Happy (belated) birthday, Matt!

Since I am heading off to Indiana with Moose at the ungodly hour of 3:00 a.m. tomorrow morning in order to visit our dear friends Caela (of Heinous Hats), Rufus and Matt for the weekend, tomorrow’s post shall now be today’s post.

This past Sunday, one of my best guy friends, Matt (a different one from the one we’re visiting this weekend), celebrated his 30^th birthday. Since he recently moved with his lovely wife (and another of my best friends), Virginia, to Newfoundland, we do not get to party with him this year, at least not until the next time we all get together. It really drives home how hard it is not to have them around anymore and how much I miss them.

To stave off this depressing thought, it only seemed right to make him a card that was a silly and cheerful, with a slightly geeky theme to honour his interests on this momentous occasion.

Enter the robot birthday card. Here’s hoping he’s already got it, since I was a little late getting it in the mail (and the postal service seems to be exceptionally slow between here and the Island to boot!).

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” blue card stock

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” silver text weight paper

·      Scrap of polka dot patterned card stock

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Craft knife

·      Scissors

·      Metal-edged ruler

·      Pencil

·      Thin-tipped black marker

·      Glue stick

·      Piece of wax paper and a heavy book for pressing

Directions:

1.     Create a new letter-sized (8 1/2” x 11”) document in a graphic design program. On the left side of the document, create a 3 1/4” x 4 1/2” box using guidelines. Create a text box within these guidelines (about 1/3 of the way down) with the words, “happy birthday”. Insert a robot image (I used this one) in the bottom right corner. Insert the same image on the right side of the document. Resize it so that it is approximately 5” tall. Print the document on the silver text weight paper. Allow time for the ink to dry.

2.     Cut the right side of the silver text weight paper (around the “happy birthday sentiment”) with the paper trimmer to make a 3 3/4” x 5” panel. Cut the blue card stock in half to get two 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" pieces. Set one aside for future projects and fold the other with the bone folder to make a 4 1/4" x 5 1/2" card.

3.     Use the craft knife, scissors and metal-edged ruler to cut out the robot image.

4.     Draw a party hat (rectangle) on to the scrap of polka dot card stock. Size the hat so that it is proportionate to the robot’s head. Use the black marker to outline the hat shape (to mimic the outlines on the robot). Cut out the hat, just outside the black marker border.

5.     Use the glue stick to glue the “happy birthday” panel to the inside right side of the card. Glue the robot and the party hat to the front of the card.

6.     Place the piece of wax paper on top of the closed card and press the card with the heavy book until the glue is dry.

That’s all for today, Internets! Hope you have a fantastic weekend and a wonderful start to February. Come back next Friday for the next card in the Valentine’s Day series.

Countdown to Valentine's Day: Card 3

Valentine’s shaker card

Today’s card is one of my absolute favourites of the Valentine’s series. It’s fun, it’s cute and it looks a lot harder to do than it really is. These cards are really versatile, too. Just by using different colours of card stock and different shapes of confetti (or glitter) you can make Christmas cards, baby shower invitations, wedding cards and so much more!

The secret to making this card are having two items that one does not usually keep on hand for card making: foam mounting tape and clear document protective sheets, both of which can usually be found in your local office supply store.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” red card stock

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” white text paper

·      Clear protective sheet

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Pencil

·      Metal-edged ruler

·      Craft knife

·      Double-sided tape

·      1/2” foam mounting tape

·      Mini heart punch

Directions:

1.     Create a 3 3/4” x 5” document with 1/2” margins in a design layout program. Write the text, “Happy Valentine’s Day” and add decorative images as desired (I used this one). Print the document.

2.     Use the paper trimmer to cut the red cardstock into two 5 1/2” x 8 1/2” pieces. Cut one of those pieces in half to get two pieces, measuring 4 1/4” x 5 1/2”. Set one aside for future projects. Trim around the sentiment on the white paper to get a 3 3/4” x 5” rectangle for the front panel. Cut the protective sheet to get a 4” x 5 1/4” rectangle.

3.     Fold the 5 1/2” x 8 1/2” red card stock into a 5 1/2” x 4 1/4” card with the bone folder.

4.     Mark a 9/16” border all the way around the 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” piece of red card stock.

5.     Use the craft knife and ruler to cut out the marked border.

6.     Attach the 4” x 5 1/4” protective sheet “window” to the marked side of the border piece of card stock, using the double-sided tape. Make sure that the window is securely attached with no gaps.

 

7.     Punch red and white hearts from the left over paper and card stock (use the piece cut out from the border piece for the red hearts) with the mini heart punch. I ended up punching 50 of each colour.

8.     Attach the “Happy Valentine’s Day” panel to the front of the card with the double-sided tape.

9.     Place the punched out hearts on top of the front panel of the card, grouped towards the centre.

10. Attach the foam mounting tape around the edges of the back side of the red card stock window. Make sure there aren’t any gaps (or else the confetti will escape). Peel off the paper backing to expose the adhesive.

11. Firmly attach the window on to the front panel of the card, lining up all of the edges. Shake the card to distribute the heart confetti.

Notice: From now on, I will be updating Card Tricks on a weekly basis on Fridays. I love doing this blog and creating all these fun cards, but it’s taking up a lot more time than I had thought, and I need to start focusing on some other aspects of my life as well as Card Tricks. As a bonus, with only one post per week, I’ll be able to come up with more creative cards! See you next Friday, everyone!

Countdown to Valentine's Day: Card 2

Lovebirds mini card

Happy Wednesday!

Today, for the second card in the Valentine’s Day countdown, we are going to use scrap paper to make a sweet little mini card. This easy to make card is the perfect size for attaching to flowers, boxes of chocolates and all those other romantic Valentine’s Day gifts.

Supplies:

·      Pink card stock scrap from Monday’s post

·      Square of pale pink card stock, measuring 2 1/2” x 2 1/2”

Equipment:

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Decorative scissors (“cloud” pattern)

·      Black stamping ink pad

·      Lovebirds stamp

·      Black thin tipped marker

·      Mini heart paper punch

·      Glue stick

·      Glue runner

Directions:

1.     With the paper trimmer, cut the pink card stock from Monday’s post into a 3” x 6” rectangle. Save the scraps for step 6.

2.     Fold the 3” x 6” rectangle into a 3” x 3” card.

3.     Cut around the edges of the pale pink card stock square with the cloud patterned decorative scissors.

4.     Saturate the lovebirds stamp with the ink pad. Stamp the image on to the pale pink square, placing the image so that there is room to write underneath it. Allow time for the ink to dry.

5.     Write “lovebirds” under the stamped image with the marker.

6.     Punch four hearts from the card stock scraps from step 1.

7.     Glue the hearts on to the four corners of the pale pink card stock.

8.     Use the glue runner to attach the pale pink card stock on to the front panel of the card.

Come back on Friday for one of my favourite cards in this entire series. See you then!

Countdown to Valentine's Day: Card 1

The heart block card

Valentine’s Day. A day that is seemingly either loved or hated with equal intensity by all of humankind. Whatever your feelings on the day, however, Card Tricks is going to devote the next few weeks to Valentine’s Day cards.

So, if you jump for joy every time February the 14^th comes around, you’ll soon have lots of great ideas for crafting cards for that special someone in your life. If you cringe at the very mention of the day, at least give me the chance to show you that not all things related to the day are evil and vile. Many of the card designs that will be revealed during this series can easily be adapted for other occasions (for example, you can replace the hearts on today’s card with flowers, snowflakes, balloons, etc. to celebrate Mother’s Day, winter holidays, birthdays and so much more) or you can simply use them as is (with different sentiments) for anniversaries or weddings. Heck, you can even alter them for Anti-Valentine’s Day purposes, but I’ll leave those creative modifications up to your own imaginations.

There are two different methods you can use to make this card. The second method is easier and faster to do. In fact, I only did the first method because I wanted to get some practice doing paper weaving for future projects.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” dark pink cardstock

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” light pink cardstock

Equipment:

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Large heart paper punch (cutouts should measure approximately 1 3/8” x 1 7/8”)

·      Glue stick

·      Wax paper

·      Heavy book

Additional Equipment needed for Method A:

·      Pencil

·      Metal-edged ruler

·      Craft knife

Directions for Method A – The Weaved Card Option:

1.     Use the paper trimmer to cut a piece of dark pink card stock, measuring 5” x 10”. Hold on to the scraps to make the hearts in step 4.

2.     Fold the 5” x 10” piece of dark pink card stock into a 5” x 5” card with the bone folder.

3.     Cut the light pink card stock with the paper trimmer to get a 2 1/2” x 11” strip. Trim the strip so that you have two pieces, each measuring 2 1/2” x 5”. Hold on to the scraps for step 4.

4.     Punch a total of four hearts, two each from the scraps of the dark pink card stock and the light pink card stock. Punch the light pink card stock in a way that leaves you a piece of card stock that is at least 4” x 8”. Hold on to that piece to make this coming Wednesday’s card.

5.     Open the dark pink card and make guidelines for cutting a horizontal line in the middle of the inside left panel (2 1/2” from the top).

6.     Use the craft knife and metal-edged ruler to cut along the guidelines from the edge of the card to the fold.

7.     Close the card. Take the first strip of light pink card stock and weave it into the left side of the front panel (right up against the fold) so that the top of the strip is underneath the front panel and the bottom is on top (to create a checkerboard pattern). Glue the strip into place.

8.     Weave the second strip of light pink card stock into the right side of the front panel (right up against the other strip) so that the bottom of the strip is underneath the front panel and the top of the strip is on top. Glue into place.

9.     If there is any overlap of light pink card stock along the edges of the card, trim it off with the paper trimmer.

10. Glue the light pink hearts on to the dark pink squares and the dark pink hearts on to the light pink squares.

11. Place the piece of wax paper on top of the closed card. Put the book on top and press until the glue is dry.

Directions for Method B – The Square Blocks Option (easier and faster):

1.     Use the paper trimmer to cut a piece of dark pink card stock, measuring 5” x 10”. Hold on to the scraps to make the hearts in step 4.

2.     Fold the 5” x 10” piece of dark pink card stock into a 5” x 5” card with the bone folder.

3.     Cut two 2 1/2” square pieces of light pink card stock. Hold on to the scraps for step 4.

4.     Punch a total of four hearts, two each from the scraps of the dark pink card stock and the light pink card stock. Punch the light pink card stock in a way that leaves you a piece of card stock that is at least 4” x 8”. Hold on to that piece of card stock to make this coming Wednesday’s card.

5.     Glue the first light pink square on to the lower left corner of the card and the second square on to the upper right corner, making a checkerboard pattern.

6.     Glue the light pink hearts on to the dark pink squares and the dark pink hearts on to the light pink squares.

7.     Place the piece of wax paper over top of the closed card. Put the book on top and press until the glue is dry.

Remember to hold on to the remaining light pink card stock to make Wednesday’s card. See you then!

Happy Birthday, Cait!

Today is my friend, Cait’s, birthday. We met in university while living in the same residence, Arts House, where we got up to many crazy adventures. Cait and I share many interests, but the first one that comes to mind is loving cats. Naturally, a cat-themed card came to mind first thing when creating a card for her birthday.

This is another hand cut card. I used a metal-edged ruler to guide my knife for all of the straight cuts, but did the rest freehand.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” red card stock

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” white text paper

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Craft knife

·      Metal-edged ruler

·      Cutting mat

·      Black marker

·      Glue stick

·      Glue runner

·      Piece of wax paper

·      Heavy book

Directions:

1.     In a design program, create the kitty on the windowsill image, making the window outline 3 3/4” wide x 5” tall. I used this cat silhouette for the kitty and drew a box to create the window, drawing intersecting lines to create the windowpanes. On the same document, create a 2 3/4” wide text box and type in the words, “Happy Birthday!”, using the font of your choice. Position the text box so that there’s enough room around it to create a 3 1/4” x 4 1/2” rectangle. Print the page and allow time for the ink to dry.

2.     Cut the red card stock in half with the paper trimmer, creating two pieces measuring 5 1/2” x 8 1/2”. Set one aside for future projects.

3.     Fold the red card stock with the bone folder to make a 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” card.

4.     Cut the printed white paper so that the cat image and the text are separated. Trim a 3 1/4” by 4 1/2” rectangle around the “Happy Birthday” text to create an inside panel for the card. Trim the cat image so there is a small border around the window image.

5.     Use the glue runner to attach the “Happy Birthday” text panel to the inside right panel of the card.

6.     Use the knife and ruler to carefully cut out the kitty on the windowsill image.

7.     If there are any unprinted (white) areas left on the cut out image, use the black marker to touch them up.

8.     Wash your hands. Trust me, you’ll be covered in black ink, no matter how long you let the printed image dry (I left mine overnight and I still had smudgy fingers) and you don’t want to accidentally smear black ink from your fingers on to your card.

9.     Place the cut out image face down on a scrap piece of white paper. Spread glue on to the cut out with the glue stick. Carefully lift up the cut out image and glue it to the centre of the card’s front panel.

10. Lay the wax paper over the closed card (face up). Put the book over the wax paper and press until the glue is dry (to prevent the cut out from curling or peeling).

Have a wonderful weekend! See you on Monday for the start of a series of creative and beautiful Valentine’s Day cards.

P.S. Velvetkitten, over at In the Kitchen with Kitten promoted Card Tricks in her post last Wednesday! Check it out here.

Card Tips: Discount equipment and supplies

Interested in experimenting with some aspect of card making but intimidated by the start up costs of buying all the equipment? Yeah, me too.

Lately, I’ve been interested in doing more experimentation with stamping. Walking down the stamping aisle at the craft store, however, gave me pause. Stamps, ink, embossing powders, heat setters – the equipment list goes on and on, and nothing is cheap.

Luckily, however, I’ve discovered the discount aisle at Michaels. For only $1.50 each ($1.00 in the States, despite having the Canadian dollar only a fraction away from parity with the US dollar…), you can pick up dozens of neat equipment and supplies. I’ve seen monogrammed note cards with envelopes, rhinestone embellishments, magnetic note pads, cute patterned ribbon, mini paper punches and so much more while meandering down that aisle. There are certainly lots of less than gorgeous things, but I have yet to go down it without seeing something appealing.

Yesterday, I struck gold. I found the cutest little Valentine’s themed bird stamps, which are generic enough to be used on many other types of cards with a love theme (wedding, love notes, anniversaries, etc.). I also picked up two small stamp pads in purple and sky blue, which is one of my favourite colour combinations. Rounding out my purchase was two 1 oz. bottles of glitter glue, which coordinate with the stamp pads. All for $9 ($6 for our neighbours to the South)!

It’s nice to know that even if I discover I hate stamping (or that I’m terrible at it), at least I didn’t have to pay a fortune to find out. So far, I am having fun with my new purchases, so here’s hoping!

Have you found any great deals lately? I’d love to pass them on!

See you on Friday, everyone!

Butterfly wishes

Yesterday, my mom came home from the hospital after having knee replacement surgery. She’s doing well and I’m so glad she went ahead with the surgery. I wasn’t able to visit her while she was in the hospital, since I was afraid of passing on the Moose Flu to her (that’s the last thing she needs!), so Moose went without me.

Today’s card is for my mom. A little wish that her recovery goes well and that she’ll soon be back to taking the long, rambling walks she loves so much.

I apologize for the lack of assembly pictures. I thought I had taken more, but obviously I was mistaken!

Supplies:

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” white text paper

·      Sheet of 8 1/2” x 11” blue card stock

·      Scrap of 3 1/4" x 4 1/2" pink card stock

·      Scrap of coordinating patterned card stock, big enough for 12 or so punched out butterflies and a 3 3/4” x 1 1/2” rectangle

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

·      Bone folder

·      Small butterfly punch

·      Pinking shears

·      Glue stick

·      Glue runner

Directions:

1.     Create a 3 1/4” by 1” text box in a design program (or Word). Type the words, “Best Wishes” and centre and resize the text as needed. Print the document.

2.     Punch 12 or so butterflies from the patterned card stock.

3.     Use the paper trimmer to trim the remaining patterned card stock into a 3 3/4” x 1 1/2” rectangle. Cut the blue card stock in half to create two 5 1/2” x 8 1/2” pieces and set one aside for future projects. Trim the “Best Wishes” sentiment into a rectangle with a narrow border around the words.

4.     Fold the blue card stock with the bone folder to make a 4 1/4” x 5 1/2” card.

5.     Trim around the edge of the patterned card stock rectangle with the pinking shears.

6.     Attach the “Best Wishes” rectangle to the patterned card stock rectangle with the glue runner.

7.     Attach the pink card stock rectangle to the front of the card with the glue runner. Centre the patterned card stock rectangle at the bottom of the pink rectangle and attach with the glue runner.

8.     Use the glue stick to glue the butterflies on the pink card stock. They can be stuck on randomly or in any pattern you like.

Hope this card has brightened up your Monday, everyone. See you on Wednesday!

Quick Tricks: Easy water-resistant bottle labels

As it seems that Moose Flu is not so easily gotten rid of, today’s post is a quick and easy craft. In fact, it is so easy that it can be done while in a groggy, fever-induced state. How’s that for an endorsement?

As many before us, Moose and I have been captured by the siren’s call that is Costco. As a result, we have been known to buy olive oil in two litre containers. Since I’m tired of having that huge jug on our counter, I decided to use an old condiment bottle instead. To jazz up the bottle a bit, a label seemed in order. But how to make a label that wouldn’t get ruined by any spilled drops of oil or any random cooking splatters? The answer came in the form of self-laminating sheets from our local office supply store. Now the bottle is adorned with a water resistant label that can be wiped off as needed.

Supplies:

·      Sheet of white text paper

·      Sheet of self-laminating film (example here)

Equipment:

·      Computer

·      Printer

·      Paper trimmer

Directions:

1.     Measure the circumference of your bottle to determine how long the label should be. Determine the height you’d like your label to be and subtract one inch.

2.     Using the measurements from step one, create a label on your computer with design software (or Word). Print the label.

3.     Use a paper trimmer to cut the label to size. Trim the self-laminating sheet so that it is one inch higher and one inch longer than the paper label.

4.     Peel the liner from the self-laminating sheet, exposing the adhesive. Place the paper label face down on the adhesive, making sure the paper is centered (there should be a 1/2” border of adhesive all around the paper).

5.     Carefully wrap the label around the bottle.

That’s it! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to fall back into bed. Seeing as I have no plans to allow the devious Moose Flu to keep me incapacitated for much longer, I’ll see you all again on Monday *knocks on wood*.