A Winter Celebration

Welcome to the first Day of the Winter Coffee Lovers Blog Hop !! The team from Skipping Stones Design will be bringing you some coffee inspiration with projects of our own and I hope you will take a look at all of them here. For my project, I decided to use some hoarded paper, non-traditional colors and a few of my favorite things. So make your favorite cup of coffee, tea or cocoa and relax with some fun inspiration from the Skipping Stones Design Team.

• I placed a silver doily on the left side of a Recollections snow-flake card base and a strip of turquoise glitter washi down the left edge of the card.
• The coffee cups from the Funny Coffee stamp set were stamped on several patterns of paper from my hoarded Dear Lizzy Christmas collection from American Crafts, using Memories India Black Ink. The cup handles were also stamped on some plain white card stock, in order to fussy-cut the area inside the handle and then color them to match the card base color.
• I fussy-cut the coffee cups and added brown glitter to the coffee area. The cups were then stacked along the right side of the card.
• Using a matching piece of music paper, I stamped the sentiment from the Christmas Song stamp set and adhered it at the top of the card with foam dimensionals. All other elements were adhered with Tombow MONO Aqua Liquid Glue.
• A piece of rustic twine was wrapped several times along the inner edge of the washi to complete the card.

Doilies, washi, and twine are a few of my favorite elements to use on cards. I love the non-traditional colors of this one !! After the card was completed, I realized that the words on the tag at the top of the card - " Oh, what fun it is to ride in a "  - matched up perfectly with the words on the middle coffee cup - " open sleigh ". Not planned, never even thought of that while stamping or cutting. Just a happy accident, but I love when things like that happen !!

I hope you will also take a look at all of the amazing link-ups at the Winter Coffee Lovers Blog Hop . Thank you for visiting Meticulosity. Please sign up to follow my blog if you haven't already.

Debra Davison / Meticulosity 

Take Note - GIU Day 3

It's hard to believe that it is my GIU Day 3 already. I hope you have liked my projects and left comments for a chance to win some Unity stamps !!  Excited to be featured on the Unity Stamp Company blog today .. The stamp I used on this card is from one of my  favorite kits -- Everything Stronger -- and has sentiments for sympathy and support. I was diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer last year and my summer/fall was spent having surgeries and treatments. It was not a fun time but I stayed positive ( most of the time ) and spent alot of time making cards to support friends who were going through their own challenges. I fell in love with this kit when I saw it and I hope you do too.. 

I used a card base by Heidi Swapp , placed a doily behind the stamped image and added some rhinestones along the Right side edge. I colored with Faber-Castell Pitt Pens and Staedtler markers. 

 

Just some trivia about this stamp... The 2004 song "Beautiful Soul" by Jesse McCartney is one of my favorites so when I saw the Everything Stronger stamp set, it reminded me of that song.  Fast forward to 2016 and another favorite of mine, the TV show Fear the Walking Dead. Imagine my surprise when I realized that a 12 years older Jesse McCartney had played Reed, one nasty bad guy,  on the series. Great storyline for him...And it reminded me of this stamp set.. So, that was how this card was born !!  Thanks for indulging my love of trivia !!

Thanks to all who have been leaving comments ! I will choose 2 winners at random to win 25 stamps from Unity from those of you who comment on all 5 blog posts.  I will also send some blog candy to 2 others who comment..

Stick With Me - GIU Day 2

 When you are making a project, do you know when to say "enough is enough" ?? I have a habit of always thinking I need to add just one more element - glitter, a die-cut, some washi. I also like to mix different patterns and embellishments. So this card for GIU Day 2 has stripes, polka-dots, floral, sequins, a doily, a journaling card, a stamped image and some Wink of Stella !!

This card started out with a polka-dot card base by Pebbles and a MAMBI Journaling card .I have been wanting to use the Stick With Me stamp by Unity because I have an obsession with washi and this stamp is perfect to use with my endless washi collection. I had also just gotten some amazing new  Hobby Lobby Paper Studio washi from a friend so the timing was right !! For the main card, I stamped the image twice and cut the washi tape images out from one and used dimensionals to adhere them to the other image. It was fun matching the colors of the card base and the Recollections Color Splash doily with the journaling card and sequins..

Stick With Me

Steampunk Kitty & Succulents washi from Hobby Lobby Paper Studio

Thanks for checking out my Day 2 GIU blog post. I hope you've gotten some ideas from me. Please leave a comment each day -- you just might win some Unity stamps. See you tomorrow !!

GIU Day 5 - Find Your ZEN

I cannot believe it is already Day 5 for my GIU week. I have been using a different designer each day for my projects. Today I chose one by Traci Malnofski. She has many incredible stamps so it was hard to pick but I finally chose Serenity from her Fashionista line. Just as a reminder, please get your comments in by MIDNIGHT tomorrow night, Saturday ( Eastern Time ). I will pick 2 random winners and post them on Monday. You will have 2 weeks to contact me with your snail mail info.

I have been wanting to play with this Serenity stamp for so long. I'm glad I finally inked it up !! I did a bit of paper-piecing which is always fun for me. And as you all know, I love mixing different patterns of paper. So I colored the design, chose a doily and some patterned paper, threw in a few rhinestones and here you have it !! This stamp set has 5 different sayings and I couldn't decide on only ONE, so I did the next best thing--- I used FOUR ....

Supplies that I used for this card are :
1. American Crafts 5th & Frolic paper
2. Recollections Kraft Doily
3. Rginestones
4. Tim Holtz Distress Markers

I am hoping that if I look at this project long enough, I will decide to give Yoga a try. My problem is that whenever I sit still for any length of time ( without creating something or reading ), my mind starts spinning with lists of things I need to do.. I kind of think that making cards is my Yoga !! I have found my ZEN and it is being creative....

I am so happy to have been the GIU gal this week !! I found Unity Stamp Company many years ago when I saw a picture of one of their kits Hodge Podge of Happiness.. I actually ordered that and several other kits and have been hooked ever since. Thanks to Angela Magnusen and everyone at Unity for giving me this opportunity to showcase my projects this week.

I have been amazed at all of the wonderful comments about my projects so far. If I have inspired you, I am grateful and would love to see some of your designs. Follow me by e-mail if you would like, from the link on my sidebar.. Please comment for a chance to win a Grab Bag of 25 Unity stamps.... I will choose 2 winners at random and post them on Monday so please check back here.

Thank you all so much for joining in my GIU Week

You are TEA-riffic

I love coffee but I do also love a good cup of tea, especially when I am curled up with a good book. Lately, my favorite is Caramel Chai by Zhena's Gypsy Tea. I wanted to use the Tea Love stamps by Unity Stamp Company. I started with a black & gold polka-dot card base by My Mind's Eye. I layered some American Crafts Doily acetate onto the card base and then added the Tea Love sentiment. I popped up the Tea Love cup with dimensionals and also added a few red rhinestones as a finishing touch.The heart and sentiment were stamped with Color Box Archival Dye Ink in "Red Devil". I absolutely LOVE their Cat's Eye ink pads, perfect for inking smaller areas of stamps !! I really love the black,gold & red color combination on this card. And the card was photographed on my new shelf that I bought this week for my Craft Room. I seem to be obsessed with woodgrain lately and the shelf is perfect.  I almost hate to put anything on it !!! This card will also be linked up on Friday at the Unity Stamp Company blog for Friends With Flair..

You are TEA-riffic

We now have almost 400 projects linked to the Spring Coffee Lovers Blog Hop . Take a look at all of the coffee, tea and cocoa cards from some amazing paper-crafters.. The Blog Hop has some fantastic sponsors and they have been giving some FLASH prizes away each day of the Hop. Tomorrow is your last day to link up .. Thank you for visiting Meticulosity and allowing me to share my creativity with you.

You're My Cup of Tea

This LaBlanche Teacup stamp has the loveliest floral pattern in the cup and saucer. It is a silicon stamp and the details in them are just amazing !! I wanted to share some tea designs for our fellow tea lovers. Not everyone is as coffee-obsessed as I am.. But I will admit that I also love tea and have sometimes had my cup of coffee from an intricate tea cup. Some of my latest tea favorites are a White Tea with Almond & Vanilla and a Green Tea with Coconut, Ginger & Vanilla, both by Harney & Sons..

I stamped the teacup image, that I had inked with "Blue Hawaii" StazOn and cut it out. I placed it on a doily that was a punch-out from a Colorbok embossed paper pad and used some My Mind's Eye washi to adhere it. A glittery sentiment tag from Docrafts Papermania was attached using a bit of Martha Stewart twine.

Are you a tea lover ?? What is your favorite tea ? I am always up for a new flavor to try. Share your favorite with me here in a comment You will have a chance at some Spring supplies by commenting here.

With Love

 And check out all of the amazing cards at the Spring Coffee Lovers Blog Hop page.. There are 200 so far and they are all wonderful !!

A Card, My Friends & Friends With Flair....

dEb here with a quick card AND a way to be green all at the same time.... I absolutely love the holidays.. Christmas patterned papers, holiday rubber stamps, my new Tim Holtz poinsettia die . I love holiday lights, classic Christmas movies ( Elf and A Christmas Carol with Alastair Sim )  & quirky Christmas movies ( The Nightmare Before Christmas and The Family Stone ). I am also a hoarder of Christmas cards that I receive from my friends.. There, I admitted it !! I have cards from friends near and far; and I cherish each and every one of them.. I keep them year to year but eventually do send most to the recycle bin.. Some, however, I have kept for years. This year as I was heading to recycle with last year's cards, in anticipation of receiving new ones this year, I had a thought... Why not make cards out of them ???  I know I am not the first person to do this but I think my efforts might be a bit unique. 

I started with a kraft card, got out my 1" circle punch and went to town. I used a fun sentiment from Unity Stamp Company's "Stay Cozy" and finished with a doily half and half of a 2.5" circle. The dotted paper is from We R Memory Keeper's "Winter Frost" collection. Thanks to Brian, Bonnie, Lisa, Jacky, Donna and Meredith for helping me make memories - AND cards !!

I posted the first card on the Mountain Plains Crafters blog. I am a member of their Design Team and with that, I welcomed 7 new friends into my life... This post is for all of you - Pam, Sheryl, Terri, MariLynn, Paula, Christina & Jennifer. 

I also posted this card on Unity Stamp Company's Friends With Flair