Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!
Sunday, May 14, 2023
Blue Shelf
Tuesday, May 9, 2023
Kitchen Curator
This card has one of those images which I exchanged at a group or which was sent to me by someone and, unfortunately, I have nothing telling me the artist's name. There's a notation on the back (not my handwriting) which says, "Mrs Beat Em" and I take that to be the name of the stamp. Whether it is or not, it's a great title!
I'm sending this card to one of my granddaughters-in-law for her Mother's Day card. I think she'll get a giggle out of it.
I colored the image with my Sanjoki markers, and cut it with a scalloped Sizzix die. The round frame was cut with a QuicKutz die and I cut it from some chunky glitter paper from a DCWV stack. The dp is from Paper House and the sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die. No embellishments because I wanted it flat for mailing, besides which the glitter paper was embellishment enough. :-D
Wishing you all a wonderful day and Happy Crafting. NanaConnie
Monday, May 8, 2023
The Duchess
My card today features one of my favorite roses, the Duchess. I remember my mother had one of these bushes in her rose garden when I was a young child. It was such a delicate pink with a hint of lavender and white edges on the petals. I used this for a Mother's Day card in honor of my mom who's been gone for more than 30 years now.
I used my Sanjoki markers to color the rose and leaves, then cut the image with a stitched die from CUTplorations. The sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die. The background paper came from a Paper House stack. I added 3 rows of tiny gems along the right side and added one gem to the center of the rose. It just didn't need any further embellishment. :-D
Sunday, April 30, 2023
Hedgehog Mama
I hadn't planned on a second post today but it suddenly dawned on me that I hadn't done a card for the Outlawz Progressive challenge for April and this is the very last day! No time for any coloring so I decided right away on a black and white creation and it took me less than an hour, including photographing and editing. :-D
This adorable hedgie was drawn by Anne Fenton (I love her art!) and I copied it 4 times, in different sizes, added the sentiment before printing, and cut it with one of my Spellbinders big dies made for the Grand Caliber cutter. The papers are all from an old stack by DCWV which has been in my stash for more years than I can count - maybe more than 7 years? Most of them I found in my scrap basket and the largest one for the background I cut to fit this slimline card.
Vintage Perfumes
My last two trips to the craft desk, I've been playing with some vintage ads I found on a clip art site and the two I turned into cards for Mother's Day will post on my blog today and tomorrow. This first one is an advertisement for vintage perfumes in lovely fancy bottles.
I printed the ad onto beige paper, added a bit of color to two of the bottles using pencils, then cut it with a QuicKutz die, and cut both frames with other dies from that same set. The dark, metallic paper for one of the mats came from a very old stack by DCWV. The small flowers are from Petaloo, and they have gems on them. The ribbon came from the scrap basket and the sentiment was printed, then fussy cut.
Saturday, April 29, 2023
Two Roses for Mom
You folks are going to begin to think I work for Mariola Budek or that I represent her in some way but I don't. I have no affiliation with her whatsoever, other than having discovered and fallen in love with her magnificent artwork! Today's card features one of her images which I turned into another Mother's Day card.
This image was colored with Sanjoki markers, then cut with a die from Tonic Studios. The sentiment was cut with a die from Avery Elle. Both of the background CS came from Recollections and I had already chosen them before I started coloring the roses. That made it easy to choose the color palette for them.
I added no embellishments to this card, wanting the roses to take center stage, unobscured by anything that might have been put on or around them. A nice, CAS card, flat for mailing.
Tuesday, April 25, 2023
Roses in Many 'Flavors'
I'm about to overwhelm you with roses in this post! I spent a bit of time over the weekend coloring the same Mariola Budek image, but with the roses and sentiment done in red, yellow, and pink, respectively. I made one card for each color and they were all for Mother's Day - due to the sentiment which is part of the image. See below and you'll understand immediately.
I used my Sanjoki markers on the pink and yellow roses, but the red ones were colored with the few Copics I have left. I really have shifted away from the more expensive Copics and have very few of them remaining. I no longer invest in Copic refill colors because, truthfully, I can replace either ProMarkers (which I've used almost exclusively for almost 8 years now) or my newer Sanjoki markers for less money than what the Copic inks cost. The Sanjokis are also less than the ProMarkers, have the brush tips which I prefer to the bullet tips, and they blend a little bit better, IMHO.
Let's start with the 'red' image: colored with Copics and water color paints, then cut with a QuicKutz square die. The red CS circle was also cut with a QuicKutz die. I mounted those two onto a white card front, then added one of my signature hand-sewn bows, this time with a pearl.
Sunday, April 23, 2023
A Thank You for Mom
I'm still working on Mother's Day cards, trying to get several ready for the upcoming vendor event at the Classic Car Show next weekend. I know the cards with classic cars on them will sell the best, but since Mother's Day is just around the corner, I thought it wouldn't hurt to have some on hand at the event.
I've done half a dozen with Mariola Budek images on them and I'll be sharing those with you between now and our actual Mother's Day in the USA which is always the second Sunday in May. My card for today features an image Mariola called "Women Secret" and I think she's lovely. She's also free if you check out Mariola's Freebie FB site. I reversed the image before printing it, which is why Mariola's signature on the image is backwards. :-D
I colored with Sanjoki markers (roses) and water color paints (hair & skin), then cut both the image and frame with dies from Tonic Studios. The sentiment was cut with an Avery Elle die. The paper strip was a scrap which originally came from a Recollections stack. I added dots of 'Diamond' Stickles for a tiny bit of sparkle.
Tuesday, April 18, 2023
Yellow Roses
Another Mother's Day card and another Mariola Budek image, this one called, appropriately, "Roses." What mom wouldn't love roses for Mother's Day? My daughter loves yellow roses so I decided that would be the color of these. I've printed three different copies of this black and white image so the other two will probably be red and pink, but I'm also thinking of white roses if I can figure out how to make them stand out from a white background. :-D
The image has been colored with a combo of Sanjoki markers and water color paints, with tiny dots of Diamond Stickles added as dew drops to 2 of the rose petals. I cut the shape of the image by laying on a Spellbinders die and drawing around it in pencil. Then I used scissors to cut on the pencil line. I inked the edges of the shape with a dark gray ink pad. The sentiment was cut with an Avery Elle die and I inked the edges of it, also.
I found twill ribbon in my stash and the yellow chevrons on it worked so well with the color of the roses. The bow was made with a bit of muslin fabric, folded accordion style and wrapped in the middle, then hand-stitched on the back to make it stay in that shape. Everything was mounted onto an olive green CS placed on the card front.
Sunday, April 25, 2021
Tulip Hedgie
I think this is the third time I've used this image but she's such a cute little hedgie, how could anyone resist her? She's from Bugaboo Stamps and I have yet to decide if this is going to be a birthday card, or for Mother's Day, or just a simple "Thinking of You" card. Clearly it's a versatile image. :-D
Sunday, May 10, 2020
Guest Designing at Outlawz Monday Greetings Challenge
I actually used this as a Mother's Day card for a new mom. :-D
Ladybugs on their Night Out
How about a fun but silly idea for a card - celebrating with ladybugs on a night out? OK, I'm probably bending the theme a bit from the Catch the Bug challenge - Ladies Night - but this ladybug image from Bugaboo Stamps caught my eye so I used it.
Can't you just picture this as a mom ladybug with 4 of her daughters out exploring their night time world of flowers and butterflies? lol
Colored with ProMarkers & gel pens
Glitter on the butterfly wings
Cut with MFT Die-namics dies
Inlaid die cuts
CAS Design
Challenges:
Addicted to CAS
All Fun
Angie's Digitals
Artsy Stamper
Arty Divas
Crafty Friends
Digi Choosday
Paper Girls
TTCRD
Happy Crafting. NanaConnie
Saturday, May 9, 2020
Born on Mother's Day
I made her a card and I used one of my favorite Conie Fong images, "Emma Rose." Don't forget that we have two challenges over on our Facebook page every month. One is for colored images only and the other is for the finished products. Both of them require that a Conie Fong image be used but beyond that, the theme is always "Anything Goes" along with an optional twist which this month is "Females/Mothers."
Colored with ProMarkers
Cut w/ die from Spellbinders
Glitter paper from CTMH, QuicKutz die
Sheer & satin ribbon
Signature bow w/ pearl
Sentiment printed and hand cut
Challenges:
A Gem of a ...
Allsorts
Angie's Digitals
Crafty Friends
Crafty Sentiments
Dare 2B Artzy
Get Creative
Lil Patch of ...
Paper Girls
Stamping Sensations
Have a great weekend and I'm wishing all the moms out there a very Happy Mother's Day. Happy Crafting. NanaConnie
Monday, May 4, 2020
Pansies for Mom
Here's my card using one of the pre-colored images from "Pansies for Mom" and I did it as a very CAS card. Pre-colored images are so fantastic for really quick cards and I did my Mother's Day cards at the last minute this year. For this one, both the image and the sentiment were printed directly onto the card front. I folded and cut the card to size, then added the sheer ribbon and tied the double bow by hand (not an easy feat and that took more time than anything else on the card!) :-D
Mother's Day may just be my favorite 'occasion' (short of my own birthday when I can score presents AND cake!) because it gives me an excuse to make cards with flowers. I love flower images and usually find that I like the simplest ones the best.
Challenges:
As You Like It
Crafty Gals Corner
Creative Fingers
Cute Card Thurs
Outlawz Festive Fri
Pammie's Inky Pinkies
Penny's Paper-Crafty
Simon Says Stamp
Southern Girls
Take It, Make It
Come play with us this month. The challenge runs from today clear through May 31. We ove being inspired by all the people who play along.
Happy Crafting. NanaConnie
Sunday, May 3, 2020
Tulip Silhouette for Mom
Today's card features spring colors and a delightful silhouette stamp of tulips in the garden plus a hand-colored butterfly. It came from Bugaboo Stamps and I adore it. This is one of those "git 'er done" cards my friend, Lynn, is so fond of making. Thanks, Lynn. I know this is your kind of CAS and I'm doing my best to mimic you. :-D The sentiment and the image are both printed on one piece of CS, cut with a die and added to the front of a pre-made card base.
Colored with ProMarkers
Cut with QuicKutz die
Sheer bow tied by hand
CAS design
Challenges:
Addicted to CAS
Allsorts
Butterfly (Xiketic/Xanthic/Xtra colors)
Catch the Bug
Crafter's Castle
Crafty Friends
Crafty Gals Corner
Dragonfly Dreams
Lil Patch of ...
Stamping Sensations
That's all for today. Tomorrow we'll have a new challenge starting at Jan's Digi Stamps and I'll be sharing another of my Mother's Day cards using one of her beautiful images! Be sure to stop by.
Happy Crafting. NanaConnie
Wednesday, April 29, 2020
A Bonnet Bouquet
Image fussy cut & mounted on Pop Dots
Circle behind image cut with Dare 2B Artzy die
Background dp DCWV "Basics" stack
Dovetail strip is wide, satin ribbon
Sentiment printed & hand cut
Bow is hand tied w/ gem added
Border around dp is colored w/ ProMarker
Challenges:
Colour Crazy
Crafty Catz
Crafty Sentiments
Creative Fingers
Creative Moments
Digi Choosday
Lemon Shortbread
Paperminutes
TTCRD
Happy Crafting. NanaConnie
Friday, May 10, 2019
Corny Mom
I colored with ProMarkers, then cut both the image and the frame with dies from Spellbinders. The background dp is from Your Next Stamp, and the shimmery, gold ribbon was a scrap in my stash from Crafty Ribbons. The white bow is one of hand sewn bows.
Challenges:
Aloha Friday
Aud Sentiments
Colour Crazy
Cut It Up
Ellibelle's Crafty Weds.
I {heart} ProMarkers
Outlawz Color
Scrappy Land
Take It, Make It
Your Next Stamp
Come play with us this week, won't you? Happy Crafting. NanaConnie
Wednesday, May 1, 2019
Gladioli for Mom
I remember my mom grew glads in her garden and my favorites of all the colors she raised were a soft, peachy-pink that faded into almost white around the very edges of the petals. I tried to re-create those when I colored this image with ProMarkers and water colors. I cut the image with a rectangle die from QuicKutz and inked the edges with a ProMarker.
I printed the sentiment using a computer font, then cut that with an Unbranded die. The circle was cut with a die from Memory Box.
Challenges:
Allsort's
Colour Crazy
Crafty Creations
Di's Digi Designs
Paperbabe Stamps
Pattie's Creations
Pile It On
Polkadoodles
Word Art Weds.
If you missed my first post of the day for 2 Crafty Critter Crazies, scroll down one post. I hope to see you at both challenges. :-D Happy Crafting. NanaConnie
Monday, April 29, 2019
Mother's Day Silhouette

I colored with ProMarkers, then cut the image with a simple, square die from QuicKutz. I cut another square one die size larger, cutting shiny, metallic, purple CS to use as the frame for the image.
All the designer papers are from DCWV and all were scraps, including what I used for the background. I added one of my signature bows, this time made from sheer ribbon and 'dyed' with ProMarkers to get the exact shade of purple that I wanted.
I printed the sentiment, hand cut, matted, and hand cut it again, then added it to the lower corner of the card.
Challenges:
A Gem of a Challenge
Addicted to Stamps
Allsorts
Di's Digi Designs
Jo's Scrap Shack
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends
Pixie's Snippets
Stamping Sensations
Welcome to a new work week (for those of you who still have to report in or punch a time clock) and have a wonderful Monday. Happy Crafting (to those who are home instead of at work.) NanaConnie
Tuesday, March 19, 2019
Momma Bunny
I used ProMarkers, then cut the image with a die from Spellbinders. I used a second Spellbinders die to cut the frame and I inked around the inside edge before I layered it onto the image piece. All the little circles were cut with dies from QuicKutz.
The metallic ribbon was in my stash and I made a small cut in the frame, wrapped the ribbon around the card front, threaded it through the small cut, then tied it into a bow to secure it. I printed, hand cut, and added the sentiment across the 3 circles at the bottom of the image.
Challenges:
Aloha Friday
Angie's Digital Stamps
Creations in Pink
Cute Card Thurs.
Dragonfly Dreams
Get Creative
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends
Penny's Paper-Crafty
Pile It On
Word Art Weds.
I hope your week is going well. Thanks for visiting and Happy Crafting! NanaConnie




