Two Cards: One Stamp & A Bonus!

The colors for today's SplitCoast Stampers color challenge were Perfect Plum, Baja Breeze and Pear Pizzazz.  I immediately envisioned a sympathy card since those colors seemed elegant yet subdued.  Here is my card:

I pulled out this Lily Corner from DRS Designs.  I love its graceful lines and tried to accent them by a little hand-cutting.  I paired it with a very simple sentiment also from DRS Designs.

The layout for this card comes from 2 Sketches 4 You.

I think that I am one of the very few who like to make sympathy cards.  It all stems from personal experience.

My father died in his early 40s.  I was young enough, that while I am sure a psychiatrist could find lasting issues with me, I really have very few strong memories of the emotion of that event.  However, my mother lived another 25 years missing my father.  When she died a few years ago - still too young at 67 - it was impossible to mourn.  I know that she is where she wanted to be for 25 years - with my father in the loving care of the Lord.

I want my sympathy cards to embrace all of those emotions.  They must be simple in keeping with the stark and simple grief that the recipient is feeling.  Yet they should be rich and beautiful, because the underlying emotion that grief turns into is the peace and joy of knowing what your loved one is experiencing in their existence with God.

• Stamps: DRS Designs Lily Corner and 1 Line in Sympathy
• Ink: Memento Black; Copics: V91 Pale Grape (washed out even further with a blender pen), BG0000 around the flowers; Prismacolor: PM-124 Limepeel (a great match to Pear Pizzazz)
• Paper: Stampin' Up Perfect Plum, Greenhouse Gala (the green pattern), Parisian Breeze (the blue pattern)
• Accessories: Martha Stewart Seam Binding, Bow Easy to tie the bow, Inkadinkado sparkly floss, Crystal Stickles, cross charm

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BONUS #1

I actually purchased the Lily Corner stamp used in the above card with a vision of a CAS Easter card.  So even though I am currently surrounded by Christmas reds and greens and lots of glitter, I decided to give myself a break and try that card:

I just LOVE the soft wash of color that I got from an aquabrush and some ink pads.

• Stamps: DRS Designs Lily Corner and Earth's Saddest Day Easter Greeting
• Ink: Stampin' Up Pink Pirouette, Pear Pizzazz, Staz-On Black
• Paper: Stampin' Up Pink Pirouette, Strathmore Watercolor Paper
• Accessories: ribbon from Hobby Lobby, K&Co pearls, Sizzix embossing folder (from a birthday set), aquabrush, Tsukineko Frost White All-Purpose Ink purchased from Stampin' Up catalog (used in the flower openings)



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BONUS #2

I am actually starting to stress over my goal of making sure that all of my Stampin' Up sets see ink.  That's sad.  Card-making shouldn't be stressful.  So since I didn't use any Stampin' Up sets in my above challenge cards - here's today's card toward my goal

Set 242 - Berry Christmas



The sketch for this card comes from Techno Stamper.

• Stamps: Stampin' Up Berry Christmas
• Ink: Stampin' Up Old Olive, Crumb Cake
• Paper: Stampin' Up Real Red, Tempting Turquoise
• Accessories: American Crafts ribbon, Stampin' Up die for the bird, Martha Stewart snow glitter, Stampin' Up decorate label punch folded in half, Tsukineko shimmer paint (on the bird), Stampin' Up embossing folder