Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste / October

Our weather here in Virginia Beach is finally starting to cool off.. Today we did have a 75 degree day but now it is cool enough to open windows and there is a lovely breeze!! Celeste chose our Mood Board pic for this month and it is a perfect Autumn image.

I had a fabulous new stamp to use for this month's project.  Ellie Loves Lattes from Your Next Stamp was so much fun to ink up, die-cut and color !! I know that I will be using this stamp set often and already have ideas for a Christmas version !! But for now, she is dressed in her cute Fall outfit, drinking her Pumpkin Spice Latte.

• I stamped  Ellie on watercolor paper with Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink, die-cut her with the matching die and then colored her with Tombow Dual Brush Pen Markers .
• The sentiment was also stamped with Nocturne Ink, cut to leave a small margin and then colored also with Tombow markers.
• At the top of a brown card base, I adhered an Autumn floral patterned paper border, that was paper-punched with a Martha Stewart border punch.
• I wrapped Orange-striped twine several times around the patterned-paper at the top of the card and tied it in a knot.  ( Fact about me - I hate tying bows because I can't ever seem to get them perfect enough to suit me !! ) 
• At the bottom of the card, I placed a strip of honeycomb washi tape.
• Ellie and the sentiment were adhered to the front of the card using my Pink Scotch ATG gun.

This really was a fun image to play with and the quality of the stamps and die were amazing !! I'm sure that I will be using them frequently !! I'm looking forward to seeing what Celeste came up with for this month's card. I'm thinking it has something to do with coffee, since we both love to create coffee-themed cards !! You can find her project at her blog Crafting Junky .  My coffee for this post is Pecan Pie and I'm drinking it iced in a fun cup that I found at Wal-Mart !! I also used my favorite Prisma Photo App for my iPhone to make the picture even more fun !!

Thank you for stopping by again this month to see what Celeste and I are up to. We hope that you are inspired by our projects and would love if you would sign up to follow our blogs. 

Until next time, Stay Creative !!

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Let's FALL into a Challenge .....

Without any school-age children at my house, back-to-school doesn't have the same meaning it used to.. No frenzy of shopping for supplies or choosing first day clothes.. But the arrival of FALL in all its glory is a much welcomed time of year. Here in  Virginia Beach this summer, we have had many weeks of 90+ degree weather. It is humid, sticky and downright uncomfortable.. I am not a beach or pool person; cooling off in the water is not an option. So each year, I look forward to FALL and all it brings.. Sweater weather.. Salted Caramel Lattes.. Bonfires.. Multi-colored leaves.. And many options for cards during this Year of Creativity for me !! I have a whole drawer of Fall themed supplies, just waiting to inspire me..

Everyone over at Mountain Plains Crafters has also been inspired and we have another challenge for you. The theme is Leaves/Autumn. Go with leafy, autumn or combine them. Create a new project, link it to the blog post and you will have a chance to win an amazing prize from our sponsor, Pan Pastel - a Donna Downey Mixed Media Kit (colors may vary)...

Check out what I created below and then stop by the MPC Blog to see all of the creations by our Design Team members. The Challenge lasts until September 24.. Hope to see your new creations !!

Supplies :  Inkadinkado Pumpkin Girl stamp, Stampin' Up sentiment, Graphic 45 Steampunk Spells paper ( pleated into a border ), Martha Stewart Fire Opal Glitter

After stamping the Pumpkin Girl design on a dotted background paper, I stamped it a second time on Graphic 45 Steampunk Spells paper. I cut out the pumpkins and paper-pieced them onto the original design. I cut a strip of contrasting paper from the same collection and folded it back and forth onto itself to make pleats. You can do this either free-hand or by using a scoring tool. I used Mini Glue-Dots to adhere each section. A Stampin' Up sentiment completed the card.. I absolutely love the rich colors on this card and was especially happy to find that glitter in my stash. It was perfectly pumpkin !! 

Also, anyone who comments on this blog post of mine during this challenge will be entered in a drawing to win an Autumn themed card from me in addition to a few other goodies... So comment and tell me what you like most about Autumn..