With gratitude

Hi everyone,

Today's card is a thank you card for the doctors and nurses of the Intensive Care Unit who looked after my hubby.  They are dedicated, caring individuals and I wanted to send them a thank you card and some goodies to show our appreciation.

I used my Cameo Coral Stampin' Write marker and a blender pen to color in the rose on the card.  Love this color ... too bad it is long retired and no longer available.  For now, I use it sparingly, hoping the ink will last a bit longer. :)

"With Gratitude"

Stamps:  Garden Oasis (Fiskars); Chit Chat (Paper Smooches)
Paper:  White (Neenah); Watercolor paper (Arches); Black Polka-dot DP, Old Olive (SU!)
Ink:  Cameo Coral, Old Olive, Basic Black (SU!)
Accessories & Tools:  Big Shot, Leaves Die (Sizzix), 1/4" Basic Black grosgrain ribbon, Stamp-a-ma-jig, blender pen, sponge, adhesives, glue dots and dimensionals

I used the Marker Layering technique to color the rose (see link to tutorial on Tutorial page).  I didn't have an appropriate leaf stamp to match with the rose, so I used a die-cut and Old Olive cardstock with more ink sponged on the edges to create some depth.  I'll have to find a leaf stamp that will work with this rose because I think it would be a lot better with a watercolored leaf to match.  Note to self:  time to go shopping! :)

Tip on fussy-cut images ... after I cut an image rose out, I run a Stampin' Write marker (same color as the stamped image) along the outside cut edge to give it a nice clean look.  I used the Black marker with today's rose ... it covers up the white edge from the cut and also disguises any mistakes I made when cutting.