Beach Combing

     The beach is where I should be for the rest of the week since our temperatures are going to soar above 100 for the next 7 days.  They are actually predicting 4 of those days as being between 106 and 110 !  Unfortunately, I have commitments which will keep me in town and unable to go the the beach.  I should probably be committed.  lol

    At least I can share a beach combing card with one of those darling House Mouse images I love.

     I gave myself a bit of a personal challenge with this card.  I wanted to see if I could do a design with lots of layers but which still had an overall 'open' look.  I started with a background of kraft CS.  I die cut a forest green layer with one of my Cheery Lynn dies (bought months and months ago and used only once!) and then cut another with the same die using yellow CS.  I cut the yellow die cut in two and all of those layers went onto the card base.

     I colored the image with ProMarkers and watercolor pencils, and then used the die to cut just the edges so that no part of the two die cut layers below would be covered.  I printed the sentiment, fussy cut it, and then added a mat and fussy cut that before adding it to the bottom edge of the image.  If we count the card base and the sentiment, that's a total of seven layers!

     Finally, I die cut a butterfly (also Cheery Lynn), folded it in half, and added it to a top corner.  It's folded because I wanted a profile view of a butterfly instead of a top view.  Does that count as yet another layer?  :-D  I don't know about that but the die cuts certainly to give the card some great, even if simple, texture.

     Everything on the card, including the image and CS, came either from my hoarded stash or from scraps which have been in the "use someday" basket for waaaay too long.  I've done such a good job of using up things from my stash this month that it must be time to go shopping again, right?  Afterall, if I don't get new papers to cut, how will I ever have more scraps to use up?

     Challenges:
613 Avenue Create
Cheery Lynn Designs
Colour Your World
Crafting from the Heart
Craft Your Passion
House Mouse
Incy Wincy
Lil Patch of Crafty Friends
Outlawz Greetings
Penny Black & More

     And so the work week begins a day later than normal.  Hope your weekend was smashing and that you arrived at today rested, relaxed and refreshed.  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Big Birthday Celebration!

     This card is specifically for a dear friend who turned 81 today.  Happy Birthday, Don. :-D  I hope I'm as active and energetic when I get to that age.  Not that I'm decades away from it, mind you, but not there yet!

I did a different take on the sketch at From the Heart Stamps,

using feathers to replace the long, vertical strips,

 and I used colors in the top row of the Color Bingo

 at Creative Corner.

    

     I used my ProMarkers to color the chicks, then cut and matted the image (which happens to be a From the Heart Stamps image, as is the sentiment.)  I mounted that piece onto a cream -colored, confetti CS base before adding the ribbon and the feathers.  I found a tiny, glittered flower and added a small, golden, Dew Drop to it.

     I love using feathers on cards but forget about reaching for them most of the time.  Maybe I need to change where I store them.  I'm sure it's the old "out of sight, out of mind" thing.

     Challenges:
A Beautiful Mess
Aud Sentiments
Crafting with Friends
Crafty Girls Creations
Creative Fingers
Cre8tive Hands Friends
Docerela Creations
Jo's Scrap Shack
Just Add Ink
Male Room
Outlawz Twisted Thursday
Star Stampz

     Have a great Memorial Day, all my fellow Americans, and take a moment to remember why we celebrate the day.  Reach out and say a huge Thank You to a veteran, won't you?  Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Quilled Flowers

     Something different from me today; a quilled design!  I first saw and became fascinated with quilling about 7 years ago.  I bought paper strips and some tools and a book of 'how to' designs and made a few rather pathetic attempts to produce something that looked like a flower.  Being somewhat discouraged, I gave up and put all the papers and tools away.

     When I sold my home and moved 2 1/2 years ago, those quilling things got packed into one of the boxes and have lain dormant (translate to "That box never got unpacked") until a couple of weeks ago.  Out came everything and I'm going to do a lot more practicing.  Quilling is fun!  Time consuming, but fun.  :-D

     I put these flowers on dimensional dots and mounted them onto a die cut (Spellbinders).  The sentiment is rubber stamped, cut with an oval die (QuicKuts) and that's layered onto a stitched scalloped circle (Memory Box.)  All the die cuts were made from scrap pieces waiting to be used or tossed out.

     The ribbon is purple grosgrain and the bow is made from lavender satin ribbon, both from my stash of leftover bits and pieces.  The card base is made from shiny, metallic CS - hard to photograph but gorgeous IRL.

     Challenges:
Crafting for All Seasons
Crafty Gals Corner
Crafty Sentiments Designs
Create and Inspire
Creative Inspirations
Deep Ocean
Everybody Art
Fairy Tale
Lemon Shortbread
Mod Squad
Penny's Paper Crafty
{PIN}spirational
Pixie's Snippets
Through the Craft Room Door
Word Art Weds.

     I hope you're all enjoying your long weekend.  I'll be back on Tuesday.  Until then - Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie

Sparkly Ballerina Fairy Bear

     I had so much fun making this card!  As a child, I did ballet classes until I was around 12 and, at that time, the family moved far enough away that it was impossible to continue due to the distance  we would have had to travel.  But I have maintained a love of all things ballet-related throughout the rest of my life.  This darling little bear from Morgan Fitzsimons tugged at my heart and I just had to use it to make a little girl's birthday card.

Colors came from Color My Heart

although in the photo my "Thistle" looks more pink and less violet

but the larger polka dot piece really is violet, not pink.

I also based my design on a sketch I found at Paper Play Sketches.

      

     I colored her with my ProMarkers and added glitter to her fairy wings before fussy cutting her.  I added a navy blue CS mat and fussy cut it.  The border is done with a Cheery Lynn die, as is the butterfly.  The polka dot papers are from a Paper Studio pad I bought weeks (months?) ago and have never used.  It was one of those "I must have these papers!" purchases and then it went into a drawer.  I matted them with the same navy blue CS.  The butterfly has three layers; pink, white, and navy blue CS, all glued together along the body.  I added more glitter to the wings and body on the top layer.  The image is mounted on dimensional dots.  Lots of texture going on this time.

     Challenges:
ArtbyMiRan
Cheery Lynn Designs
Crafting for all Seasons
Crafty Gals Corner
Create and Inspire
Creative Moments
Cut It Up
Die Cuttin' Divas
I {heart} ProMarkers
Jo's Scrap Shack
Just Add Ink
Mod Squad
Penny's Paper-Crafty
Simon Says Stamp

     Thanks for dropping by and Happy Stamping.  NanaConnie