Need a sketch or two... or 50?

Recently, I was asked to be a part of a fun project put together by the ever-so-talented Becky Fleck! You might know her from PageMaps, but she's also the editor of Scrapbook & Cards Today. The magazine just published Cardmaps -- with more than 50 sketches inside to inspire your next card and 80 samples with step-by-step instructions! I was proud to have 6 cards inside! When the publisher sent me a copy, they sent me an extra.

Would you like a chance to win it?

Simply leave a comment on this post and I'll draw and announce a name

next Saturday, right here on my blog!

Here's a peek at one of the cards I have inside!

For those that might want to take a peek and order this wonderful sketch inspiration magazine, click HERE to check it out! They just started shipping the magazine yesterday! I have to say, the sketches inside are FABULOUS, and the creations really spark even more creativity. I just I know I'll be using this magazine as a fun starting point to create for years to come! :-)

1,2,3 Create Monday!

What can I say other than "WOW!" Flourishes kicked off something new last week called 1,2,3 Create kits -- it's a kit that has everything you need in one package! It has ribbon, embellishments and paper -- all in one! Well, folks loved the first kit so much, it sold out in just a few days! With some new goodies just arriving to the store, the gals decided to unveil a second kit. Wanna see?

Isn't that to die for? It makes me swoon! This kit contains 1 yard of 1-1/2" silk white ribbon, 2 yards of 1/4" rose silk ribbon, 1 yard of cotton ruffle ribbon and 2 yards of avacado cotton linen ribbon. For embellishments, we have 5mm white opalescent mosaic stickers, 12 prima roses (measuring roughly 1" wide) in shades of baby pink and a 48 page pack of Prima Sparkling Spring paper (24 designs with 2 of each one). All for just $18!!!

While I was putting together a card with this kit, I had an "ah-ha" moment! The cotton linen ribbon in this kit can be frayed kind of easily. That gave me an idea. Why not pull a few of the middle strings....



Pull the middle strings gently and keep tugging and this is what you get... a ruffled ribbon!



After I was finished, I took some of the papers from the kit, an image I had colored up from the From the Desk Of set on Classic White card stock with Copics (Sweet Pea, Spring Greens and some of the lighter colors from the Sunflower collections grouped by Flourishes). Add some stitching, paper piercing and then some of the cotton ruffle ribbon from the kit and you're almost done! The finishing touch is one of the little Prima Fairy Tale Roses. I just love these! These little flowers are all the rage right now!



I have to tell you, just like the last kit that sold out quickly, there are only a limited number of these kits on hand! So, if you like what you see, you might want to grab one while you can! I can't tell you how much I have loved creating with something that I know is 100% color coordinated. It really takes the guess work out of card making!

If you liked the kit I showed last Monday, Leslie and Dawn have some more creations that they have on display today over on their blogs so be sure to click on their names and check out their lovely work! See you back here soon!

Wrapping up Flourishes' Release!

When Flourishes first laid eyes on two of the brand new die sets fresh off the line at Spellbinders Paper Arts, they knew that stampers needed a stamp set to coordinate with it! Are you ready to take a peek?

Introducing.....

This fun set just screams celebration and offers 6 different pennants and flags all designed to coordinate perfectly with Spellbinders Nested Pennants (S5-028) and Spellbinders Lacey Nested Pennants (S5-029). There are also 9 sentiments and 8 accents in the set you can use to deck out your pennant shapes in fun and different ways! Want a little more to coordinate with your cards? How about our new Strips and Stripes background set? This set offers three strips to use together as one background or separate as three different strips that coordinate with our Birthday Pennants set! Since the set was just released last night, we can show you it in it's entirety now!

Birthday Pennants

Strips & Stripes

On to my creation!

I can't tell you how "happy" this set feels to me! For starters -- I love the fact that all the little pennants in this set can coordinate with the Spellbinder's Pennants dies - makes it so easy and fun! This card couldn't be any easier. I stamped my little pennant a handful of times using different Memento Inks - Rosebud, Bahama Blue, Tangelo, and Pear Tart. I cut them out using the coordinating die, punched a hole and added some string, some bling and the rest is matting it up! I did use one of my embossing folders for the top portion of my card to add some pizazz. For the bottom of my card, I stamped one of the strips in the Strips and Stripes set to add some fun, added a sentiment, and some accent stars from the set and MORE bling! Add a scalloped edge and some fun Lime Rickey BasicGrey paper and... voila! Easy Peasy card in no time at all!

Here's a close up view....

Because we just knew this set was a match made in heaven with the Spellbinder's Pennant Dies, Flourishes asked some of their ever-so-talented designers to join the Flourishes team for a little show and tell! Make sure to hop on over and see....

Barbara Anders
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Danielle Kennedy
Dawn Burnworth
Julie Koerber
Leslie Miller
Stacy Morgan
Jan Marie Caruso
Heidi Blankenship
Beth Pingry
Margie Higuchi
Holly Simoni
Mona Pendleton
AJ Otto
Latisha Yoast
Deborah Young
Kazan Clark
Terre Fry

Would you like to win this set? Just leave a comment here on this post! Flourishes will draw one lucky name for both sets and announce it tomorrow on the Flourishes blog! Thanks for stopping by!! I had a blast this week and hope you did too!

Time to go SHOPPING!

Wow... did this week go fast and did we have fun! As we wrapped up YET ANOTHER fun and fabulous Release Party, it's time to report that all of our sets being released for March are now in the store and are ready for YOU! Want to see them in their full glory? Introducing....

Lenten Rose

 Spring Is Sprung

 Birthday Pennants

 Strips & Stripes

You'll have to stay tuned for samples of our Birthday Pennants and Strips & Stripes sets -- look for our Design Team to show off their creations tomorrow along with some very special guests! Since our Birthday Pennants set is designed to coordinate with Spellbinders Nested Pennants and Nested Lacey Pennants, we've asked some of Spellbinders' finest designers to join us for a good old fashioned blog hop. So, stay tuned! See you back here tomorrow!

DID YOU CHECK OUT FLOURISHES FIRST EVER SPEED CHALLENGE? Click HERE to find out how you could QUICKLY win this entire release!


Can't wait to get your hands on these stamps? Just click HERE to go shopping! :-)

Ready, Set, Spring!

As Flourishes kicks off day two of its sneak peeks for March, I've got a set to show you that is bound to deliver cheer wherever its stamped and sent!

Introducing...

A nest of robin's eggs set in leafy branches, a song bird tweeting in delight from the stem of a blue bell and a bevy or bunnies nibbling on fresh green grass. Marcella Hawley's new Spring Is Sprung set celebrates the arrival of spring. Use this unique 4 by 6" set to usher in cheery spring well wishes with three focal images, one accent flower and six beautifully scripted sentiments! Would you like to win this set? Simply leave a comment on this post and you'll be in the running!

On to my creation!

Because I knew I wanted to use some of the elements from the new 1,2,3 Create Kit that Flourishes just unveiled, I decided to take liberties with my blue bird when I colored him up and add a splash of orange-toned red. I knew that there were varieties that had a little bit of red on the belly and so.... I opted for a Western Blue Bird. See?

 So, I colored him up with Copic Markers using the Delphinium collection of markers grouped by Flourishes as well as R14, R24 and blended with R00. The Blue Bells were also colored with the Delphinium Collection and blending with a little BG000. The leaves were colored using the Spring Greens Collection. Sponge on a little Sky Blue Memento Ink and... almost done! 

I cut out my images with my Spellbinder's Grand Callibur, using the Classic Circles and Blossom dies. As you can see below, I sponged my ink on while the die was still in place to create that white edge. The Blossom die cut shape was embossed and then, using a sanding block, I went around the edges to reveal the paper's white core.  I also added a little bit of stitching too on one of my layers!

Here's a close up!

Add some crochet lace, some glazed brads, and a sentiment from the set on a punched oval and... Voila! Done! I just love this set and can see using it year round!

Now be sure to hop on over and see all the beautiful creations our design team and design guests whipped up using this set that's ripe for spring!!

Barbara Anders
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Danielle Kennedy
Dawn Burnworth
Leslie Miller
Stacy Morgan
Jan Marie Caruso

Oh, before we forget -- THERE'S A PARTY TONIGHT AND....

Join our DT with some chatter, fun, games and prizes! Our Power Hour Release Party starts tonight, March 17th at 9 PM Central Time! You’ll find the party at the Flourishes’ Member Company Forum on SCS! And… after the party, you can check out the new sets live in the Flourishes store! How much fun is that?

OTHER FLOURISHES FUN THIS WEEK!

• Flourishes’ A Cut Above the Rest Challenge is in full swing! You could win Flourishes’ ENTIRE March release! Check it out HERE.
• Save a BUNDLE with Flourishes new release bundle! Purchase the entire release for 10% off! You can check it out HERE!
• Would you like to get your hands on our new sets NOW? Pre-order them HERE!
• Did you check out our SALE page? It's a Gambler's sale and each week prices drop another 5% until everything is gone! It's now at 40%!!!! Click HERE to see what's on sale!!

Thanks for stopping by! We'll be back tomorrow with not one, but TWO more sets for March and to unveil them -- we'll be joined by some very special guests! So.... stay tuned!

Ready for a little sneak?

If you are like me and are desperate for a dose of spring, stay tuned! It's time for Flourishes' March Sneak Peeks and this first set features a beautiful flower that just screams for spring!

Introducing....

This gorgeous flower comes in all shades of the rainbow - from brilliant white to vibrant purple -- making it a coloring dream! These blooms penned by Marcella Hawley not only feature a cluster of blossoms but fresh cut stems in a vase. Don't forget a handful of beautifully scripted sentiments that are perfect for a variety of occassions! Would you like to win this set? Simply leave us a comment here on this post and Flourishes will announce the winner Saturday.

On to my creation!

I honestly had no idea where I was going with this card. I started to color it in varying degrees of pinks after seeing this photo below when I searched online looking for Lenten Rose inspiration!

These blossoms above look more purple but golly, you know me and my love of pink ---  so I took a little creative license. From what I've been told - they come in rose/pink shades too! :-) After stamping my image on Flourishes Classic White Card Stock, I colored up my image with Copic Markers (Copic Shades: RV32, RV34, RV02, RV00, YG00, YG03, YG03), and then I did add a little bit of Flower Soft to the centers using Soft Lemon. After I was done coloring, I ended up cutting out half my image to form a corner. Mat it up using foam tape on a panel of white that had been embossed with a Swiss Dots Cuttlebug folder and sponged with Spun Sugar Distress Ink to reveal the dots on the embossed panel. Add a Spellbinders Ribbon Trio tag with one of the sentiments, and mat that all up onto some BasicGrey Olivia paper with some coordinating buttons and .... VOILA!

Here's a closeup!

I have to say, just when you think you've seen the most beautiful flower come out of Marcella Hawley's creative closet, you have to do yet another double take at her newest release. I think this floral is a BEAUTY!

OTHER FLOURISHES FUN THIS WEEK!

• Flourishes’ A Cut Above the Rest Challenge is in full swing! You could win Flourishes’ ENTIRE March release! Check it out HERE.
• Join our DT with some chatter, fun, games and prizes! Our Power Hour Release Party starts tomorrow night, March 17th at 9 PM Central time! You’ll find the party at the Flourishes’ Member Company Forum on SCS! And… after the party, you can check out the new sets live in the Flourishes store!
• Save a BUNDLE with Flourishes new release bundle! Purchase the entire release for 10% off! You can check it out HERE!
• Would you like to get your hands on our new sets NOW? Pre-order them HERE!

Now be sure to hop on over and see all the beautiful creations our design team and design guests whipped up using our breathtaking new set Lenten Rose...

Barbara Anders
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Danielle Kennedy
Dawn Burnworth
Leslie Miller
Stacy Morgan
Jan Marie Caruso

Tomorrow’s set also pays tribute to the kick off of Spring! If it is still snowing or chilly where you live, this set is bound to warm your heart and give you a dose of Spring Fever! See you back here tomorrow!

1,2,3, Create!

Hi all and happy Monday! I have a fun thing to share today! Flourishes is just unveiling something new designed to help make your creativity flow! Do you ever struggle to find just the right ingredients for card making? You love that ribbon but don’t know what paper will match? Or, you have the paper but don’t have embellishments? Well, Flourishes is taking out the guesswork with its brand new 1,2,3 Create Kits!

And, here's a peek at what's inside! This kit features 30 sheets of Brioche Memory Box paper (3 each of 10 designs), 12 Prima paper butterflies in 3 different sizes, 60 self stick rhinestones in shades of blue, 60 buttons in coordinating colors, 2 yards of cotton linen ribbon in turquoise, 1 yard of cotton crochet lace, and 1 yard of red sheer ruffle ribbon. All for just $18! These kits are in limited supply, so get them before they are gone!

For my creation, I started with a plan to paper piece and use up some of the different and fun patterns in this kit. I knew I didn't want to or need to mask my poppies from the Poppy Patch stamp set. So, get ready for something that looks kind of ugly to start! :-) I stamped all the poppy elements just overtop eachother right on one of the decorative papers! See?

I colored the stems with some Copic Markers (YG63 and G40) and paper pieced the leaves with the blue paper that had green accents.

The next step was paper piecing my red flowers. I took two of the patterns to give my flowers some variety..

And... here's a peek at the finished product! All items are in the kit (except for ink and stamps). I added a distressed embossed edge to my card base, did some sewing, added some buttons, a tag (Spellbinders Ribbon Trio Tag Die) and a sentiment from the Life Lines set.

You can check out the new kit HERE. And, don't forget to check out two of my fellow gals on the Flourishes DT -- Dawn and Leslie! They have kit creations today as well, so click on over and see what they've whipped up! See you back here soon! Flourishes' Sneak Peeks start Wednesday, so look for more fun!

Need a little challenge????

Hi all! TGIF! As Flourishes gets ready to unveil a new crop of stamps ripe for spring (sneak peeks start next Wednesday!), the Flourishes team is ushering in a Release Week Challenge that could have you walking away with it's entire March Release!

All you need to do is join us with.....

HOW TO PLAY:  To play, all you need to do is create and use a cut edge on your card-- it's just that simple! That means to use a die cut, a border punch, a corner punch or any type of decorative border! Let's see how you create a card that is a cut above the rest! You have until March 18th at 5 PM Eastern Standard Time to get your creations linked up on the inlinkz linky over on the Flourishes Blog HERE. If you upload to SCS, please use the keyword FLLCMAR11.

On to my creation!

You'd swear I was inspired by Limelight Designer Kelly Lunceford's card last weekend when you look at my card (click HERE to see Kelly's card) BUT, I swear, I made this card for this challenge a few weeks ago! I guess great minds think alike when it comes to those cute heart charms! ;-) My card is pretty easy peasy. I used some of the decorative paper from the Basic Grey Kraft, Marjolaine and Orgins Collections. I added a Bazzill paper strip (pre-done for you!). Add some brown seam binding, a fun heart charm, a few silver brads and the make up of the card is almost done! The circle and scalloped mat was done thanks to Spellbinders' Classic Circle Nestabilities Die and also the Blossom Die. I ran both through my new Grand Calibur machine!  After I ran my paper through and embossed it, I did use a sanding block on the blossom shape to reveal the paper's white core. The image is one of the vignettes in Flourishes' From the Garden set and was stamped on Flourishes Classic White paper. I colored it up with Copics and used the Cool Neutrals, Sunflower, Falling Leaves, and Spring Greens collections grouped by Flourishes.

And that, my friends, is it! Hope you make time to play... and if you need some added inspiration, just hop on over and see these fine ladies and all their creative eye candy!

Barbara Anders
Christine Okken
Cindy Lawrence
Dawn Burnworth
Leslie Miller
Stacy Morgan
Jan Marie Caruso

Have you been following Flourishes Gambler's Sale? Prices drop each week -- and all sale items are now at least 35% off! You can check it out HERE!


Thanks so much for stopping by! I'll see you all back here real soon! :-)

Bring Back Beautiful.... Go Neutral!

Hi all! It's the first Monday of the month, which means, it's time for another Bring Back Beautiful Challenge thanks to Flourishes! This one is being hosted by the lovely Beate Johns and her challenge to us was to go neutral! That's right - no real color, just shades of neutral colors like greys,browns, even black and white!

And so.... here's what I whipped up!


After stamping my daffodil from the A Year in Flowers 1 set on Flourishes Classic White, I colored it up with Copic markers in shades of brown and grey. I did add a touch of a grey green (YG91)and a wee bit of a neutral yellow (Y21) just to shade and it's funny, when you add just that touch and then add a bit of color with your paper -- it looks like a softened color. I also used the warm neutrals Copic has (W00, W01, W03, W05), and the browns I used were a mix of Flourishes Flesh Tones 1 Collection. After it was colored, I did cut my image out with Spellbinders Petite Ovals LG and then cut a mat with Spellbinders Petite Scalloped Ovals LG. Next came the fun part of matting and this below... the Grand Calibur was how I was able to create a fun shaped mat! I used this machine plus one of Spellbinders Grand Nestabilities Dies called Grand Labels One.

I love the fact that you can cut mats that are up to 8" wide! And, you can cut multiple shapes at once, which is nice.

After stitching along the side, I added a strip of embossed decorative paper from the BasicGrey Orgins pack that I had run through my Calibur with an embossing folder. I then lightly sanded the raised image. Add some crochet lace, some cotton linen ribbon, and a fun decorative brad and alsmost done! The sentiment is from of Flourishes new sets called Hello Hydrangea.

Here's a close up!
 

I have to say, if Beate hadn't have ushered in this challenge, I wouldn't have thought to color up an image this way. I love it though and can see myself doing this again! Want more info on the challenge? Click HERE. And, don't forget to hop on over and see what the other 'Beauty Gals' created!

Beate JohnsCindy Coutts
Heather Jensen
Kathy Jones
Yvonne Hagane
Laura Fredrickson

Thanks for stopping by and happy Monday!

I'm So BLUE.....

Hi folks! Happy Thursday! I hope your week shaped up well and that you're looking forward to the weekend. I know I am! ;-)

It's time for another Impression Obsession challenge and this one might have you feeling blue -- the color blue that is! To enter, all you need to to is use IO stamps and use the color blue, and you will be in the running to win a $25 gift certificate to the Impression Obsession store! Woo Hoo!

On to my creation....

For my creation -- pretty easy peasy. I used the stamp - Pansy Vase - using black ink and then colored it up using all blue Copic markers. I used B00, B000 and B000 for much of this. I also used a darker shade of blue but for the life of me, I can't remember which one. I think it was B34, which I then heavily blended in the floral areas. After I colored, I shaded using C00, C01, C03 and C05. I cut my shape out using Spellbinders new Grand Calibur and the Labels Ten die. While the die was still on my paper, I sponged some Memento Sky Blue around the edges. Add some cotton linen ribbon, a fun little brad and pearl, some stitching and some Brioche Memory Box paper... and done!

I hate to say, but I did have to create a sympathy card recently and so, inside, this is what you'll find... a With Sympathy sentiment.

You'll have to hop on over and see how "blue" the other gals on the IO DT are! Want more details on the challenge? Don't forget to click HERE!

Daniela
Deborah
Dina
Jeanne
Jenny
Laura
Shirley
Kathy

Thanks for stopping by everyone! See you back here soon!

It's a BIRTHDAY PARTY!!!

Does anyone want to sing a little Happy Birthday song with me? Today is my bloggin' buddy Tammy Hershberger's special day and a special day it is! I'm joining a few dozen amazing stampers to help roll out the red carpet for Tammy's birthday with a special kind of blog hop to wish her the best day ever! It's a  SURPRISE Birthday hop! If you came here from Frances Byrne's blog.... you're on the right track! If not, be sure to hop on back to Barbara Anders' blog and start from the beginning!

On to my creation!

I don't know this.... but when I think of Tammy, I think she's a reader. I hope I'm right because I kind of based my whole card on that thought! ;-) I thought, what would be so nice to do on a special day? Curl up with a good book and a little TLC like a bunch of fresh flowers and just Ahhhhhhh... relax! So, thus -- the image from Flourishes From the Desk of. After stamping it on Flourishes Classic White paper, I cut it out using Spellbinders Labels Seven. I thought this was fun since the shape reminds me of the open pages of a book! (I also used my new Grand Calibur to cut it out -- LOVE this new machine). I colored it up with Copics (RV32, RV34, RV00, RV02, B000, Y21, G82, G40) Add a fun little sentiment -- Dream Big (from the FLLC Enjoy the Ride set). Add a little fun and festive dp, some silk ribbon, some stitching and a fun little button and... almost done!

I also added some glitter glue to the centers of my flowers... see?

I should mention, for my card, I used one of the new March CardMaps that were just unveiled today! If you're looking for inspiration, you can check it out HERE! 10 new sketches with samples from ten designers (including moi!).

So, as I wrap up this post, I hope Tammy gets to kick up her feet and enjoy some down time! I'm so glad to have met this fine woman a few years ago and that we've been able to keep in touch! Tammy, you are one creative and funny gal and I hope you ahve the best birthday EVAH!!!!  And, now, please hop along to Betty Wright's blog as the celebration continues!