Winter/Holiday Coffee Lovers Blog Hop!

 

Are you ready for a blog hop revolving around a warm beverage? Today is the day! The Winter/Holiday Coffee Lovers Blog Hop has begun!  With 49 Super Sponsors on board, there are prizes galor!  In order to be eligible to win, you just need to link up a newly created winter/holiday themed coffee, cocoa or tea project to the main blog!

I've been wanting to ink up my new I Love Coffee set from Uniko Studio, so created a coffee card using kraft cardstock.

Uniko Studio (I Love Coffee)

I stamped and fussy cut the coffee cup, paper piecing the lid using a piece of Shimmery White cardstock (StampinUp!).  I stamped the beautiful flower in red ink before lightly brushing some white Wink of Stella marker over it.  This gave it a bit of a watercolor appearance.  The cup and entire layered main panel are popped up with foam dots for dimension.

I hope to see you over on the hop!  We're hopping through December 18th, so you have some time to get crafting!  All the hop details can be found HERE!

Have a fabulous Friday!

Fall Coffee Lovers Blog Hop!

 

It's time! Today is the beginning of the Fall Coffee Lovers Blog Hop! You can find all the nitty gritty details here!  I hope you'll join in all the fun...there are prizes!!!

I used stamps from Precious Remembrance Shop, one of the wonderful sponsors, to create today's card!  Their Coffee Love set is a favorite of mine and the New Day set has a great coffee smudge image that is perfect for a coffee themed card!  That's what I used for this card along with the splatter from the Positive Thoughts set:

Coffee is always there for me!  I want to be there for my family & friends too!  Life is messy sometimes and it always helps to have someone to get you through it!

I'm off to check out a few of the hop entries and then it's off to the park with DD!  These cooler autumn days are calling our name & telling us to enjoy them while they last!  I hope they continue for quite a while yet because I'm not quite ready to think about snow, longer hours of darkness and that feeling of being a little cooped up!  Thank goodness for stamps & coffee!

Have a fabulous Friday & a wonderful weekend!  I'm hoping to get some Halloween photo shoots done!  Wish me luck!

Spring Coffee Lovers Blog Hop

 

It's about time I post my card for the Spring Coffee Lovers Blog Hop!  I've had my card made, but life happens.

There are tons of fantastic sponsors again this time around and that means lots of prizes!!!  Have you made your card yet and linked it up?!  You have until Friday, March 6, at 11:55 p.m. to do so!  You can find all the details here!

I used a bright yellow watercolor as a background for my coffee themed card as well as some little pink flower sequins to go along with the spring theme.

I used the adorable new Daily Brew set from Ms. Kimm Creates.  For ink, I used SU's Soft Suede, a color that is becoming a favorite of mine all over again lately.

After I and DS3 fell ill with the good ole "stomach flu" over the past two days, I'm finally feeling more like myself (although, coffee doesn't sound good quite yet!) and ready to tackle life again.  I must admit, I'm feeling a bit OCD when it comes to disinfecting things around the house with bleach water!  This stuff is one of the trickier viruses to get rid of, surviving on surfaces for days rather than hours.  DS3 will be staying home again tomorrow as his appetite isn't quite back to normal yet and I don't want to send him back to school contagious!  Holding my breath for the rest of the family!

I hope you've had a wonderful Wednesday!

A Coffee Lovers' Blog Hop with Prizes + Blog Candy!

Today is the beginning of a Coffee Lovers Blog Hop over on Amy's blog!  You're going to want to join in the fun and hop along.  Maybe even link up your own coffee themed creation!  There are 27 wonderful sponsors and you, yes you, have a chance at winning the fabulous prizes they are providing by linking up your creation on Amy's blog by Friday, December 12!  Many of the participants are offering blog candy, so you're going to want to go hopping and leave comments on their blogs by Sunday, December 14, for even more chances to win by !  How's that for excitement?!

Here is a list of what the sponsors are offering to some lucky blog hop participants!  This will make you want to go stamp something!

17 Turtles:  $15 Store Gift Card

A Muse Studio/Chris Franco:  Cup of Good Cheer stamp set

Add a Little Dazzle:  $25 Store Gift Card

Butterfly Reflections Ink:  Prima Coffee Break

Color Cast Designs:  Coffee Lovers kit

Create a Smile:  Monster Party stamp set

Hero Arts:  A Little & Today's Special stamps/Cup 'O Joe Shadow ink

Kraftin' Kimmie:  $25 Store Gift Card

Kreative Kymona:  Fancy Mug Giveaway

Latina Crafter:  Cafe Wood Veneers + $25 Store Gift Card

Neat & Tangled:  Warm Wishes stamp set

Newton's Nook:  $15 Store Gift Card

Paper Smooches:  $25  Store Gift Card

Pickled Potpourri:  $7 Store Gift Card

Poppystamps:  Tea Cup Stack Die

Reverse Confetti:  $15 Store Gift Card

Stamp Academy:  2 classes

Stampin' Up/Veronica Zalis:  $20 Store Gift Card

STAMPlorations:  $10 Store Gift Card

Stamp Simply Ribbon Store:  Coffee Cup Prize Pack

SugarPea Designs:  $20 Store Gift Card

Sweet 'n Sassy:  Pick Me Up Clear stamp & die set

The Alley Way Stamps:  Tea Par-tea stamp set

Two Paper Divas:  Your Warm My Heart stamp set

Your Next Stamp:  $20

Verve Stamps:  $25

Whole Wild World:  Coffee before Talkee mug

**REMEMBER:  Sponsorship prizes are eligible via random draw from linked hop participants only!  So go stamp something already, would ya?!

If you'd like to see all the entries in one place just to see what's been made so far and to easily pin things that inspire you, you can visit the designated Pinterest page!

Okay, so there are all the details.  Want to see my card?  It's clean and simple, of course!

I used a mixture of stamp sets to create this card.  The cup and sentiment are from Endless Creations.  The little bird is from Tiddly Inks.  The steam is from AMuse.  The main images were popped up with foam dots and I added an additional layer to the lid and middle panel of the cup.

I'm offering some blog candy here on my blog too, so be sure and leave a comment to win the package you see below!

• A Christmas themed stamp set from The Stamps of Life
• A mixed media set from Faber-Castell
• A package of coffee beans from Starbucks

Good luck and have fun!

DeNami Fuzzy Critters Blog Hop!

 

Today happens to be a day filled with all the cuteness one could ask for!  You see, DeNami Design is having a Fuzzy Critter Blog Hop and when you see all the adorable creatures along the way, you're going to be smiling from ear to ear!  I couldn't resist joining in the fun!  I've had a few of their sweet critters for a while now and it's always good when someone nudges me to use some of the things in my stash!

There will be three $20 gift certificates for the DeNami store given away (one to a random participant - excluding DT members - and two to two people who comment along the blog hop), so be sure and hop along, commenting as you go!

You probably arrived here from Paulina's wonderful blog and you're over half way to the finish line!  Isn't this FUN?!  I have a couple clean & simple cards to share with you because that's just my style!

Stamps:  DeNami Design (Swinging Chickie, Little Hedgehog), Paper Trey (sentiment & branches)

I had so much fun with this card!  I used a Memory Box window die and adhered a bit of window sheet to the back of it to give it a more realistic look.

I used the Swinging Chickie and the oh-so-cute Little Hedgehog.  Mr. Hedgehog was feeling kind and lifted Chickie up to peek in the window.  This kind of thing actually happened at our house once, but with a curious squirrel...

We got such a kick out of his little face peeking in the kitchen window!  I was surprised he stayed long enough for me to capture his mugshot!

I had to make another card with the stinkin' cute Little Skunk image!

Stamps:  DeNami Design (Little Skunk), Hambo (sentiment)

I stumbled across the perfect sentiment in my stash while trying to figure out what I was going to use with this little guy!  I couldn't resist.  The thought bubble is a die cut.

Now it's time for you to head on over to Lisa's blog to see her fuzzy critter creation!  If you are arriving here on my blog and haven't visited previous entries in the hop, be sure and start from the beginning on the DeNami blog!  You have until March 10th at 11:59 p.m. PST to leave comments on all the blogs (to be eligible for a prize).

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

One Little Word Blog Hop

It's time again for the monthly 2012 One Little Word Blog Hop!  I'm so excited to see what everyone has captured in photographs!

My word for this year is Nurture, so I found myself looking for ways to capture a glimpse of some of the things I'd like to nurture in myself and my family this year.  Here is what I came up with:

With nine photos to capture, I used my word as the center (it needs tweaked a bit yet to fit the pocket better) and used eight additional words to support it.  My current thoughts on these words:

• Love - This one is and always will be at the top of my list.  A love for eternal things and a love for others is in the very foundation of our home as a family.
• Beauty - Not in a vain sense, but rather, an awareness and appreciation for the beauty in our surroundings and within other people.  Sometimes this takes some looking, but I think it's always present.
• Simplicity - To enjoy the simple things in life.  The less noticed.  To take notice of the simple moments of life and really appreciate them.  Notice the mini marshmallows?  Something so simple makes such a big difference, doesn't it (at least to my boys, it does...)?  :)
• Health - So many times we take this for granted.  I want to nurture healthy habits so that we can enjoy good health now and in the years yet ahead.
• Nature - There is something about nature that brings a sense of calm whenever I am surrounded by it.  We don't get out in it enough.  With all the technology that's in the world today, we get so wrapped up in the tasks that need completed.  I think we need to go take a few more lessons from Mother Nature.
• Laugh - This one seems to come more easily for children.  I have fond memories of those "laugh until you cry" moments in childhood and, thankfully, I've had a handful of those moments since "growing up!"  I want to have more of those moments, to have my children carry similar memories into adulthood.  To find the humor in things more often!  To truly be able to laugh at myself during those awkward moments.
• Creativity - A little creativity goes a long way in life and I want to nurture this in my children.  Not only to enjoy creativity in the form of art, but to find solutions to everyday problems by putting a little thought into things. 
• Positive - I really enjoy being around positive people.  They lift me up.  They help me smile.  They help me laugh.  I want to be one of those people who can be a positive influence on my family and others who I meet along life's way.  I want to encourage a positive attitude in my family.  "Instead of complaining that the rosebush is full of thorns, be happy that the thorn bush has roses."  ~Proverb

 

 

Now head on over to the next stop, Donna's blog, for more OLW inspiration!

Here is this month's blog hop order if you get lost:

Margie

Melissa S

Sharyn

Kimberlee

Jill

Cheri

Cindy

Jenn

Monica

Catherine

Naomi

Jamie

Coley

Melissa C (You are here.)

Donna

Monica B

Veronica

Heidi D

Lisa

Nikki

Devon

Amanda

Brooklyn

Kristina

Jen R

Kara

Eydie

Ruth

Missus W

Marilee

Cindy

Kaylea

Dawn G

Rebekah

Becky

Orange Gearle

Katrina

Jo

Nicky

Beth

Kelly

Tere

Prickley Pear New Release Blog Hop!

Welcome to Prickley Pear's release of new spring clear stamp sets and coordinating dies!

To celebrate this new release we are having a three-day Blog Party with loads of inspiration by the Design Team and a give away! One happy participant will win a $20 gift certificate to the web shop. Just leave a comment on each of the participating blogs and tell us what you think about the new release. Last day to enter is Monday, February 13, at midnight EST. The winner will be drawn randomly at one of the participating blogs and will be announced on the Prickley Pear Blog on Tuesday, February 14.

For today's Blog Hop, I used the new Mini Owl Clear Stamps set and coordinating Mini Owls Die. 

**Now head on over to Ujjwal's blog to see what she's created!**

Here is the 3-day hop schedule:

Friday

Michelle

Angelica

Audrey

Saturday (Today!)

Melissa

Ujjwal

Tesa

Kristii

Sunday

Lori

Gini

Amy

The Crafter's Cafe Blog Hop!

It's time for a GIANT Blog Hop to celebrate the new design team at The Crafter's Cafe!  Come join the fun!

At the end of the Hop, you have a chance to win a prize package from Fresh Brewed Designs.

You should have arrived here from Laura's blog, but make sure you start at the beginning of the Hop!  (If you need the complete blog hop list, scroll down to the bottom of this post!)

Here is my card for today's hop:

Supplies:

Stamps - A Day for Daisies (digital)

Paper - SU Basic Black, Pink Pirouette & Real Red cardstocks, Copic blending card

Ink - SU Real Red (sponging)

Accessories - gemstones, SU Basic Black marker, SU Dazzling Diamonds glitter, SU Real Red ribbon, Cuttlebug embossing folder, Nestabilities (oval & circle), foam dots (popped up main image panel)

Coloring - Copic markers

 

While you're here, you'll need to pick up your "Clue" for a chance to win the FBD prize!

My Clue is:  E

Your next stop in the Hop is Beckie's Blog.


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One other announcement!!!
 

Tomorrow (Saturday) we're having a great big, all day, grand opening party at The Crafter's Cafe with lots of games and sponsors, including A Day for Daisies.

(They provided the image I used on my project today!)

Come over to the party for a chance to win all kinds of great prizes from all of our amazing sponsors, get to know our new design team and check out the new look!

All the games and events will be listed HERE!

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Here is today's blog hop order if you get lost along the way:

The Crafter's Cafe

Stacie

Heide 
Angela

Gloria

Kristina

Asha

Susan

Jacqy

Ruth

Monique

Julia

JLJ Designs (Jennifer)

Wendy

Christine

Marjo

Rhonda

Leslie

Tracey

Karen

Linda

Elizabeth

Laura

Melissa (You are here.)

Beckie

Karen

Miss Sue

Arielle

Samara

2 Cute Ink New Release Blog Hop: Week 3

It's time for January's final Blog Hop over at 2 Cute Ink!  Three more Valentine's Day digital images are being released today, so join in the fun and hop along with us!  Leave a comment on the DT blogs for a chance to win all three of today's new releases!

Here is the order of today's Blog Hop:

2 Cute Ink Blog

*Melissa (You are here!)*

Suzanne

Sandy

Jenn

I chose to use the adorable new fish called Best Fins for my project!  With little ones in my house, I immediately thought of those popular kid snacks (I like 'em too...), Pepperidge Farm Goldfish!  The preferred flavor in our family is the Flavor Blasted Xtra Cheddar.  I'd bought some little buckets from the Dollar Spot at Target a little while ago, and thought I'd use one to make a little snack gift for a child!  I colored the image with Copic markers, creating the little dot pattern on the bigger fish with my colorless blender.  I used some strong sticky tape to adhere the pieces to the bucket.  The sentiment on the top says, "Big Hug."  After putting this together, I realized I could have put some Hershey's Hugs in the bucket instead.  Next time.

Supplies:
Stamps -  2 Cute Ink (Best Fins - digital), SU (sentiment)

Paper - Copic Blending Card, SU Melon Mambo CS

Ink - SU Melon Mambo

Accessories - SU oval punch, Nestabilities (oval), SU Melon Mambo polka dot ribbon
Coloring - Copic Marker


**Now head on over to the oh-so-creative Suzanne's blog for more fun and inspiration for the new digi stamp release!

2 Cute Ink Blog Hop!

It's time for a 2 Cute Ink Blog Hop to celebrate the new Valentine's Day images that are being released today!  Hop along with us, leave a comment on each blog on the list and you'll be eligible to win a free digital image of your choice!

Here is the blog hop order:

2 Cute Ink Blog

Sandy

Jenn

Melissa (You are here!)

Suzanne

For my card, I used the oh-so-cute Bugs and Kisses digital stamp.  There are two other new Valentine digital stamps being released today, so be sure to follow along the hop to check them out!  Also, there will be 3 more Valentine digital stamps released a week from today (Saturday), so stay tuned!

Now head on over to your next stop on the Blog Hop and see what Suzanne has created!


Supplies:
Stamps - 2 Cute Ink (Bugs & Kisses - digital)
Paper - SU Basic Black, Real Red CS, Paper Trey white CS, Doodlebug DP (Love Letter)
Accessories - Stickles, (applied to pink hearts on main image) black marker (dots around edge & letters in sentiment), SU 1-in. circle punch, SU Heart Punch, Nestabilities (oval, scalloped oval), foam dots (popped up sentiment circles & main image panel)
Coloring:  Copic markers

Prickley Pear Blog Hop: January 12-14

It's time for Prickley Pear's new release of Valentine and Steampunk themed red rubber stamps!

To celebrate, we are having a three-day Blog Party with loads of inspiration by the Design Team and a give away! One happy participant will win a $15 gift certificate to the web shop!  All you have to do is leave a comment on each of the participating blogs (there will be a new list of blogs to visit each of the three days) and tell us what you think about the new release. Last day to enter is Sunday, January 15, at midnight EST. The winner will be drawn randomly at one of the participating blogs and will be announced on the Prickley Pear Blog on Monday.

Here is today's blog hop schedule:

Prickley Pear Blog

Melissa (you are here)

Angelica

Tesa

**Be sure to check back at Prickley Pear tomorrow and Saturday for more blog hop stops full of inspiration so you can go leave a comment on those blogs!

Here is my card for the Blog Hop:

Supplies:

Stamps - Prickley Pear (Branch with Hearts, My Funny Valentine - sentiment)

Paper - My Mind's Eye DP, SU CS (Riding Hood Red, Very Vanilla)

Ink - SU (Riding Hood Red)

Accessories - pearls, circle punch, heart punch, SU vanilla ribbon, foam dot (popped up sentiment)

Blog Hop!

It's time for The Stamping Boutique's Thrifty Christmas - Making Handmade Gifts Blog Hop!  I hope you'll join in the fun!  It will run all weekend, ending on Sunday, December 11th (11:59 pm CST) to allow you plenty of time to hop.

**If you have come here from Sandy's blog, then you are on the right track.  If not, please head over to Christy's blog to start at the beginning (You can also see the complete blog hop order at end of this post).

You will want to be sure to visit each design team member's blog and leave a comment as each one will be giving away one TSB image!

If that isn't enough to entice you to hop with us, maybe this will:  1 random person (who comments on all the DT blogs and leaves a final comment on the Stamping Boutique blog) will be selected to win a $25.00 gift certificate for the store!  How fabulous is that?!

Since I can't resist giving the gift of coffee and chocolate, I decided to make a cute little gift package using a brown paper sack folded in half to create two pockets:  one for a home made chocolate brownie and one for a Starbuck's gift card!  The perfect combination!  I'm thinking this would be a great little gift for co-workers, friends or neighbors!

(Image used:  Cupcake - bakery)

Now head on over to Sue's blog for more Thrifty Christmas inspiration!

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Here is the blog hop order in case you get lost along the way:

Christy D- http://www.christyszaneycreations.blogspot.com/

Jen S- http://justcoffeepleasestampsribbonspaper.blogspot.com/

Rhonda- http://bluepoohbear753.blogspot.com/

Stacie- http://hestiashelper.blogspot.com/

Ali (Dragonlady)- http://craftydragons.blogspot.com/

Sandy- http://scribblesbysandy.blogspot.com/

Melissa- http://www.smudgetime.com/  **You are here**
 

Sue- http://confessionsofapaperhoarder.blogspot.com/

Audrey- http://hippieaud.blogspot.com/

Julia- http://paperandscrapscreations.blogspot.com/

Jessica- http://canyoupixelthis.com/

Lawren- http://ahobby-holic.blogspot.com/

Miranda- http://mirandascardcreations.blogspot.com/

TSB Challenge Blog- http://thestampingboutiquechallengeblog.blogspot.com/

Blog Hop!

 
It's time for The Stamping Boutique's Blog Hop!  I hope you'll join in the fun!  It will run all weekend, ending on Sunday, November 13th (11:59 pm CST) to allow you plenty of time to hop.

**If you have come here from Stacie's blog, then you are on the right track.  If not, please head over to Christy's blog to start at the beginning (You can also see the complete blog hop order at end of this post).

With any hop, there has to be something to win, right?  You will want to be sure to visit each design team member's blog and leave a comment as each one will be giving away one TSB image!

If that isn't enough to entice you to hop with us, maybe this will:  1 random person (who comments on all the DT blogs and leaves a final comment on the Stamping Boutique blog) will be selected to win the entire set of the newest line of images called the Smoochies!  How is that for a great prize?!  There are currently 11 images in the Smoochies line!  (You can see them HERE.)

I chose to use this adorable image called Nesting Doll 2 for my card.  I used pinks, purple, green and yellow on her, but I can envision her in Christmas colors too!   Isn't she sweet?!  The Sweet Threads paper from Basic Grey was just perfect for creating a background for her!

Supplies:
Stamps - The Stamping Boutique (Nesting Doll 2 - digital), Hero Arts (sentiment)
Paper - Basic Grey DP (Sweet Threads), SU Melon Mambo, Regal Rose CS, Copic Blending Card (main image)
Ink - SU Melon Mambo (sentiment)
Accessories - pink gemstones, yellow mulberry paper mini roses, foam circles (popped up sentiment & main image)
Coloring - Copic markers

Now head on over to April's blog!

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Below is the hop order in case you get lost along the way:

Christy D <----Start Here

Jessica

Sandy

Ali (Dragonlady)

Lawren

Rhonda

Miranda

Stacie

Melissa - You're here!

April

Julia

Ali (Aqualeiga)

Rene'

 
Jerusha

Arielle

 
Sue

TSB Challenge Blog  <---- Final Stop

Operation Julie's Smile Blog Hop

Mark your calendars!

Operation Julie's Smile Blog Hop
Location: Sponsored by Sweet Stamp Shop www.sweetstampshop.com
Time: ‎8:00 A.M. Friday, October 7

I wanted you to know about a blog hop that is coming up this week for a good cause.   The details are below:

**Many may know that a few weeks ago, Julie Ranae had to have emergency oral surgery resulting in the removal of her two front teeth. The dentist at that time believed the best course of action would be to remove the rest of her teeth and replace them with permanents. (as to avoid years of dental work) Relieved at finding a solution to this major dental problem .. she visited the office for dental surgery the week. Unfortunately, it wasn't the visit she was expecting. After the consultation and scheduling the surgery, the surgeon's office informed her that she would need to bring $4000 back to the appointment with her and they would proceed. This amount would not include the 'dentures' to follow.

Julie is sitting today without front teeth that were pulled with the belief that they would be replaced immediately.  It is an overwhelming experience for our dear friend and one that I hope our creative community can help with.**

I have also added a donation button on the sidebar for any who might be interested in donating to the cause.  As a member of the design team over at The Stamping Boutique, I will be participating on their blog.

For the Love of Spellbinders

Wanna have some fun that includes several chances to win a prize?  :)

Spellbinders is having a Winter Release Blog Frenzy!