Another Shaped Card with a Blessing

This week my yard is colorful with yellow daffodils and forsythia, lilac and pink hyacinths, and pink and white apricot tree blossoms. Spring is my favorite time of year to be outside in my yard. I am so blessed by the beauty of God's creations. I am so very thankful, as well, for the generous rain we've received lately in our drought-stricken area.

I made this shaped card with an image I printed to use last week for Twist of Faith's "New Life" challenge, but changed my mind. The girl with the watering can, "Mary, Mary," is from Michelle Perkett Studio. I combined her with the verse from Our Daily Bread Designs, Psalm 115:15:

"May you be Blessed by the Lord, the Maker of Heaven and Earth."

Our Daily Bread Designs Shining the Light Challenge is to make a card shaped other than a rectangle or square. Twist of Faith, Crafty Creations, and 365 Cards Day 99 also have that same challenge. I used this card shape from the Cricut Art Philosophy cartridge. I sized it to fit a 5" x 7" envelope.

 

Sometimes I find it hard to know what size to cut something on the Cricut and have to try it out with scrap paper first. This time the card base was easier than the mat, which I precut with scrap paper after making a good guess. First I selected the Oval5 Card feature and cut the Buttercup cardstock at 7." The Basic Grey "Sugar Rush" floral mat was cut at 4.75." Sometimes I don't like the tiny slit made by the Cricut to show you where to fold, but this time I used the slit to thread the ribbon  and tie it all the way around the front of the card.

 

The edges of the card were lightly inked with Sunset ink. The rounded light green cardstock was embossed with the Sizzix Swirly Vines and Hearts embossing folder. I stamped the verse which came from Our Daily Bread Designs' set, "Happy Birthday."  The edges were inked with Petal ink and it was pop dotted on a Buttercup mat, inked with Sunset.

 

I added some tiny Prima spring blossoms for this girl to water. I inked white ones using an Amethyst stamp pad. CTMH Pink Glitter Gems were added to the centers of the blossoms.

 

Thanks for visiting and may you also be blessed by God's beautiful creations.



I'm sharing this card with the following challenges:
365 Cards, Day 99 - Shapely
Clear It Out - Spring is Coming (stash to clear out - flowers - mine are at least 6 years old)
Crafting for All Seasons #49 - Floral Delight
Crafting by Designs - Spring Flowers
Crafty Creations #217 - No Squares
Creative Belli #167 - Pastel Colors (used forgotten flowers I'd bought in a big jar in 2007)
Die Cuttin' Divas #110 - Pastel Colors + die cuts
Fab 'n' Funky #166 - Spring Colors
Going Grey with Scrap Creations - Flower Power
Happy Campers #14 - Flower Power
MilkCoffee - Welcome Spring
My Heart Pieces - Spring or Easter
Our Daily Bread Designs Shining The Light #145 - Other than a Classic Square or Rectangle
Simon Says Stamp - April showers and/or Spring Flowers
Word Art Wednesday #75 - anything goes with encouraging or uplifting verse


 

Hope Blooms

When I was a teenager, I spent three years working as a Candy Striper at Baptist Memorial Hospital. My first two years, one of my jobs was to deliver flowers to patients. People were always so pleased to receive a vase of flowers. It was obvious that flowers were given to cheer up those who were recuperating. There's something bright and happy about looking at flowers.

My husband and I spent Mother's Day with a group of family at a Botanical Garden. The flowers and trees were amazing and inspired this shaped card along with these lovely challenges: The Shabby Tea Room Week #114 inspiration photo and request to make Shaped Cards. Dutch Dare Card Challenge #165 is also for shaped cards. I used the Shopping Our Stash Weekly Challenge #52 Bingo, the column under "G" - patterned paper, blue, sentiment, ribbon, and tag. (They are celebrating their birthday so you can enter as many times as you like!)

This is a really fun shape to make. I traced a template making sure that the front of the card is higher, revealing the inside of the card where a strip of patterned paper will show. The top was embossed after using a brayer with ink on the raised leaf portion, so that the colored debossed side shows on the front. My intent was to decorate the leaves as if they were a bouquet of flowers tied with a ribbon and tag like the ones I used to deliver.

I'm hoping that this card with it's flowers and verse will bring loving cheer to someone who needs to encouragment that God is with them in their time of need and will help them.

Challenges:
Basic Grey Challenge #58 - Anything Goes with Baisc Grey paper (I used Sweet Threads)
Dutch Dare Card Challenge#165 - shaped cards
Shopping Our Stash Weekly #52 - Bingo
The Shabby Tea Room #114 - Inspiration photo and shaped card

4.25: x 5.5" Encouragement Card Recipe:
Paper - Basic Grey "Sweet Threads;" Close To My Heart White Daisy, Hollyhock cardstock
Stamp - Verve "Hope Blooms"
Inks - CTMH Sweet Leaf, Hollyhock
Accents/Tools - Cuttlebug embossing folder; brayer; CTMH Pearl Opaques; Michaels silver cord, Recollections floral embellishments; white satin ribbon