Who Loves Flourishes Stamps?

Good Morning Stampers!

If you LOVE Flourishes stamps...you are in for a TREAT because...we will be getting in some new Flourishes stamp sets that are scheduled for delivery TODAY (fingers crossed) AND because of this super cute card that our design team member Ceal Pritchett created using their April Showers Stamp Set!

Isn't that adorable? I love Ceal's ability to create such cute Clean and Simple cards. Those kind really challenge me because I see white and I wanna add something - LOL - so I really admire those card maker's that can pull this style off!

Have a great day everyone! If you have a chance to make a card today...enter it into our ANYTHING GOES challenge... we wanna give away some shopping sprees!

Happy Stamping!
Laura

Little Bluebird...

Good Morning Stampers!

When I saw today's project created by design team member, Lisa Rasmussen, it reminded me of a poem by Emily Huntington Miller. I will share it with you...

                                           The Bluebird Poem

I know the song that the bluebird is singing,
Out in the apple-tree where he is swinging;
Brave little fellow, the skies may look dreary;
Nothing cares he while his heart is so cheery.

Hark! how the music leaps out from his throat,
Hark! was there ever so merry a note?
Listen awhile and you’ll hear what he’s saying,
Up in the apple-tree swinging and swaying.

“Dear little blossoms down under the snow,
You must be weary of winter, I know;
Hark, while I sing you a message of cheer;
Summer is coming and spring-time is here!

“Little white snowdrop! I pray you arise;
Bright yellow crocus! come, open your eyes;
Sweet little violets, hid from the cold,
Put on your mantles of purple and gold;
Daffodils! daffodils! say, do you hear?–
Summer is coming and spring-time is here!”

Lisa created the cutest notecard and box set using the Birds Make a Cupcake stamp set from Pink Cat Studio.

I think Lisa's little bluebird is the sweetest! I also love the pop of bling on the lollipop! Lisa created a matching notecard box to hold her cards...

I love the colors that Lisa used, the gray and blue are beautiful together. That delish cupcake lets you know that there will be something yummy inside!

Here is the set all together...

                                                            What an adorable gift set!

Visit Lisa's Blog to get all the details on this super sweet notecard set.

Don't forget to play along with us in our blog challenge... this week's theme is an anything goes challenge so you are only limited by your imagination! Plus you might be the lucky winner of a gift voucher to our store :)

Happy Stamping All!
Laura

Ahhh...Adorable Milton!

Good Morning Stampers!

Guess what today is? Our very first Loves Rubberstamps Blog Challenge with our new Design Team! YAY!

Here is the card that I made for my Inspiration project for this week's challenge - ANYTHING GOES...



The image I used is from Wild Rose Studio and it is called Milton with Lily. I love Milton...he is sooooo cute!  I am super excited about my card today because I have been experimenting with Hybrid Coloring and I have to say, I am really lovin the results! Hybrid Coloring is when you mix markers with colored pencils to color your image.

To color my Milton I used my Spectrum Noir Alcohol Ink Markers to color my entire image first. Then I came back and used my prismacolor pencils to do a little shading in the center of the flower and a little bit of the darkers shadows on my bear. I also used prismacolor pencils to add the pink to his cheeks. Then I just blended the pencil using a dry tortillon or paper stump. The grass and the shading around the image is all done using my prismacolor pencils and gamsol to blend.

This is only my second time trying this technique and it is fast becoming a favorite! Here is a closer look at my Milton image...

The sentiment is from the Flourishes Stamp Set - Apple of My Eye. I added some dots of glitter to the center of my flower and a few highlights with my white gel pen. I stamped my image using India Ink  on Crafter's Companion Ultra Smooth Premium White Cardstock for Alcohol Markers.

I used this Bellariffic Sketch from Stamping Bella for my card layout:

Hope you liked my card today :)

Please come and join us in our Blog Challenge... You could be the lucky winner of a gift voucher for up to $50 to use in our store!

Also don't forget to become our facebook fan... we will be giving away a gift voucher for $100 to our store each time we hit 500 new fans!

Thanks for stopping by! Happy Stamping!
Laura

A Little Sweetness...

Good Morning Everyone!

Guess what today is? Our Design Team Debut!!  YAY!!!

We will be showcasing an inspirational card or project created by a different Design Team member everyday! And boy...are your eyes in for some sweetness today!

Today's card is created by Olivia Marmara. The stamp that she used is called Picked Sweet from the Little Cottage Cutie line designed by Elisabeth Bell for Whimsy Stamps.

I absolutely adore the bright summery colors that Olivia used to color her image with. Her rolled paper flowers give it the perfect touch! Visit Olivia's Blog to get all the sweet details on this little cutie!

Don't forget that tomorrow is our First Blog Challenge featuring our Design Team! Play along and you could win a gift voucher to use at our store... Loves Rubberstamps!

We are having a Facebook Fan Page drive! Become one of our Facebook Followers and every time we hit 500 new fans... we will draw one lucky name to win a $100 gift voucher to our store! Share this with all of your crafty friends!

Happy Stamping Everyone!
Laura

My Sunday Shares - June 3rd

Good Morning Everyone!

Hard to believe it is JUNE already! I am super excited for a couple of reasons today! First the artist I am featuring today is incredibly awesome and.... this week starts our first week with our new design team! YAY! We will start rolling out all kinds of beautiful and inspirational pieces of art that you can drool over starting on Monday with a super cute card by Olivia Marmara! And BELIEVE me it is SUPER CUTE! I have seen it already :)

Don't forget to mark your calendars to play along with us in our Loves Rubberstamps Blog Challenges which will post every Tuesday - the first one being on the 5th... you could be the lucky winner of a gift voucher to our store to pick yourself up some goodies! The more people that play... the more the vouchers will become so tell all your friends! Better yet... be sure and grab our Blog Challenges button, post it on your blog and then shoot me an email and you will also get a FREE SHIPPING coupon good on any size order! It is going to be a BLAST!

Now are you ready to droll over some of the cutest cards EVER? Today I am only featuring one, very talented paper artist because her work is just that awesome! As I told you in last week's shares I have a little obsession with Paper Smooches stamps because they are so fun and when I saw this card made with one of my most favorite paper Smooches stamp sets Alfresco... you will completely understand my obsession....

Isn't that the sweetest card you have ever seen? Gives me the giggles every time I see it! Can you believe that this card has NO patterned paper...nope...none!! That gorgeous red gingham pattern was made using the Debonair stamp set! This "cutest card on the planet" was created by the super talented, Kimberly, whose blog is called Paper Yummies. Very appropriate because her blog is FULL of some of the most adorable cards you will find! Kimberly is awesome at clean and simple cards which, for me anyway, can be challenging. Kimberly graciously told me I could share any of her cards that I liked so here are some of my other favorites that she has created (and believe me I had a hard time choosing which ones to share because I loved...her whole blog - LOL...

I chose this one to share with you because I really loved how Kimberly used Vellum as an overlay on her designer paper to change the look and give it some contrast. Brilliant idea! This card was created with the Paper Smooches Set - Circle of Honor and also the stars from Smarty Pants.

These next 3 cards of Kimberly's all use another one of my favorite Paper Smooches sets called Get Outta Town. I chose these three to show you because they demonstrate what I love about the paper smooches stamp sets... they are fun and have a little silliness mixed in...but they are SUPER versatile and allow you to create a wide range of looks from just one set.

This one features a cute little island with some palm trees.  If you look closely the same stamp image that was used to create the little birds... is also the same image upside down to create the waves! Very cool!

Now if you look at this card, Kimberly used the coconut drink and saying from the same stamp set. What I LOVED about this card is she added FLOCK to the coconut...look...

Super cute and it is the PERFECT touch! Makes you just want to touch it - LOL!

Now using the SAME stamp set Kimberly created this elegant beauty....

She used the flower stamp multiple times and colored it. The sentiment she created using two other Paper Smooches sets Pretty Momma and Simply Said. Could you tell that they were two separate stamp sets to create that greeting? I didn't until I read her post about creating this card! That is another thing I love about Paper Smooches... the sets all work together...did I mention that I love Paper Smooches yet? LOL!

I wanted to share this gorgeous card because well it is simply stunning....

I love the colors that Kimberly chose and the way she popped her butterflies. This card uses the Pretty Momma and Simply Said stamp sets from Paper Smooches. I also love the stitching that she did. Sewing is on my list of things to learn because I love the way it looks on your cards - it gives it that extra pop sometimes.

The last card that I chose to share is one that Kimberly did using a stamp set from....LAWN FAWN! Ha Ha! I bet you thought I was going to say Paper Smooches again...

See why I HAD to share this one... ADORABLE! Se used Lawn Fawn's My Silly Valentine, which can be used for many more occasions than just Valentine's Day as Kimberly shows. I LOVE the stamped sentiment on the elementary style writing paper - fits perfectly and adds the perfect touch!

I hope you enjoyed Kimberly's cards as much as I did! Take the time to become a follower of her blog - Paper Yummies - because there is definitely lots more yumminess to be found!

If you want to read more on Kimberly's Creations that are featured here - just click the following links and they will take you directly to her post for that card:

Lawn Fawn - Apple of my Eye Card

Paper Smooches - Welcome Home, Hero Card

Paper Smooches - Wish Big Ant - Cutest Card on the Planet!

Paper Smooches - Coconut Card & Thanks Mom

Paper Smooches - Happy Place Island Card

Paper Smooches - Happy Everything Card

I want to extend a HUGE THANK YOU to Kimberly for allowing me to share her creative genius with you! I hope you enjoyed Kimberly's work as much as I do!

Don't forget... come play with us on Tuesday, June 5th for our first blog challenge with our design team! It will be a lot of fun :)

Happy Stamping All and enjoy the rest of your weekend!! - Laura

Introducing the First LOVES RUBBERSTAMPS DESIGN TEAM!

Good Morning everyone!

I am SUPER EXCITED to let you know that we have completed our Design Team search and wanted to introduce you to our very first Loves Rubberstamps Design Team!

                                                         Meredith Winston
I have been doing fine art, crafting, sewing, knitting, collaging and photography for as long as I remember. My style changes as the wind blows. I used to rage against this while trying to carve my “niche” so to speak but I’ve learned to love how versatile my taste can be, ever changing and ever evolving. I am a stay at home, 39 year old Mother of two super, extra-delicious, fantastic children ages 7.5 and 6 respectively; I have a loving and supportive husband of 15 years along with an awesome dog named Katie. I have always loved making things with my hands. I specifically ADORE making cards, scrappy projects and alterable creations. I find inspiration EVERWHERE. I consider myself very blessed to be able to do what I LOVE every single day!

                                                             Olivia Marmara
My name is Olivia Marmara. I am a soon to be 35 year old (Gemini baby!) who resides in New Jersey, USA with my hubby of nearly 10 years, three daughters 8, 5 and 3 and my two four legged children AKA: my dogs. Though I have loved crafting via drawing, writing, or cross-stitching since I was young, I only began to start scrapbooking/card making in 2008 after being hooked by an Cricut infomercial. I have found over time that I most enjoy using rubberstamps over digis and still love to crank-up my Cricut for alot of my projects as well. My other passions are singing where I sing in a community choir, animal rescue as a foster parent for puppies for local animal rescue in NJ and Girl Scouts (I am a troop leader for two different troops for my oldest and middle). I am primarily a SAHM for my girls but do work per-diem every other weekend nights as an emergency room social worker in the hospital. I am SUPER EXCITED to be a part of this design team with a fabulous store that carries some of my favorite rubberstamps. I look forward to a great term with a group of VERY talented women who I am honored to be chosen to be a part of.

                                                          Lisa Rasmussen
My name is Lisa and I am from Vacaville, CA a small”ish” suburb near the San Francisco bay area. I am a full time student working towards my bachelor’s degree in European History. I have been married for 3 years. My wonderful husband Nick is in law enforcement for the State of California and works odd shifts, those are the times I sneak off to my stamp room. He not only supports this addiction, oops I mean “hobby,” 110%, but he is also my number one fan. We only have our adorable fur-baby Spike and he is the light of our lives. I started stamping in July 2007 when my stepmom showed me some of her stamping stuff. We stamped for 4 hours and the rest is history. I soon became an avid follower of Splitcoast Stampers and started trying all different companies out there. When not stamping I enjoy reading, wine tasting in Napa, going to concerts, musicals, ballet and to the movies. I love designing and I am honored to be a part of this design team!

                                                        Jacqueline Smith

My name is Jacqueline Smith. I’m from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I’m a 47 year old widow with a 17 year old son name Cameron plus a cute yellow Lab name Sarah. As long as I can remember, I have done something crafty since I was 10 years old. First it was macramé, then cross stitching, candle making and painting. Then I discovered rubber stamping/ scrapbooking 10 years ago when my son was quite young. I love the creative outlet it has given me to make cards or to scrapbook the perfect photo. I put my heart into every detail of the cards I create, which varies from unique cards that have a simplicity to the, to more elaborate cards that are engaging and detailed. My cards are unique with emphasis on the exquisite detail for every occasion and no two cards are exactly alike. I have this obsession about having to be on top of the latest gadgets that hit the market when the CHA comes out twice a year. So I have quite the collection of dies, stamps, inks, markers and paper which helps me come up with the most meticulous card or scrapbook page. Besides card making I love to paint in oils and love to dabble in color pencil. I’m a Horticulturist and I run an Interior Plant Maintenance company with my Dad which gave me a lot of flexibility to be with my son when he came home from school.


                                                                                                    Ceal Pritchett

I am a Christian wife, mother of three, and grammy to one beautiful baby girl and of course I can't leave out our shih tzu Willis, now that my children are out of the nest he has become the baby. I currently reside in the beautiful state of Colorado but but born and raised a Carolina girl. I am a cancer survivor of 9 years and a lover of life and all things paper. I have been crafting in some form since childhood and enjoy blessing others with the talents God has given me.


We would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of our applicant's! We had a lot of very talented people apply and it was very hard for us to choose. I wish it was feasible to accept everyone! I am really proud of the team we have selected and I believe that these 5 very talented ladies will put out some amazing things for you to be inspired by! I look forward to working with each and everyone of them!

Be sure to check out our first Loves Rubberstamps Blog Challenge on Tuesday - June 5th featuring our Design Team members!

Have a wonderful day! - Laura

My Sunday Shares - May 27th

Good Morning Everyone!

Hope you are enjoying this lovely 3-day Holiday Weekend! It has been pretty busy here with going through the Design Team Applicants and trying to choose our first Design Team! We have filled two spots so far and are working on the other spots! I am excited to reveal who our choices are because you will be BLOWN AWAY by their talent! But you will have to wait till Tuesday until we get all the spots filled and confirmed :)

Before I share today's cards I want to take a moment and thank our Military members and their families. Without their bravery, courage and selfless actions we would not enjoy the freedoms we do have. Words can never express the true gratitude I feel but thank you for all you do!

I have a little confession...I am obsessed with one of the newest release sets from Paper Smooches called Alfresco. This set is just so flippin cute! I haven't had the time to break my set out and play with it but everytime I have a few minutes I find myself searching for cards and projects made with it and there are LOTS of cute ones! Check out this super adorable card that I found...

This super cute card was created by Angela Thomas. I absolutely love the way she colored her image and the fun colors she used. Reminds me of going on a fun summer picnic. You can read all about Angela's inspiration and how she created this card in her blog post. If you have some time check out the rest of her blog too... Sparkle and Bling Mean Everything she does AMAZING work and has lots of cute eye candy for you!

Not only am I just obsessed with little Alfresco... I am obsessed with Paper Smooches in general...LOL! Kim has a way of designing sets that have simple, but adorable images that are super versatile and fun to use. I always love to search her line because I am always blown away by all the creative ways people come up to use her images. Here is another one of my favorite Paper Smooches finds that I came across this last week.

This cutie is created by Denise Marzec. Denise used the Little Chickie image from Paper Smooches Chubby Chums stamp set. This is another of my favorite sets... I know I have lots :) I really love how Denise colored her image and the way she did her background around it with the little dots of color. Great idea! Please check out Denise's blog post about this card. Denise is a super talented lady and is a member of the Splitcoaststampers Dirty Dozen Alumni. Her splitcoaststampers gallery is here peanutbee and her blog, The Paper Landscaper.

This next card is AMAZING and done with airbrushing! When I first saw this I was blown away by the vibrant colors and it just really catches your eye AND it is a one layer card! Check this out...

A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! This card was created by Holly who goes by kopykat on splitcoaststampers. She can do some amazing things with her airbrushing! This card uses an image from Kraftin Kimmie Stamps that is from their Krafty Klubhouse Kit - Going Places! I want you to know that we just received our Kraftin Kimmie Stamps order in the mail yesterday and I will be loading them in the store later today... including this set that Holly used! Check out Holly's splitcoaststampers gallery, kopykat and also her blog, KopyKat Creations she has TONS of super cute stuff!

My last card I want to share today is one made using my favorite Stamping Bella line... Uptown Girls!

This was craeted by mitchygitchygoomy on splitcoaststampers. The image she used is called Lolly and Her Brolly and she is one of the newest release Uptown Girls Stamps! I absolutely LOVE the colors she choose for her card and the cute paper piecing she did with the designer paper. I also love the sparkle she added to the clouds. She did a beautiful job! Speaking of jobs.... I better skee-daddle off to mine! I hope you enjoyed today's shares!

Extra Special thank yous to Angela, Denise, Holly & MitchyGitchyGoomy for allowing me to share their awesome creations with all of you! Take some time and check out these ladies blogs and galleries - they have LOTS of great projects to see!

Take care all & travel safe this weekend! Laura