Blog Candy Winner!

Well, Saturday's here and it was time to draw the winner of my blog candy! YIPPEE! Of course, I had a little helper! My lil ragamuffin daughter! Don't ya love that wild hair!?! LOL!

We put all the names in a big bowl, Ellie mixed it all up and picked... drum roll please....

Sherri Alspach is the winner!!

Here's the proof!! hehe!

Congrats Sherri! Email me your addy and I'll get your package of goodies out the door on Tuesday!

On a side note, I have to tell you all that your emails, comments and virtual hugs were amazing the other day when I was having a tough time with my daughter's first day of Kindergarten. I chuckled at your stories of your kids' first day and commiserated with those who are in my shoes!! I actually said to my hubby that if I could have had you all over for coffee and a serious stamping session - I could have thrown a heck of a party! Would have taken my mind off things!!! :-)

So, because you were all there "with me," I thought I'd share some pics from the first day!!

Here's Cal on his way to sixth grade..... My hubby still wonders how I got that big smile out of him!! :-) And, here's Ellie -- all smiles--- on her way to Kindergarten!
Ahhhhh. With the first day down, I am sure it is just like ripping off a Band-Aid. It stings for a bit, but then gets a whole lot easier. Afterall, she's got a pretty big smile on her face -- right!?!?

Before I go... the JustRite Stampin' Champion Contest is still going on! I would love it if you headed on over and voted! :-) Click HERE to vote! Voting ends Monday at 9:00 PM Eastern!

Have a great rest of the weekend! I am in the middle of some pretty big home improvement projects-- painting!! ICK! I know it will rock when it is over but for now, well, it kind of doesn't rock!

Take care! I'll see ya back here soon!

Stampin' Champion Contest!

Ok, I was just blog surfing and realized when I hit the Just Rite blog that one of my projects this week made it to the Stampin' Champion Contest! Remember my sewing kit??? Holy cow! I am in great company! One of my bloggin' buds Barb Schram is also in the running and her project is amazing! You might want to head on over and vote!!! All you need to do is click HERE! Voting ends Monday at 9:00 PM Eastern!



p.s. I'll be back tomorrow with the winner of my blog candy!!

Stamp Simply--- HOT, HOT, HOT!

Ok, I am going to start this all out by saying I am - um- kind of embarassed by this challenge issued by Ms. Sharon Johnson. This week's challenge is and I quote - "Julie Is HOT!" What? Are you kidding me? Well, apparently Sharon thinks I use a lot of red and therefore am red hot. I am now laughing so hard I can barely type. :-) So, the goal is to use the color red as the main focus of the card and then add in other HOT colors! For the official deets on ssnotime50 - check out Sharon's place HERE!


This first RED HOT sample is actually a version of a card I first made several years ago. It features one of my all time favorite background techniques. I stamped the Canvas background stamp (Stampin Up) and a diamond shaped shadow stamp (Hero Arts) using Versamark ink. Then, I just rubbed on a few shades of brown chalk over the images. When I had it blended the way I wanted, I inked up the flower (Hero Arts) with red and green markers and stamped the saying (Hero Arts) with Versafine Black Onyx. Add a black satin ribbon, a gold button and mat this segment on a black piece of card stock that I had edged with a gold leafing pen. Mat this on the red card... and voila... DONE!

Here are a few more "RED HOT" simple samples!! ;-)

Want to see what the other Stamp Simply ladies did? Check out.....

Janine
Jennifer
Dee
Tammy

Well folks, wish me luck, today is the first day of Kindergarten for my daughter. There might be a huge case of water works at the school. UGH! My baby is growing up! Might need some "virtual" hugs to get me through today!!! I know, I need to put my big girl panties on and deal -- BUT, it's hard!

Hugs back to you!
Julie

p.s. I'll be back tomorrow with the winner of my blog candy! If you haven't signed up yet, the clock is ticking! Look at last Saturday's post!

Polished Pigments

Have you ever seen the Polished Pigments from Luminarte? Well, if you answered no, Nancy Kirk, one of the owners of Flourishes put together a very informative video on how to use them! She shows how to make stunning background, how to mix it with embossing powder, how to make beautiful tiles with it, and how to mix it with the Simple Solution! So, grab a cup of joe, sit back and enjoy! Click HERE to view it!

I wanted to try my hand at using these powders dry without the Simple Solution. It's one of my favorite ways to add a little sparkle to my solid stamps! I just stamped my Summer Botanicals flower with Versamark and then used Blushing Rose, Lemon Grass and Blue Grass Polished Pigments to "color" the image. I just went over the flower with a soft brush loaded with a bit of the color. A little DOES go a long way. And, keep in mind, before you are done, you'll be sparkly too!! After you apply the color, all you need to do is go over your work with a swiffer dry rag. This rag is amazing at lifting off the excess powder without damaging the image you just colored. It kind of "burnishes" it into the Versamark. You really don't need to, but if you want to protect your image, spray it with a little Workable Fixativ (Krylon). I also stamped the flourished border and did the same technique only I used some of the Pure Mica powder in Solar Gold. Both types of powders can be found at Flourishes by clicking HERE!

After you're done stamping and swiffing (I just made that word up!!), the rest is just adding some black sheer ribbon, gold Stardream paper, and a "pretty" with some beads and a saying (Flourished Words). And.... done!

To see what some of the other Flourish DT members did with Polished Pigments check out Susan, Leslie, and Faith!

Hope you are having a great day! See you back here tomorrow with a HOT Stamp Simply challenge from Miss Sharon Johnson!! :-)

p.s. I almost forgot! You'll have to head on over to Laura's place (click HERE). She has some yummy Impression Obsession blog candy and plans to draw a name tonight! And, if you haven't signed up for my blog candy... look at last Saturday's post and leave a comment there! I'll draw a name Saturday!

A sale, an award, and.. oh yeah.. a card!

Hi all! Happy Wednesday! First of all, I would love to direct your attention to the left side of my blog! See the button - Stamps For Sale? Click on it and you'll see my "virtual stamp garage sale" got a WHOLE lot bigger. All of the prices are at or below wholesale prices and shipping is actual shipping. Why? I need room!!! So I am enabling you to click away! If you see anything you like, email me at juliekoerber@bresnan.net.
Now, to a fun, fun, fun award my friend Curt put together himself! It's the "You Inspire Me" award. Oh my! Thanks Curt. My bud Janine got this award and she wanted to pass it along to me too! FUN! Thanks Janine! I would have you on my list too but Curt had to go and start the award and give it to you too! LOL! You know I think you both rock! Now I am supposed to link up to those people that I check in on regularly for inspiration. Well, I am a daily visitor at these hot spots! Just click on their names and you can take a trip to their blogs!

Sharon Johnson, Leslie Miller, Susan Roberts, Linda Duke, Faith Hofrichter, Barb Schramm, Deb Neerman, Debbie Olson, and Penny Hajiantoni.

All of these ladies have their own distinct and very inspiring styles!! They inspire me daily!!

Now for the card! I made this fun little creation for a friend who had a baby shower two weekends ago! The little dress is a retired stamp by Amuse. The rest is just decorative paper, a scalloped edge thanks to my threading water punch, some self adhesive pearls, a sewn edge... and done! I thought they turned out kind of cute. They even took the invite to a woman in town who makes cakes and she did the dress on the top of the cake with a gorgeous lattice pattern around the sides. It was to die for! Wish I had a picture! I am so terrible at that!

Well folks, today is the first day of 6th grade for my son! He was ready to kill me today because I made him get his hair cut. I got the MAAAAHHHMMM! That's pretty bad huh!?!

Go take on the day! I'll see ya back here tomorrow!

Sew Fun!

Hi all! Hope life is treating you all well! If you are wondering when I am going to draw a name for my blog candy.... I'll have a winner Saturday! So, if you want to be in the running but haven't left a comment on the post below... feel free! The clock is ticking!! :-)



Ok, I am at it again! This week marks week two of the Stampin' Champion Contest! All you need to do is making something, anything with any JustRite product! You can check out the contest by clicking HERE!

I've always wanted to take a simple sewing kit and alter it.... so I did! I saw this little box full of sewing needs at the dollar store and snatched it right up. It was my intention to alter it into something kind of manly and slip it into my hubby's overnight bag. He travels every now and then for business and you never really know when a button will pop without a wifey around!! :-)

Well, this one got away from me! I thought about sewing words that I could adorn it with using my Monogram Stamper! I actually used the classic wood stamper with the special occassions font with the small letters set. I love the mix of the print with the cursive style letters that I used for the word "sew" I stamped both individually and then used a 1-1/4" punch to cut out the word sew. I punched two little holes for my safety pin that was embellished with some brown gingham ribbon, layered it up with foam tape, matted this piece on a scalloped shape I cut with my scalloped circle Nestabilities. The rest is just covering the box with paper, adding a decorative edge with my Martha Stewart punch, sponge some ink on, add some self adhesive pearls and... done with the outside!

Here's a peek at the inside...

I used some coordinating card stock for the top inside of the box and then embellished it with some darling stamped images from Crafty Secrets called Sew Special!

I love the framed sentiment that looks like a label - "From My Hand to your Heart" That spool of thread is actually a two set stamp - you can stamp the spool and then ink up the thread and stamp over top in any color you like! Pretty cool huh?? Here's a look at all the sewing words. My ribbon is kind of covering two -- stitch and mend.
Well, I think this was a blast to create. Funny, my hubby thought it looked too girly. Maybe I'll have to do another one with a more manly theme afterall. Or, I could just tell him. Take it - your wife made it for you and you just might need it!!! What do you think about that!?! :-)

Hope you are having a great start to your week! Tomorrow is the start of school for us so we are off to go putt-putt golfing or bowling or something! Yesterday we saw - Fly Me To The Moon. Cute flick! The kids loved the whole 3-D factor!

So, until tomorrow - go take on the day!

Show me...... Candy!!

Ok, I reached 100,000 hits and nothing! I promised candy and well, I'm only 44,000 hits late! LOL! Well, I am hopefully making up for it!

Here's what's up for grabs! Two stamp sets, three bobbins of ribbon, a K&Company pack of decorative paper scraps (I use these all the time!) and a pack of mega blossoms with rhinestone brads!

HOW YOU WIN: Leave a comment letting me know what kind of stamp you would desperately love! Is there a saying you would like? Is there a style that you think hasn't been done yet? If you don't have ideas, tell me what your favorite kind is - Florals, sentiments, etc.

BONUS: If you enter this month's YKYR challenge, you get an extra two entries in my blog candy! Make a challenge - get three chances to win!

I'll be back Tuesday with more stamping fun! Until then, go take on the day!

Stamp Simply--- JustRite Style!

I made this for the JustRite Stampin' Champion Contest! I couldn't help it -- I've got the fever! All you need to do is make something, anything with any JustRite product and enter it in the gallery! Want to find out more? Click HERE!

I also kept in mind this week's Stamp Simply challenge, which is to use the same image on the background of your card as you do for the foreground of the card. So, since my focal point is the flower, I used the same stamp on part of my background as well! Just that simple! If you want to find out more on the challenge, take a trip to Sharon's place HERE!

I made the card by stamping the flower (Summer Blossoms - Flourishes) all over half of the base mat on my card using Rust Adirondack ink, then stamped my flower two times with the rust ink and one time with Momento Bamboo Leaves for the small stem piece at the base of the flower. I colored and cut out different sections of the flower so that I could layer it and make it 3-dimensional. The saying around my floral element was created using one of the Classic Round Wood Stampers (took the mount from my Damask Set) and the Small Letter Set for the Round Monogram Stamper by JustRite. I spelled out "Bloom Where You Are Planted" and made sure to leave some room for my stem to come up through the middle! The rest is just matting, adding ribbon and some self adhesive gold brads!

Here's a close up to show the flower and how I layered up the different parts! It actually reminds me of the paper tole that my mom used to do when I was just a little one! She cut out images she saved. I just cut out my stamped images!

Want to see what the other Stamp Simply gals did this week?
Check out:

Janine
Jennifer
Tammy
Dee
Becky

Flowers From A Friend....

Thanks to my bud Denise G. I think I found my mojo! It was lost for a whopping 48 hours. No joke! It left the building and it took some work to get it back!

I was cleaning up my stamp room when I stumbled upon an image that Denise sent a while back (She told me it was a stamp from Beeswax). I also had some Copics on my desk that I just bought. I have never used Copics but desperately want to learn how! So, I picked up three shades of pink and two shades of green and started coloring away! I have a LOT to learn! I basically started with the darkest color, shaded my image and then went over the whole thing with my lighter marker to pull the shadows out a bit. I am sure I did it all wrong! After I was done, I sponged the whole image with Antique Linen Distress Ink. This piece was bright white when it arrived in my little hands. So, I sponged quite a it of ink on it! I edged my image in gold, matted it onto an olive green and then attached it with foam tape to a label style journaling image from Impression Obsession.

Here's a close up of the flowers....
So I hope my mojo doesn't pull a Thelma and Louise on me anytime soon and take off for a LONG joy ride! :-)

Funny story before I go. My son went over to a friend's house today and so my five year old daughter and I decided to go school shopping - just the two of us. I am stopped at a red light and I hear this beeping noise and say, "What is that Ellie?" She says, "Oh, it's Frankie, he's just texting me." "What?" I ask, completely dumbfounded. Well, she holds up her play cell phone and says, "Frankie just texted me and asked me if I want to be his girlfriend. Should I save it or delete it?" I quickly say... "Delete it!!" (I'm thinking, who the heck is Frankie?) She adds, "Hey, want to hear my new ring tone?" She pushes a button and her play phone plays a little tune. " OH MY GOSH! I am now laughing so hard inside that I am afraid I will bust a gut! I look in my rear view mirror to see she's twirling her hair - it's a dead giveaway that she's a bit tired. I say to her, "Hey Ellie, do you think you might need to rest today? You look a bit tired." She says, "No, mom. I am a kindergartener now. Kindergarteners don't nap. I'll just go to bed a little early. I need my beauty sleep."

I'm speechless. Seriously. Speechless. Don't tell me. I already know I am in for big trouble when she gets older.

Hope you have a fabulous day! See ya back here tomorrow!

It's a JustRite Kind Of Day...

This is one of those ten minute cards that could make up a wonderful gift set! I made it for the JustRite Stampin' Champion Contest!

With Olympic fever hitting strong, the JustRite folks decided to urge stampers to 'go for the gold!' All you need to do is post a project using any JustRite product. You can enter as much as you like too! The contest runs for the next few weeks - you can click HERE to check it out!

For my card, I decided to use just one color of ink. I chose a periwinkle blue ink pad and just stamped my Flourishes Peony all over the the main mat on my card. Then came the monogram. I used the Damask border from the Monogram Stamper along with my initial and then topped it all off with some lucious sheer ribbon and some pretty light blue self adhesive pearls! The main section of the card was then mounted on a piece of pearl paper. The scallop mat for my monogram is also from a piece of pearl paper.

That's it! Hope you enjoy!

It's all about the candy corn!

Hi all! I just have to say- I am not a fan of candy corn - but I love this card! There's something about the saying that just cracks me up! To make it, I used my Nesties to create two circles and a scalloped circle, layered them up and then used colored pencils to color in the candy corn. I did outline parts of the corn with a light blue marker to help them "pop" a bit more. Add the saying, a loopy brad with some sheer ribbon and you're done!

I thought this stamp duo would be a blast for the kiddos at Halloween. Put some candy corn in a decorative bag tie it up with some fun ribbon and then put the corn and saying on a tag with Happy Halloween on the back of the tag! I'll have to let you all know if I make them up!!

Here's a close up before I go.....

Well, funny story. Today is the day for the IO design team challenge. The theme? Monochromatic. Yesterday I was in my stamp room trying to brainstorm. I made a card - showed it to hubby and he said, "That's not very good." So, I literally ripped it up, started again with a whole new concept - showed it to him and he said, "that's not much better." So, I emailed the girls and said, "I LOST MY MOJO!!!!" I really did. After I looked at what I created, it was pretty pathetic! If you'd like to see how the other DT gals conquered this one - check out...

Penny

Daniela

Laura

Deborah

Have a fabulous day everyone!

EDITED TO ADD: I can't believe I forgot to say that these stamps are both from Impression Obsession! The candy corn can be found HERE. And, the saying can be found HERE. Thanks for stopping by!!

Shimmerz & Shine

I've had this berry leaf and vine stamp from Impression Obsession for about a year and hadn't even inked it up! It was so pretty, half the time I just stared at it wondering how I would do it justice! Well, when the brand new colors of Shimmerz came out for fall, I knew that was the perfect stamp for them!!

I stamped my image with Versafine Black Onyx, outlined the left side of my image with a very light tan Tombow marker and then started painting! I used Rustic Red Shimmerz on the berries with highlights of Beeswax and then Sagebrush and Evergreen on the leaves. After I was done, I sponged the edges of this piece with Antique Linen Distress Ink, did some paper piercing in the corners and then matted it onto a green piece of cardstock. Add a background stamp, a sentiment (Hero Arts), some hardware and a shimmery piece of ribbon and you are done!

Here is a close up! See the shimmer on the outside edge of my red mat? I even have a trick for that! I just did a tutorial on how to add highlights and shadows with Shimmerz paints and added in that trick on how to get fun shimmery edges on your card creations! To see the tutorial.... click HERE

Hope you have a fabulous end to your weekend!

Stamp Simply.... New Stamps... New Shimmerz...and more!

Hi all---- TGIF! Happy weekend, can you tell I am in need of a little R & R?

Today's Stamp Simply challenge is kind of an instant replay. Sharon's challenge is to take a card you made, and copy it with some changes. Click HERE to read the official details and see what the rest of the Stamp Simply team created this week!

So, I decided to copy this layout..... I loved the rectangle and oval mixed in together, I loved the pearls and the scalloped accent. So, what did I change? I added new stamps-- the brand new set called Summer Blossoms from Flourishes-- in a new more rustic color and I ditched the sentiment tag. Instead of a sheer ribbon, I added a rich satin in a rustic red.

These new stamps from Flourishes feature gorgeous lillies that are just so feminine and elegant! I merely inked them up with my Vivid! ink pads (Brick and Olive) and then, the fun began!

I painted over the entire image with two of the three new colors of Shimmerz. Since they are semi-translucent when you apply one coat, you can see all my stamping underneath.

Here's a close up! I went over the flowers with Rustic Red, and the stems with Sagebrush. Gotta love that sparkle!!If you want to see what the rest of the Flourishes team has been up to with this new release, check out Leslie, Susan, Faith, Linda, Sharon Nancy and Barb!

Be sure to check out the Shimmerz blog to see the three new LIMITED EDITION colors-- perfect for fall -- plus some more samples from the rest of the DT!!

p.s. If you'd like to learn more about Shimmerz... stay tuned! I am going to have a tutorial soon showing you how to add dimension to your stamped images with this fun sparkly paint!

p.p.s. The Y.K.Y.R. challenge is up! Click HERE to check it out. Hope you like Heavy Metal!!! :-)

Y.ou K.now Y.ou R.ock!

Well folks! Tomorrow ushers in a brand new challenge for Y.K.Y.R. Are you ready to kick it and enter this time around? The last challenge, Deb and I had so many wonderful entries and tons of votes for the winner. Yes, YOU get to vote! To find out what we have in store, just check for the new challenge by clicking on the YKYR blog link to the left. It's going to be a fun one this time! Want a tease????


Leave a comment telling me what you think the next challenge is going to be! I'd love to hear your guesses! I'll have all the details tomorrow on the YKYR challenge blog!

Before I go, I wanted to say thanks to two cool chicks who decided to honor me with some fun new awards!!



The first is the Wylde Woman Award from one of my bloggin' buds Kim Prince. She has such an artsy and fun style. You really should stop by her place and say "hi!" Here are the rules for passing this award along! 1) You can give this award to one or a hundred people, or any number in between.2) Link to their site in your post.3) Link back THIS site, so Tammy (I'm thinking the orignator of this award) can visit all the wonderful women.The pupose of this award is to send love and acknowledgement to women who brighten your day, teach you new things and live their lives fully with generosity and joy.

I give this to Deb Neerman, Viv Peters, Barb Schramm, Cheryl Moody, Janine Orchard, Diane LaPointe and my mom!

I also want to give a shout out to Lisa Thibault who gave me an "I Love Your Blog" award. Wow. Thanks Lisa! I just love it when people stop by here and can say they love it. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy!! LOL! I am supposed to pass this along but-- there are like 200 blogs I love and I doubt you want me to list all 200 here!! :-)

Happy Thursday! I'll see you back here tomorrow with another Stamp Simply challenge, another new release from Flourishes, along with a look at three new colors from Shimmerz Paints!




p.s. Don't forget the blog candy offerings at the Shimmerz blog! Click HERE if you haven't entered!!

Time For Fun With Flourishes!!

It's the second Wednesday of the month, which means, all new Flourishes stamps ripe for the picking! And, what great picks they are! Perfect for end of summer stamping -- who wouldn't want to immortalize a beautiful coneflower or a welcoming bistro table with lemonade ready to be sipped!

The first set is called Summer Botanicals, and just like the Spring Ephemerals set that you know and love, this set features a set of "solid/silhouette" stamps perfect for creating impact in a jiffy! I had fun with the coneflower stamp and actually tried something a bit different! I colored the flower with Marvy markers in two shades of green, orchid and a rustic brown. I huffed on the back, stamped and then picked up a permaletter fine black pen. Being careful not to push down too hard, I just drew some whimsical lines around my image - adding the petals, some dots for the center of the flower and also some accents to the leaves. After I was done, I sponged and stippled on some antique linen distress ink. The rest is just layering decorative paper, adding some ribbon and some fabulous lavender pearls!

This next set is called Summer on the Patio and wait until you see all the elements in this set! It's so fun! You can create a scene with wine glasses, a chandelier, a bouquet of flowers or... in my case... lemonade ready to be sipped with a chair for a friend!

I colored my scene with watercolor pencils and then blended with a blender pen. I used a post it note to separate the top of the scene from the bottom and then stipped on some brown ink for the "floor" and blue ink for the "sky." I just wanted a subtle look that didn't overpower.

Here's a close up-- do you see the sparkle on the ice cubes? I couldn't resist adding some Shimmerz Paints to make the cubes sparkle a bit!

To kick off this release, we also have a brand new face on the Flourishes team! Barb Schramm will be joining the team as a Guest Designer for the next three months! I am so excited because I know her designs just ooze creativity. So, be sure to click HERE to visit her "place" and see some of her new release creations!

Want to see what the other DT did with these fabulous sets? Check out:

Leslie, Susan, Faith, Linda, Nancy, Jan Marie and Sharon!

As you surf around, you might notice the third set Flourishes is releasing!It's called Summer Blossoms. You can click HERE to see it in the store!

If you are liking the Shimmerz Paints I added, you should know Friday -- three brand new colors will be unveiled just in time for fall! Want a chance to win them? Click HERE for a chance! The deadline is the 14th at 11:59 PM!

Hope you're having a great week.... I'll see you back here tomorrow!

Julie

Blog Candy With Bling!

Who doesn't love blog candy that shimmers!!! Well, Shimmerz Paints is getting ready to launch three new LIMITED EDITION colors for fall. They will debut on Friday morning with some fun projects from the rest of the design team! As a way to celebrate, Shimmerz is giving away a set of the new colors! Click HERE to leave a comment-- the drawing ends 11:59 p.m. Mountain Standard Time on August 14th. You can check back on Friday morning to the Shimmerz Paints blog to see the amazing new colors and see if you won! I'll also have a fun project right here showcasing not only the new colors --- but some new stamps from Flourishes!!! YIPPEE!

Flourishes Sneak Peak!

Wednesday marks a brand new release for Flourishes for August and I am in love! I know you will be too! This release is full of elegant images perfect for the final months of summer.

Want a peek? You'll have to check back Wednesday to see it all!

If you don't mind being teased, you might want to check my blog roll and drop in on some of the other Flourish DT members -- some might have sneaks up on their site too!

Hope you are all well! I just have to tell you the cardstock is flying this week in my craft room - new stamps, new challenges, new things to color with! Stick with me this week, can't wait to share it all!