Just Take Ten!

Hello All! Happy Friday! Did you happen to checkout this week's Creative Confetti Challenge? It's a fun... and easy one and involves a kind of card that we should ALL love to create. What card is that? The quickie kind of cards that are fun to whip up but don't exactly look like you just took 10 minutes to assemble! And that, my friends, is what this week's Creative Confetti Challenge is all about!

Let's get on to my creation! 

You can see above that my MISTI stamping tool and Power Poppy's Big Scripts stamp set (on sale now for $9.99)  are two things at the center of my 10-minute card. I also decided to focus on my colors - card stock, ink, embellishments - before I got to creating. I wanted to make sure that everything was a perfect match before I got creating. 

Once I narrowed that all down, I lined up my cardstock in the MISTI and then, after every color, I wiped off my stamp and moved my paper down three lines on my MISTI, keeping my paper vertically even as I went. These inks are all really old colors. Do you remember Vivid! ink? Well, I have the whole line with reinkers and I swear, I have had them for close to 20 years. I remember when I started stamping saving up to buy a few ink pads a month to build up my collection. ;-) Ahhh... memories!

Here's a closeup! You can see, when I was done with the linear stamping, I die cut my wonky rectangle and trimmed the coordinating cardstock to give me 1/8" around the outside. Add some decorative polka dot paper, add a sentiment from the Poppy XL clear set. Add some sequins and... ta da! Done!

This one is an easy peasy design that you can do in almost any color scheme to let a friend know that you are thinking about her! Sometimes the message is more important than the time it took to create a handmade card, don't you think?

So, why don't you try your hand at a quickie card and join me this week? Remember, each and every link up with our linky ON THIS POST HERE is one more chance at a $25 gift certificate to the Power Poppy Shop!  



I know my stamping sister STACY MORGAN has some fun to share with you all! And, if you haven't been over to the POWER POPPY blog yet, Marcy has some exciting news to share, so you'll want to click on over and check that out! Hope you have a wonderful and creative weekend!


Until next time!

~Julie

10 Minute, Sketch Inspired Creation!

Hi all -- time for another PageMaps Monday -- when we dig into the CardMaps possibilities, pick a sketch and bring it to life! Today's card literally took me 15 minutes and that's why I'm excited to share!

On to my creation!

I have to say, I had already stamped and punched these butterflies and they were just sitting on my stamping desk. The images are from the Stampin' Up set called Kinda Eclectic and I stamped them using Memento Sweet Plum and Memento Cantaloupe. After stamping, I used the Elegant Butterfly punch as well as the Bitty Butterfly Punch.  Once I saw those and saw this sketch below -- I knew I could whip out a card in no time flat! 

The panels of decorative paper are 1-7/8" by 3" and then matted onto 2" by 3-1/8" pieces of white card stock. The shorter decorative panels are 1/7/8" square matted on 2" white squares. Attach it to your card front, making sure to wrap one of the longer panels with some silver cording and you're almost done! I did add a sentiment from the Another Thank You clear stamp set from Stampin' up using Sweet Plum, punched it out using a 1" circle punch, matted it on a 1-1/4" circle punch, punched a 1/16" hole at the top, threaded my cording through and then tied it in a bow! Attach the little butterflies with glue dots and accent with rhinestones and... ta da! Done! Easy peasy lemon squeezy! 

Here's a close up of those little butterflies. I am seriously in love with them! ;-)

So you see, inspiration is literally just a click away over at CardMaps! Click HERE to see the latest round of sketches and HERE to go through all of the CardMaps archives! Grab a cup of coffee before you go -- you're going to want to stay awhile! ;-)

See you back here soon!

~Julie

A 10-Minute Creation this Tuesday!

Hi all! Happy Tuesday! I have a super quick and easy creation for you today! This one really couldn't get more simple BUT... just think, if you have ribbon and matching ink -- wouldn't this make the cutest little gift set? You could even add a little sparkle if you like on the berries or floral centers to bling it up a bit -- and it would still be under 10 minutes to create one card!

So, here's a peek! I started with a Flourishes Classic White card base.....

I stamped the Summer Blossoms using Rose Bud Memento Ink. I had a ribbon that is almost a perfect match! So, I used that around the middle and then stamped the "From the Desk Of" also from the Summer Blossoms set. You can see, just above the sentiment and just below the ribbon, I flipped my paper over and using 1/4" lines, I scored four lines just to add a little extra interest! Here's a close up of those lines and the sentie too! 

And that, my friends, is it! An easy peasy card that can be recreated in every color of the rainbow and shared with friends far and wide! 

Hope your week is off to a wonderful start! See you back here soon! I have some knitting fun to share, so I'll be back tomorrow with a little peek at "what's on my needles!"

~Julie

Grab a Cup and Check out Flourishes' Release!

Hi all! Today we bring you another round of inspiration created with our brand new November Release Stamp sets from the Senior Design Team. We had so much fun with them we just couldn’t stop making cards! It’s our chance to show them off at least one more time while you can still purchase the November Stamp Bundle at a discount! Today is the last day the discount is available and we don’t want you to miss out!

For my creation -- I wanted to do a 10 minute card that mixed TWO of the new sets. And so..... here goes! 

 

I started with a little bit of Flourishes Classic White Card Stock. I stamped the cup from the new Grab a Cup stamp set, cut it out and then -- using some decorative paper, I stamped the cup again and then cut out just the java sleeve. Stamp the little logo using Memento Love Letter ink and punch out using a 3/4" circle punch. See?

Then.... comes the card base! I used Flourishes Classic Kraft and made a 4" by 4" card. About an inch from the bottom, I used my Scor-Buddy and scored a couple lines on the back side of my card front. Stamp the sentiment underneath and... almost done! I wanted to use the So Distressed set because of those fabby little coffee stains and drops! I inked up the stamp with Memento Toffee Crunch and then -- while the ink was still on the stamp, I rolled the outside of the stamp in Espresso Truffle so that there would be a darker element on the outside... See? 

Add the coffee cup using some foam tape, some red and white baker's twine around the bottom and some enamel dots in red and... ta da!! Done! Now that you've hopped here to see this quick and easy creation, you'll have to see what warm and cozy creations the rest of the Flourishes DT has for you to see today!

• Allison Cope
• Christine Okken
• Cindy Lawrence
• Heather Jensen
• Julie Koerber -- you are here!
• Silke Ledlow
• Stacy Morgan
• Tosha Leyendekker

Thanks for stopping by! See you back here soon!

~Julie

SUPPLIES:

InLinkz.com

A Quick & Easy Card for Christmas!

Hello all and happy Friday! Today the Flourishes Senior Design Team is pulling out some of our sets that are on the overstock or retiring list and giving them a new spin! We always love when we can do that, because it makes you fall in love with those sets all over again! 

So, what did I choose for my creation today? A set that makes creating for the holidays super duper easy!

This card honestly couldn't be easier! I started with a Classic White card stock base, added a mat from the Santa's List paper pack (in fact, all the paper is from that pack!) Add a strip of polka dot and then mat it onto a little glittered paper. I had a scrap of this but there are actually red glittered border strips in the Santa's List Border Strips pack that would work BEAUTIFULLY! Here's where the stamping comes into play -- I stamped the Holly Background on to Flourishes Classic White using the Bamboo Leaves Ink Pad. After I was done inking and stamping, I went over all of the berries with a R29 Red Copic Marker from the Poppy Copic Collection. After the marker ink dried, I took a white gel pen and accented all the holly berries. Add a little paper piercing, mat it on some green decorative paper (also from the same paper pack) and almost done! The sentiment is from the Countrytime Christmas stamp set. I stamped it onto some Classic White Card Stock using Memento Tuxedo Black ink and then cut it out using the Petite Labels One die from Spellbinders. While the die was still on, I sponged on some Bamboo Leaves ink to add a splash of soft color. Punch some holes on both sides of the die cut, thread some red seam binding ribbon through, add a bow and ta da.... done! 

Here's a close up so you can see those fun holly berries! I have to say that you could actually get two cards by stamping the holly berries on a scrap piece of paper -- making creating this card even easier and super fast!

And that, my friends, is it!! I know you'll want to take a trip on over to the see what the rest of the Design Team has up their creative sleeves today:

Allison Cope
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Heather Jensen
Julie Koerber
Maki Jones
Silke Ledlow
Stacy Morgan
Tosha Leyendekker

Please be sure to give some extra love for our lovely Designer Maki Jones…Maki is taking a break from the design team and we’ll miss her very much while she’s gone!  She’s such a talented lady who has treated us to some amazing and creative designs these last few years on the Timeless Tuesday Team and the Senior Design Team.  The entire team is sending big hugs out to this super sweet lady! 

~Julie

A CAS Card Trio & some CANDY too!

Hi all! Time for some fun with Page Maps Monday! Let's get right to it! For my creations, this card sketch below was my starting point.....

And, because I have such a HUGE issue with creating clean and simple cards, I wanted to try, emphasis on "try", to create a cute little card trio taking this sketch and scaling it back a bit for a CAS design. 

So, here's card #1! I should mention, for all my cards I used a mix of Basic Grey Fact and Basic Grey Fiction paper pads. The card stock is Flourishes Classic White and Stampin' Up. The embellishments are all Prima. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

I should point out -- for my creations -- I used Becky Fleck's stamp sets called Address Book and Charms. AND HERE'S THE FUN PART!!! If you leave a comment on this post, I have an extra Address Book stamp set to give away!!!! So, leave a comment if you want to have a chance at getting your hands on this one!

Card #2......

Card #2 close up for you!

Card #3.....

And a close up of Card #3 because of all the razzle dazzle with some glitter glue!

 And that, my friends, is it! Super easy! I think I will stamp on some envelopes and then give this to a friend to have a little set of note cards handy for all occasions. Don't you just love having a sketch to start with and get those creative juices flowing? I sure do! And, there are so many to pick from on the CardMaps tab over at PageMaps.com! While you're there -- check out some of the fun classes Becky is now offering at PageMaps U!!! Fun stuff!

Don't forget to leave a comment for your chance to win Penny Black's Address Book stamp set designed by the ever-so-talented Becky Fleck!

~Julie

Flourishes Christmas Sneaks PLUS a Class in a Box!

Hello all! I'm back today with another gorgeous Christmas and Winter season set that's really versatile.  Set the scene for Christmas and winter with this darling silhouette set illustrated by Lauren Pope. From an elegant deer enjoying the new fallen snow to a pair of children ready to bring their snowman to life, this 4" by 6" set offers many mix-and-match options for you to create different "snow scenes!"

And for more creative fun, we have a brand new Class In A Box for you with this set!

 

CLICK HERE to see what's in this fun and fabulous kit! I will tell you, just to help you get ready for the holiday season, this kit has not 3, not 4, but FIVE card ideas with full color, glossy instructions to mass produce these for all your holiday card giving needs! All the embellishments, ribbon and pre-cut paper is there, just stamp, assemble and send!

On to my card!

I am not going to share the details of this card since that's one of the perks of buying the Class in The Box kit! But just think -- ten pre-cut cards with five different designs? Two stamp sets? All the embellishments included plus instructions to recreate on your own for just $42? Can't beat that!

The Design Team has gorgeous winter silhouette creations to show you in our Blog Hop today.   Don’t forget to look for:

  

Hidden among the Design Team’s blogs today is our Mystery Blogger of the day.  Comment on her blog and you could be chosen to win today’s set! The more you comment, the better your chances of winning.

• Allison Cope
• Christine  Okken
• Cindy Lawrence
• Heather Jensen
• Julie Koerber -- you are here!
• Maki Jones
• Silke Ledlow
• Stacy Morgan
• Tosha Leyendekker

Do you want to win Flourishes' New Release?

If you would like a chance at winning all five of our soon-to-be released September sets…

• You can play in our Get in Shape Challenge – we will have multiple winners there! Deadline for entries is FRIDAY September 13th at 5 PM EST. Check out the link for the official rules!
• Play along in our Timeless Tuesday Challenge Make a Good Impression,  you can win our entire new release in this challenge as well!  See link for rules.
• All five of our September sets can be pre-ordered now, even before you see them all! Take advantage our New Release Bundle and get 10% off when you purchase all five sets together in a bundle.  This discount will be available for only 1 week following the release.
• All sets will be live first thing Friday morning along with the coordinating cut files for this release.
• Come back to the Flourishes Blog Saturday for the Winner’s Circle where we’ll announce all of our winners of this weeks’ challenges!

And that, my friends is it for today! Be sure to swing back by tomorrow when the Flourishes DT showcases a set that's a little bit "country" just in time for Christmas!

~Julie

The hostess.....

Hey all! I'm the hostess for Flourishes 10 Minute Thursday HERE over on the Flourishes blog, so head on over and see what I cooked up! Want a little sneak peek?

There you have it! See you back here tomorrow with a fun-filled way that could have YOU walking away with Flourishes entire August Release! Until then!

~Julie

A Quickie Creation!

Hi all! It's my turn to post the 10-Minute Thursday over at Flourishes!!! If you need a quickie card, this one has the "season of love" in mind! :-) Here's a peek....

And if you want to see the full post, just click HERE! Thanks for stopping by!!! See you back here soon!

~Julie

Need a quick and easy creation?

I'm the hostess over on the Flourishes blog today for 10 Minute Thursday -- a post where we show you how to make a quick and easy creation - in just 10 minutes!

Here's a peek at what I whipped up!

If you  have time, click HERE and see what I whipped up this week!
See you back here soon!

~Julie