Love Always

Hi friends!  Happy Tuesday!  I can't believe it's already the final day of January.  I've been intending to play along with Jen's SFYTT challenge all month, and now I'm just barely squeaking it in with a little TCP goodness, making it a two-fer as I participate in the TCP Valentine Blog Hop.

I got this fun little Idols stamp set before the move and am just now getting a chance to ink it up.  I thought it would be perfect for Mark's valentine card this year.  I added three little hearts from the Ewe Complete Me set to the front of the drum.

Next up I pulled out the Love Letters set and its coordinating Stamps Trio CutUps to make the vertical panel.  The Icing CutUps matched the sweet Be Loved paper I had selected, and I finished off with part of the Heart Trio CutUps and accented with some hand drawn dots.


Enabler's List:
Stamps:  Idols,  Ewe Complete Me, Love Letters (The Cat's Pajamas)
Paper:  Be Loved (My Mind's Eye), Black, Cherry Cobbler, Pool Party (SU!)
Ink: Black, Cherry Cobbler, Pool Party (SU!), Antique Linen (Ranger), Copic markers
Accessories: Stamp Trio, Hearts Trio and Icing CutUps (TCP). Dotted Wave Border Punch (EK Success), stardust glitter pen, black marker, Classic and Pinking Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Stardust Stickles (Ranger)

Lucky YOU & a WINNER

Hi friends!  Welcome to another week... and that means it's time for another Mojo Monday sketch.  This week is a round or square sketch option, and I hope you'll play along.

When I made this card I was thinking about Moe, who was born on St Patty's Day and is just a wee bit CRAZY for shamrocks!  I stamped the shamrock background in Garden Green, using three sizes of the shamrocks from Lucky You, then colored with Pear Pizazz markers.  The largest shamrock is cut with the Shamrock Die Set, then I hand cut a black border for it to make it pop.  Each scallop on the large scallop card base is accented with a green frosted pearl from Pizzazz Aplenty.  A little gingham ribbon and some hand drawn dotted borders finish things off.

Okay, there's something else lucky about this post... it's time for the winner's announcement from the Purge Hop!!!  The lucky commenter and recipient of my box of loot is....

{Chrissie}

 

who said...  Amazing card. You always inspire me!

Baby registry is overwhelming, I know. If you plan to nurse, make sure to register for a good pump - that is something that is generally overlooked! I used one by the First Years and it worked out really well. Also, people tend to buy whatever clothes they wan and ignore the registry, so don't even bother with clothes!!! But do put a high chair, stroller, car seat/carrier and diaper bag on there. Good luck!!!

Congrats Chrissie!  I'll be emailing you to get your shipping address.  And thanks everyone for the fabulous advice about what to register for.  Armed with your great suggestions, I survived registering at Babies R Us, Target and Amazon, but I must say the amount of stuff that babies need is just crazy!

Okay, that's all from me today.  Be sure to check out the Mojo Monday Blog to see the design team's  fabulous inspirations using this week's sketch!  Have a groovy start to your week!

Enabler's List:
Stamps: Lucky You (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Enchanted Collection (BoBunny), Black, White
Ink: Black, Garden Green, Pear Pizazz (SU!)
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), Grand Big Scallop Circles, Grand Circles, Classic Circles (Nestabilities by Spellbinder), Frosted pearls and 2mm flatback rhinestones (Pizzazz Aplenty), gingham ribbon (May Arts)

Be Mine

Hi friends!  Happy Friday!  It's time for another Viva la Verve sketch, and this week Shannan's bringing a clean & simple sketch your way!  Play along with all 4 of the January sketches for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate to Verve.  But hurry, the deadline is Thursday, February 2.  Check out the Viva la Verve! forum for all the details.

For my card, I pulled out the Enchanted Collection papers by Bo Bunny.  It's a beautiful pad of black and white papers, which I then proceeded to ink up and color with a variety of Distress Stains for an artsy kind of look.  Next I embossed the Valentine Be Mine sentiment from Heart's Desire in early espresso on a strip of vellum, which I cut with the Big Scallop Cutups from TCP.  I stitched this panel onto my paper, layering a piece of lace trim which I dyed with distress stains below it.

Next up, I pulled out my Wavy Hearts die and cut one out in Blushing Bride, then stamped one of the heart clusters from Heart's Desire all over it in Tattered Rose, distressed and added a twine bow and a mini clothespin.  I finished off with some pink pearls from Pizzazz Aplenty.

That's all from me today.  I hope you have a fabulous weekend, and if you find a little time to create, be sure to play along with Viva la Verve!

Enabler's List:

Stamps:  Heart's Desire (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Enchanted Collection (Bo Bunny), vellum, Blushing Bride (SU!), brown paper bag (Paper Accents)
Ink: Early Espresso (SU!), Tattered rose, antique linen, victorian velvet, shabby shutters, vintage photo, old paper distress inks and stains (Ranger)
Accessories:  Wavy Hearts Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), Big Scallop CutUps (TCP), lace trim, linen thread, clothespin (SU!), flatback pearls (Pizzazz Aplenty), sewing machine

Be Mine Sampler

Hi friends!  It's time for another Mojo Monday sketch, and this week we're getting a little blocky.  Every once in a while I find it fun and a good creative challenge to work with several smaller spaces on one card, like a sampler.  So that's what this week's Mojo 225 sketch is all about.

For my sample card, I started with the Love Me papers by My Mind's Eye and pulled out the new Twitterpated set from Verve.  I wanted a shabby feel, so I distressed my layers and added some hand drawn framing and doodling in at the end with a basic gray marker.  The sentiments and trio of hearts are from the Twitterpated set, and I added some layered From the Heart die cuts in the top corner.  A metal heart and a valentine ticket from my stash, finished off the other corners and I was ready to add a little ribbon and and embossed base to finish things off.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you have a fabulous start to your week.  If you've got a little time, be sure to head on over to the Mojo Monday blog to check out what the rest of the design team did with the sketch, then play along for a little creative fun!

Enabler's List:

Stamps: Twitterpated (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Love Me (My Mind's Eye), Basic Gray, Blushing Bride (SU!)
Ink: Basic Gray, Blushing Bride (SU!), Pumice Stone (Ranger Distress)
Accessories:  From the Heart Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), metal heart and valentine tag (Je t'adore line by Making Memories), wrinkled ribbon, silver cording (Pizzazz Aplenty), tiny attacher, paper distresser (Tim Holtz), sewing machine, embossing folder (Sizzix)

Blog Candy Blog Hop

Happy Saturday friends!  A few of my crafty peeps were chatting about all the excess stuff we have in our studios so we decided to have a little blog hop and give away some of our treasures to new homes.  Here's the scoop...

Hop around to the blogs below and if the loot makes your eyes all shiny with possibilities, leave a little comment on that post for a chance to win what you spy!  The hop will stay open until January 28th, 5PM ET and each of us will post the winner of our individual blog candies on Monday, January 30th!

Tosh

Andrea

Maureen

Sony

Laurie

Julee  {you're HERE!}

Janelle

Betty

Jen

Teresa

 For my loot pile, I just started stuffing things into a Flat Rate Priority Box until it was full, so it's kind of random. {grin}  Most everything is new or only used once. 

Please note:  Due to the weight of this package and cost of international shipping, my blog candy is only open to those who have a US shipping address.  Apologies to all my international friends!

Here's a partial list of what's included:

• 9 - assorted 6x6 paper pads from Lily Bee Design, KaiserCraft and Stampin' Up!
• 6 Hero Hues Chalk ink pads (most are still in the shrink wrap)
• 11 VersaMagic chalk ink pads (used once, if at all)
• Several darling unmounted rubber images from Kraftin' Kimmie Stamps
• Some random clear stamp sets from Gelatins, Flourishes and Inkadinkado
• Several new packages of primas and paper flowers
• Cuttlebug Fleur de Lis embossing folder (new)
• Spellbinders Fleur de lis accents (new)
• various bling, pearls, decorative brads and divine twine samples

And just so there's a little something stampy to share with you, here's a re-run of a card I made last year with my own copy of the Fleur de Lis Accents Spellbinders and the Fleur de Lis Cuttlebug folder (which are both part of the blog candy loot pile)!

Enabler's List:
Stamps: Kindred Spirits (Verve)
Paper: Cream, Black
Ink: Onyx Black (Versafine)
Accessories: 3D Flowers Die (Sizzix), Fleur De Lis Accents, Fleur De Lis Squares (Spellbinders), Platinum Liquid Pearls (Ranger), Fleur de Lis embossing folder (Cuttlebug), felt (TCP, silver skeleton leaves (Pizzazz Aplenty)

So, I'm sure you know the drill... leave a comment for a chance to win.  If you want something to chat about, I could use a little advice.  We need to register soon for our baby shower and I'm feeling a little bit overwhelmed at the thought of it, since neither of us have ever been around babies much.  Just wondering for those of you with more experience than us in the baby department, what things are must haves?

Shabby Love

Hi friends!  Happy Friday!  Today I'm here with a little sample card for this week's Viva la Verve! sketch.  The challenges are underway again, and we're now in week 3 of January.  Play along with all 4 of the January sketches for your chance to win a $100 gift certificate to Verve!  Woohoo!

I love Teresa's sketch this week, but as per usual I ended up moving things around a bit.  I was totally in a skewed panel mode and after I made my little paper scroll piece I realized I stamped it the wrong direction, so I had to flip the panels to the other side from the sketch.  But, everything turned out okay in the end. {grin}

The papers are from the Farmhouse line by October Afternoon and I've matted them on Sahara Sand with a bit of Pumice Stone distress ink to try to match the soft grey color in the papers.  The heart is cut with the Wavy Hearts die and is designer paper layered over chipboard to make it thicker.  I added a little sponging, stitching and doodling to give it some character and sprinkled a bit of silver glass glitter in the corners of everything to add a little sparkle.

The paper scroll is made from the margin of a dictionary page and I stamped the love. sentiment and heart duo from Wings of Love on it, then rolled up one side and clipped tails on the other side.  That sweet little metal heart charm is from Pizzazz Aplenty, tied on with a little divine twine and I finished with a bit of lace trim stapled to the card.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you have a totally awesome weekend!

Enabler's List:
Stamps: Wings of Love (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Farmhouse (October Afternoon), Sahara Sand (SU!), cream, dictionary paper
Ink: Pumice Stone, Tattered Rose (Ranger Distress), Basic Gray (SU!)
Accessories: Wavy Hearts Die Set  (A Cut Above by VERVE),  metal heart charm (Pizzazz Aplenty), silver glass glitter (SU!), lace trim, divine twine

Simple Love

Hi friends!  Happy Thursday!  Yesterday we had our first real snow of the year and it's now a wintery wonderland around here.  I spent a little time in the studio enjoying the snowy view, staring out the window and stamping.  This clean & simple little card is what came out of that session.

I used two of the new sets for this card... the hearts & swirls frame from Twitterpated is stamped directly onto the kraft layer in Real Red, then I added the love sentiment from Wings of Love in black below it.  Next I stamped the wavy heart from Wings of Love in Real Red, cut out and matted on a  Wavy Hearts die cut, popping up over the frame with dimensionals.  Then it was just a matter of a few scored lines, a little distressing and a pretty taffeta bow to finish off this 4.25" square card.

Thanks so much for stopping by today!  I hope you have a fabulous day!

Enabler's List:
Stamps: Wings of Love, Twitterpated (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Kraft, Cream, Real Red
Ink: Real Red, Basic Black (SU!), Vintage Photo (Ranger Distress)
Accessories:  Wavy Hearts Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), taffeta ribbon (SU!), Scor-pal

Cherish

Hi friends!  The weekend flew by and it's Monday again already.  I hope you had a fantastic weekend.  I enjoyed a little bit of downtime and am looking forward to relaxing my schedule a bit in the coming weeks as all work and no play has made Julee a very dull (and exhausted) girl.  LOL

Since it's Monday, that means there's a new Mojo Monday sketch over on the Mojo blog.  Be sure to check out what the rest of the team has created as inspiration with the sketch, then give it a go yourself to start your week off with a little creativity!

For my card I used the newly released Wings of Love set and the gorgeous Devotion papers from Creative Imaginations.  The winged heart is stamped onto a Nestabilities Circle, then I paper pieced the heart and stamped a little cherish banner across it, before adding diamond stickles to the wings to make them sparkle.  I used a little flourish die to mimic a little arrow, then finished off with an embossing folder on the bottom layer, a border punch and two types of ribbon.  Pretty simple, but classy.

That's all from me today.  Have a fantastic start to your week!  Thanks so much for stopping by!

Enabler's List:
Stamps:  Wings of Love (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Devoted (Creative Imaginations), Black, Cream
Ink: Black, Antique Linen, Vintage Photo (Ranger Distress)
Accessories:  Classic & Scallop Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Vintage Flourish Die-namics (MFT), striped ribbon (SU!), wrinkled ribbon (May Arts), dotted wave border punch (EK Success), embossing folder (Sizzix), Diamond Stickles (Ranger)

After Party Blog Hop - CAS love

Hi friends! Happy Saturday! New Verve is here and today the Divas are celebrating with an After Party Blog Hop featuring the new sets and dies that released last night!  All of the new stamps and dies are available in the Verve store today.  Hooray!!!  One lucky commenter on today's hop will win our entire new release!  Check out the Verve Blog for all the prize details, deadlines and shopping links.

This week has been so crazy for me.  After the move of Verve last weekend and year-end inventory, I was barely able to pull off all I needed to do to get the website ready for release.  Needless to say there hasn't been much stamping time around here with the new sets (or any sets for that matter!).  So I knew it was time for my CAS alter-egoto come out to play and make a sweet and simple card.  This little card uses the new Wings of Love set and the Wavy Hearts Die Set.  A border punch and swirly bling finish it off.

I hope you have a fabulous time hopping today!  Here's today's hop list...

January 14, 2012 1. Amy 8. Tosha 2. Maureen 9. Laurie 3. Sankari 10. Julee 4. Andrea 11. Janelle 5. Teresa 12. Betty 6. Amber 13. Shannan 7. Charmaine 14. Jackie

Enabler's List:
Stamps: Wings of Love (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Cream, Black
Ink: Rose Red (SU!), Black, Copic markers
Accessories: Wavy Hearts Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), rhinestone bling, Doily Lace Punch (Martha Stewart)

Spotlighting Twitterpated

Hi friends!  It's the third day of our January New Release Spotlight Hops, and today the Divas are shining their sneaky little spotlights on some fun new love-themed products.  Hop along and leave some comments for the Divas, and you just might be a random winner of the stamps & dies we're previewing today... Twitterpated, the coordinating All Aflutter Die Set and Hearts & Swirls Frame Die and the All Aflutter plain jane!  Check out the Verve blog for all the prize details and deadlines.

When I first found out I was pregnant I was hoping for girls and drew the little girl in this set.  Then once we found out they were boys, I had to make a little boy, too, and Twitterpated was born.  They kind of remind me of the old Weebles I used to love to play with as a kid.  This set also includes a fun little frame, which coordinates with the new Hearts & Swirls Frame Die.  Also making a reappearance is a modified version of the small butterfly from Blue Skies, without the antennae.  The All Aflutter Plain Jane is the larger butterfly without antennae and both coordinate with the new All Aflutter Die Set.

Here on my card, I stamped the little guy from Twitterpated, then colored with Copic markers, popping up his little bow tie.  The frame is cut with the Hearts & Swirls Frame Die and then stamped in Riding Hood Red, adding one of my favorite new sentiments to the center.  Next I cut out the All Aflutter Die and stamped the small butterfly, coloring with Copics and highlighting with some Stardust Stickles.  The final touch was stamping the valentine sentiment on twill and I borrowed the pair of little hearts from the Wings of Love set to balance out the other side.

Okay, that's all from me today.  The release party is tonight from 9-11pm Eastern in our forum.  Hope to see you there!

Here's today's hop list...

January 13, 2012 1. Amber 7. Amy 2. Teresa 8. Laurie 3. Charmaine 9. Maureen 4. Andrea 10. Julee 5. Tosha 11. Sankari 6. Janelle

Enabler's List
Stamps: Twitterpated, Wings of Love (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Love Birds (Fancy Pants), Black Cream
Ink: Riding Hood Red (SU!), Jet Black Archival, Antique Linen Distress (Ranger), Copic markers
Accessories: Hearts & Swirls Frame Die, All Aflutter Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), hearts embossing folder (Sizzix), Stardust Stickles (Ranger), twill tape

Spotlighting Wings of Love

Hi friends!  It's the second day of our January New Release Spotlight Hops, and today the Divas are shining their sneaky little spotlights on some fun new love-themed products.  Hop along and leave some comments for the Divas, and you just might be a random winner of the stamps & dies we're previewing today... Wings of Love, the coordinating Wavy Hearts Die Set, and the Valentine's Day plain jane!  Check out the Verve blog for all the prize details and deadlines.

Wings of Love is another set influenced by my recent love affair with mixed media and art journaling.  As I was creating a canvas a while back, I was wishing for some wings and sentiments related to flying, but didn't really have anything in my stamping arsenal.  So that was the start of Wings of Love, a set that's close to my heart... filled with trendy hearts, wings, a few big sentiments and several individual words that are perfect for cutting out and adding to your cards, projects or journaling.

Most of my art journaling supplies are still packed away, so I was fairly limited in supplies when I started in on this project.  Instead of the art journal page I've been envisioning since I designed this set, I decided to alter the cover of a little notepad.  I've been blessed with a great memory for most of my life and have rarely needed to write anything down to remember it.  However, since I've been pregnant my brain is on hiatus and I'm constantly needing to jot down ideas and to dos just to make it through my day!  So this little project was made just for me!

I started with some cream cardstock, using Tattered Rose and Picket Fence distress inks to give it a little background, then added the sentiment from Wings of Love and stamped the wings separately, cut out and popped up on either side.  The to fly sentiment is stamped separately, cut out and I sketched a little frame for it and clipped on with a mini library clip.  Up top I added one of the wavy hearts from the set, colored with Copics, cut out and then matted using the coordinating Wavy Hearts Die.  The background is a scrap of dictionary paper glued to a piece of kraft cardstock and distressed with stains, then run through the paper corrugator for that fun crimped look.  Some frosted lace stickles highlights the wings and heart for extra sparkle and I finished off with some chunky glitter and some twine, before gluing to my notebook.

Okay, that's all from me today.  Here's today's hop list...

January 12, 2012 1. Janelle 7. Teresa 2. Julee 8. Andrea 3. Laurie 9. Sankari 4. Tosha 10. Maureen 5. Charmaine 11. Amy 6. Amber

Enabler's List
Stamps: Wings of Love (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Kraft, Cream, dictionary paper
Ink: Tattered Rose, Picket Fence Distress Stains, Antique Linen, Vintage Photo Distress Inks, Archival Black (Ranger), Copics
Accessories: Wavy Hearts Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), mini library clip, glass glitter, linen thread (SU!), paper corrugator (Fiskars), notebook ($1 spot at Michael's), flatback pearl (Pizzazz Aplenty), Frosted Lace Stickles (Ranger)

Spotlighting Lucky You

Hi friends!  It's the first day of our January New Release Spotlight Hops, and today the Divas are shining their sneaky little spotlights on a few new products.  Hop along and leave some comments for the Divas, and you just might be a random winner of the stamps & dies we're previewing today... Lucky You, the coordinating Shamrock Die Set, and the Psalm 63:3-4 and Zephaniah 3:17 plain janes!  Check out the Verve blog for all the prize details and deadlines.

I've been wanting to design a St. Patrick's Day set since Verve first opened, but every year it sneaks up on me.  So 2012 is the year!  Here on my card I used the Lucky You set and cut out the shamrock with the Shamrock Die Set.  To get the black mat, I simply traced around the die with pencil and hand cut.  A smaller shamrock stamp is stamped around the circle for a fun little background and I finished with the Happy St. Patrick's Day sentiment, some bling from Pizzazz Aplenty and a big black bow.

That's it from me.  I'm keeping it short and sweet so you can get on with the hopping!  Here's today's hop list...

January 11, 2012 1. Amy 7. Charmaine 2. Maureen 8. Tosha 3. Sankari 9. Laurie 4. Andrea 10. Julee 5. Teresa 11. Janelle 6. Amber

Enabler's List
Stamps: Lucky You (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Lucky Me (Little Yellow Bicycle), Black, White
Ink: Lucky Limeade (SU!), Black
Accessories: Shamrock Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), Scallop Border punch (SU!), wrinkled ribbon (May Arts), Classic & Scallop Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), peridot flatback rhinestones (Pizzazz Aplenty), Stardust Stickles (Ranger)

Mojo Monday on Tuesday and a WINNER!

Hi friends!  Happy Tuesday!  Oh my word, I've been busy!  I spent the ENTIRE weekend finishing year-end inventory, packing up Verve, moving Verve and then unpacking Verve. I thought we'd never finish - it's CRAZY how much space this little side business I started in my office closet takes up now.  But everything is all lined up in its pretty aqua packaging and I'm now moving on to the next crisis... finishing up some tax reports that are due and then on to everything behind the scenes and on the web for our release this Friday! 

So all that work means I didn't have a Mojo Monday sample ready yesterday.  This morning I decided to remedy that first thing, and here's the sunny little card I came up with using the new to me Sidewalks paper from October Afternoon and Enjoy, one of my favorite little sets from Verve.

Okay, it's time to announce the winner of my blog candy.  Thanks to everyone who left a comment - I so enjoyed reading what y'all are thankful for!  Here's my answer to the question...

Going into 2012 I am so amazingly thankful for my husband, Mark.  He has been a rock for me these past 14 years, but especially these past 6 months as I have emotionally disintegrated on a daily, sometimes hourly basis.  He just patiently listens and waits for my tears to subside and tells me I'm loved.  He's picked up the broken pieces of my heart time and time again, and taken on all sorts of extra duties around the house and at Verve that I normally do, but just can't accomplish right now.  All while holding down a full-time job.  He's amazing and he makes me believe that somehow everything is going to be okay.

And the winner of the blog candy is.... 

Cheryl  who said...

What a great card! Wow, there are so many things I'm thankful for in the new year. #1 on the list has to be God. Just last night I was telling my husband that I don't know how we could make it without our faith and God to depend on, during good times and bad.

Cheryl

January 4, 2012 9:31 AM

Congrats, Cheryl!  I'll be in touch with you to find out where to ship your goodies!  Thanks again to all of you for reading my ramblings each day.  It's always a blessing to read your comments.  Have an awesome 2012!

Enabler's List:
Stamps:  Enjoy (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Sidewalks (October Afternoon), Island Indigo (SU!), cream
Ink: Island Indigo (SU!), Antique Linen (Ranger Distress)
Accessories:  Classic and Scallop Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Mini Tabs Quarter Die-namics (MFT), Bisque Liquid Pearls (Ranger), taffeta ribbon (SU!)

January Diva Inspirations Hop

Hi friends!  Today I'm hopping along with the Diva Inspirations team showing off some fresh ideas with some of our previously released sets.  Hop along with us for a little inspiration and leave a little comment love as you hop about for a chance to win a $30 gift certificate from Verve. 

So, if you've already been hopping along, you've arrived here from Jen Tapler's blog.  If not, you can view the full hop list and start from the beginning over on the Verve Stamps blog.  For my card, I took a little break from making thank you cards to test out some of the new My Mind's Eye Love Me papers.  I just love this plaid design.

I started by stamping the chick and basket from Chicks Rule, then paper piecing the ribbon and bow on the basket and coloring with a mixture of stampin' pastels and prismacolor pencils.  The heart balloon is made from layering three From the Heart die cuts on dimensionals and I hand drew the balloon string.  The valentine's day sentiment is from Heart's Desire and I embellished with some more of the die cut hearts and a bow adhered with a hot glue gun.  A scallop border, some Stardust Stickles, liquid pearls and a little bling finish this tall & skinny card off in style.  Finished card dimensions are 3.25" x 5.75" to fit in a normal letter-size envelope.

Okay, that's all from me today.  If you're looking for my blog candy post, click here.

Now it's time to hop on over to Lynda's blog to see what bit of Verve inspiration she has in store for you.  Happy hopping!

Enabler's List:

Stamps:  Chicks Rule, Heart's Desire (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Love Me (My Mind's Eye), Early Espresso (SU!), cream
Ink: Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy (Ranger Distress), Stampin' Pastels (SU!), Prismacolor pencils
Accessories: From the Heart Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), Mix & Match Banner Die-namics (MFT), Stardust Stickles, liquid pearls (Ranger), ribbon, scallop border punch (SU!), bling (Pizzazz Aplenty)

Simple Thanks and Blog Candy!

Hi friends!  As I was unpacking a few more boxes last night I came across a shoe box that had a bunch of items that were intended for blog candy many moons ago, but never got posted because of some family matters that came up and took over life as we knew it.  Anyhow, the lost has been found and it's time for a little blog candy from a few of my favorite companies.

But before I get to it, I've got a very simple card to share with you.  So simple!  It uses the Mariposa stack from DCWV, a scrap of La Creme paper, a sentiment stamp from Celebration of Thanks, a circle punch and a border punch.  That's it!  Really simple, but I just loved these papers and wanted them to take center stage!

Okay, on with the blog candy.   Just leave a comment here on this post telling me one thing you're thankful for as this new year begins.  The comment deadline to be eligible for the random drawing is Monday, January 9 at 8pm Mountain.  The winner will receive everything listed below (a $140+ value), all brand new and just waiting to be played with!

First up, a few fabulous CutUps dies from The Cat's Pajamas.

• Heart Trio
• Apron Strings
• Cloud Border

And a couple of my favorite stamp sets from Waltzingmouse Stamps

• Very Vintage Labels  No. 10
• Holiday Labels No. 14

A host of goodies from Pizzazz Aplenty

• Organza Jeweled Butterflies in white, pink & red
• Flatback Pearls in Ivory, Cranberry and Dark Chocolate (2-3 sizes of each color)
• Frosted Pearls in green, pink, red and turquoise
• Glitter Rhinestones
• Clear Teardrop Rhinestones
• Acrylic Sunbursts
• Iridescent Leaves
• Gel picker - one of the best things EVER for picking up and placing pearls & rhinestones

And two Spellbinders dies that have been hanging around since I ended up with duplicates

• Fleur de Lis Accents
• Fancy Tags Two

Thank U

Hi friends!  Mark's long holiday vacation is officially over and so that means it's back to work for me, too.  And oh boy, is it a busy week.  We're still finishing up shipping orders from our end of year sale, then we need to pack everything in preparation for this weekend's move of Verve to its new space in our new house. And then it's a fast paced sprint to finish everything behind the scenes for next week's release!

Needless to say, I was a bit overwhelmed this morning when I sat down to see how much has piled up in my inbox and to do list over the past few weeks.  I quickly decided that nothing on the list was going to get done until I had a little creative time.  So I moved to the other side of my desk (my office and studio are now one and the same) to make a quick little card to refresh my soul before I dove into the business of being back from vacation.  Definitely a good idea, and I feel so much more prepared to start tackling that to do list now.  {grin}

I've got quite a few special little thank you notes I want to send to peeps who gave me some fabulously thoughtful Christmas gifts, so I'm sure you'll be seeing thank you cards here on the blog for a while.  Well, at least until next week's Verve Spotlight Hops start!  :)  For this card, I wanted a shabby feel, so I pulled out some 7 Gypsies Victoria papers, a scrap of burlap and some fun coordinating trims and got to work.

The tag is cut with the Tagged Rectangle Die and I stamped the thank and the U from the You and I set on the tag, then added some crinkled ribbon and a little pom pom trim.  I finished off with a paper flower that I glitzed up with some Champagne glass glitter, then added a little to the edge of my card as well.

I'm sure I've prolonged working on that to do list long enough, so I better get back to it.  Thanks so much for stopping by - have a fabulous day!

Enabler's List:
Stamps:  You and I (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Victoria (7 Gypsies), Early Espresso (SU!), cream
Ink: Island Indigo (SU!), Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy (Ranger Distress)
Accessories:  Tagged Rectangle Die, burlap, paper flower, shabby wrinkled ribbon, pom pom trim, circle punch, Champagne Glass Glitter (SU!), hot glue gun, Quickie Glue Pen

Make the World Special

Hi friends!  Thanks to everyone who wrote such sweet comments on yesterday's post.  You moved me to tears - thanks so much for taking the time to read my words - it means so much to me.

Well, it's Monday and that means we're kicking 2012 off with a new Mojo Monday sketch.  And since it's the first Monday of the month, there are Verve prizes up for grabs.  The more entries we get, the more prizes we give away, so I hope you can find a little time to play along this week!

This is the first card I've made in my new studio.  Not everything is unpacked, but I found enough goodies to make this simple card using the Feel the Sun set.  For Christmas, Mark got me the complete set of 150 prismacolor pencils and I couldn't wait to test them out!  So fun to have all the colors at my fingertips!  The papers are from the Baby Steps pad by Simple Stories and I added some rhinestone and ribbon embellishments to finish things off.

Be sure to check out the Mojo Monday blog to see what the design team came up with for this week's sketch.  Then play along for a chance to win a Verve set of your choice!


Enabler's List:
Stamps: Feel the Sun (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Baby Steps (Simple Stories), Early Espresso (SU!), White
Ink: Coffee Archival Ink, Antique Linen Distress Ink (Ranger), Prismacolor colored pencils & Gamsol
Accessories: Classic Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), striped ribbon (SU!), rhinestones (KaiserCraft), Rock Candy Stickles (Ranger), paper distresser, blending stump

Linger

Hi friends!  Happy New Year! Nothing too crafty to show you today, just sharing a little bit of what's on my heart as we begin this new year and a few photos I took on our trip to the Oregon coast this fall.  Some of you are familiar with Ali Edwards' One Little Word.  Last year, the word I chose was passion.  I wanted to renew a passion for art and for life itself.  Perhaps I took the word a little too much to heart, since we've now got twins on the way!  {LOL}

Anyhow, this year as I pondered over what word I should choose, the word linger just kept popping into my head.  I let it rustle around in there for a few days, thinking about how much I'd like to just slow everything down and cherish the little moments in life.  To enjoy breathing in and breathing out, to savor the aroma of fresh coffee in the morning, to take time each day to bask in the sun and take in our beautiful new view of the Boise foothills.  To just drench my soul in the small but meaningful things in life.  And I thought the word was {good}.

Then, I decided to go online and check out the definition of linger, to see how it really fit.  The first and third definitions were pretty much what I was expecting... 

"to remain or stay on in a place longer than is usual or expected, as if from reluctance to leave" and "to dwell in contemplation, thought or enjoyment".

And then I saw the second definition, and I knew the word was {perfect}.  It was exactly what my heart has been feeling as I've tried to prepare myself for this next step in our lives. 

"to remain alive; continue or persist, although gradually dying, ceasing or disappearing"

As I spent the holidays surrounded by people, feeling increasingly alone as they only seemed interested in talking about the babies and the pregnancy, I just wanted to shout that I'm still a person.  I felt myself disappearing, fading into nothingness, feeling an increasing desperation that in just a few short months my life will change forever.  So to me, this word, linger, gives me hope that I can stay alive and soldier on despite these feelings.  That I can take the time to savor our last moments as a twosome and then make the transition to enjoy what being a foursome has in store for us.  To run the race that is set before us and to appreciate the smallest moments of each day that in themselves are what makes this grand life meaningful.

So with that said, I hope that you find a little time to linger this year. Dwell in enjoyment... bask in the little things... take your time when the world tells you you must rush about...  linger.
 
"Our memories of the ocean will linger on, long after our footprints in the sand are gone." - Anonymous