Hugs for Thanksgiving

     If it's Friday, you know that means a new weekly challenge has started at QKR Stampede.  This is the most recent (and I think the last) of my Thanksgiving cards.  I used a darling image called "Bear Hugs" and I'm using this as a way to give some holiday support to a sweet lady who is facing her first holidays following the loss of her husband.  She's going to be at our house for Thanksgiving and I want her to know that she has family and friends who love her.

Colored with ProMarkers
Image and mat cut with Tonic Studios & Spellbinders dies
Orange CS embossed with "Linen" folder
Textured ribbon
Kraft card base

     Challenges:
Crafty Gals Corner
Cutie Pie
Digi Choosday
Pammie's Inky Pinkies
Paper Funday
Paper Girls
Scrappy Land
Word Art Weds.
Work It Weds.

     Come play with us this week.  Our theme is always Anything Goes.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Moving Day

     I really dislike moving and I've done it several times in my life, the latest major move from one city to another 300 miles away, having been some 6 years ago.   I still haven't recovered from that one!  lol  But this adorable image by Hetty Clare is the free image for the Progressive Challenge at the Outlawz.

Colors came from the challenge pallette #368

at Color My Heart Color Dare.

Colored with ProMarkers
Cut with Poppy Stamps die
Matted with Spellbinders die cut rectangle
Brown, diamond-texture ribbon from Really Reasonable Ribbon
Embossed card base

     Challenges:
Addicted to Stamps
Crafty Calendar
Crafty Gals Corner
I {heart} ProMarkers
Paperminutes
Scrappy Land
Take It, Make It
Work It Weds

     We finally have some rain today!  That may not be a big deal to those of you who are suffering under a pile of snowdrifts already but we haven't had rain in my part of the country for more than 8 months.  This is the second latest start of our annual rains since they started recording rainfall stats.  They are predicting we could get as much as 1/2 an inch this morning and we are braced for the possibility of some minor flooding in the underpasses and near the street drains which may not have had all the leaves and clutter cleared out.  That's OK.  We'll take it.  The rain is more important.  :-D

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Gratitude for All (Good) Things

     OK, I admit it - I'm an ice cream junkie!   I love nearly any flavor and I find myself craving it even in the midst of winter.   On the other hand, I do live in an area that never gets snow and we rarely reach the freezing temperatures but still, most people around here don't eat ice cream all winter long.

     My card today is my DT project for the newest challenge at QKR Stampede and I used an image called "Bear with Sundae."  I'm mailing this one to my #1 son for Thanksgiving.  :-D

I used colors from the challenge at Color Dare #368

and the sketch from Sketch Saturday.

 

Colored with ProMarkers
Die cut with QuicKutz die
Plaid paper from Your Next Stamp
Diamond ribbon from Really Reasonable Ribbon
Gold ribbon scrap from basket
Fabric pumpkin
Sentiment printed and hand cut

     Challenge:
A Gem of a Challenge
Colour Crazy
Crafter's Castle
Cut It Up
Dare 2B Artsy
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends
Outlawz PAM
Your Next Stamp

     I hope you're going to come and play in our challenge this week.  Remember, the theme is always "Anything Goes" and you can use any image from any maker.  However, if you use a QKR Stampede image (or one from their sister company, Eureka Stamps), your entry goes into a separate draw and that increases your chances of winning!   Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

A Chilly Day

     It's the first Thursday in November and that means we have a new challenge starting over at Crafting with an Attitude.   Our sponsor is Lemon Shortbread and they were so generous in providing images to the team.  I've used one called "Chilly Days" and it's perfect for a fall card.

Colored with ProMarkers and fussy cut
Framed with a leftover negative from a Sue Wilson die
Sheer ribbon wrapped and hand-tied into a bow
Fabric pumpkin added
Sentiment printed and hand cut
Everything mounted onto a burgundy card base

     Challenges:
Crafting by Designs
Cute Card Thurs
House that Stamps Built
Outlawz Color Tues
Paper Funday
Scrappy Land
Word Art Weds
Work It Weds

     I hope you're going to come and play in our "Anything Goes" challenge this month.  We love being inspired by your creations.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Cat, Bats, and a Full Moon

     Back to Halloween silhouettes.  I played a bit with my ProMarkers to create the background on this one.  I used a scrap piece of watercolor paper which lets alcohol inks spread naturally.  After applying the colors with ProMarkers, I wet a cotton ball with rubbing alcohol (damp, not sopping) and rubbed the entire background.  After that dried, I went back over just the moon with a yellow ProMarker to define it a bit more.

     The silhouette cat and bats, plus the sentiment went on after the background was completely dry.  I ironed the paper to make sure it was completely flat and that took the texture out of it and made it very smooth.  I colored the eyes, then added a sheer ribbon and bow, and finally adhered the image piece to a card base and trimmed the top and bottom to fit.

     Challenges:
Cute N Crafty
Cutie Pie
Digi Choosday
Lemon Shortbread
Outlawz Greetings
Papercraft
Paperminutes
Passion for ProMarkers
SUYP Cats
TTCRD

     Have a wonderful rest of your weekend and wake up creative on Monday.  :-D  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Are You Batty?

     Happy Friday!  The weekend is right around the corner and we have a new challenge this week at QKR Stampede.  As always, our theme is "Anything Goes" and you may use any image from any company to enter our weekly challenge.  However, if you choose to use an image by QKR (or our sister company, Eureka Stamps), your entry will go into a separate draw and your chances of winning are increased tremendously!

     For today's card, I chose to make a Halloween card and used both QKR (Bat and Moon) and Eureka (Bat - used 4 times) images, plus a sentiment from QKR (Happy Halloween.)

ProMarkers used for coloring
White gel ink for eyes and highlights
Textured ribbon from Really Reasonable Ribbon
Accordion bow 'dyed' with ProMarker
Black CS frame
Kraft card base
Sentiment was fussy cut

     Challenges:
A Gem of a Challenge
Aud Sentiments
Cardz TV 
Colour Crazy
Creative Fingers
Creative Knockouts
Outlawz Festive Friday
Penny's Paper-Crafty
Southern Girls
Take It, Make It

     Come play along with us this week, won't you?  We love  being inspired by what you enter.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Fright Night

     Another silhouette card today and this one started as a silhouette.  I printed it onto golden CS to give the moon its glow.  I loved it because it had 2 of my favorite Halloween animals - cats and bats.

Distressed edges on the image
Hand curled corners
Grosgrain ribbon scrap
Sentiment sticker (edges colored w ProMarkers)
Spider in the tree is 3D

     Challenges:
2 Sisters on the Blog
A Bit More Time ...
Archi-Scraps
Bastel-Traum
Craft-Dee BowZ
Crafts Galore Encore
Creatalicious
Die Cut Divas
Fabrika Fantasy
Your Scrapbook Place

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Pilgrims on Thanksgiving

     Bugaboo Stamps has some of the cutest Thanksgiving images and these two Bobbleheads are no exception.  There are a total of 3 images on this card and I simply put them together, adjusting the size of each one to make a single, CAS design.

ProMarkers using fall colors
Cut with a Spellbinders rectangle die
Hand-tied, raffia bow

     Challenges:
Angie's Digital Stamps
Catch the Bug
Cute N Crafty
Dream Valley
Incy Wincy
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends
Pammie's Inky Pinkies
Passion for ProMarkers
Simon Says Stamp & Show
Stamping Sensations

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Grateful Elf

     I love this Harvest Elf image from AuroraWings and I plan to use this as a Thanksgiving card.

I used the sketch from Cheerful Sketches.

Colored with ProMarkers
Cut with Sue Wilson dies
Papers and CS from the scrap basket
Hand tied bow made with satin polka dot ribbon

     Challenges:
2 Sisters on  the Blog
a2z Scrapbooking
A Perfect Time to Craft
Craft-Dee BowZ
Crafty Hazelnut's
Die Cut Divas
Dies R Us
Morgan's ArtWorld

     Enjoy your weekend and I'll see you tomorrow.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Counting Blessings

     Fooled you!  No Halloween card today; instead I'm heading on down the road to Thanksgiving with this adorable image from Bugaboo Stamps.  Don't you just love that cute little owl sitting on his harvested pumpkins?

Colored with ProMarkers
Cut with Memory Box Pinpoint Rectangle die
Wide satin ribbon and sheer ribbon from Crafty Ribbons
Jute cord added to bow

     Challenges:
Addicted to CAS
Allsorts
Catch the Bug
Crafter's Castle
Crafty Calender
Dare 2B Artsy
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends
Outlawz SAR
Passion for ProMarkers
Stamping Sensations

     Happy Crafting.   NanaConnie

Meow-lloween !

     This adorable image is a freebie from the SUYP Cats challenge and is by Ike's Art.  I tried to use as many shades of orange as I could as a salute to the color palette option offered by Ike's World.

My card design is based on one of the 

sketches at Sweet Sketch Weds.

Colored with ProMarkers
Cut with Sizzix die
Background "bats" die cut piece was a gift - die unknown
Paper is a scrap from my basket
Hand tied bows 'dyed' with ProMarker

     Challenges:
Aud Sentiments
Creative Inspirations
Creative Knockouts
Ike's World
Paper Funday
Scrappy Land
Word Art Weds.
Work It Weds.

     Have a great day and Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Gathering Nuts

     It must be fall; the squirrels are gathering nuts!   I'm delighted, for more than just the cooler temperatures.  Check out my card for this week's new challenge at QKR Stampede and you'll understand why.  If you enlarge the photo, you can more easily read that silly sentiment.  :-D   I used the QKR image "Writing Squirrel" and added "Acorn Accent" to give him an armful of nuts.  In the original image, he's holding a pencil.

Colored with ProMarkers
Cut with Unbranded die, inked edge
Acorns printed twice, hand cut, and added in layers
Background embossed with Sizzix folder
Wrapped burlap-twine bow
Hand cut sentiment, inked edge

     Challenges:
2 Sisters on the Blog
A Bit More Time to Craft
Bastel-Traum
Classic DT
Craft-Dee BowZ
Crafts Galore Encore
Creative Moments
Die Cut Divas
Friendship
Paperminutes
Scribbles Designs

     I'll have a second post today and some fun news so be sure to stop by a bit later.  In the meantime, think about creating something to enter into our Anything Goes challenge at QKR.  We love being inspired by the things you enter.  NanaConnie

Pumpkin Thyme

     I've rediscovered Jan's Digi Stamps, which I used to get through Sparkle N Sprinkle.  When SnS closed, I was afraid I'd lost Jan's beautiful images forever but then I found that she has her own store, which you can check out here.

     These images are from two of her new autumn sets, which I'm using on a Thanksgiving card.  I merged the images and I love the effect of distance between them.

Colored with ProMarkers
Spellbinders square die plus an out-of-the-box technique
Fussy cutting with scissor on the pumpkins in the tub
2 diamond texture ribbons
Raffia triple-loop bow
Everything done on kraft card base

     Challenges:
Crafty Creations
Crafty Sentiments
Digi Choosday
House that Stamps Built
Lemon Shortbread
Papercraft
Paper Funday
Paper Shelter
Simon Says Stamp
TTCRD

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Turkeys for Thanksgiving Dinner

     I wanted an exceptionally silly Thanksgiving card for my daughter and found both the sentiment and the image at Bugaboo Stamps.  Even though they are not part of the same set, they work perfectly together.

I based this card design on the sketch at Stella Says Sketch.

Colored with ProMarkers
Sentiment die cut with QuicKutz die
Image fussy cut w scissors
Silk leaves with touches of glitter added
Background dp was a left over scrap
Dots on dp are embossed

     Challenges:
Aud Sentiments
Catch the Bug (bottom row)
Crafty Sentiments
Double D
Outlawz Colors (bottom row)
Paper Funday
TTCRD
Tuesday Throwdown

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Autumn Sprite

     Another of the sprites from AuroraWings, this one called Autumn Sprite.  I'm going  to use this one for a Thanksgiving card.

Colored with ProMarkers
Spellbinders die
Sheer and grosgrain ribbons
Sentiment printed and hand cut

     Challenges:
Aud Sentiments
C.R.A.F.T.
Crafty Gals Corner
Creative Knockouts
Cute Card Thurs.
I {heart} ProMarkers
Lemon Shortbread
Papercraft
Word Art Weds.

     We're almost mid-way through the week, more than mid-way through September, and in my part of the country it's still hot, hot, hot!   I'm praying for fall and the cool, crisp evenings that make the mildly warm days enjoyable.  Hope things are cooler in your neck of the woods.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Pip, Pip, Hooray!

     Another Friday rolls around and it's almost autumn; time to think about school, pep rallies, and cold weather football!  One of my granddaughters is a cheer leader at the local community college (her first year there) and she has her 18th birthday coming up shortly so I used this fun image from QKR Stampede for her card.  It's called, amazingly enough, "Cheer Leader" and she's obviously dressed for those chilly, windblown, autumn days.

     Yep, it's time for another new challenge at QKR Stampede and I hope we're going to see you playing along with us this week. 

Colored (in her school colors) with ProMarkers
Cut with Memory Box stitched dies
Papers from the scrap bin
Hand tied bow, 'dyed' with ProMarker
Sentiment computer printed and hand cut

     Challenges:
Aud Sentiments
Colour Crazy
C.R.A.F.T.
Crafty Creations
Crafty Gals Corner
Cute Card Thurs.
I {heart} ProMarkers
Scrappy Land
Word Art Weds.
Work It Weds.

     Come play at QKR Stampede this week.  Our theme is always Anything Goes and you can use any products from any company.  If you choose to use an image from QKR (or Eureka Stamps, our sister company), your entry will go into a separate drawing and that increases your chances of winning by a huge amount!  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Ladybugs and Sunflowers

     I found this wonderful image of ladybugs and sunflowers in my collection of Ching-Chou Kuik digis and decided I wanted to see what I could do using autumn colors on it.  I really like the end result and will probably use it as a birthday card.  I did my best to find the image in the store so that I could make a link for you but I just couldn't find it.  I'm sorry.

I based this on the sketch at The Outlawz.

Colored with ProMarkers and water colors
Image is fussy cut
Orange frame is cut with QuicKutz die
Olive green CS is embossed with "Linen" folder
Card base is pre-embossed
Sheer ribbon and layered sequins

     Challenges:
Art Impressions
Aud Sentiments
Cardz TV
Ching-Chou Kuik FB
Crafty Calendar
Crafty Friends
Cute Card Thurs.
Paperbabe Stamps
Pattie's Creations

     That's all I have for today.  I'm suffering from a bout of strep throat and am taking proper medications but mostly I sleep.  I guess my whole body needs the rest.  Hope to be back to normal in a day or two.  Wishing you Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Unicorn in Autumn

     We all know about unicorns, though some will tell you they are only a mythical creature.  I am of a different persuasion.  I believe unicorns are like pocket dragons - just because you don't see them doesn't mean they are only a fantasy.

     I've been told by a lovely garden fairy that unicorns change the colors of their manes and tales seasonally, like the leaves of a tree.  Hmmm, that would give them an advantage when it comes to hiding in plain sight, wouldn't it?  Let me give you an example of what might happen.

     Fabrika Fantasy has one of the most magnificent unicorn images which I chose for this card.  Notice how his mane, tail, and hooves blend in perfectly with the fall foliage, and his body takes on the pale shadows of the low-light dawn?

I used the sketch from Cheerful Sketches.

Colored with ProMarkers and gel inks plus sparkle on the horn
Die cut with Spellbinders and distressed on the edges
Polka dot washi tape
Doily colored dark brown
Hand made bow with polka dots
Kraft card base

     Challenges:
a2z Scrapbooking
Crafter's Cafe
Craft-Dee BowZ
Crafts Galore Encore
Creative Moments
Friendship
Morgan's ArtWorld
Scrappy Land

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Pumpkins for Sale

     OK, we had two days of temperatures in the mid- and low-80s (F) with a nice breeze blowing yesterday and I actually saw some leaves scuttering around in the wind so my hopes that summer temperatures were gone for the year rose and we had a party last night.

     Then I listened to the long range forecast and we're due to have another 2 days of temp 100F or above over the weekend.  Sigh... I knew it was too good to last and that I should never have celebrated.  That's it - not another word from me about temperatures or celebrations until at least November!  That way, I won't jinx it.  lol

     Today's card has an image from Digi Doodle Studios with lots of pumpkins for sale and no, the kitten and puppy are NOT for sale.  :-D  I used lots of my favorite fall colors - especially the combo of orange & green or orange & brown.  This time a combo of all three of them.

I used the sketch from Sketch Saturday.

Colored with ProMarkers
Spellbinders dies to cut image & sentiment
Inked edges on die cuts
Background embossed with Darice EF
Hand tied bow dyed w/ ProMarker

     Challenges:
Aud Sentiments
Brown Sugar
Coloring in Scrapland
Crafty Friends
Crafty Sentiments
Dare 2B Artsy
Digi Doodle Studios
Paper Funday
SUYP Cats

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Maple Sprite Celebrating Autumn

     I think I've fallen in love with every sprite image ever released at AuroraWings and this darling Maple Sprite is no exception!   I thought she was a perfect reason to Celebrate Autumn!  :-D

I used the sketch from Paperbabe Stamps,

turned a quarter turn.

Colored with ProMarkers
Image die cut (QuicKutz) and inked edge
Darice EF on yellow CS
Sizzix EF on card base
Sheer ribbon wrap and double bow
Sentiment hand cut and inked on the edge

     Challenges:
Allsorts
Colour Crazy
Crafty Catz
Crafty Friends
Creative Fingers
Pattie's Creations
Polkadoodles
Take It, Make It

     Happy Crafting and enjoy the last half of the weekend.  NanaConnie