Papillon Sympathy

Wow, I have been busy. Almost 3 months since my last post?? Whoops! I have been busy crafting, but also with family, the end of the school year, my stepdaughter's graduation, more family... and a funeral. My great aunt passed away last week at 84 years of age, and we will miss her terribly. She was so fun and funny, and she could (and did) beat the pants off of anyone at a card game. I made this card in duplicate - one for her daughter, and one for my grandmother - her last living sister out of 9. I don't usually make sympathy cards. I have decided that I need to get over that and make them myself as a labor of love, and in this case it was a good experience for me.

I am so thankful that I ordered Blessings From Heaven. There are so many nice sentiments and a good pair of sympathy stamps. The Bible verse is on the inside along with a small butterfly. I made 2 additional white panels to layer up the card for a simple but sweet presentation.

I used the more realistic large butterfly from Papillon Potpourri for this design. I stamped it once on the card panel and once separately for coloring and punching. The Elegant Butterfly punch actually cuts inside the lines of the image, and cuts off the antennae, so it made sense to make a 3-D image. I colored the butterfly with muted yellows and oranges and popped it up on Stampin' Dimensionals. The coloring isn't perfect but I didn't want it to be. I have to say that I much prefer the new ink pads to the previous! There is a learning curve but the black is BLACK and not blue like my old one, and the lines are crisp.

It was a nice surprise to attend the prayer service and see that the family had chosen a bulletin with butterflies on the cover. My aunt was a wonderful woman. Since she had Alzheimer's that was quite severe, we have been missing "her" for several years, so now we celebrate her freedom to a body that knows no sickness and a mind that is once again sharp as a tack!

More projects will post later!
Becca

Supplies used:
Stamp sets: Papillon Potpourri, Blessings from Heaven
Ink: Basic Black (NEW!!)
Markers: So Saffron, More Mustard, Pumpkin Pie, Summer Starfruit, Soft Suede, Chocolate Chip
Tool: Elegant Butterfly Punch
Other: Stampin' Dimensionals, SNAIL