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Viva la Mother's Day

Hi there!  It's Thursday already - I can't believe how fast this week is going!  It's almost the weekend!!!  :)  This morning I woke up with some pretty alarming hives (I guess hives are always alarming, but these were large and in charge!), so I figured it was a sign that it's time to SLOOOOOOOW things down with some Benadryl and a sick day.  I hopped over to my studio and  made a quick card before the benadryl kicked in, so here's something new to look at!

The card is for the April Week 4 Viva la Verve challenge.  Tonight (4/29) is your last chance to get your links in for a chance to win an entire Verve release!  So if you're finishing up, way to go!  If you're just starting - well put your mojo in turbo and get inky!  :)

For my inspiration photo, I chose the third option.  I loved the bold colors with all the white space and the blocks of black.  I've been adoring some of the cards I've seen lately with matting white on white, so I decided to give it a go.  The stamps are all from the new One Person set.  I stamped the small tropical flower in Rich Razzleberry twice on my main panel, then once on a scrap of white cardstock.  I also stamped the larger flower on the same scrap, then colored everything with copics and cut and layered the two scrap flowers on dimensionals to pop up in between the flowers on my main panel.  Then it was just a matter of stamping the small leaves in Old Olive to complete my flower spray.  Most of my layers are embossed with the Ornate Flowers & Frame embossing folder and I added a little border with my new Iron Gate border punch by Martha Stewart.

What's In It?
Stamps:  One Person (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Black, White
Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive (SU!), Onyx Black (Versafine)
Accessories:  Iron Gate border punch (Martha Stewart), satin ribbon (May Arts), black pearls (KaiserCraft), homemade Diamond Glaze and glitter mixture, Ornate Flowers & Frame embossing folder (Sizzix)

The Little Things

Happy Tuesday!  I've been itching to create something other than a card for a while now, so I pulled out the large Tapered Box Template by Kelleigh Ratzlaff and printed it with some gorgeous digi papers from the Le Petit Oiseau collection by Sugarplum Paperie.  I love how these papers looked together in the preview, so I made a little strip of 1" squares with the digi papers and printed it in the margins of the template for my main panel accent.

Once I cut and scored my template, I sponged all of the scored areas with some Pumice Stone distress ink.  Next I used my new Journal Plate + Brackets punch from EK Success to punch a little tag from the same paper design as the base of the template.  I embossed the "It's the little things that matter most" sentiment from Relax in black, then added some Pumice Stone sponging and hand cut a thin black mat for it.


I've been seeing these gorgeous handmade flowers all over blogland, but still hadn't given it a shot myself.  I've watched a few different tutorials on these, and probably took a bit from all of them, since I just winged it.  To start I punched 3 flowers from the orange paper in Le Petit Oiseau using the SU! large flower punch.  I freehand cut a couple leaves out of the green paper, then lightly sponged the edges with Crushed Olive distress ink for a little depth.  The flower is crimped and folded and layered until I achieved the look I wanted from each petal, then I stuck a Maya Road black pearl stick pin through the center. I wanted a little more distressing, so I painted the petals with some Rock Candy crackle paint and let it dry.  I also punched two 1/8" circle punches in the top flap of the box and weaved the stick pin through those holes to secure it.  I finished off by punching a small circle in the sentiment tag, then tying it around the flower with some black burlap string.

Okay, that's it for today!  Hope you have a fabulously creative day!

What's In It?
Stamps: Relax (Verve)
Paper: Le Petit Oiseau digital papers (Sugarplum Paperie), Black cardstock
Ink: Black Soot, Crushed Curry, Pumice Stone (Ranger Distress)
Accessories: Tapered box Template (Kelligh Ratzlaff Designs), beaded hat pin (Maya Road), Journal Plate & Brackets label punch (EK Success), burlap string, ribbon, Rock Candy crackle paint (Ranger)

Mojo Circles

Hi there! Did y'all have a good weekend?  Mine was fabulous - a Verve release, a weekend filled with shipping orders, and a whole lot of sunshine streaming through my window!  {Happy sigh!}  Well, it's Monday again (I know, they just keep on coming!), so it's time for another Mojo Monday challenge. For this last week of my sketch vacation, Teresa stepped up to the Mojo sketchboardwith a fun round or square challenge!  Be sure to check out the Mojo Blog for this week's sketch, plus some inspiration from the Mojo team.


My card features the new One Person set that just released from Verve. Most of the pieces and parts are made with scraps that were floating around on my desk after last week's card making spree.  The graph paper is from the new Basics White byBasicGrey.  I stamped the leaves from the set in 2nd generation Melon Mambo, then added a little melon mambo looped edge punch border and some ribbon.  The flowers are colored with Copics, then cut out and popped up on dimensionals.  The base is cut with scallop circle Nestabilities and I finished off with some Raspberry Liquid Pearls.

Thanks for stopping by!  Hope you have a wonderful start to your week!

Vervey Goodness

Happy Saturday!  Last night I had so much fun at the release party!  I actually got enough stuff done ahead of time, that I even got to chat a bit this time!  Hooray!  So, if you haven't heard, all of the new sets are live in the Verve store now, so go take a peek!  Today I'm going to share a few cards I made this week for some challenges that never made it here to the blog.

This one features the Totally Rad and Hibiscus Plain Janes.  Ingredients can be found {here}.

This one features the  Romans 8:18 Plain Jane.  Ingredients can be found {here}.

This one features the Happy Days set.  Ingredients can be found {here}.

And this one features the One Person set.  Ingredients can be found {here}.

Okay, hope you have a fabulous weekend!  Happy Stamping!

In the Spotlight: One Person

Happy Friday everyone! Tonight's the night we've been counting down to.  I hope you'll stop by our Release Party tonight for a little chatting and a whole lot of delicious eye candy from the Divas!  The party gets under way at 9PM Eastern, and I'll be revealing the sets and chatting until 11PM Eastern when the sets will go live in our store!  Yippeee!

But wait, there's one more set in our New Release Spotlight over on the Verve blog! The Divas have some fabulous things to show you with this set.  Plus, don't miss your chance to win one of these awesome new releases just for commenting on our spotlight posts.  The deadline for comments is 6PM Eastern tonight! Here are the links in case you missed one...

Day 1:  Relax
Day 2:  Dude and Happy Days
Day 3: Blessings
Day 4: One Person (today!!!)

Okay, on with my sample card for One Person.  This set has  a few new flowers to play with, along with some meaningful sentiments for the special people in your lives.  For my card, I chose to keep it simple and let the flower and sentiment take center stage.


I started by stamping one of the flowers from the set three times and coloring with Copic Markers, then cutting out and paper toling together.  The I love you today and always sentiment  is stamped in black, and I lightly stamped some of the flourishy leaves from the set around the edges in pink pirouette.  The base pink layer is embossed with the textile embossing folder and I added some black grosgrain and rounded corners to finish things off.  The sketch is the final challenge in our Beach Party Release Week Challenges.  Deadline for your entries is tonight (4/23) at 6PM Eastern, so you've still got a little time to finish!
What's In It?
Stamps: One Person (Verve)
Paper: Pink Pirouette, White, Black
Ink: Onyx Black (Versafine), Pink Pirouette, Copic Markers
Accessories: black grosgrain (SU!), Textile embossing (Cuttlebug), round-it-all, Stickles

In the Spotlight: Blessings

Hey everyone! It's time for another New Release Spotlight over on the Verve blog!  The Divas are peeking a new set called Blessings, and there's a chance to win just for telling us what you think, so be sure to hop on over there when you're done here!
The concept for Blessings originally started out as a St. Patrick's Day set, but circumstances kind of collided earlier this year and I wasn't able to get it prepped in time for a St. Patrick's Day release.  So I tabled the set, thinking I'd just wait until next year to release it.  But the more I thought about it, the more I kept coming back to the set, knowing that I wanted some of these blessings year round.  So I sat back down at the drawing board and re-worked it as an all-occasion set, and Blessings was born!  


For my card today, I chose to use one of the flourishes as my focal point, with a simple thinking of you sentiment.  The set has birthday, sypmathy and wedding sentiments too, as well as a few beloved Irish blessings and proverbs.  The sketch for this card is the fourth challenge in Verve's Beach Party Challenges (VSAPRBP4).

I started by embossing the flourish on an oval die cut in black and Broken China.  On the bottom baja breeze panel, I stamped another flourish tone on tone, and then added a sentiment in black.  The dp is from Making Memories and I added some QuicKutz flourishes to set off the little rose in the corner.  When I brought all my new release cards down to show Mark, this was his favorite.  Funny that the girliest of all the cards this week was his favorite, huh?

This set is really quite elegant, but I'm also excited to show you some really cool ways to mix this set with the other more rugged sets we've been previewing.  Of course, time is running short the closer it gets to release, so I'll have to save that for sometime next week.  :)

What's In It?
Stamps: Blessings (Verve)

Paper: Making Memories DP, Black, White, Baja Breeze
Ink: Baja Breeze, VersaMark, Onyx Black
Accessories: Fountain Fun punch (EK Success), Flourish Dies (QuicKutz), mini rose (prima), wrinkled ribbon (May Arts), Classic Ovals Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Stickles, clear embossing powder

In the Spotlight: Happy Days & Dude

Hey everyone! It's already Wednesday and time for day 2 of our New Release Spotlights on the Verve blog!  Today the Divas are peeking two sets called Happy Days and Dude.  Be sure to hop on over there for a chance to win today's sets!

My card for today uses the partial swirl frame and hibiscus duo stamps from Happy Days and two sentiment stamps from the Dude set.  I wanted to keep my card pretty beachy masculine (if that's a style), so I kept the embellishments to a minimum and let the colors and stamps do the talking!  :)  For inspiration, I started with the sketch from the third challenge inVerve's Beach Party Challenges (VSAPRBP3).



I started by embossing the swirl frame in Tangerine Tango on a white diecut circle.  Next I inked up the Dude set with Tumbled Seaglass on all of it, and Broken China ink on just the bottom for a gradient effect, then stamped over the top of it with Versamark and embossed with clear embossing powder.  The You rock! sentiment is embossed in black, and I matted that on a basic gray circle.

I picked out some paper from the Offshore Collection by KaiserCraft, then stamped a tangerine tango piece with the hibiscus flowers for a little contrast.  To add a little movement and break up all the straight angles, I rounded the bottom corners of the pieces, then adhered to a white base, embossed with the D'Vine Swirls Cuttlebug folder, and then finished off with a wrapping of black burlap string.

Okay, that does it for today's post.  Hope you're all enjoying the sneak peeks and the challenges!

What's In It?
Stamps: Happy Days, Dude (Verve)

Paper: Offshore Collection (Kaiser Craft), Tangerine Tango, Basic Gray (SU!)
Ink: Tangerine Tango (SU!), Black Soot, Broken China, Tumbled Seaglass (Ranger Distress), VersaMark
Accessories: D'Vine Swirls embossing (Cuttlebug), burlap string, clear embossing powder, Classic Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Round-it-all

In the Spotlight: Relax

Hey everyone! Happy Tuesday! Today's the day the New Release Spotlights start over on the Verve blog, and, I must say you're in for a treat!  There's some delectable eye candy from a few of the Divas, plus  a chance to win today's set, so don't forget to hop on over.

Today, we're sneaking a peek at Relax, a 6x8" set of 19 stamps.  A while ago, Jen Tapler emailed me with a concept for a Verve style tropical set to include a couple surfboards and a  few phrases for her little man.  Well, that little inspiration turned into 3 of the sets we're releasing this week, which work well on their own, or coordinate for even more options.

My Relax sample card uses the sketch from the second challenge inVerve's Beach Party Challenges (VSAPRBP2).  This set includes a couple little motifs for background building, and I did some 2nd generation stamping (stamping off once on scratch paper, then a second time on my project without reinking)  in pumice stone ink on the Kraft cardstock for a subtle background.  The RELAX sentiment is embossed on this panel and I wrapped a little twine around it for accent.  The palm tree is one of my favorite images from this release, and the leaves and trunk are separate pieces, so you can build your tree just the way you want it.  The wave is also another stamp in the set and I embossed it and then cut out to layer over a circle cut from 365 Degrees paper by Pink Paislee.  A few rounded corners, some hand sewn cross stitches and some Stickles finished off the card.

What's In It?
Stamps: Relax (Verve)
Paper: 365 Degrees (Pink Paislee), Kraft, Chocolate (SU!)
Ink: Crushed Olive, Pumice Stone, Antique Linen, Vintage Photo, Walnut Stain, Tumbled Seaglass (Ranger Distress)
Accessories: twine, clear embossing powder, round-it-all, paper piercer, Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Stickles

Life is Good

Hey everyone!  It's Monday and in addition to a new Mojo Monday {Mojo135} sketch, it's the beginning of our Beach Party Release Week at Verve!  Hooray!  We're releasing 5 new sets and a few plain janes this Friday night.  {Check out all the party deets here} and we're kicking off the week with 5 new challenges.  {Click here for the master challenge thread.}  Verve Stamps are not required and there's plenty of prizes to win, so come play with us!  :)


My card for today's Mojo Sketch is a sneaky peek at the new Hibiscus Plain Jane and I used a sentiment from the Relax set the Divas will be spotlighting tomorrow on the Verve Blog.  It also uses the color combo for the Beach Party VSAPRBP1 challenge to use aqua, orange and green.  For my stamping I embossed the Life is good sentiment from Relax in Crushed Olive, then stamped the Hibisucus Plain Jane around the edges of the Labels 9 die cut in Spiced Marmalade.  Next I sponged a little crushed olive on the inner portion of the die cut, then colored the flowers with Copic markers.

The vellum strip and the Kiwi Kiss mat are both embossed with the Script Cuttlebug embossing folder.  I added some stitching, distressed edges and a tropical prima flower, finishing off with some twill accents.

Okay, that's all for today.  Hope you have a mojolicious Monday!  :)

Ready, Set, Stamp - Coffee Style

Hey everyone!  How's your week going?  Mine's just speeding right along, as usual.  :)  My project today is for a challenge going on right now in the Verve forum.  It's called Ready, SET, Stamp, and all you have to do is create a new card or project using Verve's Delightful & Delicious set and link it up on --> this thread <-- for a chance to win one of our upcoming new release sets!  The deadline for entries is 6 PM Eastern next Friday night (April 23).

Okay, now that we're through the announcements, let's get on with the stamping!  I'm not sure if I've mentioned my love for my Keurig coffee maker before, but we're a match made in heaven.  I'm the only one in my house who drinks coffee regularly and having a single-serve machine makes it possible for me to have coffee whenever I want and not feel guilty for making a whole pot when all I want is a cup!  I've had my machine for several years now and they've made me a Keurig fan for life.  Shortly after the 1 year mark of owning my original machine, the heat element stopped working.  And even though I never registered and the warranty was expired, the customer service department shipped me a brand new machine free of charge AND extended the warranty on that machine for an additional year!  Talk about service!  Great customer service and the best cup of coffee around!  Well, okay, looks like I didn't get on with the stamping just yet - sorry about that tangent, but I promise I'm moving in that direction!  My project is a basket filled with K-cups for another Keurig lover and a coordinating card, both using the Delightful & Delicious set.


For the basket, I used the digital Easter Basket Template by Kelleigh Ratzlaff.  I knew I wanted a bigger basket than the standard size, so I scaled the template in Photoshop and printed just the outline on a 12 x 12" piece of Baja Breeze Textured Cardstock.  Then it was simply a matter of cutting, scoring and assembling with a bit of vintage lace around the top.  Next I embossed the two coffee cups from Delightful & Delicious, colored them and then layered on a Labels 10 die cut  that I had already threaded with some burlap string in a criss cross formation.  The Thanks a Latte stake is on Classic & Scallop Nestabilities and I adhered it to a lollipop stick and then tied a baja breeze bow around the stick.  Next I just filled with a little tissue paper, crinkled confetti and Donut Shop Coffee K-Cups.

Once that was done, I set it aside and worked on a coordinating card using up scraps from this project.  I hadn't pulled out any of my fleur de lis toys lately, so I embossed the background with the Fleur de Lis folder and added a little punched EK Success Fleur de lis border.  I stamped the little flourish on the coffe mug, colored and cut out, then layered over the sentiment panel with a little lace and a taffeta bow.

Whew!  That was a long post today!  Hope you enjoyed stopping by as much as I enjoyed creating this project.  Have an awesome day!

What's In It?
Stamps:  Delightful & Delicious (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Baja Breeze, Chocolate Chip, Creamy Caramel, Cream
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze (SU!), Antique Linen, Vintage Photo (Ranger Distress)
Accessories:  Easter Basket Template (Kelleigh Ratzlaff Designs), Labels 10 and Classic & Scallop Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Round-it-all, vintage lace, chocolate taffeta, baja breeze grosgrain (SU!), liquid pearls (Ranger), Fleur de lis embossing folder (Cuttlebug), fleur de lis border punch (EK Success), burlap string, lollipop stick (Wilton)

Wildflower Joy

Just popping in to share a card I made a while back and hadn't posted yet. It uses Mercy's Tuesday sketch 66 (so, yeah, that was like 3 weeks ago!)  :) and the Feel the Sun set.

Okay, I'm super short on words today. Be sure to check out the Verve Blog to find out who our newest Guest Divas are!

What's In It?
Stamps: Feel the Sun (Verve)
Paper: Devonshire Collection (Kaisercraft), Cream, Chocolate CS
Ink: Vintage Photo, Antique Linen (Ranger Distress), Copic markers
Accessories:  Flourish dies (QuicKutz), Deckled Rectangles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), paper distresser, dew drops (Robin's Nest), ribbon, Cinnamon Stickles

Vellum Mojo

Hey everyone!  I hope you had a fabulous weekend.  It's Monday again, and that means its time for another Mojo Monday sketch (Mojo134}.  This week's sketch came from Teresa and I went a little shabby chic with it.

I've seen some beautiful cards with vellum flowers lately, so I decided to give it a go.  I embossed the flower from Feel the Sun onto vellum cardstock with metallic detail embossing powder.  Then I used Versamagic chalk inks and rubbed them directly on the back of the vellum to color in the leaves and petals.  I layered them on dimensionals and added a little button to the center.

For my horizontal strips, I used ivory satin ribbon over some vintage lace trim.  The sentiment is also from Feel the Sun and embossed onto a Nestabilities label which I stamped  around the edges with the same flower image, then did a little sponging for a distressed look.  The base of the card is embossed with the Dots embossing folder from QuicKutz, and I finished off with some Moss colored Oregon Rain Drops down the side.

What's In It?
Stamps:  Feel the Sun (Verve)
Paper:  On the Boardwalk (Graphic 45)
Ink: Versamagic Chalk Inks, Ranger Distress Inks
Accessories:  Nestabilities Labels (Spellbinders), ivory satin ribbon, vintage lace trim, Oregon Rain Drops (Pink Hedgehog), Dots embossing folder (QuicKutz), Metallic Detail Embossing Powder (Judikins), button, burlap string.

Quilted Sunshine

Today's Free for All challenge on SCS was to make a quilted card from scraps.  I immediately envisioned a fun little ragdoll quilted look with the fringe in between each piece.  However, my sewing skills aren't anything special, so I sewed my pieces together the wrong way from the get-go and was just too lazy to find new scraps to start over with!  LOL

This is a bit of a different look for me.  I've been finding myself inspired lately by scrappy little cards with lots of elements and not much stamping and wanted to give it a go.  I used a diecut flower I'd made for a card earlier, plus I pulled my ribbons and lace from my ribbon scrap box.  It just feels good to use up those scraps every now and again!  :)  The sentiment is from the Let it Shine set and I finished with a few little pearls to accent the lace trim.

What's In It?
Stamps:  Let it Shine (Verve)
Paper: 365 Degrees (Pink Paislee), Webster's Paper, Chocolate, Cream
Ink: Night of Navy (SU!)
Accessories: Round-it-all (Zutter), ribbon, lace trim, pearls, Nesting Flowers (QuicKutz), Sweet Blossom (Zva Creative), Oval punches (SU!), Sizzix embossing folder

{Somewhat} Simple

Hey y'all!  This morning I woke up with the idea for this card in my head.  Go directly to the studio, do not pass go, do not collect your mug of coffee... just stamp!  LOL  Can you believe I stamped before I was caffeinated?  Most days I can't even tie my shoes before the first cup of coffee!  I must have been energized by all that beautiful sunlight streaming through my window - it feels like life has begun again!  {PLEASE stay for awhile Mr. Sunshine!}  :)

Anyhow, this week's CAS (Clean and Simple) challenge on SCS was to only use a sentiment stamp and I'd been thinking about what to use yesterday off and on, and this morning the lightbulb went off.  I pulled out the title stamp from Love's Flower and my 365 Degrees paper by Pink Paislee and got to work. 

I've never been a clean & simple gal.  My favorite part of cardmaking is the finishing details.  I love deciding on embellishments, adding little doodles, punches, borders and whatnot.  It's my happy place.  So although this really could have been a 5 minutes CAS card, I made it a 15 minute CASS - Clean and {Somewhat} Simple card.  The layout is CAS, but I added a few extra details with my beloved toys that stay truer to my usual style.

The sentiment is embossed in Fired Brick Distress ink and clear embossing powder, then I colored the letters with Copics.  I die cut the label shape with the Tim Holtz Styled Labels die, then quickly hand cut a thin red mat for it.  The flower is built with the QuicKutz Nested Flowers dies, plus a sweet blossom flower in the center, accented with a little Stardust Stickles for sparkle.  The thin strip of 365 Degrees dp is punched with the loop edge punch, then matted with red.  The main layer is embossed with the Moroccan Screen Cuttlebug folder and then popped up on dimensional tape on a cream A2 card base.  The final touch were a handful of orange rhinestones decorating the punched border.

Okay, that's it for the card.  Remember that the Fun with Flowers Project Parade is still going on, and the Divas have been making me drool with all their flowery creations.  There's still a little time left to participate, too, so hop on over to the Verve Blog!

What's In It?
Stamps:  Love's Flower (Verve Stamps)
Paper: 365 Degrees (Pink Paislee), Cream CS

Ink: Fired Brick (Ranger Distress), Copic markers, Real Red marker
Accessories: loop edge punch (SU!), Moroccan Screen (Cuttlebug), Styled Labels (Tim Holtz Alterations), Nested Flowers (QuicKutz), sweet blossom (Zva Creative), rhinestones (Kaisercraft), Clear Detail Embossing Powder (JudiKins), pearlized top coat (Smooch)

Monday Sunshine

Hey Everyone!  I hope you had a fabulous Easter weekend!  It's the first Monday of the month, so it's a contest week over at Mojo Monday.  We have prizes up for grabs, so be sure to head on over to check out this week's sketch!

For my Mojo card this week, I made a last minute decision to flip the sketch to fit my sentiment.  I started with some Quite Contrary My Mind's Eye paper, added some black mats and some sponged edges, then cut and sponged my ovals.  Next I pulled out the Bountiful Backgrounds set and stamped the polka dot background in Crushed Olive Distress ink directly on the twill.  I stamped the sentiment from Let it Shine in black, then finished off with some Sweet Blossoms flowers, pearls and some Stickles and liquid pearl accents.

What's In It?
Stamps:  Bountiful Backgrounds, Let it Shine (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Quite Contrary (My Mind's Eye), Black, Cream
Ink:  Crushed Curry, Black Soot (Ranger Distress)
Accessories:  Classic & Scallop Oval Nestabilities (Spellbinders), liquid pearls, Stardust stickles (Ranger), sweet blossoms (Zva Creative), pearls (Kaiser Craft)

Easter Joy

Hi Everyone!  Happy Easter!  Just thought I'd pop in and share a card with you on this special day.  It features the Easter Joy set and that same Life's Journey paper I used on my last card.



I stamped the eggs and sentiment in Pumice Stone Distress Ink and embossed with clear detail embossing powder before coloring with Copics and then painting with some Smooch Pearlized Topcoat.  I cut the panels with the large scallop oval and circle Nestabilities, then sponged on some Bundled Sage and matted with sage cardstock.  I distressed the edges of the Life's Journey paper, then matted with Chocolate chip and tied some white twill in a knotted bow.  For accent, I added some sweet blossoms (which I added some Frosted Lace Stickles to) and a crystal beaded pin from Maya Road.  I finished off with a few little pearls and then coated the entire card with some Pearl Glimmer Mist.

What's In It?
Stamps:  Easter Joy (Verve)
Paper:  White, Sage, Chocolate (SU!), Life's Journey (K & Company)
Ink: Bundled Sage (Ranger Distress Ink), Copic markers
Accessories:  Large Scallop Ovals, Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Sweet Blossoms (Zva Creative), Crystal pin (Maya Road), Glimmer Mist (Tattered Angels), pearls, Pearlized Top Coat (Smooch), Frosted Lace Stickles (Ranger)

Fabulous Twill

Hey everyone! It's almost the weekend! Hooray!!! I can't believe it's April already - seems like it was just New Year's.  With a new month there's new stuff going on at Verve. Be sure to check out the first challenge in our April Viva la Verve series! We're heading into the living room for inspiration this month and it's looking pretty colorful!  Participate in all the April challenges and you just might win yourself our next full release, which if I do say so myself, is looking totally RAD!  {That's a teeny tiny hint for those of you looking for one!} ;-)   Look for 5 new Verve sets coming your way in just 3 short weeks.


And since we've crossed into a new month, we have a new featured stamp set over at Verve.  This month's set {Bountiful Backgrounds} is one of my absolute favorites and is 40% off during the month of April!  We've also got some other background builders and Eastery sets on sale through April 18, so check out the sale page, if you stop by.  Okay, now that I'm done with the announcements, lets get on with the card.  For my card I chose to work with Bountiful Backgrounds and some beautiful twill that Laurie gave me.

I started by stamping the scroll background on Kraft paper in Bundled Sage Distress ink.  Next I distressed the edges with a paper distresser and did a little hand stitching along the edge with some olive burlap string I just got from Pink Hedgehog.  The designer paper is fromt he Classic K & Company Life's Journey pad and I embossed it with  the Victoria Cuttlebug folder.  I knew I wanted to use the twill, so I punched two slots in either side of the paper, then slid twill through and tied with more burlap string.


Next I pulled out my Styled Labels Tim Holtz die and cut a cream panel, then hand cut an artichoke mat for it.  I embossed the you're so fabulous sentiment from Bountiful Backgrounds in Bundled Sage, then added a few dots with a marker around the curves on the die cut.  To make my flower I used three punched flowers in the dp, kraft and artichoke using the Retro Flower Punch by EK Success.  Then I added a white cameo rose from Prima to the center and highlighted with a little Frosted Lace Stickles.

The finished size of my card is 5.5" square on a cream base.  I finished off with a few gold pearls to highlight the sentiment and curling up some of the edges of my layers for a more distressed look.

Okay that's it for today.  Hope you have a fabulous Easter weekend surrounded by friends and family.