Wendy's having a birthday!

...and Wendy has a lot of friends who are joining together for a surprise birthday hop today. I was a little eager on Tuesday and accidentally posted early, so hopefully I didn't spoil the surprise, Wendy!

For my birthday, Wendy sent the most adorable card with this fabulous message...

Nancy! I hope you have an amazing birthday! Do what I would do...turn off the phone, get a good movie, a bit of wine...and STAMP! lol

Wishing you all of this and more, Wendy. I created a miniature faux leather shopping bag for your card and tucked in a bottle of white and red (my images coloured with copics and prismacolors with gamsol)! The sentiments "ENJOY!" and "You deserve it!" are from the Whimsical Wishes set Enjoy! at Taylored Expressions. People are catching on that I don't often 'send' cards but this one is on its way!!

Check out this list of talented friends! Barbara is your next stop and then...

Karen Motz - Paper Playhouse

Dana White - Dana’s House of Cards

Jodi Collins - Stamping a Latte’

Linda Heavens - Heavens Created This

Charlene Austin - Willow & Paisley

Lisa Henke - My Little Creative Escape

Jackie Pedro - The Scalloped Edge

Joanne Basile - Just a Little Something

Cath Groden - Paper Expressions

Jessica Rone - Can You Say Addicted to Stamps?

Jody Morrow - Confessions of a Ribbon Addict

Regan D’Agostino - Stampy McStamperson

Cindy Haffner - Cindy Haffner’s Corner

Amy Rohl - Ink About Me

Christina Fischer - Flowers and Ink

Nancy McKinney - Card Worthy

Barbara Anders - Paper Pursuits

Kim Van der Sanden - My Favorite Things

Jeanie Witmer - The Spotted Chick

Frances Byrne - Stamp Owl

Susan Liles - Susie Stampalot

Elaine Hughes - Quixotic Cards

Paula Williamson - Paper Possibilities

Megan Lock - Megan Lock Designs

Eva Dobilas - For the Love of Life

Pauline Godfrey - Pauline’s Card Cupboard

Jen del Muro - I Heart 2 Stamp

Michele Boyer - Paper Cuts

Maria Fiscella - Maria’s Craft Room

Melody Rupple - A Paper Melody

Julie Dinn - Kreative Jewels

Deanna Woodland - Dee’s Paper Tree

Rhonda Ziemer - Pickles Cards

Cheers!!

~Nancy

January Sneak Peeks at Taylored Expressions!

I'm so happy to finally have some time to create and be a little part of the HUGE January release at Taylored Expressions. Today Taylor's team is showcasing the newest petite set I illustrated, Wreath of Love, and coordinating Seasonal Wreath Die, Basic Bow Die and Hearts Impression Plate.

I wanted to highlight the hearts on the wreath and the sweet nest of love in this petite set, so I coloured and cut the hearts out of a second stamped image and popped some of them up along with the love birds. I also added seed beads randomly on the wreath, flowers and scalloped heart border. Just simple and hopefully sweet...

All of the wonderful new stamps, dies and goodies you'll see today and throughout this week will be available for purchase Friday morning at 8AM (PST). Check out the Baker's Dozen for inspiration!

Charmaine Ikach Danielle Lounds Donna Baker Jackie Pedro Jodi Collins Karen Giron Melissa Sauls Regina Mangum Sankari Wegman Tori Wild

Jami Sibley Taylor VanBruggen

Thanks for stopping by!

~Nancy

Happy Birthday, Dana!!

I was planning to be back with something more creative for Dana by now but I spent the afternoon in emergency with my little guy Henri. Since his bone marrow transplant, we've had at least three visits like this when he gets severe abdominal pain...so more tests tomorrow and no creative juice until we get past this one. Anyway, Dana's friends have wonderful cards to share today along the hop Karen organized for her BFF today...

Karen Motz - Paper Playhouse

Leslie Good - card will be shown on Karen’s blog

Wendy Bond - Bond Girl Bliss

Elaine Hughes - Quixotic Cards

Linda Heavens - Heavens Created This

Joanne Basile - Just a Little Something

Jodi Collins - Stamping a Latte

Paula Williamson - Paper Possibilities

Ebru Vatansever - My Scrapbooking and Craft Journal

Ann Kranitz - Stamp with Me

Janet Rossi - Corrosive Creations

Jeanie Whitmer - The Spotted Chick

Cath Groden - Paper Expressions

Michelle Leishman - Miche L Designs

Dana White - Dana’s House of Cards <--the birthday girl!!

Until a little later this week...

~Nancy

More sheep-December Release Day at Taylored Expressions

So I mentioned I’d have something to say about my experience in Scotland with sheep. Come to think of it, it may have been Wales—it was a long time ago...when I was an elementary school kid and we were on summer holidays in Great Britain. I remember sitting in a cafe (probably a pub) and watching the silly sheep grazing out in a marshy field only to have the tide come in and the sheep stranded...standing on any patch of higher ground they could find. Now wouldn’t you think these sheep would have been through this before and might have know not to graze in a loch?! Anyway, the sheep in Knit Wit is inspired by the sheep of Great Britain.

Thought I’d share another card with the sheep and her friend on their little patches of grass.

I’ve used the large scallop border die and the flowers and sentiment from Friendship Blooms. Now that I’m a McKinney (well, actually Ferguson McKinney), I have an attraction to all things Irish. These little blooms remind me of shamrocks with an extra petal. I’ve stamped both the solid and outlined image with chalk ink and cut out the flowers with the coordinating Friendship Blooms die. I coloured the half pearls with copics before placing them in the centres of each flower.

Check out what the Baker’s Dozen has to show you today...

Charmaine Ikach

Donna Baker

Danielle Lounds

Jackie Pedro

Jami Sibley

Jodi Collins

Karen Giron

Karen Motz

Melissa Sauls

Regina Mangum

Sankari Wegman

Tori Wild, and

Taylor Van Bruggen

Thanks for looking.

~Nancy

Crafty Petites!-Day 2 of December Sneaks at Taylored Expressions

It’s Day 2 of December sneaks at Taylored Expressions! These next Whimsical Wishes ‘crafty petite’ sets WARM MY HEART!! Taylor will tell you all about them, but I think they are the perfect little gift for your crafty friend or someone you are trying to convince that stamping is pure pleasure. Can you believe some people need convincing? I used two of the four mini sets being released this month for my cards today—Knit Wit and Kitchy Kitchen. First up...

Sometimes a person is ‘feeling a little loopy’...so this card sympathizes! The sheep and sentiment are from the Knit Wit Crafty Petite set. I used the letterpress technique and a new Cuttlebug embossing folder (part of the Give A Hoot Embossing Bundle). This is really so easy—just brayer pigment ink all over the raised portion of the folder, sandwich your cardstock as you normally would and roll through your machine. I liked the result so much that I didn’t want to cover up too much, so I cut a window and stamped the sentiment on velum paper with Staz On ink. The sheep is coloured with prismacolors and then I couldn’t resist using liquid appliqué on him (or her). I’ll share a story about my experience with sheep in Scotland tomorrow...

I like to knit. I just don’t have much time for it and often don’t finish what I start. These little miniature swatches are so much fun and easy to finish...well, even when they’re not finished, they’re super cute on a card with toothpick knitting needles (I knit with regular needles and then transfer the stitches onto the toothpicks). The sentiment “you warm my heart” is from the Kitchy Kitchen Crafty Petite set. I’ve paired it with a snowflake from Winter Wonderland, embossed with white embossing powder and cut with the coordinating snowflake die. I arranged the dangling yarn pieces to create a heart.

Check out the Baker's Dozen today to warm your heart some more...

Charmaine Ikach

Donna Baker

Danielle Lounds

Jackie Pedro

Jami Sibley

Jodi Collins

Karen Giron

Karen Motz

Melissa Sauls

Regina Mangum

Sankari Wegman

Tori Wild, and

Taylor Van Bruggen

Thanks so much for looking...

~Nancy

Friendship Blooms-Day 1 of TE Sneak Peeks

Today is the first day of sneak peeks for December at Taylored Expressions! Taylor's Baker's Dozen and I are showcasing one of the newest Whimsical Wishes sets—Friendship Blooms, which coordinates with a set of four flower dies and a die for the leafy branch too. I have two cards to share...

First, I can’t resist any stamp set that has coordinating dies! I’ve cut three of the four flowers in felt and used some of the other treats in store for you later this week (notice the border and backgrounds?). Just bright and cheery and super easy!

My next card uses the leafy branch in the set, stamped randomly in versamark and embossed with clear detail embossing powder on my background paper (Basic Grey Marjolaine 6x6 paper pad). Oops...I’ve done it again—you’ll hear more about the scalloped borders I’ve used later this week. Sorry to tease! The sentiment and leafy branch on my focal panel are stamped in Memento rich cocoa and then I used the leafy branch die to cut out the image. I sponged the white panel with chalk ink (the green from the Colorbox ocean breeze chalk ink box). Some half pearls on the border and larger leaves on the image...and that’s it.

Have a fabulous day and be sure to visit the Baker’s Dozen today for inspiration:

Charmaine Ikach

Donna Baker

Danielle Lounds

Jackie Pedro

Jami Sibley

Jodi Collins

Karen Giron

Karen Motz

Melissa Sauls

Regina Mangum

Sankari Wegman

Tori Wild, and

Taylor Van Bruggen

Thanks so much for looking...

~Nancy

Thanks for the birthday hop!

What a wonderful way to start my day! My good friend Karen organized a birthday hop for me. Thanks for the fabulous cards and heart-felt wishes, ladies!

I'd have something to show you, but my most recent card was selected to be published in PaperCrafts May/June 2011 so I can't!! I think I'll sneak some stamping time at some point and head out now for a Starbucks (the kids gave me a gift card) and a long hike with the dog. My hubby gave me a smoky topaz ring (with some help and encouragement from my daughter):

While the smoky topaz is not the same as my birthstone, I like what this site has to say about it. Apparently smoky topaz is the official gem of Scotland (my maiden name is Ferguson so I'm always drawn to anything Scottish). I guess the smoky topaz is actually a quartz so it has powers! Quartz is said to draw out negativity from the wearer as the gemstone absorbs it. It improves mood. It improves the lower organs- digestive and reproductive...I'm not planning to add to the family, but without a gallbladder, good digestion is welcome. There's more...it supposedly raises awareness, clears the mind and enhances reaction time. Overall, it is supposed to help the wearer 'tune in and come to resolution.' Maybe, just maybe, by peering through the smoke, dreams can come true.

Shouldn't everyone have one!!

Thanks for stopping by today. Hope you have a fabulous day!

~Nancy

More TE Sneaks for November

Today’s release day and the team is showing a little of everything now available at Taylored Expressions. I’ve got two more to show using What’s Cookin’ and Enjoy!, the newest additions to the Whimsical Wishes line—the stamps I illustrate.

First, I used Mojo Monday Sketch 156 for inspiration and had some fun with the apron skirt in the set. It's easy to trim along the top of the skirt once it's cut out with the coordinating full apron die. I've coloured the image with copics and prismacolors. Once again, I've used paper from the basic grey june bug paper pad. And maybe you'll recognize the Scalloped Eyelet Border Die I used for the edge of the red cardstock.

I’m probably enjoying one of these right now as this post goes live (that's a 'non-fat latte with a pump of mocha' if I can find one at Disney World)! The coffee cup with the “You Deserve It” label is also from Enjoy!

Guest Designer Mona Pendleton is joining the Baker’s Dozen today too...

• Charmaine Ikach
• Donna Baker
• Danielle Lounds
• Jackie Pedro
• Jami Sibley
• Jodi Collins
• Karen Giron
• Karen Motz
• Melissa Sauls
• Regina Mangum
• Sankari Wegman
• Tori Wild
• Taylor Van Bruggen

Thanks so much for looking...

~Nancy