Beat Inflation!

We've all heard the phrase "What goes up must come down".  While gravity will pull down a falling object - it doesn't work on two things - our age and price tags!
There are several items which will be going up in price with the new catalog being released on August 1st.  Most of the increases were deemed necessary as the price of plastic has increased and are only $1 or $2, but the items below have the bigger jumps in price. July would be a great time to order or stock up, before the prices go up!



Memory Protectors Top Load Value Pack    increasing $4



12x12 Plastic envelopes  increasing $3

Small organizer  increasing $3

Medium organizer increasing $5

Large organizer increasing $5

Capturing Time

Scrapbooking - even paper crafting - is SO MUCH FUN! It's a great relaxing hobby that has a purpose - to preserve your memories.  But your life is full of making those memories.  And work.  And laundry.  And dirty dishes.  And family obligations.  And sickness.  And baby showers.  And television.  And dirty diapers. And the list goes on.
We don't find time in our 24 hours-we make time for the things that are important to us.  Scrapbooking is a way of preserving the important things, for our own memories and for our descendants. 
If you are struggling to make the time to scrapbook take a few minutes to figure out why.  A few changes in your routine could open up just the window you need!

• Attend a crop where you can fully focus on your pages.
• Create a craft friendly space at home, where you can leave your stuff out all the time.
• Organize a small box of just the basics that you can take out and put away easily if space is limited. (Workshops your Way are great here). 
• Attend short workshops, where most supplies are provided, with no extras that need to be stored at home.  Keep a small bag with the basics - scissors, tape, and journaling pen. You are in and out, with completed pages!
• Trade an hour you normally spend watching television for an hour of scrapbooking.  (Television is my downfall; but I'm working on it!)
• Put your paper scraps, a few stickers, safety scissors, a glue stick and your unused photos in a basket.  When it's scrap time, give this to your child and let them scrap with you!

Do you have any suggestions for us on how to capture more time during your day?

Final month for 2016-2017 Annual Inspiration

July is the final month to order from the 2016-2017 Annual Inspirations and what a great time to grab any stamp set you have had your eye on!  It's also Stampaganza - buy 2 stamp sets, get the 3rd for free!  Stamps from either of the idea books are eligible for the Stampaganza special; however most items are in the Seasonal Expressions are available through August.

As with every catalog, some item sell out before the month is over and will not be restocked. 

But with the end of one idea book, another one begins.  How about holding a home party to get some of the great new products for free?  Contact me for more details!

Recipe for Artwork

Did you know...  that there is a recipe available for all the layouts you find in the Annual Inspirations and all the Seasonal Expressions catalogs?  It doesn't tell you how to make the layout, but it does tell you all the items the art team used to create it.  With the visual finished product and this list, it's easy to recreate everything you see in the idea books! 


Here is a sample.



And here is the layout:

Click Here to go to the Digital Idea books.

Once there, choose Recipes right under the catalog picture.  It looks like this on my computer:

A Dozen Free Stamp Sets

Now is a great time to join my team!  I am still super excited after convention and Close to My Heart has a really nice incentive if you join in July.
As part of the Stampaganza promotion, CTMH has brought back 12 older stamp sets, collectively known as Word Puzzle.  There is one for each month of the year.  If you join the team in July and have sales totaling $300 by the end of August, you will receive all 12 stamp sets for free!  This is the July Join the Team special and is in addition to everything you receive in your new consultant bundle ($75 plus $15 shipping).  So what are you waiting for?  Not ready to join?  This bundle can be purchased during July only for $143.60.

Frame It!

I have a new quarterly workshop I'm testing called Frame It!  This will be a single page layout, multi-layered, artsy 12X12 for one or two photos, designed to be displayed in a frame.  I am offering the workshop on three different days in August, mostly to discover the best day of the week. Future workshops will be offered once.  You can pick your date and RSVP via Facebook.
The workshop includes a white 12X12 frame for $25 or just the layout for $15.  There will be a selection of titles for you to choose from including Beach, You + Me, Family and Smiles.
As you replace the layouts in the frame, they can be slid into a scrapbook individually, or you can make a opposite side layout using 12 - 3X3 squares, for a simple and complete double layout. (The workshop is for the single page only.)

Alphabet Stamp Set for $5!

July's stamp of the month is this alphabet!  Only $5 with a $50 purchase, or you can buy it for $17.95, no additional purchase necessary.

Let's Party!

Convention is the best place to get new ideas and be really inspired.  With all the things I picked up there this past week, I'd like to tell you about what I'll be doing differently in my business.
Close to My Heart is the "Let me show you how" company of scrapbooking.  I always have been and will always be available to help you with your scrapbooks or any questions you have about our products.  If you doubt me - give me a call and find out for yourself!
I offer five things -
Parties - book a party and earn FREE stuff!  I come to you, it takes about an hour and you & your friends can see what great products we have.  I encourage you to invite your friends who don't scrap (yet) and introduce Close to My Heart to them.  After all - it's a party, the more the merrier!
Crops - I hold an open crop one Saturday a month for a cost of $5.  Bring your own supplies, the stuff you bought at a party or any project you are working on and get it completed.  The crops are from 10AM until 10PM or anytime in between that works for you.  And if you have made a purchase at a party, you can get the crop for free!
Workshops - these are held on special dates.  They are announced here on the blog and on Facebook.  For each workshop, you will know exactly what you are making and how much it costs, usually between $10 and $25.  The Bells & Whistles days fall into this category.  You need to RSVP for these events, to make sure a kit is ready and waiting for your arrival.
Retreats - I offer two retreats a year, at The Scrapbook Playhouse in Guntersville.  One is in February, the other is in June.  There are only 7 openings at each retreat, and the cost is $125 for 4 days and 3 nights. 
Consulting - there are 3 reasons to become a consultant - to get your products at a discount, to get your products free, and to earn some money. Achieving the different levels are based upon the amount of time you put into the business. If I do say so myself, I am a very good up line and will help you be successful in the business, no matter your reason.  Plus, as a consultant, you can attend convention with me for your own inspiration!
The biggest change is that I have offered workshops at parties in the past, but in the future I will be separating the two things.  Parties will show a small, quick make and take, and be short in nature.  Workshops will be held on separate days and are 2-4 hours long.  Like me on Facebook (Decorating Days), be my friend (Dawn Cortner) for personal invitations to events, or subscribe to the blog emails to see when the workshops are.
Happy Scrapping!

Stampaganza 2017!

July is Stampaganza!  Buy 2 stamps sets and the a 3rd for free!  (The 3rd stamp set must be of lessor or equal value.)  Every stamp in the Annual Expressions and Seasonal Expressions 2 is included (but not die sets).  There are also 27 retired stamp sets that have been brought back for this special!  You can check them out HERE.  Below are just a sample. 

Something to NOTE:

If you are ordering two sets of 3 stamps, please contact me to order.  If you want one set of $17.95 stamps, and one set of $13.95 stamps and order them all on the same order online, the system will give you two of the $13.95 sets for free.  I can get you one $17.95 set and one $13.95 set!