Sweet Stampin' ~ Swirls

Wow, this week has flown by so fast. It's time already for a new challenge at Sweet Stampin' and we're keen to see your creations made with 'Swirls'. Any swirl will do, pearl, stamped, design on the paper, diecut, let your creativity flow, just as long as somewhere on your creation there is stamping.

I've made a 40th birthday card for one of my sister's best friends using a beautiful pearl swirl. I do love using pearl swirls, but don't find I do very often, so it was lovely to have a play with them for this creation. I paired this pretty pearl swirl with the most divine paper to create this card. I had to pull on my big girl pants as it involved cutting into a 12x12 sheet of Maja Design paper. This is from my 'stroke only' stash, so it was a very big deal! LOL. But it was utterly perfect for this creation. The main page which I cut using a Go Kreate XXL die is from the Vintage Autumn Basics called XXII.

The brief I was given by my sis, was to create a card for her bestie who is a musician. She plays both the violin and piano, so she wanted these brought into the design somehow. I showed her a Jade Dragonne image which she instantly loved and the rest of the design was born from there. This image was inspired by the Celtic musician Máiréad Nesbitt. It was a perfect choice as my sister's friend has beautiful long blonde hair and this depicts her very well.

The second part of the brief was to include blue, which is a colour her bestie loves. So blue dress it was, oh and yes, that divine blue roses Maja Design paper. I found another Maja Design paper that worked with the musical aspect of this creation though and worked well with the blue roses. It's from the Vintage Summer Basics collection and is called 1899. It was mostly covered on the front of the card, so it's hard to see the pretty elements on it, which include a violin and treble clef. So I used it again on the inside of the card, where these elements are more visible. 

I handstitched the musical paper on the front of the card, as I wanted to double the thread. It took me so long, I didn't want to do that for the inside, so just did a single thread in the sewing machine. I think it looks okay, but the double thread on the front does show better. I figured buying a whiter and thicker thread for future makes, might be a worthwhile investment! The lovely sentiment on the inside of the card is from Unity Stamps from their July 2017 Sentiment Kit. 

Some of the additional details for those interested, I used a Die-Versions Grand Piano die which I added the glitter cardstock '40' to. The Treble Clef is a Memory Box die. The blooms are mostly The Ribbon Girl, Lilies, Small Roses and Kort och Godt Rolled Roses. The Skeleton Leaves are from Wild Orchid Crafts. The pretty Hessian Ribbon with the lace stitched to it, came from my local $2 shop. I added the strip of paper from the bottom of the Maja Design 12x12 paper over this. I added a doily which I tea distressed and some cheesecloth fabric behind the image which was diecut with a Kaisercraft Stitched Scalloped Oval die. All the paper layers were distressed with Gathered Twigs Distress Ink. You can pop up the pics for a closer look at some of the details.

I hope you'll come and join us for this fun curly, swirly, wurly challenge. The DT have created some gorgeous cards and all so different, so do pop over and take a look and we'd love to see what you'd do. We've had such a nice week here in Auckland, Spring is definitely just around the corner, the sun has been shining, the Magnolia's are blooming, ah, lovely, I do love Springtime. I wonder what it's like in your lil' corner of the world? Whatever the weather, get your craft on! I'll be back again soon with another crafty adventure. Have an awesome weekend, Hugs, Wends xoxo

Challenge Entries:
Card Mania: #95 ~ Party
Fairytale Challenge: #174 ~ Numbers
Alphabet Challenge: L for Lovely Lace
Crafty Creations: #348 ~ Anything Goes
Sparkles Monthly Challenge: #95 ~ Birthday
Colour Crazy Challenge: #34 ~ Anything Goes
Crafty Gals Corner: #137 ~ Punches and/or Dies
613 Avenue Create: #200 ~ Anything Goes + Shabby Chic Option

Moving Along With The Times: Things Beginning With The Letter 'B' ~ Blue, Blooms & Birthday
Deep Ocean Challenge: #162 ~ Fav' Colour Combo. I'm loving Kraft/Hessian & Cream at the moment. With the blue accents in this make, I think it's a lovely combo.

Update: A lovely surprise to find I made the Top 3 at Alphabet Challenge. Thank you so much, I'm really thrilled!