WWC322 - Marsha's Challenge: All About Occasions

This week at the Watercooler Wednesday Challenge I'm hosting the All About Occasions challenge.  I pulled out one of my Graphic 45 cards I made some time ago.  It's a z-fold card.

For all of our challenge details and to share your project, visit the Watercooler Wednesday Challenge by clicking the image below.  We’d love to have you join us.  You have until Monday, August 23rd at 6:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time to link up your project.

Thanks for stopping by,

Marsha
 

The Sisterhood of Crafters - Birds

Hi everyone!  Wednesday has rolled around and it's time for another challenge from The Sisterhood of Crafters.  This week is Darlene and she has challenge us to design a project featuring birds.  Funny thing is, I don't have a stamp set that has a bird in it.  Now how sad is that, I ask you?  So, I dug out one of my favorite patterned papers from Graphic 45 and let it do the bird watching for me.  I love the bird images in this paper.  And, yes, if you are wondering, I am on the lookout for some bird stamp sets.

Cardstock:  Soft Suede, Very Vanilla (both Stampin' Up!); Patterned Paper:  Botanical Tea 8x8 Paper Pad (Graphic 45); Other:  3/8" Lost Lagoon Silky Taffeta Ribbon (Stampin' Up!), Friend Die (Taylored Expressions), Sequins

For all the challenge details and to share your project at The Sisterhood of Crafters Challenge, just click the image below.  We'd love to have you join us.  You have until Sunday, March 25th at 7:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time to link up your project.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Sunday Christmas Card Challenges # 24

A card with no stamping means a card without ink.  For this week's Christmas Card Challenges, I decided to pull the colors out of the inspiration photo and use my pretty Graphic 45 patterned paper called Time to Flourish.  This is some of the December papers included in the paper pad.

Stamps:  None; Inks:  None; Copic Marker:  YG17; Card Stock:  Garden Green, Nana's Nursery (DCWV), Time to Flourish (Graphic 45), Whisper White (card base); Accessories & Tools:  Pearl Basic Jewels, Bead Trim (unknown), Dimensionals, Glue Dots, SNAIL Adhesive, Paper Snips, Stampin' Trimmer.  All Stampin' Up!® product unless otherwise noted.

For all the challenge details and more inspiration from our Design Team, visit Christmas Card Challenges.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Amazing Grace

It's a new challenge for me today.  It's over at Our Daily Bread Designs.  I only have a few of their stamp sets but I do love them.  This one is the Amazing Grace Hymn stamp.  It's one of the hymns I remember my dad singing.  He had such a beautiful voice and sang at weddings, funerals, in the church choir as well as solos on Sunday mornings in church.  I do so miss hearing him sing.  It's one of my fondest memories of him.  His signature song was How Great Thou Art.  He did a recording of it and the radio station, where he was the news director, played it a few times.  They got so many calls to hear it again that it became a part of the regular morning lineup.

Vintage is not something I do very often but thought it would be a good look for the background paper as well as the hymn.  I used some vintage pearl lace that was in my stash.  It just seemed to jump out at me.  Because the entire hymn is on the stamp, it was just too big for me to use the whole thing, which is why you just see a portion of the hymn in the circle.  It would have covered up all of that pretty Graphic 45 Botanical Tea paper. It's a simple design with the hymn as the focal point.

Stamp Set: Amazing Grace Hymn (Our Daily Bread Designs); Inks:  Early Espresso (Stampin' Up!), Vintage Photo (Tim Holtz); Card Stock:  Botanical Tea (Graphic 45), Early Espresso and Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!); Accessories & Tools:  Tear Drop Circles (Spellbinders), Pearl Basic Jewels (Stampin' Up!) Pearl Lace, Dimensionals, Glue Dots, Tape Runner

The sketch and all the details for this challenge can be found at the Our Daily Bread Designs Blog.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Sunday Christmas Card Challenges #53

It's Anything Goes week at Sunday Christmas Card Challenges.  I decided to finally use some of my hoarded Graphic 45 Twelve Days of Christmas patterned paper.  I've had it for a while and not used it.  I love the vintage look of their paper.  Can you believe there is no stamping done here?  The only ink used was the marker to color the pearls and to color the edges of the layers.  A little punching, a little fussy cutting, a little sponging and voila! a beautiful vintage Christmas card.  I love vintage!

Ink:  Vintage Photo (Tim Holtz); Card Stock:  Real Red, Twelve Days of Christmas (Graphic 45); Copic Marker:  R27; Accessories & Tools:  Eyelet Border Punch (retired), Distress Tool, Dimensionals, Pearl Basic Jewels, SNAIL Adhesive, Glue Dots, Dimensionals, Silver Gelly Roll Pen, Stampin' Trimmer

 For all the challenge details, visit Sunday Christmas Card Challenges HERE.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Calypso Easter

Today I found myself cleaning up my craft area, not because I wanted to but because I had to.  I couldn't find anything with all that was covering my table.  During the sorting and putting away, I got side tracked.  I came across several pieces that I had not used on other projects and thought how cool these would all look together.  So, with a little of this and a little of that, here is the Easter card I made from the stuff found just lying around.

Stamp Sets:  Secret Garden and Teeny Tiny Wishes (Stampin' Up!); Inks:  Always Artichoke and Calypso Coral (Stampin' Up!); Card Stock:  Basic White (Darice), Calypso Coral (Stampin' Up!), Place in Time Patterned Paper (Graphic 45), Lucky Charm Patterned Paper (American Crafts); Accessories & Tools:  Square Lattice Embossing Folder, Secret Garden Framelits, Word Window Punch, Modern Label Punch, Linen Thread, Tangerine Tango Button and Pearl Basic Jewels (Stampin' Up!)

So, there you have a very colorful scrappy card.  I love when I can use every little left over.  It makes me feel very frugal.  :-)

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

May the Lord

It's time for another Craft Hoarders Anonymous Challenge.  This time it can be vintage or retro.  As you can see, I chose vintage.  One of the things I pulled out of my stash is the vintage tatted lace.  I have always had a fascination with tatted lace.  When I mentioned to my mother that I was thinking of learning how to tat, she brought out this box of very old lace and gave it to me.  She wasn't sure who made it, she thought one of my grandmothers.  I have had it for years and it is now over 100 years old.  Talk about being hard to cut into for my card.  Whew!  I actually had tears in my eyes.

Stamp Sets:  Anemones (Flourishes); Inks:  Crisp Cantaloupe, Calypso Coral and Soft Sky (Stampin' Up!), Vintage Photo Distress Ink (Tim Holtz); Card Stock:  Always Artichoke, Crisp Cantaloupe, Very Vanilla, Calypso Coral and Wild Wasabi (Stampin' Up!), Secret Garden Papercrafting Paper (Graphic 45), Accessories & Tools:  Chalk Talk Framelits, 7/8" Scallop Circle Punch, Gold Baker's Twine and 1/8" Silver Mini Brads (Stampin' Up!), Mini Tiny Circles Stencil (Balzer Designs), Gold Pearl Liquid Pearls (Ranger), 1/8" Scor-Tape, Mini Glue Dots

You still have time to play along with the challenge.  You can find all the details HERE or the link below.

Challenge #3: Vintage or Retro Style

Graphic 45 is our sponsor this month, so let's see what you can make in a vintage or retro style. Do you hoard lace or vintage hat pins? Do you snap up all the postcards at yard sales? Do you love mid-century modern? Do you long for avocado appliances and orange shag carpets? Show your vintage or retro spin on a paper crafting project.

Oh, for those who are curious, I never did learn how to tat but I'm still fascinated by tatted lace.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha 

Petite Petals Thank You

The Friday Mashup Challenge this week was to use stars or make a thank you card set with matching envelopes or to make a set of thank you cards and envelopes using stars.  Easy, right?  Well, yes, if you have anything 'starry' to use.  I was at a loss until I remembered my paper pad of Mother Goose by Graphic 45.  It worked great for my set of 3" x 3" thank you cards.

Stamp Sets:  Petite Petals, Simply Sketched (Stampin' Up!); Inks:  Bermuda Bay, Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry (Stampin' Up!); Card Stock:  Bermuda Bay (Stampin' Up!), White (Bazzill), Mother Goose Patterned Paper (Graphic 45); Accessories & Tools:  Petite Petals Punch, Stampin' Dimensionals (Stampin' Up!), Rhinestones

I wanted to add the star paper to the flap of the envelope but didn't have enough left.  Instead, I used a retired Stampin' Up! set called So Happy for You.  It had a shooting star stamp in it that I used to stamp the front left corner of the envelope.

To go check out The Friday Mashup blog, just click on the image below and it will take you right over there.

Now I have the last of my thank you cards done and can concentrate on the Valentine cards I need to get designed and sent.  Busy, busy, busy!

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Happy Birthday to You

You know, you can never have too many birthday cards.  There is just one problem, the birthdays I have coming up in the next couple of months are for my sons and grandsons.  Guess I need to get busy with some guy designs.  For now, here is my latest gal card.  I used more of my Graphic 45 Secret Garden patterned paper and I love how the coral and blue come together.

Stamp Set:  Botanical Bookplates Vol. 1; Ink:  Tim Holtz Vintage Photo (Ranger); Card Stock:  Very vanilla and Calypso Coral (Stampin' Up!), Secret Garden Patterned Pape3r (Graphic 45); Accessories & Tools:  Square Lattice Embossing Folder, 1/4" Calypso Coral Ribbon and Pearl Basic Jewels (Stampin' Up!), Pop Dots, Blending Tool

I've used this design before and really like the way it looks.  I think it would be pretty as a Christmas Card.  I may just have to give that a try.

Until next time...happy creating!

Windy Tree

This is the final card in the Graphic 45  September A Place in Time card set.  It is also my favorite one from the set.  Sometimes it's nice to make a card that is not a traditional shape.

Don't you just love that cute little tree?  It's the Windy Tree Die from Taylored Expressions.  It is definitely on my wishlist now.

This was such a fun class and I love all the new cards I have to send out to family and friends.

Until next time. . .happy creating! 

Daydreaming at My Desk

Graphic 45 papers are wonderful.  You can get them in 12x12 paper pads or 8x8 paper pads.  They lends themselves beautifully to a vintage look.  If you haven't seen their new Christmas paper, The Twelve Days of Christmas, be sure to visit their blog.  I fell in love with it the minute I saw it.  But, for now, back to another card from the September A Place in Time card class.

I loved this image of the student leaning on his book daydreaming.  What do you suppose he is thinking about?  I think it made a great Thinking of You card.

Until next time. . .happy creating!

Autumn Time

How many of you loved to swing?  As a girl, our neighbor had a bag swing in a tree that had grown up over a hill.  It was so much fun to grab the rope and swing out over that hill.  It was almost like flying!  This little girl swinging as her puppy rolls in the grass, made me think of all the fun we had taking turns swinging out over that hill.

There is a whole page of cutouts in each Graphic 45 paper pad.  I think this is the second favorite card we made.  As you can see, it is an easel card.  I love making easel cards.  It gives such a different look to your card.

Until next time. . .happy creating!

September Leaves

Autumn is my favorite time of the year.  I love the cool, crisp air and the beautiful colors of the trees.  The holiday season is approaching and it heralds in special times spent with family and friends.  Here is the third card I made in the Graphic 45 September A Place in Time card class.

The cards in this year long series have been so much fun to put together.  At class I saw the cards for the next three classes and I can hardly wait until class time.  Janet designs wonderful cards.

Until next time. . .happy creating!

A Graphic 45 School House

Since the theme for the card class was about school or Autumn, I thought this little school house was a cute addition to this card.  So many of our friendships began during those school days.  While I didn't spend any time in a one room school, I remember my grandmother and mom talking about it.  The sentiment inside the card reads as follows:

As long as we have memories,

yesterday remains.

As long as we have hope,

tomorrow awaits.

As long as we have friendship,

today is beautiful.

The colors from A Place in Time from Graphic 45 are wonderful and so reminiscent of Fall.  The remind me of the cool, crisp days that will soon be upon us. 

Until next time. . .happy creating!

A New Graphic 45 A Place in Time Card

Today was class night at Memory Bound for the September Graphic 45 Card Set.  Janet, our instructor, came up with more beautiful designs.  She makes it so easy to be creative.  It was so much fun!  Where else can you make fantastic cards and get rewarded with chocolate?  We all had a great time and came away with six new cards to send to family and friends.

With school back in session and Autumn just around the corner, these cards are perfect for the time of year.  I wasn't able to get a group picture, so over the next several days I'll showcase each card.  I'm already looking forward to next month's class.

Until next time. . .happy creating!

Timeless Tuesday #235 - In Distress

Wow!  I can't believe I got my card for the Timeless Tuesday Challenge done today, Tuesday!  Lately, it's been down to the last day.  It could have been because the minute I saw that we had to distress a card, I knew what I wanted to do immediately.  Now that doesn't happen every day.  Click HERE to go right to the Timeless Tuesday #235 - In Distress Challenge.

Graphic 45's patterned paper is perfect for that distressed look.  Today I used Secret Garden.  All but the card base are from the Secret Garden collection.  I didn't put a sentiment on the front of the card because I love what is on the cut out.  However, I did add it to the inside of the card and both are from a couple of my Flourishes stamp sets.

Stamp Sets:  Anemones and Swan Lake (Flourishes); Inks:  Tim Holtz Distress Ink Vintage Photo (Ranger), Soft Suede (Stampin' Up!); Card Stock:  Soft Suede and Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!), Secret Garden Patterned Paper (Graphic 45); Accessories & Tools:  Pearl Basic Jewels, Stampin' Dimensionals and Stampin' Distress Tool (Stampin' Up!), Cream Twine distressed with Vintage Photo ink

This was such a fun challenge given the fact that I love the distressed look.  I don't do it nearly as much as I would like.

Until next time . . . happy creating!

Thinking of You

All of the papers I used for this card are from the Secret Garden Collection by Graphic 45.  It has quickly become a favorite.  I was first introduced to Graphic 45 when I took a card class at Memory Bound, my local scrapbooking store.  I was hooked the minute I had the first card done. The colors all coordinate so well together.

Stamp Set:  Sincere Salutations (Stampin' Up!); Ink:  Tuxedo Black (Memento); Card Stock:  Very Vanilla (Stampin' Up!), Secret Garden (Graphic 45); Accessories & Tools:  3/8" Grosgrain Ribbon, Pearl Basic Jewels (Stampin' Up!)

Until next time . . . happy creating!

Graphic 45 Best Wishes

Tonight I have my July Graphic 45 Card Class and I'm just now sharing with you the last card from the May group with you.  Because I have a little visitor today, I'll keep this post short and show you that card.  I'm completely taken by the Graphic 45 A Place in Time collection.

There you have the last May card.  I think for June, I'll just showcase the whole set so I can move on to the new ones I'll be making tonight.  With it being so hot and humid, there are only two things that will get me out of my nice cool house and that is work or a card class.

Until next time... happy creating!

Secret Garden Thinking of You

Today I'm playing along with the Mojo Monday Sketch Challenge.  If memory serves me, this is my first time contributing to this challenge.  And, it's a very special challenge.  They are celebrating their 300th sketch.  Wow!  Be sure to visit the Mojo Monday Blog.  You can click on the link above or the sketch photo below.

Stamp Set:  Garden Shed (Taylored Expressions); Inks:  Perfect Plum (Stampin' Up!), Antique Linen Distress Ink (Tim Holtz Ranger); Card Stock:  Very Vanilla and Perfect Plum (Stampin' Up!), Secret Garden (Graphic 45); Accessories & Tools:  Flower Box Sprigs & Flowers Die (Taylored Expressions), Framed Tulips Embossing Folder (Stampin' Up!), 1-3/4" Circle Punch (Stampin' Up!), Silver Mini Brad (Stampin' Up!)

Here is the sketch that provided the inspiration for my card.

 It was a fun sketch and gave me a chance to use some of my Secret Garden patterned paper by Graphic 45.

Graphic 45 Gift Card

One of my favorite things to make is a gift card holder.  This is the one made in May's group of Graphic 45 cards.  I know just the person I'll be giving this to with a Starbucks gift card.  She has a birthday coming up in July and loves coffee as much as I do.  Oh, and purple is her favorite color!

So, now I'm off to work on some other projects.  I keep saying I'm going to get them done and share them with you all but time seems to get away from me these days.  Now that I'm working again, I just don't seem to be as organized.  Plus, I'm working on a couple of scrapbook albums.  Until next time!