Just one week left!

Just one week left for our May promotions!

Taste of Summer

May's Stamp of the Month!

May Stamp of the Month

Here is our adorable May Stamp of the Month!
You can purchase this stamp set and see artwork on my website:
SOTM

Some Monday Humor to start your week off right!

Anyone else?!?!?

Tip of the Week-The Bokeh Technique

The Bokeh technique is a simple technique that I tried this weekend.
You will need some white cardstock, 2-3 water based stamp pads, 1 pigment white based ink pads, sponge daubers for each color and a template of different sized circles made out of cardstock.
You use the sponge daubers to make circles of ink on your white paper. After you complete this, you will take the circle template and the white pigment ink and make white circles randomly on the colored ink. This will get the "out of focus look". Below is an example of what one of mine looked like this weekend. You can see my circles of color, as well as the white circles.  You could use the template for all the colors if you wanted them all to be perfect circles.  I used 1 1/4" and 1" circles for this. 

Bokeh technique

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I used this technique along with our Taste of Summer paper pack to make mothers day cards.  Below is a finished card.

I also did a you tube video on this technique which can be found here:
Bokeh Technique-NikkiD's You Tube Channel

Operation Smile

Operation Smile

Did you know that Close to My Heart's charity of focus is Operation Smile? Operation Smile^®, an organization that provides free, life-changing surgery that repairs smiles and reshapes lives, one child at a time. Since 2008, Close To My Heart has provided support to change the lives of over 1,500 children and their families. Buy with pride. Your business with Close To My Heart makes a big difference in the life of a child.

You can donate to Operation Smile in multiple ways.  You can round up your order total to the next highest dollar and donate the change to Operation Smile, you can order the stamp set found on the back of each Seasonal Expressions and Annual Inspirations and CTMH will donate $3 of each stamp set to Operation Smile.  You can also watch for auctions I will be hosting for finished products to raise money for Operation Smile.

One operation costs around $250.00 for Operation Smile and can make such a difference.
This story below is located on our company website.

Ming Before surgery  

By chance, Ming’s mother found an Operation Smile^® flyer advertising the November 2007 mission in Cambodia. Ming and his grandmother traveled five hours in an overcrowded taxi from Odong Mein Chey province to the Khmer-Soviet Hospital in Phnom Penh to be considered for surgery. Before his operation, Ming didn’t want to go to school because the neighborhood children were scared of him and would not let him play with them. Now that his mouth and nose are corrected, Ming looks forward to school. With these amazing results, he is now a lively and confident kid.

 Ming After Surgery




 So considering donating today to save a life of a child! 

Which Technique?

What is the one technique you would like to learn in your paper-crafting-what would it be?

Cheaper than Therapy?

It is for me!!  What about you??!!!!

Tip of the Week!

Starting the Tip of the Week every Sunday!
This week's Tip:

You do not want to use a special photograph to scrapbook.  You could trim it the wrong way, cut it into a size and then change your mind on the layout. Heritage photographs really should be in their original condition- but scanning them in so you can restore the color or fix folds and tears-then use these photographs to scrapbook.  All my Heritage type pictures are put in a sleeve type album-no adhesive, stickers or anything like that.  I actually also make copies of the heritage photographs to put in photo frames so I don't expose the original to light. I am working on organizing some heritage pictures and will do a blog post on that soon! 
Have a great week everyone!

Happy National Scrapbooking Day!- Look at this adorable paper pack!

All this month, enjoy this adorable paper pack for only $8.95!  This paper pack is only available this month.  Coordinating stamp set also available!  Check it out! Taste of Summer Products