Make Today Magical - Ching-Chow Kuik Peony Dawn Digi

 The day I decided that my life was magical, there was suddenly magic all around me. 

Hey there from Nannyland,

In a life brimming with magical days, I will count today as one of the best.  I'm feeling overwhelmed with gratitude and love for my Heavenly Father and all my family and friends who encouraged and supported me through my radiation treatments the past few weeks. I'm finally finished and today is full sunshine and creative possibilities.  I'm glad to see my mojo is returning and my days in Nannyland are getting longer and more productive.  I have some really delightful projects planned, both in cardmaking and quilting. 

I loved coloring THIS stunning fairy image called Peony Dawn with bright, vivid Copics. The artist is Ching-Chou Kuik and you can find her gorgeous images in her Etsy store.  The original image has a moon behind her, but I replaced it with a circle shape I cut from dp water color paper in  Cricut Design Space so I could add a curved sentiment with the writing feature. 

I've been experimenting with some of my umpteen flower dies lately and reached for this very old but still lovely set to create flowers to embellish my pretty fairy image.  I die cut the flowers in white glitter card stock and adhered them to Ombre db base layers.  The filler flowers are from Spellbinders.  I edged the moon and the front card panel with a gold leafing pen and added assorted gems to the flower centers for dimension and sparkle. I used a white gel pen for small details to her wings and dress. 

Wishing you a magical day like mine, filled with soothing creative pursuits. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

A Perfect Time to Craft June Challenge

Allsorts Challenge Week 733

Ally's Angels Challenge # 71

Aud Sentiments Challenge #302

Fab'n'Funky Challenge #575

Unicorn Challenge #88

Ching-Chou Kuik June Challenge

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #6

Classic Design Challenge #6

Worldwide Crafters and Colorists Challenge 6

Creating Energy and Card Embellishments With Altenew 3D Rose Flower Dies

 Add a little confetti to each day. 

Hey there from Nannyland,

Okay, I was expecting this, so it's no shock that my radiation therapy is kicking my butt.  I hate to whine, but there it is. Profound fatigue is what they call it.  Whatever.  Only three more treatments and I'll have my crafty, delightful life back. The last time I went through this I was almost 20 years younger but I remember a real push afterward to get my strength and energy back.  I started eating healthier and exercising more, all with a cheery "can-do" attitude.  That sounds horrific right now, so I'm eating In-and-Out with a side of Necco's and watching hours of When Calls the Heart on Hallmark.  But next week, after my last treatment, I'm going to get my poor tired tush in gear and get my life back.   

In the meantime, I've been choosing some activities that are fun but don't need brainpower or energy.  It's always fun to make pretty embellishments en masse ahead of time and have them at the ready to adorn a new project.  Years ago a dear friend brought a bunch of craft supplies she no longer needed to our Copic coloring group and I scored this beautiful set of Altenew 3-D Rose Dies. I finally found the time to sit down and use them and I love the way they turned out.   I used them for THIS card.  

They have multiple small layers and are the perfect size for card embellishments.  

I had several pads of Michaels color coordinated paper packs, so die cutting the layers and assembling them was a no-brainer.  I saved the paper to cut even smaller embellies but that's just because I was too tired to throw them away.  😩 So now I have some fun new blooms to use on my cards!  Creating is always good for a little burst of cheer and energy when you need it. Just add a bag of M&M's and it's a party. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Julia Spiri Vintage Lady Digital Stamp - Good Hair Day

I have a new hair style.  It's called "I tried."

Hey there from Nannyland,

Julia Spiri digi's are always so expressive, you can almost hear them talking. I love the way THIS lovely lady obviously doesn't hesitate to tell us what she's thinking.  Who wouldn't love to flaunt this gorgeous vintage coiffure under a stylish "picture hat."  I used Copics to color this beautiful light grayscale image and  was thrilled  the layered flowers I recently created with the Altenew Rose Flurries 3D dies added to her classic 40's flair.

It was disappointing to discover Heartfelt Creations will no longer be in business after this year, so I jumped at the chance to buy several of their 5 x 7 frame dies that I love so much. I die cut my frame with white shimmer card stock and added water color dp to the oval in the center. My image was fussy cut and added to the frame with mounting tape. I added small gems to the centers of the flowers for dimension and sparkle. The sentiment was created in Cricut Design Space with the writing and offset features.

I will save this card for my bff who has amazingly thick red locks that invite admiring glances wherever she goes.  Here's to the blessed people who seldom have bad hair days.  I wish I were one of them! 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

Classic Design Challenge #6

Worldwide Crafters and Colorists Challenge #5

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #6

Crafting Happiness Challenge #143

Crafts Galore Encore Challenge #112

Country View Challenge - Vintage

QKR Stampede Challenge #466

The Creative Crafters Challenge #64

Craft Rocket Challenge #104

The Crafty Addicts Challenge #2

Crazy Quilt in Not-So-Crazy Colors - Accuquilt Go BOB

 Strength doesn't come from what you can do.  
It comes from overcoming the things you once thought you couldn't.

Hey there from Nannyland,

I'm still doing a little more quilting than card making these days because sewing seems to require less brain power and I gets me to my happy place quicker, without much artistic effort. And the repetitive motion is so calming. Quilts definitely use the creative side of my brain but I've been working with Accuquilt Block-on-Board dies so I can efficiently cut my fabric on my Accuquilt Go Big without all the measuring and math. Following the easy assembly directions is fun and there is plenty of opportunity for chain piecing in this block.  It's always so satisfying to put together a fabulous quilt that looks complicated and time consuming, but was done in a flash. 

I've always pictured crazy quilts in bright colors like this one I made a couple of years ago, but I decided to take a chance with a minimal color palette when I saw a similar quilt on Pinterest.  I knew I had tons of yellow, black and white prints in my stash that I had bought on sale several years ago and I was happy to bust them out for this quilt. 

Since yellow has long been one of my favorite colors and I like high contrast, I was delighted with the way this came together.  It has a crisp, modern feel, unlike many of the quilts I make with the bright floral thirties reproduction fabrics I love so much. 

I have a friend who I know would love this, but it has yellow in it...so it might have to live with me for a little while longer...or forever.  

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Kit and Clowder June 2022 Marker Class - Krista Smith Wispy

Attitude is the difference between an ordeal and an adventure. 

Hey there from Nannyland,

It's hard to believe I haven't sat down at my desk with my rainbow of copic markers in front of me and played  for almost two months now. It's been delightful re-entering the invigorating world of  paper crafting  by choosing a marker palette and following along on my computer with some past Kit and Clowder classes.  I'm seriously behind, and it's been the perfect way to jump start my creative juices.  Watching Alyce Keegan work her marker magic and learning some new techniques while practicing some older ones is pure bliss.  This Krista Smith "wispy" image reminded me of how much a love coloring darling girly images and zhuzhing them up with sparkly embellishments and lacy frames.

As usual, I found a beautiful intricate frame die to showcase my pretty image and added opalescent aqua gems to embellish it.  I added digital galaxy paper to the center of my frame and edged it with a silver leafing pen.  I created the sentiment in Cricut Design Space with the cutting and writing features and added three clear gems and a silver offset layer. I added sparkle to my fairy wings and the stars in the background with Stickles.  The dots on my fairy's dress and the details on her crinoline petticoat were made with a white gel pen. 

Dusting off and resuming my Kit and Clowder classes, both marker and pencil, has turned out to be just what I needed to stimulate my creative imagination.  With the image and the color palette already chosen for me, I can just relax and go with the flow. Pure Nannyland joy. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

Worldwide Craftists and Colorists Challenge #5

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #5

Classic Design Challenge #5

A Place to Start May Challenge

A Perfect Time to Craft May Challenge

Daisy Chain Challenge #74

Sparkles Challenge #164

Dream Valley Challenge #294

The Fairy and the Unicorn May Challenge

Addicted to Stamps and More Challenge #446

Spellbinders Add to Cart Mother's Day Card

To all mothers in every circumstance, I say, be peaceful. Believe in God and yourself. 
 You are doing better than you think you are.   Jeffrey R. Holland

Hey there from Nannyland,

We celebrate Mother's Day at our house from afar, since both my husband's and my mom have passed, and my two lovely daughters live far away...one in Pacific Grove, California and one in Copenhagen, Denmark.  My husband always spoils me and I love having a "group call" from my girls, along with some delightful surprises in the mail.  To make it even more enjoyable, my BFF invites my husband and I to their home every year to celebrate with their children and grandchildren.  What a treat it is to commemorate motherhood with three other moms, two of them who still have young children.  I always like to take a small gift for them, but it can get difficult choosing something unique and useful.

Gift cards are always an option, but there's the eternal conundrum of keeping them from being generic and impersonal.  The first thought I had this year was this darling 3D shopping cart from Spellbinders.  I've been dying to make a card with it and, in this case, I loved cutting and embellishing all the cute little dies three times.  At first, I thought I would make each card different and fill it with goodies that would match my recipients' personalities. How would I accomplish that, you ask?  Well, I've been collecting all of the themed shopping cart die sets from Spellbinders since the beginning, because why not?  But all the gluing and assembling turned out to be a bit daunting for three cards, so I settled on an assembly line approach for my sanity.  I'll have a good time changing the cart up for other occasions. My mind is brimming with ideas already! 

I added a Target gift card and a sentiment to the inside, et voila!...a fun little treat for some seasoned shoppers who will get a kick out of this adorable cart full of cute stuff.  Now I just have to figure out how to deliver it to them, since it obviously will get smooshed in a regular envelope.  As a last resort I could just hand it to them "as is" and watch them smile. Yes, I think I'll do that. 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

Cardz 4 Galz Challenge #198

Try Stampin' on Tuesday Challenge #606

Dream Valley Challenge #293

Creative Fingers Challenge #254

Addicted to Stamps #445

The Crafty Addicts Challenge 1

A Place to Start May Challenge

613 Avenue Create May Challenge

Classic Design Challenge #5

Morgan's ArtWorld #5

Collect Beautiful Moments - Ching Chou Kuik Fairy Wren Digi

 "The wren and the nightingale sound nothing alike, but think how dull the world would be without the songs of both birds.-Miss Kanagawa" ~ Kirby Larson

Hey there from Nannyland,

Birds, butterflies and dragon flies - the gems that adorn nature with their splendid beauty and grace. The world wouldn't be fully dressed without them!  The fairy wren in the foreground of this beautiful Chou Kuik digital stamp was a treat to color with Copics in its traditional shades of blue and lavender. These vivid hues inspired the rest of my blue, lavender and green palette. As always,  Chou Kuik's stunning images call to me with their soulful eyes and amazing detail.  

After coloring her with Copic markers, I fussy cut this lovely delicate lady and adhered her with mounting tape to a lacy Heartfelt Creations die cut frame. The scallops are garnished with white iridescent  gems.  Her fairy wren companion is nestled in a cluster of die cut flowers and leaves.  Her leafy head band is embellished with tiny purple pearl gems.  I stamped a Tim Holtz sentiment on a die cut tag and edged it with a gold leafing pen.  I added small details to the image with a white gel pen. 

I hope I have inspired you to enjoy the beautiful moments of spring by creating some projects using all the things that make this season magical. Bring on the birds, insects, flowers, sunshine, and maybe a few showers to keep things sparkling! 

Thanks for visiting Nannyland.

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

Nancy (aka Pink Panoply)

Playing along with:

Addicted to Stamps and More

Crafty Gals Corner #242

Fab and Funky Things With Wings - Challenge #572

A Perfect Time to Craft #4

Arty Divas April Challenge

CCK May Challenge

Classic Design Challenge #5

Love to Craft Challenge #74

Morgan's ArtWorld Challenge #5

Worldwide Crafters and Colorists Challenge #4