Better than Mom

Hi everyone- wow, I have not posted in a while! Between being AWAY on vacation for the kids' spring break and fighting allergies since we returned, I have been pretty beat. I hope you all are heathly and feeling great!  It's with a heavy heart that I write this post.  My dear friend, Patti, is closing her store, Paper Maniac. It has been a great pleasure to have the opportunity to design for her over the years.  

She is offering 30% off all merchandise, use the discount code GOODBYE at checkout. 

So, please visit www.papermaniac.com today!!

Hope you have a great day! Thanks for visiting.

Supplies:
Stamps: PTI: Chevron Stripes.  Verve: Love Deepens.
Paper: White CS
Ink: Memento: Angel Pink, London Fog and Plum.
Accessories: Websters Pages Stick Pin, Plum ribbon, Spellbinders Label 18 die.

You Make Me Smile

Here's another card using an awesome Verve stamp set called Blue Skies.  This stamp set ROCKS, let me tell ya!! It is full of awesome quotes and sentiments, which leaves you with TONS of possibilities for all-occasion cards.  I used a simple Kraft base and layered some cute music notes pattern paper from Echo Park on top.  I stamped the sentiments on square die cuts. I used wider aqua ribbon to tie the big bow on the front, then I passed a jeweled stick pin throgh it. 

Thanks so much for stopping by.  

Courage....

Here's another card using some awesome Verve stamps.  I really like this courage quote, and would agree wholeheartedly that sometimes courage is the quiet voice saying "let's try again tomorrow."

I decided to design both the outside and inside of this card.  The texture on the cardfront is made using the diamonds impression plate from PTI.  The color scheme is Orange Zest and Pure Poppy, also from PTI.  The large flower is from Prima. The stamped images are all from the Verve stamp set called, Blue Skies.

here is a picture of the inside of the card:

as you can see, I had to add some sparkle to the butterfly.  :-)

Thanks so much for stopping by, hope you have a great day!!

Kind Words

I just love that Verve put this beautiful quote by Mother Teresa into a stamp! Its such a true statement- "Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless." The stamp comes from the Kind Words stamp set, and the awesome flowers come from the Great Friend stamp set. I stamped the quote right onto the kraft cardstock, the flowers were colored using prisma pencils and gamsol to blend the colors. I placed a yellow candy dot in the center of each flower and tied aqua bakers twine across the top of the card.

Thanks for stopping by, have a great day!  

Refuge and Strength

I just adore the newest VERVE releases!! Have you seen them yet? The stamp used here is a new Plain Jane stamp called: Psalm 46:1.  I LOVE this Psalm, there is nothing more true! I made this card with a few friends on my mind, who are going through some tough issues. I pray that they always know the truth found in this Psalm.

Ok, so what did I use to make this card??

Stamps: Verve: small flower (included as a thank you), Psalm 46:1, and Kind Words.

Papers: PTI Vintage Cream and Berry Sorbet, Core'dinations Cosmo Cricket basics (green), and Basic Grey Lemonade pattern paper.

Ink: Memento

Accessories: PTI bittons and bakers twine, Spellbinders- Labels 15.

Thanks so much for stopping by, have a FABULOUS day!!

Leave No Words Unspoken

 

Hello friends!! Here is a fun CAS card I made using Verve's new release called, Dream Big.  I love the HUGE flowers in this set and the awesome sentiments included as well.  This sentiment is quite important to me: "Leave No Words Unspoken."  

That is how I try to live my life, leaving no words unspoken.  My family and friends KNOW how much I love, enjoy and adore them, and how thankful I am, that they are a part of my life.  It also works the other way- if I'm uncomfortable or disagree with something, I leave no words unspoken.  Otherwise.....thats what we call BAGGAGE, and with two kids to carry, now, I don't have room for any extra bags.  :-) 

So, very easy today, I stamped the flower stems in Memento Cottage Ivy ink, right onto the white cardstock.  Then, I inked the flowers with memento dandelion ink, and rolled the edges in a darker ink, tangelo (orange), used here.  I then placed some PTI buttons as flower centers, tied with bakers twine. The orange border is cut from the eyelet border die from PTI and the sentiment is stamped onto a Spellbinders Labels 14 die and sponged with dandelion ink. 

Thanks for stoppping by, have a wonderful day!!

Anni-VERVE-sary Blog Hopperoooski

Welcome to the Anni-VERVE-sary Blog Hop! Verve turns three today and we’re celebrating with a hop, hop, hop!

If you've already been hopping along, you arrived here from Jen's awesome blog. If not, head on over to Julee's Blog (owner of Verve), for all the info on how to win prizes (after all, what's a party without presents?), and to start hopping from the beginning.

If there's a hiccup along the hop, you can always head to the Master Hop List to get the full list of links.

To celebrate, I made this special frame using Verve stamps! I used two of my favorite sets: Feel the Sun and Because of You. The frame is just a basic frame you can get from your local Walmart or Target store.

Here are the supplies I used to make this frame for my mother:

Cardstock: Papertrey Ink- Kraft, Orange Zest and White.
Pattern Paper: Echo Park- Life is Good collection.
Stamps: Verve- Feel the Sun, Because of You.
Ink: Memento.
Accessories: Papertrey Ink- Vintage Cream stitched ribbon, new leaf bakers twine and XL Ricrack border die. Spellbinders- Big Scalloped Ovals LG die, Classic Circles LG die. Copics- Y35, 38, YG67. Glitter glue.

Thanks for hopping by! Now it's time to hop on over to Banu’s beautiful blog, for a little more Verve-y goodness.

Paper Maniac Inspiration- Mother's Day

Hello, I hope you have been following the Paper Maniac blog this week, as we have been showcasing tons of inspiring Mother's Day projects for you to try! I had fun making this card, because I decorated the inside of it too. I just had to, with the new Basic Grey papers, Green at Heart- they are sooooo yummy and purply! :-)

The sketch is from Jen DelMuro's SFYTT.

Here is a close-up of the quote on the front panel:

The stamps are from Verve (Feel the Sun and One Person). I colored the flower images with Copic Markers: V04, 06, 09, YG03, 06 and R11, 21. The center of the flower has some glitter glue, and topped with a purple pearl.

And, here is the inside of the card:

I used Basic Grey Green at Heart pattern paper for the base layer. The die cut is Spellbinders Labels 9, which I sponged with Memento Grape Jelly ink. And, I stamped the same flower from the front of the card and colored it with Copic markers.

Stop by the Paper Maniac Store and check out all the goodies on CLEARANCE- gotta make room for the exciting new products arriving daily!!

Thanks for stopping by, I wish you all a fabulous, fun-filled Mother's Day weekend!!

One Person...

OK, as soon as I saw the new Verve Stamp set, called "One Person," I knew it was a must have!! This quote is one of my all-time favorites, not to mention all the sweet sentiments and beautiful florals that are included with this set.

I had fun creating this card- I used alot of distressing techniques, and I even made my own background pattern paper. :-) I started off by scatter-stamping the small flower stamp from this stamp set. I then colored the florals with Copic markers. Next, I crumpled, and recrumpled the paper, then smoothed it out flat. Then I wiped Tea Dye distress ink over the paper, and then Peeled Paint Distress ink. I finished off by misting the paper with water, and let it dry. Once dry, I went around the edges with a distressing tool.

Here is a close up of the details:

Doesn't that twine look so yummy?? I love it!! Its from Jillibean Soup, and it's available in the Paper Maniac store (several colors are available). The quote is stamped on a Spellbinders Label 9 die cut. I sponged around the edges with Pear Tart ink from Memento. The flower is coloerd with Copic Markers: YG03, YG06, Y32 and Y38. I put a small dot of glitter glue in the center of the flower to add some sparkle.

Thanks so much for stopping by!!

Lavender Birthday Wishes

Purple is my favorite color (next to teal), so I just had to make a card using some of my yummy new purple papers from Prism (majestic purples) and Kaiserkraft (Lilac Avenue). I have tons of birthdays coming up in the next month, and I never have any birthday cards ready to go. So, any chance I get, I have been making birthday cards, with my daughter.

This card uses the Verve Spring Fling Sketch Challenge as the layout.

Here is a close up of the details of the card.

I used the Verve Stamp sets: Circular Sayings and Everlasting Life. The image and sentiment are stamped on white cardstock and then cut and embossed with the Spellbinders circle dies, then sponged around the edges with Memento Dandelion ink. The flower image is colored iwth Copic markers and then accented with clear glitter glue. The satin ribbon is from Papertreyink.

Thank You

I absolutely LOVE the layout on Clean and Simple Stamping this week (FTL81). I paired it with the Verve Spring Fling Challenge #1, which was to make a Clean and Simple card, using flowers. This is what I came up with. Soooooo easy!! And, I never have enough thank you cards on hand, so this layout was perfect to throw some together in a jiffy!

Here is a close-up of the detailed area of the card. I colored the flowers in with Copic markers, and then placed a small silver pearl inside the center of each flower. I used the Verve stamp sets: Grateful Elegance and Abundant Blessings.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a wonderful Saturday!!

Birthday Wishes

I made this card to play along with some of the awesome Verve challenges taking place today, as part of their new stamp release. I havent been able to play along in the release challenges in soooo long, so this has been great fun for me!! This challenge was a color challenge, and we were tasked to use the colors: Yellow, Chocolate and Green. Check out the challenges if you have time, prizes are awarded, and you have until Monday to upload your cards to the Verve blog!!

I also used Clean & Simple Stamping FTL #80 for my card layout.

Here is a close-up of the details of the card. The butterfly is colored with Copic markers and popped up on dimensionals. It's body is lined with silver pearls. I used the MS Loops punch down the side of the designer paper, which is Kaiserkraft- Lilac Avenue. The butterfly is from the Verve stamp set called: Beautiful Kindness, and the sentiment, also from Verve, comes from the Circular Sayings stamp set.

Thanks for stopping by, wishing you a fabulous weekend!!

The Difference

I just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this new stamp set from VERVE, called Because of You. It is such a versatile set and can be used for many different cards for Mom's, Friends, sisters, etc. This time around, I decided to make a friendship card.

Above, is a picture of the inside of the card. I am sooo into decorating the insides of my cards lately, its so much FUN!!

Card recipe: Stamps: Verve- Because of You. Papers: PTI- White, SU- Basic Grey, DCWV- Garden Party glittered DSP. Ink: Memento- Bamboo Leaves, Bahama Blue and Desert Sand (sponging). Accessories: SU Stitched Ribbon Wasabi, Hero Arts silver pearls, dimensionals, and Nesties Labels 2.

Thanks for stopping by, have a FABULOUS day!!

***HAPPY BIRTHDAY SO SKETCHY*** Up Up and Away...

Today is SO SKETCHY's 1st Birthday!!! Wow, that just flew by so fast. Congratulations Ally on your wonderful blog and awesome sketches. This card was made following the sketch found here.

Just for being here as a part of the So Sketchy Birthday Bash,

you can WIN some fabulous prizes! YUP!

All you have to do to win is

leave a comment on EACH of the participating So Sketchy Sista's blogs and then return to the So Sketchy blog birthday bash post and leave a comment with:
your first name & last initial,
your location (state/province & country) *open world wide* and
some means of getting a hold of you (ie: email or blog link).

So make sure you have commented on all the Sista's blogs to be eligible to win. The prize draw will take place on Thursday June 4 after 10pm MST so you have until then to complete the round of So Sketchy! Sista blogs celebrating our 1st birthday. The winner will be posted on the So Sketchy! blog sometime after the 5th of June. Good luck!

Now Please HOP to ***ABBIE'S*** fabulous blog.

Card Recipe: Stamps: Verve- Up, Up and Away, Whimsy Tree. Paper: PTI White. Ink: Memento- Black, Cocoa, Summer Sky, Bamboo Leaves and Potter's Clay. Accessories: Fun Flock White, Yellow Shimmerz, Dimensionals, Nestie Labels 2. This is a no-layer card.

Creatively Yours Sketch 16

Here is the card I desinged for Creatively Yours, for sketch 16. Noella keeps giving out awesome sketches each week! If your looking for a new twist on things, check out her fun site! I just loved this sketch and all the circles and elements it combined, and for the fact that is was a tall card! My card is 3.5" X 7" Supplies: Paper: American Crafts Black, PTI White, Lemon Tart, American Crafts DSP, and SU Old Olive. Ink: Black Versafine, and Copics for coloring. Stamps: Verve: Abundant Blessings, and Beautiful You. Accessories: PTI Swiss Dots Ribbon Lemon Tart, Rhinestones, and Sponging. The quote on this card is one of my favorites, it reads: "If you live to be 100, I hope I live to be 100 minus one day so I NEVER have to live without you." Thanks for stopping by, be sure to check out Creatively Yours for some awesome sketches! HAPPY STAMPING!!

Verve OSW Challenge!!

Verve Visual is having a new release party tonight (starting at 9pm Central time) in the Verve forum on SCS. Julee Tillman, of Verve, has given out another spectacular and FUN challenge for this release party. The challenge is to create a set of four cards using one sheet of double-sided 6X6 designer paper. (Of course you would use coordinating colors for layers and such.) Sounds fun right? It was nice and easy too, and I have to say, this is probably the first time I was ever able to whip out four cards in one night! Whooo-hooo! I'm psyched. SO, to get started, you can find the sketches and cutting template here. There is a PDF you can print, that has all the sketches and the template on one page! Come on and join the fun!

My cards use the following products:

Paper: PTI White, SU Artichoke, Celery, Pumpkin Pie, River Rocks, Bliss Blue and Basic Grey Archaic DSP. Ink: SU Artichoke, Pumpkin Pie, and Bliss Blue. Stamps on all cards are Verve Visual. Accessories: Cuttlebug Embossing folders (for texture), Dew Drops, Rhinestones, Sponging.

Thanks so much for stopping by and HAPPY STAMPING!!

SO Sketchy....

Alright peeps, here is another project I designed for So Sketchy. Check out the site to see the awesome sketch that Ally sent my way!! Another super fun sketch to work with, thanks girl!! Card Recipe: Paper: SU Cool Caribbean, Lovely Lilac, Certainly Celery, and Basic Hrey Euphoria DSP. Stamps: Verve: Artful Elegance. Ink: SU Lovely Lilac. Accessories: Dew Drops, Photo Corners punch, circle punch, flower punch, silver gel pen, sponging. Thanks for stopping by, Happy Stamping everyone!!

A SuperSTAR??

Ally did it again and threw me a real challenge for a sketch this week. Check out So Sketchy for the Star card sketch. At first glance, I thought, now how am I going to make a Star card? How? First I had to find a template or something, because, my freehand, well, its not that great. I would never be able to draw a star on my own. LOL. So this is a 4 1/2" Star cut from a traced star. The star is tempting turquoise paper, the smaller circles are Martha Stewart DSP and cut with the SU 1 3/8" circle punch, the larger circle is whisper white cardstock sponged with turquoise ink around the edges and cut with the Marvy mega circle punch. I outlined the circles with a white Martha Stewart opaque pen. The points of the star are dotted with sky blue pearls. I used Verve stamps: Starlight Starbright for the sentiment. The sentiment reads "Reaching for the Stars, We find our greatest self." This is one of my favorite all-time quotes. It reminds me to always strive to do my best, reach for the stars, and in that, we truly find ourselves. In the end, I really enjoyed making this card and I thank Ally for the challenge. Hop on over to So Sketchy and join in the fun. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY STAMPING!

The last of Anni-VERVE-sary sketches LATE

Well, its been a hectic few days, and I just realized that I totally forgot to post the last of my Anni-VERVE-sary cards from the Verve celebration this week. Thier new release party was August 12th...if you havent checked VERVE out yet, please do so. The new stamp sets are awesome!!! These cards are created from Sketches 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12. If you want to link up to the Sketch master list, available on PDF, click here.

Sketch #8: "Two hearts, One Lifetime"

Paper: Close to Cocoa, My Minds Eye Wild Asparagus Collection, Whisper White

Stamps: Verve: Fluttering By, Anniversary Birds

Ink: Tempting Turquiose

Accessories: Scallop Oval Punches, White souffle pen, Rhinestones, Pearl Dew Drops, Sheer Chocolate Ribbon,

Sketch #9: "Romantic"

Paper: SU Old Olive, Bashful Blue, Close to Cocoa, MME Wild Asparagus Collection DSP

Stamps: Unity: Growing in Unity

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Accessories: Dew Drops, Scallop Corner Punch

Sketch #10: "You're Amazing"

Paper: Cool Caribbean, Navy, Gable Green, MME Wild Asparagus Collection DSP, Whisper White

Stamps: Verve: Thankful Blossoms

Ink: Night of Navy

Accessories: Turquoise paper flowers (Walmart), dew drops, white souflle pen

Sketch #11: "Smile"

Paper: Cool Caribbean, Basic Grey Euphoria DSP, Gable green

Stamps: Verve: Thankful Blossoms, All about You

Ink: Pure Pomegranate

Accessories: Pomegranate Ribbon, Circle punch, dew drops, white souffle pen, Martha Stewart glitter markers

Sketch #12: "Simply the Best"

Paper: Pixie Pink, Cool Caribbean, Basic Grey Euphoria DSP,

Stamps: StampingBella: Eloise Greengrass, Verve: Feeling Groovy

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Orchid Opulence,

Accessories: dew drops, white souffle pen, scallop circle punch, circle punch, glitter, copics, sponging,

Thanks for stopping by, and HAPPY

STAMPING!!

More Anni-VERVE-sary!!

I'm still celebrating the Anni-VERVE-sary....are you??? Here are my cards for sketches 5, 6 and 7. Can't wait to see the rest of the sketches. Julee is giving the rest of the sketches today, so we can have the weekend to work on them!! Sketch #5 is a great sketch, and it requires the card to be TALL. Again, I was able to use some of my new Lizzie Anne Designs stamps. The set used here is "By The Sea." I {{LOVE}} the mermaid image in this set. It reminds me of my daughter when we go to the beach, she is a little mermaid, and never wants to get out of the water. I see myself using this stamp on a lot of scrapbook pages! So... my card is tall... very, very tall. I think I made the dimensions 4X9 for this card. Too tall?? I used SU Soft Sky as the base layer, along with Basic Grey Euphoria Designer Paper and SU Celery as the middle layer. Lots of green rhinestones and glitter were used to give this card some glam. The fish are popped up on dimensionals. I also used wasabi and bayou ribbons. For some reason, I had alot of trouble with sketch #6. I just couldn't visualize what I wanted to do with the sketch. The "richly blessed by you" card is my interpretation of the sketch...I went back and forth on this one for a while, and finally came up with what you see here. This card uses SU Soft Sky and Always Artichoke paper, along with Fall Flowers DSP. Stamps used were Verve's Thankful Blossoms. I used rhinestones for accents and a white souffle pen. Blue Bayou ribbon ties the circles together. I used the Giga Scallop Circle punch and then Mega Circle and Oval punches for the other layers. I have to say that Sketch 7 is one of my favorites so far. I really like what I came up with for this one too. I used SU Old Olive as the card base and then Basic Grey Sultry Designer paper (this is some really awesome paper, girls!!) I used the July Stamp of the Month Kit from Unity, called Its About the Little Things... for the pretty butterflies and the sentiment. The butterflies are stamped in Positively Pink ink. A few of them are popped up for dimension- again, I'm loving the "fly away at anytime" look. Of course, whats a card without rhinestones, and these cutie butterflies call for some stones!! I used green rhinestones to fill in the holes from the threading water border punch- love how we can do that....and to finish the card off, I used pink grossgrain ribbon. That's all for now. More cards to follow this weekend....... HAPPY STAMPING!!!