Sympathy Cards

I’ve been a bit AWOL for the last few weeks. A dear friend of mine has been fighting for her life since surgery in December. She fought hard until the end but unfortunately passed away last week. All of her friends and family are understandably devastated. She was a wonderful person and was always cheering me on with any project I undertook. I had trouble feeling creative and stumbled a few times in making these cards. I ended up making two and decided I would send the blue one to her daughters. I wanted to share them for those that, like me, may have trouble feeling creative when dealing with sadness and may just want to follow someone else’s design. Both cards are 5 1/2″ by 4 1/4″

Blue Card

Supplies Used:

Yupo paper

Tonic Studios Mirror car in Silky Sky

Alcohol Inks- Moss, Mermaid, Mushroom

Alcohol Pearl Ink- Tranquil

Alcohol Alloy Ink- Foundry

Blending solution

Tim Holtz Sizzix Die- Organic 664153

The frame die I used for the sentiment is an old Spellbinders die that I could not find the name/number of

Fun Stampers Journey Stamp set- Inside and Out- SS-0576

The inner left hand sentiment is a Unity Stamp co. stamp I received in a grab bag

Velvet Ribbon

Versafine Clair Ink- Nocturne

Steps:

1. I first made a background on Yupo using alcohol , pearl and alloy inks.

2. I then cut Organic out of Mirror card stock that matched the blues in the background. I popped this up on the background sheet using foam adhesive.

3. I wrapped the velvet ribbon around the joined piece, tied a bow then adhered this unit to a piece of matching card stock.

4. I stamped “with sympathy” onto white card stock then die cut it using the Spellbinders die. On another sheet of white card stock, 4″ x 5 1/4″, I stamped the inside sentiment. Once it was dry, I put it on my score board and scored around all the edges 1/8″ from the edge. On another small piece of white card stock I stamped the Unity sentiment, die cut it with the Spellbinders die and adhered it to the left hand side.

Yellow Card

Materials Used:

Tim Holtz Botanical 3D Embossing Folder- 662716

Tim Holtz Wildflowers #2 die- 664164

Ranger Antique Linen Distress Oxide

Stampin Up! nesting dies (this is a very old set of dies, but I am sure there is something similar out there)

FSJ stamp set, Unity stamp, Spellbinders die and Versafine Ink as above in blue card

White ribbon

Steps:

1. First I figured out which color I was going to use. I ended up making several different ones as I was having issues deciding. I used the brayer technique Tim showed in his video last week. I brayered ink onto the side of the embossing folder that is indented, then ran it through my machine several times. I ended up using the Antique Linen one.

2. I cut a piece of white card stock (5 1/2″ x 4 1/4″) and used one of the nesting dies to cut out the center. I wrapped a piece of the white ribbon across this piece then popped this sheet up onto the embossed layer with foam adhesive.

3. I cut out several of the wildflower stems and chose two to adhere to the left hand side of the card. I then added a bow to the bottom of the stems. I stamped “with sympathy” on white card stock, die cut it, then adhered this to the center of the card front, using a foam square underneath the center of the ribbon to keep it even with the white layer.

4. On the inside of the card, I once again stamped a piece of white card stock with my inside sentiment , scored 1/8″ from the edges and adhered it to the right side. On the left hand side I stamped the Unity sentiment and adhered another of the wildflower stems.

That’s it. Despite my trouble with them in the end they are fairly simple to make. I hope this helps someone else having trouble with creativity when losing a loved one. Have a good week everyone. – Lisa