Winter Soltice

I had a request for something a different this week so I though I would try something new too.

 

Have you ever tried use Memento Dew Drops and a brayer...

 

 

 It would have been amusing to watch me do this I am sure.  I did manage to make it work, although a full sized ink pad is recommended :).

I brayed the background, I created a small hill with a torn sticky note as a mask. Once the ink was dried I stamped the tree. To create the sparkle on the bottom had I reversed the mask and used Antique Frosted Glass Embossing powder. I added a few frosted snowflakes and added gems.

The sentiments were created in MS Word them printed off, I them embossed them with Frosted Glass Embossing powder.

Supplies: Natural white and navy cardstock, KanBan-Spring Silhouettes, misc gems, Frosted Glass embossing powder.

Cheers,
Nina

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone, no I am not crazy for posting early today I promise. I am the only one awake yet and I am enjoying a tea before the day starts.

I usually create a grand and detailed card for my sweetie, this year I went with simple. I added some texture to the background, and kept the sentiment  clean. I finished with some twine and snowflake embellishments.

 

My sister Barb created the sentiment for me with some magical designer program she uses.

Supplies: Cream and navy cardstock, Designer Paper –October Afternoon, twine, snowflake punch, snowflake embellishment.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas.

Cheers,

Nina

Home, Home on the range.

It was a pretty quiet drive into work this morning, I am sure that will not last as people scurry around trying to do last minute preparations for the big day tomorrow. We have a potluck lunch today at work, there is will be no escaping all that wonderful food... I can't wait :).

I have had a few friends and families transitioning to new places the past few little while. This card is for a friend and her family who purchased their first house this month, how exciting to spend Christmas in a new home.

I paper pieced the house and added some texture to the background. I finished with a little diamond glaze on the windows and a few button like embellishments.

　
Supplies: Cream and brown cardstock, Designer Paper-Cosmo Cricket, The Stamps of Life-houses4us, HOTP-Mix your Messages, misc punches and gems, embossing folders.

Happy Holidays everyone :).

Cheers,

Nina

Playing in Paradise - Just for Fun

Happy Friday everyone, how exciting that it is the last Friday before Christmas... Are you ready :)? 

It is a Just for Fun challenge over at Scrapbooker's Paradise, Playing in Paradise, I could not resist creating a card with this fantastic fella.

 

 

I wanted my snowman to look a little uneven, I mean what snowman looks perfect when you make them right. So I used my VersaMark marker to add embossing powder here and there to get the look I wanted.

 

I of course used lots of layers and even popped the little tag up with foam tape. I finished with a twine and a little snowflake embellishment.

 

Please stop by the Playing in Paradise blog to see what the challenge team members have created, and some holiday memories they have shared.

 

Supplies: Cream and red cardstock, designer Paper-Carta Bella, Cosmo Cricket-Jolly Days, misc twin, snowflake and pearls.

 

Cheers,

Nina

Seize the Birthday - Linky Party #1

A quick card this evening, I had a few minutes to craft and I wanted to share this card I made for the first Linky Party for Seize the Birthday.

 

 

I have depleted my stash of Birthday cards so I am so excited about this new challenge.

 

 

 

Supplies: Cream and brown cardstock, Designer Paper-Cosmo Cricket, The Stamps of Life-Ballons2cut and birthday2celebrate, misc gem and twine.

I am tired and still fighting the icky cold so comments will need to wait till tomorrow :).

 

Cheers,

Nina

Playing in Paradise #97 - It's Sketchy

Happy Friday everyone,  we are well into Dec now and Christmas is peaking around the corner at us. I have not reached holiday excited yet, but the rounds of Christmas Parties start this weekend for us.
 
Vacation was fabulous but I brought me home a little bug, my immune system has taken a beating in 2012. I have had more coldlike bugs this year than in the last 5 combined. I hate it, I am the first to admit I get grumpy when the germs come calling.

Anyhoo, enough of my grumbles. We have a new Playing in Paradise Challenge and Allison has a brand new sketch for us.

I found myself in a happy place with my Christmas cards this year, I make a new one every week throughout the year so I have a good supply. When I saw this sketch with the little snowflakes though,  I could not resist and I really don't think I will have a problem finding a home for it.

 

I have all my 6x6 Christmas paper pads on the side of my desk within easy reach. I used a die cut to create this darling little tree, I added some little details like stamped and punched snowflakes, gems and ribbon.

 



Please be sure to visit this week Playing in Paradise Challenge, our Challenge team has some wonderful projects that are a great inspiration. You can also join in the fun to win a prize.

 

Supplies: Cream and brown cardstock, Designer Paper - Carta Bella,  HOTP- Christmas art, misc ribbon, gems and punches, Spellbinder and Dee's Distinctively die cuts.

 

Cheers,

Nina

Happy Birthday Butterfies

I made this card a couple of weeks ago but did not get a chance to post it,  I have had a week away and now I feel so behind on my cards. I hope to get a little crafting time in this week in between getting everything put together for the holidays.

 

I wanted something bright a cheery for the card, so I used this paper from Close to my Heart, I hand cut a few of the butterflies from left over DP then glued them to the twine. I finished by adding a few tiny pearls to each body.

 

Supplies: Cream and Brown cardstock, Designer Paper –Close to My Heart, Hot of the Press - Tiny Words, Embossing folder, twine and pearls.

Cheers,

Nina

Merry Monday some more review :)

A very quick post this morning along with another simple card for Merry Monday. I used the Merry Monday Sketch #28 for a second week in a row. I love how it makes for a nice quick card.

I have had these Lil' charms for years and finally decided to make use of one. Instead of using the attached brad I threaded some twine through it and popped it up with foam tape.

Supplies: Cream and brown, Designer Paper - My Mind's eye, twine, Lil' Charm, Hero Arts - Get Merry.

There is still time to play Merry Monday two week Challenge, a year in review.

Cheers,
Nina

Playing In Paradise # 96 - Winter Birds

Happy Friday :), as this posts (I hope) I am enjoying a vacation in Las Vegas, I have to assume I am having a great time. 

 

It is time for a new Playing in Paradise Challenge and Jessi is our hostess. We are challenged to be inspired by Winter birds. I have to admit Cardinals or Whiskey Jacks are the winter birds that come to mind for me,  the second because we see them when we snowshoe at the Mt. Washington Resort here on the island every winter. Our outings are not quite the same without getting to feed the greedy Whiskey Jacks.

 

 

I have this adorable stamp though that I could not resist using. I added some texture to the background. The little bird is coloured with a Clear Star jelly roller for lots of sparkle, the center frame and buttons are popped up with foam tape.

 

 

Don't forget to stop by the Scrapbooker's Paradise Blog to see what the challenge team has created and to join in the challenge fun.

Supplies: Cream and brown cardstock, Designer Paper-My Mind's Eye, Stampendous-Peace Birdie, misc twine, circle punches, Spellbinders.

Cheers,

Nina

Playing in Paradise #95

There is still time to play along with the Playing in Paradise challenge for this week. This is a second card I made for this challenge..

I used scraps for this card so I am unsure of the designer paper, I found some fishing stickers in my stash too. I made a couple of buttons from circle punches and added fish hologram eyes.

 

Supplies: Cream and brown cardstock, Designer Paper - Unknown, HOTP-Tiny Words , Twine, circle punches, hologram eyes, sticker.

Cheers,
Nina

 

 

Merry Monday Year in Review

Although the Merry Monday Challenge is done for 2012, we are using one of the past sketches to post for a year in review. I chose to make a simple card with this past Merry Monday sketch.

 

I am back to going through my scraps, I seem to have a ton from My Mind's Eye. I let the paper have all the glory and added a sentiment and a little twine with a button.

Supplies: Cream and brown cardstock, Designer Paper - My Mind's Eye, Twine, button.

Stop by Always Playing with Paper to see what Lesley and the Design Team members have created.

Cheers,
Nina

Playing in Paradise #95

Happy Friday, I am hosting over at Scrapbooker's Paradise Ponders for the Playing in Paradise challenge.  We would love for you to come join in the fun.

 

There are alot of men my family and it seems that there is always someone in need of a card. It helps that I find them easy to put together.

 

 

I have a ton of embossing folders and I love to use them. Since masculine cards are usually pretty basic texture can add dimention to a card. I used a embossing folder for the stars then cut them out and heat embossed them with silver. I added texture to both the background and the black panel.

 

I heat embossed the sentiment and popped it up with foam tape, I finished with a eyelet and some twine to make a small fring.

 

Supplies: Natural white and black cardstock, Designer Paper-, embossing folders and twine.

 

Stop by the Scrapbooker's Paradise Blog to see what the challenge team has created and join in the challenge fun.

 

Cheers,

Nina

Merry Monday #43

Christmas is getting closer :).  We picked up the cutest little Christmas tree from Michaels this weekend, one of those pre-decotated ones they have for floral displays. It was 50% off and so we could not resist, my husband and I are treating ourselves to a trip over the holidays so we are not decorating the house like we normally would.

 

 

We have a new Merry Monday Challenge this week. I have to admit it took me a couple of tries with this card to get what I wanted. I am very happy with the finished card.

 

 

 

I cut the little trees out of my DP scraps and inked the edges. I added some little gold pearls to the tips for added embelishment The strip behind is embossed and added a little twine.

 

 

Supplies: Cream and burgundy cardstock, Designer Paper –Fancy Pants, Verve-Holiday Phrases, embossing folder, gold twine and pearls.

Head over to Always Playing with Paper to see what Lesley and the Design Team members have created, we would love for you to play along with us for Merry Monday.

Cheers,

Nina

Playing in Paradise #94

Happy  Friday everyone, we have a new Playing in Paradise challenge  for you today and Merle is our hostess this week. This week the challenge is all about colour inspiration.

 

 

I always struggle a little with colour challenges, so I tend to try to find DP that includes all the requirements then work around it. I was pleased that this Simple Stories DP had exactly what I was looking for.

 

I heat embossed the flowers then cut them out, they are popped up with foam tape. I also heat embossed the sentiment them matted it. I finished with a little twine and a button made with punches.

 

 

Supplies: Cream and brown card stock, Designer Paper-Simple Stories, The Stamps of Life, misc twine, pearls.

Don't forget to stop by the Scrapbooker's Paradise Blog to see what the challenge team has created and to join in the challenge fun.

Cheers,

Nina

Merry Monday #42

Happy Monday everyone, it is time for another Merry Monday, Lesley has a wonderful new sketch for us.

 

 

I tried to keep my card on the simple side, so I did not layer the flags. I heat embossed the sentiment then popped the panel up with foam tape. I pulled out some chipboard button from way back and layered them. I also managed to sneak some gold twine in.

Stop on by Always Playing with Paper to see what Lesley and the other Design Team members have created, we would love for you to play along with us for Merry Monday.

Supplies: Cream and burgundy cardstock, Designer Paper –Carta Bella, TPC – Simple Stick, twine K&Company buttons.

Cheers,

Nina

Mrs Potato Head celebrates

I had so much fun making this card, there is always a little extra challenge with a themed card. One of my best friend's has a young daughter with a birthday coming up. She asked for a Potato head, so I could not resist making a card to match.

I used the card I made earlier this week as a guide (Tuesday Morning Sketches). I first found a coloring page for Mrs. P then coloured her with a mix of watercolor pencils and Pearlescent watercolour paints. I used a white jelly roller for the eyes, arms and tips of the running shoes. I wish this picture showed the glimmer of the Pearlescent watercolours better.  In all the pictures I have seen, she dresses with pinks and purples, so I matched the DP to the coloured image.

I added some wool twine and a heat embossed sentiment, I should have added a pearl to the little button but I did not think of it at the time. I finished with adding some pearls to her eyes and a couple in her ears for earrings.

Supplies: Cream and purple cardstock, Designer Paper –Echo Park, Mrs. P-colouring pages, twine and pearls.

Cheers,

Nina

Playing in Paradise #93

It's Friday and that means there is a new Playing in Paradise challenge and Angela is our hostess this week. The challenge is to 'Case Yourself". For all the wonderful details visit the Playing in Paradise challenge blog.

  

The card I cased is from the post HERE. I liked the CAS look and it was fun to make.  I have to admit that I dug a little deep to find my supplies. I saw this DP as I was searching for something specific and it caught my eye and it was perfect for this card.

I added a little texture to the strip backing the twine, I hand cut the heat embossed flower and finished with a sentiment and a Hero Arts dot.

Don't forget to stop by the Scrapbooker's Paradise Blog to see what the challenge team have created and to join in the challenge fun.

Supplies: Cream and brown card stock, Designer Paper-My Mind's, The Stamps of Life, embossing folder, misc twine, Hero Arts dots.

Cheers,

Nina

New Pad

I can't resist posting this silly card I made for my son, he moved out on his own this past weekend and I wanted to send some mail to his new address.  I figure with almost a week gone by he is missing the 'free' food so I put a gift card for the local grocery store inside.

 

I have had this designer paper for a while and I thought it was fun enough to produce a smile when it is opened even for a young man.

 

I cut out one of the frogs and popped it up with foam tape then added some googly eyes. I printed the sentiment off the computer and finished with some twine and buttons made with circle punches.

 

Supplies: Natural White and black cardstock, Designer Paper-Basic Grey, twine, googly eyes, gems and misc gems.

Cheers,

Nina

Tuesday Morning Sketches #172

 I has a little time to made a card this evening, so I took a peek at the new Tuesday Morning Sketches challenge.

 

I have a couple packs of new stamps sets from the Stamps of Life on the corner of my desk and I was determined to used them and this little bee was perfect.

 

I added some texture to the back ground, then created a couple of panels. I heat embossed the sentiment and the bee. I cut the bee out them mounted it on foam tape before adding some clear star jelly roller to the wings.

 

I finished with some twine, gems and a button made from punched circles.

So I managed to get the sketch right.. sort of :) but I am pretty sure fussy cutting does not make the grade for punch art critter, but it certainly is cute.

 

Supplies: Cream and black cardstock, Designer Paper –Bo Bunny, The Stamps of Life-bee4me, misc punches, twine and gems.

Cheers,

Nina

Merry Monday #41

Christmas is getting closer, every week the decorations that are going up everywhere seem to get more elaborate. I have a hard time thinking about putting anything out before Dec 1, but that does not stop me from having a new Christmas card on display every Monday :).

 

There is a new sketch for this weeks Merry Monday Challenge.

 

 

 

I used my lonely little Slice for the holly, then heat embossed the berries with Red embossing tinsel. The rest of the card is basic layers, and the sentiment and circles are popped up with foam tape. 

 

Supplies: Natural White and green  cardstock, Designer Paper –Bo Bunny, Verve-Holiday Phrases, Slice die cut, embossing tinsel, misc punches

 

Stop by Always Playing with Paper to see what Lesley and the Design Team members have created. We would love for you to play along with us for Merry Monday this week

 Cheers,

Nina

"A Day of Remembrance"

 

Image by Dalicar, In Flanders Fields - By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918

 

Playing in Paradise #92

The sun is shining and it is a beautiful fall day here in Victoria today. I have had a great week with even a little birthday magic thrown in but I am happy that it is Friday.

We have a new Playing in Paradise Challenge for you today, and Allison is our hostess this week with one of her fantastic sketches.

  

It took me a few tried to get the look I wanted with all my elements but in the end I like the earthy look to my card. I added some Stickles to my tree, and dipped the little butterfly in glue and sprinkled with glitter and added a couple of pearls.

 

Supplies: Cream and brown card stock, Designer Paper-My Mind's,KanBan-Spring Silhouettes, punches, Stickles, Spellbinder diecuts, Fairydust glitter, ribbon, pearls.

 

Don't forget to stop by the Scrapbooker's Paradise Blog to see the challenge team's sample creations and to join in the challenge fun. 

 

Cheers,

Nina

Crafting Sisters

My sister Barb had a hankering to create a card with a gramophone last night. To get to that point though she created her own wonderful .svg cut so that she could use it with her Silhouette Cameo.

 

I am the first to admit that my Cricut and Slice mostly sit unused, but I promised that Cricut would be dusted off to cut this element out so we could make a card together. It aways make me smile when I see how different our cards turn out when we tackle a challenge at the same time.

 

I could not resist using my Echo Park paper that already had vintage style items on it, including a gramophone (If you look close you can see it peeking out from behind the pane).

It took me forever to put all these pieces together, it did not matter how I placed them it seemed off. I finally added the twine and circle elements first then added the rest. You can find this fantastic Gramophone .svg file on Barb's blog  HERE.

 

Supplies: Natural Ivory and black cardstock, Designer Paper-Echo Park, The Stamps of Life-tinytitles2stamp, Barb Derksen - Gramophone .svg cut, twine, gems,  and misc punches.

Cheers,

Nina