This week’s Paper Therapy challenge should be easy for everyone to join in!  The assignment?  Make a thank you card.  See? Easy! I hope you’ll take the time to participate in the challenge with more of the Paper Therapy family!

I sat down last Thursday, November 11, to make my design team sample.  Being Veteran’s Day, and being involved with Operation Write Home, made me want to make a card to thank someone in the service for their duty overseas.  I personally can’t imagine what it would be like.  The risks of combat are scary enough, but to be dealing with that thousands of miles away from home and family is likely much more difficult than many people realize.  I know that OWH accepts “Any Hero” cards to encourage our servicemen and servicewomen.  I thought about sending one in the package I sent at the end of October, but I wimped out because I wasn’t sure what to write in it.  But with today’s card, I’m going to muster up a little courage of my own to write a thank you note to one of our military “over there”. 

I wanted to do something somewhat patriotic, but I really don’t have any Americana type stamps or digital images. The colors in this designer paper are kind of antique-y red, white and blue and I felt they’d fit the bill.  I also thought the stamped stars would work well with the layout from my fabulous with buttons card.  And then I came up with what has become probably the most unusual embellishment I’ve used on a card.

The stars on the bottle caps from my husband’s Starr Hill Northern Lights Pale Ale reminded me of the stars on the United States flag, so I asked him to save me a few.  I just knew I could figure out some way to use them on a card, and yep… I did.   I read on Splitcoaststampers about flattening bottle caps in a Big Shot, so I figured my Big Kick would work just as well.  I put one of the caps between my two oldest cutting plates, put them on top of the platform, and ran it through.  And oh my!  The process went so smoothly!  I thought, “WOW!  That worked like a charm!”…  until I realized that the fluted edge of the bottle cap had become FIRMLY stuck in the cutting plate.  OOOOOPS!  But as you can see below, I did manage to pry it out. 

So here’s my card.  I hope it’ll help show some brave military member that the sacrifices he or she is making are appreciated.

Supplies:
Stamps: All Year Cheer I, Starring You (Stampin’ Up)
Cardstock: River Rock, Ruby Red, Blue Bayou, Whisper White, Western Sky designer paper (SU)
Ink: Onyx Black (VersaFine); River Rock (SU)
Other: Blue Bayou ribbon (SU); markers (Copic); sponge; bottle cap