It's the 3rd of the month again and that means a new stamp release sneak preview from Taylored Expressions! Today the Baker's Dozen designers are previewing another great concept follow-up to September's Punchy Potions stamp set. This one is called Luxurious Labels and is perfectly sized to fit on Taylored Expressions' Potion/Spa Bottles! This set has some wonderful label frames and great labels such as Body Wash, Bubble Bath, Bath Salts, Body Lotion and Luxurious Lather, so I know you'll be getting a LOT of great ideas for homemade bath salts, lotions, body wash, etc. from the Baker's Dozen today!
I'm big on versatility, so I wanted to share a little bit different use for this set that you may not first think of -- a luxurious indulgence of mine (and I'm sure many of you!) -- coffee and different flavored creamers for it! So here's a holiday gift set I came up with.
I thought the Potion/Spa Bottles would be a good size to share some great coffee and different flavored creamers as a gift, so I packaged up some favorite coffee beans and homemade creamer (yes, I said HOMEmade -- keep reading)!
To make the labels for the bottle of creamer and bag of coffee, I stamped this wonderful curvy label from Luxurious Labels in Memento Rich Cocoa ink onto Choice Buttercream cardstock and then stamped this great floral image (love this!) inside the label with Memento Rhubarb Stalk ink.
I made the "Peppermint Mocha" and "Coffee" custom wording with JustRite's 15-Point Times New Roman font. Then I die cut Prism Blush Red Dark cardstock with Spellbinders Labels Four Nestabilities dies to layer behind the stamped frame -- I really like how well this die shape framed the stamped label!
Once again, there are two perfectly-sized stamp images made to cover the top of the cork in the Spa/ Potion Bottles ... customization from top to bottom! I stamped this leaf with Memento Rich Cocoa ink on Choice Buttercream cardstock, colored the leaf with Copic R29, punched it out with a 3/4-inch circle punch, and adhered it to the cork.
I wrapped some peppermint-striped Cosmo Cricket paper around the neck of the bottle.
A good friend recently introduced me to her favorite seasonal coffee creamer ... Peppermint Mocha. At first, I didn't know if I would like peppermint flavoring in my coffee but after trying it, I'm hooked! It makes your coffee taste like rich hot cocoa with just a touch of refreshing peppermint and it's also wonderful to add to your hot cocoa ... gives it that extra creamy-minty goodness! It may be hard to find since it's seasonal, and once it sells out around the holidays, it's gone until next year. So if you have a hard time finding it, or if you'd like to have it at other times of the year, I found a great solution: make it yourself!
After doing a bit of Internet research, here are some different recipes I compiled from various online sources.
I came up with the Peppermint Mocha creamer recipe myself that I'm using in this gift set and actually prefer it to the store-bought version. I think using the Ghirardelli sweet ground chocolate/ cocoa powder might be the fabulous secret ingredient! The bonus here: You are definitely not paying $3 plus for the same amount of store-bought creamer, it's available ANY time of the year, you are not adding to the landfill with large disposable plastic containers, no added preservatives/oils/colorings, and it costs WAY less to try different flavor combos and share them with friends and family for gifts!
Coffee Creamer Base
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk (fat-free works well, too!)
1-1/2 cups skim milk (or whatever you normally have on hand)
Flavoring Combinations:
Amaretto: 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon almond extract.
Chocolate Almond: 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, 1 teaspoon almond extract.
Chocolate Raspberry: 2 teaspoons cocoa powder, 2 tablespoons raspberry syrup.
Orange Cappuccino: 1 teaspoon almond extract, 1/2 teaspoon orange extract.
Pumpkin Pie Spice: 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, 1/3 cup pumpkin puree.
Sharon's Peppermint Mocha: 1 teaspoon peppermint extract, 2 teaspoons cocoa powder.
Strudel: 1 tablespoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon almond extract.
Vanilla: 2 teaspoons vanilla extract.
Measure all ingredients into a 32 ounce container (with a lid -- a Mason jar or other recycled jar works well for this), seal container and shake vigorously. This will keep in the refrigerator for up to two weeks (be sure to use very fresh milk and mark the container with the milk expiration date).
I also made a matching card for my gift set -- it's 4.25" square. The stamped label, as well as the die cut label are both popped up on Taylored Expressions's fabulous foam tape (I love this stuff!). I zig-zag stitched a strip of candy-striped paper, that was punched with Fiskars' Threading water punch, behind the label. The flowers on all of the labels are accented with Copper Stickles ... hopefully you can see how pretty they are in this close-up below (click on it for a larger view):
Isn't that "Indulge" font gorgeous, too? There are four other sentiments in this stamp set with that same font! You'll be able to see the full set on release day (Thursday, the 5th) on the Taylorerd Expressions blog. Be sure to check out the fabulous sneak peeks the other Baker's Dozen Designers have for you today: Taylor VanBruggen, Charmaine Ikach, Dawn Easton, Denise Marzec, Donna Baker, Jackie Pedro, Jodi Collins, Laura Fredrickson, Karen Giron, Karen Motz, Laurie Schmidlin, Sankari Wegman
Thanks for stopping by ... I'll be back again tomorrow with another sneak peek of a different new Taylored Expressions stamp set! ~ Sharon
Supplies --
Stamps: Taylored Expressions Luxurious Labels, JustRite 15-Point Times New Roman font
Paper: TE Choice Buttercream, Prism Blush Red Dark, Cosmo Cricket Wonderland 8x8
Ink: Memento Rich Cocoa & Rhubarb Stalk, Copic Sketch marker R29
Accessories: TE Spa/Potion Bottles, Spellbinders Labels Four Nestabilities dies, Copper Stickles, foam tape, Fiskars Threading Water edge punch, 3/4-inch circle punch, corner rounder, sewing machine
