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Sunday, November 3, 2013

Zoo Review for The Paper Players

Happy Sunday, peeps! After nearly a week home sick from work, I am feeling much better--not 100%--but getting there.  I was glad to have the excuse of my Sunday card for The Paper Players to push my brain to start working again.  It felt good to create!  This week, Jaydee is our hostess-with-the-mostest with a theme that Sandy picked out:
Love it!  There are all different ways to go with this challenge--think of all the different kinds of wildlife--and you'll see the rest of the Design Team has tons of inspiring ideas.  I couldn't get my mind off of using my as-yet-uninked Zoo Review set for today's card:
I love giraffes.  Twiga--Swahili for giraffe--are one of my top 5 favorite animals.  On recent trips to South Africa and Tanzania we were treated to many sightings of these graceful creatures and I never tired of watching them.  They always seem so gentle but in Tanzania we watched two young males literally smacking heads together.  Quite a sight to see them whack those nubby horns into each other.  Anywhooooo, on to the card!  I had help from a few other challenges with the details of this card.  The color combination of Old Olive, Crushed Curry, Cajun Craze, Very Vanilla and Early Espresso over at Fab Friday (FabFri30) is perfect and I adored The Friday Mashup challenge (FM134) to use their sketch and chevrons--what a cool sketch!
I knew I wanted to heat emboss the Zoo Review giraffe in Early Espresso so I started with that and built the rest of the elements around it!  I colored her spots with a Crushed Curry stampin' write marker and stamped some companions in Sahara Sand.  (I hope the Fab Friday team doesn't mind an extra neutral!)  It's so easy to color an embossed image.  The raised edges of the embossing really help you stay inside the lines. 
The left side of the focal piece needed a little something so I inked just the grass with an Early Espresso stampin' write marker and stamped it a couple more times across the bottom.  I used EE because the first image was embossed in EE and I wanted it to look continuous.  Lastly, I used a Blender Pen and Old Olive ink pad to shade the grassy savannah for the giraffes to stand on.  I love the sanded look of Core'dinations cardstock and the Woodgrain embossing folder.  Combined with the Linen Thread, it adds the perfect a rustic touch to my trio of Twiga!  For the chevron shaped border of my cardstock and DSP, I found the center point along the bottom, drew a dot about 1/2" up, and drew lines with a ruler from the dot to the bottom corner of the paper.  Then just cut along the lines with my paper snips to achieve the chevron shaped edge.  Easy-peasy!

The Paper Players Design Team

Head on over to The Paper Players to check out all the inspiration from the rest of the Design Team.  Then come on back to join us before the challenge closes on Friday, November 8th at Noon (PDT).  Here are the challenges I used for today's card:


Lastly, I can't leave without sharing one of my favorite photos from South Africa with you....have a great day, friends!


 Photobucket
Supplies
Stamps: Zoo Review, Wetlands
Ink: Versamark, Old Olive, Early Espresso, Sahara Sand
Paper: Very Vanilla, Early Espresso, Early Espresso Core'dinations CS; Sweater Weather DSP; retired DSP from my stash (old olive & cajun craze)
Extras: Early Espresso embossing powder; Linen Thread; Regals Candy Dots; Woodgrain embossing folder; Sanding block; Blender Pen; Crushed Curry & Early Espresso stampin' write markers

19 comments:

stampwithsandy said...

Nance this card is absolutely gorgeous, and how cool you had inspiration from your trip to Africa. The layout with the banners is amazing and I love the patterns in the DSP. Just what I had in mind for this challenge!

Nancy said...

O'eeee I don't know which is more gorgeous your wonderful card or the beautiful serene photo.
Love 'em both!
Luv,
Mom

Ginger said...

I am definitely inspired after seeing your card Nance. So many wonderful elements that add just the right pizzazz. Definitely want to case this one!

Bada-Bing Creations said...

Wow! This is stunning! The colors work so fabulously with the tone of this card! Just wow! Thanks for playing at Fab Friday!

Life Full of Sunflowers said...

wow Nance, this card is amazing - I don't know where to begin.

I'm glad you are feeling better and pray you continue to improve.

Marisa said...

Gorgeous card! I love giraffes - actually any of the big five in Africa. Sooo want to get there one day! Your photo is amazing and I can see why you love it so much. Great card capturing these wonderful animals :)

Cindy Brumbaugh said...

Nance, how beautifully done- like a scenic photograph! I love the take on the sketch for the Friday Mashup. The stamped off giraffes are awesome. LOVE IT! Thanks for sharing with the Friday Mashup this week:)

Amanda Mertz said...

Gorgeous card! I love how you used all three challenges and hit each one spot on! THe embossing is super cool and I really like your layered banner flags! Thanks for sharing at Fab Friday!

LeAnne said...

This is a fabulous card, Nance....I have a friend who LOVES giraffes, I thought of her immediately when I saw your card! Love the grass and the textured background....but the photo of the REAL giraffe just captured my heart! SO cool!

Jaydee said...

Nance, giraffes are one of my favorite animals, too. There is nothing more amazing than watching these incredibly graceful animals gallop across the veldt on a hot summer's day. They are beautiful. Thanks for evoking such wonderful memories for me. Fabulous card.

Hope you are feeling so much better.
Hugs
Jaydee

Dawn Tidd said...

This is so striking, Nancy. I love how you did the giraffe images. You definitely did one of your Top 5 animals justice. Thanks for sharing your giraffe photo too!

Linda Callahan said...

Love the card! Your inspiration photo is fabulous and you worked it into one fabulous card! Glad you are feeling better!

Heidi Baks said...

I love this! I find creating a background for a giraffe image quite challenge... you did a great job! Weird story - we went on the 'safari' at Busch Gardens in Tampa to feed the giraffes, and I found out I was allergic to them. :) Thanks for joining the Friday Mashup this week.

Diane - oliver.mdiane@comcast.net said...

Nance sorry to hear you were under the weather and glad you're back on top again.
The card is fabulous and love the little details you're so good at! The photo was such an inspiration and how wonderful you got to see this up close and personal. hugs.

hollybeary creations said...

This is soon cute! I just got this stamp set and I can't wait to play with it now. I love your use of the Friday Mashup sketch with the other challenges. Thanks for joining us.

Ann Schach said...

Fabulous, Nance! I love giraffes, too! I feel like I am an a safari when I see this card. This is a great layout!

Tara Bourgoin said...

This is super awesome! I love the layered banners and the wood grain in the background. Super take on the challenge this week! Thanks for sharing with us at The Friday Mashup :)

Anne Marie Hile said...

Nance, giraffes are my favorite animal EVER! That photo is beyond gorgeous. I am so jealous that you were able to capture that image of that gorgeous creature. WOW! Love your card with all of the layered banners and distressed texture. So pretty! Hugs! :)

Brenda Myers said...

Very pretty card!! I love the companions to the main giraffe!! Thank you for joining us at Fab Friday!!