Verve Stamps 2014 Anni-Verve-sary Release Retrospective

Welcome to Verve's August Release Retrospective Blog Hop! The Verve Divas are hopping today and serving up some more inspiration using the August release stamps & dies! Besides a peek at some really cool cards, there are also a couple of prizes up for grabs!

You have just come from Laurie's blog today and you are in the right spot!

I'm using the Cupcakes Stamp Set today that I adore. It has all these fun little embellishments for your cupcake. Now that is the easiest way I know to decorate a cupcake for sure.

I started out with the cute little cupcake and mastered the cutting of a wee strawberry with it's wee little stem after stamping in some rich antique inks from Clearsnap. Then I went to work out the rest using this week's Mojo sketch and I twisted and turned it around that it's hardly recognizable as the sketch, but it did help me get started so here's the sketch and the hop to link up your creations if you would like.

The background embossing is done with a Sissix Bubbles folder on white cardstock and then I used a sponge and the Bon Voyage ink to help it pop. A few straight and zig-zag stitches on both sides of the panel to create a nice border. The ochre panel is scored at 1/2-inch increments on a 90 degree angle to create that yummy sugar cone look that is stamped over a masked cupcake image. All those little embellishments are popped up on a white cardstock panel with a sentiment from the same Cupcakes Set.

Thank you so much for stopping by today! If you have just stumbled upon our blog hop today you can start at the very beginning with the hop list below. There are chances to win Verve prizes so read on down towards the bottom of today's post.

Okay your next stop is Christyne. Have fun!

1. Julee	10. Janelle
2. Teresa	11. Christyne
3. Amber	12. Jen
4. Charmaine	13. Andrea
5. Marisa	14. Betty
6. Monika {Guest}	15. Karen
7. Stacey	16. Sarah
8. Maureen	17. Amy
9. Laurie

Want to win some shiny new Verve? We're giving away a $40 gift voucher to one lucky commenter along the hop, so be sure to leave a shout out in the comments as you hop about.

Want another chance to win? Now it's your turn! We'd LOVE to see what you've done with the August release. Link up your cards using at least one product from our August release and you'll be entered in a drawing to win our entire next release! All the details and the linkup widget are on the Verve Blog today. The deadline is October 3, so there's still plenty of time to get the August release if you haven't already.

Details:
Stamps: Cupcakes (Verve Stamps)
Paper: Kraft (Hobby Lobby), White (Mohawk), Ochre scrap
Ink: Bon Voyage, Triumphant Red, Antique Moss, Dark Cashmere, Venetian Lace (Decades Graphics 45, Clearsnap)
Accessories: Bubbles embossing folder (Sissix), Scoring Board (Martha Stewart), sewing machine, foam square adhesives (Tombow)