Sweet Farewell - Play Date Cafe

Hello friends!  You may have noticed that things have been really quiet here at the beloved blog... or you may be out enjoying the summer sun and not miss my sassy self at all. ;)  Things have been difficult for me recently and I had to make some choices about how to best utilize my time and energy...  I'm crossing my (rusty) crafty fingers that you're still here and that we can pick up where we left off soon.

I'm joining in with the Play Date Cafe today and bidding a bittersweet farewell to my precious team.  I have loved being a part of the Cafe's team and have made dear friends.  While it is sad to step away from something that I truly enjoy, I am SO excited for the new team that Julie has put together... the inspiration is going to be amazing!!  I would be so happy if you would join us this week...

I'm so grateful for all the new people that have popped by the blog via the Cafe... so grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such a classy team... so humbled by our sweet, supportive leader, Julie Ranae... and so thankful for all of YOU.  Thanks for being part of my journey... crafty and otherwise. ;)

Stamps: CSS Cake Decorating Too & Damask

CSS {App} Sneak Peek

Bright & fresh colors for summer... 

Join me on the CSS {App} for iPhone/iPad users to see today's featured project.

{Click on the above graphic to learn more and download the CSS Daily App}

Just My Type - Play Date Cafe #137

Hey friends!  I'm popping in today with this week's card for the Play Date Cafe.  It's "splash" week... everyone's favorite!  My card this week is decidedly shabby and shows a more muted take on the color palette.  We hope you'll join us and share your own beautiful "splash" creations with us.

Black & White (or cream) + a "splash" of Cobalt

Our sponsor this week in the Cafe is Want2Scrap.  Aren't those fancy pearls pretty?   I thought the file folder edge was a cute addition to play up the vintage typewriter from My Favorite Things.

We hope you'll join us this week.  And just a reminder: the Play Date Cafe is having an open Design Team call through July 1st.  I can't wait to see who will be joining me on this fabulous team!

Stamps: My Favorite Things - Just My Type & coordinating dies
Ink: Memento - Tuxedo black  //  Tools: PTI Edgers #5
Sassy Somethings: pearls from Want2Scrap

Packed with Love - Play Date Cafe #136

Welcome to the Cafe for another week of color inspiration! This week we have a beautiful color story filled with rich berry hues:

Azure, Raspberry, & Blackberry

I was so excited to ink up a new set from WPlus9, Fresh Preserves.  The sweet jam jar reminds me of one of my most cherished childhood memories: picking blackberries with my grandmother.  She made the best jams and cobblers and they always tasted sweeter sitting around her kitchen table.

We hope you'll join us this week at the Play Date Cafe.  Simon Says Stamp is joining us again as our sponsor and it's always fun to play along for the chance at such a great prize.  

Big  News: We are also holding an open Design Team call at the Cafe through July 1st and we would love to see you apply!  This is an amazing team filled with caring and talented women - we are so excited to add some fresh faces and new designers to our team... we can't wait to see what you create!

Stamps: WPlus9 Fresh Preserves & Fresh Picked (sentiment)

Paper: PTI Kraft& Vintage Cream cardstock; My Mind's Eye - Fiddlesticks

Ink: SU! Perfect Plum; PTI Kraft & Autumn Rose

Tools: WPlus9 Preserves Jar die; PTI Mat Stack 3 & Doily Details dies

Sassy Somethings: Webster's Pages eyelet trim

Red Roses: CSS Group Post

Happy Red Roses Day!  Clear & Simple Stamps is stopping to smell the roses today in honor of this fun holiday with projects featuring an array of floral sets from Collection 3.  I thought it would be fun to make a sweet baby card and combine the Flowers set with Special Bundle.

I love the Flowers set and find new ways to layer the blooms and grasses each time I use it.  I chose to pair the long stems with shorter grass and stamp in two shades of green for depth and interest.  The roses were stamped in bright red.  I also rolled the edges of a few of the medium blooms in a darker crimson to give the allusion of shading and variety.

To create a subtle sky I stamped a small strip from Hexagons Plus.  I didn't want it to be solid so I staggered the strips to taper off.  My stork was stamped onto Kraft Like a Rockstar and shaded with a white pencil.

For a finishing touch I stamped a quick label onto an envelope... a perfect touch for gift giving or delivering a bunch of red roses to the new momma.  ;)

The team is filled with rosie inspiration... head over to their blogs to see what's blooming:

Clear  & Simple Stamps

Lori Tecler

Jaclyn Miller

Kim Duran

Tracy Schultz

Dana Grothaus

Laurie Willison

Jennifer Rzasa

Laura Bassen

All supplies are CSS unless noted.
Stamps: Flowers, Special Bundle, Hexagons Plus, Labels 9 (envelope)
Paper: Kraft Like A Rockstar (cream & original); SU! Riding Hood Red
Ink: PTI Pure Poppy, Scarlet Jewel, Simply Chartreuse, Spring Rain,  Dark Chocolate; SU! Always Artichoke
Tools: Ric Rac/Pinking dies, Special Bundle die-cuts

Block Party - Home Sweet Home

Happy day!  It's an outdoor grillin', popsicle eatin' kinda day here... a perfect opportunity to send the kids outside to play while I get crafty for the Market Street Stamps Block Party.  (or should I say, "par-tay!!"?)

I'm SO very excited about the new Persimmons Studio stamps they just released... have you seen them?  They are quirky and artsy and something a little bit outside of my typical "box"... they are going to be fab.  I thought while I {very impatiently} wait for them to arrive, I would play along with another favorite MSS set... Home Sweet Home.

Lots of banner flags and some cute little "photo corners" accent my house scene.  I paper-pieced and added some  pop for the attic windows... a cozy summer cottage, don't ya think?

Supplies
Stamps: Market Street - Home Sweet Home
Paper: PTI Kraft, Vintage Cream, & Lemon Tart; My Mind's Eye 
Tools: MFT Fishtail Flags & Photo Corners die-namics

Wheeeee! - Play Date Cafe #135

Hey, hey sweet friends!  Summer time is fun time and this week at the Play Date Cafe our color story is FUN!  Plus, we have a fabulous sponsor... The Craft's Meow!  I used the ferris wheel image from Life Is A Carnival and combined fun patterned papers to take advantage of the bright colors.

Aquamarine, Poolside, & Clay

I also thought it would be fun to play along with The Craft's Meow sketch challenge.  I turned the sketch and instead of a bow opted for a little banner across the top.  So many options when you have a great sketch & a fun color combo... things just craft themselves! ;)

We hope you'll join us this week in the Cafe... we can't wait to see what you create!! Note: You can use ANY stamps or products to play along in the challenge each week.  We always have a lovely variety of projects... cards, scrapbook pages, altered art, handmade jewelry, etc... make what you love and share it with us!