone is looking for a specific color or falls in love with an older one. I am also going to use some older stamp sets. These will be for sale here on the website as well.

This Holiday Expressions Idea Book also brings us a new medium to Close to my Heart, texture paste. I used this any years ago at a Creating Keepsakes crop I attended with my daughter and it is lots of fun. I look forward to sharing those ideas with you soon.

There is also a new Cricut digital collection for Christmas!

Get Your Own Copy of Holiday Expressions
New Cricut Christmas Cartridge

If you would like your own copy of the Close to my Heart Holiday Expressions 2018 Catalog, drop me a note. I would be happy to send you one. One thing though ~ please include your phone number so I can give you a call a few days after you receive it to help you get your items ordered. Buying and sending catalogs can get costly, but I don’t mind if you are thinking there will be things you would like.  This is also a great way to start your Christmas list. After Thanksgiving I will start making calls to people on your list you would like to give you Close to my Heart products.  Don’t worry, they are usually very happy to hear from me as they are stumped on what you really want for Christmas or Hanukkah.

 

Don’t Limit Yourself to One Color

One stamp but many colorsDon’t you just love this card!  This Sea Glass color of the year is so popular and lends itself well to the winter feeling. In this card the Sea Glass cardstock in layered with Chocolate cardstock and 1/4″ spacing which really makes the image stand out. This stamp set is called Snow Shadows (A1194) and is from the Holiday Expressions Catalog. There are 5 stamps in the set, the trees, the boy, girl dog and dots used as snow here. I think the twine ribbon from the Rustic Home Ribbon Pack finishes the card off nicely. Leave a comment below and tell me what you think!

The Perfect Gift for Mom, Friends and CoWorkers

The perfect gift for any occasion!Whether you need a gift for your mom, your bestie or even your co-workers Close to my Heart has put together the perfect package because you know… it’s the little things that tug at your heart.

This month only, we are offering the Mini-Album Package and it is LESS THAN $20 bucks and you have options too! Whether you’re looking for a meaningful gift idea or a treasured keepsake, these mini albums are fast and easy . You can choose to fill it with pictures, or leave that to your recipient either way they are sure to be a winner.  I told you that this offer came with choices so let me tell you about them!

Blue Jean Mini-Album Bundle comes with Perfect for the Guys in your life!

  • 1 – Instalife™ Blue Jean Album
    1 – pack of #Life™ Enjoy cards (40 cards total)
    1 – pack of #Life™ Black overlays(16 overlays total)
    1 – pack of mini 4″ × 4″ Memory Protectors™ (10 protectors)
    1 – pack of mini 2″ × 2″ Memory Protectors™ (10 protectors)

This would normally cost you $27.75, but since that is over that $20 limit you set for yourself, we have reduced the price  to $18.95 through Dec 31, 2016.

 

Blush Mini Album BundlePerfect For the Girly Girls

1– Instalife™ Blush album
1 – pack of #Life™ Hello Gorgeous cards (40 cards total)
1 – pack of #Life™ gold overlays(16 overlays total)
1 – pack of mini 4″ × 4″ Memory Protectors™ (10 protectors)
1 – pack of mini  2″ × 2″ Memory Protectors™ (10 protectors)

 

Available in 3 sizesAdventure Mini Album Bundle (6″ × 8″ Memory Protectors™)

  • 1 – Everyday Life™ stripes mini album
  • 1 – pack of My Crush® Adventure Calls 3-ring hole-punched decorative pages (30 total)
  • 1 – pack of 6″ × 8″ mini Memory Protectors™ (10 total)

Adventure Mini Album Bundle (4″ × 6″ Memory Protectors™)

  • 1 – Everyday Life™ stripes mini album
  • 1 – pack of My Crush® Adventure Calls 3-ring hole-punched decorative pages (30 total)
  • 1 – pack of 4″ × 6″ mini Memory Protectors™ (10 total)

Adventure Mini Album Bundle (3″ × 4″ Memory Protectors™) works in all size mini-albums

  • 1 – Everyday Life™ stripes mini album
  • 1 – pack of My Crush® Adventure Calls 3-ring hole-punched decorative pages (30 total)
  • 1 – pack of 3″ × 4″ mini Memory Protectors™ (10 total)

****This size is perfect to put all the kids school pictures for grandma****

And to top off this great deal, Close to my Heart has found the perfect place to get your perfectly sized photos. Come back tomorrow and read all about Persnickety Prints.

 

 

The Most Important Scrapbook Tool

Paper Trimmer made by FiskersIf I can share with you one tip above all others, invest in a good paper trimmer! I am talking about a full 12 x 12 minimum size. Not something that only trims papers, or a paper cutter, but a normal paper trimmer like Fiskers SureCut Paper Trimmer (Z1783). While it seems like a hefty price at 34.95, you can take a craft store coupon and get one for less. You will find this tool indispensable. Did you know you can also use it to score your cardstock?
There are two ways to accomplish this, purchase the scoring blade (Z1785) or remove the blade and place your cardstock in as you would if you were cutting, then using your bone folder or a dry embossing tip, gently run down the cut line. This is a great tip when you want to score the entire 12 x 12 piece of cardstock.

The Versatility of City Sidewalks

The images can be used all year long!City Sidewalks can be a very versatile, Here is a card inspired by a snow globe. Using Cricut Design Space basic shapes to cut the snow globe (circle) and base (triangle). The remaining images are from City Sidewalks. To make the card more dimensional without getting too thick to mail, I used the thin 3D foam tape.

The City Sidewalks cartridge has lots of great Christmas images that mix tradition with whimsy. Over the next few days I’ll be sharing a few more projects using the City Sidewalks Paper Pack and Cricut Digital cartridge on my Facebook Page.  Here’s a look at everything you get on this “virtual” cartridge:

Here are the images on the City Sidewalks Digital Cartridge

Many of these images can really be used all year long,Also, keep in mind that this “cartridge” is only available through December 31 and you can buy yours here.

**Note that the City Sidewalks is a virtual cartridge and must be downloaded. This means it will only work machines that use Design Space (all variations of the Explore).

Free Basic Scrapbooking Class

Learn how to ScrapbookHave you wanted to learn to scrapbook but wished you could give it a try before buying a bunch of stuff? Beginning November 29th I will be offering a Basic Scrapbooking Class here at the Creatively Carol Craftroom.  We will go over basic scrapbooking tools and techniques and everyone will make a scrapbook page.   The craft room will seat 12 at a time, so call to reserve your spot today.  I will be hosting the basic class once a month to accomodate anyone that would like to learn the art of scrapbooking. We will also talk about the different ways to scrapbook, including pocket scrapbooking ie: Picture my Life (similar to Project Life), mini-albums and more.

Motivational Monday – A Sketch with Flowers – Follow Up

Good Afternoon,

So I am curious, how many of you did your work from the sketch and how many were waiting to see what I did with the sketch?  As I explained earlier today, this was done from a scrapbooking challenge I was given to create a page using flowers. I was not contented to just put a flower on the page and call it good so I used the flowers to encircle my Using flowers on a scrapbook pagedaughter’s senior class portrait.  As you can see, I used the two extra flowers at the bottom right to give the photo a sense of grounding instead of floating on the page. I think it also draws your eye from the top left where I put the flower on the strip of paper and guides it to the bottom right where the two “anchor flowers” are located.

While I did this page many years ago I see now I broke a cardinal rule in scrapbooking. I know I say ” there are no rules in scrapbooking” but can you tell me what is missing in this layout?

If you guessed  a title and journaling then you are absolutely right. This would be one of the pages that someone 100 years from now would say “this person looks familiar, but who is it”. This child is actually a great example of how two people can look so much alike – but I will save that for another day.

Having said that, I will have to go pack and add a title and journaling to the page.  Am I worried that adding these important scrapbook elements will distroy the look of the page…not really.  I will try to find this paricular layout and add those elements and share them with you on my Facebook Page. If you have not already liked my Creatively Carol Facebook page please do that while you are there.

 

Veterans Day Special – Thank You for Your Service

Today will be a busy day here in our little piece of heaven, Veterans Day Thank you for your servicemeans many different things to my husband who served during the Vietnam War. Since he didn’t hear thank you’s when he came home (he still thinks about it 40+ years later) his heart swells with gratitude because he is often thanked now. I am so glad the soldiers of today are much more appreciated than back then.

For Gary, today is a day where he can eat free all day long if he wants. So many places offer veterans free meals today in appreciation for their service. I believe his plan this year is to go to Denny’s for breakfast, Sizzler for lunch and Red Robin for dinner! I feel stuffed just thinking about it. There will be aching feet after hours of lines by the end of the day, but then I think about how long soldiers are on their feet all of their military career. Whether it be boot camp marching in formations or raging into battle.

We have many that have served in our family tree going back many generations. I will post pictures on my facebook page today. I honor them today along with all the men and woman who have served this country and made us safe.

Thank you for your service.  Any veteran or military wife active or veteran will receive a free gift when ordering on my website today.   Thank you for your service.  

Trump as President – Remember to Journal Your Feelings

Journaling is important for your posterityI for one am very glad this election is over and we can go back to all the other intrusive commercials 🙂 I expect that we will now start seeing all the Christmas ads more frequently now.

This country was very divided in this election and whether you were a supporter of Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton or Gary Johnson it is important that you take time today to journal your feelings. This was a historic election in so many ways and your feelings are important and there will be someone in your family tree that will find your thoughts interesting.

I have a scrapbook that I keep of just my own likes, dislikes, thoughts and feelings. We, as scrapbookers tend to not make the scrapbooks very often because we are usually behind the camera so I think it is important that there is some documentation of my own life as well.

I am going to re-start the “Daily Journaling Question” on my twitter feed every morning. You may not be able to write about it right away, but put the question on the top of your page to write about later, or even a post-it note to write about when you are stuck and don’t know what to write about.

Do you have a scrapbook or journal about you? If you said yes what do you write about or if not, is this something you would be interested in starting? Leave a comment below and you might win a journal to begin your journey with!

Motivational Monday Sketch for Lots of Photos

Monday Motivational Sketches with Creatively CarolToday’s Motivational Monday Sketch will work great for lots of occasions but when I look at the sketch, I think this will work great for holiday photos. You can switch out the two 4 x 6 photos on the right and put a large focal point picture like the Christmas Tree or  Thanksgiving turkey and using the surrounding photo spots for the family that is at the event or the different decoration – you get the idea.

I encourage you to give this sketch of 11 photos a try and send me a picture of your layout so I can post it here. You -an also text it to 801-597-4896. You will be entered into my monthly drawing for a free stamp set when you send me your rendition of this scrapbooking sketch.

Did You Turn Back Your Clocks?

So much to do, So little timeThis article was first published by Readers Digest, but I found so much of it interesting I wanted to share it with you.  When you finish, leave me a comment and tell me if you think we should end daylight savings time or continue to adjust clocks twice a year.

Benjamin Franklin came up with the idea of Daylight Saving But it was a joke. In 1784, Franklin penned a satirical letter to the editor of the Journal of Paris outlining how many pounds of candle wax the city would save (64,050,000, according to his calculations) if only its clocks were better aligned with the rise and set of the sun. If residents had trouble adjusting, he also suggested the city ‘let cannon be fired in every street, to wake the sluggards effectually.’ Now that’s a wake-up call.

The idea wasn’t taken seriously until 1907
More than a century after Franklin’s letter, a British builder named William Willet became the champion of Daylight Saving, and lobbied Parliament to adjust the time in April and September in order to take full advantage of the day’s light. It is said the idea came to him after riding his horse one summer morning and noticing how many blinds were still down, which signaled to him the sunlight was going to waste.

Daylight Saving Time became law during World War I
Germany and several other European countries had already mandated DST as a way of reducing electricity and thereby saving coal for the war effort. Recent studies have called this line of thinking into question, with researchers crunching data to decide whether or not DST really does save energy.

Our changing clocks have led to a fair share of confusion
After World War II, America repealed its national law requiring states to institute DST. Some towns decided to stick with it and some didn’t, which ultimately resulted in chaos. One 35-mile bus ride from Mounsville, West Virginia to Steubenville, Ohio, took riders through seven different time changes. At one point, even the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota were on different clocks. In 1966, the Uniform Time Act standardized DST from the last Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October.

More sunlight equals more sales
As it turns out, when Americans have an extra hour of sunlight in the summer, we spend millions more on golf outings and barbecues. In 1986, when Congress changed DST from six months to seven, the golf industry said the extra month brought in $200 million in additional sales of golf clubs and greens fees. The barbecue industry said the extra month was worth $100 million in sales of grills and charcoal briquettes.

Candy makers also have a lot at stake
‘For 25 years, candy makers have wanted to get trick-or-treating covered by Daylight Saving, figuring that if children have an extra hour of daylight, they’ll collect more candy,’ Michael Downing, author of Spring Forward: The Annual Madness of Daylight Saving Time, said on NPR. During the 1985 hearings on DST, the candy lobby even went so far as to put candy pumpkins on the seat of every senator.

The number of accidents and heart attacks increases
Sleepyheads beware: A 2009 study found that Daylight Saving resulted in a whopping 5.7 percent increase in workplace injuries. Another study found that the number of heart attacks surge as much as 24 percent on the Monday following our spring forward into Daylight Saving Time.

But the rate of crime goes down
The U.S. Law Enforcement Assistance Administration found that crime has consistently dropped during DST by 10 percent top 13 percent.

Some states just have to be different
Because the federal government has no law requiring states to observe DST, Hawaii and Arizona are the exceptions to the Daylight-Saving rule. At one point, Colorado wanted to implement DST year-round, in order to save residents from the ‘aggravation of resetting their clocks.’ In Texas, Republican Rep. Dan Flynn, authored a bill to exempt his state from observing DST entirely, with part of his argument focusing on the effect it might have on the start time of NFL games. The Texas House of Representatives turned this one down.

Don’t expect everyone to be on time
In a 2010 study by Rasmussen Reports, 27 percent of respondents admitted they’d been an hour early or late at least once in their lives because they hadn’t changed their clocks correctly. Remember: It’s spring forward; fall back.

What Are You Crafting Today?

not just for Christmas Paper
CTMH City Sidewalks Paper Pack

I love Saturdays… my husband has college football on the television and I am upstairs and working on the project for my Nov 30th workshop. I am making a Countdown to Christmas block calendar with our City Sidewalks paper from the Holiday Expressions Catalog. These papers are so versatile, yes they work great for Christmas but the other papers will work well for so may other pages. I will be using this paper pack all month to show you the variety of ways they can be used.

The blue and white paper with dots can be used for anything including baby boys or anyone that loves the Glacier color.

While the red crosshatch pattern is the perfect background for your Christmas cards, since it is a primary color it works great for young children’s birthday and the backside is a word search page!  If you start searching for words you will find snowflakes, city sidewalks, Rudolph and more but still a great background paper for anytime of year.

And while I would probably use the red chains paper for Christmas the reverse is dots in a chain of Peacock and Lagoon which are both blues on a Willow green background – another good paper for kids that like primary colors.

I think my personal favorite of these papers is the Peacock background with trees of Willow green, Glacier blue and Whisper grey. I love the contrast of these colors and will keep them in mind for their own scrapbook layout in the future.

I need to get back to creating this Countdown to Christmas project, but check my Facebook page later today to see the finished product.