December Diva Dare - Day 3

"Playing Favorites", December Diva Dare

Welcome to the last Diva Dare of 2013!  This month's Dare is entitled "Playing Favorites" and it is a fun one indeed!

What we're daring you to do this month is to post your favorite Verve Stamps 2013 creation OR make a new card using your favorite Verve stamp set.  

Stacey here!  I'm having ball as the Fall/Winter Guest Designer here at Verve!   Thanks a "latte," Julee, for having me here for the holiday season...it has been a thrill to work with you, your amazing team and those fabulous Verve goodies!

Here are a few other favorite projects that I've created this year using Verve goodness!

All Things

Goodness of Life

Cup of Cheer

Remembering You

Merry Christmas

As a fun extra this month, the Divas are answering "The Diva Fab Five Questionnaire."  Here goes!

What are your three favorite Verve products?

Tough question!  There are so many favorite Verve products that I can't possible choose only three!  I'll choose three favorite Verve products that first come to mind...they are Holiday Treats (of course), Award Banner Trim Die (use it on almost every Verve creation), and the Sweet Scallop Tag (a fantastic basic tag).

What is your current go-to color combo?

I LOVE color/pattern, bold and contrasting color/pattern!  I adore aqua, kraft and pink together...but notice there's an additional splash or coral on my card today, too!  There are so many fabulous color combinations, I have several favorite combos?!  Many times, I take a 6x6 paper pad and find a yummy combination of color and pattern right from there!  The coordinating papers take some of the guess work out of putting colors together.  

What is your current go-to embellishment?
I use loads of SEQUINS and TWINE...so, you can imagine how excited I was when Verve began offering their own sequins!  Sequins and twine are definitely my go-to embellishments these days!  Just a few months ago, my answer would have been seam binding and buttons...but, I still LOVE them, too!

What is your favorite stamping or organizational tool?

I don't think I could live without my Fiskars Paper Cutter, My Scor-Pal and Big Shot (though, I just bought a Vegabond and can't wait to see if I love it).

What is your favorite treat to eat while stamping? 

I don't usually snack on anything while I'm creating, but I do enjoy a cup of coffee with french vanilla creamer!

My card features those coffee/latte cups from one of my favorite stamp sets, Holiday Treats.  and the coordinating Cup of Cheer Die Set!  I adore the chevron rectangle image that fits snuggly into the Tagged Rectangle Die!  The Award Banner Trim Die peeks out from behind the focal panel and there's a sprinkling of the delicate Pastel Sequins Mix.

Deadline to link your cards is 8PM Mountain on Thursday, December 26th.  Entries must be posted 12/6 or later, include at least one Verve product, be your favorite Verve Stamps creation of 2013 or a new creation using your favorite Verve Stamps set, and be linked up to the linky widget by 8pm Mountain on 12/26/13.   As an reminder, last month's $40 gift certificate winner did not use any Verve stamps on her card so she was not eligible to win and we had to draw another winner.

During this month's Diva Dare, there are 2 prizes up for grabs!

Win a $40 Gift voucher to Verve Stamps! Take our "Playing Favorites" Dare and link up your card (created December 6th or later) to the linky widget below to be eligible to win.  One participant will be randomly selected to win the gift voucher.  You can enter as many times as you like, but each card needs to be in a separate post.

Win a set of your choice! For another chance to win some new Verve, leave a little comment love on our design team's "Playing Favorites" Diva Dare posts!  One lucky commenter will win a Verve stamp set of his or her choice, so be sure to tune in each day!  Comment deadline to be entered in our prize drawing is December 26, 2013.

Winners will be announced on December 27, 2013.

- Go forth and get inky! We DARE you! -

December Diva Inspirations Hop

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Hi Verve fans! It’s the 5th of the month and time for our monthly Diva Inspirations Blog Hop! If you’re not familiar with our hop, it’s our design team’s time to shine a light on some old favorites from the Verve line-up and breathe a little fresh life into them. Sometimes we dust off older sets to use them by themselves and sometimes we mix and match them with newer products, but we always have a lot of fun getting our Verve on! Hop along with us to see what I mean! For my card, I mixed old and new stamps for a whimsical little Christmas card.  My little Christmas birdie and sentiment are from the brand new Christmas Joy set.  I stamped the sentiment onto a Scroll Die cut stamped with the coordinating Scroll Plain Jane, then accented with a snowflake from Holiday Treats cut with the Winter Fun Die Set. My birdie has a glitzy red coat and is standing on some glimmery white snow, courtesy of Stickles!  I added some fun scrappers floss and mini jingle bells to finish things off. Did I mention there's a PRIZE hidden along this little hop! Just leave a comment at each stop as you hop around to the blogs linked below and you’ll be entered into a drawing to win a $40 voucher to the Verve Store!  Eye candy AND a chance to win free stamps... sounds simply fabulous!  I can't wait to see what everyone created! This little shindig starts over on my blog, Poetic Artistry, so I'll see ya there! {grin} 1. Julee 11. Andrea 2. Amy 12. Teresa 3. Anya 13. Charmaine 4. Betty 14. Laurie S. 5. Jessica 15. Stacey {Guest} 6. Karen 16. Jen 7. Sankari 17. Maureen 8. Sarah 18. Marisa 9. Susan 19. Christyne 10. Tiffany Comment deadline for the prize drawing is 5pm Mountain on Tuesday, December 10.

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And since the year is coming to a close, we thought we'd celebrate with a 25% off sale on all of our stamps that released in 2013 (and their coordinating dies)!

Supply List:
Stamps: Christmas Joy, Scroll, Holiday Treats (Verve)
Paper: 'Tis the Season (Echo Park), basic black, basic gray, cherry cobbler (SU!), white
Ink: Black
Accessories: Scroll Die, Winter Fun Die Set (A Cut Above by VERVE), red, green, orange and frosted lace stickles (Ranger), white scrapper's floss (Karen Foster), mini jingle bells (JoAnn)

November New Release Blog Hop and a SALE!

Hi Verve fans!  The Divas are blog hopping today to celebrate a brand new mini release!  This morning we released a new set and a new plain jane and also added 4 compilation sets of discontinued faith and scripture stamps to the store!  Woohoo!

If you've been hopping along with our New Release Hop, this is the final stop.  If not, just head on over to my personal blog, Poetic Artistry, to start from the beginning, because you don't want to miss a thing!  Our brand new November Release is now available in the Verve store!  As an added bonus, all Verve stamps and dies, INCLUDING the new release are 25% off through December 4, while supplies last!

For my card today, I made a super quick CAS card with one of the sentiments from the new Christmas Joy set, paired with the frame from Love Story and some snowflakes from Holiday Treats.  The frame and sentiment are embossed in white on black cardstock and cut with the Lovely Marquee Die.  The snowflakes are stamped in soft sky on soft sky card stock for a subtle background.  Finished card size is 4.25" square.

Supply List:
Stamps: Christmas Joy, Holiday Treats, Love Story (Verve)
Paper: soft sky, basic black (SU!), white
Ink: soft sky (SU!), Versamark
Accessories: Lovely Marquee Die (A Cut Above by VERVE), white embossing powder

Here's a little link up to the new stamps ...

Christmas Joy	Every Heart Plain Jane	Faith Medley
Scripture Medley 1	Scripture Medley 2	Scripture Medley 3

We'll be drawing a random comment winner from all of the comments along today's hop to win a $75 gift certificate to the Verve Store, so be sure to leave a little shout out at each stop as you hop around!

Today's Blog Hop Prize:  $75 Verve Gift Certificate

Comment Deadline for Prize Drawing:  Sunday, 12/1 at 5pm Mountain

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

Okay, one last thing!  We've also got a little 4 day sale starting today, where I've marked down 50 products 50% off through November 30!  Woohoo!  The sale is while supplies last, so shop early for the best selection!

November Diva Dare - Day 12

Hi Verve fans!  It's Julee here, wrapping up the final day of our Shape Up November Diva Dare.  This month's dare is to feature a common shape on your card (think hexagons, chevrons, arrows, triangles, hearts, stars, etc.) My card is brought to you by the common circle.  {grin}

When I came up with this month's dare, I had envisioned making a card with all sorts of hexagons, using punches and dies and stencils I've been collecting.  Alas, the world seems to be spinning madly on and I didn't have time to both find all those treasures in my chaos and create something, so I decided to postpone that project and make something with this week's Mojo Monday sketch. Two birds, one stone, ya know?

Anyhow, circles are a favorite shape of mine and I've highlighted them here with rhinestones and scallops and snowflakes and jingle bells and polka dots and even a lacy border punch for the bottom of the card!  Pretty simple stamping... the sentiment from Holiday Treats is stamped in Wild Wasabi and the small snowflake from the same set is embossed in white on designer paper and then hand trimmed.

Supply List
Stamps: Holiday Treats (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Christmas Basics (DCWV), white
Ink: wild wasabi (SU!), 
Accessories:  wild wasabi ribbon (SU!), white scrapper's floss (Karen Foster), glittered jingle bells (Michael's), rhinestones (Pizzazz Aplenty), Classic & Scallop Circles Nestabilities (Spellbinders), doily lace border punch (Martha Stewart)

Deadline to link your cards is 8PM Mountain on Wednesday, November 27.  Entries must be new (posted 11/8 or later), include at least one Verve product, include a common shape, and be linked up to the linky widget by 8pm Mountain on 11/27/13. 

During this month's Diva Dare, there are 2 prizes up for grabs!

Win a $40 Gift voucher to Verve Stamps! Take our "Shape Up" Dare and link up your card (created November 8th or later) to the linky widget below to be eligible to win.  One participant will be randomly selected to win the gift voucher.  You can enter as many times as you like, but each card needs to be in a separate post.

Win a set of your choice! For another chance to win some new Verve, leave a little comment love on our design team's "Shape Up" Diva Dare posts!  One lucky commenter will win a Verve stamp set of his or her choice, so be sure to tune in each day!  Comment deadline to be entered in our prize drawing is November 27, 2013.

Winners will be announced on November 28, 2013.

- Go forth and get inky! We DARE you! -

November Diva Dare - Day 7

Hello Verve fans!  Christyne here bringing you some more inspiration for the November Diva Dare - Shape Up!    

What we're daring you to do this month is to create a card or project including a common shape.  For example:  hexagons, chevrons, arrows, triangles, hearts, stars etc.  Lots of fun ways you can go with this dare and we can't wait to see what you create!

For my card, I decided to highlight the chevron shape or pennant angles.  I decided to go monochromatic to highlight the shape's bold flair.  The chevron background was paired with the bold chevron frame from the Unto Us set and a sentiment from the Holiday Treats set.  I also used the snowflake from this set  and the Reindeer fun dies as a highlight since it has some more awesome chevron-type angles.  I added a little pennant drama as well with the banner bundle die set since it is chevron-y.  Finally, I added some crisp white seam binding from the Signature Ribbon Collection.  This card also features this week's Viva la Verve sketch by Teresa Kline (November 2013 week 4).

Deadline to link your cards is 8PM Mountain on Wednesday, November 27th.  Entries must be new (posted 11/8 or later), include at least one Verve product, include a common shape, and be linked up to the linky widget by 8pm Mountain on 11/27/13. 

During this month's Diva Dare, there are 2 prizes up for grabs!

Win a $40 Gift voucher to Verve Stamps! Take our "Shape Up" Dare and link up your card (created November 8th or later) to the linky widget below to be eligible to win.  One participant will be randomly selected to win the gift voucher.  You can enter as many times as you like, but each card needs to be in a separate post. 

Win a set of your choice! For another chance to win some new Verve, leave a little comment love on our design team's "Shape Up" Diva Dare posts!  One lucky commenter will win a Verve stamp set of his or her choice, so be sure to tune in each day!  Comment deadline to be entered in our prize drawing is November 27, 2013.

Winners will be announced on November 28, 2013.

- Go forth and get inky! We DARE you! -

November Diva Dare - Day 11

"Shape Up", November Diva Dare

Hey Verve fans!  Stacey here with my take on the November Diva Dare - Shape Up!  What a fun challenge with endless possibilities!  

What we're daring you to do this month is to create a card or project including a common shape.  For example:  hexagons, chevrons, arrows, triangles, hearts, stars etc.  Lots of fun ways you can go with this dare and we can't wait to see what you create!

Check out ALL the shapes I packed into my card!  Some fabulous Verve Stamps, A Cut Above by Verve Dies and some fabulous patterned paper is all you need to get your card in "shipSHAPE!"  

After layering a few different patterned papers, the "Merry Christmas" sentiment and red snowflake image are from the Holiday Treats stamp set.  The sentiment was stamped in red and die cut with the Tagged Rectangle Die, while the snowflake was also stamped in red and die cut using the Frosty Snowflakes Die Set.  To finish up the card, I added some curly twine and a sprinkling of the Metal Mix Sequins and Pastel Sequin Mix.

Deadline to link your cards is 8PM Mountain on Wednesday, November 27th.  Entries must be new (posted 11/8 or later), include at least one Verve product, include a common shape, and be linked up to the linky widget by 8pm Mountain on 11/27/13. 

During this month's Diva Dare, there are 2 prizes up for grabs!

Win a $40 Gift voucher to Verve Stamps! Take our "Shape Up" Dare and link up your card (created November 8th or later) to the linky widget below to be eligible to win.  One participant will be randomly selected to win the gift voucher.  You can enter as many times as you like, but each card needs to be in a separate post. 

Win a set of your choice! For another chance to win some new Verve, leave a little comment love on our design team's "Shape Up" Diva Dare posts!  One lucky commenter will win a Verve stamp set of his or her choice, so be sure to tune in each day!  Comment deadline to be entered in our prize drawing is November 27, 2013.

Winners will be announced on November 28, 2013.

- Go forth and get inky! We DARE you! -

November Diva Dare Day ~ Day 10

"Shape Up", November Diva Dare

Hey there!  It's Laurie here with another round of the monthly Diva Dare!  This month is all about Shapes....

What we're daring you to do this month is to create a card or project including a common shape.  For example:  hexagons, chevrons, arrows, triangles, hearts, stars etc.  Lots of fun ways you can go with this dare and we can't wait to see what you create!

Here is my card using this month's dare:

So many shapes to pick from, right?  I chose a pretty simple shape... for my CAS card...the rectangle.  I added in 4 of them into this one card.  Then I stamped an adorable sentiment and those cute little coffee cups from the new Holiday Treats set,  to finish it off.  

Deadline to link your cards is 8PM Mountain on Wednesday, November 27th.  Entries must be new (posted 11/8 or later), include at least one Verve product, include a common shape, and be linked up to the linky widget by 8pm Mountain on 11/27/13. 

During this month's Diva Dare, there are 2 prizes up for grabs!

Win a $40 Gift voucher to Verve Stamps! Take our "Shape Up" Dare and link up your card (created November 8th or later) to the linky widget below to be eligible to win.  One participant will be randomly selected to win the gift voucher.  You can enter as many times as you like, but each card needs to be in a separate post. 

Win a set of your choice! For another chance to win some new Verve, leave a little comment love on our design team's "Shape Up" Diva Dare posts!  One lucky commenter will win a Verve stamp set of his or her choice, so be sure to tune in each day!  Comment deadline to be entered in our prize drawing is November 27, 2013.

Winners will be announced on November 28, 2013.

- Go forth and get inky! We DARE you! -

November Diva Dare ~ Day 9

"Shape Up", November Diva Dare

What day is it? It's Day NINE of our Dare and I'm so excited to share how I took the challenge this month.

What we're daring you to do is to create a card or project including a common shape.  For example:  hexagons, chevrons, arrows, triangles, hearts, stars etc.  Lots of fun ways you can go with this dare and I can't wait to see what you create!

For me the shape of a coffee take-out cup is pretty common and I'm in the mind set for money gift card holders, so I've combined those two for my take on the dare to "Shape Up".

It helps that my inspiration is the new Holiday Treats stamp set and it's Cup of Cheer coordinating die set and I loved the idea of the card holder in the same shape as a take-out coffee cup. I used my Pazzles Inspiration Cutter and one of the Library cutting files to make the card base and cut out the Bundled Up pattern paper by Crate Paper. Then it was time to embellish with Verve goodness.

I stamped the chevron tag and gorgeous "From Our House to Yours" sentiment from the stamp set in Crumb Cake then die cut the tag out with the Tagged Rectangle Die. A flag makes for a more festive look so I added a second "Have a Cup of Cheer" sentiment and cut it out with the Flag It Die Set.

This all sits on top of the sleeve over the cup shaped card base and that is even Verve embellished with the Award Banner Trim Die and a bow made with Grapefruit color seam binding ribbon from Truly Madly Deeply Ribbon Collection.

Love the chevron latte cup a whole "latte"! Stamped in Garden Green the latte cup is die cut out using the coordinating A Cut Above, Cup of Cheer Die Set

Add a sleeve for a gift card or money and there's still enough room for a personal note.

That's it from me! Now here's the details to get your Dare in shape.

Deadline to link your cards is 8PM Mountain on Wednesday, November 27th.  Entries must be new (posted 11/8 or later), include at least one Verve product, include a common shape, and be linked up to the linky widget by 8pm Mountain on 11/27/13. 

During this month's Diva Dare, there are 2 prizes up for grabs!

Win a $40 Gift voucher to Verve Stamps! Take our "Shape Up" Dare and link up your card (created November 8th or later) to the linky widget below to be eligible to win.  One participant will be randomly selected to win the gift voucher.  You can enter as many times as you like, but each card needs to be in a separate post. 

Win a set of your choice! For another chance to win some new Verve, leave a little comment love on our design team's "Shape Up" Diva Dare posts!  One lucky commenter will win a Verve stamp set of his or her choice, so be sure to tune in each day!  Comment deadline to be entered in our prize drawing is November 27, 2013.

Winners will be announced on November 28, 2013.