Hi there! My name is Dana Kessler and I have been a consultant with Close To My Heart since 2005. I was first introduced to CTMH at a crop - and when I saw our brand new My Acrylix Stamps, I was hooked! Nine years later, I now lead a fabulous team of over 25 Scraptabulous Designers and I have been blessed to earn six incentive trips with Close To My Heart. Scrapbooking is my passion, and I love sharing our great products with others! I offer monthly workshops, home gatherings, digital scrapbooking classes, weekend crops, and one on one training and design help.
OMG – friends!! Please excuse the super weird password update emails from my website. Something went really wrong with my site today, but I found the problem and deleted the rogue program.
Please delete the emails and be assured that it will not happen again.
Life with technology – it can get CRAZY!!! So sorry!
It’s my FAVORITE time of the year – FALL!!!! The trees are just beginning to change, football is in full swing, and the weather (minus that CRAZY heat wave) is getting cooler, just perfect for snuggling up in sweatshirts and blankets. The holidays are right around the corner, too! Lots of fun decorating and time to spend with those we cherish most, our friends and family.
Falling for You has the perfect colors for autumn and will work great for Thanksgiving, pumpkin carving, fall leaves, and outdoor activities. I also created a fourth layout that is *not* necessarily fall themed, but still focuses on counting your blessings.
WOOOHOOO!!! It’s September 1!!! That means a BRAND NEW Holiday Expression from CTMH!!! New specials, papers, accessories, stamps and a whole lot of GOODNESS!!!
I am kicking things off with my Cats & Bats Scrapbooking Workshop. Now, if you are anything like me, I truly do not have the need for 4 Halloween layouts every year. So, with this kit, I decided to make 1 layout for Halloween and the other 3 for parties, outdoors, and friends. The colors are fun, gender neutral, and super trendy.
I used our BRAND NEW Cricut Collection –You are Here. This cartridge is AWESOME and I am so excited for all the travel and every day images!
DANA’S SPECIAL: Order theYou are Here Cricut Collection from me during the month of September & I will send you a FREE paper pack ($9.95) of your choice!
Happy Summer, everyone!! I can’t even believe it is almost August – it totally snuck up on me! Today I would like to share my Jack Scrapbooking Workshop, I am super excited with how these pages turned out! These papers are perfect to scrapbook your summer adventures, even those rainy, chill-axing days or those extra long car trips…..
Now, if you look at the complements, you will notice that I chose not use the “Little Man” title pieces or PML cards. If you have a Little Man in your life (even a furry one!), feel free to add these pieces back in. My “Little Man” is 17 and taller than me, so I left them out on purpose. LOL
As always, don’t be afraid to turn some photos black and white or use a super cool filter! And, I have been known to totally stage a photo shoot in colors that will match my layouts (think red plaid) when I love the papers!!!
Oh. My. GOODNESS!!!! Friends – I have been the biggest slacker. I have not shared my School Scrapbookon my blog! So, here it is. Let me tell you – this is one of my favoritest, favoritest workshops ever, because it took a ginormous project and broke it down into something I could manage.
First, what you need to know is this – some of these products retire with our current Annual Inspirations on July 31, 2017. So, if you need this workshop, make sure you at least order the retiring products ASAP!!!
Required Product List for 1 Album (Retiring items listed in RED)
Z3254 Enchantment Fundamentals $19.95
Z3265 School K-6 Complements $11.95
Z3266 School 7-12 Complements $11.95
Z3288 Enchantment Ribbon Pack $10.95
X5943 Enchantment Cardstock Combo $14.50
1385 White Daisy CS (3 packs) $9.50 each
Z3239 Silver Glitter Paper $5.95 (3 sheets, only 1 needed for kit)
Z3245 Pocket Plus Design 4 Memory Protectors (2 packs) $7.95 each
Z3230 3×4 Flip Flaps (2 packs) $3.95 each
Z3232 5×7 Flip Flaps (2 packs) $6.95 each
Z3090 Red Enamel Gems $3.95
Z3089 Grey Enamel Gems $3,95
Z3278 PML Tabbed Journaling Cards $4.95
Z1984 Top Load or Z1977 Side Load Memory Protectors $19.95
Album ($29.95)
I created a video for you to see the album. It is a little long (about 16 minutes), but it encompasses *a lot* of stuff, so please stick with me as I attempt to walk you through the concept and design.
I have not set a firm price for this album. Every person’s album is going to be slightly different and I want to leave you the freedom to pick and choose what items you want to add or delete.
I can tell you that if you purchase all the supplies for the album that I have listed above and cut it yourself (you must have a Cricut Explore with the Artbooking cartridge), the total cost will be $200+. The total cost per album does decrease slightly when you purchase supplies for multiple albums.
I am also offering the kit pre-cut ($25 fee) or pre-cut with bases assembled ($50 fee) for those that are interested. Additional add-ons would be the hand stamped title cards, hand stamped teacher/year banners, glitter paper stars.
So, pleaseemail me and we can discuss what will work best for your needs!
Make something SCRAPTABULOUS – becauseCUTE matters!
Hey, ya’ll!!! I hope your summer is off to a GREAT start! It’s almost time for the Close To My Heart National Convention in Utah – I can’t wait! But, before I head out, I wanted to share with you my latest workshop – Prickly Pear. One of the most exciting parts of this new kit is this:
Do you see those people on that layout from the Seasonal Expressions??? THAT IS US!!! My family. Page 27, to be exact. For the first time ever, I actually submitted some photos to CTMH and they used one of them! So we are now like totally #famousnotfamous. HA!!!!
Ok – enough of my nonsense, back to Prickly Pear. I love the colors in this kit – it will be perfect for your outdoor adventures and summer fiestas! These pages will even work for the Fourth of July with the primary colors – YAY!!!
Woohoo!!! Summertime is almost upon us! I am *so* ready for school to get out (June 14th for my kids and June 16th for the school that I sub at). It has just been gorgeous here in Michigan – lots of sunshine and warmth. I am looking forward to chillaxing! And, of course, catching up on my personal scrapbooking!
So – this latest kit, No Worries. MUST HAVE. MUST HAVE. MUST HAVE!!!!! I kept the layouts simple and fresh because summer is all about spending time *making* memories, not preserving them. Whether you are at the pool, at the beach, at the cottage, on vacation – this kit has something for you! If you don’t boat, leave off the boat accents. If you’re at the pool, don’t use the surf boards. So QUICK and EASY and VERSATILE! Trust me, you are going to want to have this kit for your memories! And – remember to use your flip flaps!!! They keep your pages clean and neat while allowing you to include ALL your favorite photos.
Holy Scrap-a-Moly!! You guys – I totally hit a wall this weekend. My body literally revolted and would not let me get out of bed. You know how it is always so easy to tell others that they need to take of themselves while you continue running at full steam? Well, for reals, I am living proof that you can only push yourself so hard before you collapse. Friends, if any of you are in the same boat as I have been – please take some time to let yourself relax. It’s so much nicer when you make the choice to chill rather than being forced to stay in bed!
I hope that ya’ll had a better weekend than I did – although, I do have to say that I had a great Mother’s Day! I was almost brought to tears when my daughter walked into the restaurant with the card they decorated for me. Aren’t they just the sweetest????
So – now that I am feeling much better and have a renewed focus on self-care, I would love to show you my latest workshop – Little Dreamer!
I have to admit that this kit is not something I would typically purchase (although, really – who doesn’t love a magical unicorn?). So, I really tried to create bold layouts that will work for many different occasions. With all the purples and pinks, this kit is a little more on the feminine side – but you can always use more of the blues and eliminate the pink to get a more gender nuetral look for a couple layouts.
It’s May!!!! Can you believe it???? This time of year is completely INSANE in the MEMBRANE (insane in the BRAIN!) for me – so please bear with me as I roll out all of my new creations over the next few weeks!
Not only is it National Scrapbooking Month, it’s also the start of a BRAND NEWSeasonal Expressions Catalog!!! WOOHOO!!! I sure do love me some NEW stuff! The first workshop to be released will be Little Dreamer by Friday, May 12.
So – on to the SPECIAL!!! We are offering a Paper Pack, stamp set, and a (5) double page Pre-Cut Layout kit (called Cut Above) – all with the limited time only Live Beautifully papers! I am so EXCITED to share them with you! I actually PUT PHOTOS on my layouts!! Yes – I did!! I actually SCRAPBOOKED! Can I get a whoop whoop??!!?? Stay tuned to see them…..
Today, I would like to share with you my exclusive (5) Double Page Layout Kit featuring our special paper pack,Live Beautifully. The Live Beautifully Paper Pack features 16 paper sheets; 2 each of 6 double-sided designs and 2 each of 2 single-sided gold foil designs.Continue reading →
Happy Spring, ya’ll!! I am so excited to watch things bloom and spend more time outside. I love Spring – the beauty, the fresh start, new smells, and the sunshine. After the rain and snow we had here this week, I have my fingers crossed that winter will *finally* leave!!!
Some Kinda Wonderful is a great transition kit for the season! There is lots of green, which will be perfect for outdoor photos. The blue and gray will pick up hints of the sky, while the black helps to keep the bright colors grounded. Super cute and trendy! If you aren’t a fan of hot pink, the opposite side of the paper is a patterned white, so you can still use this kit with boys. I plan on using the “You Make My Heart Happy” layout for Mother’s Day. My kids will have to do a photo shoot with me on my day, won’t they???