Sunday, March 31, 2013

The Dolls

Today I wanted to show you a new card that I have made using one of the digital stamps called The Dolls. It is a great image that can be used for almost any type of card.


I printed the image on white cardstock and started coloring it with my Copic Markers. I didn't really know what kind of papers I was going to use for the card so I didn't have any particular color scheme in mind then coloring.

When I was done coloring I cut the image out with my scissor and started thinking about how to make the card. 

I used a reddish cadstock for my base and then an old paper from what I think might be My Minds Eye. I made a simple backgrund for the image and placed it onto the card base. I realized that the image would be to big for the card so I cut it apart and placed one of the girls in front of the others instead of to the side. I used foam squares to make her stand out a little more.

For the sentiment I just cut a strip of patterned paper and cardstock and stamped a greeting.

Ofcourse I used some stickles to give the image some sparkle too :)

Hope you like the card.

 

Feel free to visit my personal blog for more cards made by me.

/Erika

Saturday, March 30, 2013

Teaching Teddy

Happy Saturday! Today I'd like to share with you a card I made using the "Teaching Teddy" digital stamp, available here in our shop.



I paired the image with some papers from one of the new My Mind's Eye "Collectable" paper stacks. I love how all the colors in the papers are primary, yet they have a distressed look. Perfect for a school-themed card! I colored the image with the following Copics:

Skin: E00, E01, E02
Hair: Y13, Y15, Y19
Dress: BG72, BG75
Teddy: E25, E29
Desk: G24, G28
Other: R24, R29, N1

I accented the card with some pearls and also with some crinkle ribbon from 3 Girl Jam.

"Teaching Teddy" is one of my favorite PND images - mainly because I'm going to be a teacher. :) It's so cute and can be used for a lot of teaching/classroom related projects. I know this will be an image I use again in the future!

I also have an exciting announcement - The Paper Nest Dolls has its own challenge blog! Our first challenge will kick off this Monday, April 1st! No joke. :) 

Click here to visit the challenge blog!

Thanks for stopping by!
~Ashley

Friday, March 29, 2013

Sun Fun

Happy Friday!  Today I'd like to share another adorable image from The Paper Nest DollsSun Fun.  She is colored with Promarkers.  The papers are from Bo Bunny - Barefoot & Bliss Collection 6x6 papers.  Aren't the waves just meant for this image.  There was a lot of fussy cutting here.  I couldn't resist getting out my Glossy Accents for the lens of the sunglasses.  TFL and have a wonderful Easter Weekend.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

I {heart} My Little Brother

          These siblings are cute! I was thrilled when I received this digital stamp. Kind of reminds me of me little bro and myself, although my little bro is not so little anymore at 6'4". I would go to the ends of the earth for my little brother and he would probably {I think} do the same for me ;)



          This card is layered with bright fun colours from BoBunny "Double Dots" & Studio G. Heavily distressed {once again} by Tim Holts distressing tool and Walnut Stain ink. I could not do a card without my trusty Gina K Kraft card stock. This card is 5.5X5.5. I used AmyR sentiments "hugs" and "Bestfriends Forever". The Copics used are E000, E00, E11, E25, E27, E29, E41, E42, E43, E74, E77, E79, B24, B28, G17, R20, R37, R39, R89, V25, FV2, BG05, BG07, 110 and 0. I used some teal sparkly ribbon and 2 bright purple buttons. Faux stitching was added as well. "My Little Brother" is available here.

          Only 3 more days for the 20% off your entire order at The Paper Nest. Just use "I love the Paper Nest" in the notes section to receive your discount. Sale ends March 31, 2013.

xo Nikki from CreativeJunkeez xo

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Easter card & cardlift tutorial

Hi everyone it's Kelly and I am coming to you with an Easter card Image from The Paper Nest Dolls  and a tutorial on how to make this card from papercrafts magazine.

You will need:
card base
a few ribbon bows made for card
a few circles matching those above
your image
a few flowers/embellishments to garnish


Monday, March 25, 2013

Ok, ONE more card...
 Introducing...CIRCUS CLOWN OWEN, go get him!!  He is perfect for a birthday card! I used craft stock and created a gate-fold card.  I colored Owen with my Copic markers (of course :o) He has a shiny red nose and shiny buttons.  I covered the card with a fun orange polka dots and added a green chevron striped paper as well by Basic Grey.  I added some embellishments and a fun detail made from multicolored thin metal that I coiled. 
Now THIS is one clown that you just cannot be afraid of!!

Ringmaster Ellie *WISH*


Hi!  It's ME again (Robin)  I had fun creating three cards so I thought why not share them all?  This image is "Ringmaster Ellie" you can pick her up right HERE...The moment I saw her I was in LOVE, I knew that she would be so fun to color and she needed fun colors.  I decided on an easel card, my easel cards are generally 5.5" square.  I used fun papers in red, yellow and green.  I really need to keep track of my paper manufacturers.  I will work on it; my problem is that I used scraps when possible.  I dig through my scrap bin and then I loose track of what is what. 
 Anyways, here is the star of the show. She has a cute black top-hat, black boots, a yellow coat accented with rhinestones and sparkles.

Dream with Princess Ellie



 Princess Ellie is darling!!  You can go get one for yourself HERE.  All Christine's images are so fun to color and easy to incorporate into your project. 

I started off piecing the background...thin strips in a chevron pattern.  I like to mix and match patterns and colors.  For some reason I color with  my Copics first and then mix the papers and create whole design second.  He..he...I think I do it all backwards :o)  I have a limited amount of Copics, so I think that is why.

I paper pieced Ellie's dress and added gloss accents to her crown.  Like I said she is so darling and so fun to color.




Sunday, March 24, 2013

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!
I made these cards for Easter it is so close now, these stamps are just the cutest ever! The Paper Nest Dolls are all so cute!
Easter Avery, Easter Owen, and Easter Ellie I just love....


Here is the copics I used to color the girls. Jump on over to The Paper Nest and get you one of these cuties? Thankyou for looking Have a Happy Easter!
Loriann

















Friday, March 22, 2013

Life Is How You Bake It

Good morning bloggers! Lydia here!!!! Archie's Easter break has started early as this morning we awoke to over a foot of snow! Absolutely amazed !!! It's supposed to be spring....

Well it's my day today at The Paper Nest Dolls blog and I have a card to share with you today with an updated image ! The first Chef Avery was super cute but I do believe that this one just ups the cuteness level a little...


And a close-up of the super cute chef.....

She is so sweet and there are many more adorable stamps to collect from the Paper Nest Dolls store- Go check it out, I know you wanna !

Hope you guys have a snuggly day..... I know I will be!!!



Thursday, March 21, 2013

Pink Lemonade!

I really enjoy pink lemonade...
and so I had to go with pink of this sweet image from The Paper Nest Dolls!





It was such fun to decorate this stand!!

Challenge:
Paper Nest Dolls are sponsoring Party Time Tuesdays this week. 
Create a pastel colored card...link up, badge up...and you'll be in the drawing for 
the prize from The Paper Nest Dolls!

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Everyone Needs a Little Sweet In Their Life.....

          I am going to be honest, I have a hard time with male cards.... I do not believe I am the first to admit this and I am definitely not going to be the last by any means. When I saw Sweet Friend, I was amped to do a boy's card and it was really easy because this stamp made it easy. Check it out.....


          I definitely think he is a keeper! I heavily distressed the layers on this card with Tim Holtz distressing tool and Walnut Stain ink. It is layered on an A2 Gina K Kraft card. The image is inked with Copics..... {of course}! I used E000, E00, E11, E25, E27, E74, E77, E79, G05, G07, G17, RV10 and RV11. Another unknown source for patterned paper.... {I have a few of these, with no cover page}. I embossed the sentiment "Sweet Friend" by ScrappinMoms with white embossing powder. The 3 little green buttons brought the card all together. I hope you like it, he is available here.

          Don't forget to use the code "I love The Paper Nest" in the notes section to receive 20% off your entire order at The Paper Nest. This special is only till the end of March!

xo Nikki from CreativeJunkeez xo

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Egg Hunt by Jenn Cochran

Hello The Paper Nest Dolls friends and fans.  I am back for another Tuesday Guest DT post.  

My name is Jenn Cochran.  I am the Author of Jax Bean Stalks.  You can read all about me HERE.

This week my challenge blog Party Time Tuesdays is being sponsored by the lovely Paper Nest Dolls!  I have created my card around our theme: PTT#112 Color/Photo inspiration.

Here is my card using the adorable Easter Avery

Hope you like her!

Monday, March 18, 2013

Friends Forever + A Tutorial!

Happy Monday, everyone! Hope your week is off to a great start. :) Ashley here from Made Especially For You. Today I'd like to share with you a tutorial and a card I made to go along with it. It's all about how to cut a digital stamp using a Cricut! 

For those of you who have researched the Cricut/Cameo debate (and that's a whole other post in and of itself) you know that many argue in defense of the Cameo because of it's ability to incorporate digital stamps into the Silhouette software and then cut them using your machine, one of the reasons I purchased a Cameo in addition to my Cricut Expression, but I'm a neutral party. :) However what many don't realize is that digital stamps CAN be cut using a Cricut! While an exact outline around the image cannot be cut, shapes from cartridges can be used to give your digital stamps fun borders other than the basic square/rectangle.

To cut a digital stamp using a Cricut, your'e going to need to make a stencil, so to speak. Once your stencil is made, you will use this to place your digi on the mat in the same spot your stencil was cut. This way when you cut the stencil again, it will cut around your digi in the exact same spot, leaving you with a fun shape cut around your digital stamp!

Step 1: Print your digi!

This image is called "Best Friends and Sisters" can be found here in The Paper Nest Dolls shop. Make sure when printing to leave at least an inch around all sides of your image to leave room for cutting a shape around your image.

Step 2: Color your digi!

I colored my digi using Copic markers, but of course any coloring medium can be used. The colors I used are as follows:

Hair: Y13, Y15, Y19
Skin: E00, E01, E02
Dresses: BG11, BG13, RV23, RV25
Grass: YG13, YG17
Other: N1, 0, YR04

Step 3: Measure the horizontal length of your stamp.

In order to make sure your digi is centered when using your Cricut to cut it out, you must find the approximate size of the shape you'll be needing to cut. To do so, use a ruler to "center" your digi. You'll see that my stamp above is centered when the width is about 3.75 inches. Always make sure to measure from the widest part of the stamp, in this case it would be the tips of the girls' hair. If you were to measure from their legs, then when you go to cut the shape, your image is going to be cut, too. This will make sense in just a bit. :) Keep in mind that now I know the width of my shape will need to be 3.5 inches in order for the stamp to be centered when I use my Cricut to cut around it.

Step 4. Measure the vertical length of your stamp.

Now that you've measured the width of the shape you're going to cut, it's time to measure the length. Using a ruler and the same technique as in Step 3, center your image vertically. Here you will see my image is centered at about 4 inches. Now I know the height of my shape will need to be 4 inches.

Step 5: Open Cricut Craft Room!

If you own a Cricut and have yet to download Cricut Craft Room (CCR) you can do so via the Cricut website for free whether you have a PC or a Mac. :)

Step 6: Decide what shape you'd like your digital image to be!

I've chosen to use the above frame from the Elegant Edges cartridge - one of my favorites to use for cutting digis! Hint: placing your image in the center of the mat is going to make cutting out your digi much easier and less frustrating.

Step 7: Size your shape to the measurements you took in steps 3 and 4.

This is a screenshot of the top righthand corner in CCR where it tells you the size of your image when you click on it. I made my image 3.75 inches wide and 4 inches tall to ensure my image will be placed in the center of the shape I cut.

Step 8: Load your mat and get ready to cut!

Now that you've found a shape you want to use and made it the right size, it's time to cut it out! You can use any piece of paper for this as this only going to be the template you use to later cut around your digi. Scrap paper works well for this, although I just used a plain piece of white cardstock. Load your paper in the mat and get ready to cut. :) 

*I used a Cameo mat in this tutorial because my Cricut mats are brand new and the paper tend to stick REALLY well to those and I didn't want the paper to rip for this tutorial. Cameo mats can be used with a Cricut and vice versa, in case you were wondering. :) 

Step 9: Cut your stencil!

A little bit hard to see here, but my stencil has successfully been cut.

Step 10: Remove the cut shape.

Remove the shape from the mat, and now you have a definite stencil! Your digital stamp will soon have this shape. Now, here comes the somewhat tricky party...

Step 11: Prepare to cut around your digital stamp.

Leaving the stencil ON the mat (and paying close attention to where it is located in case it accidentally comes off - for example I used a horizontal piece of 8.5 x 11 cardstock, so I centered my paper so there was only half an inch left on the mat on both sides), slide the paper with your digital stamp underneath to get an idea of where it will need to be located on the map.

Step 12: Keep going!

It might take a few tries to get the image directly underneath the stencil so that the image is centered. But don't worry, if you measured correctly, all it will take is a few minutes and some shimmies to get that image smack dab in the middle. :) Does this picture better explain how the stencil is being used? It's a template for where to place your digital stamp on the mat so that the image cuts perfectly around it.

Step 13: Get that image centered! I know you can do it. :)

Once you've got your stamp centered within the stencil exactly where you want it, it's time to get ready to cut! Don't worry if things need to be touched up to fit your image (such as the grass at the bottom of mine) that can be done once the cutting is complete.

Step 14: Remove your stencil.

Now that your stencil has served its purpose, you can go ahead and remove it from the mat. Just be careful to not take your stamp with it! 

Step 15: Don't be scared, it's time to get ready to cut!

Load that bad boy back into your Cricut. :) Your CCR should still have been left open from when you cut the stencil. Make sure to NOT touch the shape in CCR in between cutting the stencil and cutting around your digi, otherwise the position on the mat will be different and your image will not cut so that your stamp is in the center. 

Step 16: Cut!

The image is now in the center of the fun shape you used to make your stencil!

Step 17: Add the final touches to your image, if needed.

You'll see I went back and touched up the grass to fit the border of the shape. Often times touch ups will be needed, and that's perfectly okay. 

Step 18: Add it to your project!

Place your digital stamp on your project and there you have it! A way to give your digital stamps fun shapes other than the basic square/rectangle if you don't have a Cameo or other cutting machine, or if you prefer cutting electronically versus using metal dies. It can take a bit of practice to align the images the way you want, but overall it's a fairly simple process.

TIP: When trying this for the first time, it may be helpful to cut the digi BEFORE coloring it in case it doesn't turn out the way you wanted it - I've learned that lesson the hard way :) Then you don't spend time coloring the image only for it to not be able to get used. 

I hope this tutorial was helpful and taught you a new way to work with your digital stamps. I'd love to hear your thoughts and comments! Feel free to comment below with any questions. :)

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Dt project Rainy Day Avery atc cards









I have another project I want to share with you for the theme this week is St. Paddy's Day.  I used the Rainy Day Avery image again from The Paper Nest Dolls but this time I changed it up a bit, I printed her out at 25% of the exact size and put her on these little tiny atc cards and she was just so much fun and adorable to color.  

Note:  I apologize but this image is no longer available through Paper Nest Dolls but you can find Raining hearts Avery and she is just as darling standing out in the rain in her beautiful rain coat with hearts raining down all around her, please go check out that new image she has in the store.  




Thanks for looking!

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