Tell me your secrets and ask me your questions...oh, let's go back to the start...

Hey, y'all, Happy Friday!! How are ya? It's my day on the Verve Blog to give you a little insight into what goes on in my stamp room, so I thought I'd share it here as well. When Jen announced the theme for this Project Parade, like the other Divas, I was a little scared! I also kept thinking of the Wizard of Oz..."Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain!" So, today, you'll get a little peek behind my curtain! *wink*

For me, I find inspiration from many different places. I love sketches, as they are a starting point for my card and sometimes I just need a guide, ya know? But I also love looking at billboard layouts, signs, magazine ads, clothing tags, and other random items in the world around us for inspiration. I'm also a very last-minute stamper...often I'll stamp when the spirit moves me and get tons done. Other times? Notsomuch. When inspiration strikes, I have to make sure I write it down, or it's sure to get lost in my noggin! Ok, so today, I was at Sonic. Waiting FOREVER in line for my drink, and turned my head to the left. Saw this:

Hmmmmm....that would make an interesting card! So I pull out my phone and snap a pic (I'm sure the Sonic employees thought I was totally insane), just so I could show y'all. I liked the circle and how the panel across the center extended beyond the circle. So I decided to replicate it. First, I'll show you, then I'll tell ya why I did what I did, k?

Here's my card:
Once I had my layout set, I decide what stamps would best fit the elements I'm working with. I knew I wanted a sentiment across the center panel, so I found this one from Hundred Hearts that fit the bill. I didn't want something so narrow that it was just one line, but it needed to be rectangular so it took up most of the length of the panel. Perfect! I also knew that I'd like a smaller stamp in the background, so I chose the small leaf image from Forever in Our Hearts. I chose a smaller image because I knew a lot of the circle was going to be covered up by the center panel, and I wanted as many leaves as possible to be seen.

So my stamps were chosen...on to colors! I am a bit more random and free-spirited when it comes to choosing a color combo, it's almost scary. I have a giant pile of scraps on my desk, to the right of my work space, and I literally pile scraps there until they fall...and then I file them away. Nine times out of ten, my color combo gets picked because there are colors lying in that pile together, and I like how they look. Silly, I know! I warned you! Since I was making a "Just Because/Friend" card, I could either go fun and funky with my colors, or soft and sweet. I almost always choose fun and funky (unless soft and sweet are on top of the pile...*wink*). Tonight I happened to pick up Kraft, Old Olive, and Prism Intense Pink.

Here's a close-up of the main image panel:
Ok, on to the details! How do I decide which ones to use? I definitely have my favorites...here's a list:

• Buttons
• Sewing machine stitching
• Scallops
• Edge Punches
• Nestabilities & other die cuts
• Stickles or Glitter
• Distressing
• Dimensionals
• Paper piercing

Sometimes you'll see every last thing on that list on one card. But they didn't all fit on this one. One of my other detail secrets is that I take bits and pieces from my favorite artists. For example, Julee's sponging, Anna's distressing & faux stitching, and Amy's use of embellishments. This time around, I took my bits & pieces from the Dare to Get Dirty challenges on Splitcoast...to use something clear (acetate) and to create your own patterned paper. Perfect! One thing you'll also find me doing almost every time is matting images and layers in a dark color, either black or brown in most cases. I don't know why, but it's a pretty compulsive thing. I just have to do it.

After I stamped on the acetate, I adhered it to the Kraft base/black mat. It seemed to disappear a little, so I did a little piercing around the edges...there! That did the trick. Now it stands out more. Once the sentiment was stamped on my white panel, I realized there wasn't much room for my colors. YIKES! I cut a couple of little tiny rectangles to adhere on the right side. I intended to sew along the edges, but they were so tiny and I can't sew that straight! Heehee. So I settled for distressing the edges of the white layer instead. Then I matted it with black with a scalloped edge. Before I mounted the whole thing onto my 5" card base with dimensionals, I decided to center the card a little with a brad in each corner. I contemplated glitter, but the only place for it was the pink & olive panels, and they were standing out as it was. No glitter needed this time...shock!

Ok, so if you've read all this...hooray for you! I'm sorry...apparently I have lots to say about this subject. If you have any more questions, feel free to let me know, ok?

Now, on to the fun stuff...playing along with us! Would you like to? All you have to do is make a project or card that shows us YOUR Divine Details. Verve Stamps are not required, but if you've got 'em why not use 'em? Then link to your creation to Mr. Linky in this post before 8PM Mountain on Saturday, August 1st. Two lucky participants will win a stamp set of their choice from the Verve Store. AND, we've hidden another $25 gift certificate somewhere along the parade for a random commenter. So if you like what you see, be sure and give a little shout out in the comments of each post on the VERVE BLOG!

Ok, that's it for me right now...but never fear! I'll be back later today with my Bellariffic Friday card. MWAH!