No Time To Stamp?

I’ll start with the Chit Chat tonight!!

The Ultimate Valentine Challenge: Do you remember a month or more ago I posted about Pat Adam (The Rubber Maid)needing to come up with 1,000 Valentines for Children’s Hospital in Detroit? The Ultimate Valentine Challenge was issued in the hopes of helping Pat achieve what seemed to be an almost impossible goal. Well, well, well - I could NOT believe when I read on Pat’s blog earlier that she not only met, but FAR exceeded that goal! I was totally blown away to read that she recieved a total of 5,682 Valentines!!! And you know where they all came from - FROM YOU — those of you who read blogs and were willing to pitch in and help — oh my goodness!!! It just brings me almost to tears to think of what can be done when everyone pitches in — this is just so, so amazing!!! Why don’t you pop on over to Pat’s Blog to check out the pictures she’s posted of the hospital and while you’rethere, thank her for coordinating this monumentous effort!!! GREAT JOB, PAT!!! What you have taken on and accomplished just warms my heart, inside and out!!!

6 x 6 Pad Storage: And next, just a few days ago I posed a question on my post, asking you all how you store your 6 x 6 Basic Grey pads, especially once they get torn apart with a lot of loose and small papers. Well, my friend, Michelle Woerner, Stop and Stamp the Roses, just did a post yesterday on her system for 6 x 6 paper storage. She has some nice little cubes and what she is doing looks much more functional than what I’ve been doing with my ziplock bag system. The next time I go shopping I’m going to look for some of these cubes and give it a try. You can check out Michelle’s post here. Thank you, Michelle, for sharing the info — MUCH appreciated!!! Oh, and check out her beautiful Mother’s Day cards once you’re there!!! Sooooo pretty!!

My card for today: After getting home very late from a basketball game tonight, I still needed to come up with a Valentine card for our Youth Group teens to make tomorrow morning, for delivery in the afternoon (nothing like doing these ahead of time!). I decided to check out theInspiration Challenge at SCS for inspiration and HOW FUN!!! The inspiration pieces are all heavily decorated bras (YES — to benefit Breast Cancer Awareness). You MUST pop over there to check them out — so fun!!! The bra I chose for my inspiration is on page 2, called Still in Bloom. It is mostly pink and white with texture, as is my card, butthe bra hassome green and purple added, which you will see popping up in my 2nd photo below!!! Anyway, here’s my Valentine that the Youth Group teens will make tomorrow — there’s only a few of the teens and they will make about 12 cards:

Simple for them to make, and I hope they like them! It won’t take long as I’ll have everything precut, embossed and stamped, so all they really need to do is adhere them together and add the heart/button/ribbon focal image. I hope they have fun putting them together!

Here are some of the other colors/patterns they will use. Personally, I think the purple heart/buttons with the Eva paper is going to be my favorite!!! All of my buttons are from Wal-Mart. They come in little bags on the spinny rack in the sewing section. They are SO cheap and I have had really great luck matching them to my SU and Prism cardstocks! I’ve been totally pleased with them!!!

Stamps: Verve Visual Plain Janes, Psalm 37:4

Paper: PTI White, SU Pretty in Pink, Pink Pirouette, Eggplant Envy, Prints DP; Basic Grey Euphoria and Eva

Ink: Versa Fine Onyx Black

Accessories: Heart Nestabilities, Martha Stewart Lace Punch, Cuttlebug and Swiss Dots Folder, Wal-Mart Buttons, Variety of Ribbons, Glue Glider, Mounting Squares.

Note: The Heart Nesties, Basic Grey Paper, Glue Glider and Mounting Squares are available at Joan’s Garden.

Thanks so much for stopping in this weekend! Remember, my Stamp Simply Challenge from yesterday is still there, waiting for you to play with a monogram!!! I so appreciate you taking the time to check in — thank you so much!!!

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY, EVERYONE!!!

I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in thecity of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.

Luke 2:10,11

Here it is, Christmas Eve 2008, and we just returned from church. We have a Christmas Eve Candlelight Service that is just so beautiful with all the candles burning in the otherwise darksanctuary as the congregation sings Silent Night. It truly evokes feelings that no other service throughout the year can match. We have all been so busy this past month or so getting ready for Christmas– let us all now relax and take in the true wonder that Christmas signifies — the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who was sent here not only to live among us but to die on the cross for us, providing a way for each of us to have eternal life in heaven. Praise the Lord!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!!!

And before I go, I’d like to leave you with a favorite piece that I have read each Christmas since my childhood. It’s the “Yes, Virginia” story. I shared it here last year and was amazed at the amount of people who had never read this before. I find it a heart-warming piece to read, and re-read, each year. I hope you enjoy it whether you have read it before or not. Here it is:

Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus

By Francis P. Church, first published in The New York Sun in 1897. [See The Peoples Almanac, pp. 13589.]

We take pleasure in answering thus prominently the communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of The Sun:

Dear Editor

I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, If you see it in The Sun, its so. Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?

Virginia OHanlon

Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be mens or childrens, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The external light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but thats no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

You tear apart the babys rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart. Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

About the Exchange

Francis P. Churchs editorial, Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus was an immediate sensation, and went on to became one of the most famous editorials ever written. It first appeared in the The New York Sun in 1897, almost a hundred years ago, and was reprinted annually until 1949 when the paper went out of business.

Thirty-six years after her letter was printed, Virginia OHanlon recalled the events that prompted her letter:

Quite naturally I believed in Santa Claus, for he had never disappointed me. But when less fortunate little boys and girls said there wasnt any Santa Claus, I was filled with doubts. I asked my father, and he was a little evasive on the subject.

It was a habit in our family that whenever any doubts came up as to how to pronounce a word or some question of historical fact was in doubt, we wrote to the Question and Answer column in The Sun. Father would always say, If you see it in the The Sun, its so, and that settled the matter.

Well, Im just going to write The Sun and find out the real truth, I said to father.

He said, Go ahead, Virginia. Im sure The Sun will give you the right answer, as it always does.

And so Virginia sat down and wrote her parents favorite newspaper.

Her letter found its way into the hands of a veteran editor, Francis P. Church. Son of a Baptist minister, Church had covered the Civil War for The New York Times and had worked on the The New York Sun for 20 years, more recently as an anonymous editorial writer. Church, a sardonic man, had for his personal motto, Endeavour to clear your mind of cant. When controversal subjects had to be tackled on the editorial page, especially those dealing with theology, the assignments were usually given to Church.

Now, he had in his hands a little girls letter on a most controversial matter, and he was burdened with the responsibility of answering it.

Is there a Santa Claus? the childish scrawl in the letter asked. At once, Church knew that there was no avoiding the question. He must answer, and he must answer truthfully. And so he turned to his desk, and he began his reply which was to become one of the most memorable editorials in newspaper history.

Church married shortly after the editorial appeared. He died in April, 1906, leaving no children.

Virginia OHanlon went on to graduate from Hunter College with a Bachelor of Arts degree at age 21. The following year she received her Masters from Columbia, and in 1912 she began teaching in the New York City school system, later becoming a principal. After 47 years, she retired as an educator. Throughout her life she received a steady stream of mail about her Santa Claus letter, and to each reply she attached an attractive printed copy of the Church editorial. Virginia OHanlon Douglas died on May 13, 1971, at the age of 81, in a nursing home in Valatie, N.Y.

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Thank you so much for stopping in today!!! I’ll be back with our usual Friday Stamp Simply Challenge. Hope to see you then!!! MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Tonight I only have a helpful little tidbit to share — but it’s one FABULOUS tidbit!!! I discovered this a few nights ago on Ellen Hutson’s Blog in the Classroom section. She was showing a project on Brayer Resist, and my eyes were immediately drawn to her sponges in the photo — OH MY GOSH — the bells went off in my head — WHAT AN INCREDIBLY GENIUS IDEA!!! Well, when I read the text, I guess this is an old idea, but I’ve surely never seen it — so just thought maybe some of you may never have seen it either. I’ve been super busy today prepping for classes tomorrow, and I just made up my little handled sponges for the girls touse, so they’re still nice and clean, but I can’t WAIT to try them. No more dirty fingers from sponging!!! Here they are:

Now is that a cool idea, or what!!! It sure impressed me!!! Thank you, Ellen!!! Be sure to check out Ellen’s Brayer Resist tutorial – some of the most gorgeous leaves ever — such a perfect card for this time of year!!! I think I just might need to try this sometime in the next few days!!!

Thanks much for stopping in — hope you are all as excited about this little tidbit as I was — LOL!!! Have a great day!!!

I’ve had to deal with power outages and other issues today, so I have no project to show you, but I did want to let you know about some fun activities we all have up our sleeves!!!

This Friday, September 5, marks my one year Blog Anniversary, and the following Friday, September 12, marks one year for the Stamp Simply Challenges. So, we figured we needed to celebrate — Big Time!!! The Stamp Simply Design Crew and I have a lot of fun things planned. Actually, the celebration started last week already with our Red Hot Julie Challenge!!! (and I think Julie is still red — LOL!!)!!!

Our Celebration continues this Friday with a little Dancin’ — oh yes — you’ll have to come to see what’s up!!! And the party continues all through next week and beyondwith a ton of Blog Candy give-aways (yes, like maybe 10 or 12, really!!!). And we have a lot of fun and games up our sleeves as well — would you like a chance tohost a challenge for the Stamp Simply Design Team? Would you like a chance to become a Guest Designer right along with the Stamp Simply Crew for a full month? Well, it all begins on Friday, so be sure to check back in!!! It’s sure to be a fun, fun week for all!!

Hope to get something made and up for you soon!!! Thanks much for stopping in!!!

I recently received my Autumn (2008) edition of Take 10. I was lucky enough to get a few cards accepted, and in paging through I find it is, once again, filled with familiar names from SCS and Blogland — congrats to all!!! Here’s a few that jumped out at me –

Jen del Muro provided the Sketch Challenge and had many adorable cards throughout the issue.

Lisa Zappadid the Masterboard project creating a gorgeous One Sheet Wonder sheet and projects usingbeautiful Crafty Secrets images.

Kim Hughes was the main focus of 3 articles. Kim was the Guest Artist, and had articles on Kissing and No Frills.

Lisa Somerville had a page full of fun Artistic Outpost offerings.

I spotted cards by Cindy Lyles, Kendra Wiestockand my good friend IRL (LOL!), DeborahLynneS.

And I had a 3-page segment called Simple Sophistication, featuring 4 cards and 1 bookmark/sleeve using Periphery DP by Basic Grey and images by Flourishes (Flourished Elements and Flourished Words).Above isa photo I took of this project before mailing it off last January. The card on the upper left was something I had done for achallenge at SCS — the techniquewas called Stab Binding. That card and details can be seen here. The bookmark and sleeve was previoulsy uploaded here.

The little loop on top of the frame above was drawn in. This was a really fun and simple set to make as it was just a matter of selecting sheets of designer paper and making the most of what was already there — adding minimal stamped images and some pretty embellishments and ribbon to dress it up!!! This set is a perfect example of what I always say — If you use pretty things, you don’t have to DO much!!! So, so true!!!

Again, pretty things! The birds were on the paper, I added very minimal stamped images, a flower from SU’s Pretties Kit with stick pin, ribbon and pearls!!! It’s kind of like taking a sheet of paper and dressing it up for the prom!!!

I created the rose arch with a different sheet of paper, bordering it in black to highlight it. Again, as in the card above, the bird just needed something to look at or peckat!!!

I also had another page in this issue, A Different Point of View, again using all images by Flourishes (Cake Decorating 101). These cards haveall been previously uploaded, so I’ll just show you a pic of the magazine page. Unfortunately, mistakes happen, as did with this page.The images were listed as being by No Time ToStamp. Well, we all know, there are no images bearing that name. All images were by Flourishes.

And I once again thank you for taking the time to look today!!! It is always so much appreciated!!! Hope you are all able to enjoy a beautiful summer day, such as we are experiencing here — a bit on the cool side, but nonetheless, beautiful!!!

Hi everyone — had a really great weekend!!! This weekend was the 1st ever Stampin’ in the UP event. It was so well organized and run ina fabulous facility with LOTS of room to work, eat and socialize AND a wonderful in house restaurant where we ate many meals! We had a small group of 22 who participated in card swaps, shoe box swaps, fun, games and prizes. I did a presentation on Saturday, and since requests had been put in earlier as to what these girls wanted, it was a breeze!!! They wanted toseeand use product they were unfamiliar with, so at their request I demoed and allowed them to use Eclipse Tape, the Score-It, Scor-It Mini, Scor-Pal, Nestabilities and other dies by Spellbinders, and several different of the JustRite Stampers.

But, as usual, the best part of this event from my perspective was meeting and visiting with the people. Most participants were from within about a 100 mile radius, but we had 2 brave souls who ventured into our northlands from down below — LOL!!! And here they are:

On the left is Barb Schram from Grand Rapids, Michigan, then me, then on the right is Joan Fricker from Northern Indiana. I’ll start with Barb — well, my goodness — her ever so sweet DH (and he REALLY is!) took her on this 8/10 hour journey, and the moment they walked in the room it was like I’d known her all my life — we just CLICKED!!! We have been Blogging/SCS buddies for a year or so. We became fast friends and have kept in touch regularly, and I’ll tell you, to finally meet someone face to face whom you have been friends with already is such an awesome experience. No introductions, no *get to know you stuff*, just one big hug and start visiting right where you left off the last time you chatted online!!! Barb is an awesome person, a fabulous designer, an absolute delight to be with and a very, very good friend!!! I can’t wait until we can meet up again!!!

Next is my good friend Joan Fricker who came even further, from Northern Indiana. Joan and I also met online maybe 6 months or so ago, and this is the 2nd time in as many weeks that I’ve had the pleasure of spending time with Joan. Considering the miles between us, that’s pretty amazing!!! Joan and I were in the same Copic class2 weeks ago in Chicago at CHA — gee, she puts on a lot of miles!!! Joan has a very, very interesting background, which I’ll share more with you in about a week — need to give her a chance to get home!!! I was just thrilled to pieces to see Joan again and somehow I do think I’ll be running into her some more — LOL!!! More on Joan in about a week!!!

Friday night as the girls participated in games and challenges, I chose to sit and color some images with my Copics as I visited with my table mates. My friend had brought several Gina K sets with her, so I stamped and colored those images — how fun!!! Here’s a card I made with one imageafter I got home:

This beautiful orchid is in a Gina K set called Botanical Dreams and was drawn by Asela Hopkins. This is such a fun image to color — I did several once I had the opportunity, so you’ll be seeing more cards with this image over the next few days or weeks. This set alsohas several lovely single words which, of course, I did not stamp when I had the opportunity. Oh well –This is just a simple card which I did for the Sunday Featured Stamper Challenge at SCS — the featured stamperI cased is Shellapoo and, oh my, she has quite the interesting story and certainly serves as an inspiration to us all. You may read about the challenge and about Shellapoo right here. I loved this simple layout in this card of Shellapoo’s. I followed it pretty much exactly, but added ribbon and a die cut corner. Thank you Shellapoo!!!

• Stamps: Botanical Dreams by Gina K, Floral b/g by SU
• Paper: PTI White, SU Pretty in Pink and Rose Red
• Ink: Unknown Black, SU Rose Red, Copics to color (colors unknown)
• Accessories: SU retired Organdy, SU Pretties Kit, Corsage Pin, Cuttlebug die cut corner, White Pearls, Long Rectangle Nestabilities by Spellbinders

That’s it for tonight — thank you so much for stopping in, and also, I just can not thank you all enough for all your emails, comments, phone callsand the many kindnesses extended to me over the pastfew days– THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH — Blogland readers are truly THE BEST!!!!!

10 Minute Tuesday is still the plan for tomorrow!!!

Day 2 for me, Friday,at CHA started with Jan Marie, Susan, Jerri Kay and I checking out the floor. Between bumping into people, a lot of quick hellos, and trying to see all we could in that short, short time, I had to reportto the JustRite booth at 1:00 to do make-n-takes. That was a blast — I did the little black and white bridesmaid dress favor boxes for over 4 hours until they closed down. All the make-n-takes at the JustRite booth were VERY well recieved, and they had a ton of them going on all three days. The volume of display items was also very impressive and they drew a lot of attention not only from prospective buyers but also magazine editors, news people, writers and wedding planners. It was fun to take that all in from the sidelines as I was doing the make-n-take projects. I almost hated for it to all end that afternoon at closing time!!! The new products coming out by JustRite are truly amazing — and I’ll share more about them in another post — but just think circles, large circles, and ever LARGER circles, and ovals, and even larger ovals, and think of a rubber grid to snap your alphas into, a large rubber grid — large enough to create full sentiments and even short sentences — complete with new alphas, too!!! No more stressing to get alpha letters straight on your project — perfection, EVERY time!!! Can’t WAIT to actually get this product so I can show you!!!

From there our little group headed overto the SCS CupcakeReception at the Hyatt next door. This was another, OH MY GOODNESSexperience!!! Many very familiar faces I had not run into already were there — oh what fun!!! And everyone was SO friendly and nice — a very festive atmosphere with lots of picture taking going on. Here’s some I got, and,sadly, many of mine didn’t turn out, but here’s a few:

Sharon Harnist, me, Jerri Jimenez, Lindsey Botkin, Sherry Cheever, Michele Boyer, Trudee Sauer, seated Jeanne Streiff, Bev Gerard.

Susan Roberts, Jan Marie Caruso, Ellen Hutson, Sharon Harnist, Sherry Cheever, Bev Gerard, me, Jeanne Streiff.

Kirsten Dubosque, me, Michelle Giraud.

Jennifer Buck who is on my Friday Stamp Simply Challange team (yay, Jenn!!!!), AJ Otto, Brooke Lien, Angela Magnuson.

Val Stangle, Carole Burrage, Jenn Balcer, Leigh O’Brien.

What a pleasure to meet these ladies — and there were so, so many more I met that I don’t have photos of — oh, I only wish I did. It was truly an experience I will always cherish and never forget.

And starting Wednesday, Flourishes begins its Christmas in July Celebration — and that means 15% off ALL Christmas sets — so be sure to check on what the entire Flourishes DT is up to come Wednesday!!!

Next post — Blog Candy — I promise!!!

Hi everyone — I’m home from CHA and feel like I’ve been away from here (computer/Blog) forever. I haven’t been on a computer for 4 days — yes!!! I don’t have a laptop and my hotel was charging 42 cents a minute for computer use, and we all know how those minutes turn into hours, so I opted to stay off!!! Well, I’m home now and have an awful lot of catching up to do!!!

I just can’t tell you how much I enjoyed my trip. My DH and DS#1 took me down to Chicago, about an 8 hour drive, and they kept themselves busy all those days taking advantage of what Chicago has to offer, while I was busy every waking moment with the task at hand. We arrived late Wednesday night and I had a Copic classfirst thing Thursday morning. I was a bit on the late side getting there, so I just took a seat, not realizing WHO was all seated already. As Marianne started her presentation, my eyes began to wander the room, and one by one I became aware that I *knew* in a sense, probably 3/4 of the people in the room — AMAZING!!!! Actually meeting all these people and seeing them in real life as opposed to their on screen avatar was truly the high point of this entire trip for me. And I’ll share a few pictures with you in a bit.

The Copic class was fun! Marianne Walker kept things interesting throughout as she explained both the product and technique to us as we colored away. All attending received the Copic Certification Certificate. But would you like to know THE most valuable bit of information I received at the class — click here — it is the link to Marianne’s Blog — I Like Markers. How have I missed this Blog? Where in the world have I been — somewhere with my head buried in the sand, obviously!!! Marianne’s blog is filled with tutorials and answers to questions — it’s like having many little mini-classes right at your fingertips. I may have missed Marianne’s Blog before, but believe me, it’ll be a daily morning stop from now on!!! Thank you, Marianne, for the fun, informative class and for all the time and effort obvioulsy put into your fabulous blog!!!

Here’s a few pics taken at the Copic class — now, how’s this for a star-studded classroom!

Leigh O’Brien, Bev Gerard, Joan Fricker, Taylor VanBruggen, Kim van der Sanden.

Nicole Heady, Michelle Wooderson, Jana Millen.

Lynn Mercurio (Lynn in St. Louis).

Julie Campbell and Lisa Silver.

Michelle Giraud (flaxychick) and Laura Canale (Lov’n Life n Vegas).

Debbie Olson and Lori Craig.

Carolyn King (Cammie), Deborah Anton(Beadn&Stampn), Carole Burrage (TruCarMa).

How much fun!!!

I picked up a few packs of goodies while at CHA fromMaking Memoriesand thought I’d offer them as Blog Candy — so that post will be up later tonight or tomorrow! Along with more photos from the SCS Cupcake Reception and the CHA show floor.

Thanks so much for stopping in!!! Hope your week is off to a great start!!!

An artist, a hottie, and a peony what could they possibly have in common? Well, far more than meets the eye!!!

Youve heard all of us at Flourishes mention Marcella Hawley from time to time. Id like to introduce you to her today. Marcy is the artistic talent behind so many of the beautiful images in Flourishes stamp line, the latest being our series of beautiful botanical images. Marcella Hawley was founding art director of Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion, a pioneering art-centered decorating magazine. Previously, as assistant to the art director at Martha Stewart Living, she was part of the creative team that launched Martha Stewart’s premiere television show and Weddings magazine. Now home in St. Louis, Missouri, Marcella is a devoted gardener, illustrator, decorator, and maker of things. Husband Patrick Hawley is her partner in life and business, as web developer and IT maestro for MHCreative. They have two children, Tallulah and Finn. For more information on her work, please visit www.marcellahawley.com.

OK, so thats who Marcy is on a professional level. Some pretty impressive names listed on her resume, but on a personal level, shes just like the rest of us a devoted wife and mother who loves her husband and her children and shes also someone who likes to have a little fun! And in that vein she nominated her husband, unbeknownst to him, as the Hottest Husband of 2008 through Redbook Magazine. And Patrick OBVIOUSLY is hot, as he was one of the finalists in the contest!!!! Huge Congrats!!! to both Patrick and Marcy!!! How fun!!! You can see the Redbook article along with an adorable photo of Patrick and their children by clicking here.

We at Flourishes are so honored and privileged to be able to work with both Marcy and Patrick. Patrick was instrumental in helping Flourishes get their original site up and running and he still lends a technical hand from time to time!!! Not only is this couple hot, hot, hot!!! in many respects, but they are a part of what makes Flourishes what it is today, and were so pleased to share this fun news with you!!! Thank you, Marcy and Patrick, for your part in Flourishes success!!!!

OK, so weve covered the artist (Marcy), the hottie (Patrick), now what about the peony? Well, that would be our Peony stamp set, drawn by Marcy, of course!!! I just wanted to share a card with you today and I thought this newly released Peony would be just perfect for the occasion!!!

The card base is 5.5 square. The main image panel is 5 3/8 x 4 1/8and is set askew on the card intentionally just for fun!!! I use 6″ square envelopes so it still fits in the envelope just fine. The pink strip is Cuttlebug embossed, the Peony sentiment is run through the Cuttlebug with the Tags Trio dies by Spellbinders, and the bee, also from the Peony set, is cut with a Petite Circle Nestability die and then matted with a punched 1 circle using a SU punch. The main image panel with the Peony was created in the following steps:

• Ink peony stamp, direct to stamp, using ColorBox Chalk Inks, and stamp onto white cardstock.
• Using SU markers I filled in areas on the leaves and stem.
• Using the Inkksentials Opaque White Pen, I colored in all white areas on the peony and accented the leaves a bit.
• Using a C1 Cool Gray Copic marker I outlined the entire image.
• I made a mask of the peony using Eclipse Masking Tape, adhered it over the peony and then stamped my scripted background in Palette Hybrid Charcoal.
• I then heavily sponged the edges of the panel with the Charcoal ink.
• I then matted the panel in gray and then pink before adhering to the card.
• I then attached my Peony tag and bee with dimensional products.

Here’s my supply list:

• Stamps: Peony by Flourishes and retired SUScript
• Paper: Black, White, SU Pixie Pink, SU Basic Gray Textured
• Ink: Palette Hybrid Charcoal and Noir Black, ColorBox Chalk Inks in Orchid Pastel, Dark Brown, Olive Pastel, SU markers in greens, browns and yellow, C1 Cool Gray Copic marker, Inkksentials Opaque White Pen, Stardust Clear Glitter Pen (on wings).
• Accessories: Black Sheer Ribbon, Black Dotted Sheer Ribbon, Tags Trio and Circle Nestabilities by Spellbinders, SU 1 punch, Cuttlebug, Textile Embossing Folder, Mounting Tape, Dimensionals, Zots, Glue Dots, Sponge.

Thanks so much for stopping in today. Hope you enjoyed this fun story about Marcy and her Hottie!!! Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!!!

Just a quick note to remind you all there are continual games going on in the Flourishes Forum at SCS.

We are running a never-ending Featured Stamper Challenge. Any and all cards made with Flourishes images can be entered here, and double dipping with other challenges is fine — we are ALL for multi-tasking — LOL!!! We’re on Week #2 right now. Each weekly winner is featured on the Flourishes Newsletter Blog. Each weekly winner’s name is thrown in a drawing for a monthly winner, who wins a prize!!! Our first weekly winner was Lois, a/k/a Clownmom. You can check out Lois’ article here.

We also have a never-ending Christmas Card Challenge running as well. There are no winners or prizes for this challenge, but getting a head start on your Christmas cards is gift in itself!!! Plus, viewing the challenge entries gives you ideas to get you inspired!!! And again, you MAY enter your Christmas Card Challenge entries into the Featured Stamper Challenge as well!!!

Remember, please use the keyword FLLC for all Flourishes uploads — we all LOVE to be able to easily find them and see what you’ve been up to!!!

And tomorrow is our Stamp Simply Challenge here on my Blog — again, it’s a super easy one that truly ANYONE can play — hope to see you then!!!