Just for You

Today's card, made for my oldest granddaughter, was inspired by the Stampin' Royalty challenge.  The challenge was to make a one layer card.  Since the card has to travel from Iowa to Nevada, a one layer card is perfect for mailing.

The card base is Whisper White Thick.  First, I stamped the background from the You've Got This stamp set using Mint Macron.  I stamped off twice so it would be a light background.  On top of that, I stamped the sentiment from the new Sale-A-Bration Botanicals for You in Rich Razzleberry.  The little flowers, from the same stamp set, are stamped using Watermelon Wonder, Hello Honey and Lost Lagoon.  On the inside, stamped in Rich Razzleberry, is the sentiment "...because you're awesome."  It's also from the Botanicals for You stamp set.

The one layer theme is from the Stampin' Royalty Challenge.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge #50

When I first saw Jean's Quilt Style Paper Piecing Technique Challenge, I knew exactly what I wanted to do.  All I had to do was wait until my order arrived with the Rose Wonder stamp set and Rose Garden Thinlits Dies.  The paper I used is from the new Love Blooms Designer Series Paper Stack and the card base is Whisper White Thick.  The sentiment was stamped using Rose Red.

Being a novice quilter, I have a fascination for Trapunto Quilting.  For those unfamiliar with that quilting technique, here is a small summary.

"Trapunto quilting is a technique used to add another dimension to a quilt. Puffy, raised areas of quilting add a unique texture to a flat piece of art. Italian for embroider, this is also known as the "stuffing technique" because specific parts of the quilt are filled. Interestingly, this method of quilting has been around since the 14th century! Trapunto quilting can be done by hand or by machine."

Trapunto: Make Your Quilt Pop by Angela Mitchell

The complete article can be found here:  http://www.craftsy.com/article/trapunto-make-your-quilt-pop

Since there was no easy way to "stuff" the image, I came up with my own version of trapunto quilting for my card.  To begin, the rose image is cut right out of the front of the card base.  I then added a layer of Vellum to the front and to the back of it, to give it more stability and to give a filmy look to the image that is on the inside of the card.  Then, I glued the rose and leaf image to the inside of the card and filled in the rose.  Using the Rose Garden Thinlits Dies, I cut out the quilt pieces using different patterned paper from the Love Blooms Designer Series Paper Stack and put them in their places with Multipurpose Liquid Glue.  And, that as they say, is that!

For all the challenge details and to share your paper piecing project, visit Watercooler Wednesday Challenge.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Sky Is The Limit

Sunshine through my windows always makes me happy even when the temperatures are below freezing.  Some how, it never seems so bad when the sun is shining and the skies are blue.

With Valentine's Day approaching, I've been making cards to send to my grandchildren.  The Sky Is The Limit stamp set from the Sale-A-Bration Brochure, makes for a perfect guy card.  Yes, I use pink and rhinestones on my guy cards, especially for Valentine cards.  I've not had any complaints thus far.  :-)

The card base is Melon Mambo to which I added the stamped layer of Whisper White.  The plane is stamped using Tempting Turquoise and I added a little Real Red heart punched from the Owl Builder Punch.  I added Rhinestone Basic Jewels to the center of the hearts and under the sentiment.  The sentiment and smoke trail are stamped using Real Red.  The three little clouds are stamped using Melon Mambo.

The colors I used are from The Paper Players.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Perfect Plum Flowers

Two posts in one day?  What's up with that, you may ask?  Well, I discovered a brand new challenge today and you know how I love challenges.  It's The Colour Tree Challenge from addINKtive designs.  I loved the colors for this one.

On the Very Vanilla card base, I added Early Espresso branches cut from the new Rose Garden Thinlits Dies.  The pretty Perfect Plum flowers and So Saffron centers are cut from the Botanical Builders Framelits Dies.  To the centers I added a Rhinestone Basic Jewels.

You can find the beautiful colors I used at The Colour Tree Challenge.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Love

Today finds me thinking about Valentine's Day.  It's just over a month away.  The colors from the Sunday Stamps Challenge were perfect for a Valentine card.  I combined it with the great sketch from CAS(E) this Sketch Challenge.

The card base is Whisper White Thick cardstock.  At first I had a layer of Crumb Cake but it just didn't look right to me.  So, I grabbed a piece of patterned paper from the Love Blooms Designer Series Paper Stack.  Then, I added a layer of Blushing Bride.  The small hearts are punched from Crumb Cake and Watermelon Wonder using the heart punch from the Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack.  The larger heart was punched from Whisper White using the Sweetheart Punch.  The love sentiment is from the Hello Life stamp set.  It's stamped using Crumb Cake ink.  I used a Wink of Stella Clear Glitter Brush to add some shimmer to the small hearts.  It doesn't show up well in the photo but it's very pretty in real time.  I added just a little bit of bling to the right of the sentiment in the form of a rhinestone.

The colors I used are from the Sunday Stamps Challenge.

The sketch I used is from the CAS(E) this Sketch Challenge.

Christmas Card Challenges #6

Welcome to "Anything Goes" week here at Christmas Card Challenges.  For this one I made a little snowflake flower and put it in a vase.  I keep forgetting that I have these cute little Posh Vases Dies from Taylored Expressions.  I haven't used them in ages but they are so cute!

For my card, I stayed with mostly Always Artichoke and Cherry Cobbler for my colors. Other colors I used are Crumb Cake and Very Vanilla. And, I've been itching to use this plaid paper from Handmade Holidays by Simple Stories because I happen to love plaid, especially if it's flannel.  The sentiment is from the Flurry of Wishes stamp set and stamped in Always Artichoke.  The snowflake is a Studio G stamp.  It's stamped in Cherry Cobbler.  I know, I've never seen a red snowflake, either.  Let's just say it fit the color scheme.  I added Rhinestone Basic Jewels to the center of the snowflake and on each point.  So, what do you think, too much plaid?

For all the challenge details and to share your project, visit Christmas Card Challenges.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Wacky Watercooler January Mini Hop Number One

Welcome to the first Wacky Watercooler Blog Hop of the 2016.  Today we are introducing you to some of the great new products from the 2016 Occasions Catalog and the 2016 Sale-A-Bration Brochure.  Are you ever in for a treat!  I fell in love with so many of the new products that it was hard to decide which ones I wanted to get first.

My first card features a new set from the Occasions Catalog.  It's called Botanical Blooms and coordinates with the Botanical Builder Framelits Dies.  I love those pop-up flowers.  They give some great dimension to the flowers.  You can find these products on page 26 and 27 of the catalog.  What's great is that you can purchase the bundle and get the Botanical Blooms Stamp Set, the Botanical Builder Framelits Dies and the Botanical Gardens Designer Series Paper for a 15% savings.

The cardstock is Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Blushing Bride, Melon Mambo, Rich Razzleberry and Pear Pizzazz.  The sentiment is stamped using Rich Razzleberry ink and is from the Trust God Stamp Set found in the the 2015-2016 Annual Catalog.  For the two leaves, I used Garden Green stamped on the Pear Pizzazz.  I added some Rhinestone Basic Jewels for a wee but of bling.     

For my next project I used the new stamp set Botanicals For You found on page 4 of the 2016 Sale-A-Bration Brochure.  It's one of the free sets you can select when you place a $50 order.  When I purchased the bundle mentioned above for $51.75, this is the free stamp set I chose.

The card is a CASE (Cope And Share Everything) from page 5 of the Sale-A-Bration Brochure.  I loved the way it looked but instead of stamping the sentiment in black, I used Crumb Cake.  The little flowers are stamped using Real Red, Hello Honey and Pool Party.  The little branches are stamped in Pear Pizzazz.  I added Pearl Basic Jewels to the center of each of the flowers.  The cardstock is Crumb Cake and Whisper White.  It is a simple and easy card to make and would make a great one to use for a Stamp-A-Stack.  What do you think?

Okay, that all I have for you this time.  It's time to move forward.  Next up is Heidi Weaver.  I always enjoy seeing what her creative mind puts to ink and paper.

If you'd like to go back to check out the great projects from Deb Smart, click the image below.

If you'd like to start over and take another look at all the wonderful projects, visit the Wacky Watercooler Stamping Blog by clicking the image below.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge #49

For our first challenge of 2016, Jackie offered up a great sketch to jump start your new year creativity.  The minute I saw it, I knew just what I wanted to do.  The stamp set I used is from the new Sale-A-Bration Catalog.  It's called Sky Is The Limit and it's only available until February 15th.

Next week I have three grandsons who have birthdays, one right after the other.  I loved the plane in this set and once I stamped it, I fussy cut it and used dimensionals to pop it up.  That is not easy to see in the photo.  The sentiment is also from the same stamp set.  I think it made a very cool birthday  card for my soon to be fifteen year old.

Along with Sale-A-Bration, comes the new Occasions Catalog.  Be sure to stop back tomorrow for a look at more new product.  The Wacky Watercooler Stamping Blog crew are hopping to show off new product and will be featuring projects showcasing the new catalogs.  The blog hop starts at 8 p.m. CST.

For all the challenge details and share your project, visit Watercooler Wednesday Challenge.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Best Wishes

Finally, it feels so good to be back in my craft studio.  After a brief hiatus during the holidays, I'm ready to get back to the fun of creating..  Today's card was made with a dual purpose.  One, I wanted to join in the Share Joy Challenge and two, I needed a wedding card.  Granted the card isn't needed until March but,  for those of you who know me, I really like to work ahead.

When Ben and Megan asked me to design and make their wedding invitations, I was thrilled.  She spent an afternoon with me going over what she had in mind.  She picked out the stamp sets and the colors and while we visited, I made up a couple of cards.  At the end of today's post you will find the design she and Ben chose.

For the card, I used some of my new Taylored Expressions dies, Pop-Up Petals 2 and Leafy Branch.  I stayed with their colors of Night of Navy and Garden Green.  I love how the flower die pops up and adds a bit of dimension to the flowers.  Clean and simple and all ready to go.

The sketch and Clean & Simple theme are from the Share Joy Challenge.

And here is a photo of Ben and Megan's wedding invitiation.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Christmas Card Challenges #5

Happy New Year!  Welcome to the first Christmas Card Challenge of the 2016.  It's a color challenge for you this week.  For this one I used up some of the scraps that were laying around on my craft table.  Joy is cut from Watermelon Wonder cardstock using the Wonderful Wreath Framelits Dies and the circle is cut from Rich Razzleberry cardstock using the Circle Collection Framelits Dies.  I thing the two pair beautifully.  The card base is Smoky Slate with a layer of Very Vanilla.  Handmade Holiday by Simple Stories gave me the polka dot patterned paper.  It's a simple design but I love that the only thing I had to do to it was trim down the size, glue it together, add a few Rhinestone Basic Jewel and the baker's twine.  It doesn't get any easier than that!

So, come join us and start your new year with a weekly Christmas card.  By the time next December rolls around you'll have all you need to share with your family and friends.

For all the challenge details and share you project with us, visit Christmas Card Challenges.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Happy New Year!

Just a quick post to share another gift I received at my local demonstrator Christmas dinner.  Kay made this gorgeous set of cards and a wonderful box in which to keep them. It's such a pretty set.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Merry Christmas!

Have a safe and wonderful holiday!

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Celebrate!

It's Christmas Eve and I have one more Christmas card to share with you.  I'm getting ready to head over to my number two son's and spend Christmas with his family.  I'm so looking forward to it.  Now that my number three son has moved out of state and my number one son is out of country, it will be a different kind of Christmas for me, less noise.  :-)  I love being surrounded by family and those that won't be with us today are very much missed.

Wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas!

Stamp Sets:  Feeling Sentimental (retired), Reason for the Season; Inks:  Lost Lagoon, Night of Navy; Cardstock:  Rich Razzleberry, Very Vanilla; Accessories & Tools:  Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Dimensionals, SNAIL Permanent Adhesive, Stampin' Trimmer

The sketch I used is from CAS(E) this Sketch Challenge.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Mossy Meadow Christmas

Christmas is almost here and, even with all the Christmas cards I make all year long, I found I still need a couple of more.  I kept this one very simple with but I love the way it turned out.  I think it's a perfect match for the Sunday Stamps Sketch Challenge.

Stamp Sets:  Flurry of Wishes - inside sentiment, Holiday Home - outside sentiment; Ink:  Mossy Meadow; Cardstock:  Home for Christmas Designer Series Paper, Whisper White Thick; Accessories & Tools:  Brick Wall Embossing Folder, Home for Christmas Enamel Dots, SNAIL Permanent Adhesive, Stampin' Trimmer, Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine

The sketch I used is from the Sunday Stamps Challenge.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge #48

Heidi's challenge for us this week is an "Anything Goes With Snow."  With time at a premium, I decided to keep this one very simple.  I added a layer of Whisper White to the Real Red and stamped on the Sahara Sand layer.  A few enamel dots for a pop of color and it's all done.

This is our last challenge of 2015 but we'll be back come the New Year for another year of great challenges.

Stamp Sets:  Happy Scenes - sentiment, Perpetual Birthday Calendar - snowflakes, White Christmas; Inks:  Early Espresso, Whisper White Craft; Cardstock:  Real Red, Sahara Sand, Whisper White; Accessories & Tools:  Home for Christmas Enamel Dots, SNAIL Permanent Adhesive, Stampin' Trimmer

For all the details and to join our challenge, visit Watercooler Wednesday Challenges.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Snowman Ornament

Christmas Card Challenges is on a holiday hiatus, I decided to share one of the cute gifts I received at our annual Christmas dinner.  Several local demonstrators get together every year to have a gift swap and share a meal together.  It's a fun time.  This little snowman tealight ornament was made by Kelli.  I think he is so cute!  He even has his own little box to sleep in once it's time to put Christmas away for the year.  Next week I'll share another of the gifts I received.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Purrfect Friend

Today found me busy working on an order of wedding invitations but I wanted to take time out to make a card, using a new Taylored Expressions stamp set and dies, to share with you.  This is a case of a card I made when I attended an event at the Taylored Expressions Studio.  Being someone who loves to do counted cross stitch, the Stitch by Stitch stamp set immediately caught my interest.  And, the Embroidery Hoop Dies was a perfect pairing with the stamp set.  Over the next few weeks I'll be sharing more of the images as I gear up to make some Valentine's Day cards.

Stamp Set:  Stitch by Stitch (Taylored Expressions), Inks:  Basic Gray, Real Red; Cardstock:  Basic Gray, Calypso Coral, Real Red, Smoky Slate, Stacked with Love Designer Series Paper Stack (retired), Whisper White, Whisper White Thick; Accessories & Tools:  Embroidery Hop Dies (Taylored Expressions), Arrows Embossing Folder, Sweetheart Punch, Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack, Red Wink of Stella Brush, Silver Cording Trim, Multipurpose Liquid Glue, SNAIL Permanent Adhesive, Dimensionals, Stampin' Trimmer, Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine

The sketch I used is from the Freshly Made Sketches Challenge.  As you can see I changed it up just a wee bit so I hope they still consider it a valid project for their great sketch.  Instead of making a smaller layer for the center, I stretched it to the edges of the card and made the images, die cuts and sentiment the focal layer.  What do you think?

And even though I'm a huge fan of Christmas, I played along with the Inkspirational Challenge.  It's a new challenge for me.  The challenge is to make a project without a Christmas theme.  Since I make a Christmas card a week throughout the year as a member of the Christmas Card Challenges Design Team, I had no problem following along with the no Christmas theme challenge.  It gave me a chance to play with my new Taylored Expressions stamp set and dies.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Shades of Bermuda Bay

There is just time for a quick post today.  I'm busy making Christmas gifts and getting those late cards out to friends and family.  I combines two challenges today, Sunday Stamps Challenge and the RetroSketches Challenge.  I think they came together rather well.  What do you think?

Stamp Sets:  Beautiful Bunch, Butterfly Basics, Crazy about You, Gorgeous Grunge, Petal Potpourri; Inks:  Basic Gray, Bermuda Bay, Pool Party, Smoky Slate, Soft Sky; Cardstock:  Basic Gray, Bermuda Bay, Whisper White; Accessories & Tools:  1-3/4" Scalloped Circle Punch, 7/8" Scalloped Circle Punch, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Turquoise Rhinestones (Want2Scrap), Dimensionals, SNAIL Permanent Adhesive, Stampin Trimmer.  Stampin' Up! ® product unless otherwise noted.

The colors I used are from the Sunday Stamps Challenge.

The sketch I used is from the RetroSketches Challenge.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Watercooler Wednesday Challenges #47

It's time for a new Watercolor Wednesday challenge and this one is all about blue.  I love blue and I love the color inspiration from Design Seeds, so it being my turn to offer up the challenge, I picked this great Dew Blue color combination from Design Seeds.  Don't you think the Design Team created some beautiful projects?

Now we'd love to see how you were inspired.  Show us your project and share it over at Watercooler Wednesday Challenges.

Ever have one of those ideas in your head that you just can't get transferred to paper?  Well, that's what happened to me with this design.  No matter what I did, it just didn't.  Sigh...but, it's blue, so I can live with it.  :-)

Stamp Set:  Best Thoughts; Inks:  Basic Gray, Marina Mist, Night of Navy, Pool Party, Smoky slate, StazOn Jet Black; Cardstock:  Night of Navy, Watercolor Paper, Whisper White; Accessories & Tools:  Decorative Label Punch, Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Crystal Effects, Dimensionals, Stampin' Trimmer

We'd love to have you join us this week at Watercooler Wednesday Challenges.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Birthday Wishes

Today is a rainy, gloomy day here in Iowa.  So, what better way to brighten the day than to make some pretty flowers with the new Petal Pop-Ups 2 Dies I recently purchased from Taylored Expressions.  The flower is actually a layered flower.  You can just see a hint of the color under the top flower.  Daffodil Delight under the Pacific Point flower and Pacific Point under the Daffodil Delight flower.

Stamp Set:  Zinnia Bouquet - sentiment (Taylored Expressions); Ink:  Pacific Point; Cardstock:  Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point, Secret Garden Patterned Paper (Graphic 45); Accessories & Tools:  Petal Pop-Ups 2 Dies (Taylored Expressions), Triple Banner Punch, Corner Rounder Punch, Pearl Basic Jewels, Dimensionals, Multipurpose Liquid Glue, SNAIL Permanent Adhesive, Trimmer, Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine

The sketch I used is from the Share Joy Challenge.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

Sunday Christmas Card Challenge #2

It's a short post for you today.  I have so much going on that I'm meeting myself coming and going.  I have to get cardstock cut for 100 wedding invitations I was asked to design and make.  Now that approval has been given, it's time to get busy.  Plus, I'm still working on family and friends Christmas gifts.  Busy, busy, busy!

For my Christmas Card Challenges card this week, I opted not to do any stamping.  I love that little joy die.  It's just the right size for the front of the card and adds just the right pop of color.

Stamp Set:  None used; Ink:  None used; Cardstock:  Cherry On Top Designer Series Paper Stack, Chocolate Chip, Cucumber Crush, Watermelon Wonder, Whisper White; Accessories & Tools:  Joy Die (Taylored Expressions), Punch (unknown), Rhinestone Basic Jewels, Dimensionals, SNAIL Permanent Adhesive, Stampin' Trimmer, Big Shot Die-Cutting Machine.  All Stampin' Up! product unless otherwise noted.

Come join us for our last challenge of 2015.  We are taking a brief hiatus over Christmas but will be back with more challenges in the New Year.  You can find all the details at Christmas Card Challenges.

The sketch I used is from Freshly Made Sketches.

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha

It's a Little Yellow Chick

Today I thought I'd share a sneak peek of one of the 2016 Sale-A-Bration stamp sets called Honeycomb Happiness.  I feel for this little chick the minute I saw him.  He's so cute!  The set also includes an ice cream cone and a balloon.  And, from the 2016 Occasions Catalog, the Honeycomb Embellishments.  They come in Whisper White, Mint Macaron and Blushing Bride.  I used a Whisper White to which I added touches of Daffodil Delight.  The Occasions Catalog and the Sale-A-Bration Catalog are set to launch January 5th.  If you'd like catalogs of your own, let me know and I'll be sure to get one right to you.

Stamp Set:  Honeycomb Happiness (2016 SAB); Inks:  Basic Black Archival, Daffodil Delight, Tangerine Tango; Cardstock:  Whisper White Thick; Accessories & Tools:  Honeycomb Embellishments, Blender Pen, Stampin' Trimmer

The sketch I used is from CAS(E) this Sketch!

Thanks for stopping in at the Coffee Pot Stamping Cafe,

Marsha