Immortal Wordsmith

This will only be a quick article – a mini guide, if you will. When it comes to making homemade cards, whether it’s for Christmas, birthdays, or just random thank you notes, I have done it all. And it’s not just because I can’t get out to a place that sells cards… I could order some online, after all.

Creating your own cards gives you something to do while you binge watch that latest show, and it shows the recipient that you spent more than 20 seconds picking out a card at the petrol station.

Here’s how I create flawless handmade cards in just 2 steps every time.

Step 1 – Adult Colouring Books

To get started, find adult colouring books (or even kid’s colouring books) that have big designs that are isolated on a plain background. In the photo above, you can see where I’ve cut out birds from a colouring book as a demonstration.

The great thing about this, is that you don’t need to be overly imaginative. You’ve just got to find something that fits your occasion.

Next, you colour it in. I like to use felt tips, but if you want to be both lazier and more artistic, try just splashing over watercolours or flicking paint over it with a toothbrush. Very modern.

If you want to buy colouring books to get started, I recommend a simple combination like this:

• Bloom Adult Colouring Book – flowers that work for any occasion,
• Motivational Swear Words Colouring Book – comes with great phrases to colour in and cut out, like “cheer the fuck up” and “fuck I love you” that would be awesome on a card. You could also cut out individual letters to create your own phrases.

You could even reuse tea packaging, if you’re a tea-head like me. English Tea Shop usually have some interesting packaging for their tea blends.

Step 2 – Blank Homemade Cards and Envelopes

You can buy plain white cards from any craft store. Hobbycraft always has a tonne, if you live in the UK. Otherwise, you can find them on Amazon. Just make sure they come with matching envelopes!

You’re also going to need a glue that’s great for paper, or use double sided tape.

If you don’t have words to cut out, try cutting letters out of a newspaper or magazine to stick on the front as your message, e.g. “T H A N K  Y O U”. If you feel confidence enough, write it on yourself.

Another way to get a great font message on the front of your greetings card is to use your laptop. Head over to 1001 free fonts, type in your desired phrase on the font you like, then turn your laptop, computer, or smartphone screen up to the brightest setting.

You can usually trace through the letters by holding the card over the screen!

Now all you need to do is put things together, write your message on the inside, and panic when you realise you don’t have an up-to-date address…