She Believed She Could .....

I earned this little stamp set at a recent CTMH event here just outside of Detroit.

Close To My Heart held a fun evening of creating and during the business session I won this cute mini stamp. 

It really does sum up my business and work ethic - especially when it comes to earning the 

CTMH Cruises and Land Tours.

I used the beautiful Skylark paper pack and added Teal Shimmer Trim and Aqua Dots.

Hope you like it :O)  Love Sara xxxx

Hoot Hoot Hooray Card - Cricut Artiste

Here is another fun card designed by Dawn Montagano which again - I put my spin on :O)
I added the fun Chocolate Woodgrain Washi Tape to the Skylark Paper pack .
Aqua Dots are used to accent the present image and the owl's eye. Again B1450 Owls was used for the stamped images.
The CTMH Cricut Artiste cartridge was used for the cut images.
Love Sara

Embossed Skylark inspirational card

Oh how I love this card.

I know it looks involved but it took me less than 10 minutes to complete.!!

It featured embedded embossing which is a technique where you attach layers of paper or cardstock

together and then run them through an embossing machine.

I used the new CTMH Damask Embossing Folder which I absolutely love - very much my style

as you know :O)

Here is a tip - if you are going to distress the edges of your cardstock then do it before

you emboss it. If you have a very complicated design like the one above it puts quite

a lot of tension on the edges of the cardstock and it can rip along the pattern if you try to 

distress after it has been embossed.

So I attached a piece of Whisper cardstock to the Juniper piece and embossed them and then

added a small piece of the Skylark Zipstrip.

The bird and words and white daisy are all Skylark Dimension Elements and the

Green resin flower is from the Skylark assortment.

I used the small heart image from the WOTG stamp set and used Desert Sand ink (I also distressed all of the pieces in Desert Sand ink too)

I added liquid glass to the heart for some shine.

The sentiment and the heart are both popped up using 3D foam tape.

Hope you like it as much as I do - Love Sara xxx

Pura VIda Scrapbook Layout

Today is the last day of my trip here in Costa Rica and here is the final layout given to my by CTMH - Love this one the best I think.

I used the honey ink pad directly on the honey cardstock for a woodgrain effect and stamped the leaf stamp in shades of Pear and Sweetleaf. I then cut them out and attached them to the 

side of the photo mats.

I can't wait to get back home to see my boys and my husband - and to print out the photos from this fabulous trip.

Love Sara xxx

Fun and Sun Scrapbook Layout

Oh my goodness - I love the lizards haha :O)

I have them running across my page in all directions.

I know I will come back from this trip with many pictures so this layout is perfect for those photos where you have close ups of items or people and the background can be cropped out.

Fun and Sun is a great title for this page and it also has a nautical feel to it so you could use it for an occasion like that :O)

Love Sara xxx

Fun Scrapbook Layout

This is such a pretty layout - I was really pleased with the way the buttlerlies turned out. I stamped the darker ones in Lagoon ink and rolled the edges of the stamps in Outdoor Denim ink and the light one I stamped in Pear ink and rolled the edge in Lagoon ink.

The three patterns of paper from the Skylark paper pack add just the right amount of pattern without it being distracting from the stamped images.

We are off to spend the day in the National Park so I know I will get many great photos which will fit on this layout :O)

Love Sara xxx

Explore Scrapbook Layout

I just love the colors of this layout and I already know what photos I am going to put on this when I get back from my trip

The Lagoon cardstock gives it the feel of water and I know that today I will be sailing and snorkeling so photos of todays trip will be perfect to go on here. The Teal Shimmer Trim is just perfect with this paper and cardstock and you know I like anything sparkly :O)

These layouts are lovely and I am looking forward to putting photos on them and making more - because you know I will have lots of photos.

Love Sara xxx

Skylark Incentive Trip layout

I am away in Costa Rica this week taking photos to put on this layout :O)

Yes I managed to complete this one before I went and again - I didn't put the layout title onto it. When I am ready to add my photos then I will decide on the title.

I used the large butterfly stamp with a tone on tone stamping technique on the Sorbet cardstock.

I used Sweetleaf ink on the top of the Sweetleaf cardstock page bases to stamp a leaf design - I know its a little difficult to see unless you zoom in on the photo.

I really like the technique of cutting the ends of the paper and cardstock pieces to make them look like ribbons.

Hope you like it too - Love Sara xxx

Land Tour layout

I really like the way this layout turned out - as usual I didn't follow the instructions  (why does that surprise you hahaha)

I ink distressed the Bamboo cardstock with the Bamboo ink to make it look like woodgrain

- I inked the Costa Rica title stamp in Sorbet ink and then stamped it again in Pear ink and cut the tiny frog out and layered the 2 images together.

I stamped the lizard in Pear ink on the Sweetleaf cardstock.

I do like the way that this layout from the Make It from Your Heart Vol 2 can be altered - we can switch the 2 pages around so that the left page becomes the right page and it gives it a totally different look. Anyway - I like it this way round - so hope you do too :O)

Love Sara xxx

Smile Layout

Here is another Costa Rica layout from CTMH - Loved the little green lizards which I stamped in Pear ink and rolled the edges in Topiary ink.

I used the Glamour Uppercase Alphabet for the words and stamped it in Cocoa ink on the Kraft cardstock - again I used the scallop border punch to decorate the edges of the Kraft cardstock.

Hope you like it :O)

Love Sara xxx

Explore Paradise Layout

Here is the 2nd layout which I made with the kits from Close To My heart - the green Skylark paper has a fun design which reminds me of foliage and I LOVE that Frog !!!

Hope you like it too - Love Sara xxx

Costa Rica Land Tour Incentive trip Layout.

Not sure if I have told you lately just how much I love working for Close To My Heart -

One of the perks of being an Independent Consultant is that we have the option to earn cruises and trips. Close To My Heart generously pays for 2 people - their flights and trips and it has been a fabulous way for me to see more of the world.

My upcoming trip in March 14 will be to Costa Rica and I am super excited about it.

Apart for the trip and airfares - we are also given gifts  - and here is part of this trips gift.

 How cute is this limited edition trip specific stamp set - do you just love that little lizard and the cutest frog ever !!!!

Only the Incentive Trip earners get this stamp so I love to received them - it makes me feel special :O)

We also received the kits to make 10 double layouts featuring the new Skylark paper and a lovely black faux leather album to keep them all in.

Here is the first of the layouts - I will post pictures of them as I complete them.

I used Honey and Sorbet inks  for the butterflies and the lizards are stamped in White Daisy pigment ink. Because I am too impatient to let the pigment ink dry - I sprinkled clear embossing powder and heat embossed them - so my lizards are shiny :O)

Love Sara xxx

Skylark Birthday Card

I really like this Skylark birthday card which has a fun scallop border to the side piece.

You know I use tags all the time - in my scrapbook pages and my cards and here I have added a scrap of paper to cover some of the words - remember you don't have to see or even use the whole image of a stamp - sometime partial images are better.

The new teal shimmer trim is just gorgeous and a small amount of 3D foam tape under the heart give it more dimension.

Hope you like it :O)

Love Sara xxx

Wild About Love - Stamp of the Month

I am Wild About Love - totally in love with the cutest foxes EVER !

This is the Stamp of the Month for February and I know you will be Wild about Love with them too :O)

This 1st card uses the new Skylark paper and I have added Hollyhock, Desert Sand and Blush ink

 I used the Skylark Chevron ZipStrip behind the title piece which I stamped in Chocolate and colored with a Sweet Leaf Marker.

 I used Babycakes paper on this one and stamped the I Love You saying all over the Colonial White base in 2nd generation Chocolate ink. I stamped the hearts in Sunset ink on Sunset cardstock.

I used the scallop border punch on the paper and the Whisper cardstock and Chocolate cardstock pieces

 Blush Chocolate and Hollyhock again were the perfect combination for this Hey Foxy card and pale green Epoxy Bubbles added a fun touch to the center of the flower and the title piece.

I used the Scallop Border punch on the title piece and its mat.

 Okay I am not quite sure what happened the the photo below - because that is Dessert Sand cardstock for the base and it sure doesn't look like it here !!

Anyway - trust me - it is :O)

And I used the new Ivy Lane paper in this design which was based on a card made by the Uber talented Lisa Stenz.

 Babycakes again on this one - I used the Goldrush Marker and then Liquid Glass on the heart on the tree trunk - CUTE :O)

 I used Ivy Lane paper on this cute Thank You card designed by my dear friend 

Dana Swadling - love it :O)

 More Babycakes Stripe paper and Chocolate and Sunset ink (perfect colors for foxes) for this card - again the Scallop Border punch was used along the bottom and Liquid Glass on the heart.

 And last but not least a card with no foxes - haha - here I used Laughing Lola paper and the Heart stamp along with Crystal Blue and Cotton Candy Ink to make a more modern card 

with not a fox in sight :O)

 Well I hope you like them as much as I like playing with this super cute set.

Make sure you order yours before the end of February :O)

love Sara xxx