Heartfelt Whimsy Die-Cuts

Heartfelt Whimsy Die-Cuts...is such a great name for this Close To My Heart product! I am TOTALLY enamoured with these felt die-cuts #Z1145 $9.95 You get three 11 1/2" x 11 1/2" sheets, 1 each in Buttercup, Garden Green and Tulip for only $9.95!!!!!!
I know!! Love it-thank you CTMH!! So I challenged myself to come up with something fun using felt and this was the result. Please accept my apology for such bad pics of this layout. If I had a 12" scanner, life would be so much easier!! I will try taking pics again to get the details but I really wanted to share this. I love using brads on this felt (I used Bitty Brads #Z1051 $5.95) and layering with Edge Anchors (I used "Cottage" #Z1035 $5.95) -cute! I found that I really prefer a wet adhesive to insure the felt sticks to a surface like the Bonding Memories Glue Pen #Z553 $4.50
The paper I used is from "Emporium" paper pak-one of my all time favs, mixed with some "Paper Garden" paper. Isn't it great how so many CTMH papers coordinate with each other?! YAY! Love to save $$ this way so I have more to spend on stamps!!
Oh yeah-the title was created using Color-Ready Alphabets #x5749 $3.95 which are actually perfect for chalking, inking, sponging, etc. but for this layout I wanted something simple so this was a good choice for me. Thanks again, ctmh!
If you read about anything you just have to have-check out my website laurabohall.myctmh.com It's kinda fun to shop from home and have your goodies delivered right to your front door. Or, e-me at laura@bohall.org and I will place your order for you!

hope you had a great weekend~L

......a bit of fun......

I saw this on Karen Pederson's blog www.karenpederson.blogspot.com and had to do it! FUN! If you would like to participate, just copy and paste this list of questions and change to your answers and post it on your blog with a link to mine. (www.justgatheringpieces.blogspot.com) Then be sure to comment here and let me know if you have done it and include your blog address so I can come and learn more about you.

Here's ME:
Age: 50
Bed size: King
Chore you hate: cleaning the cat boxes!
Dad's Name: Roy
Essential start your day item: ice water
Favorite actor(s): Robin Williams, Meryl Streep, Angelica Huston
Gold or Silver: Silver or Platinum
Height: 5’8"
Instruments you play(ed): Flute
Job title: mom, substitute teacher, scout troop leader, Close to My Heart Manager
Kid(s): Grace and John ~ 8 yrs old
Living arrangements: own a home in Berryville, VA in the shadow of the BlueRidge Mtns near the Shenandoah River with my sweet man Brian and the kiddos
Mom's name: Barbara (Grammy)
Nicknames: Shug (only my DH can use this)
Overnight hospital stay other than birth: multiple hernia repairs after the twins were born
Pet peeves: biogtry
Quotes you like: "Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle" ~ Plato
Rightie or Leftie: Rightie
Siblings: Peggy, Roy, Richard and Susanna
Time you wake up: 6:30 a.m. can't miss the school bus!
Umbrella: naw, unless I'm waiting at the bus stop
Vegetable you dislike: where do I begin...brussel sprouts!
Ways you run late: browsing art blogs and cat naps
X-rays you've had: both ankles, right wrist
Yummy food you make: baked chimis-shared this on Jeanette's blog-ahhhh!
Zodiac: Gemini

the Lemonade Award!!!!!

How exciting! I received my first blog award from my sweet friend Melissa. She is such an incredibly creative person and I am always peeking at her blog for inspiration. I would love for you to check her blog out, and tell her I said Hey!

http://fancymelissa.blogspot.com

I am going to list a few blogs here that I peruse almost daily.
However,........it will be a couple of days before I am able to do this! I am in the middle of a marathon substitute teaching gig finished off with a family trip out of town, so most of my life is on H-O-L-D while these things are going on!
more later!!!!!!!!

June Sneak Peek Time!

Have I mentioned I'm involved in a 'virtual' card swap? I love it! The paper and stamp set are pre-determined and I only have to make one card (as opposed to 8 or 18 or 80!).

For this card we were to use Close To My Heart "Animal Cookies" from the new Summer 2009 Idea Book and the June (a 'la sneak peek) Stamp of the Month "Tender Tags". I wouldn't normally have paired these 2 products together, but since I was committed to the swap, I worked on this for a few hours and this is what I finished with. What do you think? The paper is hysterically fun for doing kid layouts and actually might work on a "cheer you up" kinda card. The tags I adore and you will be seeing a lot of these in future layouts.
Have you received your copy of the new Idea Book from me yet?
Just let me know and I will get one to you. Or, you can view the online version and place an order on my business website www.laurabohall.myctmh.com

Have a great evening!

Happy Mother's Day!

This is a card I made for my mom, Dr. Barbara Allyn Cooper Fry. My mother is the most gentle, patient, giving Southern woman I know. Her family comes first, no matter what. The biggest thing my mom taught me was that we are all equal, no matter what our differences -social, religious, physical or racial, to name just a few. I value this lesson and try to live by it every day.
Mom was born in Loudoun County, Virginia during a time where there wasn't much diversity locally. Her parents were simple tennant farmers who decided they wanted more education for their children then they had received, so mom spent a lot of time studying at the kitchen table by oil lamp in addition to daily farm chores. She was able to attend college by working her way through on-campus jobs and returned to the Loudoun area to pursue her dream of teaching in the local school system. It was here that she met her soon-to-be husband, my father Roy A. Fry, who was also an educator. My parents moved to Fairfax County, Virginia to take advantage of the high-quality schools and to begin their own family. It was in Fairfax, growing up with children from different ethnic backgrounds that I began to learn my mother's valuable life lesson of equality. It was in the way she treated everyone alike-with respect, no matter who they were. And believe me, I had some extremely different type friends! When I was a teen, I attended one of my mom's PTA meetings where she was the elementary principal. She had to make some tough decisions regarding a school matter, and some parents were very angry and disrespectful. My mom never raised her voice back to these adults. She showed so much restraint that eventually everyone calmed down and listened to her reasoning. Once we were home I marveled at how she didn't lose her temper or hold ill will against the parents. She told me that everyone deserved to be treated with respect, equally, even the angry ones! This was just one of the many ways my mom showed me that I should treat everyone the same-no matter what their differences. I hope to instill this same value in my own children and eventually they will pass the lesson to their children.
thank you, mom, for everything.
love ya~L

Sympathy Card

Sadly, I have had to create some sympathy cards in the past few weeks. I decided to use "Unforgettable" which is a beautiful line of paper from Close To My Heart and 2 stamp sets that are always within reach. I didn't want to create "make a statement" type cards like I usually do, so this card in particular is pretty pared down.

The paper is "Unforgettable" Level 2 #x7106B and the stamp sets are "Faith" #B1201 and "Comforting Thoughts" #C1088. These products can be ordered from my website www.laurabohall.myctmh.com or email me laura@bohall.org

...we will miss you, Georgia.....

Open House!!

Want your own copy of the NEW 2009 Close To My Heart Summer Idea Book? Want to play with new products and make a cute card or a layout? Want to see samples of upcoming workshops? Come to my Summer Idea Book Open House!!!!!!!!
May 15 - Friday Night - Crums Church 7pm-10pm
2832 Crums Church Rd

See you there!

...just some really cool news....

Carol Ann Duffy has been named as the new Poet Laureate, the first woman to be appointed in the 341-year history of the post.
Duffy, 53, who takes over immediately from Andrew Motion and will serve 10 years in the position, says she will give the £5,750 annual payment away.
The author, who is best known for her collection The World's Wife, is also the first Scot to be named Laureate.
Duffy said she felt "very honoured and humbled" by her appointment.
'Truly brilliant'
The poet told BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour she had thought "long and hard" about taking the appointment.
"I look on it as a recognition of the great woman poets we have writing now," she said.
"I've decided to accept it for that reason."
She added: "Poetry is all around us, all of the time, whether in song or in speech or on the page, and we turn to it when events, personal or public, matter most.
"In accepting this Laureateship, I hope to contribute to people's understanding of what poetry can do and where it can be found."
She has said she will donate her yearly honorarium for the new post to the Poetry Society to fund a prize for the best collection of the year.
The job also comes with a payment of a "butt of sack" or, in modern terms, about 600 bottles of sherry.