Sending Sunshine

The very wet weather Sydney experienced last week prompted me to post this card which is intended as a Get Well Card. I like the sentiment "Under the Weather? Sending you Sunshine" and set about finding images / elements for a card to match.

I love umbrella stamps, check these out at Keesh's blog HERE, HERE and HERE. The whole rain/shower/weather has lots of scope.

Here's what I came up with (above). I used a technique called Paper Piecing which is very easy and spares you a bit of colouring-in if you're short of markers or not inclined to colour. You stamp the image onto some decorative paper and then cut out a section of the image, gluing it onto the same stamped image which has been stamped on plain card stock. On my card, both the rain coat and gum boots have been coloured this way. It reminds me of paper doll dress-ups that I played with as a young girl.

I was lucky to find some weather-themed paper as a background and I have a sun-shaped die which allowed me to decorate the card inside as follows:


I sent this card off to Pat, a fellow crafter who has been diagnosed with breast cancer and has undergone two surgeries recently. It is especially hard for Pat as she and her husband are the main carers of their young grandson. We're all hoping she bounces back fast and fully as her work here is not yet done!

Thanks for visiting and I'm looking forward to sharing craft again with you soon.

Love from Crafty Kim

Vellum Well Wishes

I designed this card at the request of my friend Dianne for some more ideas for using vellum. I do love Vellum but its transparency makes it tricky to stick down without adhesive showing so it is also a design challenge. In this card, the adhesive is hiding behind the ribbon.

The flowers are stamped and embossed in white on the vellum layer and the Always Artichoke leaves have been die-cut and stuck to the white matt.

A simple greeting and some rhinestones finishe it off. There's lots of nasty viruses going around so any number of friends qualify for this card but another friend, Carolyne, has ongoing health issues to persist with and I sent this to let her know I'm thinking of her.

Hope you're all keeping warm, it' been very frosty in Sydney-town. We have a cold house which is cool in summer but it never really warms up in winter before the day cools again.

Love from Crafty Kim

Star Sympathy

I bought this stamp some years ago - fortunately, haven't needed to use it very often but the idea comforts me. In case you can't quite read it from the photo, here it is in text:

“Perhaps they are not stars, but rather openings in heaven where the love of our lost ones pours through and shines down upon us to let us know they are happy.”

My stamp says it is an Indian saying but other research suggests it originates with Eskimos?

I've been looking for a star embossing folder for some time and when I saw the one used above I snapped it up. I made the card shimmery by sponging silver ink lightly on the raised embossed areas.

I wanted to keep the card low-key but the star clips fitted the theme and the silver mesh ribbon helped distinguish the top layer of navy blue from the navy base.

Thanks for stopping by,

Love from Crafty Kim

Well Wishes for a Brave Friend

I made this card recently for a friend who faced major surgery and its associated pain / lack of mobility all while juggling her work, other health issues and care of two young kids. Not for the "faint of heart". In my estimation, she's done really well and will soon be back to a new normal.

For her card, I fancied making use of my new-ish Owl Punch. The possibilities for this punch are seemingly endless and for inspiration, I went straight to the queen of owl-punching, Kerry Bunting. What Kerry hasn't done with the owl punch probably isn't worth doing (but then again, I may have to retract that claim if she comes up with more great ideas).

I particularly like the little doctor's noteboard with its mini-clip. Another reference to the doctor's notepad is the border punch on the left. It's a bit hard to see but I've used my BigShot and an embossing folder to create a textured, cream-coloured background.

Thanks again to Kerry for her bounty of ideas and to you for stopping by.

Love from Crafty Kim