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Greeting Card Class Tutorials

Learn card making techniques

Greeting Card Class Tutorials

Learn card making techniques
 
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Greeting Card Class: Tutorial #1

Four Patch Cards

Double the delight, halve the effort! Two stunning cards from one small sheet of paper.
Four patch greeting card with heart embellishment
What you will make:

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to make cards and envelopes from simple materials, decorate the card with four patches of fancy paper, and finish things off with a simple embellishment.

A card-making idea I'll be passing onto you is one from my sister. It's how to use a single 6" by 6" piece of decorative paper to make two greeting cards OR two coordinating 6" by 6" sheets (light and dark, or plain and patterned of the same color) to make four cards.

Here's what you need:
  • White letter-size (A4) card stock
  • Decorative paper - a digital paper will work
  • Glue
  • Scissors
  • Pencil
  • Ruler or paper trimmer
  • White computer paper for envelopes
  • Optional supplies: Colored cardstock, paper punches, rubber stamps, colored pencils.

This tutorial is the first of twelve card-making tutorials and is rated EASY to do.

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Before you start
  • Make a place to work.
  • Read all of the directions.
  • Gather everything you need to do the project.
  • Think about the project. Imagine how it will look and what you will do with it.
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How to Make Four Patch Greeting Cards

Read through the tutorial before starting.
Step 1: Card Blanks and Envelopes

One of the most economical ways to make greeting cards is by using white, letter-size (A4) cardstock and computer paper. A 250-sheet ream of 8½" by 11" white cardstock makes 500 cards, and a 500-sheet ream of white 20# paper makes 500 envelopes. That works out to a few pennies for a card and envelope.

For a Card
Cut a full sheet of cardstock in half to make two 8½" by 5½" card blanks.
Fold the card blank in half to make a 4¼" by 5½" card.
Tip: For crisp and accurate fold lines, use a scoring board like the DIY Scoring Board.

For an Envelope For an Envelope
Trace or print an envelope template onto a sheet of paper.
Cut, fold and glue according to instructions.
See the Envelopes to Make craft project for templates and instructions.

Here are some templates from Canon Creative Park to use:
https://creativepark.canon/en/contents/CNT-0003132/index.html
https://creativepark.canon/en/contents/CNT-0004639/index.html

The templates are Adobe PDF files. The Adobe Reader is available for free.

Step 2: Select and Prepare Decorative Paper

Select one decorative paper or two papers (one light and one dark of the same color, or one plain and one patterned of the same color).

Tip: The decorative paper used for the sample cards is Aunt Annie's free, downloadable Red marbled stones digital paper. You could also use the Marbled heart stones digital paper, other digital papers in the Marbled paper series, or any of Aunt Annie's digital paper downloads.

Cut two rectangles measuring 3½" by 2¼": one of each paper, or two from one 6" by 6" paper. Use this layout to make good use of a 6" by 6" sheet of paper.

6 by 6 paper cutting layout for four patch card

Download a PDF file with the suggested layout and cutting templates to size.

Step 3: Make Second Cut

Stack the two rectangles and, while holding them firmly together, cut horizontally about 1/3 from the top. The cut can be straight, V-shaped or curved, but the beginning and ending of the cut must be the same distance from the top.

four patch cut rectangles
Step 4: Arrange Cut Pieces

Arrange the four cut pieces on the card to your liking. To make cards like the examples, separate the patches with equal spacing both horizontally and vertically, and, when using two different papers, swap the tops or bottoms.

4-patch swap and arrange
Step 5: Make a Medallion Embellishment
Four patch card made from marbled ePaper

Create a medallion for the card center—cut a 1" to 1½" square of cardstock, or punch a 1" circle. Decorate with a rubberstamp or with punched paper.

Glue the medallion to the center of the card.

Tip: For an added touch, stick the embellishment on the card using double-side foam tape. This will give it a 3D look. A piece of corrugated cardboard can be used in place of the foam tape—just cut it to size, glue it to the back of the embellishment, then glue it to the card.

Tip: Use Aunt Annie's Heart Cutouts printable to make heart medallions for your card.

Step 6: Wrap Up

Second card from marbled leftoversThe remaining paper from the 6" square(s) can be used to make another card or to decorate the inside of the card or the envelope. The example card uses the two 1½" by 3" rectangles with the 3½" x 1½" rectangle underneath, all on a 4" by 5" black background.

Tip: There will be more design continuity if the card's message is decorated similarly to the card front.

Marbled four patch - front and inside

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