Verve Inspiration Challenge Hop

Welcome to Verve's March Diva Inspirations Challenge Hop! We're bringing back our monthly inspiration challenge and would love for you to play along! On the 10th of each month we'll bring you a blog hop, sharing our takes on the challenge. After that, we'd love for you to try your hand at the challenge and link up on the Verve Blog for a chance to win.

PRIZE ALERT: Our challenge comes with a prize drawing for a $30 gift voucher to the Verve shop. To be eligible, be sure to hop around and leave a comment on each of the Diva blog posts, then play along and link up before April 5. Verve stamps are NOT required, but we do love to see 'em!

There are no rules.. just have fun creating!
This month we'd love for us to show us your green. Feel free to take inspiration from this drippy, weathered gate photo or just pull out some green toys from your stash and start to play. We can't wait to see what you create! 

Click here to link up your challenge entries
Challenge deadline: Thursday, April 5.
Prize: $30 gift voucher to the Verve online store!

If you have come here from Laurie's blog you are right on track.  If not, check out the Hop List below and get caught up!

I was almost giddy when I read the challenge was to use green as it is my favorite colour ♥   Being March, it is a perfect opportunity to combine green with Verve's newest digi Irish Coffee, just in time for St. Patrick's Day!  I have several Irish friends, so I always love the fact I create a special, hand made card for them.

I combined two green papers (happy sigh....), coloured and fussy cut the cloverleaf digis so I could create a "clover patch" down the side of the sentiment panel.  Of course, gold came to mind too, so I added a gold sequin to the middle of each shamrocks to bring a bit of sparkle to the card and finished things off with some green twine.  Can't wait to deliver this to my Irish friend on St. Patrick's Day :) 

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're giving away a $30 gift voucher to Verve.  Just leave a little love as you hop about, then come back and link up your green creations for a chance to win!

1. Julee	5. Marisa
2. Betty	6. Maureen
3. Christyne	7. Teresa
4. Laurie

Time to head on over to our Irish Diva Maureen's blog to see her wonderful creation which is sure to toast her heritage :)   Thanks for popping by today and I look forward to seeing your creations in the gallery! 

 
What's In It?
Stamps:  Irish Coffee Digi Set (Verve Stamps)
Paper:   Recollections (Michael's)
Ink:  Black
Accessories:  Stitched Rectangles (Lil Inker), Twinkling H2Os, Twine, Glue Dots, Gold and Green Sequins, Dimensionals

March 2108 Viva La Verve Sketch

Hard to believe February is over and it is time for a new Viva la Verve Sketch!

I had visions of spring last week when the crocuses and tulips were starting to push through the soil and a short five days later we got hit with 9 inches of snow in a day!  Was quite the shock but a very nice change from rain and boy did I get a good workout shoveling 9 inches of heavy snow LOL!

As a result, I wanted to go a bit on the springy side of things as I can't wait for my tulips and crocuses to bloom.  I just love flowers and the first pops of colour after a long winter always bring me great joy.  Julee just released the Lucky Day digital set for St. Patrick's Day, so I dug into my papers and found this lovely spring green polka dotted paper that gives me warm fuzzies LOL.   Paired it with a sentiment and one of the shamrocks from Lucky Day.  Was in need for a bit of contrast on the card so added some black accents.

Sketch will be up for the month of March, so pop on over and link your card up for a chance to win some new Verve ♥

Thanks for popping by today!

Challenges: Simon Says






What's In It?
Stamps:  Lucky You Digi Set (Verve Stamps)
Paper:   My Mind's Eye, Always Artichoke, Basic Black (Stampin' Up), Tan (LSS)
Ink:  Black
Accessories:  Lacy Circle and Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Doily Die (Top Dog), Medium Scalloped Die (PTI),  Heart Die (Simon Says), Twine, Button, Glue Dot, Dimensionals    

Mojo Monday #487

Hard to believe it is March already!!  Definitely looking forward to extra daylight in the evenings a week from today :)   The doves are back and I know the woodpecker will be marking his territory by pecking on our metal exhaust duct on the roof any time soon!

For today's sketch I used a sentiment from Julee's free St. Patrick's Day digi set found here.   Perfect as I have several Irish friends I can send cards too.

Mixed and matched a few green papers, and also pulled in Lucky You and the coordinating Shamrock die set.   A few buttons and twine called it a card.

All the challenge details are over on the Mojo Monday blog and you can also view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples.  Should you wish more details on the Mojo Maker's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Justin Krieger

  Lori Tecler  

Marisa Ritzen (that's me)

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Wanda Cullen

We had an absolutely amazing time in California at the chiropractic convention!  Twenty four powerhouse speakers - twelve a day for two days!  Lots of great information, from chiropractic, to nutrition, to self development.  I was so overloaded after two days, I couldn't remember half the stuff we heard so I am very glad I can go back and review my notes!  Topped the trip off with my very first trip to Disneyland!!!  Sooooo much fun!!   Beyond blessed to work for an amazing man and co-worker.   Will post pictures later this week.

Have a fabulous day and look forward to seeing your creations in the Mojo Gallery!




 
  

What's In It?

Stamps:  Lucky You, Lucky Day Digi Set (Verve Stamps)

Paper:  Thumbelina (Piggy Tails), Recollections, Kraft
Ink:   Old Olive

Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Doily Die (Top Dog Dies), Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders),  Scalloped Border Punch (Stampin' Up),  Buttons, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge - Green

Welcome our first March Inspiration photo and my favorite colour {grin}!!   I adore green as it is such a soothing colour (my kitchen and bedroom are both green), and with St. Patrick's Day on the horizon, it was the perfect fit, especially since I have a few Irish Friends with St. Patrick's Day birthdays!!

I used this MFT sketch and Verve's Lucky You and matching Shamrock die set as they were screaming to be used with green as the theme.  A few pieces of green polka dotted paper, some stitched borders, a touch of kraft and some black accents called it a card.   You can check out what the other DTs were inspired by below.

GREEN

Betty Wright

 Kim Singdahlsen

Leigh Penner

Lisa Henke
Lori Tecler 
Lynn Magnan

Marisa Ritzen

Maureen Plut

Melody Rupple

Monika Davis

Sheri Gilson
Silk Ledlow

Stacey Schafer

Tammy Hershberger

Tara Godfrey 

Have a fabulous week and I look forward to seeing your creations in the gallery!

What's In It?

Stamps:  Lucky You (Verve Stamps), Happy Birthday (Hero Arts)
Paper:  Kaiser Kraft, Simple Pleasures, Kraft, Wild Wasabi
Ink:  Black, Garden Green  
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Stitched Rectangles and Stitched Circles (Lil' Inker), Crimper (Fiskars), Buttons, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Mojo Monday #436

It's Mojo Monday time and this week's sketch brought shamrocks to mind :)   Love the Lucky You set and matching Shamrock Die Set - perfect for making cards for my Irish friends!

I kept things on the simple side, and added some interest with the stitching, dimension with the popped up shamrocks, and some visual interest by layering my banner 3 times.  A few black buttons finished things off. 

All the challenge details are over on the Mojo Monday blog and you can also view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples.  Should you wish more details on the Mojo Maker's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Justin Krieger 

Lori Tecler  

Marisa Ritzen (that's me)

Mary Fish

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Wanda Cullen

Getting ready for another busy week - not sure where February has gone!!  Good news is we are beginning to see signs of Spring :)  My crocuses in the front flower bed are up and blooming and the tulip and daffodils are starting to sprout.  Can't wait to get some colour back in the yard!




 

What Is In It?
Stamps:  Lucky You (Verve Stamps) 
Paper: Kraft, Old Olive, Going Grey (Stampin' Up) 
Ink: Garden Green, Black
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Stitched Rectanglel Dies (Lil' Inker), Buttons Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals 

Viva La Verve March Week 2 Sketch

Diva Maureen has created this wonderful Viva La Verve sketch for us to work with this week.

I took the sketch quite literally and had great fun making a St. Patrick's Day card for a friend who is Irish.  These fabulous Verve Shamrocks from Lucky You always make me smile and love the matching Shamrock Die set, not to mention working with all the glorious greens :)

You don't need to make a St. Patrick's Day card or use Verve Stamps to join in the challenge, but we love to see them if you have them.  You can review all the challenge details on the Viva La Verve blog.

Have a fabulous day and look forward to seeing your creations.

 

What's In It?
Stamps:   Lucky You, Love Notes (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Lucky You (Echo Park), Kraft, Always Artichoke (Stampin' Up), Cream Linen 
Ink:  Black, Creamy Caramel, VersaMark (Stampin' Up)   
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set and Classy Label Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Doily Die (Top Dog),  Crimper (Fiskars), 5/8" White Satin Ribbon, 1/4" Brown Satin Ribbon, Buttons, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge - Lucky You Reminder

We are half way though the Lucky You Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge and for my reminder post, I gleefully reveled in the opportunity to use green again as green is my favorite colour and  just makes me happy :)


Used this fun sketch by Try Stampin' on Tuesday Pulled out Verve's Lucky You and matching Shamrock die set once again. Decided to combine two of the sentiments for double the luck wink, wink and added two shamrocks to frame the sentiment.

You can check out the Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge for additional samples from some DT members to get some additional inspiration.

Thanks for popping by today and have a wonderful weekend!


 

What's In It?
Stamps:   Lucky You (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Thumbelina Collection (Piggy Tales), Kraft, Always Artichoke (Stampin' Up) 
Ink:  Black, Garden Green (Stampin' Up)    
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Scalloped Edge Punch (Stampin' Up), Black Half Pearls, Buttons, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge - Lucky

Time for another Curtain Call Inspiration Challenge and this photo gives tons of options for inspiration!  The LEAD of the Lucky challenge will be invited as a Guest Designer in a future Curtain Call challenge!

I adore the shamrocks in Verve's Lucky You set and couldn't wait to use them when I saw the inspiration photo.  Green also happens to be my favorite colour so I am always happy to make a St. Patrick's Day card LOL!  Added an xoxo embossed panel for some texture my beloved "U" from the I Love You die set for a fun spin a "Lucky You" sentiment.

Check out the rest of the DT's creations for added inspiration.

Lucky Designers

Amy Kolling
Amy Sheffer
Amy Tsuruta
Gayatri Murali
Kim Singdahlsen

Laurie Willison
Lisa Henke
Marisa Ritzen
Maureen Plut
Monika Davis
Sarah Gough
Sheri Gilson
Stacey Schafer
Tenia Nelson
Tracey McNeely

Time to pull out your inner Irish flair and have some shamrock fun!

Challenges:  Just Us Girls 
                        Simon Says 

 




What's In It?
Stamps:   Lucky You (Verve Stamps) 
Paper:  Lucky You (Echo Park), Always Artichoke, Kraft (Stampin' Up), Cream Linen
Ink:   Black, VersaMark  
Accessories:   Shamrock Die Set and I Love You Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), XO Embossing Folder (Provo Craft), Buttons, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Mojo Monday #345

Another fun sketch by Julee for us to play with this week.  I thought through various things to use in the circles and came up with shamrocks.   Lucky You is such a fun set to use and love the matching Shamrock Die Set!  Needless to say, I will be well prepared for next year's St. Patrick's Day!  

I fudged the sketch a bit by separating my circles, but the shamrock cluster just didn't work.  I have free falling shamrocks instead wink, wink {grin}.  Snuck in a few polka dots for good measure and went a bit wild with the black buttons LOL!

All the challenge details are over on the Mojo Monday blog and you can also view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples.  Should you wish more details on the Mojo Maker's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.  

Debbie Carriere

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Marisa Ritzen (you are here)

Mary Fish

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Wanda Cullen

Had a wonderful Mother's Day with the family.  A wonderful sushi dinner and then lots of crafty time during the day - yeah!

Hope you can play along this week as I look forward to seeing everyone's take on the sketch!


 
 
What's In It?
Stamps:   Lucky You (Verve Stamps)
Paper:   Dots and Stripes (Echo Park), Wild Wasabi, Kraft (Stampin' Up)
Ink:  Garden Green, Black (Stampin' Up)
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set and Flag It Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Scalloped Border Punch (Stampin' Up), Buttons, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Mojo Monday #338

Wondering why I am posting a St. Patrick's Day card a week late?  Let me explain.... I had this card all finished and ready to go, being all excited that it was a St. Patrick's Day card to be posted on St. Patrick's Day itself as a happy birthday wish to Diva Maureen.  How perfect is that!  Thankfully, I woke up and smelled the coffee Sunday afternoon when I was preparing my post and was able to make a card for the right sketch!   So here you go, Moe, a week late so your birthday can stretch into birthday week :)

This week's sketch is brought to us by Debbie and was a fun sketch to work with.  Lots of Verve goodness on this card too:  Lucky You and the matching Shamrock die set, my beloved "U" die from the I Heart You die set, and one of the banner dies from the Flag It die set.  Couldn't resist using polka dots as well as this month's Verve Diva Dare is to use polka dots.

All the challenge details are over on the Mojo Monday blog and you can also view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples.  Should you wish more details on the Mojo Maker's cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.  
 

Debbie Carriere

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Marisa Ritzen (you are here)

Mary Fish

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Wanda Cullen

We had a fabulous weekend over on Vancouver Island visiting my hubby's parents and being able to have dinner with our old neighbours.  Not to mention the added bonus of finally meeting Lesley Croghan face to face - meep!  So nice to meet cyber stamping friends in real life and though our visit was briefer due to our dinner plans with friends, we had a wonderful visit :)  Thank you Lesley for a wonderful visit ((hugs))!

Have a great day and enjoy the sketch! 

 
What's In It?
Stamps:   Lucky You (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Bots and Stripes (Echo Park), Real red, Kraft (Stampin' Up) 
Ink:  Black, Garden Green (Stampin' Up), VersaMark   
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set, I Heart You Die Set, Flag It Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Twine, Button, Black Half Pearls, Glue Dot, Dimensionals 

Just Us Girls #231 - Technique Challenge

Sharyn has found a great technique for us to use this week - the Weathered Wood Background.  Here's a video clip showing you how to use it:   http://stamptv.ning.com/video/weathered-wood-background.  It's a super quick and easy technique and the sky is the limit as far as what colour "weathered wood" you want to make.

With St. Patrick's Day coming up, I decided green wood would be perfect.  Gable Green and Green Galore were my two colours of choice, and they created a very bright green background!  Yikes!! I love green but this may be too much for me, not to mention any Irish friend of mine LOL!  Gotta go out on a limb every once in a while even if you crash and burn. 

Used this week's MFT sketch and I love how the black trim brings out the green and makes the black pop. The shamrocks are from Verve's Lucky You set and I used the matching Shamrock die set.

The rest of the  JUGS team, along with our March Guest Designer Calypso Basitan, have some wonderful samples to get your inspiration going, so head on over to the Just Us Girls blog and check out what they've created.  Then put your creative genes to work and add your card/project to the challenge post on the JUGS blog for the chance to be chosen as the Chic of the Week.  Plus if you are chosen as Chic of the Week, you could be invited to be a Guest Designer.  

Another busy weekend for us - can Spring Break come soon enough?!  Hope yours is a little quieter than ours will be.  Enjoy! 

 
 
What's In It?
Stamps:   Lucky You (Verve Stamps)
Paper:  Black and Kraft  
Ink:  Gable Green, Green Galore, Black (Stampin' Up)
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set (A Cut Above by Verve), Stitched Circle Dies (Lil' Inker Designs), Scalloped Circle Nestabilities (Spellbinders), Buttons, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Lucky Shamrock

Welcome to week three of Verve's VLV March sketches.  Diva Maureen is our hostess this week and she has provided a wonderful inspiration picture and sketch for us to work with.  Green is my favorite colour so I'm enjoying bringing on the green :)

In honor of Diva Maureen's birthday on Sunday (St. Patrick's Day), shamrocks took center stage.  I used the background paper in the picture as my launching point and pulled out some Scenic Route paper that had a similar pattern.  Next, I used use Verve's Lucky You set which ever so conveniently has a "lucky you" sentiment, and of course, had to add a shamrock (which I die cut with the matching Shamrock die set).  Some yummy, dark brown ribbon added a pop of colour against the green and I just had to add the arrow to reinforce the point of "how lucky you are".

Would love you to join us over on the SCS Verve Forum.  As an added bonus, if you get all four of this month's sketches completed and uploaded by midnight CST on Thursday, March 28th, you will be entered for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate to the Verve store!  Worth playing for in my books (but then of course I am just a "tad" biased LOL)!

Have a fabulous day and wishing all my Irish followers and any St. Patrick's Day babies out there a fun weekend of celebrating :)

Challenges:
-  Flourishes - Go Green
-  Bellie Challenge - Green



What's In It?
Stamps: Lucky You (Verve) 
Paper:  Scenic Route DP, So Saffron, Early Espresso (Stampin' Up) 
Ink:  Old Olive, Black 
Accessories:  Shamrock Die Set and Arrow Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Scalloped Circle and Circle Nesties (Spellbinders), 5/8" Brown Satin Ribbon, Button, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals

Good Luck Shamrock

Another fun sketch to work with over at the Verve Forum on SCS.  Since I have a few more St. Patrick's Day babies to make cards for, this sketch was a perfect choice.

Found this wonderful piece of green polka dotted paper in my stash and gleefully cut into it for this card.  Oh how I love green {grin} :)   The kraft background was created by using VersaMark and the smallest shamrock from Verve's Lucky You set.  The largest shamrock die and matching stamp became the focal image with a Lucky You sentiment to go with it.   A perfect fit for this week's Timeless Tuesday Challenge   and Bellie Challenge too.

Can't believe the kids are on Spring Break at the end of this week!  Yikes!  The first quarter of the year is almost over and we have two weeks to hang out together.  Love having my kids all to myself :) and hopefully they concur about having me all to themselves LOL! 

Have a fabulous day!



What's In It?
Stamps: Lucky You (Verve) 
Paper: Kraft and Certainly Celery (Stampin' Up), Small Green Mini Dot (Simple Stories) 
Ink: VersaMark, Chocolate Chip 
Accessories: Scalloped Circle and Circle Nesties (Spellbinders), Shamrock Die Set and Pennant Trim Die (A Cut Above by Verve), Corner Rounder, Button, Twine, Glue Dot, Bling, Dimensionals

Mojo Monday #284

This weeks Mojo Monday sketch is a delightful one to work with.  I opted to go with a St. Patrick's Day theme as I have three friends that have a birthday on this day.  Lots of green and polka dots for your viewing pleasure wink, wink.  Decided to add a little tag with March 17th on it, to highlight the exact birthday date :).   Was a perfect card for this week's Simon Says challenge of a Bit 'O Green and There She Goes green challenge.

Sorry about the picture quality.  The sunshine is still messing with my picture quality, so the challenge to overcome is on - I hate losing to inanimate objects LOL!  

You can check out all the challenge details over on the Mojo Monday blog and also get a chance to view all the wonderful Mojo Makers samples!  Should you wish more details on their cards, you can also visit their individual blogs noted below.

Carole Burrage

Debbie Carriere

Julee Tilman (Owner)

Marisa Ritzen (you are here)

Mary Fish

Sarah Biglow

Teresa Kline

Stephanie Kraft

Wanda Cullen

Thanks for sharing a bit of your day with me :) 



What's In It?
Stamps:   Lucky You and Calendar Countdown,  (Verve) 
Paper:  Dots and Stripes (Echo Park), Happy Go Lucky (Pebbles), Kraft
Ink: Black, Garden Green 
Accessories:  Shamrock and Flag It Die Sets (A Cut Above by Verve), Scalloped Border Punch (Stampin' Up), 5/8" Brown Satin Ribbon, Button, Twine, Brown Half Pearls, Dimensioanls

Techno Shamrock

This Techno Stamper Sketch Challenge  from quite a while back intrigued me, so I saved the sketch and am going back to it now.   I needed another St. Patrick's Day card and that circle was screaming shamrock :)

Out came Verve's Lucky You set again - such a fun set!  Stamped and die cut the shamrock and then added the March 17th from a Studio G set I got at Michael's a few years ago.   

We are not into our two week Spring Break and have the dentist appointments done.  Huge wind storm down here yesterday!!  Power went out, our BBQ cover learned how to fly across the yard (thankfully the BBQ didn't tip over I've heard some have), one of our recycle boxes has gone AWOL and our garbage can was seven doors down. Usually have these storms in Nov/Dec so it is out of the ordinary to have them this time of year.  Poor Hydro crews are working overtime.  Next up:  tons of rain for five days - ugh!  Needless to say, I'll be doing indoor activities with the kids!

Have a fabulous day and thanks for sharing a bit of your day with me today :) 

 

What's In It?
Stamps: Lucky You (Verve), Studio G 
Paper: Wild Wasabi, Sonoma Oak Lane (Scenic Route), Kraft, Black 
Ink: Garden Green, Black 
Accessories:  Seeing Spots Embossing Folder, Scalloped Circle and Circle Nesties, Shamrock Dies (Verve), Scalloped Oval Punch (SU), Martha Stewart Border Punch, 5/8" White Satin Ribbon, Black Half Pearls, Button, Twine, Glue Dots, Dimensionals