Angelic Love

Hi all and TGIF!!! The Flourishes Design Team decided to team up and pick up one of Flourishes' older sets to give it a little TLC. With the season of love upon us, we thought the set Angelic Love should be in the spotlight! Here's a peek.....

 

I love that sweet little cherub and all the wonderful sentiments that can fit either on the angel's banner or on that fun locket! So many possibilities! On to my creation....

I knew I wanted to create a window card with my "angel" at the center of it all. So, I used my Spellbinders Classic Heart and Scalloped Heart dies to create the window (cut thanks to my Grand Calibur machine) and then paired it all up with some fun paper! I picked up THIS pack of Bo Bunny papers. It went with Flourishes Garden Girl Kit -- but these colors are PERFECT for Valentine's Day. There's red tones, pink, chocolate, and then some vibrant purple. 

After stamping my angel onto Flourishes Classic White using Rich Cocoa Memento Ink, I did color it up with Copic Markers using R0000 for the flesh tones, adding R00 for some blushed cheeks, E53 and E51 for the hair and BG15, BG11 and BG0000 for the rest of the image.I added some glitter glue to the wings, cut out the angel, popped it up on my die cut heart with some foam tape and... ta da!! The printed paper on the inside is BasicGrey Indie Bloom. I just LOVE the patterns in this pack - so vibrant and fun! You might notice too some embossing on my scalloped heart frame. I used one of the new embossing folders that Flourishes is carrying from Craft Concepts called Brocade -- it's a really classic pattern. 

Here's a close up! I added THIS ribbon and a trinket from one of Flourishes past 123 Create Kits.

And.... when you open up the card, this is what it looks like!

I just love this almost vintage feel! And that, my friends, is it!  Guess what? If you like this set, Flourishes is having a one day only sale on this set. For the next 24 hours only -- you can pick it up at 15% off! Simply use the code ANGEL in the coupon code box at the time of checkout! It's a special just in time for Valentine's Day! Want to see what the DT whipped up with this sweet set? Just hop on over and see....

• Barbara Anders
• Christine Okken
• Cindy Lawrence
• Danielle Kennedy
• Dawn Burnworth
• Julie Koerber
• Sharon Doolittle
• Stacy Morgan
• Tammy Hershberger

Thanks for stopping by everyone! I hope you have fun plans for the weekend. We have more basketball games -- DD and DS are both playing so, I'll be screaming my lungs out all day Saturday! ;-) Have a good one and I'll see you back here soon!

This one for coffee & sock monkey lovers!

Ok, I know that I normally reserve my blog posts here for stamping projects with a little family flavor mixed in every now and then. But, those of you that know me, know that I love to knit as well. Well, here is something else about me -- I love sock monkeys!!! I don't have a sock monkey collection. I have made a few for my kids but -- honestly -- I can't see one without going.. "Awwwww! How cute!!!!" So, when I saw this project on Ravelry.com (a knitting community/forum) I had to give it a try. If you click on the link, you'll see that each one really has his own personality! Too cute, I say!

Well, here's my finished Java George! ;-)

Isn't that hysterical? It's a sock monkey java sleeve? I put it on a normal glass for show and tell but will keep this in my car for those java runs while I am busy being a kid taxi service! ;-) It's hysterical because I downloaded the pattern last night while watching TV and had it done before I went to bed. I assembled today by sewing on the mouth, ears and button eyes! 

I thought I would share because I know some of you ladies out there in blogland like other crafts and might get a kick out of something like this. If you've never checked out Ravelry -- you really need to! It's a wonderful knitting community with forums, patterns, and the ability to create your own library of projects (kind of like Splitcoast does for card making!)

Hope you are having a great week! See you back here soon! :-)
~Julie

MFT Meets Scor-Pal!

Hi all! I have a fun post for you this Tuesday! The MFT and Scor-Pal design teams have joined forces to show you some fun ways you use these products... together! 

My project is all about Valentine's Day! I don't know about you ladies out there with kiddos, but I am always on the hunt for cute images to make Valentines for my children. When I saw THIS stamp set called Heartfelt, it just warmed my heart! And so, off I went to make a fun fold card with this darling little girl at the center of it all! 

I started with a 11" by 4.5" piece of red card stock, and using my Scor-Pal, scored at the 1.5", 3.5", 7.5" and 9.5" score guides. The mission was to be able to create a "Z" fold on both sides like below... 

I folded on both sides so that when finished, I had a card base that folded like this...

After the base was finished, the fun began by decking out my creation! First, here's a peek at the finished/closed card! You can see, I cut out my image with an oval die, sponged on ink, did some paper piercing and then matted on a heart and scalloped heart die cut shape. I did cut the heart in half and matted half on one side of my fold and half on the other. The oval was attached to ONLY the left side flap. 

I decked out the flaps with some decorative paper and a pinked edge border. And then, when you open it up, you see the sentiment inside framed by a paper pierced heart!  

Here's a close up!  

And, I just had to show a close up of that darling little girl! I did paper piece her shoes and scarf with some decorative paper and colored her up with Copic markers. I used R85, R83, R81, R0000, RV00, RV02, R29, R49, and E27 and E37 for her hair. You can see, I did add some glitter to her mitts and the tip top of her hat. The frame was sponged with Spun Sugar Distress Ink.

And that, my friends, is it! Now... to the good news! There are some prizes being given away in this hop if you hop along to see what all of the designers have in store - just CLICK here over to the Scor-Pal blog for a list of hoppers and prizes! 

Thanks for stopping by! I'll see you back here soon! 

~ Julie

It's a Free For All!

Hi all and happy Friday!  It’s a Flourishes Free for All Friday, which means all the Flourishes gals have some eye candy for you to see using some of Flourishes newly released sets!  I hope you hop around and check out what they have in store!  Also, this is the last day to take advantage of Flourishes New Release Bundle — 10% off all new release sets if you buy them in a bundle. You can check out that fabulous deal HERE! 

On to my creation! I picked up the Love Sweet Love set and used that darling basket with the love note and flowers tucked inside. I just love the vintage feel!

I have to admit, my brain was a bit fried this week, so I decided to take Mojo Monday's sketch for a spin. And here's a peek....

When it comes to sketches, I'll be the first to admit, I'm really literal - I don't take a ton of creative license and so... you can pretty much see my card -- right there in that layout!  ;-)

How did I whip this up? Well, with some papers from My Mind's Eye (Breeze and Vanity Fair) and Kaiser Craft (Miss Nelly), add some cotton linen ribbon, some crochet lace, a button and those are the "pieces." I  stamped using Memento Rich Cocoa on Flourishes Classic Ivory and colored it up with Copic markers and used these collections....

Here's a close up! You can see I used Spellbinders Classic Circles and the Blossom Nestabilities die (cut thanks to my Grand Calibur) for my main image. 

And that, my friends, is it! An easy peasy creation that has a bit of a feminine flair! Make sure you hop on over to see what the rest of my Flourishes teammates whipped up this week! I am sure their posts are chocked full of inspiration! 

Barbara Anders
Cindy Lawrence
Christine Okken
Danielle Kennedy
Dawn Burnworth
Julie Koerber -- you are here!
Stacy Morgan
Tammy Hershberger

 I hope you have some weekend fun in store! We are still digging out and more snow is on the way. At least I'm getting some exercise shoveling! Take care everyone and I'll see y'all back here soon!

~Julie

An Oldie but Goodie!

Hi all and Happy Thursday! We are in the middle of a snow storm here in little ole Montana so -- I hope the weather is a little bit "kinder" where you are! Today, while the inches and inches of snow continue to fall -- I'm thinking SPRING in my card making!

Today, the gals with Impression Obsession are ushering in an "Oldies But Goodies" Challenge -- and we are using some older images that are still among our favorites! You can play too -- so stick around and I'll fill you in at the end of this post! You could win free stamps!

On to my creation...

I picked up the oldie called Garden Planter by Gary Robertson -- I just love how he uses the little black cat in his drawings - just peeking around things! I colored my image with Copic markers (a mix) and then matted it up with some oldie but goodie BasicGrey paper (Ambrosia-- it's about three or even four years old! Again, another oldie but goodie!) Add some fun ribbon and a little sentiment tag and almost done! The sentiment is from one of the very first sets I got from Impression Obsession - Mini Messages - I just love the little sentiments that can fit on smaller tags! 

I also added some sparkle with the help of some glittler glue -- you can kind of see it in the close up below...

And, here's a peek at the little tag embellished with a ribbon and button!

And that, my friends, is it! Do you want to play in IO's Oldies but Goodies Challenge? It starts today and continues through next Wednesday, January 25th at 10PM. Just click HERE for all the details! And, while you are hopping over there, be sure to see what the rest of the IO gals whipped up with some of their old time faves! 

Laura Fulcher
Jeanne Streiff
Dina Kowal
Vicki Garrett
Daniela Dobson
Jenny Gropp
Julie Koerber -- you are here!

Thanks for stopping by! I'll see you back here real soon. Heck, if it keeps showing the way it is now, I might have nothing else to do BUT stamp and do some show and tell! :-) Take care everyone!

~Julie

Fun Technique To Try!

Hi all! Happy Monday! Hope this week is a beauty for you! You know, there are so many great tutorials here in blog land and recently, I had an inkling to try a new one that I'd never done before -- a grid card. I've seen were folks stamp on address labels and then arrange the stickers like tiles -- but I'd never seen THIS tutorial before! I found it over on the Scor-Pal website (just follow that link above!)

So, want to see what I came up with?

And... how do you do this? Easy, peasy lemon squeezy.... and FUN too! I took a 4 by 5" piece of Flourishes Classic White Cardstock and using the Scor-Buddy, I scored every 1/2", turned the paper 90 degrees and again, scored every 1/2". From there, I took the Sweet Nature set from Flourishes, inked it up with Rosebud and Bamboo Leaves inks. After my flower was inked, I stamped it over top my scored grid, making sure that the lines were on the indented side and not embossed upward.

Basically, the stamp covers the flat surface, leaving the indents free from stamping. I covered my whole card this way and after I was done, I took a Copic Marker (BG0000) and accented some of the "tiles" to make them stand out a bit more. The rest is just matting it all up! I used Ms. Nelly Kaiser Craft paper, a Spellbinders Labels Seven and Blossom Die (cut thanks to my Grand Calibur). FYI: I did cut two shapes with the same Labels Seven die, embossed the white piece and then cut along the embossed edge so that I would have a 1/16" mat with my green shape.I used the little Blossom die cut shape to act as a mat for my circle sentie. Add some fun ribbon, a pinked edge border (SU punch), some stitching and.... ta da!!!

Here's a closeup so that you can see what's going on a little bit better...

I thought this was a fun little technique and not too hard to create at all! Hope you have a wonderful start to your week! For those that read my Friday post about -- basketball, basketball and more basketball... I'm happy to report DS won both of his games by a landslide and DD won hers by 6 points. So... YIPPPEEE! Next game is tomorrow! Ahhh, to be a basketball mom. I love it!

Take care and I'll see y'all back here soon!

~Julie

Sneak Day 3: Love, Sweet Love Hop!

Hi all and welcome to the final day of Flourishes' Release Week! And, guess what? If you like what you've seen so far.... I'm happy to report that all three of Flourishes' new sets for January are in the Flourishes store!! Just click HERE to see for yourself! On to today's special treat! This next set is just that --- a sweet treat for those you love! Want to see what I mean??

 

Love, Sweet Love  offers a sweet way to honor your Valentine! From a cookie bouquet to a beautiful box of chocolates, to a basket of flowers complete with a darling, heart-adorned love note, this set illustrated by Marcella Hawley is sure to warm your heart. This 4 by 6" set even comes with 3 beautifully scripted sentiments to tell your love how you feel!

On to my creation! I just LOVEEEEE the images in this set and when I saw this darling box of candies, I couldn't resist!

I stamped my image using Memento Rich Cocoa and then colored using Copic Markers -- using these collections grouped by Flourishes! 

To put this creation together, I used some crushed red ribbon, crochet lace, a prima rosette, and some paper from My Mind's Eye (it was a scrap but I *think* it is from the Vanity Fair collection. The damask pattern is an old Jenny Bowlin design) I used Spellbinder's Classic Circle and Blossom Nestabilities (cut thanks to my Grand Calibur) for my shapes and...  ta da!! Add a punched border and that, my friends, is it! 

Would you like to win the Love, Sweet Love set? All you need to do is leave some love in the form of a comment on the blogs below! Why? You need to try to figure out….

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One of the ladies on our link list below will be picking a name from the comments on her blog post today. We don’t know which one it is… so the more blogs you leave comments on, the more chances you have to win!

Barbara Anders
Julie Koerber
Cindy Lawrence
Christine Okken
Danielle Kennedy
Dawn Burnworth
Stacy Morgan
Tammy Hershberger
Sharon Doolittle
Heather Jensen
Beate Johns
Cindy Haffner
Mona Pendleton
Jan Marie Caruso  

DID YOU KNOW YOU COULD WIN OUR ENTIRE JANUARY RELEASE?  Have you checked out Flourishes' New Year Challenge? Just click HERE to find out how to play! You can also play in the Noon Time Challenges! Check out yesterday’s noon time challenge – The Year of the Dragon Challenge.  Or, how about the 2-0-1-2 Challenge HERE?   All challenges will close this Friday at 5 PM EST.


Hope you had fun hanging out with me this week and I hope you have a wonderfully relaxing weekend planned. Not much going on in my neck of the woods --- just basketball, basketball, and more basketball. The kids have three, yes THREE games this weekend! I got my fan wear ready and plan to do some screaming! :-) See you back here soon!

~Julie

A Fun-Filled Noon Time Challenge!

Are you ready for one of Flourishes' Noon Time Challenges? It's a fun-filled way to get your hands on all of Flourishes sets being released in January! Well, this challenge will not only get those creative juices flowing, but will use some brain power too! All you need to do is play in.....

 

HOW TO PLAY: As we ring in the new year, let's be inspired by the numbers we'll use for the next 300 plus days! It's a limited supply challenge that revolves around 2012! So, here's your recipe: You can only use 2 colors. You can use 0 bling. You must use at least 1 embellishment and you can only have 2 layers (not including your card base)! Let's see that creativity shine! If you upload to a gallery, please use the key word FLLCJAN12. Entries must be in before Friday, January 13th at 5PM EST.

Need a little inspiration? Yours truly took the challenge and used the set the Flourishes gals sneaked today called Heartlines. I have to say just two layers was a bit tricky and... no bling? Are you kidding me? Well, turns out, you can make a card without rhinestones! :-) See?

 

Super duper easy peasy! I used --- yet again -- paper from My Mind's Eye Blush collection, a sentiment from Flourishes' new set called Heartlines, and a medium sized shape from Spellbinders Classic Hearts Nestabilities.  From there, I stamped Flourishes' Gerber Daisies on the background using Vivid! Teal ink. Add some stitching, some pink cotton ribbon and a beautiful blossom and.... ta da!!! That, my friends, is it!

I did add some razzle dazzle on the blossom thanks to some glitter glue! (Stickles Crystal)

To see how some of the other Flourishes Designers kicked it 2-0-1-2 style, head on over and see...

• Cindy Lawrence
• Danielle Kennedy
• Julie Koerber  -- that's me!
• Sharon Doolittle
• Stacy Morgan

Just click HERE for the challenge's official rules!

Well folks, tomorrow brings a close to Flourishes' sneak peeks!! First thing in the morning, all of the sets for the January Release will be live in the Flourishes store and ready for the taking! And also tomorrow, I'll be back to show off one last set that is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth! :-) So join me tomorrow to see just what I have in store! See you back here soon!

Sneak Day 2: Heartlines Blog Hop!

It’s day two of the sneak peeks for Flourishes' January Release and I hope that you’ve enjoyed the offerings so far! This next set is about creating a note or two for those friends that you truly care about -- both near and far! The good news is, while these sentiments are from the heart, their messages are good not only for Valentine's Day, but the whole year through!

Introducing......

 

This 4 by 3" set -- called Heartlines --  is a perfect addition to any of Flourishes images to send some love this Valentine's Day! Four artistically scripted sentiments perfect for friends and Valentines! This set even offers a darling row of hearts to add as a border, box or accent!

On to my creation!

I have to admit, I don't often create cards just with a sentiment as the focal point -- but this this one was a fun one just because I liked adding in the Spellbinders dies -- Labels Twenty  (cut thanks to my Grand Calibur) -- and the fun coordinating paper.  The paper is a mix of My Mind's Eye Blush and BasicGrey Basic Kraft. Add in some crochet trim, some fabulous ribbon and an elegant brad and.. ta da!! Oh, I almost forgot, I did use some Ranger Distress ink (Antique Linen) and sponged around my shapes after I sanded down the embossed edges. Add some stitching around one of the layers and that, my friends, is it! Easy peasy!

Want to win this set? All you need to do is leave some love in the form of a comment on the blogs below! Why? You need to try to figure out…..

 

One of the ladies on our link list below will be picking a name from the comments on her blog post today. We don’t know which one it is… so the more blogs you leave comments on, the more chances you have to win!

Barbara Anders
Julie Koerber -- you are here!
Cindy Lawrence
Christine Okken
Danielle Kennedy
Dawn Burnworth
Stacy Morgan
Tammy Hershberger
Sharon Doolittle
Heather Jensen
Beate Johns
Cindy Haffner
Mona Pendleton
Jan Marie Caruso

DID YOU KNOW YOU COULD WIN FLOURISHES' JANUARY RELEASE?  Have you checked out their New Year Challenge? Just click HERE to find out how to play! You can also play in their Noon Time Challenges! Check out yesterday’s noon time challenge – The Year of the Dragon Challenge.  Or, you could check back today at noon for another special, fast-paced challenge designed to spark creativity and give you another chance to win some wonderful goodies!

I'll be back today at NOON with more on Flourishes' Noon Time Challenge. It was a bit tricky, but I am kind of pleased with the results! ;-) See you back here soon! 

Sneak Day 1: From the Heart Blog Hop!

Hello and welcome to day one of Flourishes' fabulous sneak peeks for January! There are three new sets coming your way designed to deliver a little love to someone else's life! The calendar might say winter but Flourishes is sure these Valentine sets will WARM your heart!


Introducing..... 

  

This classic set -- called From the Heart -- penned by Becky Fleck offers an antique flavor for Valentine's Day! An ornate heart stands as a focal point and is a perfect companion to Spellbinders Classic Heart Nestabilities die (S4-136) and Spellbinders Classic Scalloped Heart Nestabilities Dies (S4-137). A curled banner is the perfect accent -- allowing a few of the sentiments to be stamped inside! Fun, right?

On to my creation! I have to say, I love "stamp and go" sets that you can make in a jiffy and this one is one!

This card really couldn't be easier because honestly, all it takes is black ink (Versafine Black Onyx), a great stamp set, Spellbinders Classic Heart and Classic Scalloped Heart Nestabilities, May Arts ribbon, My Mind's Eye Blush Paper, Blush Buttons, and a scalloped punch border. I will say the large heart is one of the stamps in this set. The smaller heart was created by stamping the woodcut flourish from this set all over the smaller die cut shape. Don't you just love the sentiment too? I do! I did add a little paper piercing around the top part of my layer. And that, my friends, is it! Easy peasy!

Here's a close up to show the detail in this beauty of a heart!!

Would you like to win this set? All you need to do is leave some love in the form of a comment on the blogs below! Why? You need to try to figure out…

 

One of the ladies on our link list below will be picking a name from the comments on her blog post today. We don’t know which one it is… so the more blogs you leave comments on, the more chances you have to win!

Barbara Anders
Julie Koerber 
Cindy Lawrence
Christine Okken
Danielle Kennedy
Dawn Burnworth
Stacy Morgan
Tammy Hershberger
Sharon Doolittle 
Heather Jensen
Mona Pendleton
Cindy Haffner 
Jan Marie Caruso

DID YOU KNOW YOU COULD WIN FLOURISHES' ENTIRE JANUARY RELEASE?  Have you checked out Flourishes' A New Year Challenge? Just click HERE to find out how to play! You can also play in their Noon Time Challenges this week! To do that, all you need to do is check in -- right here on the Flourishes Blog Wednesday and Thursday at  noon! These fast-paced challenges are designed to spark creativity and give you another chance to win some wonderful goodies! All challenges will close this Friday at 5 PM EST and winners will be announced Saturday in our Winner’s Circle blog post! So get those fingers inky and good luck! 

Can’t wait until all of the sets are revealed Friday morning? Well, you can pre-order them now if you like what you see on our designers’ blogs! Just click HERE to check them out! You’ll also see that Flourishes is offering their special New Release Bundle again – 10% off if you purchase all of the stamp sets in one bundle!

Thanks for stopping by! Hope your week is shaping up nicely and.... hope you join me back here tomorrow!!