Groovy Kind of Inspiration

On Saturday I took a peek at the SCS inspiration challenge. This week's piece is a fun, colorful quilt from Garnet Hill. I zeroed in on the brown fabric with the blue and red flowers. It makes for a groovy kind of color combo, don't you think? And, look, my Swiss Dots are back. Shocking, huh? ;) I can never go more than a few days without that particular embossing folder. Oh well!

The flowers are stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black. I colored the petals with a Soft Sky reinker and Fantastix brushes. The flower centers are 1/4" red circles topped with Crystal Effects.

Thanks for visiting!



Stamps: Feeling Groovy (Verve)
Paper: Stamper's Select White (Papertrey Ink), Basic Black, Soft Sky, Real Red, Chocolate Chip (SU!)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko), Soft Sky reinker (SU!)
Accessories: 1/4" circle punch, Crystal Effects, key tag punch, dimensionals, corner rounder, red striped grosgrain (SU!), Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder, Fanstastix (Tsukineko)

Happy 45th Anniversary!

I made today's card in honor of my wonderful parents, who today are celebrating forty-five years of marriage. How great is that?!?! Happy Annivesary, Mom and Dad!! I love you, and hope Terry and I grow up to be just like you!

I had the idea for this card in my head as soon as I first saw the sentiment "You're still the one" from Verve's new Feeling Groovy set. But I needed to find a suitable stamp. After searching through the online sites of many popular stamp manufacturers and finding nothing, I finally googled "old couple rubber stamp" and turned up an Etsy site with loads of unique (mostly discontinued) rubber stamps. This was almost exactly what I hoped to find. Isn't it perfect? What I love most are the man's shoes -- they look just like the Hush Puppies my dad got for Christmas every year when I was a kid. He's probably still wearing them!

The stamp is made by Art Impressions. (I don't see it on their website, so I suspect it's retired, but I do see lots of other fun images!). All of my coloring was done with Prismacolors and Gamsol. The paper is from Basic Grey's "Sugared" line.

Thanks for stopping by!



Stamps: sentiment from Feeling Groovy (Verve), old couple (Art Impressions)
Paper: Cranberry Crisp, Whisper White (SU!), Sugared (Basic Grey)
Ink: Memento (Tsukineko)
Accessories: Aged Copper Hodgepodge Hardware, Cranberry Crisp stitched ribbon, corner rounder, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, dimensionals (SU!); Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, blending stump

Saturday's Canvas

Happy Saturday, and thanks for stopping by!

Time for another edition of Jen's Sketch for You to Try. Isn't this layout so much fun?!?! Stop by i{heart}2stamp to see the sketch as well as Jen's and Dawn's samples. Since it's the last Saturday of the month, we also say goodbye to Dawn Easton, who has been playing along with month as guest designer. What awesome samples she's contributed!! Thanks Dawn! For even more inspiration for this week's sketch, take a look at what Carole, Shannan, and Susan have cooked up. I hope you'll play, too! If you upload to SCS, remember to use keyword: SFYTT.




This next card is for this week's challenge over at Our Creative Corner, which is to use Basic Grey on your project. We all have some Basic Grey somewhere (dont we?)! You'll definitely want to head over there this morning, because we have a prize that goes along with the challenge, courtesy of Lindsey Botkin of Jacksonbelle Embellishments!! And don't panic, you have almost all week to enter!

I have always loved the Color Me Silly line from Basic Grey. I bought a few sheets a couple of years ago, so I'm down to scraps only, and I keep saving even the tiniest pieces! The fun ice cream cone image and sweet sentiment are from My Favorite Things. Coloring is with my Stampin' Up markers.

Have a great weekend!



SFYTT:
Stamps: Asian Flair (Verve)
Paper: Not Quite Navy, Certainly Celery, Whisper White, Soft Sky card stock (SU!); Blue Bayou prints dp (SU!)
Ink: Not Quite Navy, Soft Sky (SU!)
Accessories: white gel pen, paper piercer, dimensionals, Not Quite Navy button, Wild Wasabi double-stitched ribbon (SU!); classic and scalloped square Nestabilities (Spellbinders)

OCC:
Stamps: What's the Scoop (My Favorite Things)
Paper: Ruby Red, Whisper White (SU!); Color Me Silly (Basic Grey)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black
Accessories: Ruby Red, Green Galore, Pumpkin Pie markers, Pumpkin grosgrain, vintage brads, dimensionals, word window punch, paper piercer, Crystal Effects

Asian Flair

The new Asian Flair set from Verve Stamps** is among my favorite Verve sets ever -- I absolutely love it!! The images are so fresh and unique. The set has a wonderful Asian feel, but the images are by no means limited to Asian-theme cards, and the two sentiments are awesome (of course, it's Verve after all!). I cut the curved edge on my card using one of the ovals from the Creative Memories cutting system. After I got all my stamping done and the layout in place, I felt like the River Rock card base was looking a little plain, so I added some scoring (I used my Scor-Pal) to echo the lines in the medallion image. It kicks it up a notch without competing with the rest of the card. Instead of reaching for your paper piercer or Cuttlebug, try adding some creative scoring instead! I love my Scor-Pal!!

** Verve Visual is now Verve Stamps! A short while ago, Julee began clearing out her inventory of paper and embellishments in order to focus exclusively on STAMPS. To go along with the name change to Verve Stamps, both the store and blog have had a little makeover. Check them out and and be sure to tell Julee what you think of the new look! She's got so much good stuff in the works for Verve over the next few weeks and months -- I can't wait!!

Another thing I can't wait for is tomorrow's challenge over at Our Creative Corner. We have some really exciting news to announce along with tomorrow's fun challenge, so be sure to stop by tomorrow morning! There might be something in it for you (hint, hint)!

Have a great day!



Stamps: Asian Flair (Verve Stamps); Linen (SU!)
Paper: River Rock, Basic Black, Kraft, Very Vanilla card stock (SU!)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), River Rock (SU!)
Accessories: oval cutting system (Creative Memories), clear adhesive gems (Hero Arts), black ribbon (Offray), 3/4" 1" and 1 1/4" circle punches (SU!), Scor-Pal

I'm Here If You Need Me

I don't get to participate in the SCS challenges as much as I would like, so when I had some extra time last night, I thought I'd try to combine all four challenges from this week (I got three of them). Today's "Ways to Use It" is birds, Monday's "Technique Lover's Challenge" was watercoloring with reinkers, and Tuesday's Color Challenge was this wacky combo. I couldn't get things to come together for yesterday's sketch challenge, as much as I {heart} the sketch and Jen's original. I'll be trying that one again for sure. I feel like I have to include a disclaimer that I'm not real crazy about this card -- I am definitely in the Not Taken with Teal camp!

Thanks for visiting!

Stamps: Anniversary Birds and Here for You (Verve)
Paper: Taken with Teal, Whisper White, Wild Wasabi, Basic Black (SU!)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko), Taken with Teal reinker (SU!)
Accessories: classic and scalloped square Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Birds & Swirls cuttlebug folder (Provo Craft), black satin ribbon (Offray), black brads, dazzling diamonds glitter, aqua painter, Wild Wasabi double-stitched ribbon, white gel pen, large oval punch (SU!)
Size: 4 1/4" square

Feeling Groovy

Happy Wednesday!! Don't forget - today is release day at Verve! Four new sets are now available, and as usual, Julee has a special discount available when you buy the whole June Collection (37 stamps in all!). Also, be sure to check out the new Plain Janes, a series of single stamps. The first is Psalm 37:4, done in a gorgeous type treatment so typical of Verve!

Today's card uses stamps from Verve's new Feeling Groovy set. When I saw all the super fun sentiments in this set, I almost looked right over the two flower images that are also included. Am I so glad I took a second look, because I love how this card turned out!! I made it exactly a week ago, using both last week's SCS color challenge (Kraft, Soft Sky, Black) and last week's SCS sketch challenge. Even as I was making it, I knew how hard it would be to sit on it for a week. But -- time flies, and here we are today, when I can finally show it!

The flowers are stamped and trimmed, then popped up on dimensionals. I dotted the centers with a white gel pen. It's hard to see in the photo, but I colored in the petals on the flowers with a Stardust glitter pen, which really makes the card sing in real life! The stems are made from a very narrow 1/8" black grosgrain. The sentiment stamp is designed on two lines. I inked each half separately with a marker so I could get it all on one line to fit the word window punch.

Have a great day!



Stamps: Feeling Groovy (Verve); Stitched (SU!)
Paper: Kraft, Whisper White, Basic Black, Soft Sky (SU!)
Ink: Basic Black (SU!)
Accessories: photo corner punch, dimensionals, word window punch, white gel pen (SU); pearlized brads (Creative Impressions); Stardust gel pen (Sakura); polka dot ribbon (Michael's); 1/8" black grosgrain ribbon (Offray); Swiss Dots Cuttlebug embossing folder (Provo Craft); foam tape

Lunch Notes

Yesterday, today, and tomorrow, on the Verve blog, the design team is showing previews of four new sets that Verve will be releasing on Wednesday, June 25! I'm so excited about the sets this month!! As soon as I saw the sentiments in All About You, I kept thinking how perfect they all are for little notes of appreciation you might tuck into a spouse's packed lunch, or slip into the suitcase of a loved one who's traveling, or even leave behind on a pillow if you're the one traveling. I created this mini lunch box tin and card ensemble with my sweet mom in mind, who, if you can believe, has been packing my dad's lunch almost every workday for 45 years now!! (Like mother, NOT like daughter, but I gotta say I admire her for it!)

Here are close-ups of five of the lunch notes:











Of course the inside is decorated to match:



The cards are slightly larger than ATCs (Artist Trading Cards), and, like ATCs, they are card fronts only. That leaves plenty of room in the tin for a half-dozen or so additional "lunch notes." Perfect, since tomorrow the Verve divas will preview a set with loads more fun sentiments that will also work with this theme! Tune in to the Verve blog tomorrow, and you'll see right away why I had to save room!

Now, your reward if you're still with me ... each day on the Verve blog, you'll have a chance to win that day's previewed set or sets. All you have to do is leave a comment answering that day's question. So if you missed yesterday's post, leave a comment there first, then go to today's, and last, tune in again tomorrow. Deadline is 10 pm MT (midnight ET) tomorrow, June 24. Then, on Wednesday, the 25th, we'll announce all the giveaway winners AND reveal all the new sets in full.

Thanks for stopping by today!



Stamps: All About You (releasing June 25), Seeing Stars, Swirly Stars (all Verve Visual)
Paper: Real Red and Chocolate Chip cards tock (SU!); Parakeet and Lagoon card stock (Bazzill); Spring Fling Collection dp (Pink Paislee)
Ink: Real Red, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla
Accessories: large oval punch, 1" punch, ticket corner punch, large and small star punches, corner rounder, sponge daubers, vintage brads, Real Red and Chocolate Chip grosgrain ribbon, River Rock and Wild Wasabi double-stitched ribbon (all SU!); aqua stitched ribbon (source unknown), mini lunch tin (Target $1 spot [comes filled with Sugar Daddy candies])
Card Size: 2 1/2" x 4"

Take a Break

I am so in love with the new Annie LaPoint images from My Favorite Things. Aren't they the cutest?!?! I love the clean, thin lines of the whimsical artwork, and tried to go with a clean and simple card design to match. The layout comes from Jen's "Sketch for You to Try" this week. You all know I love all of Jen's sketches, but this one is especially awesome! Take a look at the sketch, Jen's sample, and guest designer Dawn Easton's sample at i{heart}2stamp. Then be sure to visit Carole, Shannan and Susan this morning to see what they've put together. I hope you'll try the sketch, too! If you do, remember to use keyword SFYTT if you upload to SCS.

Note: I usually only post once a day, but this is my third post today, so don't miss the other two, this weeks' OCC challenge and the winner of my ribbon giveaway!!

Thanks for visiting today, and have a great weekend!



Stamps: Annie LaPoint - Take a Break (My Favorite Things); Stitched (SU!)
Paper: Always Artichoke, So Saffron, Elegant Eggplant (SU!); Papertrey White
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko), Always Artichoke (SU!)
Accessories: Prismacolor pencils, Gamsol, blending stump, scalloped square Nestability, silver cord, silver brads, Stardust gel pen, clear Spica glitter pen, dimensionals
Size: 4 1/4" square

Ribbon Winner!

The winner of my ribbon assortment giveaway is Amy, with this comment:

Amy said...
Wow! What a great deal you found! I love ribbon, and feel that my cards/scrapbook pages are too naked without it. I've really been enjoying using wider widths of ribbon lately, like the 5/8" SU ribbons. I also really like the twill ribbons they had in the recent mini -- it ties so well.

Amy, please email your mailing info to me, and I'll get that ribbon sent out pronto!

It's Bright Alright!

Remember my news last week about the new Our Creative Corner challenge blog? We had our first challenge last week, and oh my gosh, the response was huge!! We are so excited! This week's challenge, brought to us by the June hostess, Cindy Haffner, is to use at least 1 button and 1 brad. Love it!! Head over to the OCC blog for details on how to play along and to see samples from the designers. I hope you can play along!

I started out my project with a package of black and white chipboard buttons, and paired them with some colorful paper flowers and black and white polka dot ribbon (but I covered up most of that, lol!). The sentiment from Verve was too perfect for these wild colors to pass up. Some narrow green rickrack I found in my stash was the perfect finishing touch.

Thanks for stopping by, and I'll be back in a jiffy with my SFYTT sample!



Stamps: Fluttering By (Verve Visual)
Paper: white textured card stock (Bazzill), Basic Black (SU!)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko)
Accessories: large black brads (Close to My Heart); black and white chipboard buttons (Making Memories); polka dot ribbon (Michael's); celery green rickrack (unknown); Cuttlebug Swiss Dots folder (Provo Craft); flowers (Prima); Tempting Turquoise grosgrain and ticket corner punch (SU!)

Praying For You

I've been having more fun with my Sing to the Lord stamp set by Our Daily Bread Designs. What a gorgeous image to color! This time I used Prismacolors and Gamsol. I thought the "We are praying for you" sentiment was the perfect size for a tall card (3 1/4 x 6 1/2). The flowers are popped up for some dimension. Everything is layered onto some yummy Wild Asparagus dp from my stash.

See that yummy taupe satin ribbon? You are NOT going to believe this!! I had heard about an Offray ribbon outlet in nearby Hagerstown, Maryland a while back from the ladies who had the sad job of closing down my local Recollections. After many months, my 4yo dd and I finally made the trek this week (only an hour away). Let me just say that even with gas prices and my gas-guzzling SUV, the trip was SO worth it. Take a look at just some of the many steals and deals we found:



The photos don't do justice to the size of these rolls. Both the taupe and white spools measure 6 inches in diameter. I'm guessing there are at least 40 yards of 1" satin ribbon on them. I paid $5 or less for each of them. The ivory one is smaller and probably has 15 yards. I'm so glad it was marked down to 25 cents, because I never would have paid the full 50 cents! [big WINK, WINK!] They also had bins of cute ribbon-type embellishments and package toppers for 10 cents each! Oh, and the grab bags -- I've gotta show you one of those (35 cents, that's a quart-size Ziplok!! Pinch me, I'm gonna pass out!!):



Here's a thought ... leave me a comment on this post telling me your current favorite ribbon style. On Saturday morning, I'll draw a random name and get a ribbon assortment sent out to the winner! My current favorite, you might have guessed, is satin!!

Have a great day!



Stamps: Sing to the Lord (Our Daily Bread Designs)
Paper: Medium Suede Brown Prismatics (Prism); "Always" Wild Asparagus (My Mind's Eye), Bordering Blue and White Naturals (SU!)
Ink: Adirondack Espresso (Ranger)
Accessories: Prismacolors, Gamsol, blending stump; taupe satin ribbon (Offray); Dew Drops; paper piercer, corner rounder, dimensionals
Size: 3 1/4 x 6 1/2

My Favorite Lavender

Here's a quickie using one of the new Annie LaPointe stamps from My Favorite Things. The base of the card is cut using the largest scalloped square Nestability. The crackled looking background paper came from my stash, and I'm almost positive it's from one of the "Slabs" (Slab III maybe?). How's that for old? Super sweet and simple - love it!



Stamps: Annie LaPoint - Lavender (My Favorite Things)
Paper: Basic Black, Very Vanilla card stock (SU!); dp (Provo Craft?)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko); Barely Banana, So Saffron, Lavender Lace, Always Artichoke markers
Accessories: scalloped square Nestabilities (Spellbinders); 3/4" black grosgrain ribbon (May Arts)
Size: 4" square

Fishers of Men

Fishers of Men is another set that has just been released by Our Daily Bread Designs. Kelley gave her DT a yummy color challenge this month with some blues, browns, and greens from the Prismatics card stock she carries in the ODBD store. LOVE these colors! I stamped this first card in Versafine Onyx Black on watercolor paper and colored with reinkers. This next card I stamped in Adirondack Espresso on Stampin' Up's Confetti Ivory and colored with Prismacolors and Gamsol:



Have a great day!



"Come Follow Me" Card:
Stamps: Fishers of Men (Our Daily Bread Designs)
Paper: Prismatics card stock in various colors (Prism); watercolor paper (Canson)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black and VersaMark (Tsukineko); various dye reinkers (Stampin' Up!)
Accessories: Antique Brass jumbo eyelets, paper piercer, sponge daubers, aqua painter, natural hemp, dimensionals

"Cast Your Cares" Card:
Stamps: Fishers of Men (Our Daily Bread Designs)
Paper: Not Quite Navy, Kraft, Confetti Ivory, Chocolate Chip (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Adirondack Espresso (Ranger); Creamy Caramel and Close to Cocoa (Stampin' Up)
Accessories: Primsacolor pencils, Gamsol, blending stump, sewing machine, thread, mesh-type "ribbon" scraps, classic circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Antique Brass brads (SU!); and Chocolate polytwill ribbon (SU!)

Sing to the Lord

Today, Our Daily Bread Designs releases two fabulous new stamp sets, Sing to the Lord and Fishers of Men. The Design Team has been super busy getting the galleries full of inspiring designs. Check it out the amazing samples here and here!

For this Sing to the Lord card, I used my birdwatching book to get the colors right for an Eastern Bluebird. After coloring the image with an aqua painter and reinkers, I trimmed it out and layered it over a panel of Very Vanilla that I had stamped in So Saffron with a very old, retired Stampin' Up background called Musical Score. I think everything else is pretty straightforward, but if you have any questions, please ask :)

I've been working on some things for Fishers of Men, too, so I'll be back today or tomorrow with a sample or two for that set! (Probably tomorrow, since I want to get in some good "celebrate Dad" time with dh and the kids!)

Before I go, I just want to take a minute to congratulate two blogging/stamping friends, who were both announced as the new Dirty Girls on SCS today -- Carole Burrage of Mother's Little Helper and Denise Marzec of The Paper Landscaper!!!! I am so excited to see them receive this wonderful honor! Way to go, girls! I'm off to visit the DD gallery and see all the yumminess -- are you coming along?? (Gotta be a Fan Club member, though - if you're not, whatcha waitin' for?!)

SFYTT and OCC

Is it just me or do those intials sound more like some kind of international trade treaty and a psychiatric diagnosis than stamping lingo? Rest assured, you're at the right blog, and this fine Saturday, it's all about a pair of sketch challenges.

First up is my weekly sample for Jen's Sketch for You to Try (SFYTT) challenge:



This week's sketch was a bit of a toughie for me, and consequently, I believe I bent the sketch to suit (but just a wee bit). So for sure you'll want to go to i{heart}2stamp to see the sketch and two proper samples from Jen and guest designer Dawn Easton. And you won't want to miss Carole's, Shannan's, and Susan's samples either. If you upload to SCS, remember to use keyword SFYTT. We'd love for you to play along!

I thought the sketch would be perfect for my new Lily - My Little Friend image by Rachelle Anne Miller for Stampavie, which I acquired thanks to some serious enabling by Shannan, Julee, Jessie, and Jen (thanks girls!). Seriously, the Stampavie images are just SO cute!!! All of my coloring is done with an aqua painter and reinkers. I added some sparkle to some areas with a Sakura Stardust pen.

Second, today is the official start of the new Our Creative Corner challenge blog. Yay!!! The amazing Cindy Haffner is hosting this month, and she's kicking things off with a sketch challenge. Be sure to head over there this morning to see the sketch and samples from all the OCC designers. You're gonna LOVE what you see! We all hope you'll play along with us (all the how-to is on the OCC blog)!! This is my take:



For this one, I used Wendy Papillon by Stamping Bella and colored her with a mixture of Copics and reinkers. The sparkly wings are done with Frosted Lace Stickles. For both cards, I used sentiments from Verve's Thoughtful Florals set. When your card is "full" already, these sentiments are the perfect size to tuck behind your image kind of like file folder tabs. I LOVE them!!



Stampavie SFYTT:
Stamps: Lily - My Little Friend (Stampavie); Thoughtful Florals (Verve Visual)
Paper: Whisper White, Tempting Turquoise, Basic Black (SU!); watercolor paper; dp (Pink Paislee); pink textured card stock (source unknown)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko); Close to Cocoa, Pink Passion, Tempting Turquoise, Pumpkin Pie, Barely Banana, Going Gray, Blush Blossom reinkers (SU!)
Accessories: paper flowers (Prima); pink rik-rak (Fancy Pants); Stardust Stickles (Ranger); Stardust glitter pen (Sakura); aqua painter, paper piercer, and Green Galore buttons (SU!); sewing machine


Bella OCC:
Stamps: Wendy Papillon (Stamping Bella); Thoughtful Florals (Verve Visual)
Paper: Real Red (SU!); Stamper's Select White (Papertrey); dp (Bohemia/My Mind's Eye)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko); Soft Sky reinker
Accessories: Copic markers; paper flowers (Prima); Frosted Lace Stickles (Ranger); red brad (Close to My Heart); aqua painter, paper piercer, wide red grosgrain ribbon, corner rounder, key tag punch, dimensionals (SU!)

Verve Project Parade

Remember this gorgeous image I showed you on Wednesday? The Verve Project Parade has been going on all week over on the Verve blog, and today is my day to be the main act. Be sure to stop over there for a fun little question/answer session with yours truly. You'll also find all the details on how you could win $15 in Verve bucks. But while you're still here, I'll show you my project:



Since I really, truly love how this one turned out, I don't mind admitting that I really struggled at first. I was more inspired to crawl into that bed than I was try to create a card from it. But after a few days, inspiration finally came, first from the vertical rectangles of negative space between the bed's iron bars, which I knew I could use as a backdrop for my main image, and second from the subtle play between the white sheets, the white walls, and the grayish shadows. I tried to re-create that by mixing together the bright Whisper White, the gray-tinted Naturals White, and Sahara Sand. Of course I added a big helping of a rich, bold red (I used the retired Cranberry Crisp) and a splash of yellow (my happy color). The stamps all come from Filigree Fantasy and Petals & Stems.

Happy Friday!



Stamps: Filigree Fantasy and Petals & Stems (Verve Visual)
Paper: White Naturals, Whisper White, Basic Black, Cranberry Crisp, Sahara Sand, So Saffron (all SU!)
Ink: Versafine Onyx Black (Tsukineko); Cranberry Crisp (SU!)
Accessories: photo corner punch, large oval punch, corner rounder, 1/4" circle punch, So Saffron brads, Apricot grosgrain (SU!); bigger brad (Close to My Heart)

DreamThyme

Today's card reminds me of something, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Munchkinland? The North Pole? Dunno.

I went to the vault and pulled out an unopened pack of True Thyme for the base of this card (forgot how much I love that brownish green color!), and paired it up with Ruby Red and River Rock. How I wish for a wider range of reds to choose from! What's on your new color wish list?

I am such a bad Stampin' Up girl, too. I finally get around to making what I thought was a Stampin' Up Only (SUO) card and what do I do, I use stuff that's been retired, and I stick dew drops on the flower centers. Sorry! I'm sure you could substitute Artichoke or Olive (think Dashing dp, in fact), and leave off the dew drops to keep it current SU-only.

Happy stamping!



Stamps: Live Your Dream, Polka Dot (SU!)
Paper: True Thyme (retired), Ruby Red, Whisper White, River Rock card stock
Ink: True Thyme, Ruby Red, Mellow Moss
Accessories: True Thyme stitched ribbon, dimensionals, small oval punch, paper piercer, dew drops, photo corner punch, corner rounder

Two Fun Announcements

I have two fun announcements this morning. First, in case you haven't seen the Verve blog yet this week, we've created a fun new challenge. As usual Verve bucks for the winner! This time it's an inspiration challenge based on some Pottery Barn bedding that Amy Westerman found. The Project Parade began on Monday, and continues through Saturday, the 21st. Each day another Verve Diva is the main act on the Verve blog. I'll be showing my project on Friday, but don't wait until then to check out all the inspiration and get busy creating your entry!

Second, just for the pure fun of it, a group of blogging friends and stampers extraordinaire have joined up to create a weekly challenge blog, Our Creative Corner, and they've invited me to contribute! You know I love a good challenge, and wait 'til you see the talent I'll be rubbing shoulders with! I'm so excited!

Cindy Haffner from Cindy Haffner's Corner
Dawn Easton from Treasure Oiler
Designz
Denise Marzec from The Paper Landscaper
Jennifer Meyer from Jennifer's Sweet
Design's
Laurie Schmidlin from Just Give Me Stamps
Lynda Benden from Stamp Act

Every Saturday morning, we'll have a new challenge posted to the Our Creative Corner blog. All are warmly invited to participate, so please stop by over there this Saturday morning, June 14, as Cindy hosts our first challenge! And a super big thank you to Jennifer for organizing everything!!

Of course I have a card to share, too. And no, you haven't been mysteriously redirected to someone else's blog, LOL. This one may be a little different from my usual style, but I love it! Plus I like to throw in some clean and simple stamping whenever I manage to pull it off!

[Edited to Add: This isn't my Verve inspiration project (although I see now that it could be - except I didn't use any Verve stamps!). That's coming on Friday. This one actually began life as a project for this week's SCS color challenge (So Saffron, Real Red, Regal Rose), but I just couldn't get the colors to work together. However, I did like the Saffron and Red - obviously ;) ]

Happy hump day to all!


Stamps: All Holidays
Paper: So Saffron, Basic Black, Whisper White card stock; Cupcake (Basic Grey)
Ink: Basic Black
Accessories: black brads, foam tape, 3/4" black grosgrain

Fruit of the Odorless Mineral Spirits

When Michael's had the 50% coupons last week (the week before?), I was able to get some of the Prismacolor pencils for a bargain (they're usually marked at 25%, so you can't use the big coupon - I got lucky). Anyway, almost immediately, I ordered the Gamsol/odorless mineral spirits and blending stumps online (from Inky Antics), so I could try out the Gamsol Magic technique on this beautiful image from Our Daily Bread Designs. Fun! I also stamped the bunches of grapes two more times, so I could trim out portions and layer them using the Paper Tole technique. The layers looked funny popped up on dimensionals, so I just adhered them flat, then curled up the edges a little to show the dimension. You can see better in this detail shot:



BTW, sorry for the hokey post title - I couldn't resist! Have a happy Monday!



Stamps: Fruit of the Spirit (Our Daily Bread Designs); Sanded (SU!)
Paper: Confetti Ivory, Certainly Celery, Ginger Blossom, So Saffron prints
Ink: Basic Black classic ink
Accessories: Prismacolors, Gamsol/OMS, blending stump, Aged Copper Hodgepodge Hardware, Apricot grosgrain, paper piercer, distressing tool, sanding block, sponges, sponge daubers