Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste / October 2020

Celeste and I enjoyed getting creative this month with an Inspiration photo AND a sketch for our cards !! Halloween will probably look different this year as we still maneuver our way through COVID, but we had fun with these cards ..  I hope that you like them as much as we do ..

We haven't done very many sketch cards at all so it was time to choose one for our October projects.  And here it is  ---

I found this cool little stamp set by Inkadinkado in my stash and just had to use it for some cards !!  It is vintage - - from 2012 !! And I have had that cool floral paper that just seemed perfect for the card ..

• On a piece of white cardstock, I stamped The Tattooed Woman image in Tuxedo Black Memento ink and the sentiment from the same set in Tangelo Memento ink. 
• I placed a piece of gold glitter washi across the white cardstock in between the image and the sentiment .
• A piece of Floral Halloween paper was adhered to a dark gray card base.
• The stamped panel was adhered to the Floral paper.

I am working all weekend so the coffee I am having with Celeste is in one of my fun work cups. I found this Cheers Dears cup with glitter confetti on clearance last year.   I'm drinking "hospital" coffee with Sugar Free Vanilla creamer & a splash of Caramel Macchiato creamer.  The straw makes it easier to drink my coffee at my desk without taking my mask completely off !! Make yourself a cup of coffee or tea and head on over to Crafting Junky  to see what Celeste has created 

Thank you for once again joining us for Coffee & Cards !! We will see you again in November. Until then, stay safe and healthy. Wear your masks and social distance ( the nurse in me says ) ... 

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Crafty Elves' Countdown to Christmas - August

Lisa - aka BZ Scrapper - and I have been making a Christmas card each week since January. Sometimes we have even made more !! We post each month on the 25th and it's time for our August  cards. After a brutal month of crazy hot weather, today it is in the 70's, so I was a little bit more in the holiday spirit !! Hard to believe that there are only 4 months until Christmas . Have you started on your holiday cards ?? We hope you will follow along with us as the Crafty Elves count down to Christmas !!

• For my first card, I used a beautiful stamp from Stampendous - Snowy Postcard .  I stamped the image on watercolor paper with Versafine Clair Nocturne ink . I used my MISTI so I could stamp a few times and get a nice, crisp image.
• I cut the image to fit on a wood grain card base, leaving a small border around the edge. 
• The image was colored in a few areas with glitter markers and Faber-Castell PITT Artist  Pens.
• I adhered the image to the card base with my Pink Scotch ATG Gun.
• The rooftops were dusted with Sugar Shimmer Fairy-Dust Glitter .

• Next I have a card using the Spellbinders Merry & Bright Stamp and Die Set . I again stamped the image on watercolor paper using Versafine Clair Nocturne Ink. 
• The image was cut out with the matching die. 
• I colored the image with Sharpies and glitter markers.
• I cut a piece of snowman patterned paper from the CraftSmith Say Freeze collection. 
• A piece of holiday twine was wrapped around the patterned paper and tied on the front.
• After adhering the patterned paper to a bright green card base, I popped up the Merry & Bright  die cut with foam dimensionals.

• I bought the Pink Fresh Simple Joy stamps and dies because the cat reminded me of our Pixie !! I stamped the images on watercolor paper with Versafine Clair Nocturne ink then die cut them. 
• The images were colored with Faber-Castell PITT Artist pens. It's hard to see but Santa is wearing a cool pair of red framed glasses !!
• I adhered a piece of green gingham paper to a bright red card base. 
• A red scalloped border was added to the top of the green gingham and a piece of black wood-grain washi was placed across the bottom.
• The Santa and cat images were adhered to the card base with my ATG Gun  and the sentiment was popped up with foam dimensionals.

• My last card was also shared on the If You Give a Crafter a Cookie Challenge blog this week. The cookie  theme included llamas so I created a holiday card with a Fa La La La Llama !! 
• I cut a piece of Recollections Holiday Bash paper to fit my green card base.
• The Inkadinkado FaLaLa Llama was stamped in Cracked Pistachio Distress Ink on Neenah Stardust White cardstock, then trimmed to fit on the lower right side of the card.
• A gold doily was folded over the top left edge of the card to create a corner element.
• Several pastel candy dots were placed around the llama.
• I used a border paper punch to make the JOY design, then cut it to place it at the top of the card across the doily.
• 2 large Teal candy dots were placed on the left side of the JOY design.

Lisa's cards can be found at her blog - Life of a BZ Scrapper . I'm sure her cards are fabulous as always !! We are thrilled that you are joining us as we continue to create our cards and get ahead of the holiday rush !! Have you started yours yet ??  It's never to late to start . We will be back again next month with more Crafty Elf creativity.

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

August Cookies - Take 2

The Inspiration picture for today's Challenge at  If You Give a Crafter a Cookie is just the cutest !! The llamas, those sunglasses, the cute flowers, those colors !!! I thought I would use the llama, BUT change it up a bit and do a Christmas card . I found the Christmas Llama stamp after the holidays last year for $1.50 and couldn't resist !! This Challenge runs through September 4 and I hope that you will link up a project of your own !!!

I also found a very cute Recollections Holiday Bash  paper pad post-holidays last season and just had to use that sweet pink candy patterned paper for my card ! Do you make holiday cards with non-traditional colors ?? If so, what are your favorite color combos ??

• I started by cutting a piece of the Holiday Bash paper to fit my green card base.
• A gold doily was folded over the top left edge of the card to create a corner element.
• The Inkadinkado FaLaLa Llama was stamped in Cracked Pistachio Distress Ink on Neenah Stardust White cardstock, then trimmed to fit on the lower right side of the card.
• Several pastel candy dots were placed around the llama.
• I used a border paper punch to make the JOY design, then cut it to place it at the top of the card across the doily.
• 2 large Teal candy dots were placed on the left side of the JOY design.

I'm excited to see what my teammates come up with for this Challenge ! You can see their creations over at the If You Give a Crafter a Cookie Blog . Next month's Challenge will celebrate the 5th anniversary of these amazing cookie challenges.  We are very excited and hope you will join us .

Debra Davison/Meticulosity

February Cookies 2019 - Take 2

For our second challenge this month over at If You Give a Crafter a Cookie, it's all things BABY !! Now, it's been awhile since I had a baby and there are no grandchildren (yet), so I don't have many baly stamps . But I knew there was a cute set in my stash somewhere and luckily, I found them !! Our Inspiration photo this time is soooooo cute !!!

I couldn't decide which stamp to use from the Little Cupcake set  by Inkadinkado, so I used them all. The set is from 2007, which just goes to show you that I am definitely a stamp hoarder !! But then , you never know when you will be needing a baby stamp. I am more likely to use it for a grandchild card these days !!  LOL

• I chose Journal Cards from the Project Life Maggie Holmes "Gather" edition that went well with a Baby Girl theme.
• Using Versafine Clair 'Nocturne" ink, I stamped most of the images onto the journal cards. The Baby Girl image was stamped with a dark pink Stampin' Up ink and the Sweet Peas were stamped with a green Stampin' Up ink.
• I colored some of the images with Faber-Castell PITT Artist Pens .
• Two of the diapers and the chickadee were paper-pieced with scraps of yellow and pink paper.
• I placed strips of washi tape onto some of the journal cards.
• Holes were punched in the upper right corner of the journal cards and then they were all fastened together with a silver binder ring.

I loved the idea of this baby "card" using all of these journal cards fastened together.  There is room on several cards for personalizing a baby's name , birth date etc... I was really pleased with how this turned out and hope that you like it too !! Take a look at the other projects by my teammates over at the If You Give a Crafter a Cookie Challenge Blog - I know they will be fabulous !! We'd love for you to link up a project between now and March 6 . How could you not be inspired by that cute Inspiration photo ?!?!?!

Thank you again for visiting Meticulosity. 

I hope that you will leave a comment and also sign up to follow my blog if you haven't already. 

Debra Davison

Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste 5/28

Another collaboration from me & Celeste for May. This month,our challenge was to make a children's card. I do not have any young children or very many kid-themed stamps, so I had to put my thinking cap on for this one... I remembered that I had several stamps that had sayings by children on them and finally chose the one I used today. Our guest this month is Sybrina King, who is involved in the Send a Smile 4 Kids campaign, that collects and distributes handmade cards to patients at Children's Hospitals.  We are thrilled to have her join us !!

• For this card, I started with a Molly & Rex watercolor card base . I placed a few different washi tapes at the top and bottom of the front of the card.  The Llama washi and striped washi are both made by Recollections for Michaels.
• On a journaling card from the Project Life "Charming" Edition Core Kit , I stamped the fun Inkadinkado image using Memories India Black Ink.
• A butterfly was punched from a piece of scrap patterned paper that I had in my stash and then stapled to the top left corner of the stamped image,
• The journaling card was adhered at an angle using my Bazzill Marathon Tape Runner. Kids often do say the darndest things and I think this advice is perfect.
• If you're feeling blue, try painting yourself a different color !!

And now on to our Llama -----

Funny story about the Llama. I bought the tube of washi for the unicorn design that was included and wondered what I would EVER do with Llama washi tape. I am involved in a fabulous postcard swap group called the Love Notes Postcard Project and this Round, I was lucky enough to be paired randomly with a friend, Anne Ryan. Well, she outdid herself by sending me this wooden Llama postcard that she bought and embellished on the back with a lovely mantra. So, immediately, my Llama washi came to mind and I used it on this card to send to her.. So if she sees  this blog post before the card arrives in Washington state, the cat is out of the bag, so to speak... But I wanted her to know how much she means to me and also how thrilled I was to get to use my Llama washi !! Coincidence, I think not ?!?!

Please check out Celeste's card at her blog -  Crafting Junky. I have a feeling that it is going to be Dino-Mite !! And you will be inspired by Sybrina's project at her blog - Taking Life One Page at a Time . We would love for you to leave us comments and also to follow our blogs. 

This month's coffee is brought to you by a wonderful Iced Coffee - Hazelnut Cinnamon Roll from Guy Fieri ( yep, he makes coffee too. )  I am using one of my Starbucks Reusable cups that I bought for $2 . This is a design from last year and I still love it. Bright and springy !! I hope you have enjoyed our collaboration for the month of May. If you would like to be our guest sometime, please contact me or leave a comment here with your contact info. I look forward to seeing you back here next month and hope we have inspired you. 

Debra Davison / Meticulosity

Coffee & Cards with Deb & Celeste 10/30

I'm so glad that there are 5 Sundays in October so that Celeste and I can have another Sunday together. It was Celeste's turn to choose a theme and she chose a sketch challenge. I have only done 1 or 2 of these so this was fun for me !!

• I found some Craft Smith emoji washi tape today at Michaels for 80% off  and that was the starting point for this card. I used a large graph paper journal card and made the rows across the card with 3 different patterns of washi. 
• The stamped image is an older one by Inkadinkado and I love it. I have used it many times to make cards for friends at work who were having a rough day. Memories Black India Ink was my ink of choice. I stamped onto a piece of white cardstock then cut it to fit onto a Sherwin-Williams paint sample.
• The paint sample was adhered to the card base and then 3 Neon Enamel Dew Drops by Lawn Fawn were placed on the Right side of the card above each of the washi strips.
• An Amy Tangerine Decorative Roller Stamp by American Crafts was used to make the date on the bottom, stamped onto a pink flag banner.
• Here is the sketch that Celeste chose for us to use :

I freakin' LOVE this stamp !!

Today's card has been brought to you by Mom's Diner Cinnamon Roll Coffee in a fun Retro cup that I bought for $1.99 at Tuesday Morning. Celeste and I have had so much fun doing these blog collaborations that we have decided to continue with them once a month. We hope that you will continue to visit our blogs and follow us. Head on over to Crafting Junky now and see what Celeste has come up with for this week's challenge..

Thank you so much to Celeste for suggesting we do a blog collaboration. It has been so much fun to see what we come up with from each of the weekly themes. Celeste, you are a dear friend and I value our friendship immensely !! I hope that one day we will be able to get together in person and have some creative fun as we sip our coffee - you will have your French Roast and I will have some wonderfully flavored brew !! Looking forward to that day ...

Thank you for visiting 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..