CTMH October SOTM Blog Hop: Sharing The Magic

Welcome to the Stamp of the Month Blog Hop! It's time for another whirlwind of inspiration from some very talented crafters. If you're coming from Wendy's blog, you're in the right place. If you've come to my Craft Closet by some other means, you can start the whole blog hop from the beginning at Kathleen's blog.


Ready? Grab some cocoa and we'll be off to the North Pole!

The October SOTM, Sharing the Magic, has 12 stamps in the set:



Doesn't it get you in the holiday spirit?


Let's go out in the snow covered fields and meet the local residents, shall we? Here we have Dasher and Dancer.

Hey there boys, gearing up for the big holiday season?



Yes we are! We're doing our early morning workouts with the rest of the team.

Got to keep fit to carry the Big Man around, you know!




Hey, here comes Frosty. You know, he's always such a jolly, happy soul.

Well, I heard he got some shiny new coal buttons down in the village the other day.




Hi there boys! Yup, shiny new coal buttons! The sales girl said they matched my eyes and I just had to have them. You guys should see the shops in the village! All decked out with lights and tinsel! It's a real winter wonderland. I picked up a couple of things for the kids while I was down there. Had them wrap them up for me, too!




I got a scooter for Jimmy and a dolly for Sue, the kind that will even say "How do you do?".




And this little guy, well, I might just have to keep him for myself!




Just make sure you get him water-proofed.

Look, here comes Santa Claus! Here comes Santa Claus!




Ho, ho, ho! Happy Blog Hop everyone! I hope you're enjoying all the crafty Christmas goodness! It's a lot healthier than a plate of Christmas cookies!




You better watch out, you better move your tail!
Your Christmas cards will soon need to be in the mail!
The holidays are coming real soon!




Okay, okay. That's why I deliver the toys, not write the Christmas carols.



Stamps: CTMH Share the Magic (October 2010 SOTM)
Inks: Versamark, Memento Tuxedo Black
Papers: CTMH Dutch Blue, White Daisy

Happy Blog Hop to all, and to all a good night!


Just a little taste of the North Pole to get you guys in the mood for Christmas card season! Now if you'll head off to Jean's blog, you'll see more amazing creations from many more talented CTMH consultants.

And don't forget, Share The Magic will only be available until October 31, 2010! Contact me to see how you can get this stamp set at a discount or even free!

H2H Challenge: Time For S'more Sketches

This week I was more on the ball with the H2H Challenge...it's only Tuesday! They have provided a fun sketch for us to use:



Now I actually had a card in mind yesterday, but wanted to wait until today to share it. Why? Do you know what today is?

No?

Then let me enlighten you with a quote from the great Ham Porter of The Sandlot:

"Alrite now pay attention. First you take the graham, you stick the chocolate on the graham. Then you roast the 'mallow. When the 'mallows flaming...you stick in on the chocolate. Then cover with the other end. Then you scarf. Kind of messy, but good!"


Yes, it is National S'mores Day!

Did you even know that existed?

Me either, until a couple of days ago. But I had wanted to try something in honor of the gooey treat and after I flipped it, this sketch was just right.


Stamps: CTMH Beary Best, Tiny Typewriter Alphabet
Inks: CTMH Brown Bag, Chocolate (of course!), VersaMark, Memento Tuxedo Black
Papers: CTMH Brown Bag, Chocolate (mmmm!), White Daisy

Doesn't it just look good enough to eat?

Oops, got to be careful not to wrinkle the cardstock.


Take a closer look at that chocolate piece:



I got this effect by clear embossing the entire piece then scoring it to look like a chocolate bar.

Then I got out the Liquid Applique. First, I made the 'mallow. And then sponged on some Brown Bag ink.




Then I sponged the Liquid Applique on the edges of the White Daisy cardstock. After heating it, I sponged a little Brown Bag ink, followed by some Chocolate ink just on the edges.



Mmmmm! Looks nice and toasty doesn't it? Okay, now I'm totally hungry for s'mores. Guess what we're having for dessert tonight!

Don't forget to create something of your own and share it over at the H2H blog!

You're The Beary Best

I liked Mary's sketch for this week's H2H Challenge so much I had to use it again!

This card was made to mail to another Copic Crafters member so in order to not pay an arm and a leg at the post office, I kept the embellishments to a bare minimum.

Get it?

Bear?


Ahh, well maybe it's too early for silly humor.


Stamps: CTMH Beary Best
Inks: CTMH Outdoor Denim, New England Ivy, Barn Red, Memento Tuxedo Black
Papers: CTMH Back Country Reflections Kit


Hope you all enjoy your weekend! We're off to the Farmer's Market soon to browse all the veggie goodness.

Just Taking A Break

Afternoon everyone! Just popping in to say hi on this very hot afternoon. We reached 100° sometime today...when does winter start again?

When it's this hot outside I like to close all the curtains, turn down the air and sit at my table and craft. Oh, who am I kidding...it doesn't have to be hot outside for me to want to craft.


Today I'm sharing a card I sent to one of the Copic Crafters members last month. With all the end of school bedlam I forgot to share it with all of you. This Silly Sally stamp is one I've had for a long time, back when CTMH was D.O.T.S., just something about her makes her fun to color.


Stamps: CTMH Silly Sally (long time retired), Bowl Of Cherries
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black, CTMH Chocolate
Papers: CTMH Cherry-O Reflections Kit


Sorry this is short, but I'm working on more of the upcoming H2H Challenges for this month. Stop by and see who this week's Friday Five are and don't forget to enter the current challenge!

Okay, back to work!

A Long Time Ago In A Craft Closet Far, Far Away...

Last night Engineer and I took the boys to see Star Wars In Concert.

Awesome, it was!

There was an exhibition room full of movie memorabilia, posters, costumes, backdrops, and even a couple of the galactic residents themselves. We stood in line for pictures with Clone Troopers, Vader and Leia, but the boys quickly got tired of that...said it reminded them of Disneyland.


So after checking the time we got some snacks, took our seats, and waited for the show to begin. Lights, lasers, movies and music...what a performance! And I don't mind my geekness showing for a moment when I tell you I teared up a bit when the whole thing started. Maybe you have to be fan to understand that...Engineer sure gave me a weird look when I told him.

With everything else I needed to be working on today, I just couldn't get that theme music out of my head and I figured the only way to do that would be to make a card. Yeah, that doesn't really make sense to me either, but I got to have some fun before the boys got home from school. I found some perfect clip art pages and looked for one that would fit the card I had in mind. I colored it with my Copics, but since I was going for the actual cartoon look, I didn't do any shading...which was really weird to do.

And now, I give you Master Yoda:


Stamps: CTMH Weathered Backgrounds (retired)
Inks: CTMH Desert Sand
Papers: CTMH Desert Sand, Bamboo, Colonial White, Garden Green


And I decided to give this to my brother-in-law who is turning 40 this year. Problem is, his birthday is not until December! So I better not lose it, right?

Here's what it says on the inside:



So DeAnna, you can't let your hubby see this! Got it?



And on that note, I've got to fly.


It's the last day of school (!) and I'm sure the boys will want to start their summer vacation right away.

A Day Full Of Sparkle

Today is my cousin-in-law's birthday.
Happy Birthday, Vero!

Last year she heard me discussing Twilight with some fellow scrappers and became curious. After watching the two movies, she quickly read the series. Now, she suffers from full blown Twilight-itis and has passed it on to her daughter.

It is in honor of that...common obsession interest I made her this card for today. I used this week's sketch from Mojo Monday, something I've always wanted to do, but never done. Don't know why.


Stamps: Artful Inkables Fictionally Inspired, Into the Moonlight
Inks: Memento Tuxedo Black
Papers: CTMH Black, Tulip, That's Amore Reflections Kit

I realize that even though I wished her a sparkle-filled day, nothing on the card actually sparkles. But any true Twi-hard like her would know what I meant.

Have Your Cake...

You know the saying, "You can't have your cake and eat it, too."? Well, there is one way around that...have two cakes!

This month there were two birthdays in the Copic Crafters birthday club. I waited until I was sure the birthday girls had recieved them...especially since one of them follows this blog!
(Hi Vicki! Didn't want to spoil the surprise and all.)

It wasn't until after the cards were made and I was looking up the addresses I noticed their favorite colors listed...purple!


Stamps: MFT You Take The Cake
Inks: CTMH Chocolate
Papers: CTMH Veranda Reflections Kit, Veranda Creative Basics
Ummm. Not a shade of purple in sight. Sorry about that ladies, hope you enjoyed the cards anyway!

Bunny Love One More Time

One last Bunny Swap card for this Easter morning.

Stamps: CTMH Bunny Love

Inks: Memento Rich Cocoa, CTMH Chocolate

Papers: CTMH Veranda Creative Basics

Did everyone find a big basket of eggs and chocolate this morning?

Yesterday, Engineer and I spent the day moving our bedroom furniture from the various places in the house back into the newly finished bedroom. So about 10 last night I gasped and said, "Is the Easter Bunny hiding eggs for tomorrow?!"

I think I'll have to tell the boys our house was too dangerous for the Easter Bunny to stop and hid anything. Not only would it probably be weeks before we found any eggs, but he most likely would have tripped and broken his lucky rabbit's foot in the process!