Featuring Sympathy

Hello again! It is not often that I write up a post in advance these days, but hey, it's a New Year!  I am trying to be more productive an timely in all of my projects.

One of my 2016 stamping goals is to complete all of this year's Featured Stamper challenges posted over at Splitcoaststampers.  I found that I have often looked at the challenge, but rarely complete them.  It might be because they post on Sunday, and my husband rarely works Sundays; it's nice to have a day with him.  But since I give myself wiggle room (I don't have to do them the day or even the week they are posted) I should be able to do these.  One reason I picked the Featured Stamper is that it is fun if I "know"the stamper.  I haven't met many SCS members in real life, but I do chat with a lot of them in the various forums. I enjoy seeing my friends get this honor!  It is also fun to be inspired by stampers whose galleries I have never seen.   So many different styles!  While I am posting on a Sunday, I don't have the current challenge done.  I'll be away from home all day.  I do have this year's first two featured stamper challenges to share...

The first challenge highlights the gallery of Kathy LeDonne.  Kathy participates in many of the SCS challenges, so I was happy to see her as Featured Stamper!  I chose THIS card to CASE.  I love the flowers she used, and my set (Watercolor Garden II) had not been touched for a long time.  My color scheme is completely different; I used the palette from Color Challenge #564.  My card base is sahara sand, with a layer of very vanilla.  I do not have any cucumber crush ink or card stock, so I used wild wasabi.  The 2-step flowers are stamped in wasabi, sahara sand, and pacific point, and I sponged the edges, then popped it up.  The ribbon is non-SU...from my nephew's wedding favors!  I embossed the wasabi card stock with the Cuttlebug stylized flowers folder.  The sentiment is from "So Sorry."  Candy dots finish it off.

The next Featured Stamper was someone I had not seen before:  gunilla.holmqvist  What a lovely gallery!  I chose THIS card to CASE.  I chose a similar color scheme and similar main image. My card base is crumb cake.  I added a layer of "Sweet Sorbet" dsp.  On very vanilla, I stamped the hydrangea image from "Because I Care."  It was colored with markers: crisp cantaloupe, calypso coral, mellow moss, and pistachio pudding.  I had hoped more variation of shades would show up, but it didn't.  I added ruffled pistachio ribbon, and the same sentiment on a popped up layer.  (I messed up the "for your loss" so I restamped and punched out with the word window)

A woman in the neighborhood passed away last week.  One card is for her adult daughter, the other is for the neighbor next door who helped nurse the woman in her home for years.  Even though it is cold and dreary...or perhaps because of that, I wanted these cards to have a hint of spring.

Thanks for stopping by...let me know what you think!

Inky {{{HUGS}}}
Kim