Leprechaun Gnomes

 Happy St. Patrick's Day !

     

  And thank you for sharing my birthday with me.  :-D

    Here's the second of the Gnome Leprechauns images I used for my St. Patrick's cards.  I love them with their fire-y red beards and green apparel, celebrating the day as though all gnomes are Irish on March the 17th.  But then, why not?  Everyone is allowed to be Irish on that day, aren't they?  Truth is, my family history comes from Ireland on both sides of my family so what better day for me to also celebrate my birthday?

     Here's the card and the short and sweet of it is that it's all done with scraps of this and that, and I kept it happily CAS, discounting the print in the dp.

     Challenges:

Crafty Catz

Creative Fingers

Double Trouble (2 of 3)

Inspiration Station (green)

LeighSBDesigns

Li'l Patch of ...

Outlawz SAR

Paper Dragonfly

Pattie's Creations

There's a Stamp ...

     That's it for today.  I'm off to spend the majority of the day with family and friends, celebrating both my birthday and being Irish!  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Cake Chef Gnome

     Today I'm sharing another Conie Fong image, one of her newer releases called "Cake Chef Gnome" and the set comes with a total of 4 images (2 gnomes with cakes plus 2 separate cakes) in either jpg or png formats.  

     I remember when Conie was asking the DT if gnomes were really needed because there were already so many artists who were drawing them and the team overwhelmingly pushed her to draw some gnomes!  I'm so glad she did.  I adore gnomes and have many from lots of different artists but Conie draws some of the cutest ones.

     I made this card for a very special lady who is celebrating her birthday today.  It's really special to me that she and I have back to back birthdays (mine is tomorrow on St. Patrick's Day -and I hail from good solid Irish stock on both sides of the family tree!) so making this card brought me great pleasure and I'm sure it'll bring her some pleasure when she sees it.  :-D.

     The image was colored with my ProMarkers and cut with a Lawn Fawn Die.  The sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die.  The papers both came from a Recollections stack and the stitched ribbon was in a box of goodies sent to me by another dear friend (who swears she was "clearing out" her craft room!)  I had such fun looking through everything she sent and this ribbon seemed perfect for this particular card.  Thanks, Vicki!

     Challenges:

Bastel-Traum

Creative Moments

Cutie Pie (birthday, baker) 

Digi Choosday

Happy Li'l Stampers

I Love ProMarkers

Lawn Fawnatics

Outlawz Colors (birthday, baker)

Pammie's IP

Passion for Markers

     Remember, we have a challenge every month over on the Facebook site and all you need to enter is to use a Conie Fong image.  Our theme is always "Anything Goes."  Come play along.

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Over 30 !

      I was so determined to have all my family birthday cards for 2023 done by the end of February, but here it is, the middle of March, and I'm still working on them.  Sigh...  Oh, well, that means I got to use this fun and funny QKR Stampede image, called "Thirty," for my DT card on our Challenge #463 which starts today.

     I used water color paints to color the image, then fussy cut it, using scissors.  I knew I wanted a really CAS card since this one will be going to one of the older grandsons so I mounted the image directly onto the card front and added the sentiment.  I cut the sentiment with a Tonic Studios die.  

     I'm sure my friend, Lynn, will approve since she is not only the 'Queen of Clean and Simple.' she loves the color blue.  Am I right, Lynn?  Do you approve?  lol

     Challenges:

     Come play along in our QKR Stampede challenge; the theme is always Anything Goes and you may enter anything you make.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Country Apples

      I absolutely adore this KLM Designs image and chose it from my collection to use on my FarmQuest DT card for the newest challenge starting on March 14.  Our current theme is "Anything Farm Country" and I think an apple harvest fits that perfectly!

     I colored it with my ProMarkers, then cut it with a die from Lawn Fawn.  The sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die.  All the papers are scraps from the basket which lives on my desk: the textured green is from DCWV; the plaid is from a Paper Studio stack; and the deep olive green with spots on it is also from Paper Studio.  The narrow, polka dot ribbon was a scrap in my stash and I used my bow maker to tie a double loop bow.

     Challenges:

2 Sisters on ...

Classic Design

Colorful Options

Die Cut Divas

Double Trouble (all 3)

Happy Li'l Stampers

Inspiration Station (The lovely greens)

Morgan's ArtWorld

Rabisco

Star Stampz

YSBP

     If you haven't played along in our FarmQuest challenges yet, now is the perfect time.  We always require that your entries have an underlying "country" flair but this time you can do anything country, without having to follow a specific theme over and above that.  The challenge will run 2 weeks, until the next challenge starts on March 28.  Come play!  We love being inspired by you.

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Daisy Mouse

      Today I'm sharing a new image from Conie Fong, called "Daisy Mouse" and the set also contains a darling little hamster named "Hailey Hamster."   The set has an extra image of a single daisy, which I merged at the bottom of the image I used here.  

     Remember, we have challenges each month on our Facebook page, and you can enter using any Conie Fong image.  You could be the winner and you'd win more Conie Fong images!

     I colored Daisy with ProMarkers, then cut the image with a rectangle doe from QuicKutz.  I used a Fiskars punch to shape the corners, and I inked the edges of the image and the sentiment (which was fussy cut with scissors) with ProMarkers.  The background was made using a scrap of very old paper from the basket on my desk.  I added two small, mulberry paper, flowers (from Petaloo) with gems as embellishments, and they are from my stash (at least 5 years old!)

     Challenges:

2 Sisters on the ...

Ally's Angels

Crafter's Cafe

Crafty Catz

Creative Fingers

Di's Digi Designs

Gem of a Challenge

Lil Patch of ...

Outlawz Thurs

Star Stampz

     Come play with us this month.  We'd love to see what you create!  Don't have a Conie Fong image for your entry?  Grab a freebie from the FB site and get going.  Or check out what's new and on sale at the Etsy store.  You'll fall in love for an exceptionally great price.  :-D

 

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Complete Set

Kittens in the Milk Pail

      I had so much fun making this card, my second DT project for the new challenge at FarmQuest General Store (FQGS, for short) which starts on the 7th of each month and ends on the 5th of the following month.  Our theme is always Anything Farm Country Goes (see the blog site for more specifics on that.)

     I played with an old photograph, printed in grayscale, and colored with blue ProMarkers to give it a bit of tint, kind of like coloring old tintypes.  I cut the image with a rectangle Tonic Studios die, then layered it onto a scrap piece of CS which was the center of  a frame previously cut with a Sue Wilson die for another project.  

     Moral of the story:  Never, ever throw out the scraps!  I know both the scrap CS and the scrap of dp have been around in the scrap basket for more than 2 years.  The twine is probably 4 or 5 years old, and the dies I used have been in my collection for more years than I can count.

     The sentiment was cut with an Avery Elle die and the top edge of the mat was cut with that same Sue Wilson die so that the sentiment would tuck in nicely at the bottom of the image piece.  The striped dp was also a scrap from the basket and I think it was from a K & Co. stack.  The fiber/twine came from The Twinery.

     Challenges:

Digi Choosday

Outlawz Thurs

Pammie's IP

Paper Funday

Passion for Markers

Penny's P-C

Polkadoodles

SUYP Cats

Word Art Weds

     We'd love to see you playing in our challenges this month.  We get as much inspiration from you as you get from us, you know.  :-D  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

An Irish Gnome

      Today I have a St. Patrick's Day card to share and I'll have another later this week.  Between the two cards, I made a total of 30 cards, 15 of each.  

     These were for another of those "Care Packages" which a group of moms puts together to send off to their out-of-state, college kids.  Each month, a group of about 30+ moms get together and each of them brings 30-35 all-the-same items which fit into a particular theme chosen the month before.  Each mom then takes 1 of the various items, and puts it into a box which they then mail off to their own collage kid.  

     My daughter and I got involved with this group when my youngest granddaughter went off to attend Texas Tech last fall.  The theme for the March box was obviously St. Patrick's Day and I did two versions of the cards.  This is the first one I'm sharing.

     

     Challenges:

Ally's Angels

Classic Design

Colorful Options

Crafter's Cafe

Crafts Galore ...

Creatalicious

Double D

Morgan's ArtWorld

Outlawz Friday

     That's it for today.  See you tomorrow.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Thin Enough

      I have a sweet granddaughter-in-law, mother to my first two great-grandchildren, and she's been working out at a gym regularly since the first of the year.  She's been amazingly dedicated and has not only toned up but has lost pounds and clothing sizes.  She says she can now fit into her high school cheer leader outfit!  I'm really proud of her and everything she's accomplished but when I dug through my stamps and found this Art Impressions image (and sentiment), I just had to use it to make her birthday card.  She and I share March as our birthday month but hers is about 10 days before mine, and this stamp is much more reflective of me than she!  lol

     I colored this with ProMarkers, then cut the image with a QuicKutz rectangle die.  I cut the corners with a Fiskars punch.  The background dp is from Recollections stack which my youngest granddaughter gave to me at Christmas.

     Challenges:

Creative Inspirations

Digi Choosday

Friendship

I Love ProMarkers

Pammie's IP

Paper Funday

Penny's P-C

Your Scrapbook Place

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Deep Winter

      Here it is, the 1st day of March and we're still under winter storm warnings!   The whole west coast of the USA has been suffering from severe drought for the last 3 or 4 years, and now California and Oregon are buried under ice, snow, and flooding rains in the valleys!  But Californians are being generous, as always, and they're sending their storms eastward across the rest of the country.

     Inspired by the weather, I chose this delightful winter image (Eureka Stamps), called "Snow Church" to use on my QKR Stampede Challenge DT card this fortnight.  I colored the image in aquamarine blues and silver/gray (my favorite winter colors) with ProMarkers, then cut it with a Tonic Studios die.  The background dp came from a Paper Studios stack.  Although it looks pretty much all black in the photo, it actually is navy blue and has a watery pattern that runs across it. The ribbon has glittered "dots" on it and seemed to fit right in with the winter snow and ice inspiration.

     Challenges:

Birthstone

Dream Valley

Friendship

I Love ProMarkers

Outlawz Color

Outlawz SAR

Pammie's IP

Park Hopping   (On the advice of Makira, I'm entering this card as inspired by Blizzard Beach Park where there's always snow!)

Passion for Markers

Word Art Weds

     Come play with us sometime in the next two weeks, won't you?  Our theme is always "Anything Goes" and you can use any image from any company.  However, if you use a QKR Stampede or Eureka Stamps image, you increase your chances of being a winner because we put all those entries into a separate draw from all the other entries, thereby giving us 2 winners each challenge.

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Pig Out on Your Birthday !

      Today's card is my DT project for FarmQuest and our theme this fortnight is "Troughs, Crates, or Buckets."  They can be metal or wood as long as they are one of those things and reflect the "farm country" requirement for all of our challenges.

     I used a fun image from Angie's Digital Stamps and it's one I've had for a long, looong time.  I don't even know if Angie's shop is still open.  The barnyard pig just looks so happy munching his way through the full trough and I thought he'd make a great birthday card.  :-D  The image was colored with water color paints, then cut with a Sizzix scalloped circle die.  The frame was cut with another die from that same set, a size larger.

     I printed the sentiment and cut it with an Avery Elle die, then I used a ProMarker to ink the edges of it.  The flowers with gem centers are from Petaloo and I thought they gave a nice finishing touch to the card.

     Challenges:

Creative Fingers

Creative Knockouts

Digi Choosday

Di's Digi Designs

Outlawz Thurs (middle row)

Pammie's IP

Pattie's Creations

Penny's P-C

Word Art Weds

     I hope we're going to see you playing along in our challenge.  Dig out those tub, trough, or bucket images, add a few things to emphasize the 'farm' or 'country' quality, and come enter our challenge.  It runs until March 13 so you have plenty of time.

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Cat-in-the-Box !

      If you've ever shared your life with one or more felines, you know that they will claim any box (empty or not) as their own by climbing into it, regardless of its size or theirs.  This adorable image, which came from the February Progressive Challenge at the Outlawz, shows exactly how cats behave around a box.  No matter how many comfortable (and expensive) cat beds you may have around the house, the cat will be in the box !

     I printed and colored the image with ProMarkers, then cut it with a die from QuicKutz.  The background was cut from goldenrod CS with an Altenew die, then mounted onto black CS.  Clean, simple, and perfect for a masculine card.

     Challenges:

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie  

Heading North

     There's a new 'Country' theme challenge which started up on February 7 and it will run until March 5.  It's a sister challenge to the one at FarmQuest and this one is called "FQ General Store."  The theme will always be "Anything Country Goes'' and you can find the challenge by clicking on the name above.  

      To quote from the challenge site itself, "What's included: farm, ranch, rural, country, dirt roads, gravel roads, picket fences, barbed wire, barns, farm animals, farm equipment, farmhouses, kitchens, canning, orchards, markets/farmer's produce markets/U-picks, sunflowers, scarecrows, hay, denim, plaid, gingham, burlap, frogs, fireflies, fishing, camping, pond life, brooks/streams, and much more.  What's not included: city life, city buildings, city parks, playgrounds, amusement parks, suburbia life, shopping malls/centers, etc."

      I just joined the DT and am excited to share with you my first card done for the "mid-month" reminder.  I thought that since the name is "General Store," it might be fun to use an actual General Store image on my card.  This was a coloring book page which I printed in grayscale, reduced in size, and then colored with polychromos pencils and ProMarkers.  I used white gel pen to add highlights and black gel pens on the geese flying north for the upcoming summer.  The sunlight rays coming through the tree were made by using bleach on a cotton-tip.

     I cut the image with a QuicKutz die and inked the edges with a ProMarker.  The background was dry embossed using my newest EF from Taylored Expressions.  It's a cable knit pattern and I thought it gave a very 'country' feel to the card.  The twine came from my stash.

     Challenges:

Can You Handle ...?

Carlin's Card ...

Classic Design

Crafts Galore ...

Crafty Catz

Creative Fingers

Gem of a Challenge

Outlawz Friday

Simon Says Stamp

Taylormadecards ...

     If you love anything country, this is the challenge for you!  We'd love to see you playing in our barnyard or field so come on along.  :-D  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Bailey and Bee

      I adore this precious image by Conie Fong called "Bailey and Bee."  This is one of her newest releases and I'm happy to say I had a bit of input in suggesting the design.  :-D  

     I printed the sentiment (also from the set) with the image and used water color paints, then cut it with a Tonic Studios die.  The frame was made by cutting a scrap of CS with a Sue Wilson die.  Everything was mounted onto a pale, sky blue, piece of CS, layered onto the card front.   Pretty simple but it looks really complex due to the filigree design of the die cut frame.

I pulled 3 of the 4 colors from My Favorite Things.

     Challenges:

Digi Choosday

Lil Patch of ...

Outlawz Thursday (center row)

Pammie's IP

Paper Funday

Pattie's Creations

Penny's P-C

Polkadoodles

Word Art Weds

     Feel free to come and play in our Conie Fong challenge which you'll find on our Facebook page.  Anything goes but you must use a Conie Fong image.  Conie always has some images on sale and there are even freebies available on the FB site.  Check it out and then come play!  

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

One Hot Pepper!

      My SIL is a fabulous cook, BBQ Master, and gardener.  One of his specialties is hot sauce which he makes from peppers he's grown in his own garden.  I'm definitely NOT a fan of things which are spicy hot so I've never tasted any of his hot sauces, but lots of others rave about them.  So, when I found this fun QKR Stampede image in the shop, called "Hot Pepper,"  I knew it would make a perfect birthday card for him.  His birthday is in 2 days.  :-D  Inside it says, "Here's one for your BIRTHDAY!"

     Since this is Day 1 of our latest challenge at QKR Stampede, I thought this would be an appropriate time to share this card with you.  Don't forget, we have a DT Call going and we'd love to see you apply.  It will close this week, so get your application in!  

     I colored the image with ProMarkers, and cut it with an Unbranded die.  In honor of the 'sparkle' that comes from spicy heat, I added Stickles glitter to the negative parts of the die cut.  The sentiment was printed and fussy cut, using scissors.  The card front was made from scrap of orange CS.

     Challenges:

Ally's Angels

Crafter's Cafe

Digi Choosday

Girlz Rebel

Pammie's IP

Paper Shelter

Passion for Markers

Penny's P-C

Simon Says Stamp ...

Worldwide Crafters ...

    

     Come by and play in our challenge.  It runs until the end of the month and our theme is always "Anything Goes."  We'd love to see you there.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Set My Heart Awhirl

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY !      

     I made another card with this image from Jan's Digi Stamps last month but the penguin with his top hat and his handful of roses is just so precious, he had to be seen again!  He's from a set called "Putting on the Ritz" and this time I took a shortcut and used the pre-colored image, which I reversed before printing.

     I love making card for my friends and family but cards about Love made for special people (the kind we celebrate on Valentine's Day) are my favorites, primarily because I make fewer of them so they are even more special.  :-D

     I cut the image with a Sizzix scalloped die and added a tiny Petaloo flower with a gemstone in the center.  The background dp is a scrap from an old Recollections 12x12 stack.  Aside from the busy design in the paper, it's a pretty CAS card and took less than 15 minutes to make.

     Challenges:

As You Like It

C.R.A.F.T.

Crafty Catz

Creative Knockouts

Cutie Pie

Double Trouble

Inspiration Station

Jan's Digi Stamps

Outlawz Color

Outlawz Thursday (1st Column)

     Have a wonderful Valentine's Day and hug everyone you love!  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Empty without You

     It's time for another new challenge over at FarmQuest and our theme is all about Mason Jars!  I found this image in my collection of digital images and I suspect it's an old Doodle Pantry image but I'm not totally sure about that.  Doodle Pantry closed a few years back so there's no way for me to pop over to their store and check it out.  

     I colored the jar with ProMarkers and metallic gel pens, then fussy cut it with scissors.  I printed the sentiment, fussy cut it, and added it to the tag (which is part of the image.)  I mounted those onto a deep blue card base.  The tiny hearts were cut with Memory Box dies and added to give it a touch of love since this is Valentine's Day!  :-D

     Challenges:

CRAFT-alnica

Crafty Gals Corner

Crafty Friends

Cupcake Inspiration

Get Creative

Incy Wincy

Outlawz Friday

Outside the Box (Memory Box heart dies)

Paper Shelter

There's a Stamp ...

     I hope you'll come and play with us at FarmQuest.  The challenge runs until the 28th of February so you have a full two weeks to enter something which fits the Mason Jar theme.  

    

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Valentine Couple

      This cute image is from LeAnn's World and I think it's adorable.  It works as a Valentine card but would also be great for an anniversary, a dating couple, or any occasion where LOVE is being celebrated.

     I tried for a 'light line' version of the image but all that happened is the outline got a bit fuzzy.  Nevertheless, I used my water color paints to color the image, then fussy cut the couple using scissors.  The circle behind them was cut with a stitched circle die from Dare 2B Artzy.  I ran that circle through my Cuttlebug, using a new EF I got from Taylored Expressions.  

     The sentiment was cut with an Avery Elle die and the butterflies were cut with dies from a Sue Wilson set.  Everything was layered onto a beige card front so that the pops of pink and red would stand out.

     Challenges:

Butterfly (Damson, Dandelion, Denim & Die cuts)

Can You Handle...?

Crafty Catz

Creative Fingers

Dare 2B Artzy

Di's Digi Designs

Dragonfly Dreams

Outlawz Friday

Pattie's Creations

There's a Stamp...

     Happy Crafting!  NanaConnie

Bella & Benji Kiss

      Here's my first DT card for February, featuring this darling new image from Conie Fong called Bella and Benji Kiss, and you can find it by clicking on the name.  The sentiment is part of that set.

     I colored the image with water color paints, then cut it with a die from Lawn Fawn.  The red frame was also cut with a Lawn Fawn die and the frame piece was embossed using my 'Linen' EF.  The sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die.  The plaid ribbon came from Really Reasonable Ribbon and the grosgrain bow was tied using my bow maker.  

     Challenges:

Can You Handle ...?

Cupcake Inspirations

Dare2BArtzy

Di's Digi Designs

Dragonfly Dreams

Leigh SB Designs

Outlawz Festive Fri

Simon Says Stamp

There's a Stamp ...

     That's it for today but now that my camera is working again, I'll be posting several cards over the next week or so.  :-D   Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

"Frog Dandy"

      When I saw this image (sent to me by a friend who wanted a birthday card made), my mind immediately jumped to my childhood and I could hear my dad saying, "Well, aren't you looking frog-dandy!"  It was one of his expressions which I never really understood but it always made be think of a frog all dressed up in his finest duds.

     When it was given to me, the image was very pastel, almost grayscale, and I knew I wanted it to be brighter.  I used ProMarkers and colored pencils to bring up the colors and I also used my photo editing software to enhance the coloring.  I cut the image with a QuicKutz rectangle die and used a Fiskars corner punch on it.  I pulled out the scrap basket and pulled out various dp scraps which I thought would work with this image.  I played a bit layering them in different ways and finally settled on what you see here.  I used the corner punch again on the scrap that frames the image.  The sentiment was done with a computer font and cut with scissors.

    Challenges:

A Perfect Time ...

Classic Design

Crafts Galore ...

Creative Inspiration

I Love ProMarkers

Let's Craft & Create

Paper Funday

Penny's P-C

Word Art Weds

Your Scrapbook Place

    I hope this card brings a smile to your face.  I send a photo of it to my friend who ordered the card and she loved it.  :-D  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Mid-Winter

      I made today's card to help celebrate a college exchange-student's first ever look at snow!  He's from Nigeria and is studying at a college in Texas, and late last month there was an unexpected snow storm which shut down the entire campus.  All of the students were excited about the event to one degree or another, but he perhaps most of all.  :-D

     I found this image online, reversed it, and printed it in grayscale.  Then I colored the buildings, trees and fence with polychromos pencils and used ProMarkers to color the sky and snow.  I cut the image with a Tonic Studios die, cut the sentiment with an Avery Elle die, and inked the edges of both of those before layering them onto the dp from Paper Studio.

     Challenges:

Coloring w Pencils

Country View ...

CRAFT-alnica

C.R.A.F.T.

Creative Fingers

Digi Choosday

Lil Patch of ...

Pammie's IP

Penny's P-C

Polkadoodles

     Enjoy your own mid-winter day, even if there's no snow at all.  For those of you in the southern hemisphere, winter is closer than you think and then you can begin celebrating your own Mid-Winter Deep with piles of snow.  lol  

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Banner Heart

      My card today was really quick to put together.  I used one of the images by Jan's Digi Stamps, from their Valentine Wishes set.  I printed the image in black and white, then colored the entire thing  with red ProMarker.  

     I cut the image with a Gina Marie die, perfect with the little 'quads' of hearts all around the edges.  I used a scrap of Recollections dp for the background and simply by added the image piece on top.  Voila' - done in less than 15 minutes!

       Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Love Story Mice

      Is this this most adorable Penny Black stamp ever?  I think it's precious and can see such a variety of uses for it.  Today, it serves as another Valentine.

     Colored with water color paints, then cut with a QuicKutz die, the image was layered onto a background made from paper and CS scraps.  The flower with the gem is one from Petaloo.  The sentiment was printed and cut with another QuicKutz die.

     Challenges:

Dare 2B Artzy

Di's Digi Designs

Dragonfly Dreams

Gem of a Challenge

Lil Patch of ...

Penny Black Sat.

There's a Stamp ...

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Blowing Bubble Hearts

      One more Penny Black stamp from those given to me by my neighbor and, happily, it's another hedgie!  What could be cuter for Valentine's Day than a little hedgie blowing bubble hearts?

     Water colored and then cut with stitched, circle die from Tutti Designs.  The background papers were saved from the scrap pile and the sentiment was cut with an Avery Elle die.  The hand tied bow was made with sparkly, metallic ribbon.

     Challenges:

2 Sisters ... Blog (red/lavender/blue)

Ally's Angels

Classic Design

Country View Craft

Crafty Friends

Heart's Quest

LeAnne's World

Papercraft

Penny Black Sat.

Your Scrapbook Place

    Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Friendship Set to Music

      I absolutely love this sentiment/image which is another from the Heart and Soul set at Gecko Galz.  I printed it onto white CS, then used ProMarkers to add the antiquing colors.  I cut it and the two CS scraps behind it with rectangle dies from Spellbinders, inking the edges of the sentiment piece with black ink.  

     I added a scrap of sparkle mesh diagonally across the card front before adding the the main pieces.  The card base is made with confetti CS for a bit of visual interest.  It's a relatively CAS design, and was very quick to put together but makes a great Valentine card, especially for someone who happens to be both a spouse and a best friend.  :-D  

     Challenges:

Country View Craft

Crafts Galore ...

Crafty Friends

Creatalicious

Double D

Gecko Gals FB

Incy Wincy

Simon Says Stamp

There's a Stamp ...

Word Art Weds

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

The Missing Bird

     Today we start a new challenge at QKR Stampede, where our theme is always "Anything Goes" and where you can win two different ways; use a QKR Stampede image (or Eureka Stamps, our sister digi company) and be entered into a drawing just for those who used those images or use any image from any company and have your entry put into the general drawing.  Both winners are chosen by Random.org but DT members have some input on which QKR/Eureka entries are put into the drawing.

     I absolutely adore this image from QKR Stampede, called "What Bird?"  It's just so true to feline character when caught doing something they ought not!  Obviously, this cat has too much time on his hands when he's forced to stay inside during the cold winter months.  This is his version of  'winter fun.'  I doubt that his people truly believe his "What Bird" answer when the family canary is missing from his cage!  lol  

     I colored the image with water color paints and cut it with a Dare 2B Artsy pinpoint circle die.  The brown frame was also cut with another die from that same set, making pinpoints on the inside of the circle instead of the outside, and the frame circle was cut on the outside with a QuicKutz die.  The sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die.  The background paper is a scrap from K & Co.  I used polka dot, grosgrain ribbon for the hand-tied bow.  This is going into my birthday card stash for one of the grandkids.  :-D

     Challenges:

Creative Inspirations

Cupcake Inspirations

Dare 2B Artsy

Digi Choosday

Dream Valley

Paper Funday

Paper Shelter

Penny's P-C

Simon Says Stamp (food? lol)

SUYP Cats

     I hope we're going to see you playing along in our challenge this fortnight.  We love being inspired by you.

     And, don't forget that we have a DT call going until mid-February and we're still looking for a couple more people to join the team.  Check out the details on the blog.

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie