My Time To Craft Inspirational Design
Dogs and or Cats
Good day, fellow crafters. I am thrilled to introduce my inspirational submission for the My Time To Craft Challenge Blog, challenge #516. For every challenge we, as the design team, attempt to bring you themes and ideas that will test your abilities and, ideally, ignite your enthusiasm to explore fresh ways of thinking. However, what I like most about being part of the team is seeing how we each showcase our take on the theme and sometimes just what the card means to the creator.
I hope you are inspired to enter this challenge and I can’t wait to see your creative take on this week’s theme. Be sure to tag me on your entry and/or comment below so I know to watch out for you. Remember Crafting is Happiness!
The challenge for this time was to create a card that featured dogs and or cats as the theme. I opted to go with dogs and a very sad theme. The person receiving this card had recently lost a cherished, long-time companion, and their grief was profound. It seemed important to me to offer my condolences and craft something meaningful for them. To respect their privacy, I have refrained from including any additional personalization that was added after the card was finished. Perhaps, in the distant future, they will find solace in the hope of reuniting with their beloved companion on the other side of the rainbow bridge. I could think of no better way to represent the imagery of my meaning than the Kat Scrappiness Rainbow Bridge stamp set, featured above.
The expression "crossing the rainbow bridge" is often used as a metaphor to describe the passing of a beloved pet. It's a way to provide comfort and solace to those who have lost their furry companions. The origins of this phrase are not entirely clear, but it has become a widely recognized symbol in pet loss and grieving communities.
The concept behind the rainbow bridge is that when a pet passes away, they journey to a special place in the afterlife, often depicted as a beautiful, vibrant meadow or bridge, where they are free from pain and suffering. This place is symbolized by a rainbow, which is often associated with hope and beauty.
Using the phrase "crossing the rainbow bridge" is a way to offer a gentle and hopeful perspective on the loss of a pet. It suggests that our pets are not truly gone but have moved on to a better, peaceful existence. It provides comfort to those who are mourning and helps them cope with the grief of losing a cherished companion.
To create this card I first used my cloud stencil and ink-blended a very light pale blue sky. I then wanted to represent the light of Heaven or the light at the end of the tunnel, whichever metaphor you prefer for your own beliefs, so I ink-blended a golden light ready to receive the soul of the lost friend. I then allowed the ink to dry.
I next placed the background panel into my Misti stamping tool and aligned my stamps. Once I had them where I wanted them I inked them thoroughly and then stamped the image onto my paper. I did this twice to ensure coverage and used even pressure on the stamps to ensure a clean transfer. I then utilized the smoosh method with my chosen ink colors onto my glass mat, spritzed them with water, and then used my water brush pen to pick up the pigments to color the image.
The next phase was assembly. I trimmed the background panel down to its final dimensions as well as a black mat for visual appeal. To prevent too much waste of materials I cut a large portion of the center of the mat out to use for the sentiment. Then the two pieces were adhered together with double-sided tape and then the composite was adhered in the same manner to a pre-cut and folded A2 white card base.
Lastly, I used the clear embossing ink and a sentiment for the stamp set to stamp my sentiment onto the portion of paper I removed from the center of the mat. I then covered it in white embossing powder and heat-set it with my heat tool. Once it had cooled I utilized the corresponding die set, not shown, to cut out the sentiment and then adhered it to the background panel with some liquid glue.
I hope you find inspiration in my creation and want to create something yourself as we at My Time to Craft would love to see it.
