Friday, September 03, 2010

Sapphires for September

Thank you for helping us bring smiles to the faces of some sick children through the wonderful Post Pals scheme. We were so happy to see all the lovely cards you made.

Thank you also too The Ribbon Girl for offering such a gorgeous prize to one lucky darer this week.

Asia will be along soon to announce the name of the winner, so please check back later to see if it's You!

Another Thank You message goes to our wonderful Guest Designers Ania and Julia, who have shared their inspiring crafting with us over the last few weeks - thank you both, it's been a real treat to have you with us and we hope you'll continue to join in with our dares each week!

As it's the first Friday of September, we're looking at the birthstone for for this month which is the

Sapphire.
Sapphires are also the traditional gemstone for the 45th Wedding Anniversary and we'd like you to use the Sapphire as your inspiration for your DCM card this week


Here are a few bits of Sapphire info that might spark off some ideas:

* The word Sapphire derives from the Greek word for blue, "sapphirus"
* They have been associated with Priests, who considered them symbolic of purity, and Kings, who thought them symbolic of wisdom
*Sapphires were mined as early as the 7th Century BC in India and what is now Sri Lanka. Today they are found in Sri Lanka, Australia, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Kashmir, Myanmar, Thailand, China, Madagascar, and the US
* It was believed that a venomous snake put in a vessel made of sapphire would quickly die. Sapphires therefore earned the reputation as an excellent all-purpose medicine and were ingested as an antidote to poison. Sapphires were sometimes ground into powders as a remedy for everything from colic to rheumatism and mental illness. They were also believed to be able to stop bleeding and cure disorders of the eye.
* Egyptians associated the clear sapphire with the eye of Horas -- the all-seeing, all-knowing "eye in the sky" -- while the gemstone was used by the Greeks to to tap into the subconscious mind by stimulating the opening of the "third eye."
* Sapphires represent sincerity and faithfulness and therefore were a popular marriage gift
* Clear sapphires, like diamonds, are the guardians of love. When exchanged with a loved one, sapphires are believed to enhance feelings for one another and attune the two psyches. Sapphires have the power to banish envy and jealousy, and are said to promote chastity in virgins and fidelity in marriage.

* Fancy sapphires come in various colours such as yellow, orange, lavender and other pastel shades, but the most prized is the pink sapphire or more precisely the pink-orange sapphire due to its rarity.


Please come back and leave a link so that we can pop along and see your creations



Here's what the team have been making this week


Nat:
Kathy


Keryn

Lythan


Jo

Rein   

.

29 comments :

CRAFTY WOMBLE said...

Hi I made this as an engagement card for my sister-in-law and it seems to fit the bill.

http://craftywomble.blogspot.com/2010/08/at-last-something-new.html

What a great idea to use birth stones:)

Caro said...

Great challenge and gorgeous work everyone. You can see my take here

Katja said...

http://katzzcreaties.blogspot.com/2010/09/terug-van-vakantie-en-gelijk-een.html

This is my entry for the challenge!

Greetings,
Katja

Becky Garrison said...

My card is HERE

Dragonlady said...

Hi there

Great inspiration. Here is my entry.

Hugs Ali x

iReneM said...

Great theme and lovely samples
Here's my card

x

Davi said...

Fabulous inspiration from the team cards. Here is my card

Karen Howard said...

Not sure if I'm to leave a comment or wait for the linky thing but here is a link to my entry for the challenge:

http://felinecreative.blogspot.com/2010/09/morning-glory.html

Kym's Crafty Cards said...

What a lovely challenge and what lovely DT cards.

Here is my card for this challenge

Best wishes

Kym xxx

Belz said...

Lovely cards - all so talented! Here's my take on it xx

Liz's creative corner said...

Wow great inspiration girls, love the challenge,
Here is my card
Hugs Liz xx

aardvarkpest said...

Great theme and inspiration.

Here is my card

dj1952 said...

I've always loved sapphires. I used to have a little pink one and a blue one. They really are beautiful, as is the cards by the DT.

dj1952 said...

I can't believe I forgot to attach my card. It is here. Thanks again.

Peggy said...

Great theme! I'm a Sept Birthday so this was no problem for me! Here is my card

- - Sheryl - - said...

Love color themes - here is my card.
The DT cards are so beautiful

brenda said...

What a joy to work with.

You will fin my entry here

B x

SemSee said...

Fab DT work! Here's my entry!
Hugs, Sem x

GrannyGoodwitch said...

Great Challenge

Here is my entry

http://grannygoodwitch-grannyscards.blogspot.com/2010/09/morning-glory.html

Denise Clark said...

Here's my card

Beth aka BR-T said...

Wonderful creations!!! Here is my card:
http://inkyfingersrule.blogspot.com/2010/09/you-are-special.html

TinaB said...

Great DT Cards xx Mine is Here Tina xx

tiggertastic said...

my entry is here
thanks for the challenge, Sarah xx

Beverly G said...

Great DT Samples--here's my effort.
Here's my entry

Cardmaking Galore said...

Hi, here is my take on the dare:

HERE

Thanks for the inspiration and hope you like mine!

Ginger Claire said...

I went down the obvious blue route! Thanks for the challenge and great DT inspiration, here's my card.
http://gingerpiedesigns.blogspot.com/2010/09/adorables-sneak-peek-day-4.html
Thanks
Ginger x

Kate said...

Just sneaking in a Sapphire enrty here.

** Kate **

Margo said...

My card for this challenge is here:

http://myscrappyspot.blogspot.com/2010/09/pretty-in-pink.html

Cathy Spicer said...

I love your challenges and this was super fab. I went with a blue color theme to honor the sapphire. Cat’s Creation