2021 Fall/Winter Coffee Lovers Blog Hop - Super Sponsor

We are absolutely thrilled to be returning, once again, as a Super Sponsor for the Fall/Winter Coffee Lover's Blog Hop!

This is an amazing HUGE twice annual community participation style blog hop hosted by Coffee Loving Cardmakers! We'll be hopping for a full week starting Friday, November 12th at 6:00am Pacific time, ending Friday November 19th 2021.

We are one of over 50 amazing companies to be offering a wide array of incredible prizes for those who create & link up a coffee, tea, matcha, chai, cocoa, hot cider, mulled wine or other hot beverage themed card or project! 

Want to Join the fun? Tag your creation on social media with #FallWinter2021CLH & link it up on the Main Hop Post over at the Coffee Loving Cardmakers blog!

We've put together a MEGA Prize Pack valued well over $100 including a ton of current & retired Sparkle Blends sequin embellishment mixes as well as some stamps, dies and other goodies from some of my favorite companies! We'll be giving this pack away to one lucky, randomly selected participant of the Fall/Winter Coffee Lover's Blog Hop this year!

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Our MEGA prize pack includes:

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Coffee Beans embellishments

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: PSL Season

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Spill The Bubble Tea

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: So Matcha Fun

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Frosted Gingerbread

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Gingerbread House

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Toasted S'mores

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Cinnamon Roll

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Love, Coffee (retired)

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Hot Cocoa (retired)

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Cafe Au Lait (retired)

1 pack Doodles Paper Playground - Sparkle Blends: Pumpkin Spice (retired)

Clearly Besotted: Spilling Tea - 4x6 photopolymer stamp set

Clearly Besotted: Warm Wishes - 4x6 photopolymer stamp set

Altenew: Latte - 2x3 photopolymer stamp set & coordinating dies

Paper Smooches: Cozy Coffee die set

Memory Box: Classic Coffee Cup die

Simon Says Stamp: Cocoa & Love - 2x3 clear stamp set

Waffle Flower: Warm Wishes - 2x3 photopolymer stamp set

The Ton: Coffee word die

The Ton: But First word die

Happy Town Studio: Love Coffee enamel coffee cup pin

Taste Beauty: But First, Coffee flavored lip balm set (gluten & cruelty free)

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If you are not familiar with Doodles Paper Playground, WELCOME! We are a small embellishment company specializing in limited edition, small batch sequin embellishment mixes called Sparkle Blends, and have recently begun expanding our collection to include a range of unique embellishments and essential tools and supplies to help you use our products to their best potential! Our products are available for purchase exclusively in our Etsy Shop! We currently have some great comforting beverage themed Sparkle Blends options like PSL Season, Spill The Bubble Tea & So Matcha Fun and a brand new offering of Coffee Beans 3D embellishments-- as well as over 100 other sparkly choices! Join us over in the Sparkle Blends Fan Club for tons of inspiration, first looks, latest news and exclusive discounts, events and giveaways!

PSL Season

Apple Crisp

Toasted S'mores

Cinnamon Roll

So Matcha Fun

Spill The Bubble Tea

Coffee Beans

Don't worry, we've got a little surprise for EVERYONE! Save 21% on your total order at www.SparkleBlendsShop.etsy.com

with coupon code: CLBH21

21% discount is valid site wide, through Friday, November 19th, 2021. No exceptions. Not valid with any other coupons, promotions or discounts.

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Thanks so much for hopping along with us today! Make sure you check out all of the amazing projects being linked up and add your own to be entered to win prizes and so we can be inspired by you!

Crafty Hugs & Glitter Dreams,

Amber

Last Regularly Scheduled Blog Post

 Hello Sparkle Blends Fans!

Doodles Paper Playground Owner, Amber, here with a big announcement about the Blog.

It is with a heavy heart that as of August 1st, 2021 we have decided to discontinue regular new content here on the blog for the foreseeable future. We will be participating in some large blog hop events from time to time, but won't have a consistent schedul. We appreciate everyone who has followed us for these past few years, but unfortunately social media and the cardmaking industry seem to be starting to move away from Blogs as the most widely viewed form of Social Media & our readership has dwindled drastically this year. Don't worry, Doodles Paper Playground and Sparkle Blends aren't going anywhere, but we have made the decision to stop posting here on the blog in order to free up more creative time for our amazing Design Team to spend creating the projects that inspire you! 

Make sure you join our Sparkle Blends Fan Club over on Facebook for the most up to date information, announcements, sneak peeks and exclusive content & follow the Doodles Paper Playground Facebook business page for Release Announcement and weekly Thursday Lives with Alison Heikkila

Our Designing Divas have the option to continue to post on their own blogs, if they wish, so I encourage you to follow these very talented women directly, for more inspiration!

Amber MacMurtry

Alison Heikkila

Fawn Keuhne

EK Gorman

Annie Collins

Gina Crotchfelt

Judy Markowitz (link not currently working)

Thank you for 3 years of memories! All existing posts will remain active on the blog for as long as possible, so you can reference them & to avoid broken links.

We appreciate you! See you on Facebook & Instagram!

Don't forget to Share Your Sparkle!

Crafty Love Always,

Amber

Apple for Teacher

Apple for Teacher

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As usual, I started by die cutting my base panels,

Attached the two bottom panels together,

Added an acetate window and double layer of foam tape.

I am only making the big window a shaker.

I added another piece of acetate to the back. . .

It makes it much easier to place your shaker when it is already sealed up

Then I placed the shaker on the base panel.

I stamped, colored and cut my images.

I am leaving the fronl blank because I do not know if I will

 use this card for new teacher, teach appreciation or end of year. 

I can always attach a sentiment to the front or just put it all on the inside!

I added some more sequins to the front and love how this turned out!

For this card I used the Apple for Teacher blend.

This is one of my favorite blends!

I love the primary color mix!

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There are more great Sparkle Blends over at the 

Doodles Paper Playground Etsy Shop!

You can use my code FAWN10 for 10% off your order.

There is also a Facebook group where you can share 

creations you have made with Sparkle Blends!

Come check it out, share some inspiration!

Sparkle Blends Fan Club

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Now, Get Out There and Create Something Amazing!!

☆ Facebook ☆ Instagram ☆ 

Flamazing!

Hello! Alison Heikkila here. I've got a full panel shaker card to share today for Doodles Paper Playground. I combined two beautiful Sparkle Blends for this card, and the end result is beautiful. I am a huge fan and collector of flamingos. I just love them. But for some reason, I just hadn't gotten around to using the "You're Flamazing" Sparkle Blend yet. So I pulled out a fun stamp set from Hampton Arts and got to work. I had been wanting to make a full panel shaker for a while, as it's been a long time since I made one.

I created my background using 2 stamps from Stampendous' Jungle Greenery set with 2 colors of VersaColor Inks. That layer came out pretty soft, so I used one of the leaves from my Flamingo stamp set from Hampton Arts with Rustic Wilderness Distress Oxide on top. I love how it looked, so I stopped there. Then, I added adhesive tape to the back, and wrapped packaging from a stamp set around the background. I adhered 3 sides only, so that I could drop in my Sparkle Blends from the 4th side.

All of those lovely shades of pink sequins are from the "You're Flamazing" Sparkle Blend, while the green and whites are from the "So Matcha Fun" Sparkle Blend. I love those 2 combined, and it really ties the entire card together. I inked up the flamingo with Kitsch Flamingo, Picked Raspberry, Worn Lipstick, and Abandoned Coral Distress Oxide. I used Kitsch Flamingo around the edge of my card base too. I used the fantastic "Dude" from Simon Says Stamp, with some Spring Green foil and the Deco Pen from Therm O Web, and a sentiment from Lawn Fawn.

Full panel shakers are so much fun, and they are pretty simple to make...no foam or dies required! Plus, you get a ton of movement! I love the tropical vibes from this card, plus pink and green are one of my favorite color combos. Please visit the Sparkle Blends Shop on Etsy to see the entire new collection, plus some new goodies that Amber has added to the shop! And make sure you join the Sparkle Blends Fan Club on FB to always get fantastic inspiration on how to use those Sparkle Blends. Thanks so much for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!

CAS Sunset Shaker

 Hello! Alison Heikkila here. Did you catch my latest FB Live for Doodles Paper Playground? I decided to make a Clean & Simple (CAS) Shaker card using the Curve-Tastic Circle Die from Your Next Stamp. I thought it would look cool to give it a sunset effect, so that's what we did.

I pulled the same Distress Inks Rhiannon chose for my Fairy Grotto card's sunset: Kitsch Flamingo, Mustard Seed, and Ripe Persimmon. I used Kitsch Flamingo around the edge of the card base too.

In the shaker window, we used a combination of four Sparkle Blends! Orange Creamsicle, You're Flamazing, Pineapple Garden, and Hey Chickie. These 4 Blends go together so well, and created the perfect sunset vibe. The viewers chose the "You Are Incredible" die from Erin Lee Creative for the sentiment.

I don't do CAS Shakers too often, but with all of the "busy" and layered things I have been making lately, it was nice to do something sort of plain, but still cool. Have you made a CAS Shaker with your Sparkle Blends? Share it in the Sparkle Blends Fan Club! I'd love to see it. And if you didn't catch the FB Live from Thursday, click HERE to check it out. Please be sure to visit the Sparkle Blends Shop on Esty to see the all of the available Sparkle Blends. Thanks for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!

 A Flamazing Pig

I'm tickled pink over this new Sparkle Blend from Doodles Paper Playground. "You're Flamazing" is a bright pink blend that can be used in many ways.

For this project, I wanted to a pink pig so I removed the flamingos from the blend. But, as you can see I was still able to use one as a lawn ornament. I also created a flower cluster with different elements from the blend

To create this scene, I used the Penny the Pig Roundimal stamp and die set from Brutus Monroe. I used the die to cut the pig shape out of a piece of cardstock. Then I stamped the pig on a piece of acetate using Staz-On. The shaker is backed with pink paper. I created the scene repeating a fence stamp from "Hog Heaven" by MFT. That's also where the stencil came from. I colored the fence and grass with Copics. For the sky I used the cloud stencil from MFT with Tumbled Glass Distress Oxide ink and blending brush.

So the moral of this story - don't shy away from a blend just becuase it may have an element that you don't think you will use. You can always pick apart blends and tailor them to your needs. Head over to the shop to see all the amazing possibilities.

Pineapple Garden - Happy Birthday

 Happy Birthday

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I used the Aloha stamp set from Lawn Fawn and 

this dark pink gingham paper.

I cut the base panel at 5.25 x 4 so I would have a 

white border on the card.

I decided to ad another layer to the card so 

I cut a top panel and stamped directly on it. 

I colored my pineapple with copic markers.

Then I used Lawn Fawn reverse stitched scallop 

circle window die to cut the shaker window.

I added a double layer of foam tape and laid out my sequins.

I added sequins to the top panel.

For this card I used the Pineapple Garden Sparkle Blend.

I think it is a great blend of summer colors and 

worked so great on this card!!

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There are more great Sparkle Blends over at the 

Doodles Paper Playground Etsy Shop!

You can use my code FAWN10 for 10% off your order.

There is also a Facebook group where you can share 

creations you have made with Sparkle Blends!

Come check it out, share some inspiration!

Sparkle Blends Fan Club

Thank you so much for stopping by!

Now, Get Out There and Create Something Amazing!!

☆ Facebook ☆ Instagram ☆

 The Epic 80's

he 80's were epic and this blend proves it. "I Love the 80's" has all that retro neon flare we all knew and loved growing up. It makes any design timeless.

 This trend is back and there's no better way to make a project pop you back in time than with "I Love the 80's" Sparkle Blends from Doodles Paper Playground. The colors buzz like neon lights and all the different elements make you think of everything you loved back then from big hair to bright colored high tops.

There are neon discs, sprinkles, stars, and even blue neon gems. So if you want to take a totally tubular trip back in time, grab this blend before they are a distant memory just like the eighties. 

Triple Shaker with Bunnies!

 Hello! Alison Heikkila here. Last Thursday I made this cute shaker card over on the Doodles Paper Playground FB Page during a FB Live. We combined products from a bunch of companies and we created an adorable card with sherbet colors and 3 different Sparkle Blends. I say "we" because i never make all of the decisions about how we make a project. I love when the viewers chime in with suggestions or opinions on the choices I give them. So we're essentially all making the project together.

*Links to all products used are in Alison's Blog Post. 

I had pre-colored and cut out the bunnies (from Mama Elephant) to save a little time during the FB Live. I had also pulled out the Houndstooth background stamp from Erin Lee Creative and 4 colors of Distress Ink. We used Spun Sugar, Mustard Seed, Carved Pumpkin, and Abandoned Coral. I cut my windows easily with the circles from Your Next Stamp's Peek a Boo Trio die.

For our Sparkle Blends, we decided to use Grapefruit, Lemonade, and Candy Corn. The colors went really well with the bunnies and the Distress Ink colors. Look at how many different items are in each of those little windows! I didn't even use all of the components in each of the Sparkle Blends. I used a piece of Lawn Fawn paper for being the shaker windows. My sentiment is a the Painted Hello die from Simon Says Stamp, which I used Therm O Web's Adhesive Pen on, and then foiled with Peach Princess Deco Foil. I also added a "shadow" layer using another piece of Lawn Fawn cardstock. The card base was rimmed with Rustic Wilderness Distress Ink, which was the perfect match to the Lawn Fawn paper.

I think this card came out adorable. I love the colors...the Sparkle Blends are a happy surprise inside those circles...and those bunnies are adorbs. If you didn't get a chance to catch the FB Live, you can check it out HERE. It would be great if you were with us for the next time! They're always on Thursdays at 8PM EST on the Doodles Paper Playground FB Page. Thanks for stopping by. Have an inspiring day! 

 To Dive For

This blue haired mermaid is swimming along in a sea of beautiful shells, pearls, sequins and so much more.

The underwater scene came to life with the "Mermaid Kisses" stamp and die set from Brutus Monroe. Everything was colored with Copics and mounted atop a background from Catherine Pooler's 6X6 Seaside patterned paper pack. The sentiment was stamped in the coordinating Sea Glass ink.

But the real stars under this sea are all the thingamabobs in the the "Just Keep Swimming" Sparkle Blends from Doodles Paper Playground. This underwater mix is just to dive for. It's got gadgets and gizmos aplenty.

Look close and you will find all sorts of under water creatures including various types of fish, seashells, sparkle discs, bubbles...the list goes on. And the color palette leaves so many options for coordinating patterned papers. I used pieces from Just Keep Swimming to decorate the outside of the card as well. 
 

The pink starfish in the mermaid's hair are one of the many different clay pieces that include 3 different types of fish. I used various discs and sequins to create bubbles. And of course, the clear colored bubbles to complete this scene. If you love this blend as much as I do, swim on over to the shop and grab yours! 

Bird of Paradise Shaker

 Hello! Alison Heikkila here. Hello! Today I am sharing a card that was created by my husband Gene for the June Sparkle Blend release from Doodles Paper Playground. He really liked the "Go Bananas" Sparkle Blend, so he decided to go with a rainforest vibe on his card.

He found an old Bird of Paradise stencil that he liked a lot, so he used a couple of embossing pastes and applied it to cardstock. After they dried, he inked it up a bit to give kind of a blurry, jungle background. Using some dies from Stampendous for his window and the foliage around it, he created his shaker. He inked the foliage a bit by tapping on some Distress Oxide Ink. This gave the leaves a lot of texture.

His window is quite large, so he wanted to use a lot of the "Go Bananas" Sparkle Blend in the shaker panel. Instead, I offered him some of my beloved (and retired) "Broken Glass" Sparkle Blend to fill in the window, while still allowing you to see what's inside. In the photo above, you can see the clear and opalescent sequins....that's from "Broken Glass." Everything else is from "Go Bananas," so look for the little banana slices, the monkey heads, the various shades of yellow in different styles of sequins, and even 2 styles of full sized bananas! There are a lot of great elements in this Blend, and I really love the surprising pops of bright pink and bronze.

For his card base, Gene did a bit of ink smooshing with the same colors of Distress Oxides that he used behind the shaker window. I believe the colors were Rustic Wilderness, Twisted Citron, and Cracked Pistachio.

This card gave him a bit of trouble. It's not easy to use different colors of embossing pastes on such small areas, especially since they were from different brands with very different consistencies. But in the end, I really love how his card turned out. There is so much movement in his shaker window and those Sparkle Blends are really on display. Please visit the Sparkle Blends Shop on Etsy to see the entire new collection, plus some new goodies that Amber has added to the shop! And make sure you join the Sparkle Blends Fan Club on FB to always get fantastic inspiration on how to use those Sparkle Blends. Thanks so much for stopping by. Have an inspiring day!