Sweet Picture Perfect Autumn - Spellbinders September 2024 Large Die of the Month

Life starts all over again when it gets crisp in the fall.
F. Scott Fitzgerald

Hey there from Nannyland,

I'm always excited to snag my Spellbinders Large Die of the Month out of my mailbox each month!  I'm never disappointed at the wonderfully designed dies inside the package.  September's gorgeous set of dies called Picture Perfect Autumn contains dies of all sizes and shapes for creating beautiful fall scenes. The sky is literally the limit.  I chose to use a slimline card format to allow me the real-estate to include some fabulous oversized sunflowers in the foreground to give my scene a fun perspective. 

Sponging and Copic coloring work best for me with my die cuts because it's so easy to create just the right color and texture.  It's also much easier for me to cut the dies out using white card stock instead of hunting for just the right color in my huge stash.   

I couldn't help adding lots of Stickles sparkle to the flowers and trees and I think it adds just the right amount of shine and texture to my already cheerful scene.  The bird and mini flowers are dies from some cute Impression Obsession sets I bought many years ago to add dainty details to my nature scenes.  And, of course, I had to add a little bling to my mini flower centers with small gems. 

Happy fall, y'all.  I hope your world is a beautiful wash of stunning warm hues like the ones I see out of my window in my comfy desert home. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.
I'll just be here blissfully creating until your next visit. 
Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)
                                                              Playing along with:

Craft Rocket Challenge #119

Creative Knockouts Challenge #533

Fab 'n' Funky Challenge #603

Sisterhood of Crafters October Challenge

The Paper Funday Challenge #70

A Perfect Time to Craft Challenge #11

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #82

The Creative Crafters #81

A Place To Start October Challenge

Dream Valley Challenge #324

Another Anna Griffin Fashion Show - Anna's Paper Dress Dies

You can be gorgeous at thirty, charming at forty, and irresistible for the rest of your life. 

Coco Chanel

Hey there from Nannyland,

A few weeks ago I posted these Anna Griffin dresses  and mentioned I had created enough to assemble cards through the millennium.  In keeping with that prediction, I have enjoyed being able to come up with adorable cards in a flash.  I couldn't resist posting another fashion show featuring some cards I made for some very sweet ladies I recently visited. I added some small changes to the backgrounds and polished up my inside greeting. 

I cut stylish gold foiled card stock to fit the back panels of my cards and I love the elegance it adds to my projects. 

I saved my original "wardrobe" files in Cricut Design Space so all I had to do was access them and cut them out. 

I had fun shopping for the perfect dresses in my humungous, assorted and very chic stash. 

There are two different options for the bodice of the dress, so it was fun to choosing the style I thought best suited my recipient. 

I fashioned either diamond or pearl necklaces to add a touch of elegance to my outfits. 

For the inside, I used water color dp with gold accents, die cut a layered Hero Arts sentiment and added cute Spellbinders sewing-themed die cuts at the bottom. 

I took this collection to Northern Utah with me for our annual 4th of July celebration and hand delivered them to my darling sister and sister-in-laws.  I loved expressing my love for them in this hand-made-with-love way and, from their reactions,  I think they were a hit.

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

                                                                               Playing along with:

Try it on Tuesday - Make it Colorful

A Cut Above September Challenge

Dream Valley Challenge #321

Crafts Galore Encore Challenge #127

The Crafter's Cafe Challenge #311

Love to Craft Challenge #82

The Creative Crafters Challenge #79

Spellbinders Summer Birdhouse Slimline - Don't Forget to Fly

We ourselves feel what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. 

But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop.  Mother Teresa

 

Hey there from Nannyland,

Recently I asked my artist friend for her opinion on why I love to collect small intricate objects de art and surround myself with them, rather than go for the large generic decorating pieces that are so popular in home decor.  As she dutifully helped me arrange my cherished treasures on shelves, she pointed to the Jane Wooster Scott folk art paintings on my walls that testify to the fact  that I obviously am attracted to detail. In that "eureka" moment, I realized that I really do have a penchant for tiny elements and it shows in my artwork. It become clear to me why I can spend blissful hours coloring fine details on beautiful images and  cutting, sponging and carefully gluing teensy die cuts together without the least bit of tedium. It's a thing. 

Spellbinders dies are perfect for those of us who have a detail obsession, with sets that contain many tiny dies meant to layer for incredible dimension.  I chose the summer birdhouse from my set of Spellbinders seasonal birdhouses to create this sunny coastal setting with a slimline format.  I used curved dies to cut layers of patterned paper sand to layer a playful base for my lighthouse.  The bird comes from a separate Spellbinders die set called  "Sweet Birds on a Branch."  I did a little sponging for shading on the bird house, clouds and fence, but I really prefer a cleaner look with my die cuts so I restrained my urge to shade all the pieces. The cute little flying birds, starfish, shells and fence all come with the birdhouse series of dies.  

I had a blast creating this cute summer scene and am looking forward to using all the fun die cuts that come with the other darling seasonal birdhouses in the set. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

                                                          Playing along with:

Try it on Tuesday Challenge - Small Things

A Perfect Time to Craft Challenge #5

Ally's Angels Challenge #82

Classic Design Challenge #5

Crafter's Cafe Challenge #308

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #76

613 Avenue Create May Challenge

Allsorts Challenge Wk 781

Crafting Happines Challenge #175

Crafts Galore Encore Challenge #123

 

Fancy Dress Slimline - Anna Griffin Paper Dress Dies

Dressing well is a form of good manners.
Tom Ford

Hey there from Nannyland,

I could spend countless hours creating fancy dresses from Anna Griffin's darling paper dress dies.  Oh wait...I DID!  I chose two of the three dies in this adorable set and reacquainted myself with my neglected 6 x 6 double-sided designer paper pads to use for "fabric." I got all giddy choosing coordinating designs for my chic frocks and was obsessed with folding them into stylish origami-style gowns. Zhuzhing them up with lace trim, button gems and elegant jewelry was the frosting on my girly cake. 

I don't own the 3D Anna Armoire die that was designed to hang her dresses, but I wanted mine to take center stage so I checked out the Cricut image library for "Armoire" images.   A pretty layered frame that mimics an armoire was sized to create a background for  my layout.  I chose a dress form instead of a hanger to showcase my designer ensemble and sized it to fit my dress.  

I'm thrilled that I created enough of these adorable dresses to send cards to my friends through the millennium. I can quickly cut the files I have saved in Cricut, change the sentiment in the writing feature, and add my dress to make a card for any occasion.  

I love the gold accent I was able to create in this layered frame.

 My finished image fits a  4 x 9 slimline card with room for embellishing. 

An adorable Spellbinders scissors die cut in silver and a mini flower 

are a cute accent for my sentiment tag.

These first four cards will go my dear talented friends in California to express how much I miss our weekly card making sessions.   Die cutting definitely is taking over a heartfelt place in my maker repertoire. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

                                                          Playing along with:

Crafty Gals Corner Challenge #255

The Sisterhood of Crafters Challenge - Ladies

A Place to Start May Challenge

Get Creative Challenge #131

The Perfect Time to Craft #5

Classic Design Challenge #4

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #76

Pinspirational Challenge #313

Creative Fingers Challenge #277

Pammie's Inky Pinkies Challenge #2418

Polkadoodles Darling Buds Crocus Digi- A Beautiful Day for a Slimline

 Fill your life with adventures, not things.  Have stories to tell, not stuff to show.

 

Hey there from Nannyland, 

I really enjoy using slimline card bases because they offer a wonderful alternative to my usual 5 x 7 cards and afford lots of opportunity for creative design. Most of my favorite die sources have beautiful slimline options and I love collecting them to add to my stash/hoard.  

This pretty Polka Doodles lady is from their Darling Buds collection.  She is called Crocus and I found the digital download in their shop HERE.  After coloring her with Copic markers, I couldn't resist adding small flower dies from my Spellbinders collection to add texture and color to her basket and headdress.  I fussy cut her and adhered her to a slimline background panel which I edged with a gold leafing pen. This layer was attached to the back panel with mounting tape. I die cut and layered four scalloped outer frames for dimension.  My rub on sentiment is framed with a gem-studded hexagon.     

I hope I have inspired you to branch out with your card designs and include a slimline as a delightful option.

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

Creative Knockouts #503 - Favorite Embellishment: die cut flowers

Digi Choosday Wk #35

Path of Positivity Challenge #155 - (Fem/Dimen/die cuts)

A Perfect Time to Craft Challenge #9

Ally's Angels Challenge #73

Classic Design Challenge #9

The Crafter's Cafe Challenge #300

Worldwide Crafters and Colorists Challenge #8

Morgan's Artworld Challenge #9

Polkadoodles Challenge Wk 35

Charming Little Regency Miss - Mo Manning Kate Digital Stamp

There is no charm equal to tenderness of the heart.  Jane Austen

 Hey there from Nannyland,

This little Mo Manning miss is absolutely delightful, from her Regency style bonnet and frock to her pretty tulip and dainty slippers. She looks like she just stepped out of one of my favorite Jane Austen novels. Her name is Kate and you can find her in Mo's Digital Pencil shop HERE.  

I colored her darling gown and apron in Copic pastel blues, pinks and grays.  I showcased her fashionable straw hat with bright shades of yellow and adorned the pink ribbon with tiny Spellbinders flowers.  After fussy cutting her, I attached her with mounting tape to an ornate Anna Griffin die cut and embossed door, where she remains waiting for a visit from Mr. Darcy. The Jane Austen quote tag was created in Cricut Design Space using the cutting and writing features. The door and tag are lined with silver foil card stock. 

I hope I have inspired you to create a piece of art that transports you to a place and time you love to dream about. After all, imagination is the stuff that sparks creativity. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

    Playing along with:

Creative Fingers Challenge #258

Krafty Chicks Challenge #670

The Paper Funday Challenge #54

A Perfect Time to Craft Challenge #7

Classic Design Challenge #7

The Creative Crafters Challenge #65

Worldwide Crafters and Colorists Challenge #6

A Gem of a Challenge Wk 13

Polkadoodles Challenge Wk26

Lil Patch of Crafty Friends Challenge # 208

 

Prima Princess Gabrielle Cling Stamp - Miss You Card

Never allow waiting to become a habit.  Live your dreams and take risks.
Life is happening now. 

Hey there from Nannyland,

While I'm certain I'm putting up new roots in the perfect place for me right now, I left behind some dear California friends that I miss every day. One such lady is a beautiful friend of more than 30 years, with whom I have spent countless hours pondering the mysteries of life.  We have always been there for each other,  through thick and thin, and I especially appreciated her love and support during my first two battles with breast cancer.  Now, as I navagate through my third,  I miss having her near to offer words of wisdom, laugh with me and remind me that things always work out fine in the end.   

I was excited to make a card for her to tell her how much I miss her.  I loved coloring  gorgeous Prima Princess Gabrielle with my Copics because I knew I could add some tiny die cut flowers to her hair and bouquet to create some fun dimension. Her size was perfect for a slimline card, which I matted with a double die cut scallopped frame. I attached her with foam tape and added a layered Hero Arts sentiment made with a stamp and die set.  The small flowers are from Spellbinders and the large one was created with Heartfelt Creations stamps, dies and mold.

I hope I have inspired you to think about the friends you don't get to see often and create a card to tell them how loved they are.  Go forth and make someones day with a snailmail love note.

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

Digi Choosday Wk 9

Shopping Our Stash Challenge 491

Stamping Sensations March Challenge

The Corrosive Challenge #3

We Love Stamping March Challenge

Sweet Stampin' Challenge - Special Women

A Perfect Time to Craft Challenge #3

Worldwide Crafters and Colorists Challenge #2

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #3

Classic Design Challenge #3

Painterly Wishes - Spellbinders Artful Brush Dies

 You can't go back and change the beginning
but you can start where you are and change the ending.
C.S. Lewis

Hey there from Nannyland,

I always love the calm and serenity I experience with Copic coloring, but sometimes manipulating die cuts to create a colorful composition is the best way to bring calm to my unsettled soul.  Systematically arranging, attaching and embellishing are so satisfying and soothing. That was the case when I created these frilly paintbrush cards as I go through  testing and await some concerning medical results for the next couple of weeks. I love retreating into the safety of Nannyland to feel the unencumbered joy of creating and I always find the tranquility I seek here. 

These whimsical paintbrush dies are from Spellbinders and come in sets with large and small sizes and a variety of accessories to decorate them. I die cut the ferrules and handle tips in silver foil card stock and the wood embossed handles in white card stock. I used a fun drippy paint blob to embellish this paint brush, along with Heartfelt Creations handmade flowers, silver and purple punched swirls and leaves, and a silver layered butterfly that came with the set.  

Here I used the same embellishments and added some Copic coloring to the paint bristles

. 

The size of the paint brushes perfectly fit into the stitched frames I used to create my slimline cards. I used Hero Arts stamps and dies to create the sentiments.  The Create Art sentiment was created in Cricut Design Space. 

I hope I have inspired you to assemble some beautiful art with your favorite dies.  Go forth and organized them into a beautiful masterpiece! 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

The Paper Funday Challenge #50

Crafting Happiness Challenge #139

Stamps & Fun = Creativity Challenge 425

We Love 2 Create Challenge #1

Polkadoodles Challenge Wk4

Creative Fingers Challenge #247

Creative Knockouts Challenge #487

Classic Design Challenge #2

A Perfect Time to Craft Challenge #2

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #2

Conie Fong October Design Team Project - Penelope Pumpkin Digi Stamp

♪Apple peaches pumpkin pie, soon your love will be all mine. ♪
♪Then I'm gonna take you home, marry you so you won't roam. ♪
Jay & The Techniques

Hey there from Nannyland, 

I've had the best time creating Design Team projects with Conie Fong's Halloween images this month.  This little cutie is called Penelope Pumpkin and she can be found in Conie's Etsy stop along with tons of other wonderful images.  I love Penelope's sweet little pumpkin costume and monster bag, and just look at the eyes on her adorable kitten friend.

After coloring Penelope with Copic Markers, I fussy cut her with detail scissors.  I die cut the branch    slimline die on my Gemini in black glitter card stock.  I was happy to discover that Penelope, sized at 4 x 6, fit on this card perfectly with room for my Cricut generated sentiment tag and a glittery orange moon.  The night sky is digital paper printed on my computer.  I added a few white gel pen dots to Penelope's outfit before adhering her to my night scene with pop dots. 

This year my daughter will be visiting from Denmark during Halloween, so we're super excited to spend her favorite holiday with her. In the meantime, there's still plenty of fall and Christmas cards to imagine and design with Conie's lovely holiday images.   What an awesome time of year for creating. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply

Playing along with:

The Paper Shelter Challenge #530

The Paper Funday Challenge #46

Digi Choosday Wk 42

Try it on Tuesday Halloween Time

The Unicorn Challenge #81

Ally's Angels Challenge #63

Classic Design Challenge #10

Crafts Galore Encore Challenge #104

World Wide Open Design Team Challenge #10

Morgan's Art World Challenge #10

Morgan's ArtWorld Rose Slimline

Be a girl with a mind, a woman with attitude and a lady with  class.

Hey there from Nannyland,

As a Creative Team member for Morgan's ArtWorld a couple of years ago, I was privileged to design projects for Morgan Fitzsimons, an incredible  international artist and author who founded Creative Art  Design Studio. Her digital images are a delight to color, so when I won this sophisticated lady in a challenge a while ago, I knew I had to create some art.   She is called Rose and you can find her in Morgan's shop here.   You can also see my Morgan's ArtWorld Creative Team projects on my blog here.              

I enjoy paper piecing on images where I'd like to add small details that would be hard to color, especially on clothing.   I did this on the belt and front panel of this dress and I really like the way it turned out.  This beautiful lady's hair is very wispy, so I colored it in blues and lavenders to show off the soft movement.  I gave her one of my Heartfelt Creations handmade flowers to carry to keep the whimsical feel. 

Morgan's ArtWorld Rose digi, slimline frame dies,
Cricut Design Space writing and cutting features,
Copic markers, Heartfelt Creations stamp,die, mold

The length of this image fits perfectly on a slimline format so I chose slimline frame dies for her layered background. The sentiment was created in Cricut Design Space and cut with my Cricut Maker.

 I'm on my way  to take to some cards and treats to some very special ladies at an assisted living facility today.  One of them is 95 years old!  Is there someone in your life who would appreciate the gift of your attention and one of your beautiful crafty creations?

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

Dream Valley Challenge #272

Make My Monday #177

The Corrosive Challenge #6

Arty Diva June Challenge

Classic Design Team Challenge #6

Crafts Galore Encore Challenge #100

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #6

QKR Stampede Challenge #446

The Creative Crafters Challenge #53

A Gem of a Challenge Wk 13

Stacked Gifts Christmas Card - Anna Griffin Slimline Dies

 I love the rebelliousness of snail mail, and I love anything that can arrive with a postage stamp.  There's something about that person's breath and hands on the letter.   Diane Lane

Anna Griffin Gifts slimline die, slimline frame die,
 Cricut Design Studio tag, assorted gems, digital paper

Hey there from Nannyland,

Have you spent countless hours every holiday season creating special handmade cards for your family and friends?  Then maybe you can relate to my decision (however flawed) that I would quietly ease out of this custom, starting this year.  Since I've observed that few people send snail mail Christmas cards anymore, I was sure no one would notice if my card didn't appear as usual in their mailbox. My guilt was assuaged by the fact that I would have more time to make handsewn gifts for my tribe. Imagine my chagrin when one of my friends told me she was putting away her Thanksgiving cards to make room for a very special Christmas card she knew she would be receiving from a "certain someone."  Then some of my other yearly recipients expressed excitement over receiving yet another of my "limited edition" holiday cards, which they hang on string as a banner for decorations. Apparently, we cardmakers accumulate some devoted "card groupies" over the years! Who knew? 

So, in a panic, I reconsidered my scrooge-like decision and scrambled to design a card that I could assemble quickly.  I found this stylish slimline stacked-gifts die from Anna Griffin and it turned out to be a happy solution to my frenzied meltdown. I used several digital Christmas prints for the die cut gifts and added fussy cut embossed silver bows.  I created the tag in Cricut Design Space and attached it with silver thread to one of my gifts. Coordinating gems added some holiday sparkle. The silver base panel is a stitched slimline die.  A couple of intense cutting and gluing days later I had twenty cards ready to send to my card-worthy tribe. I still have more to do, but I feel so satisfied that I decided to keep my card making ritual. What was I thinking?  Some Christmas traditions are meant to stay.

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

Winter Wonderland End of Year Challenge

C.R.A.F.T Challenge #620

The Paper Funday December Challenge

Creative Craft Cottage Challenge #146

Die Cut Divas December Challenge

                                                                       QKR Stampede Challenge #433

Creative Fingers Challenge #220

Watercooler Wednesday Challenge #330

Studio Light Misses Fashion Show, Too.

 Don't tell people your plans, show them your results. 

Studio Lite Misses dies and stamps, designer paper, metallic copper card stock,
 assorted gems, slimline card base and frame, Hero Arts  "hello" die and stamp set

Greetings from Nannyland, 

My craft room and my hubby's office live in a very busy place in our new home we  call the "hub." We have recently come to refer to his office as the "Doug-out" and my craft room as "Nannyland."  My Pink Panoply logo has always aptly displayed a regal grown (because I'm obviously the queen here) and my Pink Panoply designs are all born in Nannyland .  I love nesting here with all my creative tools and elements surrounding me, where I can bring the dreams and ideas that live in my quirky head to life. Yeah, I'm all about fantasy stuff.  Don't judge.

Speaking of creative tools and quirky heads,  I love these Studio Light Misses dies and stamps so much!  I posted a few cards I made with them in a previous post and have a few more to share with you.  I can't even stand how amusing it is to start with a plain head and shoulders and then bring these stylish ladies to life with colorful hair styles, outfits and jewelry.

This is one of my favorites, because I used a bangs die to create her funky hair and I love her trendy glasses. 

I sent this one to a dear friend for her birthday. She said she couldn't stop staring at all the chic details, which, of course, I created to match her classy style.

The number of trendy looks I can create with these dies is endless, so it's a kick to try to match them to the likeness of my recipient.

When I gave one of my cards to my darling girlfriend for her birthday, she just happened to be wearing a shirt in the same color.  She added some earrings and a necklace to match and this is the result.

 .

I know.  Awesome!!!

Thanks for visiting Nannyland, home of Pink Panoply.

Please come back again soon. 

Nancy

Playing along with:

Aud Sentiments Challenge #12

Stinkin' Inkers Challenge - Long and Skinny

Lemon Shortbread Challenge #152

A Place to Start Challenge #8

Get Creative Challenge #104

Allsorts Challenge #637/8

Crafty Calendar August Challenge

Createful Heart Challenge #35

Sweet Stampers Challenge #59

The Paper Funday Challenge #32