July Diva Dare 2012 - Day 6

Hello Verve fans and welcome to day six; Teresa here sharing my Verve Diva Dare with you.  This month, we dare you to make a card or project using a BIRTHDAY theme.  If you haven't heard it is birthday month here at Verve; I happen to be one of the birthday gals, along with Julee and three others.  Let's celebrate with some fun birthday projects!  We can't wait to see how you answer the dare! (Stay tuned to see how you could win some shiny new Verve!)

Here is my little burlap birthday combo

I have made a burlap pouch, that will fit my 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 card, plus room enough for a gift card or a small gift.  You could add a bag of goodies; candy, buttons, ribbon, or jewelry.

My card is designed based on this weeks Mojo Monday Sketch with a tiny bit of tweaking and turning...lol.  You can play along with us here at The Mojo Monday Blog.  I have used the Verve stamp sets Love Notes, Wishing You, and Big Wish.  The main panel shape was cut with the A Cut Above Verve Classy Label Die.

Here is a closer look at the sweet burlap bag, I used an 8 x 8 piece of burlap and folded the corner to the middle and then the two sides.  I used Scor-Tape to adhere it together, the flap is held with a glue dot; it works great!

Here is my sqaure card tucked inside with plenty of room for that special birthday giftie!  I cannot wait to see what you create for the Verve Diva Dare....have fun!

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Would you like a chance to win some fabulous new VERVE GOODIES? There are two ways to win:

1. Play along with our Birthday Diva Dare. Link up your creation (posted July 16 or later) to the linky widget below before 6:00 pm MT on Sunday, July 29. One lucky stamper will win a $30 gift certificate to the Verve Store. Verve Stamps are not required, but if you've got 'em we would love to see 'em!
2. For another chance to win, be sure to give the Divas a little shout-out in the comments section as we share our birthday creations. One lucky commenter will win the Verve stamp set of his or her choosing.

Winners will be announced on Monday, July 30 right here on the Verve blog.

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Click the "Click here to enter" link at the bottom of this post for the Diva Dare entry form. Please type your name or screen name in the Caption or Title field, then choose the link and photo you'd like to enter.  Please link directly to the specific blog post or gallery page where we can view your creation.  If you're having problems linking, try entering the link to your card, then choosing From File instead of From Web. Then just browse to where your picture is saved on your computer to get your thumbnail.

Tags, Tins, and Treats: Day 5

Hello! Amber here bringing you day FIVE of this months Verve Project Parade! Julee gave us a super fun theme to work with this month! There are alot of ways to interpret this fun challenge so I hope you give it a go!
I have to be fast with my post today, I'm babysitting (it's Friday night here in Oki!) a 2 year old and an 8 month old who's teething. Needless to say, I don't have a lot of time right now, lol! I don't have kids and now I know why God gives you one child at a time and doesn't drop a toddler and infant on you all at once, lol! So without further-ado, here is my project!
I created a fun bag, a tin, and tags to put inside the tin! The paper I used is Raspberry Tart by SU! and Ripe Avacado and White by PTI! I used my favorite stamp set EVER, Love's Flower for the tags! The tag on the card uses the sentiments from Wishing You and the fun accent stamp by the punched scallops is from Accent Notes.
Here are a few pictures of the tags inside the tin! I created two of each so there are 6 tags inside the tin. I also created that fun belly band around the tin! It just slides right off so you can open the tin.


So what do you think? Fun challenge, right? Play along for your chance to win! All you have to do is post your project for this month's Tags, Tins, and Treats theme to the Mr. Linky in THIS POST! Have it loaded by Midnight on Monday, the 15th of February for your chance to win $25 Verve Bucks to spend in the Verve Store! Make sure to leave a loving comment on all the Diva's blog entries for another opportunity to win! One lucky poster throughout the Project Parade will win their choice of any Verve set! Sounds worth it to me;)
Thanks for stopping by!

January Guest Divas

Welcome to 2010! I'm so excited to start off the new year with the announcement of our January Guest Divas! Our next release is just two weeks away (January 15) and we've got 2 fabulous designers playing along with us this month.

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First up is Melissa Sauls of In Stamping Mode. Melissa caught my eye quite a while back with her gorgeously elegant entries for our Mojo Monday challenges. I just love her use of embellishments and beautiful pastel combinations for that perfect shabby chic look. A peek into her blog will have you drooling, not only at her cards but her wonderful props and photography. Below are links to a few of my favorite Verve cards from Melissa, plus a special card she made just for today's announcement...

You're the Best
You Color My World


Sample features Because of You & Bountiful Backgrounds

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Next up is Rosie Hughes of Love My Craft Room. Rosie has been participating in Mojo Monday and Verve challenges for quite a while and I'm really drawn to her fun take on sketches and beautiful embellishing. She's got a super fun style and I'm sure you'll just love what she creates for this release! Here are a couple of my favorites from her blog, as well as a gorgeous card she made to ring in the new year...

You've Got Style
The Perfect Example


Sample features Wishing You

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Okay, that wraps it up for our Guest Diva announcement. Welcome Rosie & Melissa!

I'll be back Monday (hopefully) with the winner of our Winter Mittens Digi Contest. I've been busy packing orders and haven't had time for much else this week. If you ordered during our sale, be sure to check out this thread in our forum for an update on shipping status - we're a bit behind our usual schedule.

Encouraging Words : Day 8

Happy Monday, everyone...and welcome to Day 8 of our "Encouraging Words" Project Parade! The title of this month's theme set my mind into motion, and the first thought I had was to create something that could be seen and used each and every day. I wanted it to be both encouraging and colorful...so here is what I came up with:

I created a door hanger and coordinating card for a friend of mine that has been having quite a rough time lately. This was made for her to hang on her front door, so she would see it each time she left her house. I used the new "Happiness Found" stamp set from the September Release to create this focal panel. Julee always has such a knack for designing stamps that are not only fun and elegant, but that are also inspirational and versatile. I love the size of this sentiment, and this gorgeous set can also be utilized to make cards for both men and women at any time of the year.

For the 3X3 coordinating card, I decided to use the "Wishing You" set to decorate both the inside and the outside of the card...which is something that I seldom do! The "wishing you" is one stamp, and it has a number of coordinating phrases to complete the thought you wish to convey. Here's a look at the outside...

...and here's a look at the inside utilizing one of the complimentary sentiments:

So what do you think? I know you have enjoyed the fabulous work that the other Divas have been sharing during our Project Parade, but now it's your turn! Create a card/project that is focused on encouraging words, and link up your creation to the Mr. Linky widget on the DAY 1 POST before midnight MST on Sunday, October 18. As with all of our project parades, we've got prizes! One lucky project parade participant will win a $35 gift certificate to the Verve Store. Be sure to show some love for the Divas each day (Oct.5-17) for another chance to win, because ONE lucky commenter will also win their choice of any Verve set. We can't wait to see your creations...Happy Stamping!

Encouraging Words: Day 6

Hi everyone, it's Michelle! I'm here on Day 6 to share with you my card of Encouraging Words. There many occasions when people need some encouragement. My card today is for a great friend who is very sick right now.

This card uses Wishing You. This set can be used for so many different occasions -I LOVE that!! I wanted to use colors and paper that are cheerful, so I used Cosmo Cricket Early Bird. The prima flowers all have vintage brown buttons from my granny's tin as their centers and I used lots stickles for some extra happy sparkle. The silver pearls and cord add another bright and cheerful touch.

The amazing sketch is today's Sketch For You to Try from fellow Diva, Jen!

So, now it's your turn! We'd love for you to play along with us and show us your card or project focused on encouraging words or friendship. Verve stamps are not required, but if you've got 'em, we'd love to see 'em.

And, as with all of our project parades, we've got prizes! To enter, just link up your creation to the Mr. Linky widget on the DAY 1 POST before midnight MST on Sunday, October 18. One lucky stamper will win a $35 gift certificate to the Verve Store. And for another chance to win, be sure to give the Divas a little shout out in the comments as they parade their fabulous creations. One lucky commenter during the course of the parade (Oct 5 - 17) will win their choice of any Verve set. Have fun!

Project Parade Challenge: Day 2

Hello hello! It's day 2 on this wild Project Parade Challenge! If I had to choose one thing I love about Verve, and Julee herself (but please don't make me, it would be too hard!) it's the spirit of encouragement and the uplifiting spirit of the stamps she and her sweet husband create. Every stamp set in the Verve Store is incredibly inspiring. For this months Project Parade, we're showcaseing the encouraging words in the stamps. Truly, this was a fun challenge!

I was looking through all my new release stamps and I love all the sentiments in "Wishing You". Especially "a beautiful forever", isn't that a wonderful sentiment?

What better way to apply it than to a wedding/anniversary card:) I adore the bunnies in Bunny Duet and decided they go *perfectly* with the sentiment I wanted to use. I colored them with Copics and used matching dp by K&Co.

-Amber

So, now it's your turn! We'd love for you to play along with us and show us your card or project focused on encouraging words or friendship. Verve stamps are not required, but if you've got 'em, why not show 'em a little love? ;)

As with all of our project parades, we've got prizes! To enter, just link up your creation focused on encouraging words or friendship to the Mr. Linky widget in THIS post before midnight MST on Sunday, October 18. One lucky stamper will win a $35 gift certificate to the Verve Store. That'll buy you a whole lot of encouragement;) For another chance to win, be sure to give the Divas a little shout out in the comments as they parade their fabulous creations inspired by this month's theme. One lucky commenter during the course of the parade (Oct 5 - 17) will win their choice of any Verve set.

Happy stamping!We can't wait to see what you create!

Sneak Peek - Day 1: Swan Song and Wishing You

Hi there! Jen Tapler here with the first day of Sneak Peeks of another FANTABULOUS Verve New Release!! Today the Divas and I are sharing a few projects using the new sets Swan Song and Wishing You. They’ll be available for purchase immediately following our Release Party this Friday night, so you don’t have long to wait! And be sure to read all the way to the end of this post to find out how you can have a chance at winning these sets for your very own!

First up is this beautiful card by Diva Tosha Leyendekker. Julee never ceases to amaze me with each new release!! And this time she included one of my all time favorite images: swans. My heart went all aflutter when I saw the set Swan Song. I'm so excited to be able to work with this new release. For this card, I stamped the swan and sentiment with Smokey Gray (Versafine) and paper toled the swan with 6 layers. I created the sentiment medallion with the Lattice Pendant, Labels 3 and Circle Nestabilities, and added some sparkle to each piece with some glitter. Finally, I topped it all off with some sewing, pearls, and a large Ivory bow.

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From Diva Mercy Kerin:
I am so stoked to be writing my first Sneak Peek post as an official Diva! It still feels like it's all been a wonderful dream! As with all the other Verve releases, I have loved each and every set that has come out...but there is always one that stands out to me a little more than the others. For this month it was Swan Song! As soon as I saw it I knew exactly what I wanted to do...that doesn't happen often, so when it does you know you have to roll with it! LOL! I stamped the swans on watercolor paper in Basic Black Craft Ink, embossed them with clear embossing powder, then colored them with an aquapainter and an ink pad. I added some yellow stickles, black rhinestones, yellow ribbon, and silver cording to finish off the card. I absolutely love the way it turned out, and I know that you will love this set as much as I do!

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From Guest Diva Kristina Biederman:
Hello Everyone! I am thrilled beyond words to be a part of this amazing release celebration! I think I almost fell out of my chair when an e-mail from Julee showed up back in July. Then, the stamps arrived and I ran through the house to find my roommate and show her how incredible they are! When I saw there was another sentiment set, Wishing You, I knew I had to get them inky right away. I love sentiment sets and Julee always makes the absolute best with the most gorgeous fonts!

I used Wishing You for my card and kept it pretty simple, keeping the words as the main focus point. I also snuck a little Beautiful Kindness onto my card - I can just see using these sentiments partnered with so many other sets!

Thanks again to Julee and the absolutely incredible Divas for letting me be a part of this wonderful release!!

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And from me, Jen Tapler:
Once again, Julee has outdone herself with this release! So many gorgeous sets!! Picking a favorite is nearly impossible, but I am a sucker for sentiment sets - and Wishing You is absolutely AWESOME!! I LOVE the idea of combining the "Wishing You" stamp with any one of the other 9 stamps in this set to create so many different sentiments. You could stamp them together as I did here to create a single focal sentiment, or divide them up (and this set is PERFECT for those of you crazies out there who take the time to finish the insides of your cards!!). I kept this little notecard-sized card simple, letting that "Wishing You the Best Day Ever" sentiment (a combination of 2 of the stamps from this set) be the focus. Some small Prima flowers were really all the embellishments this little card needed!

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Like what you’ve seen so far? Just leave a comment here on this post before 6 PM Eastern on Friday, September 18 and you’ll be put in a drawing to win these two sets! Winners will be announced at our release party that night.

And for even more chances to win, be sure to check out the Release Week challenges going on in the Verve Forum for your chance to win our entire release! Okay, that’s it for today, we’ll see you back here tomorrow for another peek at some more new sets!