Unfortunately I recently had a need for a couple of sympathy cards and I didn’t have any on hand to send right away. So I created a couple of this card to send out. As much as I don’t want to need this type of card, I really should create a few to have on hand so I can get them out quickly when needed. My heart is very heavy for my friends that are grieving, and I hope my card will help them in some small way at this tough time.
I drew the inspiration for this card from a sample that I received in a demonstrator swap. The swap card featured the Daffodil Daydream set, but the elements that I lifted are the framed ombré and embossed background. This background is really quite easy to create with the amazing Blending Brushes that Stampin’ Up! offers. I created the frame with some low-tack tape which protected that area while I inked up the center. With a Blending Brush, I used 3 colors of ink to create a shaded background starting with the lightest color at the top, middle color… in the middle, and darkest at the bottom. As I transitioned, I blended the new color with the previous one to have gradual transitions. The key is to be frugal with your ink and apply lots of layers to avoid adding too much ink at once and creating dark spots. You can see from the picture one spot on the middle right where it’s a tidge darker – I wasn’t as careful and added too much at once. One thing that I do to improve success is to brush off excess ink on scrap paper before adding to the project.
I have seen lots of samples using the Meadow Dies as silhouette elements, and I’ve thought that they were absolutely gorgeous. The Harvest dies have some great silhouette images too – for this card I used a die from that set for the sentiment. Typically, the diecuts are done with Basic Black cardstock, but I thought that was a little too harsh for this card. Instead I pulled out my pack of Basic Gray cardstock for the diecut and mat. I like the softened silhouette image, and it still has nice contrast with the shaded purple background. These dies are great for this look and I encourage you to check them out in the “big” catalog. Paired with the versatile sentiments in the Inspired Thoughts stamp set, and you have a dynamic duo that you can use for many occasions.
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