DIY Card Making:  Using Sheltering Tree to Hug a Friend

Welcome to today's DIY Card Making project – today we are using the Sheltering Tree stamp set from Stampin' Up, as a way to send a hug in the mail to a friend.

This was not the card I thought I was going to be making this morning.  Funny how life changes at a moment's notice.  Without warning.  It's just different.

Before my first sip of coffee today, I witnessed a hurt friend.  We hugged, we cried, I came home and cried.

Is there a lot I can do to help her?  I can't fix her hurt, I can't fix her problem, but I can be her friend.

When I stepped back into my stamp room today, I knew I had to make her a card.  So away went the birthday stamp set I planned to use.  And over the weekend, I made a card using the Sheltering Tree stamp set from Stampin' Up for Stamping Family.  I used a lot of the same elements on the card for that site as I did for this one below.

It started with the color palette.  In times of sadness, I often craft with pastel colors, nice and soothing.  The first time I made today's card it was with pinks and purple.  And it just wasn't quite right.  Call me weird when it comes to color, I don't mind – but I think the colors we surround ourselves mean something.

I feel she needs strength right now.  And while she may not have it, she needs the strength of others.  So I went bold and added red into the card.  I used the softer colors but the accent color is red.

There are polka dots on it, because I love polka dots, and she knows my love for polka dots.  And she may pick up on that, she might not, but I know it's there.

Do I think I can change the whole world with a card?  Nope.

Do I think I can make a card that might bring her half a smile for a fleeting second and send her a hug in the form of a card?  Yes.  And that is enough.  If we all did that, think of what all the fleeting seconds would add up to?

If you have someone in your life that is hurting and you want to send them a card, let me share with you what you need to know if you want to make this one.

You will start with a circle.  The one I used is a 3-7/8″ circle.

Then you stamp your tree.  I used Baked Brown Sugar ink for the tree trunk and branches.  The leaves start with Pear Pizzazz ink.  And the same color was used for the grass.  The flowering buds on the tree are Real Red ink. (All the supplies are listed below this project – so you don't have to try to remember them.)

The circle is layered onto a Pear Pizzazz 4″ square.  I used the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder for the smaller polka dots.  And before the circle went on top, I added a strip of Real Red ribbon around it.

The base of the card is Whisper White, and I used the Large Polka Dot folder for it.

Finishing touches include a heart punched out of Real Red card stock, and a rhinestone added on top.

And then my favorite bow – a double loop bow – tied with the same Real Red ribbon and the 10 Second Bow Maker.

For the inside, I used the sentiment “friendship is a sheltering tree”, as I felt it was perfect.  She needs to let her friends shelter her with love, support and strength right now.

If you are at all like me, and you want to make more cards for your friends this year – and you just need some inspiration, some creative ideas, and want to do this with other stampers, be sure to come and join us in Stamping Family.  We would love to see you there.  It's a place for sharing, creating and getting/giving inspiration!

As promised, here are the supplies I used to create today's DIY Card Making project:
If you need any of these supplies, click on the items below to order.  Thank you so much!

Sheltering Tree Photopolymer Stamp Set [137163] $24.95	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad [126949] $5.95	Pear Pizzaz Classic Stampin' Pad [131180] $5.95	Baked Brown Sugar Classic Stampin' Pad [131174] $5.95	Whisper White 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock [100730] $8.50
Pear Pizzaz 8-1/2″ X 11″ Card Stock [131201] $6.95	Circles Collection Framelits Die [130911] $26.95	Big Shot [113439] $99.95	Perfect Polka Dots Textured Impressions Embossing Folder [117335] $7.95	Polka Dot Textured Impressions Embossing Folder [133739] $7.95
Real Red 1/4″ Cotton Ribbon [134563] $5.95	Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack [133787] $16.95	Rhinestone Basic Jewels Embellishments [119246] $4.95	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430] $3.95

Thank you so much for joining me for today's DIY Card Making project where we used Sheltering Tree to send a hug to a friend.  If you need to send a hug, this is an easy card you can make.  See you next time with more DIY card making projects.