A Birthday Card for a Special Lady

This time of year brings lots of birthdays in my little corner of the world, so this weekend I've been working on several cards for these occasions.  Some are done and ready to mail so I thought I would share one of them with you today.  The special lady who will be receiving this won't see it for a few days, but since there are a few I'll just keep them all guessing.

There is no stamping on this card, but three different Nestabilities die cuts were used (one is cut in half and placed on the sides) and a butterfly punch. All of the papers are from the DCWV Mariposa stack.  That is one of my favorite dp stacks and I just want to horde it!  That's part of my problem, papers are so gorgeous I hate to part with them.  But it really is much more fun to share them in cards with people we love!

The image is from my collection of vintage postcards and greeting cards.  Some of them come from generous ladies who share their antique treasures on their blogs.  This is one that was shared by Bumble Button.  It's hard to see in the photo but I coated the image with crackle for more vintage feel.  This is such a beautiful image, the flowing sheer overlay on the dress and the lovely movement portrayed --- and those teeny tiny feet!!

Sideways view shows the double layers of the butterflies, the top being gold-flecked vellum that will pop up once the card is opened.  Otherwise I kept the card quite flat for mailing.

The sketch I used is from the magazine "Card Ideas for Paper Crafters".  I think it is still on the shelves, but it is full of great sketches, each with several cards made to show the versatility.  I often start with a sketch but end up with something quite different, though this time I stuck pretty much to plan.

Well, I've been writing this post between errands and phone calls, now I have to go pick up my freshly groomed dogs.  Thanks for stopping by! More birthday cards to come!