Crossing Continents!

This weeks dare for the daring card makers was set by yours trully and the girls have risen to the challenge with such style as ever!!

I (Saffa) come from a very multicultural background and love being able to see them all from within and this is what has inspired this weeks challenge....take a deep breath...
I would like you to make a card that celebrates and reflects a festival from another culture to your own....

So here are some ideas to get you started:
Chinese New Year,
Eid,
Hanukkah,
Persian New Year,
Diwali,
Sinhalese New Year,
Kwanzaa,
St. Patrick's day,

So this is what I came up with for my own dare this week. It is not what I had originally planned but hey when are my cards ever what I originally planned. Now I have been a bit cheeky with this dare. I chose Nowruz which is the Persian new year it literally means 'new day' and is celebrated in Iran , Turkey, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Albania, Georgia, the countries of Central Asia such as Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan, as well as among various other Iranian and Turkic people in Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, India, North western China, the Caucasus, the Crimea, and the Balkans.

It is celebrated at the time of the spring equinox which usually falls on the 21st March. This year it was around 1am UK time on the morning of the 21st. There are lots of traditions relate to Norooz, several days before we set out the Haftseen this is what Wikepedia has to say about the Haftseen

The Haft Sīn

Main article: Haft sin table

The Traditional Haft Sîn

Haft Sîn (هفت سین) or the seven 'S's is a major tradition of Norouz. The haft sin table includes seven items specific starting with the letter S or Sīn (س) in Persian alphabet). The items symbolically correspond to seven creations and holy immortals protecting them. Originally called Haft Chin (هفت چین)^{[citation needed]}, the Haft Sin has evolved over time, but has kept its symbolism. Traditionally, families attempt to set as beautiful a Haft Sīn table as they can, as it is not only of traditional and spiritual value, but also noticed by visitors during Norouzi visitations and is a reflection of their good taste.

The Haft Sin items are:

• sabzeh - wheat, barley or lentil sprouts growing in a dish - symbolizing rebirth
• samanu - a sweet pudding made from wheat germ - symbolizing affluence
• senjed - the dried fruit of the oleaster tree - symbolizing love
• sīr - garlic - symbolizing medicine
• sīb - apples - symbolizing beauty and health
• somaq - sumac berries - symbolizing (the color of) sunrise
• serkeh - vinegar - symbolizing age and patience

Other items on the table may include:

• Sonbol - Hyacinth (flower)
• Sekkeh - Coins - representative of wealth
• traditional Iranian pastries such as baghlava, toot, naan-nokhodchi
• dried nuts, berries and raisins (Aajeel)
• lit candles (enlightenment and happiness)
• a mirror (symbolizing cleanness)
• decorated eggs, sometimes one for each member of the family (fertility)
• a bowl of water with goldfish (life within life, and the sign of Pisces which the sun is leaving)
• a bowl of water with an orange in it (the earth floating in space)
• rose water for its magical cleansing powers
• the national colours, for a patriotic touch
• a holy book (e.g., the Qur'an, Avesta, Bible, Torah, or Kitáb-i-Aqdas,) and/or a poetry book (almost always either the Shahnama or the Divan of Hafez)

There are normally prayers said aroung the time of the equinox to welcome in the new year. So this is my card. Paisley is a big part of persian art and the cloth used on the Haftseen is normally a traditional paisley fabric called 'Termeh'.

We always have flowers, I tried to make a hyacinth bu that failed so resorted to the good old junkitz blooms! The sequin is for the mirror that is always on the haftseen and the colours are reds and greens and earth tones to reflect all the other items of the haftseen.