CASE This Sketch "Hello"

When I saw this week's CAS(E) This Sketch  I immediately thought doily for the corner element.  It so happens that I had an extra one in my stash so I was off to a blazing start lol.

Though Valentine's Day is over, I just couldn't resist adding a crimped heart to my card.  Added pops of colour with the dark brown and a lovely, scripted "hello" for the sentiment.  Two layers of stitched edges added a little something and and my brown bow finished things off.

We are having gloriously, warm, spring-like weather here this week - sorry to those of you who are experiencing the exact opposite weather!  Some cherry trees are already blooming in parts of Vancouver and surrounding areas and my lawn is definitely growing - crazy!  I am very tempted to mow and set an all time record for the first mow of the year being in February!   

Wishing you a glorious day.

Challenges:  The Pink Elephant

 




What's In It? 
Paper:   Going Grey, Pretty in Pink, Early Espresso (Stampin' Up)   
Accessories:   Stitched Rectangle Dies (Lil' Inkers), Heart Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Crimper (Fiskars), Doily Die (Top Dog Dies), 5/8" Brown Satin Ribbon, Dimensionals 

Viva La Verve Febraury Week 3 Sketch

It's time to recap this week's Viva La Verve sketch and here is my take on the sketch by Diva Stacey.  Loved her sketch and can see myself using it again for sure as there are so many wonderful options for that big square.

I in full throttle Spring mode right now as our weather has been amazing lately, not to mention my tulips are six inches out of the ground already - meep!!  Can't wait for them to bloom!!  I pulled out this fabulous flowed paper from MME's Lime Twist set (an oldie but a goodie), and added Martha Stewart's wonderful monarch butterfly to accent this simply fabulous Hello Friend Plain Jane.  I adore the font and bold statement this sentiment makes!

You can check out all the contest rules over on the Viva La Verve site and you can also see the cards I spotlighted for this week.

 




What's In It?
Stamps:   Hello Friend Plain Jane (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:  Lime Twist (My Mind's Eye), Rose Romance, Eggplant Envy (Stampin' Up)   
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Rounded Rectangle Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Butterfly Punch (Martha Stewart), Crimper (Fiskars), Black Half Pearls, Button,, Twine, Glue Dot, Dimensionals

Mojo Monday #386

It's Tall and Skinny week over on the Mojo Monday blog and I love making these cards!

For today's card I pulled out two of my favorite Verve sets:  Dream Big and Kind Words.  I simply adore the sentiments and flower images in both sets and they compliment each other wonderfully.

Working through my older paper pad sets and since MME's Lime Twist was still on my desk I used it again.  The cute bird paper is mostly covered up, but since the robins are back in our neck of the woods (along with the woodpecker who is merrily banging away on our metal exhaust vent on the roof as a territory marker) it was a must do.  Paired them with a flower and butterfly - more signs of spring!  The sentiment is one I adore and love adding to cards.  It is so easy to think nice things about people but never verbalize them.  This wonderful sentiment allows you to encourage and uplift others, plus, with my favorite word "joy" included in the mix, I am on happy lady :)

All the challenge details are over on the Mojo Monday blog and you can also view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples.  Should you wish more details on the Mojo Maker's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.

Carole Burrage

  Debbie Carriere

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Marisa Ritzen (you are here)

Mary Fish

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Wanda Cullen

My daughter's diving lessons are moving along.  She has driven us to and from Costco twice now.  Lots of nerves on busy streets still, but she is getting more confident every time we head out and I am more relaxed wink, wink!

Wishing you a day filled with joy and thank you for being a joy to me!

Challenges:  The Pink Elephant 

 




What's In It?
Stamps:  Dream Big, Kind Words (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:   Lime Twist (My Mind's Eye), Cool Caribbean, Mint Medley, Elegant Eggplant, Early Espresso (Stampin' Up)   
Ink:   Black, Versamark  
Accessories:   Dreamy Leaves Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Butterfly Punch (Martha Stewart), Button Die (PTI), Twine, White Half Pearls, Dimensionals

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge - Donut Delight Reminder

We are half way though the Donut Delight Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge and for my reminder post, I used a fun sketch by Retro Sketches.

I created three mini donuts for the circle elements on the sketch and paired them with MME's Lime Twist papers.  Added some sprinkles to my donuts and a birthday sentiment from Verve's Making a Statement to finish things off.

A masculine card, a kid's birthday card, or a card that can be tucked into an office donut run to Timmy's (aka:  Tim Horton's) for a staff member's early morning birthday celebration. 

Hope you are having a great day, and we would love to have you play along if you haven't already done so!

Challenge:  The Pink Elephant

What's In It?

Stamps:   Making a Statement (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Lime Twist (My Mind's Eye), Early Espresso, Mint Medley, Pretty in Pink, Rose Romance (Stampin' Up) 
Ink:   Black 
Accessories:   Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Hole Punches

Mojo Monday #385

Adore the diagonal line Julee added to this sketch.  Such a great visual impact.  She is the queen of sketches indeed!

I pulled out one of my favorite MME paper pads, In Bloom (yes, I bought a second backup one wink, wink), as I wanted to create a card with a soft feel to it.  With spring around the corner - at least here on the West Coast as winter never really arrived and my daffodils and tulips are three inches plus out of the ground already - I couldn't resist using my beloved Flutterby buttefly die.  Happy sigh...{grin}.  The sentiment is from Bloom and Grow, and I just love it.  So important to tell people what they mean to you when you have the chance to do it!

All the challenge details are over on the Mojo Monday blog and you can also view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples.  Should you wish more details on the Mojo Maker's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.

Carole Burrage

  Debbie Carriere

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Marisa Ritzen (you are here)

Mary Fish

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Wanda Cullen

Kids switched semesters at school this week so they are adjusting to new classes, work loads, schedules etc. and are pretty wrung out after the first week.  Remember hating the first few days of class when teachers reviewed the class syllabus and I thought there is no way you could get through all that in just a semester.  Always took getting into the rhythm of the classes, figuring out how your teachers taught and what they expected (or in some cases what you had to do to pass LOL), and then just digging in. 

 




What's In It?
Stamps:  Bloom and Grow (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:   In Bloom (My Mind's Eye), So Saffron, Going Grey, Cameo Coral (Stampin' Up)   
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Flutterby Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Scalloped Circle and Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Crimper (Fiskars), Buttons, Twine, Glue Dot, Dimensionals

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge - Donut Delight

Time for another Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge and this photo gives tons of options for inspiration!  The LEAD of the Donut Delight challenge will be invited as a Guest Designer in a future Curtain Call challenge!

I do not own any of the fun donut sets and matching dies by Reverse Confetti or MFT, so I decided to make my own in the form of a round card as it has been forever since I have made one and this was the perfect excuse to do so.  Fussy cut my icing, punched my decorations and a chocolate donut with pink icing and a dash of sprinkles emerged.  The sentiment is from  Verve's Sweet Treats set.  A totally fun card to make :)

Check out the rest of the DT's creations for added inspiration.

Donut Delight Designers

Guest Designer, Jessica Frost-Ballas
Amy Kolling
Amy Tsuruta
Gayatri Murali
Kim Singdahlsen
Laurie Willison
Lisa Henke
Marisa Ritzen
Maureen Plut
Monika Davis
Sarah Gough
Sheri Gilson
Stacey Schafer
Tenia Nelson
Tracey McNeely

Hope you can play along as the theme is a totally fun one, not to mention one that will give you a craving for a donut LOL!

 




What's In It?
Stamps:   Sweet Treats (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Early Espresso, Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose (Stampin' Up)
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Lacy Circle and Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Punches, Black Half Pearls

Viva La Verve Februrary Week 2 Sketch

It's week two of the February Viva La Verve sketches and today's sketch is brought to us by Charmaine.

I took a few artistic licences with the sketch - a bigger circle and a relocated sentiment panel {grin}.  Just had to do the doily butterfly combo again and this fabulously fonted (a new stamping word lol) "smile" sentiment from Happy Place was the perfect match.

Remember, a $100 Verve gift certificate is up for grabs at the end of the month!  Definitely a prize worth playing for!  All the contest details are over on the Viva La Verve blog.

Thanks for popping in today and look forward to seeing your cards in the Viva La Verve gallery.

 




What's In It?
Stamps:   Happy Place (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:  Lost and Found Heirloom (My Mind's Eye), Pretty in Pink, Going Grey (Stampin' Up)   
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Doily Die (Top Dog Dies), Butterfly Die and Twine (PTI), Button, Glue Dots, Dimensionals  

Keeping Things Real

Decided to keep things real, and show you a card that I fought, and fought, and fought with while creating, and in the end, am not very fond of.  Ever make one of those cards?? 

Experience has taught me that when a card is that hard to create, I should just toss it and start over.  However, after struggling for so long to make a card "blog worthy", it isn't always easy to deep six it in the trash can - case in point with this card LOL!

This was my first attempt at a card for the recent Verve Inspirations Hop, and a number of hours later, it just wasn't doing it for me so I went back to the drawing board and created a second one which came together much more easily.   Note to self:  "let it go" when it is a struggle and move on!

 




What's In It?
Stamps:   Love Notes (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:  Pretty in Pink, Regal Rose, Going Grey (Stampin' Up)   
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Rounded Scalloped Frame Die and Heart Quartet (A Cut Above by Verve), XO Die (PTI), Cross My Heart Embossing Folder (Cuttlebug), Border Punch (Martha Stewart), White and Black Half Pearls, Sequins, Button, Twine, Glue Dot, Dimensionals 

Mojo Monday #384

It's Monday and that means lots of Mojo fun with this sketch by Julee.

Still squeezing in some Valentine's Day/love themed cards as I 'm not quite ready to give up using hearts on my cards just yet - sorry to those who are sick of them {grin}.

Lots of hearts on his card, more than originally intended, but they worked so I went with it.  The sentiment is from Stronger Love and the heart is from the Wavy Hearts die set.

I wish I could get dark brown to show up rather than appear as black on my pictures - ugh!   So frustrating as it can change the feel of the card entirely.  If anyone has any tips to help me out, I am open to suggestions!!

All the challenge details are over on the Mojo Monday blog and you can also view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples.  Should you wish more details on the Mojo Maker's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.

Carole Burrage

  Debbie Carriere

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Marisa Ritzen (you are here)

Mary Fish

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Wanda Cullen

Today is Family Day here in British Columbia, so we are going to enjoy hanging out together :)  Love my kids to death, and it is always such a treat to have hubby in the mix for the day as well as he often works long hours. 

Challenges: The Pink Elephant

  




What's In It?
Stamps:  Stronger Love (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:  Lost and Found Heirloom (My Mind's Eye), Pretty in Pink, Early Espresso, Going Grey (Stampin' Up)   
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Wavy Hearts Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Cross My Heart Embossing Folder (Cuttlebug), Heart Border Punch (Martha Stewart), Crimper (Fiskars), Buttons, Twine, Glue Dot, Dimensionals

Viva La Verve Sketches Are Back

After a short January break, Viva La Verve sketches are back up and running - yeah!  Doing a little happy dance here :)

This week Julee has provided this fabulous sketch for us to work with.  She never ceases to amaze me with endless array of wonderful sketches!  I need a few of her genes wink, wink.

I gleefully dove into MME's Lost and Found Heirloom paper pad and went to work.  Adore the font of this "love" stamp from Love Notes and it fit the theme of my card perfectly. Added a Prima rose I have had forever on top of a triple loop twine bow, along with two leaves from the Sprightly Springs die set and a couple of butterflies to finish things off.

Remember, a $100 Verve gift certificate is up for grabs at the end of the month!  Definitely a prize worth playing for!  All the contest details are over on the Viva La Verve blog.

Thanks for popping in today and look forward to seeing your cards in the Viva La Verve gallery.

 




What's In It?
Stamps:   Love Notes (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:  Lost and Found Heirloom (My Mind's Eye), Mellow Moss, Kraft (Stampin' Up)   
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Sprightly Springs Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Doily Die (Top Dog Dies), Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Scalloped Border Punch (Stampin' Up), Butterfly Punch (Martha Stewart), Prima Flower, Twine, Black  Half Pearls, Glue Dot, Dimensionals

February Verve Diva Inspirations Hop

It's the 5th of the month and time for the Verve Divas to bring you our monthly Diva Inspirations Challenge and Blog Hop! There are two ways to win Verve prizes: comment on the design team's blog hop posts (linked below) to see their take on the inspiration, then go get inky and link up your take on the challenge to be eligible in our prize drawings!

Our February challenge is Vivacious Valentine...

Nothing says "I love you" like a handmade Valentine in your signature style.
Use the inspiration graphic as a starting point, or head off in your own direction  - just make us swoon with a fabulously flirty creation!

Click here to link up your challenge entries
Challenge deadline: Thursday, February 19th.
Prize: $40 gift voucher to the Verve online store!

If you have come here from Susan's blog, you are right on track.  If you just happened upon the Hop, you can check the hop list below to get caught up.

I love hearts and pink and grey also happens to be one of my favorite colour combinations so I had great fun making this card.  I honed in on the XOXO ornament and used it to create a background for my card, framing it in grey as per the frame around the mirror.  With so many hearts on the tree, I decided to create a shaker by sewing some vellum on to the bottom half of my tag and filling it with pink and white hearts.  The sentiment is from Stronger Love and was perfect in size and boldness to stand out against the background.

Need a little inspiration? Check out the blogs linked below to see what the other Divas did with the challenge! It's sure to be a treat, and speaking of treats, we've got a prize for one lucky commenter along the hop! Check out the Verve Blog today for all the prize info and deadlines!

	1. Julee	7. Sankari
	2. Amy	8. Sarah
	3. Anya	9. Susan
	4. Betty	10. Marisa
	5. Jen	11. Maureen
	6. Karen	12. Verve Blog

Time to head on over to Maureen's blog to see her wonderful take on the inspiration photo!  Happy Hopping :)

What's In It?
Stamps:  Stronger Love (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:  Pretty in Pink, Going Grey (Stampin' Up)
Ink:  Black 
Accessories:  Tag and XO Dies (PTI), Swiss Dots Embossing Folder (Provo Craft), Heart Punch (Michael's $1.00 bin), 5/8" Rose Grosgrain Ribbon (Stampin' Up), Button, Twine, Glue Dot, Dimensionals 

Mojo Monday #383

 

It's the first Monday of the month which means it is contest week over on the Mojo Monday blog, and Julee has provided this fabulous sketch for us to work with.

I'm taking advantage of any excuse to use hearts on cards these days as Valentine's Day is still a comin' and I just adore hearts.  The sentiment is from Stronger Love and I crimped one of the hearts from the Wavy Hearts die set for a bit of texture.  The debossed side of my beloved Swiss Dots embossing folder was a better fit than the embossed side so that's what I used on the background panel.  A couple of heart sequins and a button finished things off. 

All the challenge details are over on the Mojo Monday blog and you can also view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples.  Should you wish more details on the Mojo Maker's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.

Carole Burrage

  Debbie Carriere

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Marisa Ritzen (you are here)

Mary Fish

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Wanda Cullen

Busy weekend with the continuation of my daughter's driving lessons and my son's soccer game on Saturday as well as two reffing games on Sunday.  Slate was cleared so we could watch the Superbowl as a family and what a disappointment it was with that horrible passing call by the Seahawks coaching staff on 2nd and 10 and just one yard from the goal line for the win!!!  Shame, shame, shame on the Seahawks coaching staff for that call.  Lynch could have run it in "beast mode" for sure!  Upside:  at least it was a good game. 

Challenges:  Simon Says Stamps


 




What's In It?
Stamps:  Stronger Love (Verve Stamps)  
Paper:  Love Me (My Mind's Eye), Early Espresso, So Saffron, Cool Caribbean, Going Grey (Stampin' Up)   
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Wavy Hearts Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Scalloped Circle and Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Crimper (Fiskars), Swiss Dots Embossing Folder (Provo Craft), Button, Twine, Heart Sequins, Glue Dot, Dimensionals 

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge - Kissing Booth

Time for another Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge and this photo gives tons of options for inspiration!  The LEAD of the Kissing Booth challenge will be invited as a Guest Designer in a future Curtain Call challenge!

I hummed and hawed about several colour combinations and using chevrons, but just wasn't happy with them so I finally decided to have some fun and create my own kissing both card!  Pulled out my Tim Holtz woodgrain embossing folder and created the booth's frame.  The striped paper pulls in the panelling at the bottom of the booth in the photo as do the chevron banners as per the photo.  Added a small, rustic, wooden sign that is nailed to the booth to finish things off (think country fair).  Had too much fun making this card and I think my Valentine's Day card for hubby is now made LOL.  

Check out the rest of the DT's creations for added inspiration.

Kissing Booth Designers

Guest Designer, Joanne Basile

Amy Kolling
Amy Sheffer
Amy Tsuruta
Gayatri Murali
Kim Singdahlsen
Lisa Henke
Marisa Ritzen
Maureen Plut
Monika Davis
Sarah Gough
Sheri Gilson
Stacey Schafer
Tenia Nelson
Tracey McNeely

 Hope you can play along as the theme is perfect for creating Valentine's Day cards for those you love.

Challenges: Simon Says Stamps
                   The Pink Elephant 

 




What's In It?
Stamps:   We Connect (Paper Smooches) 
Paper:  Lost and Found Heirloom (My Mind's Eye), Kraft   
Ink:   Black  
Accessories:   Square Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Woodgrain Embossing Folder (Tim Holtz), Twine, Brad, Glue Dots