It's All About the COFFEE!

Winner at Fresh Brewed Designs

Coffee of the Day - Creme Brulee

This is a double Guestie post, since today I have the honor & privilege of being a Guest Designer over on the Coffee Loving Cardmaker Blog as well as my position through July with Bugaboo.

You could have knocked me over with a feather when Amy asked me if I would be interested in being a guest for her on the CLC blog. I'm a member on their Facebook group and play along in as many of the seasonal hops as I possibly can, but to be a guest designer?! whoa nelly! that is big time!!!

so of course I said YES!, spilled my coffee all over the place, brewed another cup, and then started planning what to make. could I stop with one project? heck no. had to make 2! :) 'cause that's just how I roll....

as soon as I saw the image that was going to be this week's Friday Freebie at Bugaboo, my twisted sister mind went all googly and came up with this sentiment. so I typed it out on my compy and got busy crafting! isn't this "I'm Cute" monster just so much fun?

bg was created by stamping an old coffee bean bg stamp from Rubbernecker Stamps on watercolor paper with versamark. I embossed it with copper ep. then I went to town with my gelatos and watercolors using lots of bright, cheerful colors. spritzed it with an overcoat of glimmer mist. paper is from the Basic Grey Highline collection.

burlap doily is from Hobby Lobby, flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts, vivid pink seam binding (distressed with several shades of ink) & pink burlap string are from Really Reasonable Ribbon, and wood veneer coffee cup is from Latina Crafter. buttons are from my vintage stash. Starbucks coffee cozy and clothespin were painted with acrylic paint and then sponged with inks.

next card is made using a template from The Cutting Cafe and papers from the Basic Grey Grand Bazaar collection. I simply adore this coffee themed digi set from Bugaboo! made me smile the first time I saw it! meet 'Ruby Tidbits - Coffee.' :) isn't she a hoot? Bugaboo has lots of great coffee images!

bright pink swiss dot grosgrain & plum grosgrain ribbons are from Really Reasonable Ribbon and floral sequins are from Paper Sweeties. button is vintage and coffee cozy & stirrer are re-purpsed from a Starbucks trip. :)

thank you so much for stopping by! and thank you again to Amy for asking me to be a guest with the Coffee Loving Cardmakers!

I have several posts on my blog today, so grab a cuppa and stay a while if you'd like. :)

Challenges:
Cute Card Thursday - food or drink
Brown Sugar - anything goes
Crafty Catz - anything goes
Cr8tive Hands - anything goes
Tuesday Throwdown - embossing (top card - embossed bg)
Crafting for all Seasons - add some embossing (top card - embossed bg)
Double Click Skittles - something yummy (for me it is ALWAYS all about the coffee!!!)
Fresh Brewed Designs - coffee (wooooo hoooooo!)

A Fun Little Shamrock Shaped Card

Coffee of the Day - Spiced Pecan

So how is your weekend going so far? is it sunshiney where you are? cold? warm? we have bits of snow on the ground, but not too much. it's been a fairly mild winter so far.

Today I am going to share with you a card I made using the freebie image given out over at Sandra Caldwell's Facebook page as part 3 of the Facebook challenge. You can also find the image in her Etsy store here.

The shamrock card template comes from The Cutting Cafe. I will warn you now that it is small. I had to print the digi out super teeny tiny in order to get it to fit. but it sure is cute! :)

paper is from the Authentique Charmed collection. I intentionally offset the pale green piece. little doily is from Etsy and pale green rose is from Wild Orchid Crafts.  pretty ribbons can be found at Really Reasonable Ribbons. for a bonus, the light green grosgrain is even on sale right now! gotta love sale stuff. ;)

of course every St. Patrick's Day card needs it's spot of gold, so I added some fun sequins.
enjoy your day! I really appreciate you stopping by! see you tomorrow. :)

Challenges:
Choux Choux Paper Art - St. Patrick's Day or green
Come and Get It - monochrome
Great Impressions - Let's Celebrate (St. Patrick's Day)
Hiding in My Craft Room - any holiday (St. Patrick's Day)
Fussy and Fancy - shabby and fun bingo (cute image, ribbons or bows, shaped card, anything goes - sequins)
Creative Knockouts - go green
DL Art Thankful Thurs - frogs and/or green (do leapin' ladybugs count?! grins!)
Star Stampz - monochromatic

Ribbon Spool Mousies

Coffee of the Day - Vanilla Nut Cream

Happy Sunday to each of you! I'm back with a mid-way inspiration post as part of my Guest Designer spot over at Quirky Crafts. The challenge theme is 'Sewn with Love' and is sponsored by the ever so fabulous Cutting Cafe.

My card base is the Ribbon Spool card template. it also comes with the files to make a cute box. a piece of Basic Grey Picadilly paper is wrapped with vintage lace, floral ric rac from Really Reasonable Ribbon, pale blue crochet trim from my stash, and some silver cording. flowers are from Wild Orchid Crafts, and that adorable little scissor charm is from Etsy. button, clothing label, and little snap are all vintage.

of course the star of the show is the House Mouse stamp! the pin heads on the image were accented with a spica clear glitter pen.

I do hope you will play along in the challenge! thanks so much for stopping by. :) I'm also linking this with the Simon Says Stamps WCMD projects.

Challenges:
House Mouse and Friends - Fall/Halloween or anything goes
Gruffies and Guests - embossing or anything goes
Crafty Time - shaped cards
Lia Stampz - animals
Dragonfly Dreams - ribbons and bows
Brown Sugar - shabby chic
Crafting with Friends - anything goes
Creative Knockouts - lots of layers

Sewn With Love Vintage Sewing Machine

Hello all of you! I am back again with another post, but this one has nothing to do with coffee. :)

I was so very kindly invited to be a Guest Designer over at Quirky Crafts Challenges. The theme for this fortnight is 'Sewn with Love' and sponsored by the oh, so fabulous Cutting Cafe. Thank you to Cazzy for inviting me to play along with everyone! I hope all of you will make something for this fun challenge, too!

I was given the Sewing Machine template to use. the template comes with files to create both a card and a box, but I opted to make a card. I don't have an electronic cutting machine, so this was all cut by hand. I am so thankful the pdf files are included for folks like me! :)

Papers are from the Basic Grey Picadilly collection, floral ric rack comes from Really Reasonable Ribbon, crochet trim is some vintage stash as are the buttons, fab little doily and sewing machine charm are from Etsy, little hook & eye strip is a vintage find, pins and chipboard sewing mannequin (covered in TH distress crackle paint) are Maya Road, blue glitter rose is from Michael's, and other flowers are by Wild Orchid Crafts. lower piece of sewing machine and tension adjuster circle were sprayed with glimmer mist. needle uppy downy thing was covered in shimmerz paint.

yes, there is a limit to my sewing machine knowledge....they are not my friends. I come from a long line of sewers and it all ended like a brick wall at me. even the sewing machine repair man said he had never seen anything like it when he was constantly fixing mine. it's as if the machine was possessed by gremlins that fought back and attacked me. so I DO NOT SEW! ha! faux stitching is about as close as I come these days. even that is sketchy at best.... sigh....

I'll have another project to share next week for the midway inspiration post, so please stop back by. you might just see some mischievous mice who got into the sewing room!!! :)

Challenges:
Craft for the Craic - anything but square or rectangle
Creative Fingers - anything goes
Jo's Scrap Shack - anything goes
Simply Papercrafts - anything goes
Creative Craft Cottage - anything goes
Karleigh Sue - anything but a square
Natalie and Amy - charming
Ooh La La - ribbons and bows
Kitty Bee - buttons
Crazy 4 Challenges - blue
Noor Designs - shaped cards
613 Avenue Create - anything goes with optional twist of sapphire

Happy Father's Day, You Silly Lumberjack Beaver!

Coffee of the Day - Caribbean Coconut Hazelnut

Well it's been a long time coming, but I finally have a card to show all of you. and boy was it ever tough to get made!

poor Mocha hasn't been doing very well since Latte died. she has never been alone in all of her 13 years, so if I try to go anywhere or do anything, she panics and starts to freak out. crafting has NOT been allowed, needless to say. I've tried leaving the door open in my craft room, but she won't come in. so this card was made in bits and spurts.

when I had all of my computer woes, as I went through my files cleaning things out, I realized I have a LOT of images I have never done anything with. this summer one of my goals is to remedy that! so you will be seeing some fun images that will hopefully either introduce to some long forgotten stores or remind you of some files you might have hidden in your computer, too. :)

(if you click on the photo, it will take you to another screen to see the card much larger)

my hubby loves to do woodwork whenever he has the spare time, (which isn't that often, sadly), so I combined the QKR Stampede carpenter beaver with a fun Tool Time template/cutting file I won over at The Cutting Cafe. I took a sentiment from Eureka and cut it apart - almost looks like this little guy got at it with his saw! tee hee!

digital paper is Prima Craftsman, burlap ribbon is May Arts, seam binding is SU!, buttons are from my stash, flower is Prima, belt loop is from a pair of shorts that were about to be tossed, and cardboard is re-purposed packaging.

the cardboard is actually on the inside of the card. seam binding was distressed with ink and wrinkled prior to tying bow.

here's a little tip for you regarding masculine cards - guys DO actually like flowers, believe it or not. they just don't want a LOT of them or frou frou ones covering their cards. stick with neutral colors or even better, those flowers made from fabrics, especially burlap. same goes with ribbon.

Thank you again for your loving comments about Latte and your patience as well. you make my heart so very happy! :)

be on the lookout for more crafty stuff coming soon. Mocha and I WILL get through this. ;) blog candy to post over the weekend, I hope!

Challenges:
Ribbon Girl - masculine project with ribbon (2 types of ribbon)
Creative Moments - anything goes with a masculine twist
Mod Squad - Father's Day
Paper Shelter - make it digital (paper, image, & sentiment)
Whimsy - use ribbon, lace, or twine (2 types of ribbon)
WAW - anything goes family friendly
Cardz 4 Guyz - Father's Day
Going Grey with Scrap Creations - Father's Day
Loves Rubberstamps - masculine
TTCRD - anything goes
Top Tip Tues - cut it out (waving to my old teamies!!!)
Tuesday Throwdown - Mr. Handyman
Digi Galore - Father's Day with digis
Craft Dee BowZ - anything goes with handmade bow (sorry that it's hard to see the one loop of the bow)
Craftin' Desert Divas - masculine or Father's Day
Eureka - Father's Day
QKR - Father's Day
Get Creative - for the boys or Father's Day
Kraft Journal - anything goes krafty and masculine (kraft cs used)
Come and Get It - it's a guy thing
One Stitch at a Time - anything goes with men
That Craft Place - anything goes
Little Claire - Father's Day
Creative Corner - just for boys
Jo's Scrap Shack - Father's Day
Left of Center - for the boys
Simply Create Too - masculine
Simply Papercraft - anything goes
Sister Act - any card goes
DL Art Thankful Thurs - for a man or boy

Holiday Coffee Lovers Blog Hop!

Coffee of the Day - Gingerbread 

 Welcome to the Holiday Coffee Lovers Blog Hop! Look at this amazing list of sponsors! :)

17Turtles	Veronica Zalis	Chris Franco
Add a Little Dazzle	Butterfly Reflections Ink	Color Cast Designs
Create a Smile	Hero Arts	Kraftin' Kimmie
Kreative Kymona	Latina Crafter	Neat & Tangled
Newton's Nook	Pickled Potpourri Designs	Poppystamps
Reverse Confetti	Stamp Academy	Stamp Simply Ribbon Store
STAMPlorations	SugarPea Designs	Sweet 'n Sassy
The Alley Way Stamps	Two Paper Divas	Verve Stamps
Whole Wild World	Your Next Stamp	Paper Smooches

I know there are a lot of stops on this blog hop, but good golly, Miss Molly, you won't lack inspiration for your Christmas gifties, that is for certain! :)

I've been feeling fairly puny lately, but really really really wanted to play along in this hop if I could. lo and behold, The Cutting Cafe came to my rescue with this FABULOUS coffee cup template!!! isn't it wonderful?!?! inside is a little pocket to hold either a gift card or some Starbuck's Via coffees - I haven't decided yet which I am going to give my friend. who knows, maybe BOTH!

papers are from my beloved Basic Grey, this time the Evergreen collection. 'Fa La La' is from a Sizzix die, gold & ivory twine is Maya Road, and poinsettia comes from Hobby Lobby. I cut down a coffee cozy that I had saved from Starbuck's so that it fit perfectly around the card front. it actually slips right over the front and was then adhered. gives a bit more dimension that way. a few sequins were then sprinkled on for that last bit of holiday bling! :)

thanks so much for stopping by! Merry Christmas to you and those you hold dear! :)

Challenges:
Crafty Sentiments - Christmas
Going Gray with Scrap Creations - Holiday/Christmas
Loves Rubber Stamps - Winter or Christmas
TTCRD - Anything Goes
Jellypark - ribbons or bows
Crafty Boots - Christmas
Get Creative - Christmas
My Craft Spot - Shaped Christmas Card
Pile it On - Anything Goes Christmas or Holidays
Craft-Dee BowZ - anything goes with a handmade bow
Stamp and Create - Christmas
Ooh La La - Christmas
Crazy Ch - Christmas
Come and Get It - Merry Christmas
Red Carpet Studio - "Elf" (here goes, this is one of our fave movies! Fa La La - "The best way to spread Christmas Cheer, is singing loud for all to hear." " I'm singing. I'm in a store, and I'm siiiiiingiiiiing! I'm in a store, and I'm siiiiiingiiiiing!" coffee - "You did it! Congratulations! World's best cup of coffee! Great job, everybody!" )
Robyn's Fetish - Christmas Cards
That Craft Place - Christmas
Christmas Cards All Year Round - any Christmas card goes not square or rectangle
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Ch Extra - anything Christmas goes
Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper - anything goes w/patterned paper
Lia Stampz - add metallic or sparkle (sequins, poinsettia w/gold bead center, and twine is also gold metallic)
Seemacrafts - Christmas
The Craft Garden - Christmas
Hiding in My Craft Room - Christmas Colors
A Crafty Mess - Anything Goes/Traditional Holiday Colors
CRAFT - Christmas
Delightful Ch - twinkle, twinkle: add something sparkly (sequins, poinsettia w/gold bead center, and twine is also gold metallic)
Crafters Cafe - Christmas
Simon Says Wed Ch - Bling it On (sequins, poinsettia w/gold bead center, and twine is also gold metallic)

House Full of Love

for my Kaboodle Doodle post, please click here.
for my Happileigh Scrappin' post, please click here.
for my Paper Cupcakes post, please click here.


and Finally, a post for me! :) was going to wait to show this one, but a challenge is soon ending that I want to enter, so am going to just go for the gusto and post along with my many other Monday entries.....


I recently came across the most wonderful store and blog - The Cutting Cafe. I was quite inspired by the many beautiful card templates and creations by their most spectacular DT. This card is my take on one of their products. it is NOT a Cutting Cafe template, just something I put together based on one of theirs..... I WILL be getting theirs as soon as I have the $$. I did not copy anything, just tried to figure it out on my own, which didn't necessarily work out real well, to be politely honest and not mention the shrieks and groans that came from my craft room. ;) that is why I WILL be getting their template as soon as I can. grins!

Anyhow, the sentiment on the heart comes from CS Designs. the papers are Basic Grey Out of Print. have I mentioned how much I love that collection?! yeah, I thought so...... tee hee! the other heart was punched once again from my handy dandy Starbucks coffee sleeve, inked with pink craft, glittered, and then stickled to add even MORE shine! baby Primas with stickles centers, some pink twine & ribbon, and buttons finish off the card. yes, all of that white ink distressing is intentional! I happen to like the look myself.

so have a wonderful day and I will see everyone again tomorrow! :)

City Crafter - Home Sweet Home
Sentimental Sundays - flowers plus sentiment
One Stop Craft - sentimental
Stamp Something - digi
Paper Shelter - flowers