A Scary Coffee

 

Good Monday Morning, café friends!

I needed a coffee-themed card for a swap this month, and I decided that this sentiment from Hello Bluebird would be the starting point. And when I saw that it fit perfectly on the center oval of this Sizzix Flip It Coffee Cup To Go die, well, it was a no-brainer.

Stamped stars and bats, twinkly sequins, fussy cut ghosts and pumpkins. Fun!

{Today's Brew: Spooky Script (Hello Bluebird), paper and sequins (Catherine Pooler), Sizzix Flip It die}

Pastor Appreciation Month

 

October is Pastor Appreciation Month. I wanted to come up with a small gift for all of our staff to let them know how much we love them.

And nothing says love like cookies! I made some Scottish Shortbread last night, stored them in Ziploc baggies, and placed them in brown paper lunch bags tied with ribbons and a fall leaf.

I have two shortbread pans from Nordic Ware that I love. This one is great for autumn.

It doesn't get more basic than a four ingredient cookie! But oh what magic happens when those four ingredients are combined! Such a great cookie to enjoy with a cup of tea, coffee, or cocoa.

I think this week I will attempt a new recipe I found for Apple Cider Snickerdoodles. You can find it on the King Arthur Baking website. It looks perfect for this time of year!

Year of Plenty: Bits and Bobs and Extras

 

When I get on a crafty roll, I often make a little extra to use later. Extra die cuts, extra stamped images, extra backgrounds. This makes for super fast card making later.

I had a few extra tea cups from my last crafty session, so I paired them with a background panel that had already been stamped and a coaster die cut ready for use. I had all of the little flowers and tags piled together on a paper plate, and I just grabbed what I needed.

It's like making a new meal from the leftovers!

{Today's Brew: MFT Cup of Tea stamps and dies, SU stamps and flower dies, C and 9th HUGS die, The Greetery Cozy Coaster die, The Greetery Spring Meadow background stamp}

I think today will be a good day to put on some Christmas music (too soon?) and do some holiday prepping. Backgrounds, die cuts, card bases. Maybe I will brew up a holiday latte to inspire me.

Blessings on your Friday, café friends! 

Year of Plenty: Tea Things and Cover Plates

 

Card front cover plates are another great option when it comes to backgrounds for cards. I got some great options from Concord and 9th during their annual inventory blowout last summer. 

This one uses C and 9th Sunburst.

This is C and 9th's Quilted.

And this one is C and 9th's Stitched Vines.

So fun!

I think these cheery cards will make their recipients smile.

Here's my Year of Plenty update: I did a little calculating of my crafty spending this year as opposed to last year, and I'm happy to report that I've spent only half as much. That's progress, right?

Year of Plenty thinking trickled into other areas, too. Recipe swaps= Use what I've got in the pantry. Home Décor = Less is more. Clothing= Pair down the wardrobe so that I can see what I've got in my closet!

I'm currently in discussion with other family members about how to approach the holidays differently. A Thanksgiving potluck. A Christmas gift swap instead of buying gifts for everyone. My adult children really do not need us to buy them anything, and it's hard to come up with ideas. A food/consumable gift basket may be our route this year.

Tell me: Do you have a gift swap family plan? Do you play a funny white elephant style game? Secret Santa? I'm looking for alternatives.

A New Moon

 

In today's "Use What You've Got" segment, I am featuring a Lawn Fawn stencil that I purchased a while back and had not gotten around to using yet.

It was finally time!

This one is called Nighttime Sky, and it makes a really cool full moon complete with craters, clouds, and a few stars.

I knew this would make the perfect backdrop for my one and only Halloween stamp, Hello Bluebird's Spooky Script. I don't make enough Halloween-themed cards to justify owning more than one stamp set, and this one is pretty darn cute. It has bats and ghosties and pumpkins and stars...it's more of a Charlie Brown Great Pumpkin sort of stamp set. Fun and whimsical.

I started with ink blending the moon and then the craters. Next, I masked the moon with  the solid circle and ink blended the night sky. I added some stamped stars  and bats, popped up some stamped ghosts, and added some twinkly star sequins.

I will be sending a stack of these out to the senior citizen ladies in my life. They will love them.

We are expecting to see a super Harvest Moon tonight, the brightest of the year. It will be a good night light for our Jemma walk.

Year of Plenty: Tea Things and Embossing Folders

 

Concord and 9th has really been testing my strength when it comes to curbing the crafty spending. Each month, their releases have been amazing, and this month was no exception.

First, it was the birds. And then it was the tea pot and cups. So cute! The set is called Afternoon Tea, and they've paired it with dies and stamps and even embossing folders.

I'm so glad to see that embossing folders are making a comeback. I have a lot, and I really like the look of them. They can add just the right texture to backgrounds and die cuts, too.

I really really thought I needed it all...and then I asked myself if I could achieve the same look with what I have. And you know the answer to that question!

I pulled out this Cup of Tea stamp and die set from My Favorite Things...a classic! Some crafty things never go out of style. I grabbed the stamps and dies from Stampin' Up called Needlepoint Nook.

That's one of the things that Year of Plenty is teaching me. I can get creative by combining different stamps and companies that at first glance might not seem to go together. And the Greetery's Cozy Coaster die goes with everything!

I also used a variety of embossing folders from Taylored Expressions and Stampin' Up. I found some word dies from Concord and 9th, and here's what I came up with:

I used Concord and 9th's card stock...I love their colors! I think that helps to give these cards the same vibe as the ones I saw in the new release.

I'm brewing up more tea ideas, so stop back to the café!

A Saturday Walk in the Trees

 

Luke came to town this weekend, so we packed it with fun. Saturday's weather was perfect for an autumnal hike, so we went to Hidden Lake Gardens for their Sky Walk.

The trees were beautiful!

On the country drive home, we stopped at Dundee, Michigan for a fun wine tasting.

Our family has had a bit of a roller coaster autumn, with wonderful days and celebrations right alongside trials and poignant loss. In the midst of it all, I am trying to hold on to the beauty of this season, praising God for the days that He has given us.