Beans, Beans, Beautiful Beans...

Helloooo there coffee lovers!  Today I'm sharing a fun little giftie for one lucky hopper!  I created a mix of my favorite RAW coffee beans and tucked them into this adorable little matchbox.  Have you ever roasted your own coffee beans?  It's pretty easy and depending on how "tart" you want your coffee, you can roast them as dark as you want.  I purchase my RAW "Green" beans from a roaster nearby and they are very economical.  The good thing about green beans is that they never go rancid.  Unlike roasted beans you get from the store, these beans allow you to make the freshest of the freshest coffee around.  All you need is a stove, a pan (or popcorn popper) to roast them in and a little patience!

My box contains a mix of three delish beans:  Brazilian Estancia Lecy, Costa Rica Minte Brisas, (White Honey),  Ethiopian Yirgacheffe.  All are small beans with a variety of flavors so when mixed, they provide a nice and tasty blend.  

Here's a little video to show you how you can roast your beans when you get them:  

Now, let's get back to the box itself.  How was it made?  Well, first, I started off by cutting a matchbook die (this is a Steel Rule Die called "Matchbox" that fits in my Platinum Machine).  It's a must-have die and is very handy for making a variety of fun treat boxes.  I used one Corrugated Stock Sheet to create my box and folded on the score lines/taped with White Liner Tape.  

After that, I moved on to cutting a little piece of Cocoa Powder cardstock and a piece of Whip Cream Cardstock.  Then I used the Blooming Details Dies to create the flower for the top of the box.  I wanted a pretty floral, so I used two shades of purple (Pretty Amethyst and Pretty Pansy) for the flower and some yummy Kiwi Slice green for the leaves.  

After making the flower, I attached a little green Candy Dot to the center and tied some Natural Twine around the lid.  Then it was time to move on to the surprise  sentiment on the inside...

I stamped the "Life Begins after Coffee" sentiment from Coffee Helps set (This is the super sponsor prize Elaine is awarding one lucky hopper).  I used Cocoa Powder, Oatmeal Cookie and Lemon Grass True Fusion Inks).  I glued this image onto the cocoa powder panel and glued it into the bottom inside portion of the box before adding the beans.  

Take a peek inside...Pretty deeelish, right?  

Thanks for stopping by today.  I hope you were inspired by this little creation and I hope you've enjoyed the coffee lovers hop.  If you haven't had a chance to hop with us yet, make sure you do...Only a few days left before prize winners are picked!  Get your entries in today!  

Hop Deets:  

When:  Friday, May 25-June 1

Theme:  Spring and Summer

Use:  Coffee/Tea/Cocoa images

Prizes Galore!

 SUPER GENEROUS SUPER SPONSORS 

Check out the lead blog post from Coffee Loving Cardmakers HERE

Direct link to the Hop post is here:  POST YOUR PROJECTS HERE 

RG Presents: Holiday Mini FUN!

This Saturday, I joined many of my fellow Coaches and FSJ customers in the LIVE RG Presents event on Youtube.  It was an all day event packed with live demos, sneak peeks of new products coming to FSJ on August 1 and four Make-and-Take projects.  I'm sharing my finished projects with you and encourage you to join the fun NEXT time!  Our next RG Presents will be December 2 and tickets/kits will go on sale in October!

The first card (pictured above) Features our new holiday paper line and a gorgeous Poinsettia Stamp Set.  Isn't it gorgeous?  We used this set again to create the card pictured below.

The third Make-and-Take card features the yummy new ornament dies, printed stock and holly berries that will be available in August.  So fabulous!

Finally, we created this fun card using a fun ink technique and this new die set.  Isn't it fun?  The original card had the presents "floating" so I tweaked it a bit by grounding the presents on the cardstock.

Aren't they fun?  Don't you wish you could have joined the fun?  Well, these sets and many more will be available August 1.  If you would like to purchase or receive a Holiday Mini Catalog, please contact me and I can help you out.  This mini is gorgeous and oh yes, The stamp/die/embellishment bundles I preordered are almost ready to ship to me!  WOOP WOOP!

Advent Calendar Extravaganza-With Taheerah Atchia'

ETA:  WINNERS ANNOUNCED!!! SCROLL DOWN TO BOTTOM TO SEE WINNERS!  

Advent Calendar Extravaganza is -THEEEE- festive event of the season! This ‘hop with a twist’ was dreamed up by Taheerah Atchia and features surprise destinations each day! Joining in the fun with Taheerah are over 60 special guests (Including ME)- each serving up some fantastic Christmas inspiration! Just like an Advent Calendar, you’ll never know where you’re going to be visiting next until you ‘open the door’!

And that’s not all! With 25 *amazing* sponsors taking part as well, your crafty wish list is bound to get a boost with a chance to win a prize EVERY SINGLE DAY!!

Join in the fun every day at taheerah-atchia.com to see what special surprises wait behind the door!

***   ***   ***

I so enjoyed making this collection of cards!    I was able to use my Journey Color Splash as a wash on watercolor paper over some embossed snowflakes- so fun experimenting with this Splash.  I used a few colors for this project:  Shimmer Gold Splash, Blue Lagoon Splash and Cool Pool Splash!  It works fabulously as a wash!!!

After the ink dried, I removed the embossing layer using my heat gun and a cloth.  I distressed the whole paper with Whip Cream True Fusion Ink .  Next, I flicked some Silver Silk onto the watercolored background, added some Platinum Liquid Pearls and I was ready to attach it to some Silver striped vellum.  This is my most FAVORITE VELLUM ever!!! It still needed one more stamped element to "ground" the image so I stamped the lacy border with River Stone True Fusion Ink  then fussy cut/distressed and pop-dotted it up on the edge.

Applying my image to Oatmeal Cookie and Whip Cream cardstock was next.  I used a Blue Lagoon (MY NEW FAVORITE COLOR) card base to mount my completed front panel.

They yummy Tinsel Trim and the freebie star embellishments were the perfect embellishing touch. I sewed an aqua sequin and a pearlescent seed bead onto the shimmery fabric star. To complete the triad of embellies, I added a little dew drop.  :)

***(I'll be contributing a few prizes as well!  Since FSJ is only available in the US through an FSJ Coach like me right now,  I would love to award the prize to one USA winner, one Canada winner, and one "over-the-pond" reader!  The winners will receive a pack of the silver shimmer puffy stars, a pack of the wooden stars and a collection of papers I used in this project.  If you are READING this and NOT JUST PICTURE WALKING THIS POST and are interested in the prize stated above, please add this comment saying "FSJ Newbie" and your name will be placed in my drawing.  I'll accept comments posted up until December 31.  I'll announce a winner on January 1.)***

It's not a party without a prize!  And with prizes every single day, there are several chances to win!!!  Today's prize is generously supplied by Dee's Artsy Impressions (Click on the link to be directed to her blog so you can see her yummy stamps!!!). We know you'll definitely want to get your hands on this sweet treat!  How?  Simply leave a comment here and head over to taheerah-atchia.com and leave a comment there to double your chances.  Don't forget to grab the other prize destination links and leave them some love too.  Every comment gets you a chance to win, so comment like crazy!!!

Remember:  You'll improve your chances of winning with EVERY comment posted.  You have until 7am EST on Thursday 31st December to leave all your comments! This Advent Calendar Extravaganza will run from Dec. 1-25 so make sure to visit Taheerah's blog every day to see what's behind that door!  

All comments will be accepted until December 31 and announcements of all winners will be posted the following week.  Good luck and MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

WINNERS WINNERS!  The following names were randomly drawn to receive a prize package from me. Please contact me soon so I can send my package out to you!  

USA:  Rebecca Yahrling

Canada:  KT Fit Kitty

UK:  Lynn Hardy