Viva la Verve

July came and went and I simply couldn't get the Viva la Verve challenges completed. This month, Amber is using master bedrooms for our inspiration and the first room she chose really wowed me! I created my own plaid panel using a BG stamp. The floral panel is stamped with the new Cherry Cobbler ink from SU and it's a gorgeous red! My card turned out to be busier than I wanted, but guess it's a reflection of my real life - lol!
STAMPS: Believe (Verve) - sentiment; Meditations (Verve) - flower; Love's Flower (Verve) - leafy image; Bountiful Backgrounds (Verve) - plaid
PAPER: Cherry Cobbler, White, Old Olive
INK: Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive
ACCESSORIES: Satin ribbon, Brad, MS frond punch, Dimensionals

Curtain Call Act 40

Stacey's Curtain Call Challenge for this week is to use Tempting Turquoise, Kiwi Kiss, Real Red, & Black. I struggled to know what to do with red and turquoise together, but found this DP that helped jump start my mojo. The flower is a PTI Blossoms II die with the center from an unknown source - just something I've had in my stash for years. The black BG was embossed then sanded to let a bit of the core color come through. Thanks for stopping by...I'm waiting for the furniture people to deliver my new dining room goodies now that the room is painted.

STAMPS: Big Wish by Verve
PAPER: Urban Prairie (BasicGrey), Tempting Turquoise, Kiwi Kiss, White
ACCESSORIES: Blossoms II die (PTI), 2-step bird punch (SU), MS Optic Dot border punch,
Oval cutter (CM), CB, Victoria EF, Sandpaper

CTD103 & SC

If you haven't signed up to follow the Color Throwdown group on Facebook...you really must check it out! They are sneak peekin' the colors for Wednesday on Tuesday evening on FB. This week it's River Rock, Riding Hood Red & Certainly Celery. Roxie had her sketch challenge posted early on SCS, so this was perfect for me to combine the 2 challenges when I got home from work at 11 p.m. I used a new PTI set that I just love; it has so many different possibilities - it's like flower arranging on paper! I flipped the sketch to fit my images better. Haven't used dew drops in months and have used them on 2 cards already today. :-) The sentiment is a new Plain Jane from Verve...don't ya just love the font?!
STAMPS: Life (PTI), Plain Jane (Verve)
PAPER: Riding Hood Red, Certainly Celery, River Rock, Neenah Solar white
INK: Riding Hood Red, Certainly Celery, River Rock
ACCESSORIES: Cuttlebug border EF, Dew Drops, Scallop border punch (SU), Fancy Labels die by Spellbinders, Dimensionals

Mercy...it's a Color Challenge!

I used Mercy Kerin's sketch for the layout and used Betty Wright's Color Challenge on SCS (Daffodil Delight, Crushed Concord, Pear Pizazz) to create this baby card. The crushed concord BG was CB'd using the Square Lattice EF - love this new texture! The bear and the sentiment were stamped in Elegant Eggplant since I don't own the new ink pads. I used Copic marker BV04 to color in the sentiment and edged the bear with Copic marker Y21. The dessert option for the CC was to use dew drops. I had forgotten about them and was glad to dust them off and use them again.
STAMPS: Baby Button Bits (PTI)
PAPER: Crushed Concord, Pear Pizazz, White, Greenhouse Gala DP by SU
INK: Elegant Eggplant
ACCESSORIES: Clear Dew Drops, Vintage buttons, CB, Square Lattice EF, Dimensionals

Little Sweet Pea

It's another Monday, so that means it's Mojo Monday sketch challenge time. This was a fun one to use with an image from a PTI set that I just ordered...love the button bits images...they're just so cute!
STAMPS: Baby Button Bits (PTI), Accent Notes (Verve) - used tiny accent stamp on sentiment tag
PAPER: SU DP (retired - unsure of name since it was given to me by a friend), Sahara Sand, So Saffron, Certainly Celery
INK: Certainly Celery
ACCESSORIES: CB, Fancy Tags die, Kaiser pearls, Piercing tool/template, ribbon (SU), Vintage buttons (PTI)

Happy Birthday, Dear Julee!

If you're arriving here from Mercy's blog, then you're right on track for the birthday hop...if you stopped by randomly, then you'll want to head over to the Verve blog for the master list which starts with Amber Hight.
I was thrilled when Amber asked me to join in the birthday blog hop for Julee! Now I'll have to tell you, the thought of creating in the company of the awesome divas was a little intimidating, but I'm such a big fan of Verve that there was no way I was going to say no. I decided to go with a tent topper card which fits into a standard A-2 envelope. The flower was colored with Copics, cut out and popped with dimensionals. It's one of my fave flowers from Julee's designs and I love the flourish in the BG that mimics the DP design.
STAMPS: Feel the Sun (flower), Big Wish (sentiment), Blessings (flourish) - all by Verve
PAPER: Bayberry Cottage (pinkpaislee), Vintage Cream, Black, Neenah Solar White
INK: Versafine Onyx Black, Memento Tuxedo Black
ACCESSORIES: CB, Nestabilities dies, Fancy Tags die by Spellbinders, Satin ribbon, Oval punches (SU), Copics
From here, you'll want to hop to Amy Sheffer's blog to see the fantabulous card she has created!
Julee, I'll leave you with some birthday advice from Lucille Ball - "The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age." :-)

Last but not Least

This card finishes up the 33 DTGD challenges! This is my first year to participate and though it was fun...it kept me hopping! Now I can try to comment on other cards instead of creating all the time. This is for Floral, Feminine & Flirty by Edna15 and for Birthdays: All Shapes & Sizes by tiffguam.
STAMPS: Express Yourself by Verve; Birthday Wishes Plain Jane by Verve (I only used the sentiment portion of the image)
PAPER: Bella Rose DP (SU)
INK: Versafine Onyx Black
ACCESSORIES: CB, Top note die (SU), Satin ribbon (SU)

3 DTGD in 1

What a hot, uncomfortable day to go shopping! Couldn't wait to get home in my cool stamping room. This card is for 3 of the DTGD challenges on SCS:
How does Your Garden Grow by melmel
Sketch by tayloredexpressions
Orange you Wonderful by joanervin
I knew right away I wanted to use some new SU DP for the BG. The image was colored with Copics, cut out & popped with dimensionals. Hope you like it...thanks for stopping by...

STAMPS: Delightful Dahlia (PTI)
PAPER: Greenhouse Gala (SU)
INK: Memento Tuxedo Black
ACCESSORIES: Rhinestones, Ribbon, Charm, CB, Nesties, Diamond Stickles

Rural Sketch

Two more challenges done for the DTGD week at SCS!
Keepin' It Rural by SweetMissDaisy - be inspired by rural living
Sketch by AmberDawn
When I was growing up in a rural town in Ohio, my parents always had a vegetable garden and we canned and froze many different fruits and veggies. Beside the garden was a huge tree that had a tire swing in it and I spent many hours of play on that swing! I had to tweak the circle and rectangle a bit to make my elements fit together. TGIF and I have a day off! It's going to be a hot one again...stay cool all my blogger friends!

STAMPS: In the Park (Taylored Expressions)
PAPER: Garden Variety (Cosmo Cricket), Real Red
ACCESSORIES: MS Floral Band border punch, ribbon, button, Copics, CB, Nesties

Winter Color on Color

This card is for 2 more DTGD challenges:
Winter Wonderland by BevMom02 - make a winter themed card
Color on Color by KimHughes - CAS w/out DP & only minimal embellishments
The snowflakes were stamped with Pacific Point ink on Pacific Point CS. The image is an old fave - colored with Copics and Dazzling Diamonds added.
STAMPS: Just for Fun (SU), Snowflakes (SU)

Anything But Average plus Sketch

Two more DTGD challenges done:
Sketch by justwrightdesigns02
Anything but Average by kmahany
I went with a 5 1/4 inch square card using DP from the beautiful Lilac Avenue Collection by Kaisercraft. I wasn't happy with the results...especially after I stamped the sentiment crooked and didn't have time to redo it! :-( I did enjoy playing with my new Baby Button Bits stamp set from PTI. I'm rejoicing because the man we hired to remove my dining room wallpaper is almost finished! Woohoo! Then the next stamp is calling the painter. Off to work I soon must go...

STAMPS: Baby Button Bits (PTI), One Person (Verve) - sentiment
ACCESSORIES: Kaiser pearls, Small flower punch (SU), Vintage button, Zva crystal flourish, CB, Nesties

Treats for all Seasons

LodiChick challenged us on to make a treat gift for any reason/season on another DTGD challenge. I love this easy bucket purse template that can be downloaded HERE. Some minimal scoring and cutting and you have a cute gift 'basket' for so many occasions. I filled mine with Lifesaver candies and attached the Verve sentiment on a tag.
STAMPS: Sweet on You (Verve), Hand-painted Petites (SU)
PAPER: Sweet Pea DP (SU), New Leaf (PTI)
INK: Versafine Onyx Black
ACCESSORIES: Basket template, Sizzix leaves die, Prima, Oval Nesties, Satin ribbon (PTI), Gold thread, CB

Alter Ego

This DTGD challenge by debbiedee is to alter an item around your house. I bought this package of 10 Thank You cards awhile back at Target. I loved the bright, summery colors and thought I'd add embellishments one day to perk them even more. This challenge was just the push I needed to accomplish that goal. I used a variety of primas, hand-crocheted flowers, and die cut flowers. So... it's off to bed I go...will be getting up early in the morning to welcome the man who will remove my dining room wallpaper. Good night!

Dies, Punches & Stitches

Another card using 2 DTGD challenges:
All Stitched Up by debdeb
Dies and Punches by cindy_haffner
I generally zigzag when I sew on paper, but wanted to try my hand at the drunken stitch...well...that's not the official name for it, but with the weaving lines...you get the idea! I used a scallop border punch and Nestie dies, so that checks off 2 more challenges for this week. 20 done...13 to go!
STAMPS: One Person (Verve), Plain Jane Psalm 46:10 (Verve)
PAPER: Capella DP (BasicGrey), Black, White
INK: Versafine Onyx Black, Memento Tuxedo Black, Old Olive
ACCESSORIES: CB, Nesties, SU scallop border punch, Copics, Vintage buttons, Janome, Sakura Gelly Roll pen (Clear Star)

CTD102 - Lighthouse

This is the first time I'm inking up a new stamp of the Cape Hatteras lighthouse...one I found while vacationing in the Outer Banks. I colored it with Copics and added this great verse from Verve. The colors are for this week's Color Throwdown challenge: Wild Wasabi, Not Quite Navy & Marina Mist. I haven't received my new SU CS yet, so subbed Baha Breeze instead. Thanks for stopping by and leaving your comments...

STAMPS: Impression Obsession (lighthouse), Plain Jane by Verve (Psalm 3:3)
PAPER: Wild Wasabi, Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze, Neenah Solar White
INK: Memento Tuxedo Black
ACCESSORIES: Corner chomper, Gold cording, Copics

DTGD Again!

I squeezed in another DTGD challenge before heading to work...this DVD sleeve is easy to make and serves as pretty packaging - Toy's challenge for DTGD. I used movie ticket DP by Tim Holtz and because the wrap covers a movie, it qualifies for Suzanne Dean's DTGD 'At the Movies' challenge as well. The shabby flower was created from wide twill tape (for directions, see the link in my side bar to Jenni's tutorial).
STAMPS: Vintage Labels (SU) - tag
PAPER: Tim Holtz Paper Stash Lost & Found
INK: Tim Holtz Distress Ink (Tea Dye)
ACCESSORIES: MS Optic Dot punch, Top note die (SU), Button, Twill tape, tag die



I combined 2 of the Dare to Get Dirty Challenges with Betty's Color Challenge on SCS:
Passionate for Pattern by notimetostamp - use 2 to 3 different patterned papers
Sketch by leighobrien
Colors - Regal Rose, Old Olive Peach Parfait

I'll have to admit I cringe when I combine pinks/reds with orange but found BasicGrey's Green at Heart pad saved the day! If you haven't already, join in the fun this week and dare to get dirty, too! You need to be a fan club member, but that's easy to do and so worth it to join! Look for details HERE.

STAMPS: Blooming Button Bits (PTI), Vintage Labels (SU) - sentiment
PAPER: Green at Heart DP (BasicGrey), White
INK: Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie
ACCESSORIES: CB, Nesties, Tag die, MS Butterfly sticker, Vintage buttons (PTI), Ribbon, Scallop border punch (SU)

Curtain Call 39 & Mojo Monday

Loved the earthy Curtain Call colors this week: Kraft, White, Certainly Celery, & Wild Wasabi. I used Julee Tilman's Mojo Monday sketch for the layout and wanted to play in her monthly set challenge: Petals & Stems. I was so excited to find the post last evening that I had won last month's set challenge using the Seeing Stars set...woohoo...$30 GC to spend on more Verve! Ahh...I'm digressing...back to the mojo card...I subbed sahara sand for kraft since I had DP in that color. I added Crystal Effects to the flower centers & otherwise, my card is pretty self-explanatory.
STAMPS: Petals & Stems Verve), One Person (Verve) - flourishes.
PAPER: Prints Packs DP by SU, Certainly Celery, Wild Wasabi, Sahara Sanda
INK: Certainly Celery, Wild Wasabi, Memento Rich Cocoa
ACCESSORIES: CB, Nesties, Crystal Effects, Ribbon (SU)