Maritime Natural History Card - Felicitations

Evening, all!  I have a card here that I've been really looking forward
to sharing with you, but had to wait until it had reached its final destination
first, so as not to spoil the surprise :).

I'm also a bit late due to a particularly exciting arrival...but more on that later ;)

It's a Vintage Maritime / Natural History inspired card
and pulls together all kinds of things that I love:
vintage ephemera, nautical history, naturalism and natural history,
botanical illustration (inside detail), wood and knot-work.

 

Since the recipient of this card in the Card Chain is a native French-speaker,

I used a French sentiment so that she can use it the more easily.
My father and brother both spent two years in France.
My French is rusty indeed, but I think could pick it up again with practice.  I'm trying
to introduce the boys to French phrases as I can.
When I do it in public though, people must think elle est Canadienne
and so they speak v-e-r-y  s-l-o-w-l-y.
Until my own kids answer in perfect English, that is.

 

These big bows are so fun to make.  I keep all the layers together with a few
quick stitches on my sewing machine, then cover the stitches with the wooden spool
or a flower, and finish with my favorite utility cotton twine.

This is the same twine that goes out with me to the garden to tie up blackberry canes
and other plants that have grown faster than expected.  The twine
that made the zillions of bows for my Etsy banners,
that gets cut-to-length to make cereal necklaces with the boys
and ties train car boxes together.  It's made homemade kites
and tied homemade birdfeeders to the garden arbor.






As for the inside, there's a nice patterned and edge-punched vellum insert for writing.
I was going for a sort of sheer-curtain effect that reminded me
of a pleasant dream I've always had of a remote tropical island or beach,
a bungalow and sheer curtains blowing free in the windows.
(We won't bother about the reality of mosquitos and such just now).

I also had in mind the symbolic palmettos of my home state while finishing the inside.
Deborah lets me know that I'm the first South Carolinian in the Card Chain,
which does make me smile.  So the palm tree is
a friendly from-my-side-of-the-Atlantic-to-yours kind of subtle detail,
from one card-maker to another.

 

As you can see I really am excited to be participating in the
Card Chain Challenge at Society of Stampaholics
with this one, utilizing the water theme for the month.  I think there was also an option
for buttons in there somewhere, but really that was an afterthought.

My partner is the talented Agata from Switzerland,
so as I said before, I wanted to do a trans-Atlantic sort of card for her
and the water theme worked out well.
I look forward to getting to know Agata a little better, as her blog demonstrates
some really fantastic scrapbooking in particular.

I won't be participating in the July card chain because, with a newborn
coming in just a couple of weeks, I'll be rather preoccupied.
But I look forward to hopefully participating again in the fall!
 

 

Materials Used on this Card:

Cardstock {kraft - Papertrey Ink}
Patterned papers {K & Company; American Crafts}
Vintage image {the Graphics Fairy}
Border embossing folder {Sizzix}
Chalkboard tag, Wooden spool {the Paper Studio}
Stamp, Ink {French Greetings & Fresh Snow ink - Papertrey Ink}
Thai braid trim
Burlap ribbon, cream grosgrain {Ribbon Boutique; Offray}
Glimmer mist Gold {Tattered Angels}
Wooden buttons {stash}
 

 

 Thank you so much for visiting.

Best wishes to you, be well, and always, always

enjoy life's sunshine.

Look for the sunshine.

Even, sometimes, make a little of your own to share.

The world needs the light of your goodness and your smile!

 

--Kathryn