Card Worthy

Playing along with TE Sneak Peeks today...

2011-12-01T11:00:00.075-05:00

Today is release day at Taylored Expressions and Taylor and her team are sharing more Petite-A-Palooza inspiration. I've got a simple project and a quick card that I'm sure will come in handy in the next few weeks. I've used images from three new Whimsical Wishes petite sets I illustrated: Moka Kristie, Moka Nora and Snowflake Wreath. Kristie was named after my niece Christi who actually is an amazing hockey player and wouldn't be caught in a pair of white skates! Nora goes way back when I lived in Norway for a year as a teenager. My host family sailed a boat named Nora and I always thought I'd use the name for a daughter. When the time came, we named our gorgeous bright-eyed girl Morgana instead. On to my projects...

I stamped the snowflake wreath with VersaMark and embossed with detail white powder. The skates are stamped on the front panel of the gift card holder (one I created in Silhouette Studio) and then again on white Gina K pure luxury cardstock for the little bit of copic colouring I did. I used my Atyou spica silver pen on the skate blades and eyelets. Inside, I've included the Warmest Winter Wishes sentiment from Moka Kristie. I die cut the snowflake embellishment in wool felt with one of the TE Winter Wonderland Snowflakes dies and added a button and rustic thread to keep with the homespun feel of the patterned paper.

Here's another look at the inside of the holder:

I was able to create another quick card last night using Moka Nora. She's perfect for paper piecing and Jen's deconstructed sketch No.28 helped me pull it together quickly. I've left the card simple... no embossed layers or stitching and fairly flat and mailable!

The holly leaves on her hat are die cut using the Build a Treat Tiny Toppers.

I'm looking forward to see what the Baker's Dozen and friends have baked up for the holidays...

Tori Wild, and

Jami Sibley.

Thanks for looking...

~Nancy

Life is a Dance

2011-11-04T14:30:00.000-04:00

Today my twins turn 13! I can't believe it. I thought I'd share the card I made for Morgana for her birthday using the new Whimsical Wishes set, Life is a Dance, which was just released this week at Taylored Expressions.

I played with the Sizzix Bigz 3-D flowers I've had for some time to create the flower embellishment and placed a fresh water pearl bead in the centre.

The images are coloured with copics and prismacolors. Morgana loved it! Thought I'd share the inside too...

I did make a fun card for Aidan too, but I can't show you...just in case the image is one day in rubber. Well, maybe I can show this much...

; )

Have a fabulous weekend!
~Nancy

Moka Morgana-TE Sneaks for November

2011-11-01T11:00:00.014-04:00

Today's TE sneak peeks for November are especially exciting for me because Taylor and her team are showcasing Moka Morgana and Moka Katie along with a Whimsical Wishes dance set filled with a dancer's dreams, Life is a Dance. Several months ago when the first Moka was released, I shared my inspiration and photos of my daughter Morgana.

Today I've coloured her as a 'blue girl' even though she's an older dancer now in black. I used the Mojo212 sketch from last week and papers from the basic grey marjolaine paper pad. The sentiment, Dance as though no one is watching, has always been one of my favs and is from Life is a Dance. I'll be using the pointe shoes from this set later this week as Morgana turns 13 on Friday and gets her first pair of pointe shoes on Saturday!

Can't wait to see what Taylor's talented team has created for today...

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

TE Holiday Hoopla Blog Hop

2011-10-25T11:00:00.135-04:00

Taylored Expressions is hosting a Holiday Hoopla today and I'm excited to be a part of it. Hopefully you've arrived here from Danielle's blog. If you didn't (or if you get lost along the way) you can head back to Taylor's Blog for the full list of participants and all of the details. There are 22 designers sharing TE holiday stamp sets and their brilliant ideas. We want to inspire you to get holiday crafting and card making! You'll also get a coupon for 25% off holiday stamp sets at Taylored Expressions!

I'm showcasing one of the Whimsical Wishes sets I illustrated, Totally Tags-Holidays.

My layout is simple and reproducable. I wanted to use the adorable penguin on both a gift tag and a card but without the To/From on the card, so...I inked up only a portion of the image then stamped and cut out the circle. To continue the black ink border around the circle, I just lightly brushed my black copic marker along the edge. I was prepared with the layered snowflake embellishment just in case some of the To/From transferred ink to the paper (as I've shown in the next view). That's my tip--if you make a mistake, EMBELLISH!

I coloured the penguin image with copics and prismacolors with gamsol then added a little glamour dust. The Merry Christmas sentiment comes from Hangin' Out-At the North Pole and I've used the scalloped circle tag die that coordinates with Totally Tags-Holidays and the medium scalloped border. For the tag, which uses the same image, I sandwiched a loop of black baker's twine with a dangling bead between two layers cut using the Take Note Die 3.

I'm also linking back to a few favourite cards using Take Note Holidays and Sparkle & Cheer.

Be sure to check out Taylor's 12 Days of A Handmade Christmas Video Series for lots of easy gift ideas. Use Coupon Code HOOPLA2011 to get 25% off the following holiday stamp sets (released in 2009 and 2010) at Taylored Expressions now through November 2:

Christmas Blessings, Enjoy!, From the Heart, Hangin' Out-At the North Pole, Holiday Wonder, Home Sweet Home, Keeping Tabs, Merry Little Cocktail, Penguin Pals, Season's Sweetings, Sparkle & Cheer, Tag Treats, Tag You're It, Take Note-Holidays, Wings of Joy and Winter Wonderland.

Here are the additional sets and dies I've shown today:

The coupon code is case sensitive. Follow these instructions to apply the discount to your order:

1. Add the desired stamp sets from the above list to your shopping cart.

2. Insert the coupon code into the Promotional Code box.

3. Click the Update Cart button. Your discount should now be applied.

4. Proceed to checkout to finalize and submit your order.

For more inspiration, check out what Stephanie Kraft has to dazzle you with today!

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

It's TE Release Day for October!

2011-10-06T11:58:00.000-04:00

Taylor's team has shown so many inspiring TE projects this week. I just need to find more time in my creative space to have something to share. So today I thought I'd link back to a card that inspired the sentiments in Moka Hope:

I still get time with my iMac and wacom tablet so there are lots of new Whimsical Wishes sets Taylor has in store for you!

Time to check out what the Baker's Dozen has baked up for today:

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

Happy Birthday, TE!

2011-08-29T07:59:00.001-04:00

Just one more week of summer holidays before school starts! My family has kept me so busy that I haven't had any crafting time. I hope to squeeze some in this week after full days at Ontario Place and Canada's Wonderland, but the kids will probably be putting me to bed!

I wanted to wish Taylored Expressions a very happy 3rd birthday and certainly won't miss all of the inspiring creations we're sure to see this week from the Baker's Dozen!

Just for fun, here are some Whimsical Wishes cards I've posted before to celebrate...

Have a cupcake-filled day!
~Nancy

Release Day for August at Taylored Expressions!

2011-08-04T11:00:00.003-04:00

It's release day and everything you've seen this week is now available at Taylored Expressions. Visit Taylor's blog for all of the details. I have a few more cards to share using two of the Whimsical Wishes sets I illustrated for this release: Joy to the Word and Embrace Beauty. I haven't even had a chance to ink up Moka Jane yet and her groovy boots inspired by Melissa's so I'll have more to share next week!

I'll start with my favourite, a paper-pieced angel with birds perched on her outstretched arms...

I stamped her on Gina K pure luxury cardstock and coloured her hair, wings, halo and birds with copics, then stamped her again on patterned paper.

Here's a quick one for colouring. I stamped the bold dragonfly image and loaded the copic colour on. The coordinating background image is from Discover Your Wings stamped in Memento tuxedo black.

And finally, here's the bold butterfly stamped with versafine on patterned paper and dusted with glamour dust.

Enjoy the last day of sneak peeks for this release!

Tori Wild,

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

Day 3 of TE Sneak Peeks for August!

2011-08-03T11:00:00.014-04:00

I'm fixin' to show you some Day 3 sneaks for Taylored Expressions today! {Did I get that right, Melissa?} We've got Western Mokas, Jesse and Jane, and a fun coordinating set, Wild West. I also illustrated a few other Whimsical Wishes goodies that some of the Baker's Dozen will be showing too. I had one of those creative nights when my cards just turned out the way I imagined them! Here they are...

First, I went totally clean & simple with one layer and I LOVE IT!

I stamped the prickly saguaro cactus image and sentiment directly on my kraft card base and coloured with prismacolors and gamsol. The rattlesnake is stamped on Gina K pure luxury and coloured with copics and prismacolours, cut out and popped up. I teased my husband that I could just have this card ready to give and re-give him when needed.

Although my layout is simple on this next one, there's more going on.

I stamped the saloon doors and Jesse on Gina K pure luxury cardstock and had lots of fun colouring with copics and prismacolors. I cut away the door opening and stamped 'Howdy' and 'Partner' on patterned paper, then popped the scene in front. I used baker's twine to create a lasso embellishment. This would be a great boy birthday or any day card, don't you think? Here's another view of the door open and Jesse sporting his Sheriff's star:

Can't wait to see what the Baker's Dozen dreams is fixin' to do today!

Tori Wild,

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

Day 2 of TE Sneak Peeks for August!

2011-08-02T11:00:00.053-04:00

Today's day 2 of sneak peeks at Taylored Expressions and the Baker's Dozen is showcasing another Whimsical Wishes set, Embrace Beauty, along with other stamp sets and goodies. Embrace Beauty combines images from nature framed in bold circles (sized to cut using nestabilities) with elegant sentiments.

I played with the same layout and images to create two very different clean & simple cards.

For this first one, I stamped the focal image in VersaFine onyx black ink. I find VersaFine gives the best detail and boldness when I don't want to use copics or gamsol. I thought I'd try ink 'debossing' for my background using the new Musical Swirls Taylored Impressions Plate. Instead of using a brayer, I just smudged the white pigment ink lightly on the impression plate before running the layered sandwich through my Big Shot. I've used my Forest Branches Cuttlebug embossing folder to repeat the tree/bark theme and used my Martha Stewart woodland branch edge punch for the bottom edge. This card just seems so peaceful to me.

Here's essentially the same layout in a different colour scheme. I used Tim Holtz distress ink in walnut stain for a rich, bold brown image and sentiment.

Check out what Taylor's talented team is up to today!

Tori Wild,

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

Day 1 of TE Sneak Peeks for August!

2011-08-01T11:00:00.010-04:00

Today Taylor's Baker's Dozen is sneaking peeks of a very special Giving Tree set benefiting Angel Tree—Joy to the World. This is my new favourite Whimsical Wishes set that I've illustrated and I see so many possibilities for cards, tooth fairy pillows, ornaments,.... I have two cards today, which feature the same sweet angel.

First, here she is with her pocket of hearts.

I stamped and masked the pocket before stamping the angel on patterned paper. Her head and halo were stamped on Gina K pure luxury cardstock and coloured with copics. The blue panel is dry embossed with the new Musical Swirls impression plate, which has whimsical swirls on one side and a musical score on the reverse. I've also used my Taylored medium scallop and hearts border dies but kept the overall card simple.

Well, here's the same precious angel but this time she's holding the wreath heat embossed in silver.

I used a versamarker to heat emboss her halo after colouring her with copics. I also used a trick I learned from Taylor and coloured white half pearls with copics to match my colour scheme.

Can't wait to see what Taylor's talented team has created with these precious angels...

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

2011-07-01T11:00:00.009-04:00

It's release day at Taylored Expressions and everything you've seen Taylor's Baker's Dozen showcase this week is now available in store. I have one more card to share using Birds of a Feather.

I was inspired by Jami and Regina yesterday and used one of the birdhouses in the set as a hot air balloon and the perch as the basket (so clever, ladies!!). Surprisingly this card was incredibly quick. I stamped the birdcage and sentiment in momento rich cocoa ink on the rustic cream panel and then again on the patterned paper. The lines to the basket are just drawn in with a fine LePen brown marker and ruler.

Can't wait to see more sneaks from this talented line up...

Tori Wild,

Have a Happy Canada Day and a fabulous long weekend!
~Nancy

Day 2 of TE Sneak Peeks for July!

2011-06-30T11:00:00.024-04:00

Today I'm sharing just a very small peek at the stamps and goodies available tomorrow at Taylored Expressions. From the Whimsical Wishes lineup and new Mokas, I have a card using images and coordinating dies from Birds of a Feather, a set of bird cages, birds and sentiments, and the new Taylor Moka.

First, I stamped the branch, chain and sentiment THINKING OF YOU in momento rich cocoa and the bird cage in a combination of SU kiwi kiss and PTI simply chartreuse then cut out the image. I used the branch die to cut out the complete branch but then trimmed off and used only the leaves. The scalloped border and wee birds are cut from TE dies too.

My next card featuring Taylor Moka follows the June SFYTT sketch. I don't think for a moment that this Moka looks like Taylor, but this seemed to be Taylor's favourite little dress from the collection. Maybe this is Taylor before she grew so tall!

I paper-pieced the sweet dress, hairband and purse and coloured her skin and with copics and prismacolors. Don't look too closely or you'll see how much bronzer she used today--I had already worked with the prismacolor pencils so no going back!! To bring the greens together, I inked the paper edges with bundled sage distressed ink. This is the perfect card for my niece who just graduated from her elementary school.

Thanks for looking today! Make sure you check out the Baker's Dozen 'cause there's so much to see...

Tori Wild,

Day 1 of TE Sneak Peeks for July!

2011-06-29T11:00:00.048-04:00

Today is the first day of July sneak peeks for Taylored Expressions and I'm sharing two cards using In the Clouds, which I illustrated for the Whimsical Wishes line. In the Clouds is a fun set of festive blimps, baskets, banners and happy sentiments for every occasion. Taylor and her team will also be showing coordinating dies and cloud impression plates, but I'm still waiting for the mail to clear after the Canada Post strike. Postal strikes seem so long when you're waiting for stamping goodies to arrive!!

First, I stamped 8 of the images in the set in the 'air' and coloured and popped up my focal blimp and sentiment "flying by to say hi!" Thought I'd try a little dry brushing around the edges with white acrylic paint to create an 'in the cloud' look. I used the Cloud Duo die to cut felt clouds and stitched them together for a border.

When I'm illustrating a set I often find ways to use the images that aren't really their original purpose. For my next card, I rotated one of the smaller blimps to create a submarine and paired it with 'Happy Birthday.'

I spotted this clean & simple sketch when Jodi used it this week and I've also seen a lot of black cards lately. Love the look! I've coloured my sub with copics and prismacolors with gamsol and created bubbles with half pearls. I also used crystal effects on the submarine windows but the picture doesn't really show the detail.

Can't wait to see what these talented gals have dreamed up 'in the clouds'...

Charmaine Ikach,

Danielle Lounds,

Melody Rupple, (Congrats on joining Taylor's team, Melody!)

Tori Wild,

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

Release Day for June at Taylored Expressions!

2011-06-03T11:00:00.003-04:00

It's release day at Taylored Expressions and I have three cards to share using Whimsical Wishes stamps and new goodies available today in store. I'll start with my favourite...

I've stamped the sandcastle, umbrella and 'Enjoy' sentiment from A Day in Paradise in Momento tuxedo black ink, coloured the image with copics and prismacolors, and paper pieced the umbrella. I've embossed the pink panel with the new Woodgrain Impression Plate but I don't think the photo clearly shows the texture.

Next up, I wanted to play with Michelle Zindorf's style but sponged instead of using a brayer.

I stamped the sailboat from A Day in Paradise in Brilliance ink and embossed with clear detail powder then went over the areas I wanted to remain white with my versamarker and embossed again. Holding a sticky note in place for the horizon, I sponged with SU melon mambo, Worn Lipstick and Spiced Marmalade distressed inks, and finally, SU baja breeze and pacific point. Then I flipped the sticky note and repeated the same colours in the opposite direction. I need to work on this technique but my son Aidan loved this card! The borders are cut with the new Waves Border Die and the Large Scallop Border Die.

And finally, when I was designing the new Chicken Wire Impression Plate, I thought immediately of the Whimsical Wishes set Favorite Peeps.

I've embossed the pink panel with the new Chicken Wire Impression Plate, and stamped the chick from Favorite Peeps and the sentiment from Chillax. The zig zag border is what you get when you cut with the Heart Border Die (thanks for the tip, Karen and Jodi!)

Can't wait to see the Baker's Dozen's creations today!

Tori Wild,

Jami Sibley, and

Guest Designer Amber Hight

Thanks for stopping by!

~Nancy

Christmas in June-Day 3 of TE Sneak Peeks for June

2011-06-02T11:00:00.028-04:00

I'm playing along and giving a sneak peek at the new Patriotic Wreath petite set I illustrated for the Whimsical Wishes line. I'm sure you'll see true American pride and patriotism as you hop along with the Baker's Dozen today, but I thought I'd try something completely different to show the versatility of the starry wreath. For a little Christmas in June, I've teamed up the wreath with lots of TE goodness you might already own...

I followed Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch fairly closely and added lots of layers. Using the colour scheme from the KaiserCraft Christmas Carnival paper, I coloured the stars pink, blue and a salmony red with copics and my French Grey 70% prismacolor pencil for shading. I cut the wreath with the Seasonal Wreath die and used it to frame the "Be Merry and Bright" sentiment from Sparkle and Cheer. I've also used the Leafy branch die and Stars Impression Plate for added interest.

Can't wait to see what these talented gals have dreamed up for the 4th of July...

Tori Wild, and

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

You're Engaged-Day 2 of TE Sneak Peeks for June

2011-06-01T11:00:00.022-04:00

Today is the second day of June sneak peeks for Taylored Expressions. I'm sharing another new Moka, Charlotte, and an à la carte image I illustrated for the Whimsical Wishes line.

Moka Charlotte has a man, of course, but I left Jack out today to focus on the bride-to-be. Charlotte coloured up quickly with all of that bridal white. I gave her lots of glamour dust on her hemline, bodice and veil. Here's a closeup (you'll even be able to see my mistakes!)...

And here's my second CAS card today using the new WOW You're Engaged! à la carte image.

I coloured the Ws and highlighted the ring with copics, then cut them out so I could add dimension and pop up that ROCK! I embossed the metallic fushia cardstock with my TE Hearts Impression Plate, but otherwise kept the layout and card simple.

Can't wait to see what these talented gals have dreamed up...

Tori Wild, and

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

Summer Fun-Day 1 of TE Sneak Peeks for June!

2011-05-31T11:00:00.042-04:00

Aloha! Today's the first day of TE sneak peeks for June and I'm playing along with some of the stamps I illustrated for this release: A Day in Paradise and a new Moka girl, Lani.

First I've used the Muskoka chairs from A Day in Paradise (or Adirondack chairs if you like) arranged on a dock made of embossed kraft cardstock and facing some fairly wild waves for the cottage! The waves are cut with the new wave border die. I did highlight and shade the chairs with copics and prismacolors but wanted them to be mostly white. The picture might not fully show the embossed woodgrain on the dock using the new Impressions Plate that you'll see more of later this week.

And here's one of the new Mokas for June. Inspired after our fabulous trip to the Big Island and Maui in March, I've called her Lani, which I thought suited her when I learned the name is Hawaiian for "heaven."

My Lani today looks like she has a bit of a dirty tan...maybe she has been at the luau too long! I'm planning to watch more 'colouring hair and skin videos' on YouTube!! I masked her before stamping a palm tree from Hangin' Out-At the Beach in the background and used the new palm tree die to cut another for my frame. Lani and her palm trees are coloured with copics and prismacolors with gamsol.

I won't likely get back to Hawaii soon but I'll be spending lots of time at the family cottage this summer!

Can't wait to see what Taylor's team has dreamed up for summer with these sets:

Tori Wild,
Wanda Guess, and

Jami Sibley.

Thanks for looking.

~Nancy

TE May Blast from the Past Blog Hop Today

2011-05-18T11:00:00.052-04:00

I've got two cards to share for today's TE Blast from the Past blog hop using two of my favourite Whimsical Wishes sets and inspiration from Sankari's sketch. Our challenge this month was to make our cards masculine. When I'm aiming for more masculine designs, I either bring out the grunge or add distress ink and minimal embellishments. Having said that, Steven Tyler redefines all of those notions, doesn't he? Bring on the psychedelic prints, layers, ribbon, feathers, sheer fabric...really anything goes!

I've gone with more traditional 'masculine' with this one though and took only the guitar (from You're My Hero) as inspiration from Tyler.

I shellacked the guitar and inked up the splatter in the background with two colours of ink. I've used shabby shutters distress and SU not quite navy inks together with SU cajun craze cardstock and basic grey wander paper. For my second card, I used the tree, the swinging tire and two sentiments from In the Park:

I've coloured the tree with copics and prismacolors and paired frayed burlap distress ink with SU soft suede cardstock and basic grey marjolaine paper.

Thanks for stopping by along the way!
~Nancy

Release Day for May at Taylored Expressions!

2011-05-05T11:00:00.028-04:00

Release day for May has arrived at Taylored Expressions and you can fill your carts with all of the goodies that Taylor and her team have teased you with this week! I have another card using Moka Jenn, her carriage from Bringing Home Baby and Karen's sweet Sunday sketch (SSSC114).

I've paper-pieced the buggy and coloured the rest of the image with copics and prismacolors with gamsol. I created masks with a sticky note for the carriage and right wheel and stamped with Momento tuxedo black. Because I ran out of adhesive when I was creating this card, I cranked the panels and smaller pieces through my Xyron. So when I added a little glamour dust, I got more than I wanted!! I'm hoping this gives a better closeup of Jenn and her baby buggy:

Indulge your cravings and check out this talent:
Charmaine Ikach,
Danielle Lounds,
Jackie Pedro,

Jodi Collins,
Karen Giron,
Karen Motz,
Melissa Sauls,
Regina Mangum,
Sankari Wegman,

Wanda Guess,
Taylor VanBruggen,

Tori Wild,
Jami Sibley, and Guest Designer Amber Hight

Thanks for stopping by!
~Nancy

Little Shopper-Day 3 TE Sneaks

2011-05-04T11:00:00.063-04:00

I thought I was excited about yesterday's sneak peeks (well, I was)...but today's stamps that Taylor's Bakers Dozen has to share are quite a thrill for me!! A few months ago I sent Taylor a collection of characters I had been playing with that started with my daughter Morgana. This month Taylor is releasing two of them, Olivia, the little shopper, and Jenn, the mommy-to-be. We've named these characters the Moka Collection and the logo features my Morgana Moka (Mo for Morgana and Ka for Katie who you'll meet sometime soon). Morgana loves to dance but has a mom who isn't so good with the required buns, so she always went off to class with a bit of a mop top. I've made it a pretty one for the Mokas though...it just wouldn't pass at Juilliard! Here are some recent photos of my girl and inspiration:

Another Whimsical Wishes set being featured today, It's in the Bag, is also one I REALLY wanted to see in rubber. It started with the bag and the concept for a shopping bag die and went from there with bag labels and cute images for every occasion. Finally to my card! I've used something from both sets—Olivia from the Olivia Petite set and the label and happy birthday sentiment from It's in the Bag. The layout is loosely based on another one of Karen's fabulous and sweet Sunday sketches (SSSC115) and I like the card both ways—with and without the bag:

I stamped the sentiment Enjoy a Fabulous Day! inside and love the look of the Moka girl stamped black on kraft...

I followed Karen M's steps for paper-piecing, which really add dimension, and coloured Olivia's hair and skin with copics and prismacolors. I find shading the paper pieces with French grey 70% creates the look I want. I love this SU rich razzleberry and have teamed it with scraps of purple and blue from basic grey's kioshi paper pad and Bo-Bunny's a gift of love sophie dot paper. The tissue in the bag is really just a scrap of fabric.

I couldn't get to the Summer Wreath today, but I'll be back tomorrow with more. Time to check out the Baker’s Dozen talent...

Tori Wild, and

Thanks for looking!
~Nancy

Bringing Home Baby-Day 2 TE Sneaks!

2011-05-03T11:00:00.039-04:00

I'm so excited about the Whimsical Wishes set Taylor's team is showcasing today—Bringing Home Baby! Taylor and I designed this set to build baby-themed scenes, but the images work well on their own too. My first card shows the diaper bag and sentiment, It's A Boy! (that's my guess on Taylor's challenge). I kept my layout basic and focused on the image, which I coloured with copics and prismacolors with gamsol.

This line-up of baby cuteness is one image plus the sentiment WELCOME HOME BABY:

Again, I coloured with copics and prismacolors and sponged with chalk ink around the edge while the panel was still in the nestabilities frame. I added half pearls to the knobs for dimension.

Two more! For these I wanted to show how to use two of the miniature image collections. When I was illustrating this set, I intended for these ocean-themed creatures and adorable sheep to hang from the mobile but they can also be framed or used on the quilt in the set (I'll be showing that tomorrow).

Enjoy what the Baker’s Dozen has to show today...

Tori Wild, and

Thanks for stopping by on your way...
~Nancy

The lulu-Day 1 of TE Sneak Peeks for May!

2011-05-02T11:00:00.082-04:00

Today I'm sharing a new à la carte image I illustrated for the Whimsical Wishes line...welcome BABY. This is a HUGE release (maybe they'll just keep getting bigger as Taylor's belly grows *WINK*), so I'm sure the Baker's Dozen has LOTS to show today. I have one simple card that combines paper piecing, colouring with copics and a modifed Sweet Sunday sketch (SSSC113):

I added crystal effects to and popped up the 'lulu' (that's what we called it). Imagine a clean, shiny soother out of the package and ready for baby...not the kind that has been sucked, chewed, dropped and used to probe the world around!! I thought I'd share a few favourite pictures of my Henri when he was smaller with his lulu...

He loved that thing and only parted with it last summer when we launched it on a rocket at the cottage! Here are the Taylored impression plates and dies I've used on my card today:

Can't wait to see what the TEDT has created for today...

Wanda Guess, (Congrats, Wanda!!)

Taylor VanBruggen,

Tori Wild, and

Jami Sibley.

Thanks for stopping by on your way...
~Nancy

Babies and Bears-TE Customer Hop for April

2011-04-20T11:00:00.052-04:00

I'm excited to be your next stop after Dawn Barghorn's Paper Paradise along the Taylored Expressions customer blog hop for April. I actually have two cards I made with today's challenge in mind. We were asked to keep it 'clean & simple' and use one of Sankari's fabulous sketches if we wanted inspiration. So this is what I've got...

I've used the onesie, star and CONGRATS sentiment from Hangin' Out and tried my first air-brushing. I found Leigh O'Brien's cloud backgound tutorial helpful and her creations totally inspiring as you'll see in my second card below. This actually is close to Sankari's sketch but rotated to the left 45°. Since I was going with 'clean & simple' I worked with last week's splitcoast CAS114 inspiration challenge too.

To make my cloud pattern I just created ovals and circles in various sizes in my Silhouette software and welded them together then cut on cheap cardstock (the stuff I give my kids). I added a little white flock to the stars, which might be tricky to see in the photo. To create my own custom blue cardstock, I coloured a white scrap with the same copic marker I used for the blue onesie and then stamped the sentiment. The clothesline is a great use for all of the divine twine I now have in assorted colours!!

Why did I create two cards for today? I thought this next one was more a CASE than a CAS card. I loved Leigh O'Brien's baby bear, and well, you know I have bears and balloons of my own! The balloons are cut with the Make a Wish Balloons dies and this sweet bear is from Hangin' Out too. The sentiment is from In the Park. I used a slightly different cloud template and shade of blue copic but the same technique. Thanks Leigh!

Next stop...Jess Willison's Farm Fresh Designs! And I think those farm fresh designs are from Ontario too. ;)

~Nancy

Release Day for April at Taylored Expressions!

2011-04-07T11:00:00.027-04:00

Today everything the Baker's Dozen has shown you this week is available for purchase! I have one more card to share using images from Dream Big and one of my favourite bears from Beary Special. I've also used the whimsical side of the new Stars Impression Plate, which is now in store too!

I coloured my bear with copics and prismacolors and teamed him with softly stamped stars and the sentiment "Dream" from Dream Big. Thought I'd get right to April's SFYTT since I missed the cut off for March and I've followed the sketch for my layout fairly closely with one exception. Since the embossing plate embosses an area of 4.5" x 5.75" and I wanted to emboss a 5.25" square panel I've tucked the open seam behind the dotted patterned paper panel. A little sponging with distress ink in Frayed Burlap, stitching, buttons and clouds cut with my TE cloud duo dies.

Here are the Taylored impression plates and dies I've used on my card today:

Can't wait to see more gorgeous creations from Taylor and her team...

Tori Wild,

Cindy Lawrence, and

Jami Sibley

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

Day 2 of TE Sneak Peeks for April

2011-04-06T11:00:00.008-04:00

Today is the second day of sneak peeks for Taylored Expressions and the Baker's Dozen has lots to showcase. I'm sharing the à la carte image I illustrated for the Whimsical Wishes line in time for Mother's Day:

Inspired by the colours in this basic grey june bug paper, I coloured the image with copics and prismacolors and popped up and paper-pieced the cup and saucer. A little sponging, stitching and glitter....and I'm ready for Mother's Day!

Can't wait to see what these talented gals have cooked up...

Tori Wild, and friends

Iwona Palamountain

Jami Sibley.

Thanks for stopping by...

~Nancy

Day 1 of TE Sneak Peeks for April!

2011-04-05T11:00:00.013-04:00

It's that exciting time for me again...sneak peeks of new additions to the Whimsical Wishes line: Treasure Life, Dream Big and an Apothecary Shelf à la carte stamp that works with Treasure Life and so many other TE stamps. Treasure Life, a collection of jars and fillers also has coordinating dies. Dream Big, a versatile set for the graduate, has a coordinating Taylored Impression plate with two different star patterns. All of the goodies Taylor and the Baker's Dozen are showing today and in the next few days will be available for purchase on Thursday morning at 8am PST.

I seemed to be on a roll as I worked with Treasure Life so I've got three cards to show you. First, I thought I'd play along with a few challenges so I used Jen's SFYTT sketch for March and the bell jar, nest and TREASURE life sentiment from the set:

I coloured the image with copics and prismacolors with gamsol then applied Flower Soft to soften the treasure. I followed the sketch but angled the background panel instead of my focal image—just seemed to work for me. Love this Little Yellow Bicycle paper (TWIG)!

Next up, I used Karen's Sweet Sunday Sketch—just look how closely I followed your sketch, eh Karen?!

I also played with Melissa's signature shabby chic style with a doily and distress ink. The Free 4 All Friday challenge this week is Home Sweet Home, so I also had that challenge in mind when I used the conch and Enjoy your new home sentiment from the Treasure Life set.

And one more for Treasure Life today...

I masked two jars, the shell filler and the conch to decorate the apothecary shelf stamped on Basic Grey Olivia paper. The card is intended to be a birthday gift in itself—I created a pull out drawer for a tiny treasure (hope you can see that) and now I just have to find the perfect little thing for a special someone. The jars and conch are coloured with copics and prismacolors, then glazed with crystal effects.

I kept my card featuring Dream Big simple today:

Although the set has 26 images I've used only two and repeated the cap on the background panel and then on the focal image with the sentiment Hats off to you! Very simple; very quick; good for guys and gals!

Can't wait to see what Taylor's talented team has created for today...

Tori Wild, and

Thanks for stopping by along the way...

~Nancy

Guess who made the cover of PaperCrafts?

2011-04-01T15:58:00.005-04:00

Well, I didn't...but my card did! Mine is the top "sewing mends the soul" card. I found this image online but don't have my copy yet. Can't wait!!

~Nancy