Card Making

The Benefits of Card Making

There are several benefits to creating your own handmade greeting cards:

• If you’re passionate about scrapbooking or rubber stamping, making cards is a great way to use up your leftover supplies and try out new techniques before committing to a larger project.
• Since handmade cards are one-of-a-kind creations, they’re a great way to show someone how much you care.
• Once you’ve mastered the basics of making handmade greeting cards, you’ll never have to run to the store in the middle of the night to pick up a card for someone’s birthday or anniversary.
• Making homemade greeting cards is a relaxing hobby that can be enjoyed by people of all ages. It’s a great craft to do while watching television or spending time with your children.

Getting Started

Although card making often involves techniques such as embossing, chalking, inking, and paper piecing, it’s not hard to make simple greeting cards. In fact, you can pick up most of the supplies you’ll need at your local craft store. The basic supply list for beginners includes:

• Pre-scored cards or cardstock to cut your own cards
• Stickers, rub-ons, rubber stamps, or other decorative embellishments
• Envelopes or envelope templates
• Adhesive

If you prefer to shop online, you can buy supplies for making handmade greeting cards from the following websites:

• Jo-Ann Fabric & Crafts
• Paper Wishes
• Create For Less

Finding Inspiration

One of the greatest advantages of making your own greeting cards is that there are no rules. Your cards can be fun and whimsical or elegant and sophisticated. They can feature a famous quote, lyrics from a popular song, or a saying that you’ve created on your own.

While the flexibility of card making is part of the craft’s appeal, this lack of boundaries sometimes makes it difficult to get started in the hobby. In the beginning, you might find it easier to model your greeting cards on store-bought cards that you have recently received. You can give these ideas your own personal touch by adding different embellishments, choosing a new color scheme, or slightly changing the wording of the verse.

If you’re new to the art of making handmade greeting cards, the following books may be helpful:

• The Joy of Card Making
• The Joy of Card Making: A Second Helping
• Creative Card Making for Scrapbookers
• Stacy And Friends: 40 Techniques for Making Cards
• 10-20-30 Minute Card Making

You may also want to check out these useful websites:

• Paper Crafts Magazine
• Hero Arts Card Making
• Card Making Verses and Ideas

Turning Your Hobby into a Profitable Business

Since almost everyone sends cards on birthdays, holidays, and other special occasions, there are many ways for you to turn a love of creating handmade greeting cards into a profitable home-based business. For example:

• Sign up as an independent consultant for a company such as Stampin’ Up and teach workshops about card making to your clients.
• Sell your creations at local craft shows or on eBay.
• Contact local businesses and take orders for one-of-a-kind company Christmas cards.
• Get a booth at a bridal show and take orders for handmade wedding invitations..