Lovely Wishes

Hello, Crafters.

Unfortunately, an elderly aunt of mine passed away recently, and I needed to make a sympathy card. 

I decided to use the two tulip-like flower stamps in the Lovely Wishes Stamp Set, which is in the Spring/Summer Catalogue.

My original idea was to heat emboss the images, but whichever colour embossing powder or cardstock I used, I didn't like anything I came up with. 

I changed direction, and decided to stamp the images using Tuxedo Black Memento Ink on Shimmery White Cardstock (CS), and knew immediately that this was the right direction for me to go.
 
I started by stamping the smaller flower image towards the bottom of the top layer on the right-hand side.

Fortunately this stamp set is photopolymer, so it was quite easy to place the larger flower stamp so the stem joined onto the stem of the smaller flower beautifully!

To colour the leaves I used the Light Old Olive Stampin' Blend, and to colour the flowers I used the Light Pink Pirouette Stampin' Blend. 

I achieved some slight shading without using the dark ink pens just by going over the same area a few times.

For the sentiment on the front of thecard, I chose the SHARING IN YOUR SORROW sentiment from the Hopeful Thoughts Stamp Set, and stamped it close to the two flowers using Tuxedo Black Memento Ink. 

Unfortunately, I'd stamped it slightly crooked, but I really didn't have time to go back to the drawing board if I was going to have my card ready to share with you today............so I cheated!!

I laid the cardstock on my grid paper, and put my ruler along the bottom line of the sentiment, and made sure it was in a straight line with one of the horizontal grid lines. 

When I was happy I had it lined up correctly, I drew a pencil line from one side to the other. 

I took the cardstock to my trimmer, and sliced off the lower part so it was parallel with the sentiment.

Next I had to trim the other three sides to get them to be straight with the new bottom line!

It worked brilliantly, and has left my card with a lovely wide gap between the Shimmery White CS layer and the Old Olive CS layer!

The clean and simple look was right up my street, but it needed something. 

As this is a sympathy card, I didn't want to use ribbon, sequins, rhinestones etc., and decided to look through my stamp sets to see if I had a stamp that was designed to be used in the four corners of my cardstock. 

I found exactly what I was looking for in the Hold on to Hope Stamp Set, and I stamped the image in each corner using Tuxedo Black Memento Ink.

For the inside of the card, I made an Olive Green CS layer and a Shimmery White CS layer the same sizes as those on the front of the card. 

I stamped the four corner images as before, but I also stamped two sentiments in Old Olive Ink, using my Stamp-a-ma-jig to get them straight! 

The WITH SYMPATHY sentiment and the MAY YOUR SORROW BE EASED BY WONDERFUL MEMORIES sentiment are both from the Better Together Stamp Set.  

That's about it from me today. So until tomorrow, happy crafting.  

JanB.