Mitzvah Day - Cards for Nursing Homes 2021

Hello, friends! It has been quite a while since I've dropped by the old blog, hasn't it?  

Life is busy, but I wanted to stop by to share some cards I recently made as part of a Mitzvah Day service project at my church. They were collecting cards for nursing home residents, so my 16-year-old son and I teamed up to participate.  This year, I was able to make 20 cards, while he wrote the positive messages inside.  

I used a variety of products for my cards this year, including stamps, stencils, and dies from Taylored Expressions, Papertrey Ink, Technique Tuesday, My Favorite Things, Mama Elephant, Impression Obsession, Concord & 9th and Simon Says Stamp. I love being able to mix and match the supplies in my stash for occasions such as this. So many of these products work well together!

My first set of cards features the Taylored Expressions "Doodle Flowers Background" combined with the "Handlettered Sentiments" in the center. I die cut the white panel with a My Favorite Things "Blueprints 20" scalloped-edge die. I added Bits and Pieces Drip Drops for a final touch. Since this is a very detailed floral image, I decided to add soft ink with blender brushes, then I went back and added more color on the stems and small flowers with Zig watercolor markers. That made this process much quicker! 

 

My next set of cards also featured Taylored Expressions stamps, stencils and dies paired with a Simon Says Stamp sentiment from the "Banner Sayings" set. For these cards, I used the "Full of Flowers" cling along with the "Color Block" masking stencil and the "Diagonal Stitch Rectangle" die. After die cutting the white card base, I inked the base using the stencil. Without removing the stencil -- and adding back the stencil piece in the center -- I then stamped the floral image in a coordinating color. Finally, I removed the stencil and added the sentiment and drip drops before adhering to the card. 

Next up, more Taylored Expressions!  For these cards, I used the "Full of Flowers" cling and clear combo set along with the coordinating stencil. The sentiments are from the "Simple Strips Background" with coordinating dies (here and here). For the center card, I inked and stamped the images, but for the other two cards I stenciled on the colors with blender brushes. The coordinating Prima flowers were the final touch!

This duo of cards features Taylored Expressions "Diamond Botanical" stamps and dies paired with the Impression Obsession "Wooden Plank" background stamp.  I colored these with Zig watercolor markers. I really love this stamp set!

The next two cards were so quick and easy...I could have easily made many more of this style.  These feature the "Here Comes the Sun" stencil from Taylored Expressions paired with a sentiment from Technique Tuesday's "Bring On the Sun" set.

The next cards feature one of my favorite go-to stamps ever: the Papertrey Ink "Wreath for all Seasons" stamp set. I paired it with a Simon Says Stamp sentiment from the "Very Special" set. The woodgrain background is the Impression Obsession "Wooden Plank" background stamp...another favorite! I punched the gingham bows with a Martha Stewart "Ribbon Bow" punch and used a Cuttlebug embossing border folder to add the dry-embossed stitch down the side.

For my final card I used a card base from Concord & 9th and stamped the sentiments from the Mama Elephant "Hello Friend Wishes" set, embossing them with sparkly embossing powder. What an easy design this would be to mass produce!

Since I was not going to address the front of the envelopes, I decided to add some color in the corner using an older Papertrey Ink set called "Framed Out #1." It added just the right finishing touch.

Wow! That was a very picture-heavy post...thanks for sticking through it if you made to the end! Have a wonderful day and thanks, as always, for stopping by!

Judy