Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste / June 2025

For the month of June, we've chosen a fun theme. Everyone who knows me knows that I am an avid reader - a bookworm from way back. Even before I could read, I can remember sitting next to my dad on the couch with a book in my hands, while he read his latest book. We took weekly walks to the library that was only a few blocks away. And as I got older, books continued to fascinate me - I read everything I could get my hands on. My library card was a prized possession.  I'm still in love with books and although a physical book is still my favorite, I do have several e-readers full of thousands of books/samples.  Books/Reading is our theme for June. I hope you enjoy what we have made as much as we have enjoyed making them !!

For my card today I pulled out a never-used stamp set by Ellen Hutson . Although she has since retired, she has placed some of their fabulous products on Amazon . I used the stamp/die set Bookworm Lady from their Leading Ladies series . 

• I stamped all the elements on white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink  - the bookworm lady, book, bookstack, bookmark and cup.
• The matching dies were used to die-cut the images.
• I colored the images with a variety of markers, OLO, COPOC, Tombow.
• The background papers are from the CraftSmith "Book Club " paper pad.
• I adhered the word background paper to a pink card base.
• The book shelf border at the top was cut from another piece of Book Club paper  and adhered at the top of the card .
• The sentiment is a piece of a bookmark that I cut and adhered to the card .

If I must say so myself, I love this card !!  And I can't wait to see what Celeste has made using our theme.. Go to her blog - Crafting Junky - to check out her card . For my coffee this month,  I am having Cafe Bustelo Dulce le Leche . I found the K-cups at Target on sale and just had to try them . Believe me when I say that the coffee is delicious !! And in keeping with our theme, I am using a fabulous cup given to me by a good friend for my birthday a few years ago . 

Thank you for stopping by to see our June creations. We are having a heat wave here and temps will be in the 90's all next week ( with heat indexes over 100 ) .. I think next month I will be drinking iced coffee !! Until then, stay creative AND cool. And drink some good coffee ..

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Coffee and Cards with Deb & Celeste / May 2025

May is here and we are back with a theme that got us started in the first place.. Our love of card-making AND coffee was the beginning of these blog posts . So here is a fabulous inspiration photo for our theme this month - COFFEE .

I used a fun stamp from Emerald Creek - Coffee Sign Board  by Pam Bray Designs . I bought the whole set of her coffee stamps many years ago - they are based in Canada. So, I don't know how the tariff insanity could impact ordering them !!

• I stamped the Coffee Sign Board on ivory cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink .
• The image was cut out with a Big and Little Chain rectangle die  from Gina Marie Designs.
• I colored the cup and coffee rings with my OLO markers .
• A piece of Prima "Coffee Break" paper was adhered to a turquoise card base.
• The completed stamped image was adhered to the card base using foam tabs.

I'm excited to see Celeste's card - she makes beautiful cards, especially coffee-themed ones . You can see what she's created over at her blog - Crafting Junky .

My cup today is actually a tea cup - a vintage Lefton "Miss Dainty"  -  from the 1950's . I know my mom had a set of these when I was a child. And when I saw that a friend online had found one in a thrift store, I commented on it . She was going to be selling it in her eBay shop . I told her I'd love to buy it and now it has a new home on a shelf in my craft room. I did drink a cup of tea out of it before placing it on the shelf . For today's blog post, I'm drinking a cup of Kona coffee with Sweet Cream creamer from a reusable Starbucks cup .Nothing fancy, just practical . 

If you'd like to check out my friend Sandi's eBay shop, you can go to Fun Funky Florida Finds . She has a variety of cool stuff, including some Starbucks destination cups . I love my new ( vintage ) Miss Dainty cup - it's a sweet reminder of my mom .

Thank you for stopping by for our May cards . 

We will see you again next month . 

Until then, Stay Creative .

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas / April 2025

We are 4 months into 2025 and it's time for the Crafty Elves to show off their holiday cards once again . Michael, Lisa and I post our cards each month on the 25th to inspire you to start on your holiday cards too and beat the rush .  I also start to address my envelopes , which puts me even that much more ahead of the game !!

For my card this month, I used a fantastic stamp set with matching dies from Picket Fence Studios - A Cup of Christmas Cheer . They were having a great sale that I couldn't resist . 

• I stamped the coffee cup gingerbread man and holly leaf on white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink .
• The images were cut out with the matching dies.
• I colored the images with my OLO markers .
• I used a "vintage" piece of double-sided scrap paper from Stampin' Up on my Kraft card base and also to mat the Christmas Cheer image. I love the 2 patterns on this piece of paper !!
• I adhered the Cup image to the green snowflake panel with Stampin' Up foam dimensionals .
• The snowman and holly images were also adhered with foam dimensionals.
• I placed some clear glitter on the windowsill and at the end of the pathway.

I'm excited to see what Michael and Lisa made for April . Here are links to their blog posts.

Michael Trent - World of Michael Trent

Lisa Reynolds-Bzibziak - Life of a BZscrapper

Thanks again for stopping by as we share our holiday inspiration . Have you started on your holiday cards yet ?? I'm always so glad that the three of us have continued to do this. It's so nice to have a stash of cards ready to send, most of them already addressed . Take some time to be creative and pull out some of your holiday stamp sets . You'll be happy you did !!

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste / March 2025

Celeste and I are here with our Coffee & Cards post for March .. We decided on a Kid's card and I'll admit that I was originally at a loss for ideas. I looked through my many stamp sets but nothing inspired me or came to me.. Then I saw The Gang Christmas from Ink Road and a card idea was born !!! 

When I was a child, my favorite holiday movie was "A Charlie Brown Christmas" . I can still remember how excited I was to watch it . It came out in 1965 - I was 7 years old .. It seemed like the perfect idea for my card !!  

• I stamped the image on white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink . 
• It was die cut with a Sizzix "Tim Holtz Stitched Square" die.
• The stamped image was colored with my OLO markers  .
• A piece of Catherine Pooler "Cookies for Santa" patterned paper was adhered to a 5x7 red card base. I chose this pattern because it reminded me of the shirts that Charlie Brown wore.
• The completed stamped image was adhered to the card base with foam tabs.
• A Tim Holtz Idea-ology Christmas sticker was adhered below the stamped image.
• I stamped several of these images and will make a few holiday cards . They are easy to color and remind me so much of my childhood !! 

To see what Celeste has made for her Kid's card, check out her blog - Crafting Junky . My drink of choice today is King Cake coffee by Community Coffee . It is flavored with cinnamon and vanilla and is delicious . I'm drinking it from a holiday cup found online at Macy's at an after Christmas sale .. Reminds me of the cross-stitch I used to do regularly before card-making took over!! I also have to say that I actually made today's card at the desk in my craft room . It has been covered with craft supplies and I have begun to destash . I started with my desk so I could get in my room - my sanctuary - again .. I will now tackle the kitchen table so we can once again sit there to eat . It had become my crafty spot while my desk was inundated with supplies !! A bit of progress at a time feels good. Let's hope the momentum continues ..

Thank you for stopping by . We will be back next month with more Coffee & Cards .. Until then, Stay Creative !!

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas / February 2025

It seems like I blinked and it's already the end of February !!! I've been doing some destashing/donating and have come across some fabulous stamps I haven't seen in awhile . Some I don't even remember buying ! Lisa, Michael and I are bringing you holiday inspiration every month on the 25th to inspire you . Get those cards started early and you will have 1 less thing to stress about when the holidays roll around !!

I used a fun Wendy Vecchi stamp set - Doodle Christmas - for my card today . I love all of the stamps in this set . There are so many cute ways to create holiday cards with all the images ..

• I stamped the wreath from Doodle Christmas with Memento Olive Green ink on white cardstock and then die cut it with a Big and Little Pierced Chain round die .
•  The ornaments were stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink inside the wreath.
• The bow was stamped on white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and then fussy-cut . 
• I adhered a piece of holiday plaid paper from my scrap drawer to a green card base .
• The ornaments and bow were colored with my OLO Markers.
• I placed red candy dots around the wreath.
• The red bow was adhered at the bottom of the wreath with foam tabs.
• I adhered the completed stamped panel to the holiday plaid paper.
• Stickers from the Simple Stories "Dear Santa" collection were placed at the bottom right .

You can get more ideas for your holiday cards by following the links to Lisa's and Michaels's blogs.

Lisa Reynolds Bzibziak - Life of a BZscrapper

Michael; Trent  - World of Michael Trent

Thank you for stopping by to see our latest cards. We look forward to seeing you next month with more Crafty Elf inspiration . 

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste / February 2025

Today Celeste and I are giving a big shout-out to one of our favorite stamp companies - we each love their stamps and it was hard for me to choose which one to use. Unity Stamp Company has a wide variety of rubber stamps,paper, dies etc.. I have been a fan of theirs since way back when they had wood mounts that their stamps slid into !! I even still have a few of them stashed away somewhere .. 

I don't think anyone will be surprised that I chose a coffee image !! I am in love with the Coffee is Not Enough stamp set . It includes the main image and 4 sentiments . 

• I stamped the main image on white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.
• The sentiment was stamped with Memento Teal Zeal ink.
• I colored the image with my OLO markers.
• Glitter was added to her slippers because everything needs a touch of sparkle !!
• I die cut the stamped panel with a Big and Little Chain Rectangle Die.
• A piece of Echo Park's Coffee Collection designer paper was cut and adhered to a 5x7 red card base.
• The stamped panel was popped up on the card base with foam tabs.
• A puffy heart sticker was applied to the stamped coffee cup.

Coffee is Not Enough

I can't wait to see what Celeste has made . We have similar taste in stamps so we shall see. I'm sure her card will be amazing . Check out her blog - Crafting Junky - to see her February creation . For my coffee today, I am drinking a  Starbucks Frappuccino with Oat Milk / Caramel Waffle Cookie Iced Coffee Drink . It comes in bottles and I drink it chilled , sometimes with ice.  I'm drinking it out of a fun LOVE coffee cup I got on clearance online at Macys many years ago .  The cup is clear and the opening is heart shaped - it's the cutest !!

I hope you've been inspired to get out a favorite Unity  stamp and be creative. Celeste and I will be back next month with more Coffee & Cards. Until then, stay warm AND creative !!

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas / January 2025

The Crafty Elves are back to bring you another year of inspiration. We will work our way through 2025, posting each month on the 25th to help you get ready for the holiday snail mail rush !! AND I'm thrilled to let you know that Michael Trent  will be joining us again !! He took some time off but of course, he couldn't stay away from us .. Show him some love and comment on his post.

For my first card, I used an old snowglobe Starbucks gift card and a gingerbread chipboard sticker from my Spellbinders Holiday Advent Calendar. A Tim Holtz sentiment was perfect to  complete my card !! This card came together in about 5 minutes  - now I have something to do with all those Starbucks cards !!

May Your Days Be Merry & Bright

My next 4 cards were also so quick and easy !! I stamped the Christmas Snow Globe images from Close To My Heart , colored them with my OLO Markers and fussy-cut them. I adhered each snow globe to a bright red card base, popping them up with foam tabs. I added some glitter to each snowglobe also. A Tim Holtz Label Sticker was adhered at the bottom right of each card . 

Thank you for stopping by to begin a new year with us !! Check out the links to Lisa and Michael's cards for January .. I hope you find lots of inspiration and start your holiday cards with us .. It's so nice to have a stash to use when you're getting ready to send your holiday mail .

 Michael - World of Michael Trent

Lisa - Life of a BZscrapper

Until next month, Stay Creative

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste / January 2025

It's time to start off a new year of Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste.  Each month we choose a theme, layout or inspiration photo and create a card that we post to our blogs . We also include a link to each other's cards  . In addition , we talk about the latest coffee we are drinking and sometimes we even have a fun cup to show off.  To start off 2025, we chose a WINTER theme. 

We had to say goodbye to the amazing company Impression Obsession last year . I have so many of their wonderful stamp sets. Coffee & Books was one of the last sets I bought from them and it's definitely a favorite of mine. 

Hot Coffee, Warm Blankets & Large Books 

• I stamped the main image on white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink .
• The sentiment was stamped with IO Aqua ink cube.
• The image was colored with my OLO Markers.
• I adhered a piece of navy snowflake patterned paper to a Kraft card base. The paper was from the Simple Stories "Simple Vintage Fresh Snow" paper pad.
• I matted the stamped panel with a piece of maroon cardstock .
• The matted panel was adhered with foam tabs to the card base.
• I placed some crystal rhinestones on the snowflake centers at the bottom of the card .

We actually had a bit of snow last night in Virginia Beach. Luckly, I didn't have to drive to work in it so I'm actually sitting home with my hot coffee, warm blanket and large book !! I'm currently reading The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon . My coffee today is Gingerbread ( finishing up the last of my holiday season favorite ) .. I shopped the Anthropologie after-Christmas sale and got the best deals on some coffee cups. Today's has my initial on it and the cutest holiday treats - some designs are raised . It is so cute I just have to show you the front and the back !!

 

You can see Celeste's card over at her blog - Crafting Junky . I'm always excited to see what Celeste has come up with . Her cards are amazing  - can't wait to see what a new year of posts brings us .. Thank you for stopping by . We look forward to seeing you next month. Until then, be kind, stay creative and always drink good coffee !!

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas / November 2024

Well, it always seems to happen like this .... You turn around and it's the holiday season !! I am working Thanksgiving and the day after this year, but will be off for Christmas and New Years. Such is the life of a nurse . I have been at it for 40 years, so working holidays is just part of the deal. But at the end of a long shift, I get to come home and spend some time with Brian & Pixie .. I hope you get to spend some time with friends and family this Thanksgiving.Lisa and I are back with our creations for November - we both should have a nice stash of cards to mail out next month !!

I decided to use the Merry Catmas stamp set from Unity Stamp Company. This is such  a cute set and I loved it so much that I made 5 cards for today .. My initial thought was to leave all the cats white but my OLO markers were calling to me and I decided to color in a few on each card . I even colored a few to match some of my friend's cats. Meow !!

• I stamped the Cat Tree image with Memento Tuxedo Black ink on white cardstock that I already had cut to fit my card bases. I used my MISTI so stamping all 5 was very quick.
• Some of the cats were colored with my OLO markers.
• I made red, blue and green versions of this card.I stamped the sentiments on white cardstock in each color and trimmed them to fit below the tree.
• The border at the top of each stamped panel was made with a Tim Holtz Alterations On the Edge Scallops Die . This is long retired but can be found on eBay.
• I color-coordinated each card - card base, border and sentiment were all the same color family.
• The sentiment was popped up with foam tabs.
• Each completed panel was adhered to a matching card base. 

I had alot of fun with these cards !! Can't wait to send them to my "crazy cat lady" friends next month . I purchased 3 books of holiday  stamps and several International stamps I usually send about 60 cards each year. Take a look at what Lisa made over at her blog -Life of a BZscrapper . I hope you have been thinking ahead and finding ways to beat the stress and holiday rush this season.  We will see you next month with a wrap-up of our year .

Debra Davson/Meticulosity

Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas / October 2024

Can you believe that it is October already ?? Christmas is only 2 months away and the Crafty Elves are here with their latest cards for your inspiration. Michael Trent is joining us again this month so you will have triple the creativity..

For my card this month, I used the Avery Elle "Dear Santa" stamp set. I recently purchased several stamp sets from a friend at her "Crafty Garage Sale" online and decided to ink up this set and use it for my card . I actually made 6 cards, using different patterned papers, But I was interrupted by something and didn't get to take my pictures in good light, so you will only see 1 here.  I will post the others in my Facebook group and on IG. The cat reminds me of our sweet Pixie !! She would NOT be caught dead wearing a Santa hat, but she would definitely go for that beautiful bow !!

• I positioned the cat, holly and sentiment images on my MISTI and stamped them on white cardstock. I used Tuxedo Black Memento ink for the cat and holly and Ruby Impression Obsession ink for the sentiment.
• The stamped image was die cut with a scalloped oval die by Stampendous.
• I colored the images with my OLO markers .
• A piece of Miss Mary Christmas  glittered holiday striped paper was adhered to a Kraft card base. This is a fun paper pad from Hobby Lobby.
• A strip of the holiday striped paper was adhered across the top of the card.
• Several enamel dots of various sizes were placed above the sentiment.
• A Santa hat dimensional sticker was placed on the cat's head.
• The completed stamped panel was adhered to the card base with foam tabs.

Thank you so much for stopping by to see what the Crafty Elves have been up to .. Take a look at what Lisa and Michael have created at their links :

Lisa - Life of a BZscrapper

Michael - World of Michael Trent

Have you started on your holiday cards yet ?? Lisa and I will be back next month with more inspiration for you . It feels nice when I have a stash of cards to use when holiday mail time rolls around. See you in November. Until then, stay creative and enjoy some beautiful Autumn weather.

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Technique Junkies Stamp Release / October 2024

The latest release from Technique Junkies is full of 10 fabulous holiday designs. They will all be 15% off through October 8th - no code required. And using my code - TJ10Deb - will get you10% off all other stamps/supplies .

For my card today, I used the Cozy Polar Bears image, This is such a sweet, fun design and so easily colored. I'll probably be maby several of these cards to send out - I'd like to try some other color combinations. Maybe pink / mint green,  red / green and shades of red, blue and green

•  The image was stamped on white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink .
• I trimmed the image and colored it with my OLO Markers .
• The completed polar bear image was matted with maroon cardstock.
• I adhered the completed stamped panel to a piece of blue plaid patterned paper.
• A strip of green glitter washi was placed in the upper left corner from side to top.
• A large red rhinestone was adhered in the middle of the strip of washi .
• The stamped panel was adhered to a Kraft card base.

Be sure to check out all of the creations from my fellow Design Team members at the links below .

TJ Blog

Jeanette

Debra - YOU ARE HERE

Michael

 Darlene

Pat

Until next time, Stay Creative ...

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Deb and Terri Color with OLO

I bought myself some OLO markers for my birthday and have been trying them out . They are alcohol markers, like COPICS or Ohuhu, but the similarity ends there. Check out the fantastic OLO website  for all the information on these markers. I love to color and wanted to challenge myself, so I asked a friend to do a blog post with me, each using our OLO markers. Terri Burson of Waving My Wand is a fantastic paper-crafter with amazing coloring skills . So we each made a Fall-themed card with our OLOs. Thanks to Terri for our fun graphic !!

 

I chose 2 cute stamp sets from Impression Obsession  that gave me the opportunity to use lots of OLO colors . These are no longer available but I knew I absolutely had to use these stamp for this post today.I have definitely been feeling the Fall vibes lately and wanted to reflect this in my card !!

• I stamped the image on white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.
• The sentiment was stamped below the friends with Catherine Pooler "Peppermint Scrub" ink.
• I colored the image with a variety of OLO markers - shown below .
• The completed stamped panel was matted with a piece of deep red cardstock.
• I adhered a piece of Autumn-patterned paper to a Kraft card base.
• The matted panel was adhered to the card base.

I'm so excited that Terri could join me as I begin my OLO coloring journey. I know she is a very busy papercrafter, working with a variety of companies and was thrilled she could take the time to show off her artistic skills. Please check out her blog post  - Waving My Wand  - to see what she has created with her OLO markers -. You can also find her  @wavingmywand on IG and on Facebook .

Thank you so much for taking a look at this fun blog collab with Terri.

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas / September 2024

Can you believe that Christmas is only 3 months away ?!?!?! Lisa and I have been posting holiday cards each month on the 25th to inspire you to get started on yours along with us. Take some of the stress out of the holidays by getting your holiday snail mail ready early.We hope you like our creations for September.

For my card this month, I used a sweet Penny Black stamp set - Balancing Act. I don't think it was meant as a holiday stamp but I immediately got the idea to use it with holiday colors . I also made some cards with Fall colors .

• For both cards, I stamped the Girl with Cat image on pieces of white cardstock with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.
• The stamped panels were die-cut with a Big and Little Chain Rectangle Die.
• I colored the images with my new OLO Markers .
• I matted each of the stamped panels with dark green cardstock.
• Scraps from my patterned paper drawer were adhered to A2 card bases - 1 Kraft and 1 white.
• The completed panels were adhered to the card bases with foam tabs for added dimension .
• Tim Holtz sticker sentiments were adhered to each card.

My new OLO markers were a birthday present to myself in August, Check out their website at the link to learn all about them. I love the way they color and the ability to have 2 brush colors in 1 marker. I never have used the chisel tip of my other alcohol markers so I was thrilled with this feature, I am not affiliated with OLO - I purchased all  my markers. I just love them already and wanted to share my honest opinion. Have you tried them ?? I'd love to know what you think of them if you have. 

You can see Lisa's September cards over at her blog -Life of a BZscrapper . Thank you for stopping by to see our holiday inspiration. We really do appreciate it. Are you getting a head start on your holiday cards ?? Enjoy the start of Fall and cooler weather and we will see you in October with more of our creations.

Until next time,

Stay Creative