Happy Halloween!

   Happy Halloween to all you ghouls and goblins out there! We finished setting up the fog machine and strobe lights for tonight's trick-or-treat, and I cannot wait to see what the kids think of the house this year! We did a few new things and brought back a few old ones, but I think it turned out pretty awesome!

   I cannot believe it's the end of the month already, though! Compared to the last couple weeks today feels like mid-fall, too! So I hope you all are bundled for tonight! Brrr!

   Tonight is the last chance everyone has to take advantage of all of October's awesome specials from Close to My Heart! So make sure and log-in to the online shopping site to get your own treats today!

October SOTM: Home for the Holidays:

   Today is the last day to get this super cute stamp-of-the-month featuring some adorable holiday themed images! You can get this stamp set for $17.95 today or with any $50 purchase this stamp set is only $5! I love this set, and think the little bear is the cutest! Here's some artwork featuring the October SOTM:

Ribbon Revelry Promotion:

   The ribbon campaign this month was a huge hit and the chevron ribbon giveaway was out before the middle of the month! However, CTMH is a super awesome and generous company and decided not to stop there! 

   Instead they started giving away a SURPRISE ribbon spool with a qualifying purchase of $50! A couple of the orders my friends received had Burlap ribbon and Jute ribbon in them! Talk about a huge surprise! I love our Burlap ribbon!

   Each FREE ribbon spool has an original retail value of $6.95, but quantities are still going fast! So hurry and get your orders in to take advantage of your FREE ribbon today! 

The chevron spools have sold out, but there are still surprise ribbons included in your $50 purchase!

Cricut Club with FREE stamp sets: 

    October is your last chance to sign up for the Candid Cricut Club and qualify for 2 FREE Cricut compatible stamp sets with your purchase of the new Artfully Sent Cricut Collection!

   This awesome new online club will feature all four of the CTMH Cricut Collections and will have free downloads, tutorials, projects, and tips each month! You cannot go wrong with this FREE online workshop!

   Plus, there's a bonus giveaway! Sign up for my Candid Cricut Club anytime in October AND purchase the brand new Artfully Sent Cricut Collection, and you will be eligible to receive 2 Cricut Compatible Stamp sets of your choice!!!* It's an awesome deal, and the perfect time to take advantage of getting the new Cricut Collection today!

*This promotion is only good when you sign up and order through Karina McQuistan. No other orders from other consultants will be honored. Free stamps sets with purchase are any of the Cricut Compatible A or B-sized sets available on my Online Shopping Site. 

   I think that's everything to wrap up this awesome month! Have fun trick-or-treating tonight, everyone, and be safe! Happy Haunting and until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

Tuesday Tidbit: Border Punches

    After too long of a hiatus, I am back with Tuesday Tidbit! Today we're heading back to "Tool School" to explore a super handy tool: border punches! I love CTMH's border punches! They're easy to use, add cute accents to any project, and have trendy and fun patterns!

    CTMH has three awesome border punches in their tool selection! The triangle, chevron, and scallop border punches!

    Each one has an easy to push punch handle, and a storage container for all the scrap pieces! I love this part of these punches! It keeps the mess off my work table, makes for easy clean up, and is an easy to flip open storage section!

Closed storage container on the bottom of the punch. This holds all the little punched out pieces for easy clean up!

The storage container opens in a breeze for easy discard of debris!

    Plus I love that these awesome punches are trendy and perfect for all types of projects! Here are a few of my recent projects using these fantastic border punches:

Scallop border punch on Smokey Plum cardstock

Scallop border punch on washi tape

Triangle border punch on Colonial White cardstock to form a border!

    Do you use border punches on your projects? If not, there's always time to start! :) You can see these and more fun tools on my online site! Hope you enjoyed this "tool school" tidbit! Have a great Tuesday, and until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

New November Promotion!!

    This morning I sent out a newsletter about the New November promotion that CTMH is doing next month! It's an awesome new promotion that will have you catching up on your memory keeping and scrapbooking in no time! Plus you can win a ton of extras just by catching up on your projects!

    You can check out the newsletter here:

Candid Correspondence: New November Promotion

    Did you receive your Candid Correspondence newsletter this morning? If you would like to be on my monthly mailing list, sign up on the newsletter mailing list form here or at the top of my blog page!

    My newsletters keep you updated on all things CTMH including specials, promotions, Candid Crafter exclusives, upcoming events, and so much more! Plus, you're going to want to be on the mailing list this next month when I start to reveal the upcoming release of CTMH's Seasonal Expressions I Idea Book!

    I hope you all are having a great weekend enjoying this beautiful weather we're having! If you have any questions about the November promotion or need help signing up for my newsletter, please let me know! Enjoy your Sunday, everyone, and until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity! 

Tuesday Tidbit: Back to Basics

   Hi, everyone! Sorry I have not been updating as much I wanted to these last couple days! I have been working on finishing the office/craft room this week! It's really starting to come together, and I'm excited to create in this new space! Hopefully I will have a video tour of the craft room uploaded for you all by the end of the month! Here's hoping!

   Today, though, I wanted to go back-to-basics and share a quick video I made this week for a virtual workshop I hosted online!

   This video is all about getting that perfect stamped image, and all my little tips that help me achieve the perfect image almost every time! I hope you enjoy my video! Let me know if there's other videos you would like to see in the future!

  

   Everyone needs a quick reminder of the basics every now and then! I hope this inspires you to get crafty this week! Until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

Back to Reality!

    Good Morning, crafty peeps! Sorry I have been so MIA lately! I have been running around like a crazy person this last month (what else is new, right??)! Just to give you an idea.....this was my schedule:

September 11th-20th : Up north on vacation along Lake Superior
September 24th: Crafting with Cricut Class (received the new cartridge the weekend we got back!)
September 26th-28th: IA trip for WAH Club
September 29th-October 1st: Okoboji, IA to see my in-laws
October 2nd: Birthday celebrations, laundry, re-packing
October 3-5th: WI trip for my cousin's wedding

    Add in there all the running around to get my dress and wedding accessories, appointments for HVAC, garage door repair, and other crazy household stuff (yay home ownership), and in between trying to get projects done for my next few workshops. Yeah....it's been nuts-o! Not to mention I take care of the family bills and finances, run a rental property in IA, and had 4 parties I needed to close for the month of September!

Totally me these last few months!

    Don't get me wrong....I'm not complaining...it's just sometimes I look at my schedule and wonder how I juggle all these things without losing my mind! I'm sure all of you feel like this, too! Especially those of you that do everything you do, AND have little ones at home! I can't even imagine!

    So the last couple days that I've been home (yay home), I have been catching up on life, working on projects, and planning some new upcoming fun events! I'm excited to have a couple new things starting for all of you.....but you're going to have to wait just a little longer to find out what I have up my sleeve!!

    Plus this weekend I'm using retail therapy to ease back into reality! Have any of you heard of "October Afternoon"? For those of you that haven't, it's a Minnesota based scrapbooking company that has a warehouse in Apple Valley!

    Last year they had a warehouse sale during Scrapfest weekend, and it was such a hit they brought it back this year! Woohoo! If you get a chance, go check it out! Their products are so stinkin' cute, and the sale prices are insane!!!

    I also want to check out a local craft fair this weekend at the Hastings Armory on Hwy 61, decorate my house for Halloween (those of you that saw it last year know that it's a process), and organize my craft room (FINALLY!!!)! So if you're around and looking for some crafty inspiration this weekend...check these things out!

   Check back in this weekend for some crafty CTMH inspiration, and until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!

October Love

    October is here and already filling up quickly! My 31st birthday is in a couple days, and I get to celebrate by being a Bridesmaid in my cousin's wedding (the same cousin who introduced me to CTMH 4 years ago)!!!! I cannot wait to celebrate with her and her almost-hubby on their special day! It's going to be beautiful, and I cannot wait to share it with them!

    I also have the much anticipated Halloween Home Decor workshop coming up, Croptoberfest, and our Annual Halloween display to set up outside! It's going to go fast, but I cannot wait! This month is always so much fun!

Our house after dark at last year's Halloween! We had Halloween music playing outside, a fog machine behind our tombstones, and each window had a strobe light in it, too! It was so much fun!

    A new month means new CTMH goodness to bring you, too! So let's jump in and get started with all your favorite Steals and Deals for the month!

October Stamp-of-the-Month: Home for the Holidays

    This month's SOTM is a holiday-themed, Cricut compatible stamp set that features super cute images that are perfect for your holiday projects this year (you can never start too early, right??)!! You can get this set for only $5 this month with any $50 purchase!

October Promotion: Ribbon Revelry

    During the month of October, with each qualifying purchase of $50 you are eligible to receive, as a special bonus, one of CTMH's exclusive chevron ribbons for FREE! Each chevron ribbon, Ruby or Outdoor Denim, has an original retail value of $6.95.

    So which ribbon will you get? It’s a surprise! Quantities are limited, so place your orders as early in the month as possible. Be sure to take advantage of this fantastic offer so you can enjoy embellishing your creations with your own surprise roll of bonus ribbon!

Candid Cricut Club

How would you like to be part of a special club that explores all the possibilities of all 4 of the CTMH Cricut Collections through tips, tricks, demonstrations, FREE workshops, and so much more? 

    If this sounds like an awesome deal to you, then sign up for my Candid Cricut Club starting this month! Simply fill out the form with your name and email address. Then in the message please write "Sign me up for the Candid Cricut Club"! I will add you to the list, and send you more information about the club via email!

    

     I am so excited for this new club! It's completely FREE to join, and will have lots of tutorials, projects, and other fun things to participate in each month! 

    Plus, there's a bonus giveaway that I am extending into October! Sign up for my Candid Cricut Club anytime in October AND purchase the brand new Artfully Sent Cricut Collection, and you will be eligible to receive 2 Cricut Compatible Stamp sets of your choice!!!*

*This promotion is only good when you sign up and order through Karina McQuistan. No other orders from other consultants will be honored. Free stamps sets with purchase are any of the Cricut Compatible A or B-sized sets available on my Online Shopping Site. 

 

Upcoming Workshops, Classes, & Crops:

Halloween Home Decor Class:

     On October 8th I will be having a Halloween Home Decor Class at my house in Hastings, MN! We will be making a Halloween "BOO" sign using the Scaredy Cat paper pack, Artbooking Cricut cartridge, and some fun Halloween stamp sets from CTMH! The cost of this workshop is only $16 and includes everything you need to complete this project! Here are a couple sneaks for you:

    

Croptoberfest

    Wooohoo! It's back! A special fall crop on October 25th at my house in Hastings, MN from 10AM-12AM (14 hours of un-interrupted crafting time):

    This year's Croptoberfest is completely FREE to attend! I will have prizes, challenges, and even a Fall make-n-take if you would like to participate! Even if you cannot stay all day, it's going to be an awesome day of crafting fun, so come join us!

     That's the scoop for October! Take advantage of these offers today by shopping my Online Site any time! If you have any questions or need help getting all your goodies, please let me know! Happy October to you all, and until next time:

Here's to life, love, and creativity!