Cute Heart Valentine

      I'm posting my DT card today for the challenge over at Star Stampz.  Our themes are always "Anything Goes" with an optional subtheme, which is "Hearts" this month, in honor of Valentine's Day.

     I used the darling Star Stampz image called "Cute Heart Valentine."  I colored her with Ohuhu and Sanjoki markers, then cut the image with a QuicKutz die.  I added a frame to it, also cut with a QuicKutz die from that same set.  The background dp came from a DCWV stack which has been in my stash for at least 5 years!   The sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die.

     Challenges:

613 Ave Create

Aud Sentiments
Cupcake Inspirations

Lil Patch of ...

Neglected Stuff

Outlawz SAR

Pammie's IP

     That's all I have for today.  Wishing you a fun and fabulous Valentine's Day on Friday.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Owl Always Love You

      A new challenge has started over at FarmQuest General Store and our theme is always "Anything Goes."

     I found this adorable clip art image of an owl couple and thought they'd make a cute Valentine card.  I printed the image in sepia tone, cut it with a Spellbinders die and then inked the edges.  The little heart dp came from a stack of calico prints by DCWV and I thought it was perfect!  My last touch was a hand tied bow of kitchen string.  Simple, quick and easy, and overall fun.  :-)

     Challenges:

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

All About Love

      I love this CAS card made with the February image from the Outlawz Progressive Freebie challenge.  The 'woven heart' image was given by Cara (on the Outlawz team.)   I love the simplicity and decided to add a bit of lace to it as a contrast to the simple woven design.

     I printed it after carefully measuring it to fit one of my Spellbinders heart dies, colored it with ProMarkers, then die cut it.  I cut a square of red CS, trimmed it to exactly fit the square card front, then I dug some lace out of my stash and used craft glue to add it around the edges of the heart.  I cut it at the top and bottom points to keep it from curling.   The lace adds some delightful texture to the card.  I printed and cut the sentiment with an Avery Elle die, layered it on top of the heart, and it was done!

     Challenges:

Crafty Calendar

Creative Inspirations

Di's Digi Designs

Double D

Dragonfly Dreams

Lil Patch of ...

Paper Shelter

Polkadoodles

Simon Says Stamp

Star Stampz

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Lion Love

      I know it's February and everyone is thinking Valentine's Day, but this card is also perfect for an anniversary.  In fact, my daughter asked me to use this cute lion image (clip art from Serene Designs, I think) on a card for her hubby.  

     I decided on a very CAS design for the card, cutting the grayscale & water-colored image with one of my oldest Spellbinder's square dies, then punching each of the four corners with a punch from Fiskars.  I mounted that onto a scrap piece of deep burgundy CS used for the card front and called it finished.  :-D

     Challenges:

Colorful Options

Creative Fingers

HeartQuest EWA

Incy Wincy

Mirtillamente

Morgan's ArtWorld

Outlawz Monday

Park Hopping (Safari Land in the original Disneyland)

Pearly Sparkles

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Love Letter Gnome

     Our latest challenge is starting today over at 613 Avenue Create and our theme this month is Anything Goes with an optional theme of  "Love Letters" (make the letters in the sentiment the focus.)  What could be more perfect for February?

     I found some really cute gnome images at Serene Dove which does delightful clip art images.  I printed this one in very light gray scale, then colored it with Sanjoki markers.  I cut the image with a die from Spellbinders and double-embossed the edges.  I found a piece of dp from a Hobby Lobby pad in my basket, trimmed it to fit the card front, and used scraps from the trimming to make the 'bow.'  I cut two slits in the card front and slipped the folded bow into them.  The edges of the bow were inked before I slipped it into the slits, just to make it stand out from the background paper.

     Challenges:

Can You Handle ...

Colorful Options

Crafty Calendar

Creative Fingers

Di's Digi Designs

Gem of a Challenge

Lil Patch of ...

Outlawz Friday

     Make a Valentine and come play in our challenge this month.  We'd love to see what you create.  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

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

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

Valentine Penguin

      This precious image from Jan's Digi Stamps, called "Puttin' on the Ritz," has been reversed for this card.  It's a pre-colored image so putting the card together was quicker than usual.  The image was printed, then cut with an Unbranded die.  I added a scrap of red CS behind the die cut and trimmed it to fit the rounded corners.

     I printed and fussy cut the sentiment (also part of the set), inked the edges with neon ProMarker to make it stand out, then added it to the image piece.  I used baker's twine to enhance the red, burlap ribbon, wrapping two pieces on each side of the ribbon.  The Petaloo flower covers the spot where the ribbon and twine ends overlapped.  

     

     Valentine's Day is getting closer by the minute so if you haven't started on your cards yet, let this be an inspiration.  Remember, you can get cards done very quickly with pre-colored images, especially if you do CAS cards (which this one isn't!)  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Candy Hearts

      Only House Mouse could make finding mice in your bowl of candy hearts something cute!  :-D  

     I used water color paints and pencils to color the image, then cut it with an oval die by QuicKutz.  The shiny, metallic CS frame for the image was cut with another QuicKutz die from that same set.  I used one of the smallest oval dies from that set to cut a scarp of the metallic CS and layered the sentiment on top of it.  The sentiment piece was cut with an Avery Elle die.

     I found a scrap of pink dp and layered it onto the white card bade,  then added a bit of ribbon, hand tying it just off centered above the image.  I thought the shine from the metallic CS, plus the ribbon, was enough 'splash' so called it finished.

     Challenges:

House Mouse

Pammie's IP

Rabisco

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Sweet Hedgies for a Valentine

      Can you tell I was thrilled to discover that the neighbor who gifted me her Penny Black stamps was as enamored with the hedgehogs as I am?   They are all just so cute!   I turned this one into yet another Valentine card, although it will work well in the future for nearly any occasion - birthday, Mother's Day, graduation, any gift giving event, even a non-occasion when someone needs a bit of encouragement or support.  Just add an appropriate sentiment and you're in!

     This image is water colored, then cut with an Unbranded die. The sentiment was hand written.  I wanted it pretty CAS so only added a scrap to frame it, and a tiny Petaloo flower with a teensy gem for a bit of flash and sparkle.

     Challenges:

Crafty Catz

Creative Inspirations (old stamp, new to me)

Creative Knockouts

Digi Choosday

Paper Funday

Penny Black Sat

Penny's P-C

Polkadoodles

Simon Says Stamp

Word Art Weds

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Life's Journey

      My card today can be a Valentine or just any celebration of Life and Love.  The image is from Jan's Digi Stamps and it's colored with a combination of ProMarkers and water colors.  I used the pre-colored image from the set as an example and tried to get my own colors as close to it as possible.  This is probably the third or fourth time I've used this image and it's been colored differently each time but I'd never tried the color combo in the pre-colored image before.  I'm really pleased with the result and am sending a huge "Thank You" to Jan for providing such a lovely combo.

     I cut the image with a stitched, square die from Lawn Cuts (Lawn Fawn.)  I used my Linen embossing folder on the background CS for a bit of visual texture but added no embellishment, wanting the card to be as CAS as possible.

     Challenges:

Crafty Calendar

Crafty Catz

Lawn Fawnatics

Outlawz Festive Fri

Pammie's IP

Paper Funday

Paperminutes

Word Art Weds

     I'll have another post this afternoon, so be sure to stop by again.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Champagne Mice

      Another day, another Valentine!  Back to Penny Black stamps today and this is another 'new to me' which I got in the batch of stamps from my neighbor who has been clearing out her craft supplies and I was the happy recipient of more than a dozen stamps and a few dies.  

      Although I think this stamp was designed for a wedding or anniversary card, I think it worked as well for a Valentine.  In any case, between the 'new to me' stamp and the love theme, it's definitely a celebration of a New Beginning!

     The image was colored with water color paints, then cut with one of my oldest dies from Spellbinders.  Both of the paper frames were cut with larger dies from that same set.  In the interest of keeping it very CAS, all I did was layer them together and call it finished.  :-D

     Challenges:

CRAFT-alnica

Creative Knockouts

Creative Inspirations

Dream Valley

Outlawz Thursday

Paper Shelter

Penny Black Sat

Polkadoodles

Simon Says Stamp

     That's all I have for today but I'll probably have two different posts tomorrow so be sure to visit again.  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Purr-fect Love

      This is a card with no stamped or digital images, just die cuts and a sentiment.  Vey simple, really, and pretty clean, too, so CAS?  ;-D  

     The circles were cut with dies from Dare2BArtzy, the cats were done with Poppy Stamps dies, and the hearts came from Memory Box dies.  Everything except the card base came from scraps, including the small strip of dp featuring the sentiment (DCWV.)  The sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die.

     I was inspired to try this by the new Outlawz "No Stamps" Challenge.  It started on the 15th of this month and runs through the 14th of next month.  

     Challenges:

Crazy for Cats

Creations in Pink

Creative Fingers

Digi Choosday

Inspiration Station

Simon Says Stamp

SUYP Cats

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

You Make Me Smile

      Another fun Valentine card with a Single Rose image and a sentiment which are from Beccy's Place.  I had printed them together but it was quite a while ago and I found them in the folder labeled 'Ready for Coloring.'  I knew I could turn them into a Valentine card so colored with ProMarkers (as close as I could get to the pre-colored image by Beccy but a bit more pastel), then fussy cut them into one piece.

     I looked through the scrap basket and found a left over, negative, die cut (Lawn Cuts from Lawn Fawn) of the hearts.  The pink CS was embossed with my Linen EF.  For the card front, I chose deep, garnet-color, metallic, 'mirror' paper.  Everything was layered together in an eye-pleasing design and that made one more card for my Valentine stash.

     I had a lovely rose bush with roses just this color for several years but I had to leave it behind when I moved into my current home.  Still, it reminds me of the years spent in that house so I do love it.

     Challenges:

Birthstone

Die Cut Divas

Heart's Quest

Lawn Fawnatics

Morgan's ArtWorld

Not2Shabby

Pammie's IP

Papercraft

Your Scrapbook Place

     Well, I certainly have fallen behind on getting my full year's worth of birthday cards made this month, but maybe I'll just get the ones done for the February birthdays, and do the rest of the year next month.  I've just gotten some additional requests for Valentine cards by the batch (to be donated to a group putting together care baskets for local homeless families with children which will be distributed through a shelter on Valentine's Day) so I'm going to have a total of about 50 Valentine cards.  

  

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Musical Love

      This is another card made with an image from the Heart and Soul set at Gecko Gals.  It's such a CAS card and was so quick to make.  I printed the image, colored the two tiny hearts with red ProMarker, and fussy cut the shape.  

      The sentiment was printed and cut with an Avery Elle die.  I layered everything onto a scrap of black CS and put that onto an A2 card base.

     Challenges:

Colorful Options

Creative Fingers

Gecko Gals FB

Heart's Quest

Let's Craft & Create

Mirtillamente

Papercraft

World Wide DT 

     Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Fishing for a Valentine

      I'm going a little crazy this month with Penny Black stamps but a neighbor was clearing out  her craft room and doing an early "spring" cleaning, and she decided that her stamping days were over.  Consequently, I was the happy recipient of a load of stamps, many of which had cute Penny Black critters suitable for Valentine cards.  Can you believe this one had never been used?  How could anyone resist?  I guess  in a way that makes it not only 'new to me' but actually new.  :-D

     The image was colored with a combo of water color paints and ProMarkers, then cut with a stitched and scalloped die from Memory Box.  The sentiment was fussy cut.  I found a crap of that sparkly, mesh ribbon in my stash, wrapped it around a red card blank, and added both the image and the sentiment.  A really simple and fast card.

I chose colors from My Favorite Things and 

used all of them in coloring the image.

     Challenges:

C.R.A.F.T.

Crafty Catz

Outlawz Thurs

Pammie's IP

Penny Black Sat

Penny's P-C

Simon Says Stamp

Simon Says Weds

Word Art Weds

     That's it for today!  Happy Crafting.  NanaConnie

Flowers for a Valentine

       I had so much fun making this DT card for the January Challenge at Conie Fong.  Our theme is Anything Goes using a Conie Fong image.  The image I chose is called "Feeling Fabulous" and I colored her in pinks and reds for a Valentine card, although she's no made as as Valentine image.  Isn't she an adorable little ragamuffin?

     She's colored with water colors and ProMarkers, a combination I love.   I used a Tonic Studios die to cut the image and the pink mat, which I embossed with my Linen die.  The corners of the image were punched with a Fiskars die and it was layered onto a scrap of black CS.   Following the sketch at Sketch Saturday, I began putting the card together, adding little die cut bits (Memory Box) to the upper and lower corner of the framed image.  

Sketch Saturday

     Challenges:

Ally's Angels

Creations in Pink

Die Cut Divas

Lil Patch of ...

Pammie's IP

Papercraft

Polkadoodles

Taylormadecards ...

There's a Stamp ...

     Happy Crafting.  Come play with us this month.  NanaConnie