Sweet Stampin' ~ Feeling Nautical

Hey there crafty friends, I'm here with our 'Nautical' challenge at Sweet Stampin' this week. We want to see whatever makes you think of the big blue wobbly. I love the sea, we have some family land that's right on a beautiful beach in the far North of New Zealand and it has a piece of my heart, as it's where my Daddy loved to be and he's buried very near there. So it is 'home' for me. Anything nautical in my crafting always makes me think of this special place and I love crafting with this theme, so I'm hoping there are some other crafters out there who love it too, as we're hoping for lots of entries!

This cutie is from the DigiStamp Boutique and is called Pirate Dan. I've had him sitting in my stash for a long long while, but there are just some images that are timeless and I think the DigiStamp Boutique ones are. I'm rather sad they're no longer trading. I think this cutie is perfect for a nautical adventure and this card was made for my Swedish bestie's boy. They live in Malmö which is a coastal city and the Maja Design papers remind me so much of our visits there, so I really wanted to use them for this card. I wish I'd coloured the top flag orange rather than yellow, it might have tied things together better, but I still love the finish. 

I coloured this cutie some time back (I have loads of coloured images waiting around to be made into cards, am I alone in this?!) so I've actually coloured this with my Promarkers. I still love using these, and often have colours in my Promarker collection, that I don't in my Copics, so it's fun to pull them out for a play still. 

The card design is a Criss Cross card, so the front panel is two triangular flaps secured at the base to create a pocket for the insert to sit in. It's very easy to make and oh so effective! There are loads of tutorials out there, just google criss cross front card and you should find plenty. The insert has two sides to it. The front is stamped with a Swedish greeting which means, loosely translated, congratulations to the boy. 

The flip side of this creation was made by Georgie my daughter, with her own personal message to her Swedish pal. I love this image too, which is from Sugar Nellie and was rather perfect for this creation. Georgie coloured it with a mix of Promarkers and Coloured Pencils.

The final touch was this sweet anchor fastened to the pull up tabs which we attached with brads for a bit of interest. They're also glued in place of course for more stability. But this wee anchor adds that lovely finishing touch this creation needed. 

So come and join us this week at Sweet Stampin' for our Nautical challenge. Whatever you're inspired to do, we can't wait to se(a)! I'll be back again soon with another crafty adventure. Wishing you a wonderful week and plenty of crafty fun! Hugs, Wends xoxo

Challenge Entries:

Stinkin' Inkers: Fancy Folds

Crafty Catz: #473 ~ Anything Goes

Cute Card Thursday: #598 ~ Anything Goes

Lil' Patch of Crafty Friends: #113 ~ Anything Goes

Crafty Creations Challenges: #397 ~ Anything Goes

Addicted To Stamps & More: #357 ~ Make Your Mark

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge: Stamp It (Georgie's image on insert is a rubber stamp)

As You Like It: Favourite Way To Add Text. I love to add text directly to the paper, usually with a rubber sentiment stamp. I've done so with this card on the insert. I love using diecut sentiments too lately, but direct stamping is still my favourite as it's so easy!