Two Thank You Cards

Now that Christmas is over, it's time to think about thank you cards. Coincidentally, Live Love Cards' challenge this month has been to create thank you cards. These are 2 of mine.

I found this post through Pinterest, and used one of the cards there for inspiration for my first card. I die cut 5 tags using three of the "Mini Tags" dies by Pretty Pink Posh, from various colors of cardstock. I also die cut the "thank" letters from white cardstock with Hero Arts' "Alphabet Uppercase" dies. I glued the tags in rainbow order onto a piece of kraft cardstock that I'd cut to 4.25x5.5", and then adhered the letters onto them.

For the "you," I used an old set of alphabet stamps by The Paper Studio (no longer available). I placed the card front in my MISTI, and used a clear plastic grid sheet to help me position the letters. I then stamped in Versamark ink, and heat embossed the word with Ranger Super Fine Detail White embossing powder. I added 3 rows of dashed lines with a white gel pen, both to ground the "you" & fill in the left side of the card front a bit. Finally, I adhered the panel to a white A2 card base and rounded the top corners with my 1/2" Corner Chomper.

I got the inspiration for my second card also through Pinterest. I began by cutting 2 pieces of kraft cardstock to 4.25" wide. I taped them together, overlapping them about an inch, and die cut through both layers with one of the "Snow Drifts" dies from My Favorite Things. I then separated the panels and trimmed them down to fit an A2 card, with a 1.25" gap in between.

I cut a piece of Strathmore Smooth Bristol paper to 4.25x5.5". I used my kraft panels as a guide to mark where the gap would be between them. I stamped my flowers & leaves, using 2 of the stamps in "Bold Blooms" from Essentials by Ellen, in that gap, using Ranger Archival Jet Black ink. I colored over the images with my Zig Clean Color pens, and blended the color out a bit with my water brush. Then I set that aside to dry.

I used my sewing machine to stitch around both kraft panels with black thread. Then I used my MISTI to help me position the greeting, from Technique Tuesday's "A Million and One" mini stamp set, on the lower panel. I stamped that in Versafine Onyx Black ink, to be sure to get a nice crisp impression.

To finish my card, I applied foam tape to the back of each kraft panel, and adhered them to my bristol piece, lining up the sides evenly. I felt the card needed a little something more, so I sponged over the kraft with Antique Linen Distress ink. This gave it a bit of soft, subtle texture, without competing with the stamping. Finally, I mounted the card front to a white A2 card base.