Soft Sky Always

Always is another one of those stamp sets I've been intimidated by. It has such pretty, elegant images and I've seen so many great samples of cards made using the set. It's a little different than my usual style, so I just wasn't sure I could work with it. To work my way into using the set and build my confidence a little, I've been using it for some challenges where I can work from a great sample and alter the sample just a little. That's why I picked this card from Jennifer's gallery to use for today's SCS featured stamper challenge.

I kept the basic layout the same as in Jennifer's card (heart image on vellum at the center of a Soft Sky patterned cardfront) but alsom made some alterations to "personalize" the card. I heat embossed the heart image on white vellum using white embossing powder. Instead of layering the vellum on a piece of Soft Sky cardstock, I used a Nestabilities rectangle die to cut a window through the layers (Prints Series paper, white paper) on the cardfront. The vellum is sandwiched between the layers. This completely hides the adhesive, which is always a challenge when using vellum. I attached this sandwiched panel to the Soft Sky card base using dimensionals.

I made a few other changes to Jennifer's original design. I decided to just use silver brads on the corners instead of embellishing them with flowers. I also opted to use the round "always" sentiment instead of the bird. It was much easier to stamp and emboss the image, then punch it out with a circle punch than it would have been to stamp, emboss, and cut out the bird image. I switched the placement of this piece to the right side of the card.

After a few "CASE-s," I think I'm starting to feel a little more comfortable with using the Always set. Maybe I'll use it for one of my swaps for the upcoming SU! convention . . .

Materials Used:

Versamark, Soft Sky and Whisper White cardstock, white vellum, Soft Sky Prints Series designer paper, 1 1/4" and 1 3/8" circle punches, Winter White embossing powder, silver brads, white taffeta ribbon, silver cord, dimensionals (Stampin' Up!); rectangle die (Nestabilities)