Craft Fair in 2 Days!

      We're so close to the first of our scheduled vendor events, this one on the 4th of July.  The event is somewhat "local" but not actually in our city.   Since our particular location in the Central Valley of California tends to be one of the hottest spots in the valley, we're happy to be traveling an hour away, up into the foothills of the Sierra Nevada where predicted temperatures will be about 85F when home town will be over 100F.  :-D

     We've been putting the finishing touches on our inventory of gnomes and critters, and I just wanted to take a moment to share with you two more cute gnomes and some of my sis-in-law's hedgie critters. 

     Critters first...  

Aren't those adorable?  They're about 5.5 inches high.

Here's the first one she made a few weeks back, about 4.5 inches tall.

     And here's my last gnomes for this event.  I'll probably make a few more between this event and the next one on July 13 (also up in a different part of the foothills where it's cooler - yay!!) but these two are the last ones before the event on July 4th. 

Done with purple felt and gray fleece.  About 7" high.

Made using all burlap, including burlap trim. 9" tall.

     I won't be posting again until after the event so let me wish all of you a wonderful 4th of July celebration and please be safe and sane.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

4th of July - Independence Day !

      Happy 4th to all my American friends!  

    It's Independence Day in the USA and in my town, we're celebrating with BBQ hot dogs, hamburgers, a visit to the Museum of History Revolutionary War exhibit, a parade, and fireworks once the sky gets dark.

     My youngest granddaughter isn't home this summer because she's taking a full load of summer classes at her university, along with participating in a summer internship.  Because she's out of state, we put together a "care package" box for her to open today.  My other granddaughter (her older sister) decided the box should have a theme like the other boxes we sent to her during the school year (i.e. Exams, Valentines, St. Patrick's, etc.) and the theme became Red, White, and Moo - in honor of the silly 'Counting Cows' game, originally used to lessen the boredom of long drives back and forth between California and Texas when she was moving at the beginning of the academic year.

     Of course, as with each box, my job was to make a card to go in it and my daughter picked out the cow image for me.  The cow was pre-colored but I added highlights to it using gel pens and polychromos pencils.  The sentiment had to be the theme, and I cut the image piece with an oval die from QuicKutz.

     I found the fireworks for the background in a digital stamp set by Jan's Digi Stamps called Independence Day Friends.  There were two separate images, one red and the other blue, which I merged together after reversing one of them.  I sized them before printing so that they would fill the entire background.

     I chose scraps of red and blue CS to make the card front, added the panel of fireworks, and then mounted the image onto dimensional dots before applying it over the fireworks.  I love the way it turned out!  :-D

     Challenges:

Cupcake Inspirations

Jan's Digi Stamps

Outlawz Monday

Pammie's IP

Penny's P-C

Simon Says Stamp

Word Art Weds

     That's it for today.  Be safe and sane with all your celebrations.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Patriotism

      Our greatest National holiday in the US is undoubtedly July 4th, Independence Day, (right around the corner!) but the image I used on this card would work for Memorial Day, Veteran's Day, even Labor Day, I suppose.  The image and the sentiment come from a Jan's Digi Stamps set called "Star Spangled Wreath" and it was a delight to color.  It also happens to be on sale right now.  :-D

     I used Sanjoki markers and a gold paint pen to color a gray scale image, then cut it with a QuicKutz die.  I 'distressed' the edges with a craft knife and layered it onto a blue CS rectangle, also distressed along the edges.  The image itself was so beautifully detailed that I didn't want anything to distract from it so no embellishments of any kind.

     Challenges:

613 Ave Create

Aud Sentiments

Double Trouble (summer, red, blue, gold)

Gem of a Challenge

I Love ProMarkers

Lil Patch of ...

Pammie's IP

Passion for Markers

Penny's P-C

Word Art Weds

     Wednesday will mark the official first day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere and trips to the beach, family and friends around the BBQ, the rising heat can't be far behind.  So unpack your shorts and swimsuits, grab your flip flops, and get ready!  If you're not traveling, then head for the craft room and Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie 

Hot Dog Time

Happy 4th of July !

     For those of you doing BBQ in your own back yard because of the new "go-back-inside-and-play-lockdown-again" rules, enjoy and stay safe.  Me, I think I'll 'toast' a hot dog in the toaster oven and call it good.  I'm isolating and spending quiet time in the craft room this weekend.  :-D

     But here's my salute to happier BBQ days, be they past or in the future (we can hope!)  The image is from Bugaboo Stamps.

I took my cue from the colors at Outlawz, 

red, white, and a touch of green

although my red is a bit more subdued.

Colored w Promarkers and gel inks

Cut w QuicKutz die

Diagonal strip is embossed w 'Linen' EF

CAS design

     Challenges:
Arty Divas

Catch the Bug
Crafty Creations
Crafty Sentiments
Digi Choosday
Ellibelle's Crafty Weds
Lemon Shortbread
Paper Shelter
Penny's Paper-Crafty

     Have yourself a great day and enjoy the holiday, USA.  Happy Crafting, NanaConnie

Independence Day !

     Here's a reminder that the June monthly challenge at Jan's Digi Stamps is still ongoing and you can enter projects until 3:00 p.m. on Sunday, July 5.  The July challenge starts on Monday, July 6.           My mid-month reminder card for June celebrates with one of Jan's newest sets, Independence Day Friends, and the set is on sale until the end of June!

     I'm so proud of this card because, while I used all pre-colored images from the set, I put a lot of work into merging the ladies, their picnic lunches, the fireworks, and the sentiment so that they would look like a single image.  I've been practicing but this is the first time I've merged more than just 2 images.  Each image becomes a 'layer' and this one has a total of 6 layers!  I can hardly believe I managed it.  :-D

     But if merging isn't your thing, fret not.  Jan has already merged images within the set so you can either use a single image or one of the pre-merged images.  You really should go and look at the entire set.  It's going to be so versatile.  I used the Independence Day sentiment to make this one a 4th of July card but leaving that sentiment out, all the rest of the individual images would make fabulous summer-themed cards or cards to celebrate nearly any occasion.

     You know, it's digi sets like this one that make me remember why I'm now so hooked on digis as opposed to real rubber.  Not only can you adjust the size of your images (which I love!) but there are so many images and sentiments in this set, if I had to store them all mounted on wood, I'd run out of room.  As digis, they store in a really small space on one of my flash drives.  Yep, digis for me forever!

This card has all the colors from the TicTacToe board

found at Color Dare this week except for the very

center, Laguna Blue.  I used top and bottom rows plus

first and third columns.

Pre-colored images
QuicKutz and Spellbinders dies for all cut shapes
Baker's twine in blue and red stripes

     Challenges:
Angie's Digital Stamps
As You Like It
Aud Sentiments
Creative Fingers
Creative Knockouts
Cute Card Thurs
DreamValley
Stamping Sensations
Time Out (It was the celebration part that got to my creative juices!)

     If you haven't played in our June challenge yet, please come on over!  Our theme is always Anything Goes and, while you aren't required to use a Jan's stamp, if you do your entry will go into a separate draw just for JDS images.  That increases your chances of winning buy a huge amount! 

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

4th of July Honor for Servicemen

     HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY HOLIDAY!

      This gorgeous image of our flag was released by MHK Designs just in time for the Fourth and I decided to use it as a way to say Thanks to all our service people who protect us and serve in the Armed Forces.  What better way to celebrate the birth of our country?

     I used my Koh-I-Noor pencils to color the flag and add the shadow, then die cut it with my stitched circle die set (Die-namics) to cut it and the sentiment.  I also cut the navy blue background with a stitched circle die and inset the flag into it.

     I wrapped the card with twine before adding the sentiment and, after that, decided to leave it very CAS.

     Challenges:
4 Crafty Chicks
Crafting by Designs
Crafty Creations
Crafty Gals Corner
Cute Card Thurs
House That Stamps Built
Outlawz Festive Friday
Outlawz Twisted Thurs
Penny's Paper-Crafty
Southern Girls
Work It Wednesday
   
     I hope you've had a wonderful, long weekend and I get home late today.  Then I get to face all the laundry, unpacking, and basic household chores that didn't get done while I was gone.  Once finished with that, I can start my weekly routine and rest up from my vacation.  :-D  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie


 Forever Wave

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