Spotlight on Jessie Rone

Hi everyone! I'm back for another Guest Diva Spotlight. Today we're highlighting the fabulous Jessie Rone!

Jessie (knightrone on SCS) has been on my list of favorite designers for quite some time. She has such a fabulous style - always polished, a great eye for color and gorgeous embellishments -- what more could a girl ask for? I just adore the cards she created for our release, so let's get started!

First up is this beautiful card using the new Frosty Flakes set. I just love the monochromatic blues, and the way that big beautiful bow ties it all up like a present. So lovely!


When/how did you get hooked on stamping? I got hooked on stamping in 2001 or 2002 when the lady I worked for decided to become a Stampin’ Up demonstrator. I loved it, but I didn’t REALLY get into it until I quit working in 2007. One day I decided to go to the Splitcoast Stampers website, and that day I played in my first challenge. The rest is history!!

How often do you stamp? I used to get to stamp everyday, and I could now if I could get more organized, but I am NOT. I usually get to stamp about 2 or 3 times a week. I need to work on that though!!

What's your favorite embellishment or finishing detail?
Choosing one would be like trying to chose my favorite niece or nephew, but I don’t think that there is anyone out there that doesn’t know how much I LOVE my spiral clips and ribbon!! I also have a hard time making a card without piercing…it is a sickness!!

Okay, time for a little eye candy intermission. I think this is one of my favorite cards from this release. I just love the softness and the elegant lines of the ribbons and piercing, plus the way she's highlighted this sentiment from Star of Wonder is just beautiful!



How long does it take you to create a project that you're happy with?Depends on the card or project and how the whole process went. If it goes well, and things fall into place, about an hour. After two hours, I am never happy with what I make, so I try to keep it to less than that!!

Tell me about your creative space. My space is very organized and I LOVE it, but during a project it becomes and unruly mess. Also, on days where I make a LOT of projects, I TRY to clean between each one, and it works most of the time. I used to have to put everything away in between projects, but I am better about that now.

What is your usual starting point for a project? I would say besides stamp set, a sketch is my go to point for starting a card. I am a SUCKER for a good sketch, so anytime I can use one I am all for it!!

Time for one last card from Jessie. This one uses the new Christmas in the Air and I just adore the way she's layered her grove of trees, each pieced with a different designer paper. And that fluffy white snow? What's not to love?!!



What is your biggest source of inspiration? My biggest source of inspiration is definitely other stampers. I love blog hopping and surfing the SCS gallery, although I rarely get time to do it anymore. I get inspired by things I see when I am out and about too, a cute color scheme, and interesting picture, an old friend….just about anything.

Who in the crafting world do you most admire and why? It is hard to chose just one person, because I love all my stamping friends and think that they are all amazingly talented. If I had to chose one, it would be Jodi Collins(kharmagirl). She was one of the first people to reach out to me on SCS, and is the most amazing person, not to mention CRAZY talented. She is the best friend a girl could ask for and is ALWAYS there when I need her!!

What is your favorite set from this release? Definitely Holly Jolly, those ornaments just GET me!!

Okay, that wraps up our Guest Diva Spotlights for this release. I hope you've enjoyed learning a little more about this fabulous stamper as much as I have! To see the rest of the projects Jessie made for our release, you can check out her Guest Diva album in our gallery, or visit her blog, Can You Say Addicted to Stamps?, for her newest creations. I just loved all her gorgeous creations for our release and she was so much fun to work with. Be sure to give her a little shout out for all her hard work!

Thanks for stopping by!

---

Spotlight on Guest Diva Betty Wright

Welcome to another week! We had a ball at our release party on Friday night - learning, among other things, the meaning behind the phrase "Winner, winner chicken dinner!" We announced the winners from last week's blog giveaways as well as our release week challenges over on this thread in our forum, so be sure to check it out. And if you haven't had a chance yet, be sure to stop by the Verve Store to see all seven of our new releases, plus find out what's on sale!

Okay, on with the fun stuff! Today I'm excited to shine our little Verve spotlight on one of this month's Guest Divas, Betty Wright!

Betty (gbedwright on SCS) has been wowing me as a participant in our Verve challenges the last couple months. Her designs are always so detailed, with beautiful dimension, embellishments and a touch of elegance. And from a look at her gallery, I think she might love making square cards even more than I do! Is that possible? A girl after my own heart! :) Her cards for this release were gorgeous in every way, so let's get to the eye candy!

Before I get to Betty's answers to our VERVE-i-view, I'll start things off with this beautiful card using the new O Christmas Tree set. I just love the gorgeous ribbon embellishments, the subtle shading and the elegance of this traditional Christmas card. So beautiful!


When/how did you get hooked on stamping? I went to a Stampin' Up! party and was hooked immediately. My concept of stamping prior to then were those office ink pads and a date stamp.

How often do you stamp? I like to say I stamp at least something every day. I may skip a day here and there. However, just because I stamp does not mean I finish a project or card. Sometimes I am just playing around with background looks and color schemes. This process calms me.

What's your favorite embellishment or finishing detail?
Those little gold and silver pearls at Michael's. I always loved the brads, but I never really know where my card design will go. Often, I would have everything assembled only to think that it needs a few brads here and there. Then, I would have to pry everything apart and add the brads. With the pearls, I just lift and stick. LOVE that!!!

Okay, time for a little eye candy intermission. There's so much to love about this gorgeous card from Betty. The way she used the sentiment to create such an elegant Old World background, and the beautiful way she stacked two of the ball ornaments from Holly Jolly along with a star from Star of Wonder makes my head spin with possibilities! Love it!



How long does it take you to create a project that you're happy with?Honestly, I think the color challenge cards are the quickest. It takes me a bit to choose my colors. Once those are chosen, I then start playing around with color ratios. There have been times where I have completed a card in a little over an hour and times where I have had to walk away from my craft table because I over think it. Many times if this happens frequently in the same day, I will just set that item aside and start something new.

Tell me about your creative space. My craft room is organized chaos....with lots of little pieces of stuff everywhere at times it seems! I know where the most used items go and must have those stay in the right place because when the right brain starts creating the mundane thoughts like where I put the scissors, tape runner, etc.... are not kept in any memory cells. I have to have a place where I force myself to set those so I know where they are. Otherwise, I have to start talking out loud and asking myself questions. My right brain creative moment cannot comprehend thought words, hence the talking out loud part.

What is your usual starting point for a project? Oftentimes, from doing design work, a stamp set is my starting point. It is wonderful to have a challenge to focus on along with the set sometimes, though. Many times I take notes and do actual sketches for specific set cards. I will play around with a layout and a stamp set and figure out what goes where. That is what I call my precrafting stage. It helps me stay focused on big projects if I take notes.

Time for one last card from Betty. This one uses the new Christmas in the Air and Holly Jolly sets. I adore the little heart button she used to mirror the Christmas in the heart sentiment, and the tiny pearls on the tree just dress it up to perfection. A total treat for the eye!


What is your biggest source of inspiration?Of course, I get a lot of inspiration from other people. I like to think we all feed off of each other. However, one of the biggest sources is color. I really love colors!!! Anything from home decor, fashion, billboards, cookware, whatever. If it has color, I am always looking for a way to use the pattern or combo of colors on a card.

Who in the crafting world do you most admire and why? There are a lot of people's work that I admire. However, if I had to say one person, it would have to be Tim Holtz. His products are just amazing!!!! It completely changed the way I stamped. I do not own near enough of his stuff!!!

What is your favorite set from this release? Now, this is hard since I love them all!!! Of course, to be fair, I narrowed it down to two. O Christmas Tree and Holly Jolly. The first one because I love the images. I love making an assortment of Christmas cards, but I sometimes need to make a few fast that are the same. The tree image in this set is a stand alone, no coloring, beautifully shaded tree. Stamp it and it is done look! Aside from that, there are wreaths, a small poinsettia, two Merry Christmas sentiments...a big one and a small one as well as several other fabulous sayings all with the most beautiful font!!! The Holly Jolly set is fabulous because it has ornaments, poinsettias, holly, and sentiments. The sizes vary from true stand alone images, to images that make beautiful stamped backgrounds. Just gorgeous!!!

I hope you've enjoyed learning a little more about this fabulous stamper as much as I have! To see the rest of the projects Betty made for our release, you can check out her Guest Diva album in our gallery, or visit her blog, Stamping to the Wright, for her newest creations. I just loved all of her beautiful creations for our release and she was such a joy to work with. Be sure to give her a little shout out for all her hard work!

Thanks for stopping by! Tune in tomorrow as we shine our spotlight on Jessie Rone!

---

O Christmas Tree & Frosty Flakes Sneak Preview

Hi there! It's Charmaine with the last of the sneak previews for Verve's October Release! Are you excited? Do you like what you see so far? I can honestly say I don't have a favorite set this release because I LOVE them all! We hope you do too! Today we'd like to give you a sneak peek of the sets O Christmas Tree and Frosty Flakes. These sets (along with the others you've seen this week) will be available after our Release Party TONIGHT!! We hope you'll join us!

---

From the desk of Amber Hight

Hey everybody! Amber here:) I am so excited to share a card I made with Frosty Flakes! This is one of my favorite sets this release because of these fun, rustic snowflakes! Julee has such a defining style, you see a card created with Verve stamps and you KNOW it! Since I see rustic snowflakes when I look at this set, I wanted to use some rustic colors so I chose Chocolate, Kraft, and Rustic Cream (All by PTI). I stamped the snowflakes on the kraft cardstock using Dark Chocolate and Vintage Cream ink. I love how stamping the vanilla ink over the chocolate ink created a muted effect. This card really took on a life of its own after I stamped the background. I searched around some blogs for inspiration once I was done with the dp and found a card by Dawn McVey that allowed the stamped background to be seen under the sentiment and loved it so much that I used her layout! I did some faux stitching on the sentiment panel and added some ribbon (RABOM), a botton, and jute ribbon (both by PTI) to finish it off!

---

From the desk of Betty Wright

I am so thrilled to be a Verve Guest Designer this month!!! As always, these new sets are just gorgeous and so fabulous to play and work with! I am showcasing for you today one of my favorite sets, O Christmas Tree! The images are wonderful and the sentiments are just fabulous. For this card I stamped all of my background panels. The small scripty background wording says...."how lovely are your branches." So perfect with this Christmas tree and the "O Christmas Tree" sentiment. I wanted to use hues of rich green, black, and ivory with a vintage feel for my card. I also used the polka dot image from the Bountiful Backgrounds sets to compliment the script look and Christmas tree image. In keeping with my vintage style, I had to add my fou fou ribbon, gold cording, and gold pearl tree decorations and accents! I also used the release party sketch E (VSOCT09E)!

---

From the desk of Michelle Woerner

Julee did it again! The stunning wreaths in this set are elegant and fun. As much as I love my layers and embellishments, I need to make most of my Christmas cards CAS. Being easy to mass produce with no extra postage is key!! This card is so easy to make and packs a punch. I stamped the wreath, colored it with copics, die cut it out and framed it using my circle nestabilities. A touch of bling and a strip of Pattern Paper scraps and presto!! The variety of sentiments in this set is perfect for any kind of card! I know you will fall in love with this as I have.

---

From the desk of Charmaine Ikach

I LOVE how the bold snowflakes from Frosty Flakes coordinate with the outline snowflakes from Christmas in the Air. I knew I would be pairing those two sets up a lot. I also love how they look good in different colors! Sometimes snowflakes only look good in blue or white, but these big, bold snowflakes really come to life for me in non-traditional colors! I used Perfect Plumeria, Aegean Blue and Spanish Olive VersaMagic chalk inks for my snowflakes. I added a little Rich Razzleberry ribbon and paper piercing leading to the sentiment as finishing touches.

---

Like what you’ve seen? Just leave a comment here on this post before 6 PM Eastern TONIGHT, October 23 and you’ll be put in a drawing to win this set! Winners will be announced at our release party tonight. 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! Hope to see you tonight!

Christmas in the Air & Holly Jolly Christmas Sneak Preview

Hi everyone! It's Jackie here to get you revved up for day three of sneak previews!! Today we are previewing two whimsical and completely fun sets, Christmas in the Air and Holly Jolly Christmas. I literally squealed when I saw these sets (well, I can't lie....I squealed at all the sets!) because I am a lover whimsical sets! However, don't be fooled, because these aren't your average cutesy sets, they are whimsey with a touch of elegance, like only Julee can do!! These sets will be available after the Release Party on Friday night, October 23rd. For a chance to win these sets make sure you read all the way to the end of this post!

---

From the desk of Guest Jessie Rone

First of all, WOW, somebody pinch me!! I can't believe I am posting as a Verve Guest Diva!! Yayy me!! When Julee asked me if I would be willing to be a diva, I jumped at the chance...when I saw this month's release I was drooling!! All the stamps are GORGEOUS this month(they are every month though), and Holly Jolly happens to be my absolute favorite!! I love all the different ornaments you can use and how easy they are to mix and match. You can go cute or elegant with this set, which I LOVE. For my card, I went all SU, but it is all retired(except the Old Olive). The main image was stamped on an MFT Perfect Panel and colored with Copics though. I used this months release party sketch C(VSOCT09C) for my card as well.

---

From the desk of Sankari Wegman



Hi Everyone, Sankari here :) Haven't the sneak peeks been so awesome! I can't wait to see more and I am so excited about this release - seriously - Julee has just about made it amazingly easy to create every single card you can imagine for the holidays and beyond with these awesome sets that will be released on Friday! I made a card using the Christmas in the Air stamp set - I love every single sentiment in this set - but I think this is my most favorite one: Snowflakes are Winter's Butterflies - I love the font in this set and the snowflakes are divine. I stamped the four snowflakes and then colored them with copics and then glittered them and cut them out, adding dimensionals when layering them. I kept the colors monochromatic and simple so that the focus would be on the center of winter's snowflake flower :). I absolutely LOVE each and every single image in this set! I am so not a winter girl (can't handle the cold) but I can't wait for some winter wonderland after using this stamp set!!! Hot cocoa anyone?? :) LOL! See you at the release party!! Hugs!

---

From the desk of Jen Tapler



I always love ALL of the new sets Julee creates, but these two Holiday sets are just so much fun! I adore the whimsical images and the new fonts are just fabulous!! One of my favorite things about Verve stamps is the endless mix and match possibilities and Julee's created another awesome set with tons of interchangeable images in the Holly Jolly Christmas set. I chose to create a tall card using just 3 of the SIX ornament images included in the set as well as one of the fun new sentiments. I used the colors in the American Crafts DP to pick the ink colors for my ornaments and tied the whole thing together with some silver embossing powder on both the sentiment and the ornament hanger thingies as well as some silver cording tied around the top. I could create a whole series of unique cards using this same layout and just changing out the ornament images and colors used - I love that!!

---

From the Desk of Jen del Muro


Has anyone else been overwhelmed with Christmas stuff since July 5th? I can't believe how the craft and hobby stores spend almost a half a year on one holiday! Of course, it's all the red and green and sparkly that everyone has grown to love, including myself. However, for this project I wanted to do something a little different, so I chose a very neutral palette of kraft, black and white and then added a hint of color with some green. The snowflake was cut from a Cricut on thin chipboard, painted and embellished with Diamond Dust glass flakes and then topped off with a ribbon and button. I paper pieced the tree with paper from My Little Shoebox. Although this card may look somewhat time consuming because of the little details, it really would be easy enough to mass produce...which is not something I like doing, but it's good to have the option when you have 50+ cards to send out!

---

From the desk of Jackie Pedro

Oh my goodness.....I have to say that this release is one of my favorites EVER from Verve! The variety of Christmas stamps from Spiritual to Whimsey (Verve Style, of course) to the Breast Cancer Awareness set, Believe, is AMAZING! When I saw Christmas in the Air, I saw versatility! I love the whimsiness (is that a word?) of this set and couldn't wait to get it inky! I used my MUCH LOVED designer paper, Eskimo Kisses by Basic Grey. The trees were pieced with three different patterns as were the rolling hills. I sponged some Antique Linen Distress Ink on the edges of each hill and adhered them to a piece of Scarlet Jewel cardstock(PTI). I then stitched along the edges of the hills and then around the top of the card. The sentiment was cut out with a Ribbon Tag Die from Spellbinders and was tied to the card with some Scarlett Jewel Twill Ribbon (PTI). A few Papertrey buttons and the card was complete!!

---

Like what you’ve seen so far? Just leave a comment here on this post before 6 PM Eastern on Friday, October 23 and you’ll be put in a drawing to win this set! 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!

Sneak Preview - Blessed Christmas & Star of Wonder

It's Day Two of the October Sneak Peeks, and we are only just beginning! This week is going to be filled with the reveal of even more gorgeous stamps sets and breathtaking samples, so be sure to check back every day! Today we are featuring cards made with the two new sets Blessed Christmas and Star of Wonder. These versatile and classy Christmas holiday sets include several images and sentiments in the classic style that can only be achieved by the-one-and-only, Julee Tilman...so you can rest assured that the images are exquisite, and the sentiment fonts are beautiful and elegant. These sets (along with five others) will be available after our Release Party this Friday Night, October 23rd. You will have a chance to win some of these sets during the week, so be sure to read all the way to the end of the post to see what you need to do.

_________________________________________________________________

Designed By Susan Liles

Hi there, Susan here, and I’m excited to share a card I made with the new set, Blessed Christmas. It’s a very traditional set that faithfully celebrates the true meaning of Christmas. I wanted an “old world, vintage” feel to my card, so I started with some Cosmo Cricket paper from the new “Oh Joy” collection that I LOVE and found one of the new release sketches (OCT09E) to be a perfect fit for this card. After I did a little inking around the edges, added some distressing and some stitching, all that was left to do was make the main panel. I stamped the cross in Close to Cocoa to go “behind” the sentiment. I stamped the sentiment in black and then clear embossed over it for the finishing touch, making it really stand out. It really didn’t take that long to complete. This set makes it so easy to create something so beautiful (but don’t all Verve stamps do that? LOL!)!___________________________________________________________________

Designed By Tosha Leyendekker

I love making Christmas cards! And I love making Christmas cards even more with Julee's images!! Each and every set this month is fabulous, and I had a hard time picking which set I wanted to use for the release. After much deliberation, I finally decided I wanted to feature the beautiful cross from the Blessed Christmas set. The Cross and sentiment are embossed with gold dp, and I colored the cross with Tombows. The Labels 4 frame was embossed with with a Sizzix folder while still in the die, so I could get the clean framed edges. The sentiment was stamped onto Neenah Natural White that I diecut with one of the Fancy Tags by Spellbinders, and the frame behind the Labels 4 was made with Labels 8 (Spellbinders). Finally, I added a bit of embellishing with some flowers and pearls.
___________________________________________________________________

Designed By Laurie Schmidlin

I instantly fell in love with the Star of Wonder set! With it, you can create simple and elegant cards that celebrate the true meaning of Christmas...in record time! These images and beautifully scripted sentiments can stand alone and still make a huge impact!
For my card, I embossed one of the stars using Copper e.p. directly onto some patterned paper and then placed a matching rhinestone directly in the center. I then added a tag embossed with the "peace on earth" sentiment, some ribbon, a charm, and a punched border!

___________________________________________________________________

Designed By Mercy Kerin

What else can you say about Verve stamps and their designer, Julee Tilman, except perfection?! I love Christmas, so I was beside myself when I saw the new releases for this month. My attention immediately turned to Star of Wonder set. As with all of Verve's sets, I am drawn to the gorgeous and elegant font that all of the sentiments showcase...so this one is no different! I embossed the sentiment on the focal panel with Black Embossing Powder, then sponged around it to create a twilight landscape. I stamped the stars on the Old Olive panel to create my very own coordinating patterned paper. I wanted to keep my card pretty simple, so I added minimal embellishments: Silver Brads, Olive Ribbon, and an Olive Button tied with Linen Thread. After all, the distinguished beauty of Verve Stamps always shines through!
___________________________________________________________________

Like what you’ve seen so far? Just leave a comment here on this post before 6 PM Eastern on Friday, October 23 and you’ll be put in a drawing to win this set! 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!

Believe Sneak Preview

Hi there! It's Julee, here to kick off the first day of sneak peeks for another Verve Release!! It's the start of the giving season and most of our new release is focused on the upcoming holidays, but we have one special set that's focused on giving back. Today the Divas and I are sharing a few projects using a new set called Believe, which I designed in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness. Verve will be donating $10 from the sale of every Believe set to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation. There are very few lives that haven't been touched in some way by breast cancer, and we believe strongly in giving back...in making a difference...in keeping up the fight to find a cure. Believe will be available for purchase along with the rest of our release immediately following our Release Party this Friday night. For a chance to win this meaningful set, be sure to read all the way to the end of this post!

---

From the desk of Lynda Benden


I am thrilled to share with you my sample for Julee’s new Breast Cancer Awareness set called Believe. This set is truly amazing and a portion of all proceeds will go to the Susan G Komen fund. My card today is REALLY a simple card! The base of the card is Pink Pirouette CS. I punched the bottom of the front panel using my Martha Stewart Doily punch. I made another complete card from Vellum CS and covered the Pink Pirouette card. Prior to adhering the vellum to the pink card, I stamped the largest flower on the front using White Stazon ink. I added some clear rhinestones to the centers of the flowers, white satin ribbon, glitter butterflies and one of the beautiful sentiments using one of my Lots of Tags dies.

---

From the desk of Teresa Kline


Hello gals, Teresa here. I am so very excited about this new Verve set Believe. There are so many woman affected by breast cancer and this will be a perfect set for encouraging those ladies. I used today's VSOCT09B Sketch, be sure to play along you could win free Verve. I knew I wanted to use pink and decided to pair it with black. I used Prism card stock, October Afternoon Cherry Hill dp and the yummy My Mind's Eye Just Dreamy 2 dp. I stamped the awesome flower bloom and colored it with copics, I then ran a glitter pen all around the outside of the petals. I added a lone sliver bead to the center. I used the fun fancy flourish as my stem. I then added black checkered ribbon, a button with twine and the sentiment that was cut from the SU tag dies. I stamped the tiny pink ribbon in the corner, outlined it with a glitter, and added several more silver beads. This set is a must have, it really touches my heart. Get ready for a fun filled week of sketches, the divas will be bringing some beautiful sneak peak creations!

---

From the desk of Julee Tilman

Okay, so I had planned to share a different card, but when Teresa sent me her sneak peek, I realized they were so similar that I just *had* to head back to my studio to make another card. See how much arm twisting that took?!? LOL Since I've been a little loopy from cough medicine, I thought I'd make it easy on myself and start with a good sketch. Here I used Karen Giron's Sweet Sunday Sketch #40, flipped lengthwise. I stamped the flower repeatedly in 3 different pinks, then punched out and layered on a swiss dot embossed square of white. Another flower from the set is stamped tone on tone in Basic Grey and I embossed part of the Believe in Miracles sentiment in white. A beautiful prima rose, some rhinestones and a wide velvet bow finished off the card.

---

Like what you’ve seen so far? Just leave a comment here on this post before 6 PM Eastern on Friday, October 23 and you’ll be put in a drawing to win this set! 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!

Release Week, Guest Divas & Winners!!

I'll be announcing the winners of our Encouraging Words Project Parade at the bottom of this post, but first I wanted to make a few little announcements since it's release week here at Verve and we've got a few things up our sleeve! We've got a lot going on, so please excuse the super long post.

October Guest Divas
The fabulous Betty Wright (gbedwright on SCS) has been blowing me away with her gorgeous creations for some of our Verve challenges. Every time I see one of her cards, I just kind of sigh. They're lovely, gorgeously embellished and have so much detail, dimension and depth. Pure eye candy. I'm so happy to have her as our guest for this release, and you can look forward to seeing her take on the new stamps over the coming week. You can check out her creations on her blog, Stamping to the Wright.

Our other amazing guest designer has been on my list for quite some time. I just love Jessie Rone's (knightrone on SCS) colorful layered style, and her quest to make everyone love those little spiral clips she embellishes with always makes me smile! I can't wait to see what she has in store for us with the new release stamps - it's sure to be a perfectly crafted treat for the eye! You can check out Jessie's creations on her blog, Can You Say Addicted to Stamps.

---

Free Winter Mittens Digi Stamp Set
It's the start of the most wonderful time of the year and we thought we'd share a little digi stamp set gift with you while we count down to our release this Friday night! We hope you like it! Be sure to hurry and download it, though, since it's only available until Friday, October 23. Click here for download options.

---

Release Week Challenges
I've drawn up 5 new sketch challenges for you to have fun with for this release. Play along by this Friday, October 23 at 6PM Eastern for your chance to win our ENTIRE release! We're also giving out a few free stamp sets in the individual challenges, so if you can't do them all, be sure to at least get what you can uploaded. You can check out all the challenges and details on THIS THREAD in our SCS forum.

---

Sneak Previews
Sneak previews officially start right here on the blog on Tuesday. Each day the Divas will be bringing you some Verve-alicious peeks at the sets releasing this weekend! Plus there'll be more chances to win Verve goodies!

---

October Release Party
Our release party will be this Friday night (October 23) at 9PM Eastern. We'll be revealing 6 new sets and a scripture plain jane, as well as chatting and announcing all of our release week winners. Be there or be square! Oh, WHERE you ask? Over on the Release Party thread in our forum!

---

Okay, so was this month's Encouraging Words project parade totally fun, or what? Such lusciously handcrafted gifts and awesome design ideas. To uplift and encourage is one of my missions here at Verve, and I always try to make sure that the stamps I design are in line with that mission. To put it in the words of Jiminey Cricket, "You've got to accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative, latch onto the affirmative", so this project parade was such a treat to view. I loved everyone's encouraging creations. Keep spreading the love!

I think I've made you wait long enough, so without further adieu here are the winners from the Encouraging Words Project Parade...

Rosie who wins a $35 gift certificate to Verve with this gorgeous project. I just love the way she turned a meaningful card she received into a wall hanging. The embellishments are just gorgeous.

Our mystery prize was hidden on Michelle's post and our lucky commenter is...

Heidi who wins any Verve set/s (up to $24 value) of her choice

Congrats girls! Email me at contests@vervestamps.com to claim your prize. If you won a stamp set, please include your shipping address and the name of the set you would like. Thanks to everyone who played along!

Until next time, Stamp HAPPY!

---

Encouraging Words - Day 13

Hello! It's Charmaine finishing up this month's Project Parade! Haven't all of the projects been awesome? What great projects for words of encouragement and friendship!

The project I'd like to share with you today has to do with my kids. My kids (especially the girls) have always been pretty "theatrical", or "dramatic" is maybe a better word. :) I shouldn't be surprised since their parents are always involved in some kind of show. . . and the kids have attended MANY a rehearsal with us! Even though I always had hopes that my kids would be involved in theater and music as much as my husband and I, I never wanted to "force" anything on them that they didn't enjoy. Whatever it is that they enjoy, I try to encourage as much as possible. So, when Savannah and Arwen set up a "show" in the back yard with their stuffed animals, I had to capture that moment in the hope of encouraging their theatrical abilities! I used the Starstruck set to add stars all over the side panel, and to stamp the most fitting sentiment "Headed for Stardom".

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 use 'em? ;) And, 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 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. 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. Can't wait to see your lovely projects!!!

Encouraging Words ~ Day 12

Hi everyone! It's Jackie here and I am so excited to show you what I made for this month's Project Parade! When Jen told us this month's theme I knew I wanted to create something for my 10 year old daughter, Lauren. Lauren LOVES to stamp just about as much as I do and loves to send her cards to her friends, so I decided to make her something that she could use to store her cards! She is so creative and I wanted to encourage her creativity! What better way then with Verve's stamps!

I made this darling card box and even a card to match! Don't you love the colors? I'm not normally much of a purple person, but it is so growing on me!!

I made the card using today's Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge. I used the beautiful new Verve set, Starstruck. I stamped one of the starbursts from Starstruck in Bashful Blue on PTI White cardstock and then overstamped the sentiment in Plum Pudding Ink (PTI). It was cut out using Circle Nestabilities and just before removing from the die, I sponged it with Bashful Blue ink....leaving a white edge. I layered the circle on a piece of Plum Pudding cardstock that was cut out with the Labels Nine Nestabilities. The polka dot stars are from another Verve set called Polka Stars. The DP is from the 2008 Bitty Star Basics (PTI). A little machine stitching, some gems and Plum Pudding Polka Dot ribbon and the card was done!

I purchased this card box recently and was itching to alter it and make it pretty! The box is made of sturdy white cardboard and has a magnetic closure. It fits A2 sized cards perfectly! I used the same supplies as the card, but also added some ZVA Crystals to the box. I know Lauren will love it!! I hope you do, too!

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 11

Good morning! It's Laurie here, and it's my turn to share my creation for this month's Project Parade - Encouraging Words! I have to say, this is probably one of my favorite themes so far! Whether you have one Verve set or one hundred, then you already have beautifully scripted encouraging sentiments! Julee's sets are full of them!

I chose to create a little wall hanging using the sentiment from the Swan Song set. It's such a beautiful quote...definitely among my favorites! It's such a beautiful reminder...one that is deserving to be seen daily!

I used several chipboard pieces in my creation (a large one for the base, a branch, and the bird) which help to add sturdiness (and make for quick assembly :-). I love the look of patterned paper, but sometimes the pattern will overpower a verse if stamped directly on it. I decided to soften the pattern by embossing the sentiment on vellum and then adhering it to the patterned paper by stitching around the edge.

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? ;) And, 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 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 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. Can't wait to see your lovely projects!!!

Encouraging Words - Day 10

Hey! Jen Tapler here with a super late post for Day 10 of the Encouraging Words Project Parade! First of all, I'm soooo sorry this is late! I completely spaced and had my days confused. Ooops! Better late than never, right?

When I started thinking about this month's theme, I knew I wanted to create a special little project for my 2-yr-old son, Dean. But let's face it, he doesn't really have much appreciation (right now anyway) for my "Encouraging Words"!! LOL. So in keeping with the whole "Encouragement" theme, I decided to make this fun little game for him, to ENCOURAGE his current love of numbers and math. He seems to have this weird natural affinity for numbers. The little smarty is 2 and can count to 100 and already seems to grasp the basic concept of addition (believe me, he does NOT get this love of numbers from his mother!!). However, as someone who has never loved numbers and found math to always be my weakest link, I want to encourage him in this early fascination.

First, the card. I used this week's MoJo Monday sketch to make a quick little card for him that was all matchy-match with his new game. I used printed digi papers from the Imagi-nation kit by Dani Mogstad (Sweet Shoppe) for the entire project, with a little Kraft cardstock thrown in as well. For the card, I combined a few sentiments from the new Starstruck set and added the star image from the You Rock set.

Now, for the fun game. I used white acrylic paint to cover some wooden blocks, then designed and printed out some numbered fronts for each side of the blocks to create "dice". I then stamped 12 stars from the You Rock set, 6 on red and 6 on yellow digi paper. I cut them out and mounted them on chipboard stars. Now Dean has a simple math game - he can roll the dice and "add" the 2 numbers by counting out the number of red stars from one die and the number of yellow stars from the other die and then adding the two together. Clear as mud? He seems to get it and LOVES it!! Here's another look at the completed project so you can see the group of stars a little better:
So there you have it - my ENCOURAGING little creation for the Project Parade. So yeah, I took some creative liberties with the theme, but I think it works!!

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 9

Hello Verve Fans!!! I hope you have been enjoying all the awesome creations by the Diva's so far!!! I sure have! Today is day 9 of our "Encouraging Words" project parade. It is no secret that Julee is the QUEEN of beautiful sentiments so since I had the beautiful Swan Song set out on my desk I thought it would be perfect for this theme! I went a different route than I have before for past project parades and made something very SIMPLE!!! LOL!!!

I chose the colors Pink Pirouette, Sahara Sand and Whisper White for a soft, simple feel. The top of the Sahara Sand panel was embossed using my textile (I think) embossing folder and punched the bottom with my Martha Stewart Doily punch. Of course, I had to add some pink Heidi Swapp rhinestones. The swan was stamped on Whisper White CS and then cut out using my circle Nesties. I then stamped the entire sentiment on a piece of Pink Pirouette CS and cut it out using my rectangle Nesties. I stamped just a portion of the sentiment on the top of the circle and then lined it up with my rectangle sentiment and adhered them together. I did stamp the swan a second time, cut it out, colored it using my Copics and then added white flock with a little glitter over the entire swan. The final step was to add my Heidi Swapp pink bling circle and white May Arts ribbon.

Here is a closer look at the BEAUTIFUL swan ~

On the inside, I added another beautiful sentiment from Verve's Thankful Blossoms set. The sentiment I chose from the set says ~ "Your thoughtfulness touched my heart".

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 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 7

Hi Everyone, it's Sankari here - with Day 7 of the project parade - where the challenge is create a project with Encouraging Words. Each of the projects have been so wonderful and the sets that Julee creates really makes it so easy to share a part of our heart with those around us. As soon as I saw "encouraging words", I knew I wanted to make something for my little man - he started school this year - and I wanted him to always remember that he is our shining star.

I love that these sentiments are perfect for some scrappin' as well as cardmaking :)

I made him a 12x12 layout on an Acrylic cutout that can be hung from his room. The sentiment on the top reads: "Let Your Light Shine" and then on the bottom of the photos the sentiment reads: "You're A Star, Yes That's What You Are". I hung this Acrylic layout in his room - so that he always knows that he is a shining star :) Here is a close up of the sentiment: "Let Your Light Shine". After I added the Acrylic Mat on top of the layout, I added some bling over the acrylic mat board.

Here is another close up shot of the the sentiment lining the bottom -

"You're a Star, Yes That's What You Are."

I think the best part of creating this layout was showing it to our son after I was done - his face totally lit up and he picked out where in his room he wanted to hang it - so sweet! Now, I have to make one for our little daughter - who is wondering where her layout is :)

---

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? ;) And, 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 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 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. Can't wait to see your lovely projects!!!

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!

Encouraging Words: Day 5

Hello friends, it's Teresa bringing to you day five of the encouraging words project parade. I so much want to encourage others, so this was a truly exciting project for me, I have a very special friend who will be receiving this gift. Hi Kim, I hope you are encouraged and know you are very special to me.

I found this small easel at the dollar store and thought it would be perfect holding 4 x4 encouraging cards. I made seven different cards, one for each day of the week. I also made this 4 x4 box to hold everything. I have to agree with Amber, Julee has brought to you the best stamps around for encouragement. I used Miracles Blossom for the box tag and Happiness Found for the card on the easel.

Stamps used in clockwise order, starting in the upper left:
Psalm 121: 1-2, Happiness Found, Hebrews 11:1, and Philippians 4:13

I used the fabulous dp from My Mind's Eye 29th Street Market Collection. I used lots of bling, a gorgeous red ribbon, SU baja breeze ribbon, buttons, and scoring. I wanted each card to be uniquely different and personal. I hope you can play along with us and make someone 's day with a encouraging word. I really enjoy looking at every one's creation.

Stamps used in clockwise order starting from the top left:
1 Chronicles 16:34, Happiness Found, Matthew 11:28, and 1 Peter 5:7

---

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? ;) And, 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 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 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. Have fun!