Free for All Friday!

Hi all and welcome to a Flourishes DT Free for All Friday! It's a time when the design team picks one of the newly released sets and.... creates! Today, I have a fun and super simple creation to share using the Trimmed with Love stamp set.

On to my creation!

Ok... this is confession time. I  literally used bits and pieces from my desk. Yep! I did! I had that beaded circle cut in half sitting on my desk. I have no idea what happened to the other half.  I had that sanded Blossom die shape stuck on my bulletin board. I had that little strip of Fa La La paper on my desk too. I had already colored the Joy to the World with the Fields and Poppy Copic Collections. I was going to make it into a tag but decided against it. So, with all these goodies that matched, I decided to use them all to make a quick and easy 4" square card. I grabbed some green May Arts wrinkled ribbon, some ivory lace trim, some gold cording and then accented my main image with some glitter glue. (See links below for all products used!). I added some stitching and attached my main image with foam tape and... ta da! 

Here's a close up! I will say, if you look at the Trimmed with Love stamp set, you'll see the words A Gift For You in the center of this mistletoe wreath. Well, to put the Joy to the World wording in, I carefully inked my wreath, stamped and then stamped these words in the center instead! 

And that, my friends is it -- a "What's on Your Desk" kind of challenge to myself to use bits and pieces that really didn't have a "home" yet! :-)

Just a little note for you....  TODAY is the very last day to take advantage of the September New Release Bundle — when you can get all four sets for 10% off the retail price. Just click HERE to see the bundle in the store! Also....

This just in! The paper version of the brand new Flourishes Christmas catalog is... HERE! This offers and vivid and vibrant look at not only the currently released Flourishes Christmas stamps but gives you a sneak peek at stamp sets that will be released in the months to come! There are other secrets packed inside as well! Need some ideas for the gift giving season, well we even put in three tutorials that are perfect for the holidays! This.. and more than 20 samples to inspire... all for just $8.

Want to see what the other Flourishes Designers whipped up this week? Click on over and see.....

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Danielle Kennedy

Heather Jensen

Sharon Doolittle

Silke Ledlow

Stacy Morgan

Tammy Hershberger

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

SUPPLIES USED:

InLinkz.com

Inspired by Nature!

Hi all and happy Thursday! It's time for another Impression Obsession Challenge and this one is inspired by nature! Just that simple -- grab your IO stamps and create with nature in mind! You can click HERE for all the details over on the IO Stamps Blog! 

On to my creation! I have to tell you, I have been having a blast with some of IO's solid stamps and matching dies!

And... that's why I grabbed a few of those solid stamps, and a few Cover-A -Card backgrounds for a quick and easy creation! I stamped the Large Solid Leaf Stem in two shades of green (Pistachio and New Sprout Memento). I stamped the Dare to Dream sentiment on the bottom of my main panel with Rich Cocoa Ink and then... the fun began! I inked up the butterfly (Solid Frilly Butterfly Pair) with Teal Zeal Memento and while the ink was still wet, I stamped on the back of my stamp with THIS Cover-A-Card stamp called Lg.Paisley. So, when I stamped, you can see a faint impression left behind by the paisley backgrounder. See?

You can also see that I added a wood grain background -- Cover-A-Card Wood Grain -- on the base of my card for a little extra pop. Add some ribbon, and a button with some twine and almost done! I added a punched border below my main panel and... ta da! I think that this is truly a 10 to 15-minute card. An easy peasy creation that you could make in a jiffy and pop in the mail! 

Want to see what some of the other IO gals whipped up for this Nature Inspired Challenge? Click on over to see...

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

Thanks so much for stopping by -- hope you make time to create and find a little inspiration in nature! :-) See you back here soon!

Flourishes' New Release is HERE!

Hi all! I hope you’ve enjoyed this week’s Flourishes sneak peeks with a Christmas flair and guess what? All of the stamp sets that the design team has been showing off this week are in the Flourishes Store HERE! On to today’s last stamp set to  be unveiled! It is truly an elegant way to send holiday wishes!  

Wonderful words surrounded by flourishy swirls create an elegant and contemporary look to send Christmas wishes. This set called Peace and Joy,  illustrated by Becky Fleck offers two main images plus two accent stamps to create just the most unique holiday creations. What's more fun? You can find the coordinating Silhouette Cameo cut file HERE for perfectly cut swirls! And.. some EXCITING NEWS about cut files! For those of you that have other digital cutting machines, Flourishes now has these files in an SVG format - just for you! Just click HERE to visit these files in the Flourishes store!

On to my creation!

I used a mix of decorative papers from my scrap bin to start, matting it all on some pearl paper for a little extra shimmer. I stamped my main image on Flourishes Classic White with Tuxedo Black Memento ink and then, colored up my image using Copic markers (see supplies list below for colors used!). After I was done, I did add some pizazz with a clear glitter pen. Add some sheer scalloped ribbon, a trinket pin and some silver cording and... almost done! I should point out the die cut is an oldie but goodie called Mega Scalloped Rectangle from Spellbinders. And that... my friends.. is it! ;-)

Here's a close up so you can see a bit of that sparkle...

 Would you like to win our new Peace and Joy stamp set? All you need to do is guess...

 

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! So what are you waiting for? Head on over and see…..

• Cindy Lawrence
• Christine Okken
• Danielle Kennedy
• Heather Jensen
• Julie Koerber
• Silke Ledlow
• Sharon Doolittle
• Stacy Morgan
• Tammy Hershberger

And.. don't forget, there are a trio of ways to win this release. Just click HERE to today's Flourishes post to read up. Challenges close today at 5PM EST! 

If you don't win, you can still be a winner in savings with our special, limited time offer called our New Release Bundle!  10% off the retail price of this release if you purchase all five in a bundle!

And last, but certainly not least -- Starting now, you can download our BRAND NEW 2012 Christmas Catalog! We will have printed copies that you can order starting next week, but if you prefer a digital copy, you're in luck! For just $5 you can purchase a downloadable PDF with 20 full color pages packed with not only all of our Christmas stamp sets but samples and a handful of tutorials that are perfect for gift giving!

   

Just click HERE to visit our catalog in the Flourishes store! I hope you have had a blast with me this week, getting into the Christmas spirit a wee bit early. But just think, with all this inspiration floating around, don't you want to get a jump start on your Christmas cards for this year? :-)

See you back here soon!  

SUPPLIES USED:

InLinkz.com

Wild and Wonderful Noon-Time Challenge!

Are you ready for a fun challenge with a little Howdy and Yeehaw thrown in? Flourishes is kicking off this fun-filled, fast-paced challenge challenge at high noon. It's one more chance to win their entire September release. Get ready for the.......

   

HOW TO PLAY: For this noon challenge, your card just has to be a little on the rugged side. Use faux leather, "lasso" in some fun trim or give your creation a distressed look -- you choose. Just make sure your card is worthy of the wild west! Upload to SCS? Use the keyword FLLCSEPTRW2 and don’t forget to link up your creation HERE over on the Flourishes Blog using the Inlinkz widget!

Need a little inspiration? I created a card that reminded me a wee bit of the rugged west using Flourishes' new stamp set called Cowboy Christmas!

I stamped on Flourishes Classic White using Memento Tuxedo Black and then let the fun begin coloring it up with Copic markers! (See supplies below for details on which color collections I used). I added a mix of decorative paper from the Glitz Happy Travels, Authentique Genuine, Jillibean Soup and My Mind's Eye Fiddlesticks collections. Add some stitching, some twine and a fun western style brad and..... ta da! I love this set because being from Montana where cowboys are everywhere, it's nice to have this kind of set for Christmas creations!

Here's a closeup!

And, here's a closer look at the fun sentiment!

And that, my friends, is it! While you’re hopping, be sure to check out these fine ladies' creations as well!

• Danielle Kennedy
• Heather Jensen
• Julie Koerber -- you are here! 
• Sharon Doolittle
• Tammy Hershberger
• Denise Marzec
• Cindy Haffner

  The OFFICIAL Rules…..

• Simply create a wild West inspired creation!
• Entries need to be in by Friday, September 14 by 5 PM EST
• Those that use Flourishes stamps will be counted twice for their entry
• You must link your creation on this post using our inlinkz widget in order to qualify
• You must have a link to our challenge in your blog or gallery post
• Please DO NOT combine challenges.
• If you upload to SCS, please use the keyword FLLCSEPTRW2
• We’ll announce the winners Saturday in our Winner’s Circle Post – check back Saturday at noon CST to see if you’re one of the lucky winners!

I’ll see you back here tomorrow as Flourishes unveils one final set that is a truly elegant way to usher in the holiday! All of the stamp sets being sneak peeked this week will be in the Flourishes store first thing tomorrow morning and the design team will have news of another fun addition to Flourishes that you will want to check out! See you back here then!


 SUPPLIES USED:

InLinkz.com