Beneath the boughs our gifts begin to gather, but whose is whose? That’s when it’s time for our handcrafted gift tags to shine! They say it’s the thought that counts, and no matter what lies inside the wrapping paper, your gift carries a personal touch with a homemade Christmas gift tag attached!
Tobi’s Poinsettia tag is so lovely! If you love classic red and green Christmas decorations, then a tag like this could be just the ticket!
Tobi stamped and die cut this Perfect Poinsettia before coloring it in with alcohol markers. She then inked the background with red and green Distress Oxide inks, blending and then spritzing lightly to create a snowy background effect. She lined the tag with red paper before placing the die cut poinsettia in front of the place where the inks transition from green to red.
Want to read more about Tobi's gift tag and more of her projects? You can check them out on her blog!
Ho Ho Ho! What a cute and funny little gift tag! Perfect for a secret Santa group perhaps?
Teri used the Tag Topper Crafting Die to cut out the red sparkly paper along the top and bottom of the tag. When it came to Santa's Face, she die cut the same sparkly red cardstock to create Santa's hat, while using white paper for the rest of Santa’s face. She assembled all these pieces on the craft paper on which she stamped the sentiment “from your secret Santa” from the Dear Santa Stamp Set.
3. A Sweet Pair of diy Christmas Gift Tag Ideas
What a sweet pair of poinsettia tags that Daniela crafted! These pink blooms on a speckled white background match a gentler aesthetic than Tobi’s bold red and green.
Daniela cut out these tags with her Sillhouette Studio. If you have an automated cutting machine like this you can find an array of our digital cut files on our website for your own crafting needs! She then stamped these Poinsettias with black ink before lightly watercoloring them in. The sentiments also come from the Poinsettia Stamp Set. She finished the tags off with additional splashes of watercolor and some lovely baker's twine.
If you want to read more about how Daniela crafted these tags and more, check out her blog!
Dana’s gift tags sure do shine bright! You’re definitely going to catch some attention with a set of tags like these.
Dana cut these tags from white cardstock as well as green and red to back the tags. She stamped the String of Lights across the top and bottom of the tags and sentiments from that set in the center. She colored the lights in with alcohol markers, then finished it all off with the red and green baker's twine and a small set of bells per tag.
Dana wrote about these tags over on her blog, so check it out to learn more!
What a jolly set of Santa tags! Whether you’ve been naughty or nice, your Santa gift tags can mend it all with some Christmas cheer.
Teri created these tags with the Tag Toppers crafting dies and Dear Santa stamps and dies. She stamped Santa’s face and the Ho Ho Ho sentiment onto white paper before cutting these both with their matching crafting dies. She colored Santa’s face in, then assembled the rest of the pieces die cut from the tag toppers crafting dies. She stamped the sentiments “It wasn’t me,” and “Define naughty,” onto patterned paper that forms the background of these tags.
Emily’s deceptively simple tag really puts a bow on things! Part of the magic of the season is all the fun crafting we get to do, so let’s dive into how Emily made this gift tag.
Emily’s tag looks so simple, and yet she used five different sets of stamps and dies! The focal point is the Bow on the Border Die which she used to cut out the glittering red bow. She placed this glittery red bow between the craft paper base on the right and the white cardstock on the left. On the white side you’ll see a few gold snowflakes, which come from the Dani the Deer Stamp set. The sentiment “enjoy the magic of the season,” comes from the Classic Christmas Sentiments set. The square this sentiment is stamped inside of comes in the My Trip set, and it’s die cut with the Captions and labels dies.
If you want to read more from Emily about this tag and many more of her crafts, then check out her blog!
As I get ready to wrap up my Christmas crafting endeavors, I'm glad I've got these selection of classic diy gift tags to return to. I haven't done much with alcohol markers yet, but I really love Dana's string of lights tags! I want to see what I can create with alcohol markers now. What about you?
Whatever you're looking to take a shot at, you can find the stamps and dies you need for your Christas paper crafting in the Christmas collection on our website!
Happy crafting!
Can you believe just how close we are to Christmas already? It's time to get those Christmas cards ready to send out! We've collected an array of handmade watercolor Christmas cards to help inspire your crafting. Whether you're looking to expand your card making style and try out some easy watercolor Christmas card ideas, or you already love watercolors and are just looking for tips and inspiration, then these cards are just what you need!
The lights and colors of Christmas decorations are so joyful! I love how Norine uses watercolor in this card to capture the feel of colorful glows reflecting on the Christmas tree.
Norine created this lovely card with the String of Lights stamp set and some skillful watercoloring. This card largely shows off the beautiful freehanded blending that one can accomplish with watercolors, but Norine also used embossing powder to help with some detailed work in the light bulbs. By embossing the stamped image, she was able to easily corral the watercolor in order to create a more intense color in the light bulbs themselves. She finished the card off with the sentiment from the stamp set and heat embossed it as well.
Want to read more about Norine's cards? Then check out this one and more over on Norine's Blog. And to see more from the rest of our designers, keep reading below!
Wow! What a precise watercolor project from Lindsey! She creates a glowing sprig of juniper with her silvery colors. What a classy Christmas card showing off the cool winter colors of the season!
Lindsey also used heat embossing in crafting this watercolor card. The embossed image creates a line that’s easy to watercolor within, which allows for more exact watercolor painting. She embossed several iterations of the Joyous Juniper in silver, reaching in from the edges to frame the sentiments from the Classic Christmas Sentiments set. She created a dramatic look by starting from light blues but working towards shades of quite dark blue in the juniper berries, contrasting in a lovely way with the silver sprigs.
Want to see more of Lindsey's cards and read more about how she crafted this one? Then check it out on her blog!
Savannah’s “Freezin Season” card is somehow so cozy! The soft lines of the watercolor background evokes the swirling snows of winter time. What a perfect winter holiday card!
Savannah also made use of embossing in her watercolor card. She first stamped the coat, boots, and sentiment from the Hello Winter Stamp set onto her watercolor paper, embossed to keep the watercolors where she wanted them, then let the paints flow! She finished off this card by adding a little bit of fluff around the boots and the hood of the coat.
Want to read more about this and other cards Savannah crafted? Check them out on her blog post!
Another lovely card from Norine! The green color seems so effortlessly drawn across the page as a backdrop for the seasons greetings and winter flora featured in the Joyous Juniper Stamp set. Keep reading to hear about she crafted this one!
Norine stamped the Joyous Juniper stamp twice in this card – first along the right hand side, and then added a branch above arching off to the left. Norine used heat embossing again to more easily contain the paint to where she wanted it to go. She painted the berries first, starting by filling them in with clean and paint-free water and then adding shades of blue and purple. This method helps effortlessly blend the colors together.
She painted the leaves and stems in a basic green and then allowed it all to dry before returning to paint the background. After the background had some color, she returned with the “seasons greetings” stamp from the Holly stamp set which she also heat embossed. Once that was set and cooled she added a few extra paint splatters for an extra ounce of artsy-ness.
You can read more about Norine's cards on her blog!
Cardinals are a celebrated symbol of winter for a reason! Even in the drabbest of winters, the red tufts of the cardinal brings a brightness and color. Julie’s cardinal card celebrates this classic symbol in a classy card.
Julie stamped the Cardinal and Pine bough onto watercolor paper and blended the watercolors by first painting clean water onto the page before adding color to the wet page. If you want to watercolor a background without allowing that background color to blend into the foreground, you can of course use heat embossing as many of the other designers have, but if you don't have the tools necessary there is another option. You can wait until the foreground that you've painted has dried, and then create an adhesive mask that covers the foreground elements you'd like to preserve. Once the mask is applied simply paint in your background, wait for it to dry, then remove the mask and voila! A softly receding background of light blue watercolor for your cardinal upon the pine bough.
Another very precise use of watercolors! Savannah’s card makes use of a classic Christmas color combo to create a super festive card with a unique use of the medium.
Savannah’s card is one of the more creative uses of watercolor. She used a loose and flowing hand for a watercolor background on several cards that she then cut out using the Sweater Weather die. She uses that die again here on her white paper, but fits the scraps from the other watercolor cards into this white card. She finished it off by stamping the sentiment Christmas Blessings from the Christ is Born stamp set, and tied it all off with a red bow.
Want to read more about this card and Savannah’s suggestions for crafters looking to make lots of cards quickly with easy watercolor Christmas cards? Check it out on her blog!
What a sweet card from Dana! This classic Christmas symbol in such dark rich colors is sure to be a crowd pleaser.
Dana used the Perfect Poinsettia stamp set to stamp several of these blooms across her watercolor paper. She then colored in the poinsettia images with bright pink watercolors. She watercolored the background with these dark colors to make the poinsettias pop and added splatters of white gauche, creating a night sky effect. She finished up the card by stamping the seasons greetings sentiment from the Poinsettia stamp set onto vellum and wrapped around and adhered it to the card base.
Want to read more about how Dana created this card? Check it out on her blog!
Your friends and family are sure to love your Christmas cards this year, whether you're using watercolors, colored pencils, alcohol markers, or any other medium. I hope you found some inspiration here whatever projects you're tackling next! I spent this weekend making my own watercolor cards. I'd love to see your projects too. Just tag us on social media or send your project pictures to Ideas at TechniqueTuesday dot com! Don't forget to check out all of our Christmas stamps and dies for your Christmas crafting needs!
When I was a child, my mother always told me that the reason we used evergreen trees as Christmas trees was because their year-round greenery is a symbol of hope and life even at the darkest of times. I've always loved the evergreen trees for this reason, and I'm excited to share some of our newest pine tree projects alongside a few classics! The Winter Pine Tree Stamps and Dies are designed to fit into your winter and Christmas cards of all types, so if you've been looking for different ways to make Christmas tree cards, you're in the right spot!
Shana created these trees of varying shades of green and grey. Don't you just love how the green tree pops against the brown and grey?
The warm wishes Shana's sending are sure to make the recipient feel warm and fuzzy. Want to make a similar card? You can layer and create a gradient with distress oxide inks using an acrylic block as a pallet from which to ink your stamps.
The Christmas tree doesn't have to be solid green though! Once decorated, the evergreen Christmas tree brings endless color into the room! Dana created this classic Christmas tree card with the Vintage Christmas stamps and dies.
Dana's card combines sentiments from the December Moments Stamp Set with the Vintage Christmas Set. She colored this classic Christmas scene with Copic markers and really made things shine with gold glitter glue for a garland and gold colored washi tape along the base of the card. The tree is die cut and adhered to the card backing. She finished it off by banner cutting the red strip with the sentiment and adding the green enamel dot to the banner.
Read more from Dana about this project and others on her blog!
Julie's warm color palette is so inviting! If you're looking to bring warmth into your loved ones' lives this holiday season, maybe a card like this one would be the perfect way to reach out.
Julie stamped the Winter Pine Tree with a light green ink and die cut it to set above the background of die cut circles. She used the sentiments included with the winter pine tree crafting dies, and finished it all off with a couple of sequins. Perfect for Christmas or winter crafting!
If you loved the die cutting Julie did, what about a card created just with die cut elements? Well Teri did just that with the Taller Than Trees Dies.
These trees could be part of a Christmas scene, or simply a winter card for somebody who appreciates forests of pine and other evergreen trees. If you're a fan of crafting dies, then you already know how fun they can be to work with! Let the paper say it all for you in a simple card like Teri's.
Shana got so creative with this shaker card! She added a lot of color and sparkle to the Winter Pine Tree Stamps with all those sequins!
Shana stamped her trees with green ink again here, but added the sequins for extra sparkle and shine. Sequins can easily overwhelm a design though, so Shana balanced out the explosion of color by framing it all within a grey die cut oval.
You can share colorful cards all winter long with these Winter Pine Stamps and Dies.
Julie created a classic handcrafted Christmas tree card by combining the "Holly Jolly everything" sentiment from the Classic Christmas Sentiments Stamp Set with the Winter Pine Stamps and Dies. |
Julie is really excited by how easy it is to create a great stamped image quickly and easily by blending the ink on the stamp and adding a sentiment with the Essential Stitched Labels die. This is a great stamp for mass producing Christmas cards! |
I can't wait to get started on these winter themed cards, what about you? The Winter Pine Stamps and Dies are perfect no matter whether you're starting on your Christmas cards, want to send a winter themed birthday card, or are just making a card to say hello. If you want to check out the other Christmas tree stamps and dies or other winter and Christmas themed products, you'll find them all in the Christmas and Winter Stamps and Dies Collection.
Who's on your Christmas Card list this year? I love sending unique handcrafted Christmas cards to stay connected with the important people in my life who happen to live far far away. The longer the list grows however, the sooner I have to get started crafting! So come along with me on this journey, let's start planning out those Christmas card lists!
This string of lights card made me think of my husband immediately! He'd be the first to admit he's a bit of a perfectionist, but he has a sense of humor about it. Whether the Christmas lights pose any particular challenge to us this Christmas or not, I know a card wishing him a tangle-free holiday is sure to make him laugh!
I like this circle in front of the squares design. I might use different colors on a homemade Christmas card for my husband, but I love how the background colors here coordinate with the color of the lights.
Have you been brainstorming ideas for your diy Christmas card for boyfriend or husband? Or maybe your parents or friends? Well then keep reading for more inspiration!
Miriam's Poinsettia card really blows me away! The flower here is lifelike enough to take me back to the Christmas pageants my mom and I always used to perform in together on a small church stage. The stage itself seemed to sprout a full forest of poinsettias every year as the holidays approached and more potted poinsettias were donated.
A poinsettia card is the perfect choice for my mom because it gives us the chance to reminisce together as we create new memories this Christmas season. Would your mom enjoy a poinsettia card? Or what about your sister or perhaps a friend? What would you do to make a poinsettia card truly your own?
I know when I'm crafting my mom’s Christmas card I will definitely be integrating the color purple into the design because it’s my mom’s favorite color. I can incorporate it subtly into the Poinsettia itself by shading the red petals with purple, and I’ll set it against a purple background as well. I’ll have to be careful though to make sure I pick shades of red and purple that complement and don't clash with each other.
Want to read in detail about how this particular card was crafted? Miriam wrote about it on her blog!
This Holly card really stood out to me! Among all the green and red holly cards this yellow one seemed to glows like gold, and that's what really got me thinking of my little sister. She’s still in her early 20s, but she's already accomplished so much in both career and education. She’s a card maker too and one of the kindest and most cheerful people you'll ever meet.
Would a card like this one work for your sister? What about an aunt or a girlfriend? How are you planning to put your own spin on it?
I like the non-traditional color pallet, but I think pink might be more fun to play with when I make my sister’s card.
You can read more about how this card was created in Ana's Blog post about it.
I don't always make a separate card for my dad, but this one is just too perfect! The design Allison gave the moose’s scarf looks just like the scarves and blankets my dad's grandma gave all of us as gifts long ago.
I want to make a card where Morris the moose has one of these family scarves plus also I'll create a scene for him that suggests grandma Repast's wooded home in Southern Oregon. I know my dad will really love it, and of course the pun alone in the sentiment stamp is bound to make him crack up.
Does your dad love puns? Or do you ever work in old family memories into your diy christmas cards for parents? I bet Morris the Moose would go great with all of your family Christmas greetings this year!
Interested in this specific card? You'll find out more about it on Allison's Blog Post.
Friends are so important! If you're like me, you've got a number of friends on your Christmas card list. This card in particular made me think of one of my oldest friends. She can be so hard to craft for because she has an unusual aesthetic, but I think something like this snowflake card would be perfect for her.
What sort of unusual aesthetic you might ask? Well, when we were in 5th grade she informed me that she was goth. Never mind the pink and purple she was wearing at the time, she assured me that was just because her dad wouldn't let her wear the style she wanted. True to her 10-year-old word, she switched over to all black as soon as she was allowed to and still loves that whole aesthetic. Sometimes that makes her hard to craft for, but then I found this card and I knew it was absolutely perfect! Snowflake make it easy to create a Christmas themed-card with a darker aesthetic.
The muted tones of this snowflake card also make it a great option for a more masculine card if you're still trying to think of the best card for a dad, uncle, or brother.
I'm taking a German course right now that will conclude just after the holidays. It's been a while since I was last in a classroom, but I've found it to be a magical experience, and I'm so grateful to Frau Wesseling for helping to make it so, so I decided I wanted to make a card for her as well this year. I don't know what holidays she celebrates, so I want to stick with a more neutral sentiment like "warm wishes."
I've always loved this Pine Bough Stamp Set, and honestly I've just been searching for an excuse to use it! I know I'll really enjoy coloring in this Cardinal on the pine bough. I'm really inspired by Ana's no-line coloring here, and excited to try my hand at it!
Who's new on your Christmas card list this year? If I had the time, my list might just grow forever!
Want to read more about no-line coloring? Ana wrote about this card on her blog!
I don't know for sure yet if I'll get the chance to take part in a Secret Santa gift exchange this year, but I'm keeping something like this in my back pocket just in case!
The Dear Santa stamp set is a go-to for me when it comes to Secret Santa related crafting, and having a card like this on hand means if I'm invited to an event I haven't yet foreseen I always have a backup card to give!
Friends and extended relatives expand the Christmas Card list quickly! Here's just a couple more of the Christmas cards inspiring me as I start my planning and my crafting.
Shana's card and gift tag with Bow on the Border Crafting Die and the Classic Christmas Sentiments |
Jill's card was crafted with the Hello Winter Stamp Set and Sweater Weather Crafting Die Bundle |
Are you ready to get crafting? Then check out our Christmas Stamps and Dies!
Looking for some cute and creative handmade Christmas cards? Our design team has got you covered! No matter who your favorite furry friend is, we're sure you'll find plenty here to inspire your upcoming crafting projects for Christmas and year round!
Lisa created such a bright and cheerful card with Lorenzo the Llama, and we just can't get enough of this guy!
Lorenzo the Llama, like all of the Animal House stamp sets featured here, make some darn cute homemade Christmas cards, but are also perfect for projects year-round! Lisa used the tassels that come with Lorenzo as a festive holiday garland in the background of her card, and along the bottom she placed a bright green ribbon for Lorenzo the stand on. She colored in our llama friend with watercolors, first wetting down Lorenzo with clean water, then just tapping some pink pigment onto his front. With watercolors, shading is as easy as just one tap!
Want to read more about Lisa's process? Check this project out on her blog!
While you can wish your friends a "Merry Christmas" with just about any stamp set, who but Hana the Horse Can say "Mare-y Christmas?" Tina's slimline card is an instant classic!
Tina started by stamping and embossing Hanna the Horse and her cute little kitty friend, she then colored these furry friends in with Copic markers and then cut them out with the coordinating dies. The background is created by ink blending the blue sky and then creating snow drifts with layers of white card stock. She finished off this slimline card with some snowflake sequins to add the sparkle of a winter scene.
Want to know more about this project? You can find it over on Tina's blog!
Wow! Don't you just love Svitlana's Cow card? Clementine the Cow is totally in her element in this wintery holiday scene!
Svitlana added a white string of Christmas lights from the Christmas Borders Stamp Set onto her wooden print background. To get this string of lights as well as her sentiment stamp to show up in white against the dark background, she had to heat emboss both. She then added our friend Clementine the Cow, but she cut off the back of her die cut cow in order make Clementine appear to be peeking out around the barn door.
If you love these creative handmade Christmas cards, keep reading to take your own peek beyond the barnyard!
Morris the Moose is quite the star on Animal House Christmas Cards! Svitlana's card brings to mind the cozy moments of the Christmas season.
Svitlana blended the blue ink from dark to light, leaving the bottom of her card white to suggest snow. She spritzed water onto the blue above to create the snow-like white flecks in the background. She stamped the sentiment "Merry Christ-Moose" from the Morris the Moose Stamp Set with Matching Dies in red ink along the white bottom of the card. Morris and his signature scarf are stamped and die cut and placed above this background. The card is finished off with the candy cane colored string across the top. What a sweet card!
Amy's Playful Penguin card is sure to warm your heart! Whatever you're celebrating this winter, a card like this one might just hit the spot.
Amy crafted the bottom half of this card by die cutting white card stock with the Sweater Weather Crafting Die and setting above a blue backing to suggest the cold snowflakes our little penguin friend lives among. On the top half of the card, Amy blended the warm yellow ink out from the center of her white card stock. She placed her stamped and die cut penguin to the left of center and balanced out the design with the sentiment stamp "your kindness warmed my heart."
There are just a few of the many cute homemade Christmas card ideas our talented design team have created with our Animal House Stamps and Dies. Want to check out more punny animal-themed Christmas ideas? You'll find the stamps featured in the cards above and plenty more in our Christmas & Winter Stamp Sets and Dies Collection.
Note: This blog post was initially published in December 2017, it has been edited to share new Animal House Christmas projects and republished in August 2021.
Hello there from your good pal Toph! I'm starting to plan out my Christmas cards for this year, what about you? It seems so early, but I put off way too many things until the last minute in December of 2020, and I'm determined not to do that again! I live far from my family and most of my friends, so Christmas cards are an important part of how I stay connected with everyone.
How many people are on your Christmas list this year? What kinds of cards do they like? We've collected some great new projects of all kinds from our designers, keep reading to see all these inspiring cards!
Jolly ole Saint Nick sure is part of the joy of the season! I don't think I'll ever grow out of loving a good Santa Claus Christmas card. Becky used our Dear Santa Clear Stamps with Matching Dies to create this fun and festive piece!
Becky stamped and die cut the Santa and his signature "Ho Ho Ho" catchphrase from the Dear Santa Clear Stamps with Matching Dies. She framed Santa's face inside the red card stock with white stripes. Aren't those sprigs of holly a great festive touch? Becky stamped and die cut those from our Spirit of December Stamp Set!
Santa's always a crowd pleaser, but we've got plenty more for you! Whether you like your handmade Christmas cards and other crafts traditional or wild and wacky, keep reading to see all the projects our design team made for you!
It's never to early to get your gift tags ready! Svitlana crafted this homemade Christmas tag with the Christmas Borders Stamps and Pull Strip Dies . Whether you know what presents your gift tags will be attached to yet or not, you can think ahead to how you want to wish your loved ones well.
Svitlana die cut the tag from brown paper and stamped the line of trees and string of lights in green ink. She used the sentiment "Hope all your Christmas wishes come true" and stamped it in red in the center of the card. She then added some small pops of white to suggest snow, and finished it all off with a red and white candy cane colored string with a bow.
If you're focusing on the reason for the season, you might find a lot of inspiration from Elise's beautiful card. Isn't this such a creative use of the Nativity Silhouettes and Christ is Born stamps?
Elise created the ground and masked it, then created the colorful background by blending Distress Oxide Inks. The White star and the sentiment "Jesus is the Reason" is made with heat embossing. The card is then finished off with the flashy sequins.
To hear more about this card in Elise's own words, check it out on her blog post here!
Sometimes you just want to focus on saying Merry Christmas. A toned back design can be super effective. Kelli's card here puts the spotlight on Classic Christmas Sentiments, and we couldn't love it more!
Kelli stamped her "Merry Christmas" on the right hand side of white cardstock about a third of the way from the bottom. She cut simple strips of green and red card stock to layer under the sentiment, and finished it all off by using the Sweater Weather Crafting Die on a piece of white card stock set across the bottom of the card.
Llamas and Christmas? Yes please! This card that Lisa created is so fun. It combines the String of Lights Stamps and Dies with the Lorenzo the Llama Stamps and Dies, which is such a creative combo!
A real llama might throw a few tangles into your Christmas light plans, but Lorenzo the stamped llama turns out to be a perfect Christmas companion! Lisa created this festive backdrop for Lorenzo by stamping the String of Lights onto white card stock. She colored in the lights and die cut a circle for her stamped and die cut llama to poke in through. She heat embossed the sentiment "Have a tangle-free holiday" in white onto her black cardstock, and then let her creation free!
Want to dive deeper into untangling Lisa's process? Then check out her blog post about it!
Did you love the funny Llama Christmas card? Well, stay tuned! We've got a lot of cute and silly Animal House cards to share with you soon!
If you're ready to get a head start on your Christmas cards, we're here to help! For a limited time you can save 20% off all our Christmas stamps and dies . That includes all of the products our team used to make these Christmas cards, and so much more! Our Christmas in July sale comes but once a year, so don't miss it! Head over to our website now and use coupon code Holidays to get started today!
Hi again from Toph! I've got a confession for you: I'm pretty new to card making. Luckily, here at Technique Tuesday, our team designs stamps with card crafters of all skill levels in mind! Whether you're a beginner like me or you're perfecting some of the more complex techniques, you'll find our stamps to be a great tool in your creative pursuits. We've compiled a list of eight diy marigold flower cards to help inspire your next craft, no matter how simple or complex it may be.
The soft tones and watery blending on this card really connected with me. Marigolds always make me think of my dad's garden growing up, and Norine's handmade marigold card design feels as if it tapped directly into my own sense of nostalgia. The emotional response to a card might be quite personal, but the techniques that get us there are something anyone can learn. Let's see what techniques Norine used here!
Norine achieved this lovely watercolor effect with water reactive Distress inks. She lightly spritzed the paper with water before stamping, then went back over the stamped image with ink on a paintbrush. The paintbrush allowed her to both catch any spots where the original ink was lighter than she wanted and also to give the marigold more depth by introducing more shades of green, yellow, and orange. Once the image was finished, Norine die cut it out using the Postage Card Crafting Dies and added the small dots using a needle tool and a straightedge. She then backed this with the solid colored cardstock that coordinates with the polka dotted background. She finished it all off by heat embossing the sentiments and then painting the banner in with the same color green from the Marigold stems.
Norine writes in about this card on her blog,so you can learn more about it here! Looking for a simpler marigold flower card craft? Then keep reading!
As fun as more complicated cards can be to try, a good clean and simple card can convey a certain elegance. With just a few basic techniques, Bev brought this handmade marigold card to life.
Bev stamped the Marigold onto white cardstock and used copic markers to color in the blooms and stems. If you start with the lightest shade you're using and progress to the darkest shade, you can blend copics or similar alcohol based markers quite nicely. Bev stamped the "You have a heart of gold" sentiment onto another piece of white cardstock which she then die cut using the Essential Stitched Labels Crafting Dies. She attached the sentiment to the marigold image, backed it all with a blue cardstock, and then added the yellow droplets as a finishing touch.
Clean and simple cards are instant classics! This is a fairly easy marigold flower card to make, so I bet I could make a card like this one! What about you?
Wow, what a striking image! Shana's card uses negative space quite adeptly. This visually appealing card seems even simpler than Bev's in some ways, but it employs some more advanced techniques. Read on to see if you've got the tools to tackle a card like this one!
The black background really sets this card apart. The fiery hues of the die cut marigold flower really pop against this black background, as does the white birthday sentiment stamp. This white sentiment is what makes the card just a bit more complicated because in order to successfully stamp white onto black you'll need to know how to heat emboss. This technique is a little more advanced, and you'll need a specific set of tools. First you'll need an anti-static tool to prepare your card, then once you've cleaned the card with this you'll need to stamp the card with a slow drying ink like embossing ink or pigment ink. You'll apply the embossing powder by pouring it over the wet ink, catching any excess with a funnel, often created with a simple folded piece of paper. You can remove any additional excess with a small paintbrush. Once all of the excess powder is out of the way you'll have to use a heat tool to set it, and you might want a pair of tweezers or some other tool to hold onto the card during this process because you don't want to burn your fingers!
Not prepared for heat embossing today? What about some other tools like vellum and craft foam? Because Bev's next card sure is a fun one!
Bev's diy marigold bouquet thank you card uses three stamped and die cut marigold plants in a row to create a bright and exciting project, then uses creative design elements in very practical ways.
Bev stamped and die cut these marigolds, then arranged the colored flowers on the card. The vellum looks like it's simply an aesthetic design choice, but it actually serves a practical purpose too because it covers the varying heights of the marigold stems. The thank you sentiment is die cut from thin craft foam, which gives this marigold card these lovely layers while still staying thin enough to easily mail off to a friend! Finish it off with a couple of orange dots and you've got a homemade card that's simple to craft but still visually exciting!
If you like your flower cards to have a bit more complicated design, Julie's here might get your creative juices flowing!
Julie created this card's background by daubing Distress Oxide Inks onto her cardstock over a stencil. The marigold flower was stamped, die cut, and colored with ZIG Clean Color pens and a water brush. The die cut marigold is then placed just to the left of the stencil's center. This creates a strong line of sight as the radially expanding background complements and gives a sense of growth to the largest marigold blossom. Julie used sentiments from the Laugh and Smile Stamp Set and finished off this attractive card with three clear droplets that shine like morning dew on a marigold flower.
Isn't it lovely! This diy marigold flower card sure would make me smile.
One way to stretch our creative muscles is to try a card of a different shape! Allison's marigold birthday card here shows us what we can do with a slimline card.
Allison's card seems to create a marigold plant that's reaching for the sky! She stamped and die cut two sets of marigolds on white cardstock, colored them in with Copic and spectrum noir, then laid them artfully atop one another. The background is created with brick stencils and oxide inks, and the sentiment "Have a lovely birthday" is stamped directly onto this stenciled background.
Read more about Allison's cards on her blog!
What better than a marigold to let your loved ones know that they've got a heart of gold? Julie's card here is definitely eye catching! While marigolds do get their name from the yellow color they typically bloom in, they're also found in darker shades like this reddish orange that Julie used.
The background on this card looks incredibly complicated at first sight, but the technique isn't too hard to learn! Distress Oxide Inks are a dye and pigment fusion, which allows for much freer color layering. Simply press the colors you want to use onto your craft sheet, spritz with water, then transfer to your card stock by pressing the paper directly onto your colorful palette. Once the inks have dried, you can continue to layer as much ink as you like. Julie added additional interest by layering strips of complementary patterns vertically on the card. The marigolds were colored with ZIG Clean Color pens and water brush, and then they were die cut and attached. The sentiment "you have a heart of gold" was stamped onto the circle of card stock and placed just above and to the right of the marigold flower.
Just in case you haven't pulled out your own Distress Oxide Inks yet, I've got one last marigold flower diy card you won't want to miss!
Wow! Shana's card here sure stands out! The bright colors and geometric patterns make it look so complicated, but if you learn the tricks of the trade you'll be able to impress your friends and family easily!
Want to know how to make a captivating background like Shana did here? The real secret behind this handmade marigold card design is a geometric stencil. Shana ink blended the deep red and orange over her stencil, leaving these lovely designs starkly white in contrast. Once the background is set, Shana was then free to attach the stamped and die cut marigold flowers as well as the separate piece of cardstock with the "Sending happy thoughts" sentiment stamped on it. She finished it off with a few shiny sequins, just to dazzle us all a little more!
Stencils seem to be all the rage these days! Want to see another card Shana's made using this stencil? Check it out on her blog!
Cards that look simple aren't always simple to make, and cards that appear visually exciting are sometimes the easy to craft! I hope you're as inspired as I am by the wide array of projects our design team have crafted with the Marigold Flower Stamp Set with Matching Dies. What are you planning to try out next? Whether you're making clean and simple marigold cards or exploring more complicated marigold flower card crafts, I want to wish you happy crafting!
Hey there birthday card crafters! Toph here again, and today I want to share seven projects from our design team that have me thinking of birthday card ideas for a friend! My best friend and I met when we were both new kids in an elementary school in small town Iowa, and despite living thousands of miles apart, we've stayed close over the years. It's been a long time since we've seen each other in person, but I never miss a chance to surprise her with a handcrafted card! Keep reading to see seven of the beautiful handmade birthday card ideas I'm drawing inspiration from this year!
The moment I saw Amy's card I knew it was a great place to start when looking at homemade birthday card ideas for best friend. My best friend at I have been ribbing each other about our age each birthday since the year we turned 20, so I know she'd get a laugh out of this card. We're all getting older, and for the right friend, some light hearted humor about aging can make the perfect birthday card!
Amy started with a blended ink background to create the gradient from lighter to darker pink. She used Tattered Rose, Abandoned Coral, and Seedless Preserves Distress Oxide Inks to blend into the Bristol Smooth cardstock. Atop this colorful yet restrained background she placed white cardstock numbers cut out using our By the Numbers Crafting Die.
In the foreground of her card, Amy stamped a cake from our Umpteenth Birthday Stamp Set and colored it with Copic markers before fussy cutting it and placing it on a two inch band of vellum. She white heat embossed the vellum with the sentiment "Remind me how old you are pretending to be" which also comes from the Umpteenth Birthday Stamp Set. She attached this strip with foam adhesive and topped it all off with a few clear droplets to make the card really shine!
Want to read more about Amy's process? Check this project out on her blog!
While my best friend and I do love to make fun of each other for growing older, most years the real focus in our cards is simply taking this time to connect. When I'm looking for beautiful handmade birthday card ideas, I might turn to Shana's mandala card for inspiration. The intricate designs of a mandala can be so fun to color! But they're also so striking when left in black and white as Shana's card shows us here. Either way, this stamp set can really let your creativity shine through!
Shana created the card here by stamping the mandala onto white paper and then fussy cutting it, but we also offer a Mandala Stamp and Die Bundle so you can die cut your mandala. She created the background through ink blending. She embossed her sentiment, which comes from the Lotus Stamp Set with Matching Dies into the blue cardstock you see, and then assembled the card.
The gift tag uses a smaller mandala and the "Happy Birthday to you" sentiment from the Mandala stamp set which are cut out with the Essential Stitched Labels Crafting Dies. The lines you see were added with Copic Liner, and the mandala is colored in with colored pencil. That final black ribbon ties it all together!
Read more from Shana about this project and others on her blog!
Dahlias are my best friend's favorite flower, so I know a card like Becky's here with the Dazzling Dahlia Stamps & Matching Dies would really make her smile. Want to know how to make a special birthday card for your best friend? Keep reading below to see how Becky made this one!
Becky stamped three dahlias from the Dazzling Dahlia Stamps & Matching Dies set, used Copic markers to color them, and then die cut the flowers. With one of these dahlias she used the main bloom plus the buds, while she trimmed the buds off of the other die cut dahlia. She then die cut a piece of card stock with the Essential Stitched Labels and lightly colored this piece with Budled Sage Distress Oxide Ink. One of the dahlias and set of buds is set underneath the stitched label, while the other two flowers are raised above the stitched label piece with foam tame.
The sentiment "Enjoy your special day" is created in two parts. "Enjoy" is die cut out of black cardstock and backed with vellum cardstock. The "your special day" sentiment is stamped in Versamark and embossed in white.
Long long ago my best friend and I had a third friend who lived right across the street from a lavender farm. That friend is no longer with us unfortunately, but those memories always will be. If I wanted to evoke our childhood adventures in the fields around Thurman, Iowa, I might make a card like Neftali's.
Neftali took inspiration from the Lovely Lavender Stamp Set with Matching Dies and chose a monochromatic look for this card. She colored the lavender stamp with purple water color and kept the image crisp by stamping again over the painted in flowers. She heat embossed the birthday sentiment with purple ink.
The final touch of the purple leather string is what really ties the card all together for me. This gives the card a bit of a rustic look and together with the purple monochrome helps evoke for me the nostalgia I feel when I think of childhood romps through the lavender fields with my best friends.
If you want more details about how Neftali crafted this card as well as a birthday scrapbook layout you can check out her blog here!
No matter what life may throw at us, my best friend and I always find ways to cheer each other up. When I'm looking for a craft that really brightens the day, a card like Allison's here would be perfect.
Allison mixed and matched a few products on this card like the Happy Everything Crafting Dies and the Camellia Flower Stamp Set. She created the background by ink blending over a stencil onto a stitched rectangular panel using Wilted Violet, Kitsch Flamingo, Spiced Marmalade, Squeezed Lemonade, Mowed Lawn, and Salvaged Patina oxide inks. She used the Happy Everything Crafting Dies to die cut out the word "Happy" in both white and black. She glued the white "Happy" outline to the card before inserting the black letters into the outline.
The smaller "happy birthday" sentiment stamp comes from the Camellia Flower Stamp Set. Once she'd stamped this sentiment onto white paper she trimmed it down to size and attached it to the card using foam tape. Then she finished off this bright design with a few sequins! Who could help but have a happy day when they receive such a happy card?
We've all been there. Time rushes onward, it felt like March but all of a sudden it's May and you've missed your friend's birthday! Latisha shows off a perfect example of a belated birthday card for a friend because late is always better than never!
Latisha used the By the Numbers Crafting Die to create the background on this card. She adhered her orange die cut numbers to a pink card base. She then stamped the sentiment onto yellow cardstock and die cut it with a circle die which she layered atop a slightly larger green die cut circle.
To complete the card, Latisha used balloons from the Umpteenth Birthday Stamp Set. She stamped these onto white cardstock with black ink and then colored them in with Copic markers. Latisha fussy cut these balloons, but if you have a digital die cutting machine you can check out our matching Umpteenth Birthday - Digital Cut Files!
Want to read more about how Latisha made this and a few other cards for us? Check out her blog here!
This card is practically a present all on it's own! Between the gorgeous rainbow colored background and the bow springing from the page, Lindsey really hit it out of the park on this handmade birthday card design.
Our team here at Technique Tuesday loved seeing the Bow on the Border Crafting Die used to such a spectacular effect! Doesn't it just make you want to get out the ink and start stamping?
If you're like me, you'll be chomping at the bit to try out a handmade birthday card design for best friend like this! Lindsey shares that she created this card by first stamping and embossing the images and sentiments from the Let's Party and the Large Happy Birthday sets because she loves using repeated images to create backgrounds. She then blended the ink over the embossed background, starting from the edges but leaving the center white in order to frame that Bow on the Border Crafting Die. Want to read more about how Lindsey created this and another card for us? Check out her blog post!
It was too hard to choose only seven inspiring projects from our designers, so here are a few more to check out! I've got to decide what I'm making for my best friend's next birthday card. What are you planning to try out next?
Shana's card and gift tag with Many Candles Stamps with Matching Dies |
Latisha's card was crafted with the Bowl Bouquet Stamp Set with Matching Dies |
Candace created these cards with Let's Party Stamp Set with Matching Dies |
Savannah's card made with the Gertie & Garth Goat Stamp Set with Matching Dies |
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These talented designers have really got me thinking about the best homemade birthday card ideas for best friend, and I hope they've got your creative juices flowing too! Want to see more projects like these? Visit the Happy Birthday Sentiment Stamps category on our website where you'll find more projects on each stamp and die page!
See a project you like and want to recreate it? Or are you inspired to make some unique birthday cards for your own friends? For a limited time only, we're offering 20% off your entire order. That includes all of the products our team used to make these birthday cards, and anything else you can think of! Our Virtual birthday sale is a once a year event, so don't wait! Head over to our website now and use coupon code HB2U to get your favorites today!
Hi Crafty Friends! This is Toph and this is my very first blog post here at Technique Tuesday. I am so excited to share my garden scrapbook page with you. And some of my favorite spring card ideas from our creative team!
Drive southeast from Portland on Highway 224, and you'll see a little yellow farmhouse sitting across from the Barton store. Every time I drive that road it takes me back to simpler times. In the 90s, this little farmhouse was nestled into acres of bright petunias, foxgloves, sunflowers, and zinnias. This was my kingdom, and I ran through it barefoot and wild.
The garden was one of my dad’s passions. I wish I could say I picked up his gardening skills, but I can barely keep houseplants alive. Instead of growing flowers of my own, I make handmade spring cards and scrapbook pages about gardening to capture my fond memories of these times gone by.
I wanted the focal point of my scrapbook page to be photos of me as a child standing at the edge of my father's garden. Recently, during a big move, I rediscovered these photos so they seemed like the perfect centerpiece for this gardening-themed layout. I chose green and yellow cardstock for my layout background in order to compliment the garden setting.
To make the title block for my gardening-themed scrapbook page, I used white cardstock and the smallest label from the set of Essential Stitched Labels Crafting Dies. Then I stamped the "Remember Your Roots" sentiment and the line-flourish stamp from the Love Grows Here Stamp Set onto the small die-cut label. The "Remember Your Roots" sentiment was perfect for this project because the open font allowed me to add my own pop of color. I simply colored in the letters in the word "Roots" with a yellow pencil so my title coordinated nicely with the yellow flowers that my child self held while posing for this photo.
To make the journaling block, I used the "Cultivate a Good Life" sentiment and the small flower accent stamp (both from the Love Grows Here Stamp Set) and added some handwritten details.
I’ve moved far away from Barton, Oregon, but I will always have roots there. I’ve called many places home over the years, and while my current home is far away, my scrapbook page brings back fond childhood memories of time spent in my father's Oregon garden.
Our creative team members have made so many beautiful spring cards. It was hard to choose which ones to include here. I think my current favorite is the first one. The sentiment “Full of Promise” (from our Growing Garden Stamp Set) captures what I love about springtime. This is the season when the green returns and the world around us reawakens. This is the season of planting what will soon bloom. I love the promises of light and joy that springtime brings each year!
Beautiful Narcissus Clear Stamp Set with Matching Craft Dies |
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I hope you enjoyed seeing my garden scrapbook page and all of these spring cards. You can see more projects like these by visiting the Spring and Garden Collection of stamps and craft dies on our website. When you click on the stamps or dies, it will bring up projects too!
See a project you like and want to recreate it? Or are you inspired to make some unique spring cards of your own? From now through Thursday, 4/29/2021, we're offering 15% off all of our stamps and craft dies that are spring or gardening themed. That includes the products I used to make my scrapbook layout and our team used to make the spring cards. Use coupon code GARDENING and get your favorites today! Then have some fun creating a garden full of paper craft projects for your family and friends!