The Felines Made Me Post This!

     I had no idea when I did the previous post that I'd be posting twice today.  But the feline fur babies simply wouldn't let me do a salute to the world of canines without a balancing post featuring a cat.   Sigh.  If you want to see what upset them, check out this post (or scroll down one post.)

     I found this image in my collection of Di's Digi Designs and decided that I would color it with my polychromos pencils.   When it was finished, I cut it with one of my newest dies, an Unbranded cross stitch rectangle, and I used the smallest one from that set to cut the sentiment.

     I needed to get this one done quickly (since the fur babies were glaring at me) and I had already spent a good 45 minutes coloring, so I looked through various sketches and settled on the one from Cheerful Sketches.  Without a sketch, I can spend an hour or more fiddling with design ideas, laying things out, re-arranging them, and re-arranging again.  No time for that this morning!

     Everything on the card came from scraps in my stash.  The bit of red ribbon and the polka dot dp worked well together so I grabbed them, trimmed the dp squares to a suitable size, distressed the edges a bit,  and layered them onto a card base made from a leftover piece of confetti CS.  

     I dug out one of those white bows I sew up by the dozens, used a marker to 'dye' it red, and added it as the one embellishment on the card.  I called it finished and rushed around to get it photographed and ready to post.  

     Sorry the ribbon is crooked in the photo but I didn't take time to adjust it and re-photograph.  At that point, the felines were pacing and making threatening noises so I just sat down and began typing up the post.  (If you don't see a post from me tomorrow, call the FBI!  The cats have probably done something horrible with my remains, like hiding the shredded pieces under the ribbon stash in the craft room.  lol)

     Challenges:

A Bit More Time to Craft

Digi Doodle Studios

Digistamps4Joy

Joy Clair

Lemon Shortbread

Not Just Cards

SUYP Cats

TTCRD

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Outlawz 'Songs and Rhymes' Challenge

     I have the honor of being the first GDT on the brand new Sunday "Songs and Rhymes" challenge over at the Outlawz and I'm delighted to participate.  :-D  Each week, they will have a song or a rhyme as the theme and you can create something which was inspired by it.  This week, I was inspired by the whole "English Garden" idea and I am convinced that English Gardens are filled with fairy circles and all that comes along with those, including fairies and dragons and tiny-but-meaningful gifts. 

     My card uses a delightful image from A Day for Daisies.

I started with colors from Color Sisters 

and loved the inspiration photo of this lovely garden at 

ARTastic.  Don't you just know there's a fairy in there somewhere?

  

     The image, which is printed directly onto the card front for a single-layer card, is colored with a combination of ProMarkers and polychromos pencils.  My version of the color combo is soft, springtime pastels to enhance the feeling of a garden.  I added some Wink of Stella shimmer to the fairy's wings and sparkly glitter to the dragon's wings.  As a salute to the previous requirement of CAS designs for the Sunday challenge, I kept this card very CAS, adding no embellishments other than the sparkle.

     Challenges:
Catch the Bug
CCC Digis
Crafty Calendar
Crafty Friends
Jo's Scrap Shack
Not Just Cards
Paper Nest Dolls
Send a Smile 4 Kids

     Come join us at The Outlawz.  There are new challenges each day, a monthly progressive challenge, and membership at the Outlawz is free.  You'll find lots of new (and old) friends, crafters just like you who are warm, friendly, and wonderfully helpful when needed.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Time Began in a Garden

     Hello and welcome to June!  How did we get to almost half way through this year?  Time is flying by.  Goodness, this month all the kids will be out of school, summer will officially begin (winter in the Southern Hemisphere), the days will begin getting shorter (longer down under), and before you know it, we'll all be scrambling to do our holiday cards.  :-D

     But for this morning, this is the first of three posts I have for 1st of the Month DT cards and this one is for the "Anything Goes with a Critter" challenge at 2 Crafty Critter Crazies.  Our sponsor is Sparkle n Sprinkle and they provided digi images for each of us to use.  I'm using "Garden Silhouette" and I love how easily it lent itself to a CAS design.

     No coloring on this one at all.  Each piece is printed, fussy cut, and layered onto the card front.  I used various thicknesses of dimensional dots or tape, the thickest of which is on the sentiment.  I finished it by adding a black bow for embellishment.

     Challenges:
Art Impressions
Crafting from the Heart
Creative Fingers
Glitter n Sparkle
Jo's Scrap Shack
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends
Ribbon Girl
Sisterhood of Crafters
Time Out

     I do hope we're going to see you playing along this month.  Remember, any project (not just cards) which features a creature of any sort qualifies to be entered in the challenge.  Come join us and give us some fantastic inspiration!   Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie    

Celebrating Gardens

     Some of you may think this card celebrates Easter bunnies by growing carrots for them, but it really is a birthday card for a friend of mine who's celebrating his 78th birthday tomorrow and he still plants a vegetable garden every spring and tends it all summer long.  I added the sentiment "God doesn't deduct the hours spent in a garden" because I believe it's true, at least in his case.  :-D

Sketch is from Eat, Sleep, Stamp and the image is one from Shelly's Images, where the challenge is "Show Us Your Stripes."

     The colors were inspired by the photo at Freshly Brewed's monthly challenge and I colored it all with ProMarkers.  The papers are from my stash, as is the baker's twine and the little Dew Drops.  I added the leaf charm as a final touch.  I'm not sure why it photographed so darkly -- it's more an emerald green IRL.

     Other Challenges:

Cardmadfairy's Digi Days -- Die Cuts or punches

Cards for Men -- Great outdoors (well, that's his great outdoors!)

Crafty Catz -- Use a digi

Crazy Challenge -- Add a sentiment

Digi Makeover -- For the boys

Kaboodle Doodles -- Circles and squares

Karen's Doodles -- For a man

Little Darlings -- Outside

Love to Create -- Masculine

Pattie's Creations -- Anything goes

Pile It On -- Masculine cards

Sentimental Sundays -- Spring

     I think that's it for today.  I may get one more posted before I leave but if not, then you'll see my post on Monday for Lexi's Creations DT and the new challenge over there.  Enjoy yourselves.  I'll be without internet or e-mail for several days but I'll post something when I get back.  I won't be ignoring any of you -- just incommunicado and relaxing with family.  Hugs and happy stamping.  NanaConnie