Happy Valentine's Day

Today's card was created for the latest Less Is More Challenge. To create my card I started with a white card base and layered on a piece of white cardstock that I had embossed using a heart pattern embossing folder from The Paper Studio. I popped that panel up off of my card using 3M foam tape and then added some black stitched lines around the outer edge of the card to help define the edges. I stamped the heart from the Unity Stamp Company's Everything Love stamp set onto some cherry cobbler cardstock from Stampin' UP and fussy cut the image out. I stamped the sentiment on the inside of the heart using the same stamp set. I went all around the fussy cut heart with a dual tip Memento marker to make it look like a die cut and then adhered it directly to the card. Using some American Crafts jute twine in black I created the tail and bow for my "balloon" and adhered them both directly to the card using some Ranger Multi Matte Medium glue. For a finishing touch I added a few clear rhinestones from Recollections on either side of the sentiment. I hope you like this clean and simple card and thank you for visiting my blog today!

Winter Wishes

My second card today was created for the latest Jingle Belles challenge, where the challenge is to use a sticker on your project. I created my card by layering a piece of patterned paper from PinkFresh Studio Christmas Wishes 6x6 paper pad onto my white card base. I die cut a snow bank using white cardstock and a Paper Smooches edge die. I stamped the sentiment from the Simon Says Stamp Hand Lettered Winter Wishes stamp set using Versafine onyx black ink for a nice crisp look. For a finishing touch I added three adorable little snowman stickers to the snowbank to complete my scene. I'm not sure who made the stickers. I picked them up last year during a clearance sale at Michael's and I no longer have the original packaging. Anyway, this was was one of the easiest Christmas cards I've ever created. If I had more of these fun stickers it would be fun to mass produce. I hope you like it!

Delivered With Love

Today's card was created for the latest Watercooler Wednesday Challenge. I started by embossing some Stampin' UP basic black cardstock using a heart embossing folder by The Paper Studio. I layered that directly onto my white card base and rounded the corners using my EK Success corner chomper. I then stamped that fun truck from Unity Stamp Company's A Guy And His Truck stamp set onto some white Copic-friendly cardstock. I colored the image in using my alcohol markers and then cut the panel down to fit my card. I popped it up off of the card using some 3M foam tape for a little dimension. I finished this fun card off by added some faux stitched lines at the top and bottom of the panel and then a bit of shimmer to the hearts using my At You Spica clear glitter pen. I wish I could have gotten my camera to pick up that shimmer and shine but I just couldn't get the angle right on the photo. Anyway, I hope you like my fun little card and don't forget to leave a comment. I appreciate each and every one of them!

I'm Wild About You

Today's card was created for the latest Send a Smile 4 Kids challenge. To create my card I started by layering some pretty patterned papers from Chickaniddy Twirly Girly 6x6 paper pad onto my white card base. I then stamped the adorable little giraffe from Unity Stamp Company's Wild About You stamp set onto some Copic-friendly white cardstock. I colored the giraffe in colors that would coordinate with the patterned paper and then cut the panel down. Using my EK Success corner chomper I round the left upper and right lower corners on both the card and the focal panel. I adhered the panel to the card using 3M foam tape for a bit of dimension. I added some black dashed lines around the focal panel and the coordinating panel in the center of the card for some added contrast. I added some pretty pink Stickles glitter glue to the balloon and the spots on the critter. For a final touch I added some Nuvo Crystal Drops in ebony black. I plan on forwarding this card to my friend Sybrina for the latest Valentine's card drive. Thank you for visiting my blog!

You're Great-Coffee And Cards With Celeste And Deb

Hello, and welcome to the February edition of Coffee And Cards With Celeste And Deb! This month we decided to do a mood board so I searched Pinterest for my inspiration. I found a beautiful collection of items and decided on a theme of black, white, pink, and gold. We also have a special guest with us again this month...the wonderful Terri Albro Burson. She is fantastically crafty and designs for So Suzy Stamps and is the spokesperson for Adornit! She, Deb, and I have been crafty friends for years and thought it would be fun to have her guest with us this month! 

To create my card I started by layering some beautiful white and gold patterned paper from The Shoppe On The Square paper pad by The Paper Studio onto some basic black cardstock by Stampin' UP, which I then adhered directly onto my white card base. I cut a smaller strip of pink and white patterned paper from the same paper pad and matted it onto more black cardstock and adhered it directly onto the focal panel. I stamped the beautiful floral image from Unity Stamp Company's As We Go Along stamp set onto some Copic-friendly cardstock and colored the flowers in using the colors from the mood board. I added some black and white stripes to the vase using my dual tip Memento tuxedo black marker. I fussy cut the images out and popped them up off of the card using Stampin' UP foam dimensionals. I added some black Wink of Stella to the black stripes on the base and some Forever In Time gold gel pen to the centers of the flowers for some pretty shimmer and shine. I stamped the sentiment from the same stamp set onto the contrast border using Versafine onyx black ink for a nice, crisp look. A few dots of ebony black Nuvo Crystal Drops finished this  card off nicely! 

As for my beverage choice this month I actually opted for a Starbucks Grande Chai Tea Latte. Thank you for visiting my blog today! Now be sure to pop over and visit Deb and Terri's blogs and show them some blog love by leaving a comment!

Love

Hello and happy Saturday! This adorable little fella was created for the Cards From The Heart Card  and the Send A Smile 4 Kids Valentine card drives. I have donated cards to both of these card drives two years in a row and I love doing it. If you are a card maker reading this blog please consider donating some of your stash to this worthy cause! To create my card I started by layering an adorable piece of patterned paper from the My Mind's Eye's Filled With Love 6x6 paper pad onto some cherry cobbler cardstock from Stampin' UP and then adhered the whole thing to my white card base. I printed the adorable little bear (found on Etsy) onto some Copic-friendly cardstock and colored him using my alcohol markers. I die cut him using a pierced edge die from My Favorite Things. I added a strip of coordinating patterned paper from the same paper pad and then layered the die cut panel directly onto the card base. I printed the bear image one more time using typing paper and some patterned paper I'd adhered and printed the shirt. I fussy cut the image and edged it with my dual tip Memento marker so it would look like it had been die cut. I added a small 1" strip of white cardstock to the bottom of the card and stamped the sentiment and hearts from Paper Smooches Word Salad stamp set, which I colored using my alcohol markers to have ombre effect. To finish the card I added some dashed black lines around the die cut panel and the sentiment strip. Thank you for visiting my blog today!

Happy Valentine's Day

Today's card was created for the Sunday Stamps weekly challenge. I started with a white card base and layered on a 1" strip of Gina K Designs glossy patterned paper with a fun heart theme off to one side. I then cut a strip of black Stampin' UP cardstock to add to the edge of the patterned paper for some added contrast and then stamped the sentiment from Lawn Fawn's Happy Everything stamp set onto the top left corner. I then stamped the sock monkey from The Cat's Pajama's Show Me The Monkey stamp set onto some white Copic-friendly cardstock and colored them in using my alcohol markers in coordinating colors. I fussy cut them and edged them using my dual tip Memento marker in tuxedo black. I stamped the heart envelopes from the same stamp set three times so they connected, colored them, and fussy cut them out too. I popped the monkeys up using Stampin' UP's foam dimensionals and adhered them to the card. I finished the card by adding some crystal Stickles the hearts on each of the envelopes and some pretty red Nuvo drops around the monkeys. I hope you like it! I plan on donating this card to the Send A Smile 4 Kids Valentine's card drive. 

Sending Love

Today's card was created for both the Send A Smile 4 Kids card drive and the Cards From the Heart Card Drive. I made four of the same card and will send two of them to each card drive. To create my card I started by layering some Stampin' UP crumb cake cardstock onto a white cardbase. I then cut a white panel down to and die cut nine circles using a Spellbinders die. Then using some pretty patterned papers from the Crate Paper Paper Heart Collection and Chickaniddy Crafts Twirly Girly 6x6 paper pads I punched nine little hearts using a Stampin' UP punch. I popped the panel and the hearts up off of the main panel for some added dimension and interest using Stampin' UP foam dimensionals. To finish this fun and simple card I stamped the sentiment from the Lawn Fawn Grand Greetings stamp set directly onto the main panel using Versamark onyx black ink. I have linked both of the card drives if you are interested in donating any cards to a wonderful cause. Thank you for visiting my blog and don't forget to leave a comment. I really do appreciate each and every one of them! 

Joy To The World

This card was created for the latest Shopping Our Stash "Stickle Me Elmo" challange. The challenge is to use Stickles or any sort of glitter pen on our project. I created this card using some pretty patterned papers from Heidi Swapp's Noel 6x6 paper pad and a My Favorite Things Pure Innocence angel stamp. I stamped the angel onto some Copic-friendly cardstock and then paper pieced her gown, wings, the horn, and the bird onto the image after coloring and shading all of the pieces. I die cut the focal panel using a Spellbinders die and added some clouds that I'd paper punched using an EK Success punch. I stamped the sentiment onto one of the clouds using The Taylored Expressions Big Bold Christmas stamp set. I adhered the panel directly to the card and added some black stitched lines around the outer edges, some clear sequins from Pretty Pink Posh, and some glittery detail to the headpiece, wings, horn, bird, and the sentiment using my Sakura gelly roll clear star pen for pretty shimmer. I tried to pick up how shimmery it is with my camera but had a tough time. I hope you can make it out. 

Mom

My second card today was created for the latest Mojo Monday sketch challenge over at the Verve Stamps blog. I recently picked up the Authentique Remembrance 6x6 paper pad on sale at my local Hobby Lobby and thought the beautiful papers in this pad would be perfect for this fun little sketch. I started with a white card base and layered on some Stampin' UP early espresso cardstock. I cut and layered the patterned papers onto my card to fit the sketch, and matted some of the elements with the same early espresso cardstock to help break up the patterns. I stamped the floral element and sentiment from Verve Stamps Because Of You stamp set onto some white cardstock using Gina K charcoal brown ink. I popped the focal panel up off of the card using Stampin' UP foam dimensionals. I finished the card by adding some stitched lines in dark brown ink around the outer edges. I hope you like it and if you do don't forget to leave a comment!

Coffee & Friends

Today's card was created for the latest Just Us Girls challenge. I have to admit, I never think to use my smaller stamps to create all over stamped backgrounds but I really had fun with this one! I picked up the awesome Altenew Coffee Love stamp set during a recent Blitsy sale and thought it would be the perfect set for this technique. I started with a white card base and layered on some Stampin' UP early espresso cardstock. I then stamped some of the images from the stamp set onto some white Copic-friendly cardstock using Memento tuxedo black ink and colored them in using my alcohol markers. To fill in some of the blank spots I stamped the coffee beans from the stamp set using Gina K. charcoal brown ink. I mounted that panel directly onto the card. Using the same brown cardstock as the base I prepped it with my EK Success powder tool and then stamped the sentiment using Versamark ink. I heat set it using some Recollections white embossing powder and my heat tool. I trimmed the sentiment down to a proportional size and mounted it onto my card using some 3M foam tape for some added dimension. I plan on sending this card out to my January partner for the Coffee Lover's Card Swap. I hope you like it!

It's Your Day

Hello, and happy Saturday! It's been a busy week for me with work and workouts. A co-worker has talked me into doing a half marathon with her this coming fall and I'm training for that.  I think I've lost my mind on that one (LOL) but as a result I've barely had time to sit down and get creative. And, when I finally did I ended up spilling an entire container of sequins (about 1,000 of them) all over the floor. So, after a short intermission for sequin clean up I am here to present this fun card I created for my boss for her upcoming birthday. It's no secret that I love all of my Unity Stamp Company's Angie Girl stamps but this one is a favorite of mine. I just love the feminine simplicity of it. I chose this Angie Girl because not only do I think this image suits my boss's style and personality but because, in a world where we see so much female insecurity, she is a fearless individual who is not afraid to be herself and dress to her own personal tastes and likes regardless of how people judge or read her! I just love that and wanted this card to pay homage to her fearless spirit. Anyway, I won't bore you with the details about how I created this card but will say that the patterned papers are from the Colorbok Watercolor Rainbow cardstock and Light Bright 6x6 paper pads, both gifts from my bestie for Christmas...thank you Alana! And the sentiment is from the My Favorite Things BD Chalkboard Greetings stamp set that I recently picked up on a destash from my crafty friend Tammy Hershberger. I just love crafty friends! Anyway, I hope you like this card as much as I do and don't forget to leave a comment. I honestly appreciate them all!

Merry Christmas

           

Today's card was created for the latest 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown. I love this fun sketch and had just picked up a new pad of Christmas papers from Blitsy.com and I thought I would give it a go! I started with a white card base and layered on some pretty patterned papers from the American Crafts Very Merry 6x6 paper pad using the sketch for the layout. I die cut a circle using a Gina Marie Designs cross stitch edge die and layered it at the bottom of the card. I die cut a snowflake (die manufacturer unknown)  using white cardstock and layered onto the circle panel using some Stampin' UP foam squares for some added loft and dimension. I cut out one of the tags from the paper pad and fussy cut the sentiment leaving a small border around the edges and adhered it directly onto the snowflake. I drew on some faux stitching along all of the outer edges to help define the patterned papers a bit more. A few clear rhinestones onto the sentiment, the snowflake, and the corners of the card add a nice finishing detail and some extra sparkle. I hope you like this fun and funky card and thank you for visiting my blog today!

Thank You

Hello, and happy new year! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season. Mine certainly came and went quickly and I can't believe we are standing on the doorstep of 2017. I know everyone gets crazy with new year resolutions but that has never really been my style. I just try to focus on living life to the best of my ability, but this year I do have one resolution I'd like to keep. I would like to find better photography and lighting options for my blog. I think I would feel more like blogging if my photos excited me more. They just seem so bland and boring. I am currently working on that as we speak, so be watching for more polished pics on my site soon! 

Anyway, I always send out thank you notes to friends and family for all of the wonderful treats and gifts I receive over the holidays. This year I wanted to mass produce something bold but simple that offered a lot of visual impact. I absolutely adore the Winter Cottage stamp from Altenew and love the beautiful starkness of the scene. But it's a tiny stamp and I struggled to find a way to add impact to the image, so I decided to add a big, bold sentiment to the card and just let them share the stage. I had to do some surgery to the stamps but I used the Big, Bold, & You stamp set from Winnie & Walter. I cut the "s" off of the "thanks" stamp and the tail off of the "you" stamp. I love the versatility that performing stamp surgery gives me when stamping and using my new Misti tool and Versafine pigment ink made the task go quickly. I thought about adding some glitter to the roof line and trees and embossing a few glittery, silver snowflakes but decided to leave the card clean and simple. Anyway, I hope you like it. Happy new year to all of my blog friends!