July Baker's Dozen Studio Challenge

I am so excited to introduce to you a new challenge at Taylored Expressions!  It's called the Baker's Dozen Studio Challenge!  It's going to be a lot of fun and I hope you'll look forward to it each month!

Taylored Expressions is introducing a new monthly challenge for the design team: The Baker's Dozen Studio Challenge. This will be an opportunity for us to share what makes our stamping studios hum. Each month we will have a fun, crafty question so we can share our favorites, some tips and tricks, stamping advice and more.

The question for July is:
You are stranded on a desert island. The good news is that you find a fabulous stamping hut well-stocked with papers, inks and other stamping supplies, however you only have the 5 stamp sets you brought with you in the luggage you managed to salvage. So tell us, what stamps sets did you bring and why?

When I went through my TE stamps to choose the 5 stamp sets I'd pack in my luggage, it took me a bit of time.  As I went through older sets that I haven't used in a while, I remembered how much they were my favorites and it made it very hard to decide!  My final decision ended up being the following:

1.  Birds of a Feather
2.  Bugabee
3.  Discover Your Wings
4.  Make It Amazing
5.  Love Monsters

A couple of sets on my list (Bugabee and Love Monsters) are a no-brainer if you know my style.  I LOVE cute, adorable images and you know I'm all about ladybugs!  ;)  Those sets are definitely for days when I need a cute card.  Discover Your Wings had to be in my luggage because I need at least one silhouette set for the days when I don't have time or don't feel like coloring.  Make It Amazing is just a gorgeous set.  It's perfect for making those elegant/pretty/feminine cards with lots of frills and layers.  I couldn't leave that home!  :)  The set that I used for today's challenge and the set that I even surprised myself with choosing is Birds of a Feather.  Don't get me wrong, I love this set, but it's not my usual style.  I always seems to love everybody else's creations with a set like this.  I don't know why.  Everybody needs to pack a "challenging" set, right?  The one that wouldn't be your normal style, but you play with when you have time to play (like when you're stranded on a desert island with nothing but time!)   LOL 

For my project today, I chose to use the Birds of a Feather set.  I also used papers from the Tea for Two Collection from Cosmo Cricket, which actually was in my July Key Ingredients Subscription.  (I wonder if I'd be able to forward that subscription to the desert island?? Taylor???)  lol

I used the coordinating Birds and Branch Dies on my card.  I die cut the branch twice. . .once out of brown cardstock and once out of green.  Then I cut the leaves off of the green die cut branch and glued them in place on the brown branch.  I stamped and die cut two of the little birds from the set and mounted them on the branch with foam tape. 

The little panel behind the birds was die cut using the Take Note Frame 2 Die and then I ran it through my Cuttlebug with the Hearts Impression Plate.  For the sentiment section of the card, I die cut the yellow cardstock using the Medium Scallop Border Die.  I die cut a Layering Doily Die Small out of white cardstock.  I stamped and embossed one of the birdcages from the set onto cream cardstock, cut it out and attached it over the doily as a little accent.  The sentiment was stamped on an acetate band that I wrapped around the card front.  I finished the card off with some ribbon, buttons and stitching. 

Jen Shults

Jodi Collins

Karen Giron

Melody Rupple

Regina Mangum

Sankari Wegman

Shannon White

Shelly Mercado

Stephanie Kraft

Taylor VanBruggen

Wanda Guess

VLV I Love You Beautiful

The latest Viva la Verve Sketch is hosted by Maureen and it's a GREAT one!  I chose to use a few Verve sets for my card.  I started off knowing I wanted to use the You and I set along with the coordinating I Heart U Die Set.  I die cut and stamped the letters and heart out of papers from the Splash Collection from Echo Park.  Next I die cut a Classy Label Die and stamped it with the grid stamp from the Making a Statement set. 

I stamped the "beautiful" sentiment from You and I and embossed it in white.  I finished the card off with some stitching, some Baker's Twine and some bling.  Come play along with Viva la Verve!  There's always a chance to win some Verve goodness! :)

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day! 

Happy Birthday

The July Diva Dare is going on over at the Verve Blog.  This month's theme is BIRTHDAY since five of the Divas (including me) have a July birthday!  Today was my day to share my answer to the dare.  You can find all of the details and the other Diva projects by visiting the Verve Blog. 

For my project, I created a birthday basket.  The basket was created using my Silhouette.  I stuffed it with some filler so it's all ready for a gift of some kind. The papers are from the Alphabet Soup Collection from My Mind's Eye. I started with the Hearts & Swirls Frame Die and the coordinating frame stamp from Twitterpated. I stamped the Happy Birthday Plain Jane sentiment onto the die cut frame. Then I got out my Bloom & Grow set and coordinating Elegant Leaves Die and Floral Circles Die Set to stamp and die cut some flowers and leaves. I added some glitter, bling and ribbon to finish off the birthday basket. 

Head on over to the Verve Blog to play along and to see the other Diva creations!  Thanks for stopping by today and have a wonderful day!

Happy Birthday

There are A LOT of summer birthdays in my family.  I really need to just create a large supply of birthday cards for the summer.  It seems that every time I need one, I have to make it or I use a card with a general sentiment that will work.  :)  This card uses the Sky's the Limit set and Coordinating Dies from Taylored Expressions.  I started with this week's Sweet Sunday Sketch for the layout of the card. 

I stamped the balloons and then die cut just the "balloon" part out of patterned paper and adhered the die cut part over the stamped part.  The patterned paper is from the Happy Day Collection from Simple Stories.  I used a partial die cut of the Take Note Frame 3 Die for the sentiment. 

The "flower" was created using one of the dies from the Fancy Buckles Set.   The red scalloped piece behind the buckle was die cut using a die from the Bugbee Flowers Die Set.  I finished the card with some stitching and some Doodle Twine. 

Thanks for stopping by today and have a great day! 

Happy Birthday, Isabelle!!

I wasn't able to post this yesterday on her actual birthday, but my baby turned 3 yesterday!!  Where does the time go?  Wasn't it just yesterday that I was telling you all that I was pregnant with her?  LOL  Today we are celebrating Isabelle's birthday.  She let me snap this quick picture before I went to set up my post. :) 

Happy Birthday, my sweet little lady!!  You have such a personality that makes me laugh every day!  No matter how old you get you'll still be my baby!  I love you, my sweet Isabelle!!

Taylored Expressions Calendar Challenge July

It's time for another Calendar Challenge at Taylored Expressions! If you haven't played along yet, you can find all of the details on Taylor's Blog. The requirement to play is to use TE Calendar products, but TE stamps are NOT required. For everyone who plays in 10 or more of these monthly calendar challenges in 2012, there will be a random draw for a TE prize pack valued at over $150!!! 

I used the Desktop Acrylic Base calendar product along with the Mini Tear-Off Calendar along with the Love Grows Here set.   The papers are from the On the Bright Side One Collection from My Mind's Eye.  I started by die cutting a piece of white cardstock with the Take Note Frame 3 Die and using the Waves and Bubbles Impression Plate on it.  I then stamped the tree image onto the piece and stamped the tree image again onto another piece of white cardstock.  I colored the images and then cut the one out and mounted it on top of the "impressed" one, so the tree is raised while the bees are on the base piece of cardstock.  I die cut a piece of red cardstock using the Fly Your Flag 2 Die and stamped the sentiment.  The border (which is hardly seen) was die cut using the Medium Scallop Border Die. 

If you play along, there will be a linky at the bottom of Taylor's post for you to post your link. It will remain open all year, so you have the option to go back and catch up if you start playing late. The KEYWORD for posting to SCS or other on-line galleries is TECALCHAL. We hope you'll play along! Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of the Calendar Hop!
Sankari
Shannon
Wanda
Jodi
Taylor
Melody
Stephanie

Come Sail Away With Me

Today I have a happy card for you using the latest Deconstructed Sketch.  I used the new Bon Voyage set from Taylored Expressions along with some papers from the Hello Summer Collection from Echo Park. 

I started by stamping the sailboat and coloring it with Copic markers.  I added the waves to the image using the Wave Border Die.  I stamped the sentiment and added it to the side. . .and I couldn't stop singing that song either!  ;)  I added a scalloped border using the Medium Scallop Border Die.  To finish the card off, I added some stitching and some bling.  Thanks for stopping by today and I hope this card made you smile!  :)  SUPPLIES USED:  Stamps- Bon Voyage (Taylored Expressions); Ink- Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); Paper- Hello Summer (Echo Park); Accessories- Wave Border Die, Medium Scallop Border Die (Taylored Expressions), Copic markers, ribbon (Darice), bling (Doodlebug Designs);  Finished card measures 5.5"x4.25"

VLV All the Flowers

It's Friday and time for a new Viva la Verve Sketch!  This week I'm the hostess and I'd LOVE to see what YOU create using the sketch!  Follow the link for all the details!

I started with the Flowers of Tomorrow Plain Jane and added flowers and a sentiment from the Sunny Days set from Verve.  The papers are from the Victoria Gardens Collection from Echo Park.  I used the Leafy Sprig Die Set as well as the Floral Circles Die Set for the flower and sprig accents.  I added a couple of buttons, some adhesive pearls and stitching to finish off the card.  You can follow the Viva la Verve link above to go to the thread and see the gorgeous samples the Divas have created with the sketch AND you can also view what everyone who is participating is creating using the sketch.  Come play along!!

Thanks for stopping by today and have a wonderful weekend!  SUPPLIES USED:  Stamps- Flowers of Tomorrow Plain Jane, Sunny Days (Verve Stamps); Ink- Basic Gray (Stampin' Up), Frost White (Colorbox); Paper- Victoria Gardens Collection (Echo Park), Smokey Shadow (PTI);  Accessories- Leafy Sprig Die Set, Floral Circles Die Set (Verve Stamps), pearls (Want2Scrap), buttons (PTI);  Finished card measures 5.5"x4.25"

July Diva Inspirations Blog Hop

 

Welcome to the July Diva Inspirations Blog Hop!  The Verve Divas are here to inspire you with a little Verve! You can start the Hop at the Verve blog. Continue through and comment on each fabulous blog and leave a little comment love and you just might win some Verve goodness of your very own! If you got here from the Andrea you are in the right place. Be sure to check out the awesome line up of diva inspiration we have for you this month.

	1. Betty	8. Amber
	2. Jen d.	9. Andrea
	3. Jen T.	10. Charmaine
	4. Julee	11. Janelle
	5. Sankari	12. Maureen
	6. Sony	13. Teresa
	7. Susan

For my card, I started with this week's Mojo Monday Sketch and used the Thankful Blossoms stamp set.  The papers are from the Summer Fresh Collection from Simple Stories.  I die cut a piece of the patterned paper with the Curvy Bookplate Die and stamped the sentiment on this piece.  I stamped the butterfly onto another piece of patterned paper, colored it with Copic markers, cut it out and mounted it on the card with foam tape.  I added some Stardust Stickles for some sparkle. 

We're also having a SALE at Verve!  So head on over and check that out!

It's Julee's (owner & illustrator of Verve) birth month, so we're having a SALE!

Through July 31, ALL stamps are 20% off!

Next on the hop is Janelle's blog.  Be sure to see what fabulous creation she has for you!  Thanks for stopping by today and enjoy the hop!!

VLV Go Confidently, Grad

This past Friday started a new Viva la Verve Challenge!!  This week's hostess with the mostess is Amber and she has a GREAT sketch!  I was in need of a Graduation card, so I thought I'd use this sketch to create that.  I started with some papers from the On the Bright Side One Collection from My Mind's Eye.  I thought the papers would be great for a male graduation card.  I used a few Verve stamps sets for my card.  I used sentiments from Words of Wisdom and Small Celebrations and the label image from Love Notes that coordinates with the Classy Label Die.   

I added a little stitching and hand cut the flags behind the "denim" panel.  I stamped the larger sentiment in white craft ink and embossed it with white embossing powder, and the smaller sentiment was stamped in Onyx Black Versafine ink.  The label was stamped in Ripe Avocado. 

Come play along with the Viva la Verve Challenge!  There's always a chance to win some Verve!!  :)  Thanks for stopping by today and have a fabulous day!