Joy on a Chalkboard

It’s Flourishes Free for All Friday and for my card today I decided to try something new.  I saw a link recently to some darling cards using the Chalkboard Technique on Betsy Veldman’s blog and definitely wanted to give this a try.  So here’s my take on it using the Peace & Joy stamp set…

I’m LOVIN’ how this looks… definitely need to try it more often!  For this, I just stamped the image on black cardstock using Versamark ink, then embossed with white embossing powder.  Then I inked the stamp again using a white pigment ink and stamped again, shifting just so slightly to give it a blurred look.  After the pigment ink dried (maybe hit it with your heat gun again to ensure complete drying time, but don’t do so much to reactivate the embossing!) I used a Ranger Ink Blending Tool and Blending Foam to sponge more of the white ink around the edges to give it that dusty, chalky look.  (I kid you not, I felt like I had chalk dust on my fingers as I worked on this!)  I embellished with some Color Made Easy buttons from the Poppy and Pistachio Light collections, some Basque Red seam binding, and a Vintage Kraft Flag Pin stamped with a sentiment from the Trimmed with Love stamp set.  (The papers I used are from the Authentique “Festive” 6x6 pad.)
For some more Friday Free for All inspiration, be sure to visit…

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

Thanks for stopping by today!  Happy stamping!

Christmas Candles

Hello everyone!  I wanted to quickly share with you today this Flourishes Christmas card I actually made last year.  This card was one that was included in my Splitcoaststampers Dirty Dozen gallery, and so therefore I’ve never shared it here on my blog and thought now would be a good time!
This card uses the beautiful Christmas Candles stamp set which I stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black ink on Flourishes Classic Ivory cardstock.  I die cut the image with a Nestabilities Petite Oval (I think they don’t make this die anymore, and I don’t know why… it’s always been one of my go-to dies…) and sponged inside the die with some Antique Linen ink.  The candles were colored with Copics from the Poppy, Pistachio, Iced Aqua, Sunflower and Tonal Neutral collections (shown below).  I added some bling with a gray pearl flourish and a glittery glow around the candles, and this rich burgundy ribbon.  These papers are an old Basic Grey collection that I can’t remember the name of… maybe Figgy Pudding?


Hope you’re getting into the Spirit of the season!  Happy stamping!

Color Throwdown #220

Wanda is our Color Throwdown hostess this week with this fabulous color combo… you could go all Christmas-y with this, or do something completely different, the option is yours!  Have fun and join us!
My card uses one of my most favorite Pure Innocence images…I just love this sweet scene from the Sending You a Little Christmas stamp set from My Favorite Things.  The papers I used here are My Mind’s Eye called Winter Wonderland, and my image is colored with Copic markers.  I used Die-Namics from MFT including the Fishtail Flags STAX and the Small Scallop Border.

I embellished the image by adding some Polar White Flower Soft to the hat and boots, and then the whole card is spritzed with Perfect Pearls for extra shimmer.

Check out the creations from my Throwdown sisters for more inspiration with these colors…

Barbara Anders
Broni Holcombe
Denise Marzec
Joan Ervin
Kerri Michaud
Lori Tecler
Lynn Put
Wanda Cullen
Lynn Mercurio, November Guest Designer
Thanks for stopping by, and happy stamping!

So Polished

I had some time last week to play around with some more Lily Bee Designs papers that I got from the eclectic Paperie store.  These papers come from the Persnickety 6x6 paper pad, and because I love nothing more than orange and pink together, they’re my favorites!  I paired them up with this not-yet-inked a ‘la modes stamp from My Favorite Things called Polished to Perfection.  The image is colored with Copics from the eP store, and I embellished with some black twill ribbon, Soft Pink Kaisercraft rhinestones, and a Berrylicious button.

On the nail polish bottle, I used a little Glossy Accents for added detail…

That’s all for today…. happy stamping!

Holiday Hugs

I made some time last week to play along with the sketch challenge last week from My Favorite Things using some supplies from the eclectic Paperie store.

I used papers from the new Lily Bee Designs Christmas Cheer 6x6 paper pad, and the Holiday Hugs Snowman from MFT, along with the Rounded Banner STAX, Fishtail Flags STAX, Small Scallop Border, and Let It Snowflake Die-Namics dies.  I stamped my image with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and colored with Copic markers from the eP store, and embellished my with a few buttons, some Maraschino Red twine, and some silver Kaisercraft rhinestones.

And here’s a little close-up of my uber glittery snowflake…



Sending YOU holiday hugs, and many thanks for stopping by today!

You’re the Best

It’s Flourishes Friday, so today you’ll find the Design Team focusing on stamp sets from our recent new release.  AND if you hop on over to the Flourishes blog, you’ll also find some great sales going on today… the Black Friday Sale and the Gambler’s Sale where there are some deeply discounted products just waiting for YOU!

For my card, I used two of the new sets… Inside and Out-Just Because and the Bloomin’ Aussie Florals.   I stamped the Sturt’s Desert Rose with Memento Gray Flannel ink and just lightly colored with the R00 Copic from the Sweet Pea collection and G40 from the Pistachio collection.  The papers I used here are from the November 123 Create Kit (Echo Park’s For the Record 2) and I cut out my rose image with one of the newly released dies, the Perfectly Pierced Victorian Ovals.  I embellished with a button from the Color Made Easy Poppy button collection, and some blush Kaisercraft pearls.

For more inspiration using the newly released sets, please be sure to stop and see…

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

NOW, don’t forget the Black Friday sale going on… visit HERE for more information on this great sale!  And the Gambler’s Sale still going on with items marked down 30%!  Check out the sale page HERE!

 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!  Thanks for stopping by today!

Color Throwdown #219

Hello there!  It’s time for Color Throwdown #219, and this week it’s my turn to host the challenge.  I guess I’m just partial to aqua blue… I seem to pick color combos with it a lot!  I hope you’ll like this challenge, too.  Stop by the CTD blog for all the challenge info and play along with us.

I have no clue where the idea came from, but the notion for this card popped into my head earlier this week so I gave it a try.  I pulled out my fabulous By the Letter Die-Namics die for the letters and ran them through my Xyron for adhesive then dumped on some ultrafine glitter.  The Christmas tree is from the Silhouette online store, and I sponged the edges of it with some Peeled Paint ink and wrapped some silver thread around it for garland.  I also used my Rounded Banner STAX Die-Namics and the Small Scallop Border on my card.  The white snowflake-embossed piece is spritzed with some Perfect Pearls for added sparkle, but darn if I couldn’t get that to show up in the photo!  :)

Check out the creations from my Throwdown sisters for more inspiration with these colors…
Barbara Anders
Broni Holcombe
Denise Marzec
Joan Ervin
Kerri Michaud
Lori Tecler
Lynn Put
Wanda Cullen
Lynn Mercurio, November Guest Designer

Thanks for stopping by!  Happy stamping!

Flourishes New Release is Here

Hi all! We sincerely hope you’ve enjoyed all the sneak peeks this week! Today, we get to take the lid off the entire release AND share some fun things that are also in the Flourishes store as well! Are you ready? We are so excited we can hardly stand it! For starters — all the stamp sets that we have shown off this week are now in the Flourishes store HERE! Remember, you can take advantage too of the New Release Bundle and save 10% when you purchase all four sets in a bundle! And.. if you are looking for some great sale items… HAVE YOU SEEN OUR GAMBLER’S SALE? All items on our sale page dropped another 5% — they are now 25% off! Click HERE to see the savings!
Today, all the designers are showing off a set that was inspired by the Land Down Under! Yes, Flourishes Fans — we are talking about Australia! Our own Kathy Jones, who hails from Australia,  helped develop this set concept, which has two beautiful botanicals as the  centerpiece of the set! We also have heard from many folks (Australians and Canadians alike) that they wish we offered a set that spelled greetings an a way that they were accustomed to – words like “colour,” “favourite,” “neighbour,” and more! So, we put our thinking caps on and today, we introduce you to….

Take a trip to the land “Down Under” to see a pair of beautiful botanicals alive in this island continent. In this set called Bloomin’ Aussie Florals, Artist Marcella Hawley brings the Golden Wattle and Sturt’s Desert Rose to life with these illustrations and pairs them with true Aussie sentiments!
And…. to serve as the perfect partner to this set we offer….

A Silhouette Cameo Cut File to coordinate with this set! You’ll find the new file HERE. And, if you click HERE, you will see the file in an .SVG format, to make it compatible with other digital cutting machines! We also have a cut file for the set we peeked yesterday called Stitched for You. You’ll find the Silhouette file HERE and the SVG file HERE! Fun stuff!
You might think that this is the end of the excitement, but NO! We have more! Fresh off the manufacturing line comes a whole new line of custom dies! These aren’t just any shapes. They are special! Why? Because in addition to being nested template dies custom created by Spellbinders Paper Arts exclusively for Flourishes, these dies all offer pierced accents! Say goodbye to piercing templates – these dies do it for you in one step! They are all a part of the Perfectly Pierced Collection! And, here’s a peek!

Perfectly Pierced Classic Windows

Perfectly Pierced Victorian Ovals

Perfectly Pierced Classic Hourglass

   

Perfectly Pierced Classic Frames

You’ll see our designers using these dies in their posts today – what fun! I know we’ll get asked if stamp sets are on the way to coordinate with these beauties and the answer is undoubtedly – YES! We just knew that you didn’t need a coordinating stamp set to use these dies and so, we wanted YOU to enjoy them NOW!

And now, for my card today I have used the beautiful Sturt’s Desert Rose from the new stamp set, cutting out the image with the Silhouette cut file on Flourishes Classic Ivory cardstock and stamping with Memento Tuxedo Black ink.

My roses are colored with Copics from the Lenten Rose and Pistachio collections.  I matted my image with the new Perfectly Pierced Classic Hourglass die behind it, and used papers on my card from the Echo Park “Graceful” paper pad.  I accented with some seam binding, chocolate Kaisercraft pearls, and a Color Made Easy button on the tag (from the Poppy collection.)
So, do you want to win some goodies or what? We’ll have not one, not two, not three, not four but FIVE ways to win today. All you need to do is figure out…

And guess what — today there will be FIVE mystery bloggers! So, the more love you leave in the form of a comment on these blogs below, the better your chances of winning!! We’ll be giving away today’s set – Bloomin’ Aussie Florals plus we’ll be giving away one each of our four new die sets! So get hopping and amp up your chance to WIN!

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

We’ll see you back at the Flourishes blog
tomorrow when we announce all the winners! We have the Be Progressive Challenge that closes today at 5PM EST -- still time to enter to win our entire new release! Plus, we have our daily mystery bloggers. Be sure to check back to see if your name lands in the Winner’s Circle! Thanks for stopping by this week and joining us for all the fun!
Happy Stamping!

Flourishes New Release Day Three

Hi all, and welcome to the third day of Flourishes’ fabulous November Release Sneak Peeks! Today, we take you to a far away place with picturesque scenery, a glass of wine and some fresh picked figs for the tasting. Are you ready for a picnic in Florence? Well we are! Take a sneak peek at this lush new set!

From the rich Italian landscape host to Cypress trees and sunflowers to a table set with wine and figs, this set called Dreaming of Florence is sure to add a dreamy feel to your cards or creations. This 4 by 6″ set illustrated by Marcella Hawley even offers a handful of beautiful, all occasion sentiments.
My card today uses this beautiful new set, along with a sneak peek of a new die that you’ll hear more about tomorrow!

I colored this beautiful image with a huge variety of Copics from the Flourishes collections on Flourishes Classic Ivory cardstock.  I used one of the new dies (that you’ll see in full glory tomorrow!) to cut a piece of eggplant cardstock for a mat.  Then I used the die as a stencil, placed it over my stamped image, traced inside the die and then cut it out to achieve this layering.  My cardstock and paper edges are all distressed and inked with Antique Linen ink, and I used a Labels 8 Nestabilities die to create the bracket at the bottom of my card.  The sentiment is also from the new stamp set, and I have it matted on a piece of eggplant cardstock cut out with the Tailor-Made Classic Tags die.
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 who is the…

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? Let’s take a trip to see what these ladies crafted with this serene set — you don’t even need a passport!

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

DID YOU KNOW YOU COULD WIN OUR ENTIRE NOVEMBER RELEASE? Have you checked out our Be Progressive Challenge? Just click HERE to find out how to play– there are four ways to win! Play along in this week’s Timeless Tuesday challenge  and that’s another way to win! Play along in the Be Progressive Challenges before this Friday at 5 PM EST and winners will be announced Saturday in our Winner’s Circle blog post! (You have until Monday at 6PM EST for the Timeless Tuesday challenge!)  So get those fingers inky and good luck!
If you like what you see on our designers’ blogs today, you can pre-order this set (along with the other three sets as well) and if you purchase all four sets, you can take advantage our New Release Bundle and get 10% off all our new sets when you purchase it in the bundle. What fun! All sets will be live first thing Friday morning along with another special surprise! So, be sure to stick with us this week as we unveil a whole new host of paper crafting goodies!
We’ll see you back here tomorrow for another new release sneak peek! This one will have you taking yet another trip to a far away place to witness some beautiful botanicals! Come back tomorrow and see what fun we’ve dreamed up! See you then!

Flourishes New Release Day Two

Hi all, and welcome to day 2 of Flourishes’ fabulous November Release Sneak Peeks! Today, we have a cozy offering that is sure to warm the hearts of those who receive creations made from this set!  It’s one full of images to help you tell that special someone that you’ve stitched up something for them with love! Want to take a peek?

Whether you knit, sew or quilt, this set called Stitched For You is perfect for those hand-stitched gifts or home-spun cards and creations! Illustrated by Marcella Hawley, this set features 3 main images plus a handful of mix and match sentiments perfect for all occasion cards and gifts!
For my sneak peeks today, I created a set of tags for a dear friend.  Fran is a lady I work with… I’ve known her since I started my job back in February and have come to absolutely adore her.  About 6-7 months ago, she took up knitting as a hobby and loves it very much… so much so that I’ve even worked some half days for her so she can go to a knitting group meeting at her church!  Fran recently announced her retirement, and I know that means she’s going to be knitting even more in her days of leisure coming up so I made this little set of tags for her to attach to her hand-knitted gifts.

Each tag was made using the Labels 11 Nestabilities die.  I used the new Stitched for You Silhouette cut file with Flourishes Classic Ivory cardstock,
and stamped each image to match my cardstock with Ranger Distress Inks in Spiced Marmalade, Wild Honey, Worn Lipstick, Tumbled Glass and Peeled Paint, plus Memento Rich Cocoa.  And I used the wonderful new Color Made Easy system buttons on the top of each tag for a little embellishment.

On the back of each tag I added some sentiments from the set with room for Fran to write a greeting.
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 who is the…

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 to see all the fun-filled way our designers have stitched up some fun!

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

As you make the rounds, you’ll also see that some of the gals are using Flourishes’ newest 123 Create Kit called For The Record! It’s a colorful kit with so many creative possibilities!

This kit features a 6x6 Echo Park paper pad called For the Record, 4 quilting, sewing and knitting inspired charms, 2 yards of measuring tape twill ribbon, 3 yards of coordinating green seam binding style ribbon, 2 yards of red looped grosgrain ribbon, and 12 floral and button stick pins. All this for just $18!
DID YOU KNOW YOU COULD WIN OUR ENTIRE NOVEMBER RELEASE? Have you checked out our Be Progressive Challenge? Just click HERE to find out how to play– there are four ways to win! Play along in this week’s Timeless Tuesday challenge  and that’s another way to win! Play along in the Be Progressive Challenges before this Friday at 5 PM EST and winners will be announced Saturday in our Winner’s Circle blog post! (You have until Monday at 6PM EST for the Timeless Tuesday challenge!)  So get those fingers inky and good luck!
The good news? If you like what you see on our designers’ blogs today, you can pre-order this set (along with the other three sets as well) and if you purchase all four sets, you can take advantage our New Release Bundle and get 10% off all our new sets when you purchase it in the bundle. What fun! All sets will be live first thing Friday morning along with another special surprise! So, be sure to stick with us this week as we unveil a whole new host of paper crafting goodies!
We’ll see you back here tomorrow for another new release sneak peek! This one will have you dreaming of far away places! Yes, that was your hint! See you then!