I’m not a crafty person. Well, I’m wily… 🙂 – but not crafty.
If it’s outside the realm of baking or cooking, I can’t do a single craft. I’m not even a half-decent cookie or cake decorator.
One thing I really love is making things pretty. I’m not crafty enough to make a lot of things from scratch, so I’m more the ‘buy a mug and stick pretty things on it’ rather than the ‘go to a pottery class and spin and bake my own mug’ kind of girl. Mine would come out looking a bit misshapen, to say the least (trust me, we did this in Grade 4 and I have never forgotten what a complete failure my ‘creation’ was).
One thing I do enjoy doing though, if I’m home one night with nothing to do and there’s no decent book for me to delve into, I get out my craft box, which consists of blank greeting cards and envelopes and a whole bunch of decorations, stamps and other pretty things :).
A trip to Michael’s is definitely called for though (or a dollar store would probably do for a lot of what you’ll need).
My kit now consists of:
- a pack of blank white greeting cards and envelopes
- a pad of card stock in different colours
- ribbons, flowers, adornments of various shapes, sizes and colours (I scour the sale bins pretty well – the best place to find random pretty things at a bargain price :))
- stamps and ink pads
- Elmer’s liquid glue (clear)
- scissors
- ruler
I made my friend Tara a baby card as it was her baby shower this past Friday (the pink and blue flower I chose before I knew the gender – it had both colours in, so it worked!):
In the past I’ve made thank you cards and birthday cards, and lately I sat down to get some Christmas cards done up:
There’s no real way for me to give you ‘directions’ because these are all about being creative and going with your own theme. But here are a few tips and recommendations!
- Buy individual letter stamps. It’s cheaper than buying endless stamps that have just one message, and gives a really cute traditional typewriter-type feel to the card
- Because I’m using individual letters, I stamp along a ruler to keep them all in one line. I also limit my message to short words, as it eliminates the risk of a long line that’s more likely to slope down or up or have irregular spacing between the letters. Plus having short words only gives a minimalist feel to the cards – I did this especially on my holiday cards (“peace”, “joy” and “noel” are examples) and with my friend’s baby shower card (“baby” says it all I think!)
- I’m a big fan of layering squares or rectangles of card stock in different colours, and angling them differently to create a splash, standout effect
- Run strips of ribbon or pretty coloured, shiny, reflective or glittery card along the top of your greeting card to act as a partial border. It looks different and chic compared to a regular border, and there’s less risk of spacing issues
- Choose one splashy adornment for each card, whether it’s a stamp, flower or butterfly (as examples) and let it dictate your colour scheme for the card. You can always put a message and stamp words inside the card, so don’t feel like the front has to contain everything
- Remember that there’s an advantage to making your own cards – you can customize the card to fit who you are giving it to! So if your best friend’s favourite colour is green, give her a card with green detailing on for her birthday. For my friend’s baby shower, because I know she’s having a boy I stuck with a primarily blue colour scheme
Those are my tips. I KNOW there are way craftier people out there so feel free to leave your tips and tricks in the comments section.
The only way I can enjoy making these cards is to not worry too much about the finished product. I’m not trying to make a Hallmark card, all perfect edges and lines – they exist, and they do a great job of them! I’m just trying to make something that I enjoy making for someone who hopefully will appreciate the effort I put into making them a handmade card. So if it looks imperfect, I shake it off. This is not the time to be a perfectionist, not unless you’re trying to sell them and go into business against Hallmark!
If you sit down to get crafty, send me pics of your handmade cards!
I partied it up this week – if you want more crafty ideas for the holiday season, check out the links here:
- CraftoManiac‘s Craftomaniac Monday
- Singing Three Little Birds‘ Inspire Me Monday
- C.R.A.F.T.‘s Making Monday Marvelous
- Marvelously Messy‘s A Marvelous Mess party
- The Gunny Sack‘s What’s in the Gunny Sack? party
- So Very Creative’s So Creative Party Time
- You’re Talking Too Much‘s Meet Me Monday
- DIY Home Sweet Home‘s More the Merrier Monday
- Ask Anna‘s Weekend Warrior link party
- Dittle Dattle‘s Amaze Me Monday
Homemade cards are SO much more special! I love the baby one, how pretty!
Happy Monday love! xoxo ❤
Thanks Katie! I hope my friend Tara loved it, she seemed touched when she opened her gift :). Happy Monday to you too! x
Really cute idea! Your cards are adorable!
Might have to make a trip to Michael’s!
Michael’s is always great and completely addictive – it’s almost like Whole Paycheque for swallowing up your wallet fast hehe. Thanks Emily!
I love making my own greeting cards, its so much fun! 🙂
I’m glad I’m not the only one who enjoys it – it’s so fun, eh?
I didn’t realize how simple it would be to make your own cards! And these look way better than store-bought. Thank you! 🙂 This would be fun to do, especially with a bunch of friends or family.
Aw thanks Char – they’re completely imperfect compared to glossy Hallmark cards, but I hope that gives them some charm!
so pretty! i wish i was more crafty, i really do 🙂
Tell me about it – this is about as crafty as I get and it’s really not that crafty! I look at craft bloggers and am so admiring of their talents!
I love your cards! Handmade gifts are so special! Thanks for visiting,
Debbie
Thank you Debbie, that’s so kind of you to say! Thanks for dropping by :).
Hmm I may try making my wedding thank you cards, though I’m sure you make it look much easier than it will be for me
Oh you definitely should, that’s a fabulous idea! Honestly, if I can do it anyone can – I’m not at all crafty! And I bet your wedding guests would be so appreciative!
Who wouldn’t love to get a card like that? I’m a new follower! Thanks for stopping by Reading Confetti!
Aw thanks Lorie, so happy to have you following!
Cute cards! I love how the flower looks on the card. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Tonia!