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Silver Sparkle

Hi friends!  Happy Tuesday!  I'm up on the Viva la Verve blog today with this week's sketch recap.


I started my card with the papers I still had on my desk from my Mojo Monday card.  No surprise that I loved the aquas in the paper pack, so went for a subtle card using stitched circle dies.  I decided to do a shaker card with the square in the sketch inside the circle, embossing the sentiment from Sparkly Dreams in silver on vellum, then tucking some Aqua Skies Shaker Mix behind.

The butterfly is stamped in Lost Lagoon, colored with a wink of stella clear pen, cut out with the coordinating Butterfly Dreams Die Set, then given a healthy coat of glossy glaze and glitter.  I added a bit of ribbon across the center for embellishment and I was done.  Super easy, super fun and an itty bitty 4.25" square card.

Sorry there's a bit of glare on my photo.  My photo studio is out in the garage and with temps reaching 108 degrees here, walking into the garage and turning on photo lights is pure misery.  So I did the quickest photo session I think I've ever done! Zip, zap, done! {grin}

Thanks for stopping by today!  I hope you have a fabulous Tuesday!

Enabler's List
Stamps: Sparkly Dreams (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Be Amazing (MME), white
Ink: lost lagaoon (SU!), versamark
Accessories:  Butterfly Dreams Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), stitched circles stax (MFT), square nestabilities (Spellbidners), ribbon, silver embossing powder

Listen to Your Soul

Hi friends!  It's Monday again and time for a brand new Mojo Monday sketch.  This week is tall and skinny, which always makes me giddy with the possibilities of hanging something off the edge of a card and still fitting it in an envelope.  {grin}


As I was flipping through paper pads to find something to work with, I came across this paper that says listen to your soul.  I absolutely felt inspired, as this is something I need to remind myself often. I find myself listening to all the voices running through my head about what other people might think of what I do or say, instead of following that soul fire inside of me that I should know by now will guide me true.  As I was thinking of soul fire, it made me think of that awesome steam Chaitali illustrated for the Coffee set, so in an instant I knew I had to make a coffee card.  {grin}


So I started by cutting that strip of paper for my horizontal strip, then adding some pumpkin pie butterflies from the  Get Together set.  I then stamped the cup from  Get Together on white, paper pieced with some aqua star paper and then stamped the steam from the Coffee set over the top and colored with Copics.  My layers are all sponged with pumice stone, then I matted with smoky slate and added some platinum liquid pearls.  The butterfly is cut with the new Butterfly Dreams Die Set and I added a few aqua rhinestones for the body.  My finished card size is 3.5" x 5.5" (plus a touch of an overhanging butterfly).

Thanks so much for stopping by today.  I hope you have a chance to listen to your soul and enjoy this coming week.

Mojo Monday 404 Sketch
Enabler's List
Stamps: Get Together, Coffee (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Be Amazing (MME), smoky slate (SU!), white (neenah)
Ink: pumpkin pie (SU!), pumice stone distress, black archival (Ranger), Copic markers
Accessories:  Butterfly Dreams Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), classic circles nestabilities (Spellbinders), platinum liquid pearls (Ranger), rhinestones, bracket border punch (Fiskars)

Gracious Words

Hi friends!  It's finally Friday and time for the final June Viva la Verve sketch.  Be sure to link up your cards before Thursday, July 2 to be entered in our $100 Verve voucher prize drawing!  This week's hostess is the lovely Amber Hight with a fun layered sketch.


I hadn't had a chance to use the Proverbs 16:24 plain jane, so I decided it would be fun to use the honeycomb stamp from The Buzz as my four circles.  I stamped them in hello honey ink and then cut with the coordinating The Buzz Die Set.  (Sorry, the dies sold out quickly, but there are more on the way in a few weeks.)  I love this verse because it is so true.  I can't even count the number of times kind, gracious words have changed my day and lifted my spirits.  I'm the kind of person that still rehashes conversations from when I was 12 in my head, so I know firsthand how powerful the spoken word can be.  I try my best to think before I speak and endeavor to make my words full of grace and kindness.  This stamp is a great reminder of that.

To play on the word theme, I decided to use some dsp from the First Edition pack, lightly scraping it with gesso, then sponging scattered straw and fossilized amber distress inks over a hexagon stencil to do the background.  I did the same technique on another square and stamped the Proverbs 16:24 verse in Archival Black ink.  I cut a black frame using two pinking circles dies for the underlying circle, then added several small bee stamps from The Buzz to both the background and the sentiment panel and colored with a marker and a white gel pen.

I wanted that busy feeling of buzzing around the beehive, so I added some enamel dots here and there, then finished off with the big bee from The Buzz stamped onto the dbook paper, then cut with the coordinating die.  Lots of distressed edges lend a shabby feel and the finished card size is 5.5" square.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you have a wonderful start to the weekend.  It's supposed to be the start of a heat wave around here with temperatures in the 108-109 range this weekend.  I'm thinking we'll be spending some time in our subdivision pool with the boys!  {grin}

Proverbs 16:24 Plain JaneThe Buzz Die Set


Viva la Verve June Week 4 Sketch
Enabler's List
Stamps: The Buzz, Proverbs 16:24 (Verve Stamps)
Paper: First Edition DSP, hello honey, basic black (SU!), cream (Neenah)
Ink: hello honey (SU!), black archival, fossilized amber, vintage photo, gathered twigs distress (Ranger), white gel pen
Accessories: The Buzz Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), enamel dots, pinking circles nestabilities (Spellbinders), honeycomb stencil (Tim Holtz), gesso

Release Week Recap

Hi friends!  Julee popping in for a little new release recap.  I had so much fun hopping with you all last week.  It's been a while since we had a release, and I found myself a bit out of practice. {grin} But it was a lot of  fun jumping back in and completing 2 projects each day for the hops.  I've been busy the last few days but am hoping to find a little time to stamp later today.  In the mean time I thought I'd share a recap of the projects I shared on the Verve Blog last week.

Stamps: Get Together (Verve Stamps)
Paper: lost lagoon, smoky slate (SU!), white (Neenah)
Ink: lost lagoon, smoky slate (SU!)
Accessories: Cupcake Frame Die SetCuppa Tea Die SetFlourished Trim Die (A Cut Above by VERVE), polka dot embossing folder (Cuttlebug), liquid pearls (Ranger), sewing machine, Harney & Sons tea bags

Stamps: Deco Borders, Strong Anchor (Verve Stamps)
Paper: white
Ink: marina mist, pacific point, night of navy inks and pastels (SU!)
Accessories: Classic circles nestabilities (Spellbinders), rope trim (SU!), shabby white embossing enamel (Stampendous), paper distresser


Stamps: Floral Notes (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Lost & Found (MME), Bundle of Joy (Echo Park), crumb cake, soft sky, basic black (SU!), distress watercolor paper (Tim Holtz)
Ink: worn lipstick, spun sugar, festive berries, forest moss, peeled paint distress inks, black archival ink, white gel pen (Signo Uniball)
Accessories: Floral Notes Die Set, Flourished Tag Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), Polka Dot Basics Ribbon Collection (Verve), ribbon and scalloped circle punch (SU!), envelope punch board (WRMK)


Stamps: The Buzz (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Crumb cake, basic black, dp scraps
Ink: Archival black (Ranger), SU! markers, white gel pen
Accessories: The Buzz Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), envelope punch board (WRMK), circle punches (EK Success), embossing folder (Darice), ribbon (SU!), glossy glaze, glitter


Stamps: Sparkly Dreams (Verve Stamps)
Paper: white, basic gray
Ink: smoky slate (SU!), black archival, mowed lawn, scattered straw, peacock feathers distress (Ranger)
Accessories: Butterfly Dreams Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), Classic & pinking circles nestabilities (Spellbinders), clear embossing powder (Judikins), embossing folder (Darice)

Stamps: Deco Borders, The Buzz (Verve Stamps)
Paper: lost lagoon, old olive, crumb cake (SU!)
Ink: old olive, mossy meadow, lost lagoon, crumb cake (SU!), vintage photo distress, black archival (Ranger)
Accessories: Flourished Tag Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), embossing folder (QuicKutz)

Future Dreams

Hi friends!  It's Monday morning and time for a brand new Mojo Monday sketch.  I had a lot of fun with this one, playing with some of the fabulous new Verve sets  just released this weekend!


When I sat down to stamp yesterday my only plan was that I wanted to use this Eleanor Roosevelt quote from the Sparkly Dreams set, so that's where I started.  I had also envisioned popping up some of the poppies in the Floral Notes set and rounding the edges to give them some more dimension, so decided to try that out, too.

So I stamped the large poppy image twice in archival black ink, then watercolored with distress inks and a waterbrush.  I cut one image out with the coordinating die from the Floral Notes Die Set, then fussy cut four of the blooms from the other stamped image, curled the edges with my fingers and glued over the top of my die cut image.  I added some glossy glaze and a pinch of glitter to each flower center for a little zing.  The sentiment from Sparkly Dreams is stamped onto a circle die cut and I embellished with some orange rhinestones.

The long thin pennant is stamped in pumpkin pie with the double wheat image from Sparkly Dreams, then I layered some fun patterned papers, sponging each layer with some distress ink for a little bit of depth and finished with a white card base.  Super easy and a whole lot of fun!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  If you haven't checked out the Verve release, head on over.... all of our stamps & dies, including the new releases are 10% off right now! And of course, I'd love to see what you do with the mojo sketch, so be sure to link up if you play along!  :)

Sparkly DreamsFloral Notes Stamp SetFloral Notes Die Set

Enabler's List

Mojo Monday 403 sketch
Stamps: Sparkly Dreams, Floral Notes (Verve Stamps)
Paper: On the Bright Side (MME), pumpkin pie (SU!), watercolor distress paper (Tim Holtz)
Ink: tumbled glass, peacock feathers, mowed lawn distress, dried marigold, pumice stone, black archival (Ranger), pumpkin pie (SU!)
Accessories:  Floral Notes Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), classic circles nestabilities (Spellbinders), glossy glaze, glitter, rhinestones


A Good One Day 6 Post Release Hop

Hi friends!  Welcome to Day 6 of our June New Release Spotlight Hops!

This release week has been so much fun, thanks for hopping along with us!  Today is the final day of our spotlight hops and today's theme is Diva's Choice.  Always a favorite, this is the day we all get to choose which set or sets to use and have some fun.  So grab a cup of your favorite beverage and settle in for one more fabulous first look at our newly released stamps & dies.  I'm the first stop along today's hop and today's prize is a doozy... the ENTIRE release!!!  So be sure to leave a little shout out as you hop about to be entered in our prize drawing!


One of my favorite stamps in the whole release is the honeycomb in The Buzz.  I really wanted to go for a realistic honeycomb look, so got out a few mixed-media supplies and just played.



For the background, I started by stamping the honeycomb pattern all over the crumb cake panel, connecting the pieces in parts and leaving a few openings here and there.  Next I cut a honeycomb die cut using The Buzz Die Set and used this as a stencil to add some modeling paste to the centers of the honeycombs randomly across the panel.  While the modeling paste was drying, I pulled out some book paper and created a little scroll by rolling each end down and gluing, leaving enough room to stamp the sentiment I wanted to use from Sparkly Dreams.  I spread on a bit of gesso over the book paper and once it dried I stamped the Lincoln quote in archival black.

Next I stamped the large bee and two small bees on cream cardstock. The large bee is cut with the coordinating die from The Buzz Die Set and I fussy cut the two smaller bees.  I colored them, then added a bit of glossy glaze to the large bee and set aside to dry.  Then I moved back to my honeycomb panel, where the modeling paste was mostly dry (I'm so impatient).  I sponged on fossilized amber and then sponged vintage photo and gather twigs ink randomly all over the panel, distressing the edges.

I then glued the scroll down to the honeycomb panel and used some Stamper's Big Brush pens to add shading and dimension to the scroll.  I stamped a honeycomb with fossilized amber on cream, then sponged all around with fossilized amber and cut with the coordinating die.  I layered this under my big glossy bee, then added the two little bees and finished off by distressing the crumb cake card base.

That's a wrap for me!  Thanks so much for taking the time to hop along with me this week.  I've thoroughly enjoyed every comment and am so grateful for the opportunity to share my stamps and my cards with you.  If you're interested, I have a simple masculine just-in-time for Father's Day card on the Verve Blog today, too.  Have a fantastic weekend!

Next up on the hop is the fabulous Stacey!
Day 6 Hop List
1. Julee7. Charmaine
2. Stacey8. Christyne
3. Teresa9. Maureen
4. Amber10. Amy
5. Laurie11. Janelle
6. Marisa




Want to win some shiny new Verve? We'll be picking a random commenter on one of the hop spots below to win our ENTIRE June 2015 Release! So be sure to leave a little comment on all the blogs below to increase your chances! Check out the Verve Blog today for all the shopping and prize info and deadlines!
Deco BordersFloral Notes Stamp SetFloral Notes Die Set
Get TogetherThe Buzz Die Set
Sparkly DreamsButterfly Dreams Die SetFlourished Tag Die Set
Psalm 19:14 Plain JaneProverbs 16:24 Plain Jane



Enabler's List
Stamps: The BuzzSparkly Dreams (Verve Stamps)
Paper: crumb cake, cream, book paper
Ink: fossilized amber, vintage photo, gathered twigs distress, black archival (Ranger), stampers big brush pens (Faber-Castell)
Accessories: The Buzz Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE),paper distresser, glossy glaze, gesso, modeling paste, glitter

Sparkly Dreams Day 5 Spotlight and Release Day

Hi friends!  We're back at it with Day 5 of Verve's June New Release Blog Hops.Today is release day and that means all the goodies we've been previewing this week are loaded up in the Verve store and ready for purchase! And to celebrate our big release, all stamps & dies, INCLUDING new releases are 10% off!




Hooray!  We're still hopping today and tomorrow, with prizes to be won!  I'm the first stop along today's hop, so settle in for some fun as we shine our sneaky spotlights on the new Sparkly Dreams set and coordinating Butterfly Dreams Die Set and Flourished Tag Die Set. We're giving today's featured products away to a random commenter along today's hop, so be sure to leave a little shout out as you hop about!  :)





I woke up yesterday extremely sick and spent most of the day just trying to keep a sip of water down. I somehow managed to finish loading the new products to the website and make a couple cards for the hops, but they're not the ones I had been planning on making. Guess that means I'll have to find a little time for those cards next week.  :)

Anyhow, as I'm typing this I have a severe migraine, so I'm going to keep this short and sweet.  I made a little shaker using the new Flourished Tag Die Set, stamping the butterfly in Calypso Coral and then cutting with the Butterfly Dreams die.  I stamped the sentiment from Sparkly Dreams directly onto the card base and finished with a strip of designer paper and some sparkles.  I've got another card featuring this set over on the Verve Blog today, too.

Next up on the hop is the fabulous Stacey!




Want to win some shiny new Verve? We'll be picking a random commenter on one of the hop spots below to win today's featured products! So be sure to leave a little comment on all the blogs below to increase your chances! Check out the Verve Blog today for a little more about our new products, an introduction of our fabulous special guests, and all the prize info and deadlines!
Sparkly DreamsButterfly Dreams Die Set
Flourished Tag Die Set

Day 4 Hop List
1. Julee 6. Marisa
2. Stacey 7. Charmaine
3. Teresa 8. Maureen
4. Amber 9. Janelle
5. Laurie 10. Shantaie

Enabler's List
Stamps: Sparkly Dreams (Verve Stamps)
Paper: dp (MME), acetate, basic black, white
Ink: calypso coral (SU!)
Accessories: Butterfly Dreams Die Set and Flourished Tag Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), Golden Glam Shaker Mix (Verve), rhinestone flourish, scalloped circle punch (SU!)