Spring Butterflies

This was a card I was commissioned to make for someones Sister-in-Law who is also a card maker so it needed to be good and show some technique.  I didn't have a brief other than "make it a good one"  As I really liked playing with the butterfly in the LIM challenge, I decided to use that and expand on it.

I've been following the über-talented Iwona Palamountain and her design team on the CASE study challenge blog for a few weeks now, but they are much more complex cards than I normally attempt - I tend to concentrate more on colouring with copics than I do on layering and embellishments, but I thought this might be the way to go with this card, so I attempted to use the muse card you can find here as my inspiration for the card and to play in this weeks challenge - http://casestudychallenge.blogspot.com/2011/03/case-study-challenge-29.html
 

Not sure I took it to the right level to match their cards, but the inspiration for the sentiment certainly came from the MUSE card so I hope that entitles me to play along.

I started with a frame made with nestabilities labels on thick white card.  I stamped with a Hero Arts butterfly background in clear and embossed with matt clear powder.  I distress inked all over in victorian velvet then added a little dusty concord to the edges.  I used the same colours on the white mat I put behind a layer of lilac vellum and cut with MS Monarch butterfly punch.  The sentiment in the frame is stamped with dusty concord and is a Stempleglede one from "just a note", stamped on another layer of white card cut with the same large nestie I began with.  The frame top is on dimensional foam.

I stamped the butterfly from Craft Stamper onto white card in versamagic hydrangea, and added a little glitter to spots of it.  I cut it out, shaped it and stuck it onto the frame.  I made a bow with my bow-easy from vintage seam binding ribbon from Wild Orchid Crafts and popped some rosebuds twisted together from the same supplier behind the bow, and tucked the edges of the ribbon behind the matt card.  The sentiment frame was then simply applied on top of the ribbon.

As well as the case study challenge I'm going to put this card in the following challenges:

http://papersundaes.blogspot.com/2011/03/back-in-paper-sundaes-challenge-59.html  - stripes (the lilac vellum I've used has subtle stripes)

There are also a couple of spring challenges around, and butterflies arrive in spring, so I'm entering those too:

http://delightfulsketches.blogspot.com/2011/03/welcoming-spring-challenge_02.html

http://stampinfortheweekend.blogspot.com/2011/03/challenge-5-springtime_04.html

Now I'm off to rest my elbow - I do hope this swelling goes away soon - crafting and typing are so darn painful at the minute :-(

Thanks for stopping by.....
                                        Craftilicious x