Spellbinders February Large Die of the Month - Floral Bunny Basket

God's love is wrapping all around you, whether you notice it or not. 

Hey there from Nannyland,

I absolutely loved ushering in the delights of spring with this adorable February Spellbinders Large Die of the Month set.   It's called Floral Bunny Basket and is so amazingly sweet with its textured basket, layered tulips, plump carrots and darling rabbit.  Who doesn't love an adorable bunny butt!!! 

When I imagined the tulips for my basket, I had in mind this fabulous tulip quilt in beautiful bright printed fabric from one of my favorite designers.   I decided to experiment with some of my designer paper pads and create some paper "quilted" tulips. I always enjoy paper piecing and I really like how they turned out.  I added faux stitching to the edges with a black micro pen to carry on the stitchy vibe.  

 

A vellum butterfly, mini dragonfly and gold metallic bow add a little extra personality to my spring scene.  And, of course, it wouldn't be complete without  my usual gems for added sparkle.

The recipients of these cards will be two dear friends, one of whom is obsessed with bunnies. I think this one will definitely make her smile.

I hope I have awakened a bit of your spring spirit, even if you're like me and there's still some evidence of a hard winter outside.  It's a bit rainy here in the desert today and there's new snow on the mountains,  (eek!), but the buds are blooming on the fruit trees outside my window and soon spring will burst through like it always does.  Happy Easter, everyone.

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

I'll just be here blissfully creating until your next visit.

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

                                                                  Playing along with:

Allsorts Week 772

Cut it Up Challenge #299

Crafty Gals Corner Challenge #253

Fab'n'Funky Challenge #591

The Paper Funday Challenge #63

A Place to Start March Challenge

Make My Monday Challenge #221

A Perfect Time to Craft Challenge #3

Daisy Chain Challenge #83

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #74

Classic Design Challenge #3

Lori Whitlock Shaped Card - Glittery Easter Chick

The great gift of Easter is hope.

Basil Hume

Lori Whitlock svg, floral dp, yellow glitter paper, Cricut Maker, pink glitter gem, Nuvo clear glaze

Hey there,

Nothing says Easter like a cute fuzzy (glittery) chick.  I found this adorable svg in Lori Whitlock's store and knew it would be perfect to create  cards  to wish my friends and family a Happy Easter. A little happy mail should be a welcome distraction from  the fact that the Bunny won't be filling their baskets with See's candy this year.  Some of the goodies in my baskets will  include handmade face masks and grocery store gift cards.  And that bunny better wear gloves and a mask when he's hopping around my house.  But some cozy holiday simpatico with family is better than sugar any day.  

 I used my Cricut Maker to cut the pieces for my shaped card, which measures 5 x 7 inches.  The chick is cut out of yellow glitter paper and the small features out of white card stock which I colored with my Copics.  I chose a pretty floral print dp for my card base and lined the inside with a blue card stock panel. My chick is adorned with a pretty gold metallic polka dot bow accented with a glittery pink gem. I used Nuvo clear glaze over the eye to give it shiny dimension. 

I used the Print then Cut feature in Cricut Design Space to create my border sentiment, which I edged with a gold leafing pen.  The inside sentiment is a Hero Arts stamp. 

Thanks for visiting.

Go forth and be thankful for the blessings of Easter.

Nancy 

Playing along with:

Crafty Gals Corner Challenge #206

Paper Funday Challenge #16

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge #266

Always Fun Challenge #157

Crafting Happiness Challenge #43

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #254

Pearly Sparkles Challenge #50

Sparkles Monthly Challenge #126

My Time to Craft Challenge #429

Before and After - Penny Black Vintage Stamp

No matter how long the winter,

spring is sure to follow. 

Penny Black vintage stamp, Tonic Flip Card die, flower and butterfly dies,
white gel pen, lace sticker trim, mounting foam tape, Nuvo drops, designer paper

Hey there,

The blessing of extra time in my craft room lately has meant going down memory lane with some boxes of my very old card creations.  I've kept a few of my originals because I wanted to revisit some of my favorite vintage stamps and do a "before and after" project just to see how far I've come.  I've been stamping since 1995, so things have changed a lot since then. I remember when the advent of heat embossing rocked my world.  This little cutie from Penny Black has always been one of my favorite stamps, and I was excited to dust her off and color her with some pretty pastel copics for spring.

I felt a little constrained because I couldn't size her like I do my digi stamps, but  her smaller size made it possible for me to put her on this  fun flip card with a fancy border that's perfect for some spring blossoms.  

I added the slightest hint of a smile to her face because she's eyeing a pretty butterfly and is obviously delighted to have picked the most humongous flower in the garden. The butterfly and small flowers are die cuts and the flower centers are Nuvo drops.  I also added white gel pen dots to her dress and Stickles to the center of the large flower and the small flower print on her dress. 

I haven't chosen the recipient of  this card yet, so I added a more generic sentiment, but one that I think goes with my image.  

Yikes, here's my first card created almost three decades ago!  What an enlightening and encouraging exercise to document my progression. Time flies and our skills...and tools.. improve. I think I colored her with water color pencils, which I thought were the greatest invention known to man at the time. And a paper crimper was a must in any crafty tool kit. As for embossing folders, well they weren't even born yet.

I challenge you to do a "before and after" yourself.  I'll bet you have some cards you'd like to update with some new techniques and modern savvy. And you probably have a little extra time, for now. 

Thanks for visiting.

Go forth and make something old new again and see how far you've come..

Nancy

Playing along with:

Penny Black Saturday Challenge - March

Retro Rubber Challenge - Tic Tac Toe (bottom across)

Cute Card Thursday - Challenge #627

                                                   Sisterhood of Crafters Spring Challenge

Ellibelle's Crafty Wednesday Challenge - March

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #116

Stinkin' Inkers Challenge - Pastel Palette

Unicorn Challenge #52

Addicted to Stamps and More - Challenge #382

Lil Patch of Crafty Friends Challenge #128

Hippity Hoppity - Easter's on Its Way with Cricut Design Studio and a Dreaming Tree SVG

Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in spring-time.   Martin Luther  

Cricut Design Studio never fails to spark my imagination when I want to personalize a fun svg card design.  There are limitless helpful features to play with, both "tried and true" and new. I used this free svg  from Dreaming Tree to create the base for this whimsical Easter card.  I kept the darling upturned bunny in my layout, sized a wreath from the image library, used the contour feature to remove unwanted cuts and wrote the sentiment with the new curved writing feature to make this card uniquely mine. The flowers were created from small paper punches and embellished with rhinestones and pearls. I sized the card to 5 x 7 and edged the front panel with a gold leafing pen.

The original clever design of this svg has lots of cute die cuts to finish the inside and leaves just enough room for a personal heartfelt message.

Happy Easter, everyone.

Thanks for visiting.
Go forth and create something fabulous.
Nancy




.

Welcome Spring - Penny Black Easter Cuties

“That is one good thing about this world...there are always sure to be more springs.” L.M. Montgomery,  Anne of Avonlea

Penny Black Stamp, copic markers, Spellbinders border die, Cricut cutting, rhinestones, gold leafing pen

Five birthday cards and an Easter card are waiting anxiously in my craft room  to make their debut on this blog, but, as usual,  they'll have to wait until after I deliver them in person to my recipients. No sneak peaks...it's a Nancy rule. That means I have to wait until almost Easter, two weeks away, and then I can post them all at once!  What should I do in the meantime, I asked my self.  It seems like forever since I  created a card just for the fun of it, with no recipient or occasion in mind.  While my mind was occupied with this delightful, relaxing thought,  I heard these stylish little Penny Black ladies calling to me from some dusty shelves.  Some of my original Penny Black images are very old in stamp years but still remain among my faves  These chic little girls bring back such fond memories of Easter Sundays past when all the ladies I knew dressed for church in brand new frilly spring dresses, hats, shoes and gloves.  Sometimes it was still snowing, but those white sandals and patent leather shoes weathered the storm.

 I chose a pop out oval card base and some bright spring hues to update these ageless beauties a bit.  Originally, I put a yellow panel behind them thinking it would be bright and sunshiny, but it just didn't seem to work.  Then I tried a green embossed panel and I wasn't sold either.  I knew a bright sky blue panel always looks great, so I went with that.  Then I noticed my embossed green panel still sitting on my work space. Don't you love when serendipity happens?  I cut a slice of it for grass!  Instant scenery.  I cut the card base and layers on my Cricut and used the writing feature to create the sentiment.  The pretty lacy Spellbinder border is from my stash and I colored the clear rhinestones blue to match my copic coloring. I used my signature gold leaf pen edging to add the finishing touch.

There.  Now I feel better that I have something bright and springy to post while waiting for my birthday and Easter cards to become relevant.  Spring is in the air on this sunny day here in California. Hope you're day is lovely too.

Thanks for visiting.
Go forth and create something fabulous

Nancy

Playing along with:
        Sunday Stamps Challenge #201 - Easter Hues
        Crafty Creations Challenge #387 - ATG
        Crafty Gals Corner Challenge #188 - Spring is Here
        Scrapy Land Challenge #111
        Watercooler Wednesday Challenge #215 - Feminine
        Avenue 613 Create Challenge #219 - Kinetic Card
        Lemon Shortbread Challenge #90 - ATG
        Crafting From the Heart Challenge #240 - ATG
        The Sisterhood of Crafters - Let's Celebrate Spring
        Penny Black and Friends Saturday March Challenge

Shapely Chocolate Bunny - Lori Whitlock Cricut SVG

How can it be Easter already? I always send some Easter goodies to my daughter in Monterey and realized this weekend I had very little time to pull it all together.  Lori Whilock and my Cricut to the rescue!!!  I downloaded this darling shaped chocolate bunny card (5 x 7) in Lori's Shop and cut her out on my Cricut. I  layered  her on a  soft blue gingham background, gave her a Nuvo drop eye,  added a pretty blingy flower to her bow and some grass for her  to bounce in.  I would classify this as a clean and simple card, which is not usually my style, but I think it works well for this soft card.  I was very tempted to add a sentiment to the clean background space but I sat on my hands until the urge subsided.  I actually love CAS cards.  I plan to make more of them.

A simple Easter greeting and a See's gift card tucked inside was all I needed to complete this fun envelope full of happy mail.  Whew...just under the wire.

Thanks for visiting.

Go forth and create something fabulous.

Nancy

Playing along with:

        Always Fun Challenges

        Make My Monday Challenge
        Dragonfly Journeys
        Crafting with Dragonflies
        Papercraft Challenges
        Artistic Inspirations
        Crafty Cardmakers
     

Penny Black Springs Eternal

I've been obsessed with stamping and making cards since the dawn of time...actually about 1995. Stamps, like everything else, seem to go in and out of style.  I can actually look at a stamp and guess pretty close to the age.  But some artwork stands the test of time.  There are several designers whose images I still love.  Penny Black is one of them.  She has a lot of fabulous new stamps  but I actually like some of her older designs the best.  I own several of these little girl stamps, circa about 1998, and I still smile when I color the images.  Water color, colored pencils, markers...you name it...I've used them all and they turn out great.  For this image I used copics and colored pencils.   The card base is a Lori Whitlock center step  SVG cut on my cricut.

The current Retro Rubber Challenge inspired me to get out this cutie and make a spring card. The baby bunny handing the little girl the tulip is adorable, don't you think?


I used the pretty Just Us Girls Challenge colors:

I'm also adding my card to these challenges:

Addicted to Stamps - Not a Square Card

Penny Black Saturday Challenge - Spring

613 Avenue Create - Spring

Thanks for visiting.
Go forth and be fabulous.
Nancy

Tom Holtz Crazy Birds- Richele Christensen Class

An Easter message from a wacky little bird in an Easter hat and bunny ears says it all. I couldn't resist posting this cute bunny from a Richele Christensen class a while ago because he is just so adorable. Richele posted some of these darling Easter birds on Facebook this week and I wanted to make sure you hop on over to her californiaartgirl blog to check out all her gorgeous work.  

I have known Richele since I took classes from her many years ago at the Stamp Art Shoppe and I am one of her biggest fans. She became a designer for Hero Arts during that time and we used to beg her to sign her artwork in their catalog.  What a bunch of shameless groupies!

She now travels all over the country as a Tim Holtz designer/instructor and creates stunning artwork in mixed media and fabric.  Even though she is so accomplished and "famous" she is still a sweet and supportive friend.  To know her is to love her.