Heartfelt Creations Coffee and You Card – 2017 Fall Coffee Lovers Hop

Hello dear peeps!

It seems like life has come at me so fast this year that I can’t hardly get a break to craft as much as I’d like. First, an update for those of you following me on Instagram: I got back safely Friday after evacuating for hurricane Irma. Fortunately, other than some traffic lights out in the area, low stock at the grocery store and some limbs down on the property, all was well at my place. Several of my friends nearby still don’t have electric… and we’re on the East coast of FL! So, so sorry for the folks in Naples and the Keys!! Unfortunately, whenever there is a hurricane, condo rules require everything to come in off the patio so nothing becomes a flying missile. My patio is about half the size of my studio apartment, so it’s a tight fit. I’ve been working at getting it all put back so I can get to my crafting supplies… Priorities!! : ) And I just reconnected my hard drive, so I’m up and running to post now, too! (One lady at a hotel in TN saw us packing our hard drives into the car and said: ‘You can tell who’s travelling from Florida – Most folks don’t go on vacation with their electronics!’) That’s the update, now on to the good stuff:

So, here I am starting late for the Fall Coffee Lovers Hop. There are already over 400 entries already! That’s a lot of caffeine fueled crafting!!

Living in Florida, fall leaves are one of the things I miss, so I keep a few on hand to remind me of their gorgeousness.

I love the 3d look of this Heartfelt Creations Coffee Mug stamp and die! I wish you could run your finger along those beads… they really are 3d! How?…

First I added some shading on the under side of each bead to make them pop out even more. Then I used the flower shaping stylus to emboss them from the reverse side. How did I see where to press since the cardstock was too thick to see the stamped image?…

I stamped and cut another on scrap copy paper. The ink showed through enough to see the outline of the beads. The die cuts so precisely, laying it down (face down) over the back of the card is a perfect match. Since Copic markers DO bleed through, I lined the reverse of the inside and the back of the card with matching cardstock, making for a nice, sturdy card.

I added a few drops of ‘coffee’ for fun. (I’d’ve added a lipstick smooch, but didn’t have a color that would look good with this… something you don’t think about when drinking out of a mug in real life! lol!) To finish, I stamped the inside and attached them at the handle, making sure only the inside bends backward. It’s a lefty card. Next time, I think I’ll try attaching them at the top. The sweet cups at the top say: The perfect blend.

Materials used:

• Heartfelt Creations Coffee Talk Collection
  • Coffee Mug stamp & die sets
  • All Stacked Up stamp set
• Papertrey Ink cardstock: Canyon Clay, Canyon Clay Gingham, Terracotta Tile, Terracotta Tile Bitty Dot
• Papertrey Ink dye inks: Canyon Clay & Orange Zest
• Tsukineko Memento dye ink: Rich Cocoa
• Copic markers: E27, YR24
• Spectrum Noir Aqua Blend pencils: Apricot, Beeswax, Brunette, Carrot, Ginger, Hickory, Sorrel, Wheat
• Ranger Inkssentials Glossy Accents
• Scholastic Glue Stick
• Aleene’s Super Tacky glue
• Tombow mono sand eraser
• Heartfelt Creations Deluxe Flower Shaping Kit

I’m playing along with the following hops and challenges… click on any one for details on how you can join the fun:

• 2017 Fall Coffee Lovers Hop
• Simon Says Stamp Work-It-Wednesday Aug/Sept 2017: Stamps
• The Daily Marker 30 day challenge on IG
• Cropstop September Challenge Linky Party #32: (Aleene’s, Heartfelt Creations, Ranger, Spectrum Noir, Tsukineko, Tombow)

Since I’m still sick (that nasty upper respiratory infection that gave mom bronchitis) and am still unpacking (and hope not to be re-packing for Maria!! Please!!!), this may be the only card I get to post for the CLH this time. Ya’ll TRY to have fun without me, ok?! lol!

I always appreciate your kind and encouraging comments. Thanks in advance!

~D.Ann

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Guest Designing for CropStop – Heartfelt Creations Daffodils-from-Orchids Card

Hooray! Today is the day I finally get to share with you the exciting secret I’ve been busting to tell you… I was invited to be a guest designer of a project for the CropStop blog! If you happen to be coming from there… WELCOME!!

I was totally surprised and nervous as all get-out for my first ever privilege of being a guest designer! I hope you like my first project… I happen to think it’s one of my best cards. I’d be tickled pink if you would pop over to the CropStop blog and leave some love! Here’s a TINY sneaky peak to pique your interest:

I know you’re going to want to see the details close up… you can click the link HERE to get to the CropStop Blog. Meanwhile, I’ll sit here and twiddle my thumbs while you go check it out!  When you’re done, please come on back here and I’ll share some extra details and tips with you, ok?!

Are you still here? I wish I knew how to embed music into my post, but since I dont, let me send you on your way by humming the theme from 2001: A Space Odyssey for dramatic effect while you click on the link HERE to go check out the project…. duuuum, DuuuuuM, DUUUUUUMMMM, TaDUUUMMM!….

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

So, what’d’ya think?! I hope you liked it as much as I did! Of course you know things always look better in real life… wish you could see it for real!

Here’s some of the extra details that I didn’t want to overwhelm the folks at the CropStop blog. I played around with different ways to color the flowers… The first ones I stamped with Versamark ink and then watercolored with Distress inks by putting the ink on some plastic and picking it up with a water brush.

Note: For those of you who don’t have a MISTI or other stamping device, I highly recommend using the red 11×17 Rubber Stamping Mat under your paper to help get a nice evenly stamped image.

Also, if you don’t have a palette made specifically for watercoloring, you can use any hard plastic, like an old cd, a cd cover, or the packaging from your stamps, like I did.

You can see I wasn’t worried about staying in the lines as the die would cut away the excess. I did want to go OVER the lines to get a little extra dark coloring where the Versamark stamped image was.

For the second set of flowers I colored directly with the markers.

And, for the final set of flowers, I stamped with a light gray ink instead of Versamark and colored directly with the markers again. I also colored the back sides of each flower.

These are the Heartfelt Creations Botanical ORCHID stamps. Emma Lou of Heartfelt Creations has a nice video showing how to use these to make the DAFFODILS HERE.

Here are the finished flowers in the order I made them:

If you want a softer color, the watercolor works, but for brighter colors, coloring direct on the page works better. You will loose some color with the wetting required to shape the flowers. (Note, I also tried this with Color Bursts, but they washed out too much. FYI, you would have to start out with a really dark color to allow for the loss of color in the wetting and shaping process.)

I used the Twist & Style Sizzix so kindly sent me a while back to make the stamens out of beads and wire stems. It makes quick work of wire twisting!!

Another thing I learned… The Beadalon 7 strand .015″ wire was a little too flimsy for the stems. The 26 gauge copper wire worked MUCH better. If I wanted them to stand up in a bouquet, I’d use an even heavier wire.

Here’s a close-up of the finished flowers. I took one of each different kind and put them in a bunch for variety and affixed them with Glubers.  Oh, and FYI, the butterfly got its fabulous shine from Stickles (Firefly and Tropical Tangerine).

For the card base I wanted to have it embossed with the Couture Creations Serenity Collection: Chiaro 5×7 embossing folder that I won from CropStop back in January AND I wanted a nice cutout shape. This led to another learning experience…

The die cut card was so delicate that the pass through the embossing machine ‘broke’ the paper apart in several places. It worked out much better to run the paper through the embossing folder first, THEN die cut it. In the process of die cutting it, it did flatten some of the embossing, leaving a much softer look and keeping the edges in tact.

Tip: Can’t find faux adhesive pearls to match your project? Use a Copic Marker to color plain ones!

You will find the list of all the supplies used on the CropStop Blog. You can click HERE to go back and check it out again. Thank you, CropStop, for the privilege of guest designing for your blog!

Well, as Paul Harvey used to say, “And now you know the REST OF THE STORY!”

I am also playing along with the following challenges… click on any one of them for more information on how you can join the fun:

• Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Handmade Flowers
• Simon Says Stamp Work It Wednesday February 2017: Green

You can also feel free to join in with the Cropstop March Challenge Linky Party #26: Anything Goes… It’s always fun to see the many lovely projects and you have the chance to win a nice prize or, perhaps, even be a guest designer!

Please stop back by Next Friday, March 24, for another guest designer post for the CropStop blog… this time a MUCH simpler pair of cards using some fun cut-and-fold dies… I’ll look forward to seeing you then!

This has been D.Ann reporting…. “Good day!” : )

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Coffee Cat, happy accident + Blog candy

A hearty welcome to both new and regular visitors stopping by today!

If you were here yesterday, you know there are a several fun blog hops and challenges going on this weekend…

• The SUMMER COFFEE LOVERS BLOG HOP (clickHERE for more info)

• the WATERCOLOR BLOG HOP hosted by PRETTY PINK POSH (click HERE for more info.)

• TheDailyMarker.com‘s 30 DAY COLORING CHALLENGE (click HERE for more info.)

Todays card also took inspiration from

• Newton’s Nook Designs Inky Paws Challenge #21 – Color (click HERE for more info.) Newton’s Nook is a Super Sponsor of the Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop!

• This week’s Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge – Royal (click HERE for more info.) Simon Says Stamp is a Sponsor for both the Summer Coffee Lovers Blog Hop and Pretty Pink Posh’s Watercolor Blog Hop!

Anyone can join these fun events, so head on over and check them out!… But, wait! You’ll want to go there AFTER you’ve gotten to the end of my post as there is a blog candy giveaway! (I”ll put the links at the bottom of this post too.)

As those of you on Instagram know, this card started out with a disaster… I had picked up a watercolor card pack on clearance and was trying the ‘smoosh’ method with some dye inks, but as it dried, it started flaking and peeling. Whaaat?! Then I reread the box… DUH it was watercolor ‘texture’ PRINTER paper. Argh! (Note to self: always read FIRST!). However, I used a spray finish to stop the peeling, stamped and fussy cut a nifty tabby kitty named Newton. So not all was lost! Yay!

Note to tea drinkers and puppy lovers… I love tea and puppies, too. I just thought this naughty, hyperactive kitty needed to be a COFFEE cat with an attitude. >^.^<

I didn’t have flowers the color I wanted, so I took my Copics and colored some white flowers with teal words to give a little summer pop to the card.

Materials used:

• Newton’s Nook Designs – Naughty Newton stamp set
• Spellbinders dies – Tea Cups, Romantic Rectangles
• Heartfelt Creations – China Fragments stamp set
• Papertrey Ink Dye Inks: Summer Sunrise, Orange Zest, Terracotta Tile
• Memento Dye Ink – Tuxedo Black
• Versamark ink
• Inkadinkado Linen White embossing powder
• Copic markers R20, R32, R35
• Prima Calypso flowers
• Scrapbook Adhesives by 3L E-Z Runner & Crafty Foam Tape
• Canson watercolor texture PRINTER paper… hahaha!
• Krylon clear finish
• Misc. cardstock & pearls
• Sentiment was typed & printed off the computer

I’m entering this card in the following blog hops and challenges:

• SUMMER COFFEE LOVERS BLOG HOP  summer flowers
• the WATERCOLOR BLOG HOP hosted by PRETTY PINK POSH Watercolor cat
• TheDailyMarker.com‘s 30 DAY COLORING CHALLENGE #thedailymarker30day2
• Newton’s Nook Designs Inky Paws Challenge #21 – Color Coral Peach Mint (Looks like teal to me, but there is mint in the center of the flowers.)
• Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge – Royal Teacups fit for a queen.
• #sbspotlightsunday

If you’d like to play along with any of these, just click on the colored text to go find out what you need to do. Have fun!

Thanks for stopping by today!

****************************   But, WAIT, there’s more!!   ****************************

***********    giveaway now closed    ***************

For those of you patient enough to get this far, I have a small blog candy package to give away:

As I said yesterday, I figure any coffee loving cardmaker will love these adorable ‘Brewchitecture’ napkins by Jill Seale. One pack is “coffee” the other is “café presse.” And, since we are cardmakers, there’s also a new, small Studio g stamp set: ” delight in little things.”  If you would like to have a chance to win this package, all you have to do is leave a comment on any of my blog hop posts from now through June 12, 2015. Of course, I appreciate those who sign up to follow the blog, but it’s not a requirement. From all the comments left on my blog posts from June 5 – 12 that have “Blog candy” in the title, I will announce a winner, selected at random, on June 14, 2015. (This date is revised from my original post.) The winner will have 72 hours to respond, or I will draw another winner.

Have a fun day!

-D.Ann

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