April Verve Diva Inspiration Hop: Happy Birthday!

Hi Everyone!!!

Guess what time it is? It's time for Verve's monthly Diva Inspirations Challenge and Blog Hop!

There are TWO $30 gift vouchers to the Verve store up for grabs this month and two ways to win! First, comment on the design team's blog hop posts (linked below) for an entry in the first giveaway. Then to be entered into our challenge prize drawing, go get inky and link up your take on the challenge. You have until May 5 to link up. Feel free to play along with the challenge as many times as you like. Verve stamps aren't required to play, but we do smile a little brighter when we see them!

A little tropical flair is in the air for inspiration this month. Bright pinks, aquas, golden tones and a touch of white promise easy breezy days ahead. There's no script for this inspiration... go floral, keep it modern, follow our color pattern or forge your own path, just show us your tropical chic inspired creations.

For my card today, I used the Small Packages stamp set from Verve Stamps and added a tropical flare to it with the different colors and made the cupcake the focal point with the sentiment "Happy Birthday"! I am always in need of birthday cards and I love these bright colors - makes me feel so happy to see colors that are so vibrant! I thought the background of the card was kind of the same as the fabric of that chair in the inspiration pic (how fun is that chair?!!) and added some twine at an angle for both fun and for the color of it all :)

Here is a closer peek at the cucpake - I love this cupcake - it is so much fun to color and also to "ice" - I added stickles to the whole cupcake and some chunky glitter to the non-shadow part for more texture :) - Love how this turned out!

Card Ingredients:
Stamps: Small Packages stamp set from Verve Stamps
Inks: Memento Rose Bud
Papers: Sugar Cube, Strawberry Milkshake, Salt Water Taffy from (TE) and cardstock from stash
Accessories: white gel pen, foam dimensional, best glue ever, rhinestone, MS chunky glitter, stickles, twine, corner chomper


Loved makin this fun card and hope that you have a chance to play along with this challenge - just link up to the Inlinkz provided!! Not only is it so much fun to play along - but there is also a chance to win some sweet Verve!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!
Hugs,
Sankari :)

An InLinkz Link-up

Verve Diva Inspiration - September 2014

Hi Everyone,

Today is the fifth day in a week of birthday cards on my blog as a way to celebrate my birthday which was on Wednesday :) AND today is also Verve's September Diva Inspirations Hop. It's the 5th of the month and that means it's time for the Divas to serve up some fresh inspiration with their Verve stamps! Leave some comment love along the hop spots for a chance to win a prize, then grab some stamps and play along with our September inspiration challenge for another chance to win!

This month's challenge is entitled Sweet September:

Sugar-high! Get sugary sweet with pastels, cupcakes or candy. Create a calorie free confection to delight the senses! Feel free to use the graphic as inspiration or not.

I decided to kind of use the graphic as inspiration and incorporated the pastel colors to create a rainbow of sugary sparkley cake birthday tags using the Big Wish stamp set and the sentiment from the Small Phrases sentiment from Verve stamps. Here is my rainbow array of birthday tags:

I stamped the tag stamp from the Sweet Treats stamp set in 5 different colors and then created a mat using some kraft cardstock. I stamped the sentiment with the same colors and then cut out the sentiment using the Charming Banners dies from Verve.:

The cake is from the Big Wish stamp set - I colored it with copic markers and then glitterfied them and added liquid pearls to the edging of them and then adhered them to the circles of white and kraft cardstock. I then mounted the whole cake and onto the Sweet Scallop die from Verve, added an eyelet and then added ribbon and bling. I love all the sparkly goodness - here is a close up peek:

Here is a close up of one of the tags - I added some stickles to the candles and some liquid pearls to the edges:

Here are the tags in all the different colors:

Card Ingredients:

Stamp set: Big Wish stamp set for the cake, the tag stamp is from the Sweet Treats stamp set and the sentiment is from the Small Phrases stamp set from Verve stamps.

Cardstock: Kraft and Choice White from TE

Inks: Memento: Angel Pink, Soft Sky Blue, Lilac Posies, Bamboo Green, Dandelion yellow and copic markers

Accessories: Circle Spellbinders, White gel pen, Charming Banner dies  from Verve stamps, (set of 2) and Sweet Scallop die from Verve Stamps, eyelets, white ribbon, colorful bling, chunky glitter.

I loved making this fun birthday cake tags - perfect to add to a little present for a friend! Need a little inspiration? Check out the blogs linked below to see what the other Divas did with the challenge! It's sure to be a treat, and speaking of treats, we've got a prize for one lucky commenter along the hop! Check out the Verve Blog today for all the prize info and deadlines!
Thanks so much for stopping by today!
Hugs!
Sankari :)

	1. Julee	7. Sarah
	2. Amy	8. Sony
	3. Anya	9. Susan
	4. Betty	10. Maureen
	5. Karen	11. Stacey
	6. Sankari	12. Marisa

We've got some sweet savings in the store with all of our brand new releases marked 10% off and some of our sweetest stamps & dies from releases past marked 20% off!

Happy Birthday Cupcakes!

Hi Everyone,

Hope you had a great weekend! This one was packed with activities and events - and today we had a birthday party for my friends son and daughter - so I thought it would be fun to make a card for both of them that was the same, but different :) I used the awesome stamp set Build a Treat from Taylored Expressions and used my favorite cupcake combination (they are both solid images so makes it fun and quick to stamp). I also have a whole box of 6x6 pads that I haven't used since last year (hangin' my head down in shame) and so I picked out one of my Basic Grey paper pads and used the combo of papers that had more green and blue in them in one card and on the other card more reds and pinks.

 I love that it was made from the same paper pad - I kept the layout simple - just oval cut the image and popped it up on Labels 20 and then onto the Frame it Up 1 die from Taylored Expressions and added a little pennant from the Pennant Border die from Taylored Expressions:

    

Here is picture of each of the cards. I love this sentiment: Happy Birthday Cupcake - I stamped this and cut it out with a Tag label and then strung a ribbon through it:

Here is the second card - I love this sentiment: "For my Favorite Lil' Cupcake" Awwwww, how cute is that sentiment?! I love it - I did the same layout and kept the layout the same with the liquid pearls around the border of the oval and tag:

 

Card ingredients:

Paper: Lime Rickey from Basic Grey and Buttercream Cardstock

Stamps: Build a Treat stamp set from Taylored Expressions

Inks: Memento Inks (Danube BLue, Bahama Blue, Bamboo Green, Lilac, Rose Red, Angel Pink and RIch Cocoa and copics)

Accessories: Frame it UP 1 die and Pennant Border die from Taylored Expressions, Spellbinders Oval and Labels 20 dies, liquid pearls, tags, dimensionals, copics and ribbon from stash

I loved making these cards together and loved it even more to give it to the kids today at their birthday parties :) The winter birthday season is creeping up on me - it feels like there are so many December birthdays - I need to get stampin' now! :) Can't wait to make more!

Thanks so much for stopping by today!

Hugs,

Sankari :)

Happy Birthday Lori!

Hi Everyone,

Today is an exciting day as a lot of different crafters have come together to celebrate the birthday of one very awesome and wonderful person: Ms. Lori Craig! Lori has such a generous heart andI feel so lucky to have hung out with this special lady who has a beautiful heart and smile! I wanted to make a fun party card for this awesome chickie - so I had to use the cute little chickie Chole from the Chicks Rule stamp set from Verve stamps with the Mojo 191 sketch (seriously love this sketch - had to use it again!) The sentiments are from the super cute Party Time set - paired with the frame from the Sweet Treats stamp set. 

I wish I could come over with balloons dear Lori - but instead I am sending this card over to you :) The sentiment is stamped and then popped up onto the Embossed Oval Die and added a circle of liquid pearls with a tag on the side: "It's Your Day". I added the balloons on the side after coloring and glazing them up a bit - and popped out sweet little Chole Chickie on the side waving hi :)

Card Ingredients:

Paper: Echo Park (Sweet Summertime DP) 

Stamps: Chicks Rule , Party Time and the Sweet Treats stamp set from Verve Stamps.

Inks: Bamboo Leaves and Tuxedo Black

Accessories: dimensionals, bling from Bo Bunny, Embossed Oval Die, twine from May Arts, edger punch from Martha Stewarts, glaze, copics and liquid pearls.

And will wonders never cease - I actually mailed this card to Lori! I can't believe it - I am usually a card keeper not much of a card mailer :) PS - Lori - sorry about the huge packaging for such a little card - only way to send it to make sure you get it in time :)

Lori - I wish you a year full of daily blessings 

and that everyday is filled with sunshine and laughter! 

Wishing you a wonderful and Happy Happy Birthday dearest Lori!!!

Please by Lori's blog here and leave her some birthday love!

Thank you so much for stopping by today!

Big hugs,

Sankari :)

Inspired Crafters Sketch Challenge

HI Everyone,

 Happy October 1st! I am so excited to be a guest designer today for a new challenge blog called Inspired Crafters where today they have created a super sweet sketch to get your crafting mojo going! I have to say that I love sketch challenges, especially when you have when you are running short on mojo! Sketches give such a solid play for you to start in creating a card - the only problem is sometimes I forget to follow the sketches perfectly - until I realize it later :) I just started a new thing - where I keep a notebook on my craft desk and draw sketches that I come across in blogland along with the URL so that if I get stuck I flip through sketches and get the mojo going :) 

 I loved this sketch because it leaves so much room for interpretation and so I kind interpreted a lot of scallops into my card today :D! I pulled out one of my favorite bday stamp sets from Taylored Expressions called Make a Wish and used the super sweet cake as my focal for the card. I colored it with copics and then highlighted it with some liquid pearls for the frosting and then sponged the edges green:

Card Ingredients:

Paper: Bazzil and Prism cardstock, Bo Bunny and  Make a Wish Project Pantry kit from Taylored Expressions

Stamps: Make a Wish Stamp set from Taylored Expressions

Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black and Rich Cocoa

Accessories: EK success scallop punch, ribbon from stash, bling, Adirondack liquid pearls and dimensionals, spellbinders 

I had so much fun creating this fun birthday card! Now if I can only remember to actually mail it on time! LOL! A huge thank you to sweetest Banu for inviting me to play along with the amazing girls on the Inspired Crafters DT! I can't wait to play again soon - the first Friday of every month they have a  brand new sketch to play along with - can't wait to see all the cards that the girls have made with the sketch and hope you have a chance to join in and play along with the fun!!!

Thank you so much for stopping by today!

Happy Friday to all and hope your start to October is awesome!

Hugs,

Sankari :)

Hope Your Birthday RockS!!

Hi Everyone,

It finally feels like Spring is here! And I have been spring cleaning - I can't believe how the change in weather can inspire me to clean (because really, that is not what I would rather do!) Yesterday when I was cleaning out my craft corner (which is stuffed to the gills right now!) I came across this fun MVP paper from WRMemory Keepers and I immediately stopped cleaning and sat down to make a card :) I based this on Taylor's Sketch Challenge #104 and used the newly released You're My Hero stamp set to create this.

I love using this set because part of the sales from this stamp set benefit the CureSearch which unites the world's largest childhood cancer research organization, the Children's Oncology Group and the National Childhood Cancer Foundation through their mission to cure childhood cancer.

Our niece's birthday is next week and she loves American Idol and all things musical (dancing, singing, being in the school band, etc.) so this was the perfect stamp set for her birthday card - and the only thing that I hope is that it is "cool" enough for her :) - she is going to be 15! Yikes!

Well, I am off to keep cleaning (yes, I can't believe I wrote that sentence myself!!!! LOL!) but first a cup of "energy" :) Hope your day is springalicious!!!

Big hugs,

Sankari :))