October Diva Dare

Welcome to October's Diva Dare!  This month's theme is "Tag, You're It" and the Divas are daring you to create a tag or a card with a tag on it.

I love making and using tags!  They are so versatile: you can use a tag on a gift, use it on a card for a quick creation, or make a matching card and gift tag set.  Lots of wonderful possibilities!  With Christmas quickly approaching (....sorry, about the "C' word!), it's a great way to get started on gift and hostess tags too. 

Today I went with the tag on a card option (though I also have a fun tag I made which I'll post in a few days).  Diva Jen's Deconstructed Sketch was the springboard for this card, and since I just love the images in the recently released Poppy Birthday, it was my set of choice.  The poppy cluster was coloured with Twinkling H2Os, and the paper is from Making Memories.  Something was missing so I added the secondary "enjoy" sentiment  from Surely Goodness to the small heart and a bit of crimping for some dimension.

Of course, where there is a Verve Diva Dare, there are prizes, and this month's dare provides two prizes: one for a randomly selected participant and one for a randomly selected commenter!  Worth participating for sure, because rumour has it there will be a Verve release coming soon, and a gift certificate would come in very handy wink, wink!

Want to get all the details on how you can win some Verve Stamps?  Simply head on over to the Verve Blog to get all the challenge details - I dare you!

 

What's In It?
Stamps:  Poppy Birthday, Surely Goodness (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Making Memories, Going Grey, Certainly Celery, Pretty in Pink (Stampin' Up) 
Ink: Black
Accessories:  Tag Die (My Favorite Things), Scalloped Heart and Heart Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Butterfly Punch (Martha Stewart), Twinkling H2Os, 5/8" Grey Satin Ribbon (Michael's), Crimper (Fiskars), Black and White Half Pearls, Buttons, Twine, Glue Dot, Dimensionals   

Curtain Call Spooky Scene Challenge Reminder

** This is my second post of the day. See below for my Mojo Monday card. ** 

We are half way through the current Spooky Scene challenge over at the Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge, and today's post is my second card using this fabulous inspiration picture.

Neat and Tangled Stamps is sponsoring this challenge, which means the Show Stopper for this challenge will win a set if their choice from Neat and Tangled.

I used Jen's SFYTT as the small circles were perfect for the images in this set.  Paper is from Authentique's Thrilling paper pad.

You can check out all the challenge details over on the Curtain Call Inspirations Challenge and you have until Thursday, October 10th at 8:00 a.m. CST to link up your creation for a chance to win a set from Neat and Tangled. 

Thanks for popping by today!

Challenge:  The Paper Players



What's In It?
Stamps:  Halloween Scene (Neat and Tangled)
Paper:  Authentique (Thrilling), Wild Wasabi, Lovely Lilac, Black (Stampin' Up)  
Ink:  Black
Accessories:  Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Crimper (Fiskars), Purple Twine, Black Half Pearls, Dimensionals

Mojo Monday #314

It's the first Monday of the month and that means it is contest week over at the Mojo Monday blog!  For every 50 entries, one random winner will win a Verve gift certificate, so get your mojo on and come join the party!  Timing could not be better either as Verve had a new release just two weeks ago, so there are lots of new goodies in the store :)

I decided to make a baby card in celebration of Verve Diva Laurie having a baby boy this past Friday.  I immediaely thought of using a "baby bot" on my card and this image from the new Birthday Bots set was perfect.

I coloured him with Twinkling H2Os, used some old Stampin' Up DSP, and had great fun adding half pearls to his eyes and buttons to make them pop a bit.  This little guy just makes me smile, and I'm trusting he will make Diva Laurie smile too :)

You can check out all the challenge details over on the Mojo Monday blog and also get a chance to 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

Our whirlwind pace continues, with the added stress of my mom being in a car accident last Friday.  A guy tried to make a left turn at in intersection she was travelling through and ended up hitting her car.  Thankfully both she and the passenger she was taking to a medical appt. are just a bit sore from the impact.  Now we just have to wait for the verdict regarding the fate of her car.  Hoping it is mostly cosmetic damage and not a write off.

Needless to say, I'm very much looking forward to next weekend, because it's the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend.  Good times with family and a long weekend to be able to rest up a bit - yeah!  

What's In It?
Stamps:  Birthday Bots (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Night of Navy and Stamping Up DSP 
Ink: Black
Accessories:  Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Stitched Circle Dies (Lil' Inkers), Twinkling H2Os, Black Half Pearls, 5/8" Navy Grosgrain Ribbon, Black Half Pearls, DImensionals

Verve October Inspiration Hop

First and foremost, Happy World Card Making Day!!  How fabulous to have a day which celebrates our beloved hobby :)

Verve is celebrating in fine form today with the Verve Diva Inspirations Hop!  It's the 5th of the month and that means it's hopping time.  Along today's hop you'll see some fresh new ideas for some beloved older sets, as well as some fantastic pairings of our latest release with existing sets.  It's sure to be a treat, and we've got treats to give away, too! 

If you have come from Tiffany's blog you are right on track.  If you just happened on the hop, you can get the full hop list below.

For my card, I used this week's Verve sketch and the wonderful Psalm 46:1 Plain Jane.  Oh how I love this verse!  Paired it with some old Stella and Rose paper by My Mind's Eye which has delicious fall colours in it and a few embellishments finished things off nicely.

Want to win Verve's ENTIRE September Release? Jut leave comments on all of the blogs on today's hop to be entered in the drawing!

So let's get hopping!  Below is the full hop list if you need it, otherwise just hop on over to the oh so talented Teresa, for what I'm sure will be a stunning display of Verve goodies.

	1. Julee	10. Marisa
	2. Amy	11. Teresa
	3. Betty	12. Maureen
	4. Jessica	13. Charmaine
	5. Karen	14. Christyne
	6. Sankari	15. Andrea
	7. Sarah	16. Amber
	9. Susan	17. Stacey {Guest}
	9. Tiffany

And since World Card Making Day is the official start to the holiday card making season, Verve has a 25% off sale on Christmas stamps this weekend only!
 

Thanks for joining us today, and make sure you check out the Verve Store for the Christmas sale as well as all the new release goodies from last week! 

 

What's In It?

Stamps: Psalm 46:1 Plain Jane (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Stella and Rose (My Mind's Eye), Kraft, Certainly Celery, Early Espresso (Stampin' Up), Cream Linen, Starbucks Coffee Sleeve
Ink:  Black, VersaMark
Accessories:  Dream Leaves Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Scalloped Oval Nestabililities (Spellbinders), Butterfly Punch (Stampin' Up), Corner Rounder (Marvy), Crimper (Fiskars), Cream Half Pearls (Michael's), Button, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Just Us Girls #209

 

Welcome to this week's Just Us Girls challenge.  In honor of World Card Making Day, we have a sponsor.  A Walk Down Memory Lane  is providing a $15 gift certificate to this week's Chic of the Week!  Worth playing for indeed.

Since it's fall and I have been neglecting my beloved maple leaf stamps and dies, it is time to rectify that issue {grin}.

I used the small maple leaf image from PTI's Leaf Prints (oh how I love this set!!) and fussy cut the maple leaves out as there is no small maple leaf die in the matching die set.  I also used this wonderful hello die set from My Favorite things which was a gift from Debbie Carriere - thank you, Debbie!! I love this die set ((hugs))!

I fudged the sketch just a bit by adding a third maple leaf, but it just "had" to be done LOL!  I added the "Autumn" sentiment banner under the "hello" using a partial sentiment from Verve's Autumn Splendor.  Three stamp companies on one card - sharing the wealth today :)

The rest of the  JUGS team, including our three new DT member's, have some wonderful samples to get your inspiration going, so head on over to the Just Us Girls blog, and check out what the Design Team has created.  Then put your creative genes to work and add your card/project to the challenge post on the JUGS blog for the chance to be chosen as the Chic of the Week.   

Off to watch my son's soccer game and then over to my mom's to celebrate all the September and August family birthdays (five birthdays in total!).  Then, definitely scheduling a down day tomorrow after an insanely busy past two weeks!  We flew to Edmonton for my hubby's niece's wedding a weekend ago, and as fate would have it, hubby brought the stomach flu into our house the week before we were to fly out.  He got it Saturday night, my daughter got it on Tuesday night a puked all night long (insert little sleep for both of us), and then just when I thought we were clear, my son got it Thursday night, the night before we were to fly to Edmonton, and was puking a good part of the night as well (insert, second night with very little sleep).  Note to self:  remind son/assist son with actually hitting the bucket when he pukes so you don't have to clean your carpet at 3:00 a.m. and 5:45 a.m. 

Thankfully, the puking subsided in the early morning so we were able to fly out for the wedding the next morning.  Needless to say, I am eternally grateful for Gravol LOL!  I doped him up and he was a real trooper on the trip!  We even managed to make it there without incident - phew!  Poor little guy missed most of the festivities as well as the wedding reception (he was in bed sleeping for the most part), but was able to enjoy the family gathering on Sunday and gleefully consumed a ton of dinner buns and other goodies as his tummy had finally settled down enough for him to be able to eat again.  Knock on wood, I don't get it!! 

Have a great weekend and I'll be back on Monday with my card for contest week over on the Mojo Monday blog. 



What's In It? 
Stamps:  Autumn Splendor (Verve Stamps), Leaf Prints (PTI) 
Paper:  Stella and Rose (My Mind's Eye), Kraft, Mellow Moss and Early Espresso (Stampin' Up), Cream Linen
Ink:  Black, Always Artichoke, Only Orange, Rudy Red (Stampin' Up)
Accessories:   Happy Hellos Dynamics (My Favorite Things), Woodgrain Embossing Folder (Tim Holtz), Twine, Buttons, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge - Spooky Scene

Welcome back to another Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge! This time our theme is "Spooky Scene".

 

Neat & Tangled is our fabulous sponsor for Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge: Spooky Scene!  Danielle Walls, owner of Neat & Tangled generously provided the crew with their choice of Graveyard Shift or Halloween Scene to create spooky scenes for today's challenge!

Neat & Tangled is also offering a wonderful prize to the Spooky Scene LEAD...a choice of any stamp set in their store!

I kept my card on the graphic side and just added a pop of colour.  This little ghost is quite cute so I couldn't resist adding the "boo" sentiment at the bottom.

You can check out all the challenge details over on the Curtain Call Inspirations Challenge and also get a chance to view all the wonderful Curtain Call Crew samples!  Should you wish more details on the Curtain Call Crew's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.

Amber Kroening
Barb Murphy
Christina MacLaren
Debby Hughes
Gayatri Murali
Jessica Kephart
Kim Singdahlsen
Laurie Willison
Marisa Ritzen
Maureen Plut
Monika Davis
Sheri Gilson
Stacey Schafer
Tenia Nelson
Tracey McNeely

You have until October 10th at 8:00 a.m. CDT to complete a new card/project using the inspiration picture and linking it up accordingly.  The Lead and Show Stoppers will be announced on October  14th.  Can't wait to see what you create!!

 
 
What's In It? 
Stamps:   Halloween Scene (Neat and Tangled) 
Paper:  Thrilling (Authentique)
Ink:  Black  
Accessories:   Scalloped Circle and Circle Nestabilitiers (Spellbinders), 3/8" Purple Grosgrain Ribbon (Michael's Ribbon Bin), Dimensionals









Challenge:  Simon Says

Mojo Monday #313

It's round or square week over on the Mojo Monday blog!  As usual, I used the round sketch - can't help myself, just love making round cards!

Butterflies immediately came to mind when I saw the sketch, so a fall butterfly card it is -- can you tell I don't quite want to put them away yet LOL!

Just love working with fall colours - they just make me happy {grin}.  Had two Flutterby die cuts in my left over pile so pulled them out and used them for the circle element.  Things felt a bit empty so I put the sentiment from Joy for the Journey in the Charming Oval die and then added some leaves from Dream Big.

You can check out all the challenge details over on the Mojo Monday blog and also get a chance to 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

Back from a whirlwind weekend away celebrating hubby's niece's wedding in Edmonton.  It was a wonderful celebration and we got to see some dear friends that moved there five years ago so lots of socializing and festivities.  Needless to say, this introvert is maxed out and in desperate need of a few down days LOL!

Challenge:  Simon Says

What's In It?
Stamps:  Joy for the Journey and Dream Big (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Early Espresso, So Saffron, Kraft, Vanilla (Stampin' Up)
Ink: Black, Really Rust (Stampin' Up)
Accessories: Flutterby and Charming Oval Dies (A Cut Above by Verve), Lacy Scallop Circle and Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Crimper (Fiskars), Buttons, Twine, Glue Dots, Brown Half Pearls, Dimensionals 

Just Us Girls #208 - Inpsiration Picture

Elise has provided us with this wonderful collage of inspiration pictures to work from.   Sadly, this will be her last week with the design team as she will be returning to school to complete her degree. We'll miss you Elise ((hugs))!

For this challenge, I focused in on the pumpkins and pulled out Verve's Bountiful Harvest set as it has some great pumpkin images!   I used an ART Card sketch as it was a wonderful CAS sketch that would highlight the pumpkin image.  A few sequins, a button, a moon and a star, and voila, my pumpkin scene is done :)

The rest of the  JUGS team has some wonderful samples to get your inspiration going, so head on over to the Just Us Girls blog, and check out what the Design Team has created.  Then put your creative genes to work and add your card/project to the challenge post on the JUGS blog for the chance to be chosen as the Chic of the Week.   

Have a fabulous weekend, and I'll be back on Monday with my Mojo Monday card.

Challenge:  Simon Says



What's In It? 
Stamps:  Bountiful Harvest (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Collectible, Stella and Rose (My Mind's Eye), Kraft and Cream Linen
Ink:  Black
Accessories:   Twinkling H2Os, Button, Twine, Sequins, Dimensionals

Verve September 2013 Spotlight Hop ~ Day 5

Welcome to Day 5, the last day of Verve's September 2013 Spotlight Hops!   If you have come here from Christyne's blog you are right on track.  If you just happened up on the Hop, you can follow the list below to get caught up.  Everything previewed this week will be available in the Verve online store today!!  

Today's featured set is Rain or Shine as well as the newest ribbon collection called Autumn Elements.  I have always wanted an umbrella stamp and this one is so much fun to work with.

I pulled out some old Stampin' Up papers for this card and paper pieced the umbrella.  Since I haven't managed to sneak in the Award Banner die yet, I added it to the card along with a row of half pearls. Sorry about the bright orange sun (photoshop made it really bright LOL)!  A bit of twine, some bling and this fabulous sentiment finished things off.

Want to win some shiny new Verve? We'll be picking a random commenter on one of the hop spots below to win today's featured products!  So be sure to leave a little comment on all the blogs below to increase your chances! Check out the Verve Blog for today's full set reveals and all the prize info and deadlines!

Friday, 9/27/13
Today's Prize: Rain or Shine, Autumn Elements Ribbon Collection

1. Julee	7. Amber
2. Teresa	8. Laurie W.
3. Charmaine	9. Christyne
4. Stacey {Guest}	10. Marisa
5. Andrea	11. Janelle
6. Jen	12. Laurie S.

Time to hop over to Janelle's blog to see her fabulous creation using today's showcased set, and then hop on over to the Verve Store to do a little shopping wink, wink!

Challenge: Simon Says

 




What's In It?
Stamps:  Rain or Shine (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Certainly Celery, Only Orange, Kraft, DSP (Stampin' Up)
Ink: Black  (Stampin' Up)
Accessories:  Award Banner Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Sun Die (Lil' Inkers), Crimper (Fiskars), Twine, White Half Pearls, Button, Twine, Bling, Glue Dot, Dimensionals

Verve September 2013 Spotlight Hop ~ Day 4

Welcome to Day 4 of our September 2013 Spotlight Hops!   If you have come here from Maureen's blog you are right on track. If you just happened up on the Hop, you can follow the list below to get caught up.  Everything previewed this week will be available in the Verve online store on Friday, September 27th. 

Today's featured set is Poppy Birthday and the matching Build A Poppy die set.  Meep!! If you know me at all, you know how I love Verve flowers, and this set is no exception!  These poppies are fabulous! 

I went with one of my favorite, dramatic colour combos of red, black and white in order to showcase the poppies.  The matching Build A Poppy die set is fabulous for cutting these beauties out and I used the solid poppy image in VersaMark to darken up the red a bit. 

Want to win some shiny new Verve? We'll be picking a random commenter on one of the hop spots below to win today's featured products!  So be sure to leave a little comment on all the blogs below to increase your chances! Check out the Verve Blog for today's full set reveals and all the prize info and deadlines!

Thursday, 9/26/13
Today's Prize: Poppy Birthday, Build a Poppy Die Set

1. Julee	8. Laurie W.
2. Teresa	9. Christyne
3. Charmaine	10. Maureen
4. Stacey {Guest}	11. Marisa
5. Andrea	12. Janelle
6. Jen	13. Laurie S.
7. Amber

 


Time to hop over to Janelle's blog to see her fabulous creation using today's showcased sets, and be sure to come back tomorrow for Day 5, the last day of our Spotlight Hop.

Challenge:  Simon Says

What's In It?
Stamps:  Poppy Birthday (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Black, Real Red, Wild Wasabi (Stampin' Up)
Ink: Black, VersaMark
Accessories:  Build A Poppy Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Medium Scallop Die (PTI), 5/8" Satin Saffron Ribbon