Damask and Clear Boxes update

First the good news...we received a partial shipment of our Damask stamps and they are available now on the store. We hope to receive the remaining shipment soon - thanks for your patience.

Now for the other news.....our clear boxes were such a hit that we have sold out already. We thought this may be a big seller but did not expect the incredible response for this item (thank you!). We already have an order in the pipeline to get these back in stock and have submitted an additional order to keep up with the demand. These are not in stock items from the manufacturer so it will take several weeks for us to receive them. Thanks for your understanding and we will post here on the newsletter as soon as we receive the shipment.

It Leap Year--And All that Jazz

Listen…to the strains of the trombone coming down St Charles Avenue and into the Quarter…
Bah..Bah..Bah…Bahhhh, Bah..Bah..Bah…Bahhhh
Oh Yeah!….Oh When The Saints…. Go Marching in ….Oh Yeah! and all that jazz ! Now the horn blowing, jazz is all about the SALE that TODAY in the Flourishes webstore. There are some really great deals, some on limited supply items...when it's gone....well it's gone so follow this jazzy group on over and fill your basket. Remember the Queen said this week that ALL shipping is FREE on ALL retail orders of $45.00 and more. Now that something to jive about!

OH AND THE CARD YOU ASK.....
The Challenge WT155 on SCS is close to home…It’s in the notes…being a real southern Louisiana lady…not far from NOLA ….this was something I just HAD TO DO…and so I did, using the Flourishes Mardi Gras Stamp with the image of the silhouette of a brass band so at home in the Crescent City. Of course the sentiment “Let The Good Times Roll” is a city favorite.
I used the Infuse BG paper (which is on sale for the Leap Year tomorrow on the Flourishes webstore–and other things too). I love the combination of SU River Rock, Chocolate Brown, and Hot Pink…and yes it sings! UH hummmm Les le bonne temps roulez!
No special technique…just old simple stamping and down home fun…I made this card in 10 minutes… Oh Yeah! Now let’s see your notes!

Check Out the Leap Year Sale HERE.

jan marie

Storage options for clear stamps

Are you constantly on the lookout for storage options for your clear and unmounted rubber stamps? Here at the Flourishes studio we’ve tried a range of products - some better than others. First we tried CD cases. These were easily available but had pitfalls from the start. The cases are flimsy and tend to break after prolonged opening and closing, however they are inexpensive so you can easily replace them. The bigger issue was size. We realized early on that larger stamps and stamp sets just won’t fit, or would be very crowded.
Next we tried soft plastic boxes. This solved the size issue, but since the material was soft, it did not hold up well when you stacked them on top of each other.

Then we found these clear hinged boxes. WOW – what a difference!! We love these and think this is great storage solution!! Here is what we love about them:

Material: The boxes are clear rigid plastic that hold up well. They are hinged so they open up and lay flat.

Size: At 4 x 6 these hold our clear stamp sets perfectly. Flourishes stamps (and some of the other clear sets that are popular) come in 4 x 6 and 8 x 6 sizes. Two 4 x 6 sets fit in these – one on each side.

Here is a photo of two 4 x 6 Christmas sets in one box.

Here is a photo of an 8 x 6 set – Harlequin and Accessories - that fit in one box. For the larger 8 x 6 sets, just sort out your pieces and split half on one side and half on the other side. The depth of these boxes total ½” with ¼” on each side – a perfect depth for stamps! We used a label maker to attach labels to the boxes so that they can be found quickly. Because of their size, Flourishes background stamps Damask and Damask Reverse will not fit in these boxes.

Flourishes is offering these boxes at six for $12 – enough to store 12 sets sized 4 x 6 or 6 sets sized 8 x 6. Please visit the Flourishes store and place your order today!

Damask temporarily sold out!!

Due to the incredibly high demand for our Damask stamp, we have sold out!! They are on order and we expect a shipment soon. Once we receive our shipment we will post here on our newsletter letting you know.

Thank you to all our wonderful customers for making this stamp so popular. We love seeing the beautiful cards everyone has made.

FEBRUARY 29 SALE!!!

This is leap year and we have one extra day - so why not shop??? To celebrate this extra day, Flourishes is having a one day sale on February 29. We've selected a number of items and are offering them to you at 25% off!! Mark your calendars and stop in on the 29th! Here is the list:

Birthday Bash and New Shipping Policy

The celebration is happening all day today over at the Flourishes forum on SCS – it’s Jan’s birthday and she is giving away prizes all day. See the details here. Join in the fun and win some great prize!

BUT BEFORE YOU HEAD ON OVER TO SCS….

We want to tell you of a change in our shipping policy – one that we know our customers will appreciate.

Flourishes is now offering free shipping for orders over $45. Yes, free shipping – and not just for our USA customers but for ALL customers! For orders $45 or less there is a flat rate – see below. Depending on the size and weight of your order we will ship via USPS first class mail or UPS.

New Shipping Rates
USA Up to $45 $6.00
USA Over $45 FREE
International Up to $45 $8.00
International Over $45 FREE

Orders outside of the USA and Canada - please see the Flourishes shipping policies for special instructions.

Jan Marie's Birthday Celebration

That’s right it’s Jan Marie Birthday on Monday and she’s throwing a party and giving away presents!

You may want to share the news on your blogs. She will be giving away:
1 Xyron 900

1 Nestabilities-Standard Classic Circles

1 Nestabilities-Classic Scallop Circles-LG

A pair of Fiskar scissors engraved with Flourishes,LLC

Various Flourishes stamp setsand lot of smaller gifts throughout the 24 hour period.
To win, upload any card or projects made using Flourishes,llc stamp sets to SCS gallery using the keywords: fllcjanmariesbirthday
If you don’t have one (why not? Then get one) or you can post to your blog and post the link here
Uploading can start an midnight Feb 24.
We’ll do a random drawing throughout the day and announce winners….big prize winners on Tuesday. Help her to celebrate another great year of life! Come on join the fun and have a chance a some great prizes.

Scallop Heart Nestabilities are in!

2-24-08 Edit: THIS WONDERFUL PRODUCT IS SOLD OUT! WE HAVE MORE ON THE WAY AND WILL POST ON THE NEWSLETTER WHEN THEY ARRIVE!!

Happy Valentine's Day!! Flourishes has received its shipment of the Scallop Heart Nestabilities!! These coordinate with the regular Heart Nestabilities (which are currently out of stock - we are waiting for our shipment and will post here when they arrive), as well as with our beautiful Lace Heart Stamp set.

Take a look at this lovely card by Jan Marie Caruso. She uses the Lace Heart Stamp Set, and both the regular and scallop Heart Nestabilities to create this beautiful wedding card. Both the nestabilities and the Lace Heart stamp set can be used for many occasions - not just for Valentine's Day. Wedding, anniversaries, special birthdays, or just to say "I love you".

Sharon Johnson Blog Candy!!

Have you seen Sharon Johnson's blog, No Time To Stamp? She is giving away a wonderful blog candy - a set of stunningly beautiful boxes that she made!! Sharon is such a gifted designer and her creations are always jaw dropping gorgeous.

Please visit her blog for a chance at these great gifts!

Beautiful Damask

Here are some gorgeous cards made by a few of the fabulous Flourishes Designers using the new Damask and Many Sentiments Set.

Dee Jackson created this beauty - I love how she used the large flower from the Fantasy Floral Garden set as a focal point. The Damask background is just stunning and the sentiment from the Many Sentiments set is perfect.

Sharon Johnson's drop dead gorgeous card uses the Damask and Many Sentiments set. That little decorative element at the top is included in Many Sentiments.

Leslie Miller's elegant card shows how beautiful the mustard color can be. I love how she used both Damask and Damask-Reverse, and the ribbon is beautiful. "Love" is from the Lace Heart set.

Join us later in the week for more samples of these new sets!

New Releases!

It sounds like Jan Marie and Sharon are having a fabulous time at CHA! They're checking out all sorts of products and I am sure they will have some wonderful things for us to carry in the store. But until they return I want to announce tomorrows new releases.

We have two background stamps Damask and Damask-REVERSE, which is just a "negative" view of the Damask. These stamps measure 5.5 x 4.25. In addition to these is a set called "Many Sentiments" which contains some of the most often used sentiments for card makers - all in beautiful fonts. This set also has two decorative elements to coordinate with the phrases. This trio contains elements of all these sets.

First, the card uses the Damask - REVERSE in rose red for the background. The ovals were cut using Nestabilities and "Many Thanks", in rose red, is from the Many Sentiments set. The white satin ribbon is also available at Flourishes and is just perfect for this card.

Next is this cute little tin I purchased at Wal-Mart in their wedding section. It's filled with m & m's in the valentine colors (the hardest part was not eating the m&m's before I finished this project!) The circles are cut using the Petite Circle Nestabilities, and "Best Wishes" is from the Many Sentiments set. Both the rose scalloped circle and the band around the tin are stamped with the Damask background.

Finally, this little vellum box is filled with more m&m's!! I made the box with a template downloaded from Mirkwood designs. I took a strip of rose red and white and stamped the Damask on both and wrapped it around the box. Then I tied a rose colored sheer ribbon (JoAnn's) around that. I topped it with a tag made from Petite Circle Nestabilities and stamped "So Very Thoughtful" in rose. This sentiment is also from the Many Sentiments set.

Here is what the tags and little band look like before I adhered them.

Please stop by the store tomorrow and take a closer look at these sets.

Also - don't forget that the Flourishes Cake Decorating contest continues all this month - submit your card using the Cake Decorating Stamp set and have a chance to win prizes!!

Ready to hit the floor

Jan Marie and Sharon are ready to hit the floor running today. Our bags are packed with the essensials, ready to spend a full day finding new things for Flourishes as well as meeting face to face with our current vendors.
We have already found new products, from classes we attended on Saturday, that interest us. We are checking them out today and will be on the look out for many more items.
The raseberry dots are our Flourishes logo luggage tags and oh they look so nice. The black tags are from our class with Dee Guenig. We also attended a Hero Arts class. It was a fun filled day.
We close out the day attending SCS cupcake reception. It was so much fun for meet all the people that we know so well. It is totally amazing how many of us recongized each other!!!! Daven the owner of SCS was there as well as all the behind the scenes folks that keep SCS up and running and the home we love.

We have laid out the maps of the floor, in hopes that we can do all we want to today. We have made list of MUST SEE's and WANTA SEE's...and I am sure we will get distracted by some much great stuff that we will wonder why we made the plan at all.

So we are off....we are out of the door with comfy shoes and our bags ready.

Till Later...

Jan Marie & Sharon

We're Off to CHA!

Well if I were a blonde this would be me! Yes -sir- ree, today I am off to the largest craft and hobby trade show in the world in Anaheim, California.
I will be there to take it all in and certainly be on the lookout for the latest news and best of everything for papercrafters. Keep an eye out as I will post to the Flourishes,llc member company forum on Splitcoastampers. I am looking forward to meeting many of the folks I deal with via the phone and email.
I will definately meet with the Spellbinders folks and see the NEW electronic cutter that they will release in May.
I will share with you some of our neat finds that you will be able to purchase from our Flourishes . Keep your eyes looking here over the next few days.
There will certainly be BIG and EXCITING news to share when I get back.
Sharon Johnson (notimetostamp) is having a BAKE OFF contest as part of our ongoing Cake Decorating Contest. So show us your entries by adding it to the thread on the SCS Flourishes Forum...and you will definitely be in the running for some great gifts...winners every week!
The Flourishes Design Team is very busy starting the sneak peaks for the new Flourishes release next week. Dee Jackson (http://www.stampincuziluv2.blogspot.com/) has a wonderful tutorial and magnificent projects for her sneak peeks.
Thanks for stopping by the Atelier today.
Rubber Hugs,
jan marie

Cake Decorating Spotlight - Part 2

In yesterdays post we showed you several different ways to decorate a cake. Today, we’ll concentrate on the cake slice.

I stamped the slice in two different colors, blue and saffron.
( A personal note. I’ve taken the cake slice stamp and cut it apart. Yes, that’s right – cut it apart. I just found it easier to use, since I usually use two different colors on the slice, one for the frosting and one for the cake. VERY CAREFULLY, I took my xacto knife, a good light and a magnifier and cut it apart. A word of caution – you only get one shot at this so make sure this is really what you want to do!! Once you cut it there is no turning back. )

Now, here is a way to use more of those little bits and pieces to decorate a cake slice.

To make a little flower, I stamped the 3-dot stamp in a darker blue, then used the flame from the candle stamp for a leaf (stamped in green) and finally used a signo pen to add the white center.

I did the same using the small flower stamp.

For a different look, I took the “wispy” stamp in rose, then turned the stamp around and stamped it again to make a flower, and added the leaves. No signo pen was needed for the center.

Once the flowers were stamped on the slice, I added a little detail – a signo pen was used just below the top flowers for a decorative accent, then a blue marker was used to make little “dots” below that.

Now take a look at a great card Jan Marie made using the cake slice. (click on the photo for a larger view of the details)

Now - When is a Cake Stamp NOT a Cake stamp? Here are some fabulous creations by the Flourishes Design team to show you what you can do with this set. These creative ladies really were thinking outside the box with these cards!!

Cards shown are from Sharon Johnson, Alex Eaton, Paula Bloom and Julia Stainton.

Cake Decorating Spotlight - Part 1

Over the next two days we will spotlight the Cake Decorating 101 Stamp set and show you some of the fun things we’ve done with this set! The set contains images of cakes, a cake slice, cake plates, pedestals, sentiments and many decorating pieces for a total of 34 stamps!

First, the basics – here are just some examples of how we put together a basic cake:

Stamp the outline cake

Then, mask the cake and stamp the plate and the pedestal

Add a little decorative detail – don’t you just love the little “bling” hanging from the cake plate?

Apply color!!

Here are some great examples from Leslie Miller Tracy Durcan, and Sharon Johnson – a little coloring, decorative paper and ribbon and you have a fabulous card!

Or try this – stamp the outline cake image and make a reverse mask. Then use a decorative stamp to create a design within the cake outline - the reverse mask protects the area around the cake. For this I used SU’s filigree background stamp. Here is a card I did using the reverse mask technique and Basic Grey paper.

Suppose you wanted the cake to look like a slice has been removed? Here’s how:

Stamp out outline cake image.

Then, take the “slice out” stamp (I don’t know what else to call this stamp, so I just call it the ‘slice out”) and place it towards the left hand side of the cake. Because these are clear stamps, you can line it up where you want it very easily.

There it is. A cake with a slice cut out!

Here are some great examples of cakes with the slice cut out from Jan Marie Caruso, Alex Eaton and Tracy Durcan.

WANT MORE?????

Check back tomorrow for Part 2 of the Cake Decorating Spotlight. We will show you how to decorate a cake slice, and show some fabulous examples of “when a cake set is not a cake set” .


In the meantime, be sure to get in on the month long Cake Decorating contest by providing us a link to your cards make with the Cake Decorating Set - see the details from our January 31th post!