Waltzing Mouse Sketch Challenge

Here's my card for Claire's sketch challenge over at Waltzing Mouse. The prize is huge--one of each of the 8 sets being released this Saturday! Who wouldn't want to win this and good luck to everyone.

My card was a quickie because I used one of Claire's digi images, changed the colour of the shamrock in my software and added a fine border before printing on TE choice snow white cardstock and going to town with layers of circles cut out with nestie circles. I trimmed around the inner edge of the shamrock to exclude it when cutting the circle. The 'IRISH Blessings' sentiment is printed on the inside of the card and shows through the window. Some stitching, jillibean soup paper (coordinating white bean paper) and Papertrey Ink buttons...that's it!

Times up, so please forgive my photography. I may get a better picture in daylight.

Thanks so much for the sketch and opportunity, Claire!

~Nancy

a rainy day

I created both this umbrella image and card last week when it was rainy and overcast.

I printed my umbrella image on SU very vanilla and PTI lemon tart cardstock, coloured the handle and raindrops with copics and prismacolors and cut out the lemon umbrella before embossing with my cuttlebug. Just a simple layout, dotted edge with a Martha Stewart edge punch and some sewing. I'm considering offering digital images on Etsy...would anyone be intersted in this umbrella and sentiment (sorry to have to ruin it with a watermark)?

I'd love to hear what you have to say about buying and using digi images because I have lots of them to share with you!!!

~Nancy

Bellarific Valentina

I'm finding time to stamp these days, so here's my take on today's Friday bellarific sketch challenge using Valentina from Stamping Bella.

It's not quite the style I'm trying to achieve these days but I think it works for Henri's next birthday party for one of the girls in his Kindergarten class. I rotated the sketch and layered it up like a birthday cake. Since my colouring with copics and prismacolors was a little dark, the Spica glitter pens helped. I wish my picture captured the sparkle and contrast a little better.

Thanks for looking!

~Nancy

More CreativiTEA

Although I'm not part of sneak peeks today, I do have two cards using CreativiTEA and Miniature Motifs, new Whimsical Wishes sets now available at Taylored Expressions. My first card is quite simple and uses one of the patterns from Miniature Motifs to create the pink patterned paper for the border and teapot. My layout and use of buttons was inspired by Becky Oehler's Compose a Card inspiration. For fun, I threaded rustic thread through the sentiment and nestie frame to create the look of a tea bag.



My second card is my favourite. Love the Eleanor Roosevelt quote "a woman is like a tea bag...you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water," which I actually just created for the card and printed it before stamping the teacup image twice (once on the sentiment panel and then on textured cardstock) for paper piecing. The teabag is coloured with copics and prismacolors. Sorry to tease, but don't you love that sentiment?! The polka dotted paper is once again from We R Memory Keepers.



Thanks for looking!
~Nancy

Day 2 Peeks at Taylored Expressions!

Back in January, Taylor asked me if I had any ideas about what types of gifts/cards a teacher would want to receive. I wound back time a few years and thought about when I taught Grade 7 and 8. Sure, apples are certainly the traditional symbol for teacher appreciation, and so we’ve included a whimsical apple in these two sets. But as a teacher, I really appreciated thoughtful notes from students and gift cards for things like books and Starbucks. (Isn’t that what everyone wants?!) ...Anything that told me the kids realized I was a REAL person with a REAL life outside of school and perhaps in need of restorative down time. I really feel any image is appropriate for teacher cards—one of my favourites is Branching Out and the swing…it’s all about the sentiments!

So here are my peeks today—a mix of cards fresh from the new Whimsical Wishes release Make the Grade and some favourites from throughout the year paired with Extra Credit, just the perfect sentiment collection for teachers, instructors, parents, grandparents, coaches and role models of any kind…

First, this one could be for my son's fabulous Grade 6 teacher, but in my mind, it's really for my dad who taught geography through his entire teaching career and showed us a lot of the world. I finally got a chance to use one of Karen's sweet Sunday sketches (SSSC63)! I adhered the paper layers together before running the card front through my cuttlebug and nestie pinking circle die. The sentiment "for opening up the world for me" fits perfectly around the globe, which I stamped twice, coloured with copics and popped up. The inside is a happy accident—I ran out of black thread so cut another pinked circle to cover up the unstitched edge.

My next three cards use sentiments from both of today's new sets. I mentioned that one of my favourites for teachers is Branching Out. "You helped me" fits with several different sentiment options in the Extra Credit sentiment set and I've chosen "Grow and Learn" to work with the symbolic tree of learning and life.

"Thanks" and "for believing in me" are two different stamps from the Make the Grade set. Together I think they work well with my favourite backpack bear from Beary Special, which I've paper pieced and coloured with copics. I've used Mojo Monday sketch 133 (MOJO133) for this one and lots of layers! Again I've used paper from the We R Memory Keepers vintage blue collection (peachy keen) and also from the Basic Grey green at heart 6x6 paper pad.

And finally, here's a quick one using "You're Appreciated" from the Extra Credit set and the wild flower background stamp from Discover Your Wings, which I stamped in PTI melon berry and highlighted with vintage photo stickles. The scalloped upper edge and ribbon treatment is an idea from Lisa Johnson's Depth of Life card featured in Stamp It! Cards magazine. Easy, simple and ready for one of my daughter's dance teachers or the many people in our lives who always seem to be there to help.

Can’t wait to see what the Baker’s Dozen has for the teacher's in their lives today… Alex Maldonado, Carolina Butching, Charmaine Ikach, Donna Baker, Jackie Pedro, Jeanie Witmer, Jodi Collins, Karen Giron, Karen Motz, Melissa Sauls, Jami Sibley, Sankari Wegman and Taylor VanBruggen.

Have a good one!

~Nancy

Day 1 of April Sneaks at Taylored Expressions!

Today Taylor and her Baker’s Dozen are showing peeks of two of the newest Whimsical Wishes releases, CreativiTEA and Miniature Motifs. The images are perfect for Mother’s Day, but I think this is a set I’ll use frequently throughout the year for friends and encouragement. I’ve got THREE cards to show you today!

All three cards use papers from the We R Memory Keepers Vintage Blue collection and textured cardstock pad. I coloured the delicate flower image from CreativiTEA with copics and then prismacolors and gamsol. For a change, I put the image on the inside and cut a frame in the card front with my Labels Two nesties.

My next card shows you the outline teapot image (coloured with copics), the nestie-friendly (Labels Nine) frame and punny “Oh my Darjeeling” sentiment.

Finally, keeping the layout simple, here’s a combination of masked images from the 19 image set, coloured with copics and prismacolors. I hope this inspires your “creativiTEA!”

Can’t wait to see what the Baker’s Dozen has cooked up today…

Alex Maldonado

Carolina Butching

Charmaine Ikach

Donna Baker

Jackie Pedro

Jeanie Witmer

Jodi Collins

Karen Giron

Karen Motz

Melissa Sauls

Jami Sibley

Sankari Wegman, and

Taylor VanBruggen