7 Days Without You

     I decided it was time to start making cards for Operation Write Home again since I haven't done any for a while.  If you're not familiar with OWH, check out the badge on my side bar.  Just click on it and you'll go right to their website.

     This card uses an image from Sassy Cheryl's.  In this post, I'll also have to give you an update on the "Battle for the Window Seat" between Honey and my newest fur baby, Molly, since they were working out terms while I was making this card.  Of course, all the negotiations (including objections) had to take place with me as the arbitrator at the same time I'm trying to create something wonderful  :-D  Scroll down one post to get the full scoop on Molly, how she came to live with me, and how the window seat battle started.

I used the sketch from Tuesday Throwdown this week.

(Shout out to my former teamies!)

     The image is colored with my Prism watercolor pencils, then cut with a die from QuicKutz.  The "7" is from an old page of pre-cut pop-outs which came with a stack of scrapbooking paper.  I never use those pop-out things so these have been kicking around as much as 5 or 6 years!  But my friend, Vicki, from "Stamp Smiles" is doing a Flashback Friday challenge each week where she asks that we use something from our stash that's more than a year old and this week she wanted to see letters or numbers.  Since a number worked better for my sentiment, I dug out the '7.'  

     The card base is a pre-cut card from DCWV and I used one of their flowery "Linen Closet" prints.  All I added for embellishment were the 3 tiny pearls.  I wanted this card as flat as possible since it will have to be mailed.

     Challenges:
Baffies Kreativladen
Crafty Gals Corner  
Cuttlebug Mania
Inky Chicks
Jo's Scrap Shack
Moving Along with the Times
Paper Minutes
Scrap & Craft
Sister Act
Top Tip Tuesday

     OK, now the update on Honey and Molly and who gets to peek out which window.  I made another 'window seat' a bit higher than the previous one (which Molly had seen fit to claim) and suggested to Honey that perhaps it would work even better than the original one since it was a bit higher (hinting that it gave additional status to the user.)  Honey looked very skeptical but did deign investigate it.

     Molly, aware that I was being very attentive to Honey for several minutes without a single glance in her direction, began purring and mewing, hoping to attract my attention away from Honey.  Here's what I mean...

     Notice that's the original window seat and Molly does look simply smashing on purple!  Who needs a red carpet when you're that cute?

     Glancing back to Honey, here's what I found...

     However, 15 minutes after these photos were taken I discovered that the two fur babies had exchanged places and were just as happy with either spot.  Currently they are each taking a long feline nap in the respective window seats.  Who knew it could be that simple -- just make an additional fur baby bed.  Do they have their human trained or what?  I think I'll put these two photos on the side bar just so that I have continuing proof that issue resolution between felines is possible when one puts one's mind to it.  :-D

     BTW, Molly is a real cuddle cat -- she loves to be petted, held, stroked, or carried around.  Her purring motor runs constantly and she sleeps on the bed as close to me as she can get.  She seems to be truly happy here in her new home and I love having her here.  :-D  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Newest Fur Baby

     I cheerfully admit that this card was inspired by a new fur baby who has come to live at my house.  I'll have some photos of her later in the post and the story of how she came to adopt me.  In the meantime, this card is done for the challenge at Lacy Sunshine, where the theme is "Sparkly and New."  This is one of Heather's sweet animal images, just too cute for words and perfect for anyone celebrating a new fluffy member of the family.

     I wanted a completely CAS card so I printed the image right onto the card front and added the sentiment above it.  I did no coloring at all because I like the black and white of the drawn image.  I did brush some glue onto the bow she's wearing and the flower centers, then added loose yellow glitter.  I brushed glue onto the flower petals and added clear glitter.  Finally, I added some glue to the shadowed portions of the bow and added copper glitter.  What a great way to have lots of sparkle and bling but still have a very CAS card.  :-D

     Challenges:
Aud Sentiments
Card Mania
City Crafter
Corrosive Challenge
Crafter's Cafe
Crafting from the Heart
Going Grey with Scrap-Creations
Inspiration Destination
Little Miss Muffet
Outlawz Greetings
Paper Girls
Quirky Crafts
Scrap & Craft
Sparkle N Sprinkle
Top Tip Tuesday

      OK, now for a peek at my new fur baby, whose name is Molly B Katniss, but she prefers to be called just Molly.  She's about 8 months old and had to find a new home when her previous owners moved.  Through one source or another (translate that to read 'my daughter'), Molly and her humans became aware that I was a sucker for being adopted and that there was already a good start on a 'pride' if she could just manage to be cute and sweet and lovable so that the other two (Cleo and Honey) felines would accept her.

     It took two nights and a full day before Cleo and Honey were willing to fully accept that there was an unfamiliar feline sharing the living space, but here's Molly, checking out the very spot where Honey likes to sit and stare out the craft room window.

     Once she decided that the nesting site was the proper shade of purple and soft enough to suit her delicate paws...

     ...she checked me out (I was at the craft desk about 2 feet away) to see if I was going to give her any verbal grief about being up there.

     Receiving no objections from me, she settled in, perhaps hoping for a quick bath and a long snooze.  Unfortunately, before either of those could happen, Honey voiced an opinion and they had a long conversation about who gets to sit in the window and when.  Although considerably smaller in size, Molly is not to be intimidated and she stood (sat?) her ground.  I don't think the issue has been completely resolved but for the time being that's where she likes to be whenever I'm in the craft room.  More to come, I'm sure.

     Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Cupid Bear

     Another challenge starts today at QKR Stampede and we want to see you do something that relates to "Cupid," that mythical guy with the bow and arrows who makes people fall in love.  :-D  I used a fun image called "Cupid Bear" - Digi 10602 and a sentiment called "Hooked on Love" - Digi 14612.

     With the New Year behind us, it's time to think about "New Love" but I'm not sure that means shooting yourself in the foot.  lol

     The image is colored with ProMarkers and I added metallic paint to the wings and stars which really shines.  The inlaid decorative corners are die cut using one of my new die sets from Scrappy Land.  I fussy cut the sentiment into a vague heart shape and tied the bow with some pink ribbon.  For bling, I added the sequin to the bow and some gold sparkle ink to the bow and the arrows, plus a tiny bit of glitter to the star on the sentiment.

     This card is an interesting combination of new (the image, the dies, and the sequins) and old or hoarded items (markers, CS, ribbon, & paint.)  New Year's mean it's time to get rid of stashed and hoarded items by using them up.  :-D

     Challenges:
613 Avenue Create
Come and Get It
Craft Hoarders Anonymous
Crafty Boots
Get Creative
Glitter n Sparkle
My Craft Creations
Not Just Cards
One Stitch at a Time
Passion for ProMarkers
Perfectly Rustics
Robyn's Fetish
Scribble and Scrap
Sweet 7

     The week is over, I'm finally back online with a new U-Verse Internet connector and I'm going to get caught up on everything I missed, including visiting favorite blogs and getting a post done which should have gone live last Tuesday.  Look for it later today.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Flaky Friends

     What with the problems I've had getting an internet connection all week long and also not having pre-scheduled my post for the Through the Craft Room Door challenge which started last Tuesday, this post wasn't ready and I couldn't get online to get it ready.  So sorry.  Better late than never, I guess.  :-D

     Our sponsor this week is Dr. Digi and they supplied digis to the DT members this week.  The one I used is called "Lonely This Christmas" but I used it as a simple winter card instead.

     This card will be published in the TTCRD magazine for March/April and all the details about how it was made and what I used will be in there.  If you subscribe to the magazine, you can read all about it in the next issue.

     I will tell you that I used a sketch from Tuesday Morning Sketches, turned a quarter turn.

     Challenges:
Card Mania
Crafter's Cafe
Crafting by Designs
Crafty Creations
Little Red Wagon
Mod Squad
Paper Shelter
Paper Sweeties
Party Time Tuesday
Scrapy Land (Spellbinders dies)
Seemacrafts
Top Tip Tuesday

     Again, my apologies for this being late but there's still time to play in the challenge before it ends on Monday.  :-D  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

New Love for the Young

     (Edited to add:  Sorry this is late today but I've been denied internet access by my provider -- cable box problems -- for several days now and I didn't have this post pre-scheduled.)

     Once again, Valentine's Day looms just over the horizon and in honor of that, I've used a really fun image from Bugaboo Stamps (our sponsor) to make a card for the new challenge at The Outlawz Twisted Thursday.  As always, our theme is "Anything Goes" but we have an optional twist of "Use Brads or Eyelets" on your card.  I chose brads and I'll give you a tip on getting brad colors you need but might not have in your collection.  First, the card:

     The image (new to me) is colored in stripes with red ProMarkers (I wanted a black, white, and red monochromatic combo for this one), corner punched, matted and corner punched again.  The two dp are from one of my new stacks by Authentique.  I have been so good for months and months, using up my stash and my scraps of dp and not buying any papers at all but when I saw this particular stack, I simply had to have it!  What's the point of using up what you already have if you don't get to buy something new to replace it?

     I added stitching to the black striped dp and used a red heart brad in the corner.  The ribbon is from Really Reasonable Ribbon and the scallops are die cuts using one of my new dies (Cheery Lynn) and yes, I am in love with that new die in case you think you've seen it once or twice already.  :-D  Finally, I finished off this celebration of 'New Love' by adding three different sizes of round brads.

     Now, the tip I promised you -- I wanted to match the color of the heart brad as closely as possible but when I looked, I had no red brads anywhere!  I did have some red embossing powder that was really close in color so I embossed the brads.  How, you ask?  I held each brad with very long tweezers (which also have a hard rubber covering on the handle), heated the brad head with my heat gun, then quickly dipped it into the EP, removing it immediately.  The EP melts right onto the brad because the brad is hot.  On a couple of them, I had to do two coats of EP but amazingly, the color was an exact match to the heart brad.  I was so happy.  Never again will I have to worry about having brads in the color I want because I have EP in every color of the rainbow.  :-D

     Challenges:
A Gem of a Challenge
Allsorts
Catch the Bug (ribbon/scallops/stitching)
Crafting Cafe
Crafting Musketeers
Crafty Calendar
Design Team Showcase
My Time to Craft
Nataliie and Amy's
One Stitch at a Time
Paper Creator's Crafts
Send a Smile 4 Kids
Sweet Stampin'
That Craft Place

     I hope your week is going well and that we'll see you playing in the Twisted Thursday challenge at The Outlawz this week.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie  

Milk Bath Spa

     It's time for another weekly release at Doodle Pantry and we have a challenge running for January with a silly theme, celebrating National Milk Day or something similar.  We want to see you use something dairy related on your projects -- milk, cheese, cows, etc.  I used one of the new release sets called "Bath Ants" and I did it so that they are all celebrating at the local Milk Bath Spa.  Hope this brings a grin to your face.  :-D

     That's one of the pre-colored images but I added white to the 'bath water' so that it would look more like milk.  The scallops were cut with one of my brand-spanking-new die sets by Cheery Lynn (Scrapy Land.)  The flowers were punched with two new hand punches and I added some beads from my stash to three of them and a rhinestone to the fourth.  The sentiment is computer printed and hand cut.

     Challenges:

Art Impressions

Country View Crafts

Crafts Galore Encore

Die Cut Divas

Ladybug Crafts

Lia Stampz

Mema's

My Artistic Adventures

Scrapy Land

Seemacrafts

Sparkles Forum

Sister Act

Sisters of Craft

Vandicrafts

     That's it for today.  Hope we see you at the Doodle Pantry challenge this month.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Celebrate New Snow with a Smile

     A really quick post which I'll schedule to go live on Monday.  For the last two or three days, I've had real problems connecting to the internet and staying on once I do connect.  I want to share this fun and CAS card using a sweet image from Rick St. Dennis which makes a new layer of snow seem like something to be celebrated.  :-D

I used the sketch from CAS - Colours and Sketches.

     I colored the image in reds and pinks with ProMarkers and chalked the edges after die cutting it.  I cut the "arrow" piece, layered it to the back of the image and put that whole thing on the textured card front.   The sentiment was cut with one of my new dies from Creative Dies by Penny Black.  Voila' - done in no time at all.

     Challenges:
A Creative Need
Artbymiran
Brown Sugar
Chalk 'n Stock
Chocolate, Coffee & Cards
DL.ART
Fairy Tale
In the Pink
Pattie's Creations
Wags 'n Whiskers

     Well, I've been punted off line 5 times while typing up this post!  Grrrr.  I'm going to have to rethink my internet provider and maybe make a change.  Hopefully, I'll see you again for my DT posts.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie 

No Cold Shoulders

     Friday morning and another new challenge at QKR Stampede.  Our theme this week is "Baby, It's cold outside" which, in many parts of the US and Canada at least, is a totally true statement!   I used this darling snowman digi (Digi 23701 "Snowman Scene") and the sentiment "Cold Shoulder" Digi 10801.

My sketch came from the Wednesday Sketch Challenge at The Outlawz.

     The image is colored with ProMarkers and I added bits of glitter to the overall scene for snowflakes and to the snowman for a bit of sparkle.  I know that pale blues are the traditional colors for snowy winter cards, but I wanted to see if I could make green look cold and icy.  What do you think?  Both the image and the sentiment are hand cut.

     I heat embossed the card front with white EP from Sparkle n Sprinkle before layering on the image piece.  I added green sequins.  The sheer ribbon has been hiding in my stash and I added a scrap of narrow, dark-green ribbon before I tied the bow.

     Challenges:
613 Avenue Create
Card Mania
Come and Get It
Crafting by Designs
Crafting from the Heart
Eureka Stamps
Friends of Speedy TV
Glitter n Sparkle
Great Impressions
Paper Minutes
Papertake Weekly
Party Time Tuesday
Robyn's Fetish
Stamp and Create

      That's it for me today.  I hope your weekend means staying inside where it's warm and doing some fun and enriching crafting, just to recharge your soul.  :-D  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Twisted Thursday Gate Fold with Bugaboo

     It's Thursday and that means a new challenge at The Outlawz Twisted Thursday.  Remember, our theme is always "Anything Goes" but there's an optional twist each week.  This week, the twist is to do a 'gate fold' card.  If you do just the Anything Goes part, then you can enter only once.  If you add the twist, you can enter a second time.

     Our sponsor for January is Bugaboo Stamps and I chose to use an image new for me, called "ggtouchcoffee" and the sentiment which goes with that stamp.  Here are photos showing the front, the inside, and one which emphasizes the gate fold.

  

     I colored the digi with ProMarkers and added a bit of glitter to her glasses.  I used some gold mesh and made the bow from a bit of lace (a new bow making technique for me and something I'll be doing more and more since I really love these!)   I used punches on the corners of the matted image and sentiment and called it finished, a nice CAS design with lots of open, white areas.

     Challenges:
AAA Cards
Art Impressions Stamps
Catch the Bug
Crazy 4 Challenges
Love to Create
My Craft Creations
Not Just Cards
Quirky Crafts
Scribble and Scrap
Suzy Bee's Bloomin'

     If you're not yet a member of The Outlawz, come join.  It's a fantastic place to share your crafting and card making, meet other like-minded folks, get some fabulous inspiration, and there are seven new challenges each week!   I joined nearly 3 1/2 years ago and have met some of the most wonderful and supportive crafters over that time.  Last Thanksgiving, give or take a few days, I became a DT for the Twisted Thursday group and I love being there.  :-D  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Winter Girl

     Long before I ever became a DT member over at The Outlawz, I played regularly in most of the challenges each week.  Now, they've added a monthly Progressive Challenge with a new freebie from a different digi company each month (provided you've joined and played during the previous month.)  Joining is easy and all you have to do is to e-mail to get the digi for the month you join.

     This month, we're using a sweet digi by All Dressed Up called "Winter Girl."  Here's what I did with her.

My underlying sketch came from Stella Says Sketch,

turned a quarter turn.

     I colorerd her with ProMarkers, then die cut the image.  I did a second die cut from dp to make the frame and finally a third die cut from black CS (new die from Santa), then layered them all.  All those dies are from Spellbinders and both the dp and the CS have been languishing in my stash forever (more or less.)

     I used shiny black ribbon from my stash and yet another die cut (brand new from Cheery Lynn -- thanks again, Santa!) for the "snowflake" behind the bow.  I heat embossed the snowflake to give it some shine.  The black bow is made from lace which I've been hoarding instead of using but it's time to show it off.  :-D  I love ribbon and lace and they are probably my favorite embellishments to add to cards.

     Challenges:
A Gem of a Challenge
Catch the Bug
Clear It Out
Crafting from the Heart
Crafty Boots
Fussy and Fancy
Glitter n Sparkle
Graph'It
Hiding in My Craft Room
Kit and Clowder
Love to Scrap (L, S, B)
Lunagirl Moonbeam
Party Time Tuesday
Really Reasonable Ribbon
Tuesday Throwdown (waving to all my former Teamies -- miss you!)

     I hope your week is going well -- you're half way to the weekend already.  :-D  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Winter Woods

          I'm still so excited that Deedee's Digis has found a way to stay open despite the changes in the EU VAT tax laws.  I would have missed Deedee's lovely images if she'd had to close permanently.

     Today I'm sharing one of my after-Christmas 'Thank You' cards which I designed using images from Deedee's "Winter Woods" set.  I used pre-colored images, combining two of them into one scene.

     I printed the full scene with the one deer in the snowy forest, added the 'Thank You' sentiment (my favorite post-Christmas words), and then die cut it with a square die from Spellbinders.  I did add some sparkle to the snow in the background and in the trees with some "Diamond" Stickles.  The card base is embossed with a folder but for some reason that doesn't show in the photo.

     I matted the image with black CS and printed one of the single deer, increasing the size so that he was just slightly larger than the other one in the scene.  I fussy cut him (no easy job around the antlers!) and added him to the scene so that he was standing closer and in front of the trees.  Although it doesn't show well in the photo, he's on dimensional dots.  The two bows were in my stash and worked so well together, I used both of them instead of trying to choose one over the other.

     Challenges:
Color My Heart
Craft for the Craic
Di's Digi Designs
Fairy Tale
Frosted Designs
Fussy & Fancy
Just Us Girls
Pattie's Creations
Pile It On
Polka Doodles (top row across)
Word Art Weds.  (Deedee's is sponsoring this one)

     Don't forget that we have a new Digi of the Month challenge going and if you enter it, you'll get February's digi as a freebie.  It's the start of a new year and if you go to the shop (see the information on the challenge post), you'll get the DOM set for free this month.  Use an image from the set to enter the DOM challenge, and you'll get the next one free.  We'd love to see you there this month and many months in the future.  :-D

     That's all I have for today.  It's so nice to be back in my routine after the hustle and bustle of the holidays.  If I haven't visited your blog yet, I'm still getting around to everything I missed over the last couple of weeks.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Please just ignore the annoying Verification thingy.  You can write and post your comment without entering anything in the box (at least until Blogger decides to change that, too.)  Thank you.

Cheers!

     I have been away from my crafting desk for way too long and really missed it.  I swear I'm going to have to start a "Crafter's Anonymous" group to help with this addiction.  :-D  Today's card is one I've done for the Progressive Challenge at Rick St. Dennis' Sparkle n Glitter blog.  The image is a new one I purchased with a gift certificate Santa brought me and I also used two of my brand spankin' new dies from Cheery Lynn, the frame and the "Cheers."  What a perfect way to celebrate the New Year!

I used the colors from Pals Paper Arts.

Unfortunately, my Navy Blue looks almost black

and, of course, my lavender/wisteria turned blue. :(

     I colored the image with ProMarkers, then die cut it.  I cut the frame from lavender/periwinkle CS and then cut the sentiment from the same CS.  I added glitter to the "Cheer" sentiment and to the upper corner of the frame for a touch of sparkly bling.

     That gorgeous sheer ribbon is from Really Reasonable Ribbon.  The little mouse at the bottom is actually a completely separate RSD image which I sized, printed, and fussy cut before adding it.  I think he definitely adds to the party atmosphere, doesn't he?

     Challenges:
4 Crafty Chicks
As You Like It (square because it gives the most space for designing)
Crafter's Cafe
Crafty Catz
Digistamps 4 Joy
DL.ART
I {heart} ProMarkers
Inspiration Destination
Just Inspirational
Little Miss Muffet
Little Red Wagon
Passion for ProMarkers (die cut/free/glitter)
Simply Create Too

     The weekend is half over and the reality of post-holiday work weeks looms ahead.  I hope your day brings you some relaxation and creativity.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Please just ignore the annoying Verification thingy.  You can write and post your comment without entering anything in the box (at least until Blogger decides to change that, too.)  Thank you.

New Challenge, New Team, New Sponsor!

     I'm so excited to announce that the first challenge at Lil Patch of Crafty Friends starts today and I'm a member of that new DT!  Woohoo!!  Our challenges are posted on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of each month, run for 2 weeks, and the theme is "Anything Goes."  For those of you in the USA, that means the challenges go live on Saturday afternoons since the challenge is based in Brisbane, Australia.  :-D  Our sponsors for this first challenge are "A Day for Daisies", "Ching-Chou Kuik" and "Ppinky Dolls" -- a new one for me which I got to use.  All the sponsors provided images to the DT.  What fun I had coloring up this adorable little "Pinky with Fluffy Kitten."

     I colored the image with my ProMarkers, added loose glitter to the fairy wings for some sparkle, and die cut it with one of my very first dies from Spellbinders, a scalloped oval.  The dp is from my stash and the pink CS I chose for the card base is marbled which gives a delightful effect.  The ribbon for the bow has been hoarded in my stash for several months and I finally decided that it was time to use some of it to make a large, exquisite, home-made bow.

     Challenges:
Craft-Dee BowZ
Crazy Challenge
Digistamps 4 Joy
Eureka Stamps
I {heart} ProMarkers
Loves Rubber Stamps
Paper Nest Dolls
Paper Shelter
Penny's Paper Crafty
Sparkle n Sprinkle
Top Tip Tuesdays

     Come join us at Lil Patch for an Anything Goes challenge!  We'd love to see you there.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Please just ignore the annoying Verification thingy.  You can write and post your comment without entering anything in the box (at least until Blogger decides to change that, too.)  Thank you.

Get Well Wishes

     QKR Stampede has a new challenge today, its first of the New Year, and the theme is everyone's favorite, "Anything Goes."  I admit this card was inspired by my son-in-law's broken leg a few weeks ago.  The image and sentiment can be found here:  Digi 9403 "Ski Accident" and Digi 9105 "MamaSaid."

     I can't tell you how much fun it was to color this image; I used my ProMarkers and a couple of shades of gray from my remaining collection of Copics.  I kept it all very simple since I wanted a CAS design on a masculine card.   I layered kraft and deep blue CS to mat the image and added brads to two of the corners.

     Challenges:
613 Avenue Create
Card Mania
Crazy Challenge
Creative Card Crew
Inspiration Destination
Not Just Cards
Robyn's Fetish
Scrapper's Delights
Simon Says Stamp
Whimsy Inspirations

     I hope your New Year was terrific and that you survived the cold temperatures if your celebration took you outside.  Did you watch the Rose Parade or any football games?  At least those were good, inside-where-it's warm activities.  :-D  Come play with us at QKR this week, won't you?  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Please just ignore the annoying Verification thingy.  You can write and post your comment without entering anything in the box (at least until Blogger decides to change that, too.)  Thank you.

All Downhill for the New Year

    HAPPY NEW YEAR !!

     After trudging doggedly through 2014, feeling like it was a mostly uphill journey adjusting to a new city, a new house, finding my way around unfamiliar streets, and meeting new faces everywhere I turned, I'm looking forward to a downhill 2015!  :-D

     A new challenge starts today on The Outlawz Twisted Thursday where we always have an "Anything Goes" theme but we add an optional twist -- this week the twist is "Winter Fun" and our sponsor for each Thursday challenge this month is Bugaboo Stamps.  They were so generous in supplying the DT members with images to use but since I love Bugaboo and have more than 150 of their digis, I chose this one from my collection (which I have never used before.  Does that make it "new?")

Inside it says "Happy New Year."

I based my design on the sketch from Seems a Little Sketchy.

     I colored the image with ProMarkers and added a bit of glitter to the snow.  For the snowflakes, I used silver sequins.   The paper is from The Paper Studio.  The bow and the three blue sequins are the only added embellishment, leaving the card pretty CAS and good for a masculine card, I think.

     Challenges:
Card Mania
Catch the Bug (image/glitter/choice-sequins)
Corrosive Challenge
Craft a Scene
Crazy Challenge
Creative Card Crew
Friends of Speedy TV
Glitter n Sparkle
Jellypark Friends
Just Inspirational
Melonheadz
Not Just Cards
Outlawz PAM
Paper Nest Dolls
Pile It On
Scrappy Hands

     I hope we're going to see you over at The Outlawz this week.  If you've never joined over there, you really should think about it.  There are challenges every day of the week, and a new monthly progressive challenge where you can earn freebie digis by playing in the challenge.   Joining is free and easy and there are such wonderful people at The Outlawz.  Give yourself a present for the New Year and come join us.  :-D  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Who Prayed for Snow?

     Somebody foolishly prayed for snow and now it's just barely above freezing here in central California!  Hey, weatherman, don't you know it doesn't freeze except in the mountains out here?  Anyway, we have a new challenge starting today at Through the Craft Room Door and our "Anything Goes" theme is sponsored by The Stamping Boutique.  They generously provided the DT with images and I used "Bring It On Snowman," a brand new image.

I used the sketch from The Outlawz,

turned one quarter turn.

     Isn't he adorable with his little bird friend perched on the snowman's hat, complete with his own 'bird-sized' snow shovel?  I colored with ProMarkers and sparkle gel ink (which just doesn't show in the photo), then die cut the image and matted it with a die cut circle of "Winter Magic" dp.  I've had this particular stack of dp for more than 3 years so it might be discontinued by now.  I still love it!  All the sparkly blue snowflakes were in my stash.  The sentiment is printed with a computer font and die cut with a die from Spellbinders.

     Challenges:
A Creative Need
C.R.A.F.T.
Creative Card Crew
Friends of Speedy TV
Graph'It
Mema's
MilkCoffee
Loves Rubber Stamps
Oddball Art Stamps
Sparkles Forum

     That's it for today.  I hope you're going to come and play along this week.  If you don't visit here again before New Year's, have a marvelously Happy New Year.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Need a Snow Cat?

     Hmmmm, I think there may different interpretations of "snow cat."  My dear SIL thinks a snowcat is a plow for removing huge drifts of snow or some big transport machine used in Antarctica.  Too much work for me!  Here's my interpretation --

I used the sketch from Sweet Sketch Weds. 2

turned a quarter turn to better fit the shape of my image piece.

     The image is from Rick St. Dennis and I colored it with ProMarkers.  I added sparkle to the snow and the snowflake embellies with a bit of Stickles glitter but it just doesn't show in the photo.  The CS is Recollections and the polka dot dp is from Paper Studio.  The lace has been hoarded in my stash since last spring for fear I'd use it all up.  I only have another 2 yards!  lol

     Challenges:
A Creative Need
Artbymiran
C.R.A.F.T.
Crafty Creations
Digistamp 4 Joy
Divas by Design
DRS Designs
Fussy and Fancy
House That Stamps Built
I {heart} ProMarkers
Inky Impressions
Inspiration Destinations
Paper Shelter
Penny's Paper-Crafty
Scrapper's Delights
Simon Says Stamp
Sweet 7
Whimsy Inspirations
WordArt Wednesday

     I'll be scarce again until after the New Year but I have my DT posts pre-scheduled for the week and there are several of those.  I hope you'll enjoy them.  May you and yours have a prosperous and Happy New Year.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Please just ignore the Verification on the comment section.  You can write and post your comment without entering anything in the box.  Thank you.

Snowman Birthday

     I hope you all had wonderful Christmas celebrations this year and are looking forward to a safe and sane New Year.  It's Friday and that means another new challenge at QKR Stampede.  Our theme this week is "Snowmen or Santa."  I opted for a fabulous snowman (Digi 21201) and made a birthday card with him.  The sentiment is also from QKR and can be found here (Digi 11503.)

     I used Copic markers to color the image, then die cut it and the sentiment.  The blue die cut is part of a corner die from Cheery Lynn.  The full corner piece was too big for the design of this card, but cutting it down gave me a piece the right size.  Doesn't it look like a swirl of winter wind?

     Everything is mounted onto a deep blue card front which contrasts nicely with the white CS.

     Challenges:
Cheery Lynn
Corrosive Challenge
Crafty Creations
Crazy Challenge
Digi Sketch
Get Creative
Love to Create
MarkerPOP
Not Just Cards
Scribble & Scrap

     That's it for today.  I sure hope you'll come and play with us this week.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Please just ignore the Verification on the comment section.  You can write and post your comment without entering anything in the box.  Thank you.

Florida Santa

     Another Friday and by this time next week, Christmas will be behind us and we'll be munching on leftovers and dreading taking down the tree and all the decorations and telling ourselves it's perfectly OK to leave everything up until the New Year.  That's one of the advantages growing older brings -- one can go visit all the kids for the holidays and the decorating and un-decorating is left to them.  :-D

     We have a new challenge starting today at QKR Stampede with a theme of "Lots of Layers."  I chose this silly gator image (Digi 9002 Santa Gator) which I thought would make a perfect Christmas card for a friend in Florida.  Do you remember your childhood Christmases being filled with images of Santa bearing a huge sack of presents?  OK, so you probably weren't thinking of a Gator Santa but all those toys and packages bring back a bit of nostalgia, don't they?

     I used a combination of Copics and ProMarkers to color the image, then fussy cut it for an out-of-the-box look, using dies from a set by QuicKutz to cut the rest of the image and the mat.  The striped dp is from DCWV and is both embossed and sparkly.  The final layer is the green CS which is adhered to the card front.  I added three brads to the corner and one to the center of the bow.  For all of the layers, it's still pretty CAS in design given the minimal embellishments.

     Challenges:
A Girl Who Crafts
Animal Friends
Country View Crafts
Craft Garden
Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas Extra
Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper
Emerald Faeries
Ladybug Crafts
Mema's
Oddball Art Stamps
Sisters of Craft
Stamp and Create

     Don't forget that while it's not necesary to use a QKR Stampede image to enter our challenge, we do put the QKR image cards into a separate drawing and that really increases your chances of winning.  We also draw from all the other entries and have a winner from those.  I hope we're going to see you playing along this week, despite the fact that you are running out of time to get everything done before the holiday, and that crafting has to take a back seat, and that you barely have time to keep taking breaths.  :-D  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Please just ignore the Verification on the comment section.  You can write and post your comment without entering anything in the box.  Thank you.

Vintage Christmas Hat

     I love this new image by Rick St. Dennis!  It's called "Christmas Hat" and I got it by playing in their Progressive Challenge.  I saw so many really gorgeous color combos from others who were also entering or giving us inspiration that it took me a few days to decide what I was going to use. Ultimately, I decided to stay with the traditional red and green but used shades of those colors which we don't normally associate with Christmas.

I based my card design on the sketch at 

Sweet Sketch Wednesday 2.

     I used my ProMarkers to color the image and then cut it out using a die from Spellbinders.  The sentiment was printed and cut by hand.  I added the doodles and inked the edges of the card front to mimic the outside borders of the sketch.  Finally, I did three little pearls in two corners, but reversed from the sketch.

     One of the gals in my family will get this card but I can't say which because too many of them read my blog and peek at all the Christmas cards before the day arrives.  Yes, I mean you and you know who you are!!  Shame on you!  :-D

     Challenges:
ABC Christmas
ArtbyMiran
A Vintage Journey
Crafter's Cafe
Crafty Creations
Cuttin' and Stampin'
Cuttlebug Mania
Digistamps 4 Joy  (new digi)
Dragonfly Dreams
Fitztown
It's All About the Vintage
Scrapy Land

     It's a fine Saturday morning.  Are you on your way out the door for more Christmas shopping?  Or are you staying home to finish decorating for the holidays?  Whatever you have on your list to accomplish this weekend, I hope you find some time for rest and relaxation.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Ham It Up for Christmas

     Friday and Christmas is less than 2 weeks away!  Another challenge starts today at QKR Stampede and this week our theme is "Trim the Tree."  I found this fabulous barn yard (or in the barn) image from QKR Stampede (Digi 9609 Christmas Pig) and paired it up with the perfect sentiment (Digi 9806 Ham It Up.)  I just love the fact that he has clearly trimmed his own Christmas tree and is now snuggled inside, out of the snow and ice.  :-D

     I admit to having waaay too much fun coloring this image (ProMarkers) and fussy cutting it before matting it with dark brown CS.  The sentiment is also fussy cut but I matted it with a punched piece for a star look.  The glittery star on the top of the tree is also a punched piece.

     Even knowing that this card was going to be a guy card, I thought the bright red bow and the pearl swirl were still appropriate for a Christmas card.  It's amazing what we can do on masculine cards when they're for a holiday like Christmas.  :-D

     Challenges:
Animal Friends
Cardz for Guys
Catch the Bug
Come and Get It
Crafts Galore Encore
Crazy Challenge
Creative Craft Cottage
Emerald Faeries
Going Grey with Scrap-Creations
I {heart} ProMarkers
Kreativeinkauf
Ladybug Crafts
Loves Rubber Stamps
Melonheadz Friends 
Mema's
Passion for ProMarkers (Ribbon, gems, punches)
Pile It On
Sisters of Craft

     I love the silly humor on this card and I think the recipient will love it, too.  Short post but I have a ton of things to do today, starting in about 15 minutes.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Fancy SunBonnet's Christmas

     I had all my Christmas cards done (although I haven't posted all of them because some are for upcoming DT work) and then Catch the Bug had to run a week-long Christmas Chaos with seven separate challenges.  I'm going to try to get something done for each one but my time is getting short and schedule is getting fuller by the hour.

     I finished this one just a little bit ago and am posting it even though I've already done a post for today.  The image is from Bugaboo Stamps and the papers were in my Christmas stash.  I colored it with Copics this time.

This one  is for the sketch challenge at Catch the Bug.

     Challenges:

Card Mania

Crafty Cardmakers

Digi Sketch

Di's Digi Designs

Marker POP

Not Just Cards

Showcase Your Style

Suzy B's Bloomin'

We Do Doobadoo

     OK, I think that's it for this card.  I need to get it posted and then head for my bed.  It's been a long day and I really need some sleep.  :-D  Happy Stamping, and remember you can ignore the Verification thingy -- your comment will still post.  NanaConnie

Deck the Halls...

     Today I'm sharing my second card as a member of the Outlawz Twisted Thursday challenge.  While we always have a theme of "Anything Goes" we also have a twist if you want to use it and this week the Twist is "Christmas Magic."  Christmas magic happens for me when I get the tree up and start the decorating process.  I usually have Christmas music going so I can sing along with all the Christmas Carols I learned as a child.

     Speaking of which, I want to share one of those funny stories from childhood.  When I was very young and was first learning the carol "Deck the Halls,"  I'd never heard the word "deck" before.  When I inquired of my mother as to it's meaning, she explained that it had to do with decorating for Christmas.  That left me wondering why anyone would decorate just their hallways!?!  Throughout my childhood, I then assumed that "Deck" was an abbreviation of  "Deckorate" and misspelled that word many times before I learned that it was properly spelled without the 'K' - lol.

     OK, back to the challenge.  Anne's Digital Art (Anne Fenton) is the sponsor this month and I used her beautiful Christmas Ornaments image.

     The image is colored with ProMarkers, then die cut with a QuicKutz die and matted with another simple circle die from Spellbinders.  Once I got those layered together, I decided that the image was a bit lacking in 'magic' so I brushed glue and sprinkled loose glitter onto the ornaments.

     The sentiment is computer printed and die cut, and I inked the edges with distress ink.  The ribbon is from my stash (hoarded for Christmas use only) and the little red pearls are also a hoarded item.  I only have a few more in that deep red color and I hate using them!  I know, I know, why did I buy them if I wasn't going to use them?  :-D

     Challenges:
613 Avenue Create
Christmas Card
Corrosive Challenge
Craft-Dee Bowz
Craft Hoarders Anonymous
Digi Sketch
Fairytale Stamps
Fitztown
Get Creative
Hiding in My Craft Room
Jellypark Friends
Just Us Girls
Kit and Clowder
My Creative Moments
Paper Creator's Crafts
Pile It On
Scrapy Land
That Craft Place
Treasured Times
We Do Doobadoo

     After 3 years of drought we've had here in central California, we got rain yesterday -- nearly an inch.  Both south and north of where I live, there's been flash flooding and fears of slides because of the horrible fires last summer which stripped the vegetation and left the earth ripe for mudslides.  It's still raining in many areas of California today but we're clear and bright here where I live.  Our drought is nowhere near over -- we would have to have more than 27 inches of rain over the full winter and spring season to refill the ground water but at least it's a start.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie