Kaisercraft Cherry Tree Lane Vintage Style Card for Throwback Thursday

Hello, Friends!  For this week’s Throwback Thursday post, I have a Kaisercraft Cherry Tree Lane Vintage Style Card to share with you.  There’s no tutorial this week, but I’ll share lots of helpful tips and tricks as we take a look at this lovely card.

Thoughts on Friendship

Do you remember your first childhood friend?  I do.  Her name was Robin, and we were born in the same year.  She was born in March.  I was born in July.  She lived at the bottom of the hill.  I lived at the top of the hill.  But we both had 4 siblings and a dog.  Her’s was a big old furry sheepdog.  Ours was a mutt.

I don’t remember how we met, but we were both probably playing outside as kids used to do back when you only had 3 channels on the TV, no cell phones, and no computers to keep you inside.  How lucky we were to be able to live free of these distractions from the great outdoors!

Robin and I became best friends immediately.  We played together every single day.  If it was raining, we played indoors, but mostly we played outside, riding our bikes, playing kick ball with the other kids on the hill, jumping rope, and pushing out baby dolls down the dirt road in their strollers.  In the winter, we built amazing snow forts in the huge piles left behind from the snow plows.  These had multiple stories, carved staircases and even furniture that we shaped from the packed snow.  It’s funny how the cold does not bother you when you are a kid.

We walked to school together every single day.  When the county built a “big school” we waited at the bus stop together and sat in the same seat.  We fought, forgave, got into mischief and were as close as sisters.  Even in high school, we still waited for the bus together and talked almost every day, even though our paths were by then heading in different directions.

Fast Forward to the Present

Then we both grew up and I moved away and we lost touch.  Oddly enough, I managed to stay in touch with Robin’s little sister via Facebook.  She contacted me in early March to let me know that Robin, who had been ill for quite some time, had passed away.

All these bittersweet memories came flooding back to me.  Today, my heart is full of gratitude.  How blessed I was to have had such a wonderful childhood friend.  Robin will live forever in my heart.

I made this card for the family and wrote a note with my memories of Robin to tuck inside.  When you lose someone you love, it helps to ease the sense of loss when you know others are feeling it, too.

Kaisercraft Cherry Tree Lane Vintage Style Card: Tips and Tricks

Since I was working mostly with scraps of this collection, I had to get creative.  Here are some helpful tips.

• The background panel of this card is actually two long pieces laid side by side with the seam in the middle.
• Mat lots of small panels on complementary cardstock.  This way, you can build layers, and cover the seam.
• Cut an ephemera piece in half.  Layer half at the top, half on the bottom.  This extra layer covers the seam at the top and bottom of the card.
• Die cut layers from cream cardstock to lighten up the card, and provide visual interest.  Since I had not larger focal images from the collection, this was a good substitute.
• Pop a small fussy cut cluster of flowers up on an ephemera frame.  Surround it with flowers, ribbon and buttons to draw the eye to the center of the card.
• Adhere cream flat back pearls to the die cut layer.  This adds to the vintage feel of the card and provides texture and shine.

Kaisercraft Cherry Blossom Lane Vintage Style Card: A Peek Inside

• Now cover the inside of the card with patterned papers.
• Then cut a border sticker into 2 pieces.  Attach one at the top to cover a “short” panel of paper.
• Next, trim around the rest of the border sticker and adhere on the bottom.  Trim around the straight cut edges to give it a more organic look.
• Finally, sand around an ephemera tag.  Adhere just the bottom edge to create a tuck spot.  This is where you can insert your  hand written note.

If you had a best friend growing up, take a moment to give thanks for all the life lessons that friendship taught you.  I’m a better person today because Robin was my friend.  I’m thankful.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cheerio,

kathy

SUPPLY LIST

NOTE:  Since Throwback Thursday projects often use products that have been retired, I may not be able to find product links for you.  When that happens, just use a supply from your own Closet of Shame to fill in the gaps.  

• Kaisercraft Cherry Tree Lane Collection/2017 (retired and out of stock)
• Little Birdie Embossed Daisies
• Amazing Paper Grace Bella Luce Oval Die
• Antique Gold Delicate Stitched Satin Ribbon
• Twine and buttons from my stash