Running With Scissors...

Happy Birthday, Jan Marie–A Blog Hoppin’ Celebration

 

Today is a very special day.  Where would I be right now, I wonder, had Jan Marie Caruso never realized her dream of bringing an extraordinary kind of beauty to stamping with her own company?  Well, I’d probably be right here, but I wouldn’t have the pleasure of creating with Flourishes drop-dead gorgeous images!  I also wouldn’t be in cahoots with some of the most awesome stampers and beautiful ladies I’ve ever known to bring about this birthday celebration.  So, today I’d like to express, not only the best of best wishes for a happy birthday to Jan Marie, but my most sincere gratitude, as well.

The entire Flourishes gang has gotten together for a surprise birthday bash!  Be sure to read on, but I’ll start with the birthday card I created with Flourishes Cherry Blossoms set.

I colored with Copics and used Prima Fairy Flora paper, a pearl flourish, and sheer ribbon, all of which came from Flourishes online boutique at one time or another.  The sentiment is part of the Mix-n-Mugs set – a super adorable set in its own right, but full of little sentiments I love to mix-n-match with other sets, too.

Now, how about a little gift giving to go with our party today?  Leave a comment here to be entered in a drawing for one of my all-time favorite Flourishes sets:  Butterflies & Blossoms

Gorgeous, yes?  I’ll keep this open until Tuesday night, March 1st, at which time I’ll close comments and announce the winner soon thereafter.

Please join our celebration by visiting the rest of the team!  You’ll see some real beauties and you may even find more gifts along the way.  First and foremost, drop by The Caruso Manor and wish Jan Marie a happy birthday!

The following list includes Flourishes Senior Design Team, the Friends of Flourishes Team, and the Bring Back Beautiful Team – fabulous stampers, every one of them!

• Barbara Anders
• Christine Okken
• Cindy Lawrence
• Danielle Kennedy
• Dawn Burnworth
• Julie Koerber
• Leslie Miller (you are here)
• Stacy Morgan
• Betty Wright
• Cindy Haffner
• Dee Jackson
• Maki Jones
• Silke Ledlow
• Tammy Hershberger
• Beate Johns
• Cindy Coutts
• Heather Jensen
• Kathy Jones
• Yvonne Hagane

 

I would be remiss if I didn’t let you know that Flourishes progressive sale has now reached 25% off.  You can find all sale items here.

I’m so glad you dropped in today!  One last thing. . . Happy birthday, Jan Marie!  Love you much!

Stamps:  Cherry Blossoms, Mix-n-Mugs (sentiment)  Paper:  Rose Red textured, Pink Pirouette, Flourishes Classic White, Prima Fairy Flora designer paper  Ink:  Memento Rich Cocoa, Rose Red, Copics for coloring  Accessories:  Ribbon, pearl flourish, Spellbinders Classic and Scalloped Oval, Classic Circle, and Labels Seventeen Nestabilities, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Stamper’s Dream Blog Hop

Hello!  Today I’m happy to be taking part in a little blog hop fun with the Stamper’s Dream gals and friends.  Michelle has stocked a lot of new goodies in the store and she just couldn’t wait to show you some fabulous samples!  I went on a little shopping trip, myself, the other day – too recently to have received my package yet – but I do have a card to share.

I’ve used Hero Arts Earth Flowers and Just Find Me (Smile).  I stamped the branchy image in Versamark ink on glossy white cardstock, then rubbed green, pink, and yellow inks onto the panel.  I finished by stamping the branch again, this time in green, slightly offset from the Versamark image.  The Versamark branch appears to be white.  I like this method for a soft and dreamy look.  I used my Spellbinders Nested Frame Dies and tiny pearls for the sentiment.

Now, I should tell you a little secret. . .  There are two separate candy packages hidden along the hop.  Here’s Package #1:

It contains:

• Epiphany Crafts Heart Punch and Epoxy Bubble Caps Stickers
• A LaBlanche Rubber Stamp
• The Rubber Café stamp
• Webster’s Pages designer vellum pack
• Webster’s Pages Sentiment Sheet
• Mini 3-D Puzzle
• Cosmo Cricket Togetherness Paper Pad

And here’s Package #2:

It contains:

• Stampavie Rubber Stamp (new release) by Gillian Roberts
• Stickles Tropical Tangerine (new color) 
• Basic Grey Wander 6 x 6 Paper Pad
• La-La Land Crafts Panda rubber stamp
• Stampendous Clear Stamp Set
• Sassafras Lass felties puddle jumpers
• Mini 3-D Puzzle
• Webster’s Pages designer vellum pack
• Webster’s Pages Sentiment Sheet
• Handmade heart pin from Fabscraps

Good stuff!  If you’d like a chance to win one of the candy packages, you’ll need to leave a little love in the form of a comment on each of the Stamper’s Dream Blog Hop posts.  Who knows where that candy is hidden?  Take a chance!  You’ll see some pretties along the way:

• Michelle
• Becca
• Jerri Kay
• Amy
• Tosh
• Mariana
• Cindy
• Kim
• Teresa
• Lea
• Christina

Happy hopping, and have a wonderful day!

It’s a Jungle Out There (Includes Watercolor Tutorial)

Hello, there, and welcome to a new week of stamping!  I need several cards for children so today I’ve used two stamps, quite old, from CTMH before they were even called CTMH.  They were D.O.T.S. then.  These stamps have never lost their appeal for me and so they remain in my collection.

I stamped the jungle foliage first, then masked the lower part of it and stamped the gorilla.  It’s watercolored with Tombow markers on 90 lb hot press watercolor paper.  After I finished this card I decided it was more fitting for a big kid, such as myself (ahem), so I made a second card and documented the watercolor steps.

What I like most about watercoloring with markers of any kind is the measure of control I have with them.  What I like most about Tombow Markers in particular is how the color stays true no matter how much you work them.  Green doesn’t become brown, black doesn’t become purple.  The shade will become lighter as you add more water, but the tone of the color remains intact.

I didn’t document the colors I used on the card above, but for the second card (scroll all the way down) I used these markers:

Start out with a little of the lighter green and pull it into the image with a wet brush:

It will look like this:

Add more:

Blend.  Note how the shading on the lower edge of the leaf is perhaps a little too defined:

This is when I like to color in a little more ink while the paper is still damp.  The blending is very smooth on wet paper.  Be gentle with your marker tip when doing this.  Don’t scrub back and forth.  A light scribble, a touch here and there.  When your marker tip gets wet, the color will give out, but the flow will return.  After you apply color with the marker, dab it with a wet brush to smooth the edge.  The color will blend and bleed immediately.  You want to smooth the edge, but not necessarily pull more color into your image, so use a clean wet brush to brush into, or toward the ink.  Remember, when you lift the brush it will have picked up some of the extra color, so swish the brush in your water again between each stroke.  Adding more ink:

Preliminary results (before finishing with the darkest shading):

Looks pretty good, but one thing that will really make your watercolored image come alive is the deep shading or contrast.  Add it wherever a shadow would naturally fall.  Add it to recessed areas.  The closer an object is to another, the more distinct the shadow will be.  Don’t be afraid to let that line be a little bit sharp.  In the following image, using the darker green marker, I drew a thin line along the foremost leaf edges and softened that shadow line only slightly by touching with a wet brush.  Compare the more deeply shaded results:

The gorilla (second card) is done in shades of gray, with black used only for the deepest shading.  Cute:

Cuter:

Cutest:

Here’s the finished card with the images cut out and arranged on DCWV Animal Crackers designer paper:

I popped up the leaves for dimension.  The sentiment (It’s a jungle out there) was cut from the paper.  Can you tell I had a ton of fun with these cards?  I hope the folks in the learning stages find this information helpful.  I’ll try to share more info in the future.  Got to run!  Have a wonderful day!

Flourishes Friday Free for All

Oh, happy day!  It’s finally Friday!  I have another sample from Flourishes latest release today.  This is the set called From the Desk Of.

I immediately fell in love with this sweet and simple image since it fits me so well – flowers and books.  However, I would worry about condensation from the water-filled vase, and it would more likely be found on a coaster alongside the books.  I’m sure it wouldn’t make nearly so pretty a picture, though.

Ric rac, lace, buttons, and stitching… gee, is this a scene from my sewing room?  I did the coloring with Copics and designed the layout with Prima Fairy Flora papers.  I guess now that Prima has come out with several new designer paper collections I can quit hoarding the two pads I currently have.  Who knew they’d make more?  Silly me!

If you hop around to visit the other Flourishes gals, you’ll most likely see more From the Desk Of and Hello Hyacinth:

Barbara Anders

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Dawn Burnworth

Julie Koerber

Jan Marie Caruso

Stacy Morgan

Two things:  1)  Today is your last chance to pick up the New Release Bundle – both sets in a bundle at 10% off.  When you check out the price and all the stamps and sentiments… well, that’s a bundle of beauty at a bargain.  2)  The Gambler’s Sale is in its third week now, and prices have dropped another 5%.  All items on the sale page are down to 20% off.  You’ll find stamp sets, ribbons, flowers, papers, embellishments…  They have some of my favorite things on that sale page.  Prices will drop another 5% every Thursday until they reach 50%.  Do you feel lucky?  Sale items will not be restocked.

I’m so looking forward to the weekend now.  Let’s make it a good one.  Take care!

Stamps:  From the Desk Of  Paper:  Pink textured, Flourishes Classic White, Prima Fairy Flora designer paper  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Copics for coloring  Accessories:  Ric rac, lace, buttons, linen thread, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

I’m Out of Sympathy Cards Again

I wasn’t expecting to do any stamping this week, but I needed a sympathy card and my supply was depleted.  As it turns out, two sympathy cards do not constitute an adequate reserve.  This card needed to be made quickly, yet with loving care and respect to the bereaved and the departed.

I relied on pretty paper and a thoughtful sentiment – JustRite Sympathy Nested Sentiments – to help me accomplish the task.  I layered two Spellbinders shapes, underlined with pearls, and added decorative machine stitching.  Very understated.  Now, to find time to restock…

Please know how I appreciate all of you for stopping by.  I’m a little behind in my visiting, but I’ll be around soon.  Take good care, and have a pleasant day!

Stamps:  JustRite Sympathy Nested Sentiments  Paper:  Pale and paler yellow Bazzill textured, Prima Fairy Flora designer paper  Ink:  Chocolate  Accessories:  Pearls, Spellbinders Fancy Tags and Long Rectangles

Georgette of the Pink Jungle

Hello, everyone!  Back to Monday!  I got up to some monkey business this weekend.  A friend asked if I would make a monkey card for her to give to a little girl.  Well… I went bananas.

I just happened to have a monkey face in my JustRite Let’s Celebrate set from Stamper’s Dream.  One of these days I’m going to use the other cute images in the set, but I keep coming back to this monkey.

 
I colored with Copic markers and tried to make the monkey look more girly by drawing in some eyelashes with a very fine-tipped Prismacolor marker and adding a little blush to the cheeks.  I cut out the image and glued it onto my layered panels, then colored and cut out another muzzle and popped it up over the first image.  The “Let’s Celebrate” frame and “Go Bananas” are part of the set.  I used a marker to ink just the “Go Bananas” and then cut it out with a Spellbinders Pennants die.

The big flower was cut from a spray purchased at Wal-Mart.  I think I paid $1.97 for the spray and wound up with a whole jar full of flowers.  I layered two sizes and sparkled them up with Stickles Stardust Glitter Glue.  The button in its center is clear, with a 3/4” punched circle of designer paper behind it.

The designer paper, by the way, is DCWV Animal Crackers matstack, purchased locally.  I have plans for this paper, so you’ll be seeing more of it in the future.  This particular card is larger than my usual at 4 1/2” x 6 1/2”.  I just happened to have some envelopes to fit, and it gave me a chance to allow more of the punched scalloped border to show.

One last thing – that pink camouflage center strip is Offray grosgrain ribbon.  Just knew I’d use it one of these days!

The card will be hand delivered so I was able to add a little extra decoration to the envelope, as well.  Here’s the inside of the card and the envelope flap:

The birthday greeting is also from the Let’s Celebrate set.

Well, that’s enough fun for one day.  This is all the stamping I did this weekend and I have to work a little extra this week, so I don’t expect I’ll have anything more to share till Friday.  You never know, however.  We’ll just have to see how the “cards” play out.  Have a great day!

Stamps:  JustRite Let’s Celebrate  Paper:  Pink Pirouette, Pink Passion, white, DCWV Animal Crackers designer paper  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Pink Passion, Copic Markers for coloring  Accessories:  Offray Ribbon, linen thread, silk flowers, Stickles Stardust Glitter Glue, clear button, brads, Spellbinders Labels Sixteen, Classic Squares, and Nested Lacey Pennants, 3/4” circle punch, EK Success scallop edge punch, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Hello, Hyacinth. Hello, Spring!

It’s not quite Spring yet, but we can dream, can’t we?  We’ve been having chilly mornings and beautiful, sunny days.  Don’t know how long that will last, but the flower buds are stirring, crocus and daffodils are in bloom along with a few early flowering trees.  I can hardly bear to be inside, but my employer seems to want me at my desk, tsk, tsk.

I thought I’d share another Hello Hyacinth card today.

A friend gave me a pack of these pretty doilies and I thought they’d make a nice frame for a lovely, beribboned bunch of hyacinths.  The floral images in this set are very cut-outable, and I do enjoy the chance to cut out and pop up my images.  I colored with Copics, dotted the doily with rhinestones, and did a little stitching.  Otherwise, this 5 1/4” square card is a very simple and quick design.

Have you seen the new sets from Flourishes?  Have a look:

Hello Hyacinth

 From the Desk Of

Beautiful, aren't they?  By purchasing both sets in the New Release Bundle you’ll receive a 10% discount.

Check out more new samples here:

Barbara Anders

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Dawn Burnworth

Julie Koerber

Stacy Morgan

Sharon Doolittle

Jan Marie Caruso

I’m so glad you could spend a bit of your day with me.  Wishing you a lovely weekend!

Stamps:  Hello Hyacinth  Paper:  Peach, Ivory textured, Flourishes Classic White, Prima Fairy Flora designer paper  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Copics for coloring  Accessories:  Doily, 3/4" and 1" circle punches, Spellbinders Classic Circle Nestabilities, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Flourishes Preview, Day 2: From the Desk of

Today I’m back with a sample from the second set Flourishes is releasing this month.  It’s another exquisitely illustrated collection of images by Marcella Hawley.

I’ve used what might be considered the main image in the set, but as you can see in the graphic above, there’s a lot more to love about From the Desk of.  However, this particular image makes me nearly faint with pleasure.

I’ve colored with Copics, and used silk ribbon, velvet trim, and pearls all from Flourishes.  A little sanding and distressing gives the card an aged appearance.

See more gorgeous samples here:

Barbara Anders

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Danielle Kennedy

Dawn Burnworth

Julie Koerber

Stacy Morgan

Sharon Doolittle

Jan Marie Caruso

• There’s still time to join the Winter Thaw Challenge and try your luck at winning both of this month’s stamp sets.
• You could win today’s set by commenting on the From the Desk of post on the Flourishes Newsletter.
• Meet up with the team and friends at the Power Hour Release Party in the SCS Forum tonight.  The fun begins at 9 pm central.  More samples and giveaways there.  Heck, you could win something just by chatting!
• As always, Flourishes is offering (for a limited time) both sets in a New Release Bundle for 10% off.

By the way, do you know about the Gambler's Sale going on at Flourishes?  Prices have dropped another 5% on remaining merchandise.  That's 15% so far, and more to come -- an additional 5% every Thursday!  Do you feel like gambling, or do you want to grab those retiring stamp sets, ribbons, and embellishments before they're gone?  See the sale page here.

If you drop in tomorrow, I’ll have another sample from one of the sets to share.  Hmmm, which shall it be?  Hello Hyacinths or From the Desk of?  I love them both!  Catch you later!

Stamps:  From the Desk of  Paper:  Caramel, Flourishes Classic White, 7 Gypsies Conservatory Designer paper  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Cocoa, CTMH Parchment, Copics for coloring  Accessories:  Silk ribbon, velvet trim, pearls, oval punch, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Flourishes Preview, Day 1: Hello Hyacinths

I have something brand new to show you today as Flourishes previews begin.  Marcella’s been at her florals again and she’s made me a very happy stamper with this beautiful set called Hello Hyacinths.  And what a nice way to say “hello” it is!

It’s also a nice way to say “thank you”, and that’s what I did with my card today.  Inside, the card says, “Thank you for everything”.  These are just two of the sentiments which accompany the set.

I used Copics for coloring, and the lilac shades matched perfectly with my Orchid Opulence cardstock and this satin ribbon.  I also noticed just a hint of Orchid in my Prima Fairy Flora paper, so I ended up with another predominantly purple card.  I have no aversion whatsoever to purple, but I don’t use it often.  It’s nice to work with a different color palette occasionally.  A Cuttlebug embossed border and some score lines finished off the card with an elegant edge.

My last purple card was made for the Winter Thaw Challenge.  If you’d like a chance at winning this month’s release (two beautiful stamp sets), do check out the challenge.  I’ve been enjoying all the gorgeous creations you’ve been sharing so far!

Flourishes is giving you an additional chance to win Hello Hyacinths, too.  Just leave a comment on the Hello Hyacinths post on the Newsletter and you’ll be entered in a random drawing.

Chances are you’ve already seen some of the cards the team is sharing today.  If not, I hope you’ll indulge yourself by clicking through on the following links.  You’ll love what you see!

Barbara Anders

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Danielle Kennedy

Dawn Burnworth

Julie Koerber

Stacy Morgan

Sharon Doolittle

Jan Marie Caruso

I’ll be sharing another preview tomorrow, which is also the day of our Power Hour Release party in the SCS Forum at 9 pm central.  That means more samples, games, and giveaways.  Hope you can be there!  Have a great day!

Stamps:  Hello Hyacinths  Paper:  Orchid Opulence, Flourishes Classic White, Prima Fairy Flora designer paper  Ink:  Memento Tuxedo Black, Cocoa, Copics for coloring  Accessories:  Ribbon, pearls, Martha Stewart Arched Lattice punch, Spellbinders Curved Rectangles Nestabilities, Cuttlebug Organic Flourish embossing folder, Scotch brand foam mounting tape

Flourishes February Pre-Release Challenge

There are a whole lot of folks who would love to see a winter thaw long about now, I imagine.  If we can’t have spring yet, let’s at least have a temporary cessation of the extreme weather winter has brought with it.  For now, we can act out that dream by stamping along with Flourishes Winter Thaw Challenge.  Be inspired by the graphic above.  Use the same florals, colors, mood, anything.  It’s up to you how you are creatively inspired.  By playing, you could win all of our February new release stamp sets.  Check the Flourishes Newsletter Winter Thaw Challenge for details. 

I’ve been inspired by the color purple and thoughts of spring.  The sentiment says “Make a wish”.  Well, here’s my wish:  *Poof!* – Spring!  Did it work?  No?  Awwww, shucks!  I think of spring, though, when I see this Kids Play little girl silhouette.  I stamped her in Versafine Onyx Black ink on Flourishes Classic White cardstock and embossed with detail clear embossing powder for a very crisp image.  The Memory Box cardstock and the designer paper were sanded along the edges to help define the layers.  I used Julie’s sketch from a previous challenge:

See how the rest of the team was inspired today:

Barbara Anders

Christine Okken

Cindy Lawrence

Danielle Kennedy

Dawn Burnworth

Julie Koerber

Stacy Morgan

Before I go, I’d like to tell you about the Gambler’s Sale going on now at Flourishes: 

Starting February 3rd, Flourishes will be hosting a progressive sale called our Gambler's Sale. Each week, we will drop prices until the stamp sets on sale are out of stock. We will start at 10% off and each Thursday, will drop prices by 5% until they reach up to 50% off. Quantities are limited and there will be no backorders on any of the stamp sets facing retirement. So, get these sets before they are history!  See the sale page here.

I hope you can find the time to play along with us!  You’re going to LOVE the sets we’ll be previewing next week!  Have a fabulous weekend!

Stamps:  Kid’s Play  Paper:  Memory Box Lavender, Flourishes Classic White, BasicGrey Kioshi  Ink:  Versafine Onyx Black  Accessories:  Ribbon, Prima flowers, rhinestones, Spellbinders Classic Ovals Nestabilities, Martha Stewart edge punch, Scotch brand foam mounting tape