The Play Date Cafe Challenge PDCC31

It's another week and you know what that means...

a BRAND, NEW CHALLENGE!

We can tell by the fabulous number of entries

each week that you are enjoying the challenges

and boy, does that make our design team happy!

Speaking of our design team...

For the next 8 weeks or so, our designers will

be sharing with you a little about their

studios/art space/the places they create.

We also want you to know that 

beginning next week, we have 

a brand new line-up of 

celebrity guest designers

and fabulous sponsors

so you will not want to miss a week!

IMPORTANT 
CAFE NEWS

Well...it's not so much news but we have a request
we'd like to make.

Would you consider turning off 
word verification on your blog?

Our design team make an effort to visit and comment 

on every single entry, but the word verification 

prompt is making it harder to do each week.

Word verification has been causing many designer's

computers to literally 'lock up' which in turn does 

not allow us to let you know we stopped by.

You can change your blog settings to monitor 

your comments if you are using it to avoid spam.

We sincerely appreciate your consideration!

This week's color host is senior designer, Julie Ranae.

Here's her thoughts behind this week's

color story inspiration...

"I am a magazine fanatic...yes, FANATIC!

When I want to relax, a cup of tea

and a magazine are all I need  : )

I have been a collector of a variety of genres for

many years, including Martha Stewart Living.

My collection of Martha magazines go back nearly

20 years when I was a bookseller at our local

book store and this fabulous new

'home keeping/entertaining' magazine

hit the newsstands.  I was hooked!

That explains why I use a lot of the photos

from marthastewart.com for my color stories.

I still find this magazine...

VERY INSPIRING!"

 

Your host for this week's challenge is

Savannah O'Gwynn.

Let's take a peek inside her studio 'Jelly Bean Designs'...

"I love my studio...
but my studio wasn't always so great at the beginning.

I had papers on beds and stamps in the spare bedroom drawers...

things in the garage and at least five of every tool 

because I couldn't find them anywhere. 

About two years ago, my husband made 

one of our bedrooms into my studio.

I just LOVE it! 

I am in my studio about five hours a day.

I am very picky about always having everything 'in it's place'

and I try to keep it clean (there are days when I am messy!). 

My fav part would be my two desks.

One is an L-shaped white desk. It is where I create all my cards.

My other desk was created specifically for my sewing machine. 

My grandma gave me her old vanity drawers
(a gift from my grandpa)

I love this desk because it is sentimental as she loves to sew too!

If you would like to see more of my studio, 

you can check out a YouTube video on my blog!"

Here's what the rest of our designers have done to inspire you.....

Stephanie Kraft ~ HandKrafted by Stephanie

Senior Designer 

Sarah Anderson ~ The Art of Moodling

 

Ruby McGuire ~ Ruby 2 Shoes Design

 

Senior Designer

Mona Pendleton ~ Cupcake's Creations

Lisa Somerville ~ Splendiferous Creations

Suzanne Czosek ~ Suzz's Stamping Spot

The prize for this week is a Stamper's Surprise!

Please follow the rules carefully to enter.

Deadline for prizes is 11:59pm EST on Tuesday
The 'Cup of the Week' will be announced during the next challenge.

ALL SKILL LEVELS ARE ENCOURAGED TO PLAY! 
We want you to enjoy this challenge. 

Interpret the colors the way you see them. 

We do not use specific card stock color names or brands.

Break out of the box and have fun! 

The main requirement is:

PDCC COLORS BE THE 

FOCUS OF YOUR SUBMISSION

When using additional colors, please limit them to neutrals. 

You are welcome to combine challenges, 
but we do ask that:
 1. The PDCC name and/or photo is used
2. OUR colors are the focus of the card.
 

See complete rules on sidebar at right

The Fab 4

The Cream in our Coffee

and

THE CUP of the WEEK

Another challenge has come to a close.

A very warm thank you to all who entered.

This challenge is only successful because of YOU
so please, PLEASE play with us again!

 The Play Date Cafe congratulates 
The Fab 4 for Challenge #30:

(in alphabetical order)

 Deborah ~ Cards and Things

Diana ~ Diana Evans Illustration  
Joan ~ JJ Creations
Silke Ledlow ~ My Life

The Fab can proudly display the

'I Made the Fab 4'

badge on their blogs!

The Cream in our Coffee

( make sure you see this talent, too! )

Heather

Arielle
Nancy
Patty M
Lynette Kauffman
Kim Costell
Shirley
Lil Sis

and The Play Date Cafe Cup of the Week...

Elise ~ Mamacow Creation

Elise wins the Designer Paper Grab Bag

compliments The Play Date Cafe.

and can proudly display the 'Play Date Cafe Winner' Badge.

Elise will also be eligible to be a

guest designer here in The Cafe.

Elise, please contact Julie Ranae at julieranae@hotmail.com
with your mailing address to receive your prize.

The Play Date Cafe Challenge PDCC30

 The design team here at The Play Date Cafe are

excited to see this challenge grow each week.

Many thanks go out to YOU for not only playing

with us each week, but for sharing The PDCC with

those you know who also love a good challenge!

We are wonderfully excited to share this week's

celebrity guest designer...
Maile Belles 

  It's our guess that Maile is no stranger to you.

She is currently on the design teams for

Embellish Magazine, Wplus9Design 

and Papertrey Ink.

She has been published in a variety of

paper crafting magazines including:

Paper Crafts, Cards and the

premier issue of Embellish, which is

owned by our recent guest,

Ashley Cannon Newell.

You don't have to wait for these publications to

hit newsstands, though.  You can see Maile's

creativity anytime on her blog

'Simply Stamped'.

Senior Designer, Mona Pendleton is the
'chooser of this week's colors' for you!
Aren't they wonderfully 'spring-like'?!
Wait till you see what she did to help inspire you...

Yep...that's 'Mona-style'   : )


Your designer host for this week is our own

Suzanne Czosek.

Here's how she approached this week's challenge:

"This challenge, I loved the colors as they were
soft, pastel and springy.  But when I went to
start working on my card, I was stumped!
I started with the idea of doing a baby card,
but as usual, I meandered away from that and
picked up my alcohol inks and a new stamp
and THAT'S the card I am sharing with you!

Here's what the rest of our designers have done to inspire you.....

Savannah O'Gwynn ~ Savannahland

Stephanie Kraft ~ HandKrafted by Stephanie

Ruby McGuire ~ Ruby 2 Shoes Design

Senior Designer 

Sarah Anderson ~ The Art of Moodling

Lisa Somerville ~ Splendiferous Creations

The prize for this week is a Designer Paper Grab Bag

Please follow the rules carefully to enter.

Deadline for prizes is 11:59pm EST on Tuesday
The 'Cup of the Week' will be announced during the next challenge.

ALL SKILL LEVELS ARE ENCOURAGED TO PLAY! 
We want you to enjoy this challenge. 

Interpret the colors the way you see them. 

We do not use specific card stock color names or brands.

Break out of the box and have fun! 

The main requirement is:

PDCC COLORS BE THE 

FOCUS OF YOUR SUBMISSION

When using additional colors, please limit them to neutrals. 

You are welcome to combine challenges, 
but we do ask that:
 1. The PDCC name and/or photo is used
2. OUR colors are the focus of the card.
 

See complete rules on sidebar at right

The Fab 4

The Cream in our Coffee

and

THE CUP of the WEEK

Another challenge has come to a close.

A very warm thank you to all who entered.

This challenge is only successful because of YOU
so please, PLEASE play with us again!

 The Play Date Cafe congratulates 
The Fab 4 for Challenge #29:

(in alphabetical order)

 Cathy ~ Papier Girl

Evelyn S ~ Beyond Just Black and White 
Leah ~ Chronicles of Orange
Magdalena ~ Axes Designs

The Fab can proudly display the

'I Made the Fab 4'

badge on their blogs!

The Cream in our Coffee

( make sure you see this talent, too! )

Cath

Ray
Mari
Isha
Diana Evans
Lin
Fliss

and The Play Date Cafe Cup of the Week...

Jaclyn M ~ I Scream, You Scream

Jaclyn wins the Designer Paper Grab Bag

compliments The Play Date Cafe.

and can proudly display the 'Play Date Cafe Winner' Badge.

Jaclyn will also be eligible to be a

guest designer here in The Cafe.

Jaclyn, please contact Julie Ranae at julieranae@hotmail.com
with your mailing address to receive your prize.

The Play Date Cafe Challenge PDCC29

Are you ready for some COLOR??!!

Any idea what this is?

What an amazing color inspiration photo chosen by

Senior Designer, Sarah Anderson.

Sarah is our resident mixed-media designer and

as a team, we know exactly why this would be her

choice to share with you this week.

Here's what she had to say, short & sweet...

"When I saw this photograph of 'peeled paint', 

I just fell in love with it!"

Our design team went all out with these colors,

but before we share their creations with you,

let's meet this week's
celebrity guest designer.

We are super excited to have

 Heidi Van Laar
in The Cafe this week.

"Hello there, I'm Heidi, a stay-at-home

mom of 3 beautiful boys.  I'm married to an

amazing and super supportive man for 11+ years

and live in southern Washington.

I have always loved art and used to work as 

a graphic designer.  I started scrapbooking in

2002 after my oldest was born.

That morphed into card making and now it seems

I don't have time to scrapbook anymore!

Over the past year, I have been published in a variety

of Paper Crafts publications and have some work

coming out in future issues of CARDS.

I currently design for Caardvarks and GCD Studios.

Your designer host for this week is our own

Lisa Somerville.

Here's how she approached this week's challenge:

"When I saw this week's challenge, I wasn't sure

what I was going to create.  The color combination

surely was a challenge for me, as they aren't colors

I use together often.  Once I picked a technique

using the colors as a background, and found the

perfect image, the card came together rather quickly.

That's the great thing about challenges, they give you

that needed push to work outside of your comfort zone."

Here's what the rest of our designers have done to inspire you...

Suzanne Czosek ~ Suzz's Stamping Spot

Senior Designer

Mona Pendleton ~ Cupcake's Creations

Savannah O'Gwynn ~ Savannahland

 Stephanie Kraft ~ HandKrafted by Stephanie

Ruby McGuire ~ Ruby 2 Shoes Design

The prize for this week is a Designer Paper Grab Bag

Please follow the rules carefully to enter.

Deadline for prizes is 11:59pm EST on Tuesday
The 'Cup of the Week' will be announced during the next challenge.

ALL SKILL LEVELS ARE ENCOURAGED TO PLAY! 
We want you to enjoy this challenge. 
Interpret the colors the way you see them. 
We do not use specific card stock color names or brands.
Break out of the box and have fun! 

The main requirement is:
PDCC COLORS BE THE 
FOCUS OF YOUR SUBMISSION
When using additional colors, please limit them to neutrals. 
You are welcome to combine challenges, 
but we do ask that:
 1. The PDCC name and/or photo is used
2. OUR colors are the focus of the card.
 

See complete rules on sidebar at right

The Fab 4

The Cream in our Coffee

and

THE CUP of the WEEK

It's getting harder and harder for our team to
choose a limited number of players to recognize.

A very warm thank you to all who entered.

This challenge is only successful because of YOU
so please, PLEASE play with us again!

 The Play Date Cafe congratulates 
The Fab 4 for Challenge #28:

(in alphabetical order)

Jeri Jo ~ Aunt JJs
Michelle2 ~ Happy Stamper
Nancy K ~ Happy Heart Studio
Tenia Nelson ~ Jazzy Paper Designs

The Fab can proudly display the

'I Made the Fab 4'

badge on their blogs!

The Cream in our Coffee

( make sure you see this talent, too! )

KathrynB

JeanFB
CherylW
Teresa Kline
Victoria
Tracy MacD
Evelyn
Michele Gross

ErinT

Isha
 StefH

  and The Play Date Cafe Cup of the Week...

Cath ~ Inky Fingers

Cath wins the Designer Paper Grab Bag

compliments The Play Date Cafe.

and can proudly display the 'Play Date Cafe Winner' Badge.

Cath will also be eligible to be a

guest designer here in The Cafe.

Cath, please contact Julie Ranae at julieranae@hotmail.com
with your mailing address to receive your prize.

The Play Date Cafe Challenge PDCC28

The design team here at The Play Date Cafe are

excited to see this challenge grow each week.

Many thanks go out to YOU for not only playing

with us each week, but for sharing The PDCC with

those you know who also love a good challenge!

We are wonderfully excited to share this week's

celebrity guest designer...

Ashley Cannon Newell.

If you are an avid reader of blogs or paper crafting

magazines, then Ashley will certainly be a familiar

name to you.  As someone who has enjoyed the 

art of design her entire life, she began as a child

creating hair accessories and designing clothes, and in

high school, paper crafting started with a simple scrapbook.

Over time, Ashley rediscovered the craft 

and started blogging in 2008.  

Her favorite techniques include rubber stamping

and creating her own embellishments.  She really 

"likes the challenge and it saves a few dollars, too!"

She lives in Northern Virginia with her best friend

and love of her life, McArthur and their

Yorkshire Terrier, Ozzy.  They enjoy photography

and travel.  During the day, Ashley is a legal editor

and by night she paper crafts.

Ashley's work can be found in a variety of card-based

publications and most recently, she has started her own

challenge-based e-zine, Embellish Magazine, to inspire

others to create when there is no mojo.

Travel to A New Design at

http://ashleynewell.blogspot.com/

This week's color host is senior designer,

Julie Ranae.

"I vividly  remember using crayons in grade school

to create this color combination and it has been

one of my favorites ever since.  I was really happy

to find these fabulous photos from Marthastewart.com

and knew that it was a 'color story' that I wanted

to share.  I hope you have fun with it!"

Here's what the rest of our designers have done to inspire you.....

Ruby McGuire ~ Ruby 2 Shoes Design

Lisa Somerville ~ Splendiferous Creations

Suzanne Czosek ~ Suzz's Stamping Spot

 

Senior Designer

Sarah Anderson ~ The Art of Moodling

Savannah O'Gwynn ~ Savannahland

 Stephanie Kraft ~ HandKrafted by Stephanie

Senior Designer

Mona Pendleton ~ Cupcake's Creations

The prize for this week is a Designer Paper Grab Bag

Please follow the rules carefully to enter.

Deadline for prizes is 11:59pm EST on Tuesday
The 'Cup of the Week' will be announced during the next challenge.

ALL SKILL LEVELS ARE ENCOURAGED TO PLAY! 
We want you to enjoy this challenge. 

Interpret the colors the way you see them. 

We do not use specific card stock color names or brands.

Break out of the box and have fun! 

The main requirement is:

PDCC COLORS BE THE 

FOCUS OF YOUR SUBMISSION

When using additional colors, please limit them to neutrals. 

You are welcome to combine challenges, 
but we do ask that:
 1. The PDCC name and/or photo is used
2. OUR colors are the focus of the card.
 

See complete rules on sidebar at right

The Fab 4

The Cream in our Coffee

and

THE CUP of the WEEK

Another challenge has come to a close.

A very warm thank you to all who entered.

This challenge is only successful because of YOU
so please, PLEASE play with us again!

 The Play Date Cafe congratulates 
The Fab 4 for Challenge #27:

(in alphabetical order)

Beverly G ~ Gott Heart Art
Kim C ~ Kraft-a-holic-Kim
Laurel S ~ Laurel's Place
Michele ~ Miche's Niche

The Fab can proudly display the

'I Made the Fab 4'

badge on their blogs!

The Cream in our Coffee

( make sure you see this talent, too! )

Gayle Page-Robak

Kathe
Mari
Jacqueline
Kim E
Tracy E
Evelyn
MicheyMoo

ScrappyWon

Tracy

  

and The Play Date Cafe Cup of the Week...

 Lin ~ Sending Hugs

Lin wins the Designer Paper Grab Bag

compliments The Play Date Cafe.

and can proudly display the 'Play Date Cafe Winner' Badge.

Lin will also be eligible to be a

guest designer here in The Cafe.

Lin, please contact Julie Ranae at julieranae@hotmail.com
with your mailing address to receive your prize.