I'm Amy, a stay-at-home mom by day and a crafter by night. After a day of chasing my kids around the house, I escape to my craft room for a few hours of creating while they sleep. Thanks for joining me in my little corner of the crafting world!

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Sympathy in Blue

Wow, it's Tuesday already!  Time seems to be flying by, although my son thinks time is really dragging (he's getting quite impatient for Halloween!).  For those of you affected by Hurricane Sandy, my thoughts and prayers continue to be with you.  Stay safe, friends!

When I discovered this week's challenge at Sunny Challenges & Creations, I was inspired to make a sympathy card.  I always find it hard to get motivated to make sympathy cards, but sadly, they are always needed and my supply has run quite low lately.  For this challenge, we were to make a sympathy card using this sketch:


I also incorporated the current Splitcoast Stampers Ways to Use It Challenge, which required us to use embossing on a card.  Here is my card:

 
I embossed a panel of Night of Navy card stock with a Texturz Plate in my Big Shot.  I inked the lower section of the panel with layers of Memento Tuxedo Black and Faded Jeans Distress inks, which created a subtly different shade for the lower half of the card.  I applied the ink one layer at a time, stopping between each layer to remove the excess ink by rubbing with a soft cloth (be sure to use an old cloth if you try this, as the ink will stain it).  Once I had the shade I wanted, I set it aside for a moment to dry.  I inked my sentiment stamp with layers of Night of Navy Classic and Faded Jeans Distress inks, then stamped it on a die cut label of white card stock.  I wrapped a piece of white grosgrain ribbon around the large panel, adhered the tag over the ribbon, and attached the entire panel to a white card base. 
 
While I will usually stamp "With Sympathy" or a similar sentiment on the front of the card and save the message stamp for the inside, I decided to do the reverse for this card.  I think the quote works well on the front for this one. 
 
Thanks for visiting!
 
Products Used:
 
Stamp: Close As A Memory (Stampin' Up!)
Paper: Whisper White and Night of Navy card stock (Stampin' Up!)
Ink: Memento Tuxedo Black (Tsukineko); Faded Jeans Distress Ink (Tim Holtz); Night of Navy Classic Ink (Stampin' Up!)
Tools: Big Shot (Sizzix); Texturz Plate (Stampin' Up!); Nestabilities Labels Eighteen (Spellbinders)
Accessories: White 1/4" Grosgain Ribbon (Stampin' Up!)
 
 
 
 
 

11 comments:

  1. This is really very lovely Amy. Understated & elegant. Thanks so much for joining us at Sunny Challenges & Creations this week

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  2. Amy this is stunning! I love the graduated ink and the texture, and the contrast of the label against it.

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  3. Beautiful sympathy card, Amy. Very elegant and the sentiment is lovely. Sue x

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  4. Beautiful sympathy card Amy! Have you ever tried rubbing ink on your embossing folder before running it through the Big Shot? It has a nice effect.

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    1. I love that technique, Donna! I haven't used it in awhile but I should...it's such a lovely way to create a background. Thank you for reminding me of that one! I will use it on a card soon!

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  5. What a wonderfully simple design, perfect for a sympathy card. A xx(Guest Designer Sunny Challenges)

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  6. This is a really gorgeous sympathy card. I know that these are always hard to make but as you say unfortunately necessary. Thanks so much for joining the challenge at Sunny challenges this week.

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  7. This is an elegant layout with a classic colour scheme. Perfect for a sympathy card.

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  8. Beautiful, and I love the tips you shared about your inking technique. Sympathy cards are tough; I should build up a stash like you suggest.

    Thanks for commenting on my blog about writing AnyHero cards. It's also a great way to get kids involved with OWH! :)

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  9. Sympathy cards are just the hardest to make and we unfortunately always seem to need them. Yours is simply fabulous! Beautiful embossed background and sentiment!

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I love reading your comments!