Paper Sweeties September Release Party!

Today is Paper Sweeties' Release Party, and the newest stamps and dies that we've been featuring for three days are in the shop right now! Don't you just love that sweet little mason jar image? 

If you saw my post from yesterday, you know that it was not an entire project. I have Part 2, today, which finishes out the bookmark set, and I also created a cute holder for them.

After making the bookmarks, I knew I'd need a place to keep them together when I wasn't using them, and I found the perfect way to store and display them in an easel stand design from the Silhouette store. After making the stand, I heat embossed the Mason Jar image on watercolor paper, die cut it with the matching die, watercolored it, then created a rub-on of the "Fruit of the Spirit" text (in Word) for the jar label. I went over the label with a Spica pen which gives the letters just a little bit of sparkle. Now, I can just pull a "fruit" right out of the jar when I need to mark my place in a book! But, I still haven't shown you the rest of the bookmarks...

I made these the same way I made the earlier bookmarks, with heat embossing and watercolors. For the text on these, I used a Paper Sweeties die cut and stamp (Love), an old alpha stamp set from the dollar bin (Self-control), an IO alpha die (Goodness), and a retired Sizzix alpha die set (Faithful). I like every one of the bookmarks in the set, but my favorite is "Self-control." I was super pleased with how the watercoloring turned out on the apples, and it's the only one that I paired specific text with specific fruit. Do you get it??? If Adam and Eve had used more self-control when they were looking at that yummy fruit, well.... ;~)  (I know the fruit may not have been apples, but it's what most people think of when they think of that fateful day, so I went with it.)

If you'd like to see any of these better, you can click on these, individually, for a larger photo.

And, here's what the easel holder looks like when it's empty. 

I thought you might like to see the entire set all together, too. (If you zoom in on this photo, don't look too close. I had a seriously hard time editing the photo, and it is nowhere near perfect.) 

I hope you enjoyed seeing this project. Now, to see more new release goodies, visit my Paper Sweeties Teamies' blogs. You will LOVE what they have for you today!

Angel Johns 
Cheryl Lea

Debbie Marcinkiewicz – Paper Sweeties
Emily Frasier 
Jill Norwood 

Kathy Schweinfurth

Larissa Heskett
Mackie Robertson

Maria Patrick

Michelle Bala
Mynnette Kitchen

Nancy Penir

And, don't forget, for a chance to win a gift certificate to the Paper Sweeties' boutique, play along with us in this month's Paper Sweeties Inspiration Challenge. 

  

Thanks for stopping by. I'll have one more project for this new release tomorrow. Hope to see you then!

I'm entering this project in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday: Love this Technique (heat embossing & watercolor)

Simon Says Wednesday: Stamptember

613 Avenue Create Challenge #141: Anything Goes

Pink & Main Challenge #1: Anything Goes

Paper Issues: How 'bout Them Apples With Paper Issues-Round #1

~Hugs,

Supplies Used:

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Paper Sweeties September Release Countdown!

As promised, I've got a fun project to share with you today, featuring another Paper Sweeties New Release stamp set. Homegrown is a set of four fruit stamps, which pairs nicely with the Mason Jar stamps and dies I used yesterday, and with their distinct lines and large open areas, they are perfect for simple watercoloring, which I've been enjoying lately!

Since the Homegrown set is all about fruit, I had fruit on the brain, so to speak, and was reminded of Galatians 5:22-23 and the Fruit of the Spirit:

"But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Gal. 5:22-23 NLT

Now, I wasn't up for making an individual card for each of the nine attributes, but I really wanted to make a set of something. Then, I noticed the huge stack of books in my family room that I'm trying to read through, and immediately started die cutting bookmarks out of heavy watercolor paper. I can use them to keep my place in books, and to remind me to keep these attributes in my life.

On each bookmark, I heat embossed the fruit images with gold embossing powder, then got out my Koi watercolors and Color Bursts to add lots of color. For the text, I used Fancy Monograms (Patience), die cut (Joy), Silhouette cut (Kindness), hand lettering with a Spica pen (Gentleness), and hand lettering with a Versamark pen and gold embossing (Peace). I tried to make each bookmark unique with the word and image placement and fonts, and I am very pleased with how they turned out. I added Paper Sweeties Seam Binding, in various colors, to the top of each bookmark, and tied each one with a Licorice twine bow. I've included photos of each of the bookmarks individually, below. (The color looks a little different in the group versus the individual pics. The group photo is closer to how the colors look in person.)   

I wish you could see the beautiful gold embossing on the images. It's just so darn hard to get that in photos! Tomorrow, I'll share more bookmarks, as well as decorative storage for them--Fruit of the Spirit, Part II. ;~)

There's always yummy goodness to be had when you visit the Paper Sweeties Design Team! You don't want to miss even one!

Angel Johns 
Cheryl Lea - That's Me!

Debbie Marcinkiewicz – Paper Sweeties
Emily Frasier 
Jill Norwood 

Kathy Schweinfurth

Larissa Heskett
Mackie Robertson

Maria Patrick

Michelle Bala
Mynnette Kitchen

Nancy Penir

Tomorrow is Paper Sweeties' Release Party, when all the newest stamps and dies will be released! And, for a chance to win a gift certificate to the Paper Sweeties' boutique, play along with us in this month's Paper Sweeties Inspiration Challenge. 

  

I'm entering this project in the following challenges:

Simon Says Stamp Monday: Stamp and Punch/Die Cut

Simon Says Wednesday: Stamptember

613 Avenue Create Challenge #141: Anything Goes

TCP Tuesday #298: Anything Goes

~Hugs,

Supplies Used:

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Friends Make Life Sweeter...and a Birthday Challenge!

IT'S A SURPRISE PARTY!!! Grab a handful of confetti, a bright balloon and come along for a fun birthday blog hop to celebrate a special birthday for our dear friend, Christine Okken!  One thing about birthdays, is that you always hope to spend time with those you care about and that's why we're here!  At Flourishes, we're just one big family... so we just wanted to celebrate a wonderful day with one of our loved ones.

Even though we're a day early, we'd like to say...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRISTINE!

Join along with members of the Flourishes family today and share some fabulous birthday inspirations, many happy celebratory birthday wishes and maybe even a slice of cyber cake.

For Christine's birthday, I inked up sweet raspberries, from the Berry Sweet Frames stamp set, with Tuxedo Black Memento Ink, stamped them onto Flourishes Classic White Cardstock, and colored them with Copic markers (the Copic Sketch Collections I used are shown at the end of the post). Then, I masked the image and stamped the gingham background with Pear Tart Memento Ink. After cutting it out with a Flourishes' Perfectly Pierced Classic Frames Die, I kept it in the die and sponged Tea Dye Distress Ink just inside the edge for a slight aged look. The highlights on the berries were made with Copic Opaque White Pigment. The die cut matting behind the image is a Spellbinders Decorative Label 22 die. I didn't have quite the right shade of cs, so I found a dp that was close and sponged Picked Raspberry Distress Ink over the edges to get it just right. Finally, I layered a piece of stitched green dp, burlap ribbon, a seam binding bow, metal embellie, and a few pearls. The card front is on a base of Bouquet cardstock from the Color Made Easy Crocus Paper Collection.

On the inside, the "Happy Birthday" sentiment came from the Inside & Out Happy stamp set. The "Friend" text is from the same sentiment that I used on the front. I just masked off the rest of the sentiment before inking the stamp.

Happy Birthday, Christine!

May your special day be spectacularly sweet!

In honor of Christine's birthday celebration, we're giving away a special birthday present or two of our own!  Hidden among the Design Team's blogs today is a Mystery Blogger. Comment on her blog and you could be chosen as one of our birthday prize winners! The more you comment, the better your chances of winning.

As well as one lucky commenter, we're having a birthday challenge too!

THE OFFICIAL RULES:

• Simply create a NEW birthday themed card or project.
• Entries need to be in by Friday November 1st at 6 PM EST.
• Those entries using Flourishes stamps will be counted for 2 prize ballots!
• You must link your creation in our InLinkz Widgit to be counted.
• You must have a link to our challenge in your blog post or gallery post.  Please feel free to use our Birthday Graphic too!
• If you upload to SCS please use the keyword FLLCWISH
• We'll announce the winners on the Flourishes blog on Saturday November 2nd, so check back then to find out if you are a winner!

Hop along with our Flourishes family today, and leave some love for our fabulous designers for a chance to win...

Aleksandra Mihelič
Allison Cope
Cheryl Lea
Deborah Anton
Dina Kowal
Heather Jensen
Jenny Gropp
Julie Koerber
Kathy Jones
Maki Jones
Meredith MacRitchie
Naomi Gong
Stacy Morgan
Silke Ledlow
Tosha Leyendekker

Don't forget to stop by Christine's blog, HERE, and send her some birthday wishes too!

~Hugs,

 

Supplies: 

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Pomegranates

I'm down to the wire on the Viva la Verve Sketch Challenge this month, so this is going to be super short!

The layout is the Viva la Verve August 2013 Week 3 sketch. I stamped the image with Memento Pear Tart so I could do some no-line coloring, and I used Copics with Prismacolor pencils to give this beautiful retired Flourishes pomegranate stamp definition and depth. Then, I masked the pomegranate image and sprayed several colors of Dylusions Ink Spray for the background. Finally, I used a Prismacolor pencil to add the coppery color around the edges of the image.

The brown medallion is an Exquisite Circles Spellbinder die which I cut from kraft cs. I first sponged Walnut Stain Distress Ink over it, then spritzed it with Heirloom Gold Perfect Pearls Mist. You can tell in the photo that it is shiny, but in real life, it has a nice glimmer, too.

Inside, I used one of Flourishes Inside & Out stamp sets for the sentiment, and a small pomegranate stamp in the corner, then layered scraps left over from the front of the card for a border.

Okay, maybe not super short, but for me, this is pretty close. ;) I'll be back later today with my last Viva la Verve card. In the meantime, thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful week!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:
Viva la Verve August 2013 Week 3 Sketch Challenge
Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge: Dotty
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge: Anything Goes

~Hugs,

Supplies Used:

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Marvelous Cherries

Hi Friends! I have to leave for an appointment in 15 minutes, so this will be really quick.

I used Sketch Saturday #251 for my card design, and the colors from Color Throwdown #235. The cherries, from the Flourishes Peaches & Cherries stamp set, were colored with Copics, and I sponged Distress Ink inside the die cut. It's lifted slightly with 2 layers of crimped cs. The quote was heat embossed, and to the left of that I used an embossing folder to give that blank space some interest. I scored the banner flag across the top and along both long sides. I zigzagged the two pieces of dp that make up the bg, and also the top of the flag. 

The inside is more simple than I like, but I'm in a hurry, so I'll have to gussy it up later. ;)

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day!

I'm entering this card in the following challenges:

Sketch Saturday #251 with Prairie Fairie
Color Throwdown #235 (CTD235)
Flourishes Timeless Tuesday #213: Grab Some Thread (FTTC213)
Simon Says Stamp Challenge: Anything Goes
Simon Says Stamp & Show Challenge: Quotable

~Hugs,

 

Stamps: Peaches & Cherries, Life Lines (Flourishes)
Paper: Once Upon a Time (DCWV); Kissing Booth (Basic Grey); Moulin Rouge (Prima)
Ink: Copics; Memento; Distress; Versamark
Dies: Classic Ovals Lg, Std. Circles Lg (Spellbinders); Banner Stacklets 1 (Taylored Expressions Dies)
Accessories: White Embossing Powder (Zing); Paisley Palooza Embossing Folder (Sizzix); Scoreboard (Martha Stewart); sewing thread
Size: 5" sq.

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Tuesday Morning Sketch Challenge #147: Berry Sweet

Hi Friends! It's time for some Tuesday Morning Sketch Challenge fun! You ready? Clear Dollar Stamps is our awesome sponsor this week. They carry clear acrylic stamps, as well as digital.

Check out this fun sketch that Melissa has for us this week. It turned out to be perfect for a card that a friend asked me to make for her son's teacher.

The strawberry stamp is a freebie digital stamp from Beccy's Place. I colored it with Copic markers, then added Glossy Accents to the seeds (you can see the seeds really well in the photo at the top of the post), and extra fine Flower Soft for dirt.

After cutting the three flower die cuts, I used a stylus to soften and curve the flower petals, then added yellow Sparkly Fluff to the centers. 

I added one of the clay embellishments that I made a few weeks ago, to the center of the seam binding bow.

The sentiment was typed in Word, printed onto a transparency, then rubbed onto the inside of the card.

Be sure to check out the rest of the inspiration from the Tuesday Morning Sketch DT, then get creative with your own card so you can play along with us this week! I can't wait to see what you create!

I'll be entering this card in the following challenges:

Flourishes Bring Back Beautiful BBB22: Beauty of the Garden

Moving Along With the Times: Keep It Real

Whimsy Stamps Inspirations Challenge 39: Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great week!

~Hugs,

 

Stamps: Strawberries - Digi Stamp (Beccy's Place)
Ink: Copic markers
Dies: Std Circles Sm, Lattice Border, Lattice Pendants, Flower Creations (Spellbinders); Tattered Florals (Tim Holtz)
Accessories: Scallop Diamond Edge Punch (EK Success); Mystic embossing folder (Spellbinders); seam binding (Hug Snug); clay embellishment; Sparkly Fluff; Flower Soft; Glossy Accents; foam dots; transparency (for sentiment)
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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You're a Peach!

Hi Friends! My DD wanted to give her teacher a gift for teacher appreciation week, so, of course, I just had to make a card for the occasion, also. 

I love mixing dp's, and the Viva la Verve May 2012 Week 2 sketch is a good one for that.

And, this pretty color palette is perfect for peaches!

I found a peach-scented candle that smells heavenly, so I used a Flourishes peach stamp set to make a coordinating card. I meant to add three staples above the image, but forgot to do it before I glued everything together, darn it!

My DD had a really good 2nd grade year, so I left plenty of room for her to thank her teacher and sign her name. :)

Thanks for stopping by, and have a wonderful week!

I'll be entering this card in the following challenges:

Viva la Verve May 2012 Week 2 Sketch Challenge
ColourQ Challenge #136
Flourishes Bring Back Beautiful Challenge 22: The Beauty of the Garden
Crafty Friends Challenge #3: Inspiration Challenge
Crazy 4 Challenges #135: Gardening or the Great Outdoors
Do You Stack Up Challenge #70: Circles
Moving Along With the Times: Summer Sunshine
Great Impressions Rubber Stamps Challenge #3: Anything Goes
The Emerald Fairies Challenge #23: Anything Goes

~Hugs!

 

Stamps: Cherries & Peaches (Flourishes)
Paper: Farmhouse (Crate Paper); Sweetness (Pink Paislee); Best of K&Co
Ink: Distress Ink; Memento; Copic markers
Dies: Std Circles Sm, Classic Scalloped Circles Sm (Spellbinders)
Accessories: Postage Stamp edge punch, Binding Edge edge punch (EK Success); lace (Joann); grosgrain ribbon (Taylored Expressions); rhinestones; Stickles; foam dots; sewing thread
Size: A2 (4.25" x 5.5")

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Tuesday Morning Sketch Challenge #138: One In a Melon

Hello Friends! It's time for another awesome Tuesday Morning Sketch Challenge (TMS138), and you are going to love this one. Our sponsor this week is The Stamping Boutique, and our own Kathy Curry has created a wonderful sketch, full of possibilities--no matter which way you turn this sketch it looks fab!

I turned it on it's side for a birthday card.

This card was so much fun to make--especially coloring that watermelon with my Copics. It's from the Wild for Watermelon stamp set from Flourishes. And, that scrap of red dp was not only the perfect watermelon color, it also has a "watermelonish" texture in the design. I used the out of the box technique to cut the oval around the watermelon and leave the leaf intact. I stamped the sentiment and some watermelon seeds on another oval and covered the seeds in Glossy Accents, then paper pierced that oval. The fork stamp is from the watermelon set, and I use a D'Vine Swirl embossing folder for the green cs.

After coloring the red part of the watermelon, I dampened a paper towel with colorless blender and laid it gently on it, creating a textured look, then I used Glossy Accents on the seeds.

The inside of the card was originally very basic, however...

...when applying the black Enamel Accent dots to the inside of the card, I got a blob in the upper left corner of the Labels One die cut. I tried to repair it, but soon realized I was making it worse, so I stamped the salt shaker from the same watermelon stamp set, put Glossy Accents on the "glass" and Stickles on the salt, then cut it out and glued it in the corner, and TaDa! No more blob!

To balance things, I stamped one of the watermelon slices, colored it, used the same paper towel technique here that I did on the front of the card, put Glossy Accents on the seeds and glued it in the opposite corner. The green dots behind the salt and slice are from the In Flight stamp set from Our Craft Lounge. The Happy Birthday sentiment is from the Say It Big stamp set, also from Our Craft Lounge.

That's it for my card. But, you can head on over to Tuesday Morning Sketches for more inspiration from the rest of the DT. All the details of the sketch challenge are there.

I can't wait to see what you create!!!

I'll be playing along with these challenges too:
Crazy 4 Challenges 128 (C4C128): Use Green
Do You Stack Up Challenge #63: use your Favorite Color (mine is GREEN!)
Cute Card Thursday Challenge 208: Happy Birthday
Simon Says Stamp Challenge: A Bit O' Green: Use Green
Whimsy Stamps Challenge 30: Emboss It! Wet or Dry Embossing

Thanks for stopping by my blog! Have a wonderful day!

~Hugs!

 

Stamps: Wild for Watermelon (Flourishes); In Flight, Say It Big (Our Craft Lounge)
Paper: Best of K&Co; Que Sera Sera (K&Co); Origins Paper Pad (Basic Grey)
Ink: Distress Ink; Memento; Copic Markers
Dies: Classic Ovals Lg, Labels One (Spellbinders)
Accessories: D'Vine Swirls embossing folder (Cuttlebug); ribbon (Michaels); pearls; Glossy Accents; Stickles; Enamel Accents; paper piercer
Size: 5.5" square

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