Retirement or Welcome Home

This card was created for Joan's Touch Challenge #8 where we were to use plaid, checked or striped paper, and frame an image. The striped paper is from Graphic 45's Botanical Tea collection and is the reverse side of Hummingbird thanks. The frame is created from cor-dinations by Tim Holtz which is sanded on the edges, and distressed with the Holtz distressing tool. It is fussy cut from a tracing of the largest of the Spellbinder's labels I used to cut the stamped image.  This image a decades old stamp I found and stamped on watercolor paper and burnished with Tim Holtz Distressing Ink "Old Paper" while it was still in the die. It is cut with Spellbinders Labels 8 S4-310.   The wired ribbon is by Craftsmart.  All this is on ecru textured cardstock.   I have not decided which sentiment I will use for the final card.  The Welcome Home sentiment is by Just Rite in the Large Fancy  Sentiments set.   That's not straight in the photo, but if I use that one I will tack it down (straight!!) with dark brown brads and arch the sentiment a little bit. Papers, dies, inks and this stampset are available from Joan's Gardens  The other sentiment is a SU "Happy Retirement" from Teeny  Tiny Wishes...both sentiments are heat embossed with "dark bark" embossing powder.