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If you {heart} Close To My Heart, then this challenge blog is for you! Please read our revised rules, above.

Monday, February 28, 2011

Ready for a new month???

Edited to add Lori's prize info below.

I am always excited to start a new month - but before we do, I want to send a BIG thank YOU to our February sponsors: Shirley Ross and Sandra Strickler. These ladies donated a couple of wonderful prize packages and I have winners to announce!!!  The first winner will be receiving Sandra's package and that person is.........#41 from Hearts week - Rachel P.!  And the winner of Shirley's goodies is........#3 Gina B from the Kissing week. Congrats ladies! Please contact me at mbryt1@bex.net so I can pass your mailing info along to the sponsors.

And now we have two new sponsors!! The first is Lori Brown who you can visit at her blog Saving My.... or her website here. Here is Lori's awesome prize package:


It includes the following - a Key To My Heart paper pack, Primaver rub-ons, Miracle Irresistibles, Around the Block stamp set, Egg Hunt stamp set, and a petite perks stamp set. Thanks Lori!!


 I also have a photo of the prize that our second sponsor, Angela Parchey, is offering - take a look:


The package includes an Art Board, Floral Tapestry Simply Snapshots, a package of Clear Shapes, the stamp set Splendid and two square clear cards and two scalloped circle clear cards (both with clear envelopes). Awesome! Thank you Angela! You can stop by and visit Angela at her blog Parchey Family. And you'll be seeing more from Angela in a few minutes as she is playing along with our challenge this week - yeah! Thanks ladies for sponsoring our little challenge blog!

Before we get to the challenge, I also want to thank our outgoing Guest DT, Aaron Brown and welcome our Guest DT for March - Mary Gunn!


Here's a little intro from Mary:
 
"I have always loved paper and making cute things. It is good clean FUNN (except my inky fingers and glittery face)!

So when I learned about Close To My Heart (then D.O.T.S.), I fell in love with stamping, inks and the paper!

Now in my 12th year as a Consultant, I truly, madly, deeply love sharing both simple ways to create cute things and cute things I have created. My motto is, “Making Ladies Happy and the World Cuter”.
I just want to share the “FUNN” with everyone who will listen and look.

Posting on Heart 2 Heart is remarkably easy and so rewarding because the comments left are uplifting and encouraging – they make my day!
It is just darn cool to be the Guest Designer in March! I'm delighted to be able to add some FUNN to such a great site. Thanks to Mary, the prize people and the design team for all you do! Let's have a FUNN March!"

Welcome Mary! You can stop by and see Mary at Mary Gunn FUNN and at her website here. Mary will be playing along with the DT for a couple of weeks in March so stay tuned!

Now on to our challenge. It's a color challenge and here are the colors:

Let's see what the team created to get you inspired, starting with sponsor Angela Parchey:

Such a sweet card and a great use of the colors! Thanks for playing with us Angela!








What a talented team! I am so excited to see what this group of gals produces week after week - amazing! But there are a lot of talented stampers out there!!! And YOU are one of them! So join us and play along with our color challenge this week. We're starting a new month, with new prizes and you can increase your chances to win by playing along each week. Don't forget to follow the rules (see the sidebar for details) and use CTMH products in your artwork.

Have a wonderful and creative week! I will be back later in the week with our Top Ten for February!

Monday, February 21, 2011

Are you tired of the COLD yet?

Well don't throw in the towel on cold weather just yet because this week, we need you to show us COLD! But more on that in a minute.

First, this is the last week for entering the monthly challenges so ALL ENTRIES MUST BE IN BY 10:00 pm EST this SATURDAY, Feb. 26th!  This is also the last week for our sponsors for the month so a great big thank you to Sandra Strickler and Shirley Ross! We will be drawing winners of their great prizes before next week's challenge and you could be one of the lucky two! Get those entries in!

Now on to this week's challenge. We want to see your artwork that makes you think of the word COLD. This can be shown in the image you use or the colors you use or whatever way you interpret cold. I think you'll get the idea when you see what the DT created so let's get to the artwork!

First up, our sponsor Shirley is joining us with some "chilly" artwork:

Beautiful card Shirley! Thanks for playing along with us!









Did you know you can intrepret one word in so many fabulous ways? Now it's your turn! Create your artwork and be sure to include Close To My Heart products (this is a requirement!) then leave a direct link to your post (not to your artwork photo - we would like to leave you a comment so we need a link to the post with the artwork). Enjoy creating!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Scrapbook layout now posted!

Wow - where does the time go? I lost a whole week somehow and should have posted the scrapbook sketch last week. And I thought I was just a day late! Anyhow, the sketch and sample layout are now posted at the H2H Scrapbooking page - just click the tab at the top and check it out!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Show us your heart!

You are bringing on some fabulous artwork - we love visiting your blogs and seeing what you are creating! Thanks for playing along with us! There is still time this month to enter the challenges and possibly win one of two great prizes from our sponsors: Shirley Ross and Sandra Strickler. Thanks to these two great sponsors, someone (actually 2 someones) will win goodies at the end of the month  - it might just be you!

So this week's challenge - being that we are starting it on Valentine's Day - is to create a project that incorporates hearts. It can be a card, layout or anything else as long as there is at least one heart included.

That being said, let's take a look at what the DT whipped up, starting with our Guest DT - Aaron:

What a beautiful card, Aaron! Thanks for playing along with us this month!!









Are you feeling the love? Now it's your turn to show us your heart(s). Don't forget to direct link to the post with your artwork so we can find the entry easily. Otherwise, it might get passed over and we don't want that to happen to anyone!!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone - and happy creating!

Monday, February 7, 2011

From Our Heart to Yours

It's time for a new challenge and a new feature on the H2H challenge blog. Remember a couple of weeks ago when we introduced From Your Heart to Ours and asked you to share your organizational ideas and tips as well as photos of your stamp room. Well now we have a new feature that will be called From Our Heart to Yours. This challenge will pop up every other month and it will focus on a technique that we will share with you - not only in artwork but also in tutorials. And while these might be techniques you know, it's time to dust them off and try them once again!

So since February is the month of hearts and love, we thought a great technique to try in our challenge this week is Kissing and Kiss and Twist. Possibly you saw the post at Jeanette Lynton's blog a few weeks back about Kissing. You can check it out HERE. We are also thrilled to include a video tutorial from our "Guest Expert" - Tresa Black - take a peek below or click this link.



And now for some fabulous artwork, starting with our Guest DT member for February, Aaron K Brown:

Aaron also has a tutorial to share with you on her blog! Thanks Aaron!


Mary






Well, there's plenty of inspiration for you! Now we want to see your Kissing and Kiss and Twist artwork. One word of caution - it seems that all the members of the DT had trouble finding enough solid stamp choices in the current CTMH Idea Book so feel free to dig out some older stamps and give them some kissing love :)

Don't forget - you have the entire month to play along with these challenges. Deadline to enter all February challenges is Feb. 26th at 10 pm EST. The more you play, the more chances you have to win the prizes from our fabulous sponsors - Sandra Strickler and Shirley Ross. Thanks ladies! Have fun creating everyone! We can't wait to see what you Kiss!


Friday, February 4, 2011

January Top Ten

We had so many awesome entries in our January challenges that narrowing down to ten was a challenge itself! But the decision has been made and I am pleased to announce the Top Ten! There is a peek of each project below - click the photo to see the entire project and leave these ladies some well deserved congratulations!

From the color challenge week, we have:


From the organization challenge week, in the top ten are:


And from the last week, animals/birds, we have:


And our number one spot for the month goes to:
MARY GUNN


Mary will be joining us as Guest DT for the month of March. Way to go everyone and remember to keep playing along with our challenges this month for your chance to be in the next Top Ten!

** Jody G - please email me at mbryt1@bex.net so I can send your new badge info to you -

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Welcome our February Guest DT

We have a new Guest DT with us this month and I would like to take a minute to introduce her - K. Aaron Brown!

"I am 34 years old, and I have been a CTMH consultant for almost 6 years! I have a degree from Clarendon College in Ranch and Feedlot Management (you never would have guessed that!) and I also graduated from Texas Tech University with a degree in Landscape Architecture and a minor in Horticulture. My day job involves designing Landscapes and Irrigation Systems. In the evenings and weekends you will almost always find me in my craft room.

I started scrapbooking in 1994 after my aunt made me a scrapbook of my whole Senior year of High School. I still have the big ol Fat book with pictures of bad hair and even worse clothes! I have been published in Paper Crafts magazine 6 times and will have another project in the July/August 2011 issue. I enjoy reading, gardening, a little sewing and recently I took soldering class and I am totally addicted to making charms!!"

We are so happy to have Aaron joining us this month and you will see her first challenge artwork as a DT member posted this coming Monday when we bring you another new offering from H2H! Meanwhile, be sure to stop by Aaron's blog  - Booth #32 - and leave her a little hello. And I will be back on Friday with our January Top Ten post - stay tuned!