CTMH Christmas Crafts Blog Hop

Welcome to our Blog Hop where we are featuring Christmas Crafts made with Close To My Heart products.  Do you have people on your list who are challenging to buy for?  I do and when that's the case a thoughtful gift, in perfect packaging, usually does the trick in putting a smile on their faces.

If you are coming from Aggie's Blog, you are on the right track. A complete list of participants is provided at the end of this post.  Let's get this fun started!

I fell in love with these Pint Containers when they were first released this summer at Convention.  I decided to pull one out and decorate it for this hop, recognizing they are perfect for filling with goodies - cookies, chocolate, socks, smell goods, etc.  They are a perfect size - not too big and not too small as Goldilocks would say.  There are a variety of ways to decorate these containers.  Because I wanted to cover mine in paper, and they are not a perfect rectangle because of their shape, I decided to take apart one container to make a pattern.  (The pattern will be provided HERE - by noon today CST.  I was forced to cut it into two pieces so you will have two seams, allowing it to print on standard-size paper.)  I traced the pattern in this beautiful B&T paper from our White Pines paper pack.  The stocking was cut from our Art Philosophy Cricut cartridge, three times - on Colonial White, Olive cardstock and the chevron patterned paper from White Pines.  The colonial white stocking was used as the base and the other pieces were cut and glued on top.  Green Shimmer Trim was added to the rim of the container, for some sparkle.

For the lid, I took a Cocoa piece of cardstock, cut a circle to fit and ran it through my Cuttlebug using the Dot Embossing Folder.  For the added texture, I distressed it using our Sanding Block (from the Sanding Kit).  The big bow was cut out of Cranberry cardstock, using the Artiste Cricut Cartridge.  A Bling Gold Gem and Gold Shimmer Trim were added, for the finishing touch.  I love how it turned out and cannot wait to fill it and gift it.

If you would like to make one of your own, be sure to grab the pattern above.  I would love to see what you create as well as what you decide to fill it with.  What suggestions do you have for fillings?

Now, how on over to Marianne's Blog to see her fun creation!  Happy hoppin'!

Blog Hop Participants:

1.  Melissa Robinson *YOU ARE HERE*

2.  Marianne Hancock

3.  Melissa David 

4.  Tonya Whitehurst

5.  Katy Taylor

6.  Aggie Peters

Stampers with an Attitude Blog Hop - White Pines

Members of the Stampers with an Attitude Team, with Close To My Heart, are highlighting the White Pines paper pack this month.  This product line has several coordinating options that you will want to be sure you get.

If you are coming from Catherine's Blog, you are on the right track.  She always has fabulous artwork, doesn't she?  Should you get lost along the way, you can find a list of participants by clicking HERE.

These are two cards I made using...card from the White Pines Picture My Life Scrapbooking Program!  I am so proud of myself and love how they came out.  I hope you love them too!

For this card, which only contained the word "joy", I added some light blue water color to the sentiment.  Then, I took these ornaments from another card, fussy cut them and added them to the card front.  I stamped Merry Christmas in Cranberry and of course, added some bling to various places.  The focal point is layered on New England Ivy, although not easy to recognize from this photo.

 This card was trimmed to fit the front of the card base.  A piece of Cranberry cardstock was added at the bottom and Gold Foil Tape was placed along the seam.  Red Enamel Gems were added on the tree and Merry Christmas was once again stamped.

Here is a photo that displays some of the cards available through this program.  In it you can see the Joy card and the card with the ornaments I cut out.  Fun, right?!  These cards aren't just for scrapbooking although I have used them for that too and love it!  (I will be sharing that artwork soon!)

Please consider leaving a comment and then head on over to Tammy's Blog and see what she has to share with you.  Thanks for stopping by and happy hoppin'!

Make It From Your Heart,

CTMH Paper Blog Hop - White Pines

Thank you for joining my team and I for a Blog Hop featuring the beautiful and festive paper pack, "White Pines".  It is our Christmas paper pack for this year but also offers a lot of versatility with several of the patterned papers.  (The pattern in the bottom left...gorgeous and fun.  This photo definitely doesn't do it justice.)

If you are coming from Sheila's Blog, you are on the right track.  You can find a complete list of participants, and links to their blogs, at the end of this post.  Let's get started, shall we?!

This month I decided to create a home decor item.  I have admired this Hinged Frame Tray for quite some time, finally purchased one, and it has been sitting around since.  (Don't tell anyone I told you that.  LOL)  So it was time to pull it out of its' packaging and create something so here you go!  The tray actually folds up into a a 5" x 7" size so it would be easy to decorate, pack and wrap (and ship, if necessary).  

 While I chose to use the White Pines Picture My Life (aka PML) Scrapbooking Program to decorate the frame, you could definitely include some of your favorite photos instead.  Here is a view of some of the cards included in this program.  The awesome thing about them is they are double-sided with one side containing a vertical design and the other, the same design but horizontal.  Isn't that awesome?  It allows for a lot of flexibility.

Let's take a closer look at the two sides of this frame.  Here is the left side.  Several of the embellishments included (the snowflakes, raccoon, ornaments, and Dec 25 image in this photo) came from the White Pines Complements.  This product item includes two, 6" x 6" coordinating sticker sheets, assorted kraft die-cuts and assorted thick plastic die-cuts that are see-through.  I did stamp "Happy Holidays" using an image from the Workshop on the Go White Pines Cardmaking Kit.

On this right side of the frame, the Merry Christmas card comes without color.  I used the ShinHan Markers to color in the images.  It was fun and hope we get more cards like this in the future!  The NOEL banner...I cut it out of one of the other cards and then made it 3-D here with some Foam Tape.  The deer came from the kraft die cuts and I just chose to add him on the front of the frame.

As I was uploading my photos, I recognized that I could definitely add some bling to some various areas and will be doing so.  In fact, why don't you offer me some suggestions on where I can bling up this frame with Close To My Heart embellishments?  I would love to hear from you!

Hop on over to Melissa David's Blog.  She always comes up with something fun!

Thanks for hopping with us and have a wonderful weekend!

List of participants:

1. Melissa Robinson *YOU ARE HERE*
2. Melissa David
3. Tonya Whitehurst
4. Katy Taylor
5. Aggie Peters
6. Sheila Wilkerson