We Have A Winner!

Congratulations to Patricia Vasseur!  

She is my lucky BLISS Kit Template winner!  She was one of the first 20 people to order my Bliss Kit Template, and will receive a complimentary pre-cut kit!  In addition, I found a pre-cut kit for my Miracle Kit Template as I was cleaning my scrap room this weekend, so I'm going to throw that in as well!

Tomorrow I'll be revealing another new Template!  Check back soon!

Happy Memorial Day!

Happy Memorial Day!  

Let us not forget the men and women who have sacrificed their lives for our country.

These photos were taken in 2009, when we visited my Grandpa Bud and Grandma Florence in Minnesota over Memorial Day.  Grandpa Bud was instrumental in setting up this section of the Brandon cemetery - to honor our Nation's Armed Forces.  You could see the pride in his eyes as he shared this special place with us.  It had been a project years in the making for him.

Grandpa passed away a few months later.  We miss him greatly.  He was an amazing man who loved his country.  I'm thinking about him today!

New Limited Teacher Licenses

I have great news for all of you TEACHERS!

I am now offering a "limited teacher license" for my paper crafting templates for just $10 per kit.  With the purchase of this license, you are given permission to print any of the pages from the templates to hand out in your classes to your customers.

This license allows you to print the template in whole or in part for the following scenarios:
Crops, Classes, Workshops, "one-on-one" art sessions, or any situation where you are instructing an individual or group of individuals IN PERSON.

This license does NOT give permission to:
change or modify the template in any way
email templates (in part or in whole)
include templates in kits (for sale in person, online, at expos, or in situations where you will NOT be instructing the customer in person.)
sell templates by themselves in any way, shape, or form, online or in person,
instruct online classes using the templates

Hopefully this new option will give greater value and freedom in teaching these great classes!   Licenses will be available for current kits only.  You will need to purchase a separate license for each kit you plan to print instructions for your customers.  No license is needed if you do not plan to print the template.  If you have any questions, please contact me at nonapearl@firebin.net.

Select your kit here:

Bliss Miracle Sophia Lucky Sweetheart Wings Mistletoe Olivia Magnifique Hooligans  

New Knitting Patterns!

I have two cute new patterns available on Etsy and Ravelry just in time for summer!  Introducing my Bumble Bee and Ladybug Hats for kids!  

As I get my inventory up, I will start listing the actual hats for sale in my etsy shop too.  And as always, I take custom orders by request.

Bliss Kit Template and Contest Update!

Don't forget about my awesome Bliss template released on May 1st!  You can make these beautiful wall hangings, cards, and card holder with just a Bliss Level 1 kit, canvas badge buttons, a 9x9 my creations accordion album and some scrap ribbon!

AND - we are SOOOO close to having 20 kit templates sold!  Once that happens I will randomly pick a lucky winner from those 20 who will get a pre-cut, ready to assemble kit for FREE!

Here's more info about the creations made from this template: 

Make a pretty wall hanging for your mom, grandma, sister or friend that features 4 photo mats, and another wall hanging for a favorite couple about to walk down the aisle!  Both feature gorgeous hand crafted paper roses - that I show how to make with step by step photos and instructions!  Additionally, you can make a card holder and 9 cards!

My Bliss Kit Template is just $5, and features 7 pages of cutting templates, photos and written directions for all of these projects.  When you purchase the template, it becomes available for immediate download, so you can get working on your projects right away.

BUY THE BLISS KIT TEMPLATE  - 
(view additional Kit Templates by clicking on the "Nona's Papercrafting Templates" below the blog header)

New Knits

Things having been going a mile a minute around here, and I'm just desperately trying to stay afloat!  Once Easter hits it feels like go, go, go until that first day of school in September!

Since Easter, we've/I've gone on a weekend away to Long Beach for Mother's day (pictures forthcoming), had a school field trip to Whidbey Island, went on a women's retreat with my church, had our pastor's family over for dinner, and celebrated multiple birthdays, weddings, baby showers, and more with friends.  It's been CRAZY!!!!

Oh yeah - and in the mean time I'm still designing new knitting patterns, and trying to get my inventory stocked for the Edmonds Summer Market (which starts the first Saturday in July).  :)

Here's the baby poncho all done (FINALLY).  I wish I had better colors to knit it up in, but this yarn was all I had in stock.  It reminds me of pistachio, chocolate and vanilla ice cream.  I'm still thinking of a name for it.  I think I may design a matching skirt - but in cuter colors.  LOL...

I also started a new pattern design last night.  Here's my progress then, and this morning.  Can you guess what it will be???  :)

Studio J Plug

You all know how much I love Studio J.  And now you have the chance to win a free 5 pack!

Check out this article from CK online magazine featuring the Vice Prez of marketing Kristine Whitfield!  I've posted the link, and then also copy/pasted the full article into this post to make it easier.

http://www.creatingkeepsakesblog.com/blog/2011/05/weekly-warm-up-time-saving-solution-for-your-scrapbooks/

Raise your hand if you are a busy scrapbooker.

Wow, that’s a lot of hands! I know I raised mine.

I’m Kristine Widtfeldt, Close To My Heart’s Vice President of Marketing, and I’m going to tell you the secret to creating four scrapbook pages, start-to-finish, in just 30 minutes!

I love scrapbooking, but as a working mom of three, my life can get kind of hectic. That’s why I love Studio J®, Close To My Heart’s online design software.

Studio J lets me upload my photos, choose a layout and themed paper kit, and embellish my layout—all in just a few minutes. Then I place my order, and in a few days my 12″ x 12″ layouts are delivered to my door, all ready for my albums. I can do a month’s worth of scrapbooking in just a few hours, and I don’t even have to bother getting my photos printed beforehand! That means I can scrapbook my life as it happens, without falling behind.

I want to share Studio J with you, so at the end of this post I’ll tell you how you can win a free Studio J 5-pack.

 

Now I have to let you in on a little secret: Even though I absolutely love Studio J, I never want to give up my paper and scissors. I totally dig measuring and cutting and gluing and all that good stuff.

So guess what? I do both. For me, it’s not a question of digital versus classic scrapbooking. I do some of my scrapbooking online in Studio J and some with paper and scissors. And sometimes I create my layouts online, but then add classic embellishments once I receive my layouts in the mail.

That’s what I’ve done with this layout of my friend and fellow Close To My Heart VP, Monica Wihongi. I spent some extra time on this layout—it took me about 30 minutes to create online, instead of the 10 or 15 minutes I take when I’m in a hurry—and then when I got the printed version, I added some ribbon and Close To My Heart Sparkles accents and pretty silver mesh flowers. My albums are a mix of studio and classic layouts, with a few embellished studio layouts like this one sprinkled in for good measure. It’s great!

Let me take you into the studio so you can get a feel for Studio J. It’s simple for newbies to use, but offers enough creative options to keep advanced scrapbookers happy and excited! We have a Step-by-Step Basics video you can watch online, but I’ll walk you through the steps here as well.

The first step is Photos, where you upload the digital pictures you’re going to use.

Next is Kits. You select one of the 70 or so paper kits offered. Later on you’ll have a chance to change the colors of the paper, giving you tons of flexibility.

Then comes Patterns, where you choose a layout. I love how I can fit as many as 16 photos in a single layout, or I can choose to have an enormous focal photo if I really want to make it pop.

 

The fourth step is Personalize. This step is definitely the fun part, because this is where you can let your creativity shine. You can change the preset paper selections, rotate your pages, type in a title and journaling, and add My Stickease® images or ribbons, brads, etc. There are default accents that are pre-placed and all you have to do is colorize them, or you can toggle them off and add custom embellishments to your heart’s content. Spend as much or little time here as you like.

 

And the final step is Buy. Once you’ve purchased your layouts, they’re custom-printed on 100+ year, archival-quality paper and shipped to your door. And if you’re a Studio J member, you get 50% off custom prints plus free JPG versions of your layout to share online or print at home.

 

Ready to give Studio J a try? I bet you are! Just go to your Close To My Heart Independent Consultant’s MyCTMH® website, or hop onto StudioJ.com and start playing. We’re sponsoring a great giveaway, too. All you have to do is go to Studio J and try it out.

Come back here and leave a comment letting us know what kit and pattern you chose for a chance to win a free Studio J 5-pack (a $55 US value)! A 5-pack includes 5 two-page layouts, 5 Memory Protectors®, and free shipping. It’s a great gift, and a great way to get started with Studio J scrapbooking!

Kristine Widtfeldt, Close To My Heart Vice President of Marketing

NOTE: You must post on the website link above - NOT ON THIS BLOG - for your chance to win the free 5-pack.

What's On My Needles

Every week brings me closer to the start of market season!  AHHHH!  Where did my time go?  I am not nearly where I feel I should be - and that means LOTS of knitting is going on here during nap time, and into the wee hours of the night.

Here are a few things I was working on this past week:

First, I got some new yarn from Blue Moon (this is "Twisted" in Lagoon).  I love this color-way, but I've had the dickens of a time getting these gloves sized right.  I ended up ripping them out and starting over about 3 times.  Finally, I've just left them as is and am calling them a size Adult Small or Child Large.  

Also in Blue Moon yarn (this time "Socks that Rock"), this is one of the simple ribbed socks that I designed for an "easy" pattern for my monthly sock club.  The pattern this month is a real doozey, so my less experienced members wanted an easy pattern too. 

These are several pairs of my "Freya Gauntlets" in progress.  The green ones are Berroco Vintage, the rest are Knit Picks Andean Silk.

Knit up two pairs of Montmartre last week too - sorry the picture is so terribly blurry..  The beige ones are knit in Berroco Vintage, and the blue ones are Knit Picks Capra

At the beginning of the year, I was THIIIIIS close (imagine my thumb and pointer finger squeezing a mere centimeter apart) to signing up for the Socks that Rock sock club.  Cookie A is one of their designers (and one of my designer idols.  But after only completing 2 of the 6 projects from the knit-along club I joined last year, I couldn't quite stomach the $280 price tag of the sock club.  To make up for the disappointment of missing out, I bought Cookies' new book "knit. sock. love." and it is AWESOME.

I started the infamous "monkey socks" and I can't put them down!!!!  I'll knit a repeat of the pattern on each sock, then go back to market knitting.  But all the while I'm thinking about the monkeys.  :)  I'm using Knit Picks Felici (Afternoon colorway) for them. 

Easter

This is a bit late in recapping, but we had such a great Easter weekend!  We ate waaaaay to much, enjoyed the fleeting, but welcome sunshine, and celebrated the resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ!

I was able to get several Studio J layouts done, and am happy to share them with you!

I really can't say enough about Studio J.  Even though I'm not a CTMH consultant any more, I think that SJ is really the BEST digital scrapbooking program on the market.  I got all 5 of these layouts done in less than 3 hours.  (And best of all - no clean up!  I just closed the window on my laptop.)

Wendi's Shawl

I started this shawl/scarf a LOOOOONG time ago, but haven't been able to post because it was for my best friend Wendi's birthday.

I knit it using the Mizzle pattern (free on Ravelry) by Patricia Clift Martin.  I used Hazel Knits Sock Yarn.  It was a very fast, simple knit (when one reads and follows the directions), and after blocking it came out so beautifully!

I didn't take a bunch of pictures of the process, but here's a few of the knitting progression (and regression):

one hour in:

 three hours in, one hour out.

(turns out that some of the eyelets are purely DECORATIVE, meaning that I had increased by double about 9 rows too soon.  OOPS!  Yes, reading the pattern is a fantastic idea.  I recommend it.)

Center section done.  Starting the edging:

I thought I had a picture of the "pre-blocked" finished shawl, but I don't.  So I'll show you the blocking process (for those that don't know what blocking is).

First, you gently wash your knitted item in warm (or cold) water with a touch of wool soap.  Mmmm... the small of wet wool is delightfully GROSS!  Think of the smell of a wet sheep (or dog).  Blechh.  Maybe that's why I don't like blocking?!?!  ;)

Then you make a knitting towel wrap - and roll out the excess water.  You should never wring knitting.  A towel larger than the one I'm using is better.  I was being lazy.

Then on blocking squares, or a nice bedspread, or ???  you pin your knitting to the shape you want it to have, and let it dry.  Sometimes it takes a few hours, sometimes DAYS.  Do not try and rush the drying process.

Sometimes you have to re-pin and re-pin and re-pin until you get the shape JUST right.  This took me an hour to get perfect.

This was "pre-perfection", but the best shot of the finished shawl.

Now I just need a picture of Wendi wearing it!  :)

New Kit Template and Contest!

I have a brand new template to share!  It features the Bliss Level 1 kit, 9x9 My Creations Showcase Album, and the Canvas Badge Buttons all from Close To My Heart.  Using these supplies, plus just one sheet of Chocolate cardstock and a little bit of ribbon, you can create all of the items shown above!

Make a pretty wall hanging for your mom that features 4 photo mats, and another wall hanging for a favorite couple about to walk down the aisle!  Both feature gorgeous hand crafted paper roses - that I show how to make with step by step photos and instructions!  Additionally, you can make a card holder and 9 cards!

My Bliss Kit Template is just $5, and features 7 pages of cutting templates, photos and written directions for all of these projects.  When you purchase the template, it becomes available for immediate download, so you can get working on your projects right away.

BUY THE BLISS KIT TEMPLATE  -
(view additional Kit Templates by clicking on the "Nona's Papercrafting Templates" below the blog header)

And, I'm having a Bliss Kit Template contest!

Purchase a Bliss Kit Template and you will have one entry to win a free "pre-cut" Bliss Kit!  

You can earn an additional entry for every other kit template you purchase as well.

I will draw the winner after the 20th Bliss Kit Template sells, so don't delay!  

The winner will be posted here and notified by email.

What's On My Needles

Just poppin' in to show you What's On My Needles this week (and last).

The Edmonds Summer Market will be here before I know it, so last week I "turbo knit" 8 infant hats.

I picked up 5 skeins of Malabrigo Chunky yarn in these delicious colors (plus one more)and was able to get 2 hats out of each skein!  I did half in seed stitch and half in straight stockinette with a ribbed brim.

Additionally, I've been working on a new design.  I'm not quite sure if it will be a hit or a bust, but I'm just going to keep knitting.  Hopefully I can get it done in the next few days and make the final tweaks.  (And after ripping it out and starting over once, I'm praying I won't have to reknit the entire thing again!)

This was progress as of late last week:

And this is where I finished up with it tonight:

Finally, I finished a very special Ollie Owl hat.  Dave's second cousin is having her 2nd birthday party on Saturday and it's an owl theme.  While we can't be there, we wanted her to have an Owl Hat in custom colors for her party. While I was in a sewing mood, I added eyes to another owl hat that had been sitting in my project bin for the last six months.  :)