NEW! Gears and Textures

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Craft the perfect edgy gift with the Gears & Textures Bundle, adding a rough-hewn feel to your work. Create hardcore, mechanical-inspired cards and crafts with raw, urban style. Use gritty stamps for industrial textures and distressed effects and bold dies for gears, chains, and wire. Give them a rebellious, factory-floor aesthetic they’ll love. It's my new favorite pick for masculine cards - especially using metallic accents!

Shop the Gears and Textures bundle in my

online store HERE

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

CSF Saturday Blog Hop - Masculine Love

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Welcome to the Create with Stampin' Friends Saturday

Blog Hop! This week, we are showing the men a little love

with a Masculine Love theme blog hop.

Love‑themed cards don’t always have to be soft and frilly. Sometimes you want something bold, clean, and masculine — a design that feels heartfelt without leaning too sweet. Today’s project does exactly that, pairing the Love Notes Designer Series Paper and the Endless Love Bundle with a little textured sanding to create a card that’s strong, stylish, and perfect for the guy in your life. 

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Endless Love

Ink: Early Espresso

Paper: Early Espresso, Real Red Two Tone, Country Woods DSP, Love Notes DSP

Accessories: Red/White Baker's Twine, Endless Love dies, Glass and Gardens Embossing Folders, Sanding Block, Stylish Shapes dies

Happie Stampin'!

Ready for more Masculine Love inspiration?
 Go NEXT to see what Connie created or BACK to 

see what Libby created!

Masculine Valentine

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Valentine’s Day crafting doesn’t always have to be pink, frilly, or covered in hearts. Sometimes the most meaningful cards are the ones that feel strong, simple, and intentionally masculine. Today's project features the Endless Love bundle — and it turned out to be the perfect choice for creating a clean, modern Valentine with just the right amount of rugged charm! 

The bundle’s mix of bold sentiments, geometric accents, and versatile dies makes it incredibly easy to shift the vibe from romantic to refined. Instead of leaning into traditional Valentine colors, I pulled a palette of Cherry Cobbler, Basic Black and Smoky Slate — and suddenly the whole project felt elevated and masculine.

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Endless Love

Ink: Cherry Cobbler, Craft White

Paper: Thick Basic White, Basic Black, Cherry Cobbler, Smoky Slate

Accessories: Endless Love dies, Black/Gold Baker's Twine, Lovely Stripes embossing folder

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

Take to the Sky Birthday

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Here's another card I made from our stamping event this past weekend. It features the Adventurous Sky bundle and coordinating Take to the Sky designer papers. It's perfect for any airplane lover for any occasion. Get ready to take off and create some amazing cards!

Shop the Adventurous Sky bundle in my online store HEREHERE

It's available thru June 30th at 20%off!

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Adventurous Sky
Ink: Smoky Slate, Misty Moonlight
Paper: Misty Moonlight, Smoky Slate, Basic White, , Silver Foil,Take to the Sky DSP

Stampin' Blends: Misty Moonlight, Smoky Slate

Happie Stampin'!

~Melissa

rubberFUNatics Weekly Challenge #286

 Good Morning, Stampers!

(click photo to enlarge)

I've got a simple sketch for today's rubberFUNatics 

Weekly Challenge! I was inspired by the plaid in the sketch for

my card today. It was giving me a little masculine vibe so

I created this card for Father's Day! 

The background stamp from the Artistically Inked stamp set

was exactly what I was looking for! It gives a bit of a paint splatter

look to the background and compliments the Trusty Tool images nicely. 

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Trusty Tools, Artistically Inked

Ink: Smoky Slate, Night of Navy

Paper: Basic White, Night of Navy, Night of Navy DSP, Plaid DSP

Accessories: Trusty Rools dies

Have fun creating with this week's sketch!

Happie Stampin'!

~Melissa

CCM Saturday Blog Hop - Mini Celebration

Good Morning, Stampers!

Welcome to the Create with Connie and Mary Saturday

Blog Hop! This week, the team is sharing some of the

fabulous bundles from the new mini catalog!

I was so happy to see the selection of masculine products in

this catalog! I know the Trusty Tools bundle is going to be

a big hit! A little tip: For the die cuts that didn't have any coordinating

stamps, I took the Smoky Slate marker and mimicked the

lines. Not perfect, but everything matches! 

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Trusty Tools

Ink: Craft White, Smoky Slate

Paper: Basic White, Smoky Slate, Real Red, Basic Black, Pecan Pie

Accessories: Trusty Tool dies, Timber embossing folder

Happie Stampin'!

Check out the rest of the team's mini catalog picks!

Go NEXT to see what Connie created or BACK to

see what Debbie created!

CCM Saturday Blog Hop - For the Guys

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Welcome to the Create with Connie and Mary

Saturday Blog Hop! This week we are creating cards for all

 the guys in our lives. It's always great to have a few of these on hand!

RIDE ON with the Legenday Ride bundle! No need to go to the

garage to work on your bike - just go to your craft space and 

let your creativity go full-throttle!

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Legendary Ride

Ink: Tuxedo Black

Paper: Basic White, Basic Black, Pumpkin Pie, Stargazing DSP

Accessories: Nested Essentials dies, Legendary Ride dies, Metal Plate embossing folder

Happie Stampin'!

Check out more fantastic masculine ideas from

the rest of the team! GO NEXT to see what Connie created

or BACK to see what Debbie created!

Paper Craft Crew Weekly Challenge #520

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Just in time for Father's Day, the Paper Craft Crew

challenge this week is just for the men in our lives!

Of course, there are other occasions you create for too - 

birthdays, graduation and more!

This card looks like a lot of technical detail went in to

making this, but I tell ya, it was SO quick and simple to do!

I took a 4" x 5 1/4" piece of watercolor paper and placed the 

decorative mask on top. Then, I watered-up my waterpainter and

painted the inks directly on to the mask. I added a few taps

of ink for the speckles and finished it off with the letters

from Alphabet a la Mode dies and some metallic dots. EASY PEASY!

SU!pplies:

Ink: Gray Granite, Wild Wheat, Copper Clay, Night of Navy

Paper: Watercolor, Gray Granite, Night of Navy

Accessories: Aphabet a la Mode dies, Metallic Dots, Four Square Decorative Masks, Waterpainter

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

Check out more ideas featuring this week's challenge:

Ride On

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Get the feeling of the open road with the Legendary Ride stamp set and coordinating dies. The bundle includes two different bikes, some accent pieces, and a handful of greetings that will help you create amazing cards for any bike enthusiast in your life. The sentiments include phrases for birthdays, Father's Day, and more!

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Legendary Ride
Ink: Copper Clay, Craft White
Paper: Copper Clay, Basic Black, Gray Granite, Silver Foil
Accessories: Legendary Ride dies, Metal Plate embossing folder

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

Paper Craft Crew Weekly Challenge #509

 Good Morning, Stampers!

(click photo to enlarge)

I love simple sketches and this week's Paper Craft Crew 

challenge is just that! It's a great opportunity to 

play around with a little layering and having fun with some

designer papers! I hope you'll play along with us today!

These papers are from the Ready to Ride from the 

Spring Mini Catalog. The monochromatic patterns include bikes, tire treads, 

road signs, and more, which makes it perfect for cards about 

biking, riding, and projects about traveling. Fun for everyone!

Ready to Ride Designer Papers HERE

SU!pplies:

Stamps: Legendary Ride

Ink: Early Espresso

Paper: Basic White, Sahara Sand, Ready to Ride

Accessories: Legenday Ride dies, Adhesive Backed Studs

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

Check out all the products featuring 

this week's challenge!

Legendary Ride

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Don't forget I offer FREE TUTORIALS in my weekly newsletter! Check out one of this week's projects featuring the Legendary Ride bundle! Join my email newsletter and be up-to-date on all the sales, announcements and NEW product availability! Join HERE

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

Paper Craft Crew Weekly Challenge #508

 Good Morning, Stampers!

(click photo to enlarge)

So glad you can join us for this week's Paper Craft Crew

Sketch Challenge! Sketches are a great first step when creating

a card. It gives you the basic layout and you can let your creativity

go from there. There are no rules! Keep it as is, rotate it or

grab one element and do your own thing - so many possibilities to create!

I kept the basic layout for this card. I love the Ready to Ride

designer paper! It reminds me of a trip down Route 66! 

It's hard to tell from the photo, but I used a few pale-color

Stampin' Blends to color the paper. It gives it a soft glow of 

color that doesn't take away from the main focal point. 

What a great set for any motorcycle enthusiast!

SU!pplies:

Stamps: Legendary Ride

Ink: Tuxedo Black

Paper: Very Vanilla, Basic Black, Ready to Ride DSP

Accessories: Legendary Ride dies, Taylor Made Tag dies, Basic Black Baker's Twine

Stampin' Blends: Pale Papaya, Soft Seafoam, So Saffron, Pool Party, Polished Pink

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

Be sure to check out all the designs for 

this week's sketch!

Ride On

 Good Morning, Stampers!

The open road awaits, and that's the feeling you can capture with the Legendary Ride Stamp Set. It includes two different bikes, some accent pieces, and a handful of greetings that will help you create amazing cards. Build scenes of a garage or a road for the bike enthusiast in your life. Custom color your bike, too! The sentiments include phrases for birthdays, Father's Day, and more! 

Shop the Legendary Ride bundle HERE

SU!pplies:

Stamps: Legendary Ride

Ink: Gray Granite

Paper: Basic White, Gray Granite, Basic Black, Real Red, Silver Foil

Accessories: Metal Plate embossing folder, Legendary Ride dies, Diorama dies

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

The Man Who Has Everything

 Good Morning, Stampers!

Create cards and other projects for the people in your life with the He's the Man Specialty Designer Series Paper. This patterned paper is packed with bold patterns in neutral colors. Choose from antique cars, camping gear, suits and ties, and more. You'll also find versatile patterns such as diamonds, stripes, and plaids. Mix and match the patterns with the coordinating die-cut images. Perfect for all the men in your life!

Shop the specialty paper HERE

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

rubberFUNatics Weekly Challenge #185

 Good Morning, Stampers!

(click to enlarge)

Masculine cards are always the hardest for me, so this week's 

rubberFUNatics Challenge was just the boost I needed to get creating!

I combined the NEW Brewed for You stamp set with the

Watercolor Shapes and Slim Sayings stamp sets for a 

special birthday toast! LOVE the bubbles!

Shop the Brewed for You bundle HERE

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Brewed for You, Watercolor Shapes, Slim Sayings
Ink: Crushed Curry, Early Espresso, Crumb Cake
Paper: Basic White, Crumb Cake, Crushed Curry
Accessories: Layering Circle dies, Hive embossing folder, Glossy Dots assortment

Enjoy creating for the special men in your life with this week's masculine challenge!

Happie Stampin'!
~Melissa

On Your Special Day

 Good Morning, Stampers!

The card I'm sharing with you today is one I created for a recent swap with some local demonstrators for our monthly meeting. The theme was masculine and the stamp set I used is called Positive Thoughts. I chose this set because it needed some ink (and love)! It's been a long time since I've used this set - it definitely was long over due! 

I hear a lot how masculine cards are the most difficult
to create. I find using any greenery or natural elements
gives a more masculine feel - even with a little bow!

SU!pplies:
Stamps: Positive Thoughts, Inspired Thoughts
Ink: Whisper White, Mossy Meadow, Crumb Cake
Paper: Very Vanilla, Mossy Meadow, Night of Navy, In Good Taste DSP
Accessories: Nature's Thoughts dies, Typeworn embossing folder, Water Painter, Linen Thread

Happie Stampin'! 
~Melissa

CCM Satuday Blog Hop - Goodbye Sale-A-Bration

Good Morning, Stampers!

It's hard to believe that Sale-A-Bration is over in just 12 days!

This week, the Create with Connie and Mary design team is

saying "good-bye" to some of  their favorite Sale-A-Bration 2021 products! 

I've been having a lot of fun creating with the Textures and

Frames stamp set. There are so many fun possibilities for

making your own unique backgrounds!

Here, I added the Handsomely Suited stamp set

for a fun masculine card.

I added the Turtle Friends stamp set to 

welcome a  sweet new baby.

And finally, I added the Ornate Thanks stamp set for

a simple Fall thank you.

So many different possibilities when you mix the colors and

patterns! This is a great set for basic stamping and backgrounds!

SU!pplies:

Stamps: Textures and Frames, Ornate Thanks, Turtle Friends, Handsomely Suited

Ink: Pale Papaya, So Saffron, Cajun Craze, Pool Party, Early Espresso, Smoky Slate, Night of Navy, Mossy Meadow, Soft Suede, Versamark, Whisper White

Paper: Very Vanilla, Basic White, Early Espresso, So Saffron, Pool Party, Sahara Sand, Soft Suede, Night of Navy, Mossy Meadow

Accessories: Forever Flourishing dies, Layering Circle dies, Very Vanilla Baker's Twine, Pool Party ribbon, Suit and Tie dies

Happie Stampin'!

See what the rest of the team chose
as their favorite Sale-A-Bration products!
Go NEXT to see what Connie has created or
BACK to see what Debbie has created!