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Today is my husband's 50th birthday - a very special day. So I made him this special card.

He is very much into cars, posh ones and vintage ones alike. So I thought I'd wink at his age by adding the contrast between the two types of car. The top image is decoupage, and I used silicone glue so that I could shape the paper to mimic the car shape. That doesn't show up very well on the photograph. It says 'Abraham' on the car. Over here there is an expression used for men at the age of fifty. For some reason they get called Abraham and are assumed now to know where Abraham gets the mustard (don't ask, I don't know). Women at fifty are Sarah's - nothing to do with mustard in their case, that much I do know.

The little milestone in the decoupage picture says 50.

The man in the car happens to have an amazing likeness to the love of my life. I just had to use this image, it was perfect for him.

The ribbon is glued on the front, and then lifts to the inside to keep the tag there. On the tag it explains he has a surprise to come. It gives him the option either to keep the tag and be patient, or to hand back the tag and find out what the surprise will be.

Also the base card from Hunky Dory not only has the vintage car, which he thought may well be a Rolls Royce (much appreciated!), it also has a faint reproduction of a street map. He reckoned it was Paris, as it has the Seine on it, and wondered if this is a hint towards the surprise... It suits him, though, in any case, as he is a geographer. Through a turn of circumstances he had never been able to use his training in his work, and has turned to teaching in the last couple of years, which has taken him back to the subject he truely loves. It has brought him to life again. Well, they do say life begins at fifty! 

He is most definitely the special man in my life. So I'd like to enter the card in two challenges around this theme: Lexi's Creations and Love to Create Challenge. Here come the boys happen to have an anything goes challenge on, so that's a perfect one to enter as well.

Wish me luck!

I hope the teams like this card as much as my hubby did when I handed it to him just after midnight, as his birthday started. He had a great big smile from ear to ear for ages as he just kept looking at it.

Always love to read your comments!

 
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So to really set a challenge, Crafty Bloggers Network  decided on the theme Oriental. You would be surprised how hard that is, and I really needed the design team's examples for inspiration this time. This card has been cooking in my mind for so long, that the next one I had lined up to make has gone past its date now. I even had a sleepless night where my mind kept going to this oriental card.

I had plenty of stuff. The HunkyDory card shape immediately jumped out at me as having Eastern style. i also have loads of peel-offs that fit the theme. My crafty facebook friends all keep sending parcels of crafty stash, for which I am extremely grateful! Sylvia's had included several oriental ones, in different colours. But how to put it all together?! I scoured google images for inspiration, and saw things I liked, but beyond me to create.

Then when tidying around our kitchen I came across these cards, one of which I cut up to use. Once that decision was made, the card kind of made itself. Phew!

Fingers crossed now that it will be approved of and liked.

While I am at it I've decided also to enter it in the Ditzy-Craftymess Challenge . I find Anything Goes such an overwhelming theme, I think the history of this card suits it.