Posts Tagged ‘cards’

Holiday Cards with Mixbook

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I got to take Penelope to a great event last month with Mixbook. There were all sorts of fun stations for crafting and sending cards. Sending out holiday cards are my absolute favorite part of the Christmas season. I haven’t gotten my cards squared away just yet, but you better believe I’m going to be sending those out soon! 

Penelope didn’t appreciate that I gave her bunny ears. Apparently it means something to elementary school kids that it didn’t mean when I was growing up. lol. 

I’m going to let you in on a not-so-secret secret. I don’t design my own holiday cards. It’s a bit of a waste of time for me since I don’t design cards professionally and I don’t really have anything clever to do. So I buy the pre-designed ones and call it good. I do like adding my own personal touch to the envelopes, and usually there’s an art print slipped into each one, but that’s it. Simplicity and done-ness is my motto. With Mixbook, they have beautiful printing and beautiful designs. So I don’t even have to think about it. I just have to work on getting a family photo… That’s easier said than done. 

I’ve decided that this time of year is about enjoying the good things of the season without putting undue stress on the things we don’t have to do. What about you? You do holiday cards this time of year? Want one of my holiday cards? Fill out the form below if you’d like me to send you one! 

 

DIY: Raised Lettering With Glue

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I was on local TV show, Studio 5 this week sharing a fun how-to with Elmer’s glue: Raised lettering. It’s really quite addicting and something you can rope your kids into (perfect for a Father’s Day craft). It doesn’t have to be lettering you include on the card, either. Abstract designs really add a lot of depth, too. So any age and skill level could do this craft. But be careful, it could get messy. ;) Here’s the link to the segment if you’d like to take a look!

So here’s what you need: 

Figure out your design. I found the simpler the better. The largest word I was successfully able to write without bleeding and readability issues was “love”. “Hi”, “Hey”, “thx” totally worked. 

Keep your glue bottle about an inch to two inches away. Allowing the steady stream of glue to create smooth curves. Set out in the sun for a couple of hours to dry. I use little porcelain dominoes to keep them from flying away. 

Once the cards are dry, paint overtop! This is super fun because the paint job can be whatever. So include your little ones and do something fun. This is a great way to get them involved in hand-written ‘Thank You’s and perfect for Father’s Day this upcoming weekend. 

Junie got really excited about this project, too. We had a great time disconnecting from screens and making some fun artwork. 

Hope you get around to doing some fun raised cards soon! Feel free to comment below if you did the project. I’d love to see how they turned out. 

This tutorial is free for personal use. Link with love. Thanks! Affiliate links are used.  

DIY: 3 Ways to Add Gold to Your Envelopes

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This post is sponsored by Tiny Prints. They provide excellent quality printing and amazing printing options to make your holiday cards stand out this year.

Gold is such a classic element to add to holiday greetings, but how? What materials do you use? I’ve got a little bit of experience with that and I know just the things to help you make your holiday cards a hit this year.

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Oh, and I should mention, these tips require no calligraphy experience whatsoever. Neat handwriting helps, and here’s a post to help you with that. Want to learn calligraphy? I do that, too. Sign up for my class right here. Just gonna toot my own horn a bit about the class: it’s hands-on with personal feedback from me and my co-calligrapher (Erika! She’s the raddest!).  Get supplies mailed to your door, personal attention and loads of lifetime content for less than it costs for most in-person modern workshops. Aw, yeah.

This post may contain affiliate links. These are products I’m using constantly. I get a little bit of a kick-back from any  purchases made through these links. Affiliate sales help feed my crafting addiction and supplies used for blog posts. So thank you for your support.

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Gold Striping

It looks like Finetec Gold is a favorite of mine. It’s looking like it’s out of stock at Paper & Ink arts – you might have luck at John Neal Bookseller or a local art supply store. I love this palette because you can add gold and shimmer to just about anything.

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Get a large hard-bound book or a block of wood that’s longer than your envelope. Place it an inch below the desired line.

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Instead of using a ruler and getting the underside all gunky from running ink, rest the bottom of your hand along the edge of the book or block and pull your arm towards you (see above). You’ll get a nice straight line without even trying hard.

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Wait for the gold to dry, then letter the address with the recipient’s name above the line and the address below. I like using the lettermate when doing print addresses. It keeps my lines straight and my leading even. If you choose to use a lettermate or something similar, you’ll want to put the gold line inside one of the lines so that the spacing is even. If you put it between two lines, the top two address lines will look inconsistently spaced. I’ll use a white gelly roll or a gold shadow gelly roll. If you’re using a white envelope, you may want to opt for the black gold or the pink gold. Here I used the lavender gold.

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Foil Gems

I’ve got a little secret in my  arsenal and I’m about to share it with you. EEP!! I’m loving this thing. I’ve had it for about a year, and it’s the perfect way to add gold sparkle to something without waiting for glitter glue to dry. I bought this cheap hot foil pen on New Egg some time ago, so it looks like it’s no longer available. The closest thing in price is the WRM keepers one. At $15 it’s totally an impulse purchase. I’ve seen them around on other sites. Just make sure that when you’re looking for yours you look for “hot foil pen”. That’s pretty much it. Scrapbooking suppliers are going to be your best bet.

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First, you’ll letter your address. I like to switch up styles with print and script.

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When you’re done, you’ll heat up the foil pen and do little dots in the negative spaces. You can do single dots or groupings of 3. If you’re doing groupings of 3, you can add little green leaves for holly! Or keep them plain. I opted to go plain.

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Justified Glitter

  • Glitter
  • Sticky thumb or double-stick tape
  • White gelly roll

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Mark up your paper with sticky thumb. You can use a glue stick for a more organic line.

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Sprinkle glitter (mix colors for a fun effect) over the envelope. This is a great activity to do in big batches in a bath tub or large casserole dish.

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With your finger, rub in the glitter so it sticks. You’ll see that glitter will settle and stop coming off. Shake off excess.

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Write out the address. If you’re doing the lettermate and a script style of penmanship, you may want to write out everything without the descending strokes (like the ‘y’, ‘g’, ‘f’, ‘z’ etc) and fill those in afterward. Add postage and you’re done!

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I’m slowly knocking out my list this week and next. So my cards will be more like New Year’s cards, but late is always better than never in my opinion!

 

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learn-calligraphy-pen

Want to learn calligraphy the right way? Check out my online calligraphy class. It includes lifetime access to materials and content (images, text, animated GIFs) and 30 days of personal instructor feedback. Because we all need help troubleshooting when starting out. ;)

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Penelope’s Birthday Party Part III

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A late thank you is better than no thank you, right?

I finally around to making and sending off thank you postcards from Penelope’s party. It’s been three weeks.

Penelope isn’t to the point where she can express gratitude on Paper, so I ended up writing them all from her perspective. As soon as she can write a thank you note; she’ll be writing her own! Thank you cards take me forever to write. I kept with the theme of her birthday invitations and added her saying, “thanks!” (which sounds more like GATS).

I discovered the glories of thank you post cards when Chris and I got married and needed to make and send a bunch of thank you’s on a limited budget. Post cards are where it’s at – they’re so inexpensive to print and send! Have you used thank you postcards before? What do you think?


Click here to read part I: The Invitation

Click here to read part II: The Party

You Are So Indie Card II

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Show your friends some love! I know y’all think it’s fun to get something other than a bill or an ad in the mail. I think all of you should print this card and send it to someone you think is cool. I sure did (and it wasn’t addressed to me). ;)

You're the leader of the pack

Download the Indie Wolf Card Here

Download the Envelope Template Here

This card was inspired by this wolf shirt, which Chris and I think is super cool. You know what’s even cooler? The card fits perfectly inside the printable envelope I designed a while back. Click on the links above to download the card & envelope.

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