March Creative Club Project - Purse and Card

March’s Creative Club project will be this fun purse that can be used as a gift bag or even as an Easter basket. We will also be making a matching card. To find out more about my monthly non-commit Creative Club, click here. You do not need to be local to participate. I have members all over the country! (Hi ladies!)

The template for this cute purse was created by Bridget Louw and can be found here. I came across it on the Making Memories website and knew it would be perfect for March’s club project. The template is a bit rough but I was able to redraw it in Adobe Illustrator and bring it into my new SCAL software so I could cut it on my Cricut. I believe that Becky Roberts also has a purse template that looks very similar.
The purse has a cute little pocket on the front where you can stick a gift card, a note, or another small gift.
This is the matching card that we will also be making. It uses the March Stamp of the Month called A Little Everything. It is a great set for any card maker! If you like these projects, click here for more details on my super fun club! Contact me at lisa@myctmh.com for more information, to sign up for next month’s class, or to order your own club kit(s). Next month’s Club will meet at 7pm on Thursday, March 11th. Please contact me no later than March 3rd if you would like to join us or order a kit. (That will give me enough time to order the supplies and prep your kit.)

All supplies are from CTMH unless otherwise noted.
Paper Packet
Veranda Creative Basics
Stamps
A Little Everything (March Stamp of the Month)
Ink Pads
Cocoa, Creme Brulee
Other
Pewter Brads, Velcro Dots, Piercing Tool, Pewter Designer Brads, Créme Brulee Ribbon Rounds

Flower Card with Inspiration from the Kiddos

I bought my daughter some really cute jammies last week and after I saw them on her, I thought, “Hmmm, that might make a cute card.” So I pulled out some polka dotted paper, some matching cardstock, and my flower punch and started to make a card. I tried to emboss a cute sentiment with some white embossing powder on my first draft, but it just wasn't looking very good. While I was staring at the card, my 6 year old son came up and said, “Hey Mommy, why don’t you use a Rub-On instead.” OK peeps, my SIX YEAR OLD SON said that! How proud am I? How many 6 year old boys even know what a Rub-On is? And, he was right, it looked much better than the white embossing. LOL!

Here is my daughter in her cute new jammies. Check out the fun polka dots on the neckline and sleeves. (Hopefully you can see it in the photo.)
Anyway, it isn’t one of my best cards, but I just wanted to share it with you because the story behind it is so funny. So, here is another photo of the card that my daughter’s PJs inspired and my son graciously helped me with. (Sorry the photo is a little washed out. It really does match the jammies better than it looks here.)
Cardstock
CTMH: Cocoa, White Daisy, Tulip, Bamboo Papertrey Ink: Berry Sorbet
Patterned Paper
Papertrey Ink: Text Style Pink Patterns
Other
Marvy Flower Punch, Circle Punch, Papertrey Ink Berry Sorbet Top Notch Twill Ribbon, CTMH Primavera Rub-Ons, Scallop Border Punch

A Few Valentine Cards

Today is a special day for my hubby. He turns the big 4-0 today! (Happy Birthday sweetheart!) Yes, his birthday is on Valentine’s Day...EVERY year! LOL! We were planning on going to a fun Valentine’s Banquet at church last night to celebrate both special occasions, but unfortunately the kiddos are sick and I didn't want to expose the other kids at church to their wonderful germs, so we searched for a babysitter at the last minute only to find that no one was available. So we ditched the banquet and stayed home instead.

Anyhoo, here is the card that I gave my hubby this morning along with the gift that he has been asking for forever—a scroll saw. (I think it is kind of like a Cricut for boys. It just cuts wood instead of paper. LOL!) He said that he loved both the gift and the card.

This is the inside of the card.

After I gave my hubby his gift and card, he felt bad that he didn’t get me anything for V-day. I told him not to worry about it, that he was the best gift of all. (I really meant it.) Just as I was getting ready to leave for church (he had to stay home with the sick kiddos since I was teaching Sunday School), he gave me the card below. When I opened it, I thought, "WOW! I didn’t know he knew how to stamp.” Then I realized that the card was actually one that I had made a while back. He went through my stash, pulled it out, signed it, and gave it to me. I laughed so hard because I have never received a card that I actually made myself.
I had to show you what he wrote inside because it is really sweet! Remember that the card I gave him said “Somebirdy Loves You” on the outside and “You make my heart sing” on the inside. Is he the sweetest thing or what? I love you hunny! Happy B-day and V-day!!! XOXO.
I have one more card to share with you today. I just received this one from my friend and 2nd upline Denise Anderson-Turley. Isn’t it so C-U-T-E? Thanks for thinking of me Denise! You are such a sweetheart!
Have a wonderful afternoon everyone. Don’t forget to give someone you love a big a hug and kiss today! *Ü*

All supplies are from CTMH unless otherwise noted.
“Somebirdy Loves You” card:
Cardstock
White Daisy, Cocoa, Tulip
Stamps
Love Birds
Ink Pads
Cocoa, Tulip, Sunflower Marker, Tulip Marker
Other
Swiss Dots Embossing Folder (Provocraft), Cuttlebug, Sanding Block, 3-D Foam Tape

“Thank You” card:
Cardstock
White Daisy, Baby Pink, Chocolate
Stamps
Bird Basics, Gracious Greetings, Key to my Heart (retired)
Ink Pads
Blush, Chocolate, Black
Other
Sanding Block, 3-D Foam Tape

Last Minute Valentines

So I had these great plans to make some really fun Valentine's for my kids to take to school this week and of course it didn't happen. My daughter's preschool class is having their Valentine's party tomorrow so I resorted to redoing the mini 3x3 cards we made last year for my son's class. You can see them here.

My daughter helped me punch the hearts out and happily made an “H” to sign each card. (I know I really should have had her help me do more, but I was afraid they wouldn't get done in time. That is totally my fault for waiting until the last minute.)
We used the fun polka dotted paper from CTMH’s Christmas themed Jingle paper packet. We also stamped some Blush polka dots on the top of the cards with Papertrey's Polka Dot Basics stamp set. Then we stamped the punched out scallop hearts with Papertrey's Borders & Corners Heart set in Tulip ink. We finished them off with a “friend” stamp from CTMH’s Friendship Word Puzzle in blush ink. The inside sentiment is from the retired February Word Puzzle set. We added a little lollipop to the inside with a Glue Dot and were finished in record time.
Of course I had to add this little note on the back. The “Made Just for You” stamp came from CTMH’s Made with Love set. Now I am off to make something quickly for her teachers. (They may end up getting my old stand by, Hershey’s Nugget Tins.) After that, it is time to start all over with my son’s cards. I am sure glad I only have two kids. LOL!

Kid's Coloring Birthday Card Sets for the Gogos

It is that time of the month again. (No, not that time silly!) It is time for me to post our monthly Gogo's Workshop Project. If you would like to read more about the Gogo Grandmother's Workshops, click here. If you would like to read more about this amazing charity, click here.

This month we made some really cute birthday card packs for children. I wish I could take credit for the idea, but I must give credit to the always lovely and amazingly talented Vicki Wizniuk, who got the idea from Debi Davis. I love the creative circle. LOL! Each pack contains 5 cards, 5 envelopes, and 6 mini crayons. I have to tell you that these crayons are so tiny and so cute and were soooo inexpensive. I got 48 packs of them for only $7.99 at Oriental Trading Company. I was just going to put the entire box in the bag, but they looked cuter in the little zip lock jewelry bags that I just happened to have on hand.

This is what the single cards and envelopes look like:

We used the B&T papers from the Daydream and Stardust Paper Packets along with the matching outlined stamp sets Happy Endings and Reach for the Stars. The “Happy Birthday” is from the retired Nursery Bash set.

This is what each card says on the inside.

This is what the whole package looks like.
The bags also came from Oriental Trading Company. The cards fit perfectly in them.

The Gogos Brunch and Boutique where these and many other great handmade items will be sold is coming up on Saturday, February, 20th. Contact me if you are in the San Diego, Riverside, L.A., or Orange County areas and would like to attend.

My new toy, a flower card, and Haiti relief

How’s that for a random title? I have a lot to cram into one post today...
Guess what I just got! Yes, I finally caved and got myself a Cricut Expression. It is sooooo much fun, although I feel like there is A LOT to learn. (If anyone has any advice, suggestions, or great Cricut websites, I'd love to hear about them.)
The flower card above is the first project that I made with my new toy. The Wild Card cartridge was one of the first ones I ordered. I can see myself using it quite a bit. I used CTMH’s awesome textured cardstock to make the card. (See the end of my post to find out how you can get a FREE combo pack of textured cardstock while helping the Haiti relief effort.) I used some textured White Daisy cardstock along with the backside of some Sunflower textured cardstock. CTMH’s textured cardstock is darker on one side and lighter on the other. It’s like having double the colors in one pack! I added a Sunny Yellow button with some Embroidery Floss to the center of the large daisy. Then I stamped the sentiment using Papertrey’s Mega Mixed Messages set in Cocoa ink. Easy, peasy, lemon squeezy as the talented Karen Pedersen would say. *Ü*

This is the inside of the open card.

I sanded the edge of the Sunflower cardstock.
The texture shows really nicely when it is sanded.

OK, so do you want to know how to get a combo pack of CTMH’s textured cardstock for free? Throughout the month of February, purchase a 12" x 12" textured cardstock combo pack and you’ll get one FREE—and with every pack purchased, Close To My Heart will donate $2 to Operation Smile’s Haiti relief efforts. That means for only $14.95, you get two packs of our high-quality textured cardstock and you help this urgent, important cause! To learn more about their efforts visit www.operationsmile.org/haiti.

All supplies are from CTMH unless otherwise noted.
Cardstock
Textured Basic and Autumn Harvest Packs
Stamps
Mega Mixed Messages (Papertrey Ink)
Ink Pads
Cocoa
Other
Summer Craft Buttons, Embroidery Floss, Sanding Kit, Cricut Machine and Wild Card Cartridge