A Gift of Geraniums

I received a surprise gift for Christmas from one of my StampNation girlfriends. I had mentioned in one of my forum posts there that I generally don't exchange Christmas presents so wasn't expecting anything this year. Well, my friend is a firm believer that everybody should have a present to open on Christmas, and so she surprised me with a prezzie! It arrived a little less than a week before Christmas, and I was so intrigued with the packaged gift that I had to put it on the other side of my room from my desk so that I wouldn't peek. Mercifully she gave me permission a couple days later to open it early, but I managed to be good until Christmas Eve day. I had a sneaking suspicion it was a stamp set, but wasn't completely sure... and I certainly didn't know what kind of stamps it might be.

When I opened the package, my jaw dropped. Not only was it a stamp set, but it was a very nice stamp set from Power Poppy! Lookie:

I typically am not a florals kind of gal, but this set just spoke to me of possibilities with its two flower stamps and seven sentiments. I recently bought some Blendabilities markers from Stampin' Up! and decided these images would be the perfect ones to break the markers in with. 

My first attempt was a hot mess:

but I started getting a little better with my second and third tries.

I know I still need lots more practice, but I figured these two images were card-worthy-ish and made these two cards with them:

That fabulous background stamp? Something Lacy from the Stampin' Up! Occasions 2015 catalog. It's stamped in Old Olive on an Old Olive card base. The baker's twine is gold and white. The top flowers are Real Red, and the bottom are Wisteria Wonder.

As you might guess, one of these cards is going to my friend. :)

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So there you have it. To my amazement, I am finally caught up with posting all the cards I have made and photographed. Definitely time for me to get busy! Now that the holidays are over, I'm hoping to get more unpacking done, but you can be sure I'll be making time for stamping!

Smiles,

Joyce Spear a.k.a. StamperJoyce