Holiday Diva Dare - Day 5

Monday Greetings everyone!!  I hope you had a wonderful SUPER LONG Thanksgiving Day weekend.  This Canadian Diva is always a little jealous of the way you celebrate Thanksgiving right!  Now onto Day 5 of the Holiday Diva Dare!  For those of you who are new to this challenge, here is how it works...following each release, we will post a theme that we dare you with, and you'll have two weeks to complete the challenge. During those two weeks, the release team will post their creations and tell you how they answered the dare!

This month's theme is A Handmade Christmas! The theme is pretty broad and can be interpreted in so many different ways...from a lovingly made card, to heartfelt gifts and homemade decorations!  With the Holidays right around the corner, this will be the perfect time to get a jump start on your card and gift making!

So, we DARE you to make a Handmade Christmas card or gift!  Oops!! Did you hear Christmas?  I'm working a little backwards...so stay with me!  Today just happens to be my son's 23rd birthday (AND btw Diva Andrea's!! Happy B-Day sistah!).  I wanted to make him a birthday card that would house a Starbucks card and a "little" cheque from Mom :)  I used a Small Phrases sentiment to let Jake know, once again, how deeply loved he is by his Mama.

 

Here is the inside of the gift card holder, using 2 stamps from Birthday Bash along with the leaves from Bloom and Grow.

Okay, here's where the "Christmas" comes in.  It's a busy time of year and I wanted to show you how you can save time (and hair pulling) by using a card layout you've used or seen before and just change it for the present occasion.  With full time work, the pending move to the new house, Jake's birthday AND Christmas, this Diva is more than willing to save a bit of time by reusing a card design...here's the Christmas version...

 

I just changed the papers, dies and sentiment and voila!  Christmas Gift Card card done!  Here's a peek inside...

I had a fun time mixing last year's stamp sets (Glad Tidings, Frosty Flakes, Christmas in the Air) on the outside with the latest stamp set, Bright Spirits, on the inside....they all work together so well! Here's a last photo with both cards so you can see how similar and different they are...

Thanks so much for sharing a special day with me...now onto the details of the DARE!

---

Want to know how you can win some fabulous new VERVE GOODIES?

1. Play along with us and link up your new A Handmade Christmas creation (posted November 18 or later) to the linky widget on the DAY ONE post before 9PM Mountain on Thursday, December 8. One lucky stamper will win a $30.00 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 A Handmade Christmas creations. One lucky commenter will win the Verve stamp set of his or her choosing! Winners will be announced on Friday, December 9 right here on the Verve blog.

Now it's YOUR turn! We DARE you to show us your creations!

---

Holiday Diva Dare ~ Day 2

Welcome to the Holiday Diva Dare! For those of you that are new to this challenge, here is how it works...following each release, we will post a theme that we dare you with, and you'll have two weeks to complete the challenge. During those two weeks, the release team will post their creations and tell you how they answered the dare!
This month's theme is A Handmade Christmas! The theme is pretty broad and can be interpreted in so many different ways...from a lovingly made card, to heartfelt gifts and homemade decorations! With the Holidays right around the corner, this will be the perfect time to get a jump start on your card and gift making!
So, we DARE you to make a Handmade Christmas card or gift!
Here's how I answered the dare:

I've enjoyed decorating gift bags and making toppers for them this season. So I thought it would be fun to make a snowflake gift bag with some of Verve's fabulous wintery images!!! You can find a tutorial for the topper HERE. I made the topper first and decorated it with some snowflakes from the Verve sets: Frosty Flakes and Glad Tidings.
I made the sweet little tree by using the new Verve tree diecut from the set Winter Fun, and running it through a crimper.

The Sentiment is from one of the newly released sets, Bright Spirits. I made the medallion using the Tim Holtz Mini Paper Rosettes die along with the 2011 Snowflake Pendant and the Petite Scallop Circle dies by Spellbinders.
See the little snowflake ornament? That was made with the medium snowflake from the Glad Tidings set along with a new Verve die called Snowflake Tidings. And the icicles were made with a Martha Stewart Punch.

---

Want to know how you can win some fabulous new VERVE GOODIES?

1. Play along with us and link up your new A Handmade Christmas creation (posted November 18 or later) to the linky widget on the DAY 1 POST before 9PM Mountain on Thursday, December 8. One lucky stamper will win a $30.00 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 A Handmade Christmas creations. One lucky commenter will win the Verve stamp set of his or her choosing! Winners will be announced on Friday, December 9 right here on the Verve blog.

Now it's YOUR turn! We DARE you to show us your creations!

---

Home for the Holidays: Day 13

Hi everyone. This month's Verve Project Parade is coming to an end. I've so enjoyed seeing the creative projects the other divas have been sharing! Each one under $10. How cool is that!?! Well, I have a small project to share with you also. I used the smallest Petal Pot that comes packaged with two larger pots for $8.95. Since I only used one, even though it's the smallest one, I'll say it was $2.98. The kisses inside were $3.69. For a total of $6.67.

I wanted to try something a little different and use black as my base and make it clean and simple. I rarely use black or go the CAS route. But I like how this turned out. I used the sentiments "Merry Christmas" and "from our house to yours" from the Verve set Oh Christmas Tree. And the flake from the set Frosty Flakes was stamped with White Craft ink onto black cardstock. The cardstock is all Papertrey. For the finishing touches, I embossed the card and petal pot panels, and added some rhinestones and decorative borders with punches.

Here's a close up of the Petal Pot:
Here's a close up of the card:

So, now it's your turn! We'd love for you to play along with us and show us your homemade goodies for the upcoming giving season! 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 Home for the Holidays creation to the Mr. Linky widget at Day One's post before midnight MST on Thursday, November 26. One lucky stamper will win a $30 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 (Nov 11 - 25) will win their choice of any Verve set.

Home for the Holidays--Day 9

Hello, hello! Has this not been one of the most inspirational Project Parades you've seen? I have come away with SO many ideas for gifts this year! Can't wait to try them all:)

For my project, I've designed a little wall-hanging using chipboard coasters! I don't remember where I got them, I've had them forever and decided it was time to put them to use!

It took me FOREVER to come up with this concept, lol! The funny thing is, it's totally not difficult, but everytime I tried to create something I didn't like it! I'm not so good at 3D alterables so it was challenging! But I really love this wall-hanging and can't wait till the day after Thanksgiving when I break out the rest of my decorations;)

I used a combination of dp by SU! (sorry, I can't remember the name!), Ripe Avacado, Pure Poppy, and Ocean Tides cardstock (PTI). I used the polka dots from Bountiful Backgrounds on each letter in a different color ink. The swirls you see randomly stamped around the letters are from Express Yourself. And of course, the snowflakes are from Frosty Flakes and the sentiment on the "O" is from Christmas in the Air!

Here's a close up of the details of each letter:

Watcha think? I think you should try one! They're so fun and all the new Verve Holiday sets make it so easy!!

Would you like to play along with us? There are potential Verve bucks in it for you if you do! Just link up your project with the theme "Home for the Holidays, Decor, Gifts, and More" by midnite MST, 26 November to THIS thread! One lucky lady will win $30 Verve bucks to spend on anything in the Verve store!! Remember, Verve stamps are not required, just play along and have fun:)

Also, make sure to leave all the Diva's some love! One commenter from a random date of the parade (Nov 11-25) will win a Verve stamp set of their choice, sweet deal for showing your appreciation of all these ladies hard work!

Thanks for coming by! Have a Vervalicious Day!!!

Home for the Holidays: Day 1

Holiday Greetings!  Can you believe that the holidays are creeping up on us already?  While I am excited, I have to say that I am not sure that I am ready for the scramble that comes with the holidays.  Of course, many of my gifts will be handmade.  Something tells me, that some of yours will be too, so the Verve Divas have come up with some wonderful creations for this month's Project Parade...

Home for the Holidays: 

Gifts, Decor and More!

For my project, I was inspired a little by one of my older projects: the Mini Pizza Box and one of the newer ones from SCS' Holiday Tutorial Blitz: The Top Note Box.  I basically created a Mini Box with different dimensions and then put a scalloped rectangle on the top and bottom, much like the Top Note Box.  The great thing about the box is that the base, scalloped rectangles and the navy blue circle mats all came from ONE piece of paper.  The rest of the box took less than one sheet of each color used, making the paper cost for the box under $1!  Depending on your embellishments, you could easily make this for under $2, like I did!!  I don't think that you can get a fancy gift sack for that these days! Any of the new Verve sets could be used to create a fun gift card box.  This particular one uses Frosty Flakes.

 

 

Here's the template...

---

So, now it's your turn! We'd love for you to play along with us and show us your homemade goodies for the upcoming giving season! 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 Home for the Holidays creation to the Mr. Linky widget below before midnight MST on Thursday, November 26. One lucky stamper will win a $30 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 (Nov 11 - 25) will win their choice of any Verve set.

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

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!

---

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!