Handmade cards are a surefire way to brighten someone’s day—whether that day is a special occasion like a birthday, anniversary, graduation, holiday or just another ordinary day. Those of us who make our own cards are in on the big secret that making the cards can be every bit as fun and satisfying as receiving them! Today we’re sharing a few cardmaking tricks that can help you create cards for all occasions. The artwork examples we’re using to illustrate these tricks come from our It’s the Little Things Cardmaking workshop, featuring papers embellishments and stamps from this fun and versatile collection!
One thing that these examples will prove is that using products designed specifically for cardmaking can really simplify the creative process! These products are tailor made to provide popular sentiments and are sized perfectly for incorporating into standard card sizes. The It’s the Little Things collection features an incredible 6″ x 6″ paper packet, but the true cardmaking stars are the coordinating stickers, stamp set, and embellishments all designed especially for cardmaking!
Let’s start with patterned papers. These are a cardmaker’s best friend as they can really cut down on the design work that goes into a given card. Whether working with standard 12″ x 12″ papers or the 6″ x 6″ size, a collection of coordinating patterned papers allows you to choose out two or three favorite designs that you’d like to use and let them do the heavy lifting. A large piece of patterned paper does a great job of creating an appealing and eye-catching background for your card, which you can then accent with smaller pieces of coordinating accent papers.
In other instances, you can give two patterns that work well together more or less equal billing. This technique can be used to set up great visual contrast on your card, as in this breathtaking congratulations card, where the white background of the top paper is perfectly balanced by the black background of the bottom paper:
Building up from there, you have a wide variety of ways to top off your card with accents and sentiments. For accents, the It’s the Little Things collection features stickers and embellishments that will bring a smile to any card lover’s face. The cardmaking embellishments pack includes both black die-cuts and white acrylic shapes with options both for accent pieces and sentiments! Take a look at these examples to see these elements used to full effect!
We also love the die-cuts in this collection that are sized to fill up a card, taking the role of sentiment and card design all in one, minimizing the need for any further embellishment!
We also don’t want to leave out the fun sticker sheets that provide more colorful embellishment and sentiment options! Because the stickers are designed to work together with the paper collection, getting a harmonious card design is practically guaranteed!
Finally, when it comes to adding sentiments to our cards, stamping is of course one method that we are especially partial to. A great stamp image lends itself to repeated use, which is what makes stamping a great fit for card sentiments. Different designs can help lend a unique feel to even the most common sentiments! Tailor your sentiment design to the occasion and the tone of the card to strike just the right feeling!
The best cardmaking stamp sets feature interchangeable sentiments. This makes it possible for you to make a batch of cards ahead of time and leave the sentiment area blank. Then, when you’ve got a card giving occasion, you have a few different sentiments you can choose from to match the occasion!
The next time you’ve got a card giving occasion, remember just how easy it can be to make a meaningful gesture with a handmade card when you’re working with the right tools! Let us know in the comments which of the cards above you would be happiest to see in your mailbox, and then put your creativity to work making a card of your own to brighten someone’s day!
If you’re like us, the minute you see a gorgeous set of patterned papers, the creative wheels in your mind begin to turn. Before long, you’re designing scrapbook layouts and cards in your head, and you can hardly wait to get your hands on the paper so you can bring your ideas to life! We know this feeling well and for that reason, we can’t wait to share the very special products featured in our post today. This beautiful selection is sure to inspire, so without further ado, let’s take a look at our It’s the Little Things collection!
It’s the Little Things is a unique collection, in the fact that it features a 6″ x 6″ paper packet, as opposed to the typical 12″ x 12″ size offered in the majority of our paper collections. In spite of the size difference, these 6″ x 6″ papers can still be used to great effect in 12″ x 12″ scrapbook layouts in addition to being used to create mini album pages with ease! The variety of patterns and colors included in these papers makes them a great choice to pair with other paper collections as well as plain cardstock.
Along with these 6″ x 6″ mini mix-in style papers, the It’s the Little Things suite also includes three exclusive stamp sets—one each for scrapbooking, cardmaking, and mini albums!
Inspired by the patterns, icons, and sentiments in the papers and stamp sets, this collection also includes multiple sets of stickers, paperboard die-cuts, and assorted acrylic shapes. These embellishment options were designed in sets for scrapbooking, cardmaking, and mini album projects, but they can easily be interchanged, depending on your own preferences and crafting vision!
Rounding out the It’s the Little Things collection are the three workshop kits, which make crafting with this exquisite suite a piece of cake!
Today, we’ll be showing off some of the standout features of the It’s the Little Things Scrapbooking Workshop Kit.
This kit allows crafters to create three 2-page layouts and one single page layout, embracing a beautiful, minimalistic approach in its design. This minimalistic feel is due primarily to the prominent use of white base pages, with much of the background untouched and clearly visible beneath the patterned paper elements. Each kit comes complete with scrapbooking stickers and punch-out die-cut embellishments, along with the It’s the Little Things 6″ x 6″ papers, the scrapbooking stamp set, and a few sheets of black and white cardstock.
To start off our scrapbook adventure today, we’re going to take a look at our single “Remember When” page, which uses a selection of black and white 6″ x 6” floral paper from the It’s the Little Things paper pack at its foundation. The paper sheets have been cut into triangular sections and attached over the corners of the base page, creating a beautiful framing effect. Black and white mix-in details come further into play with dovetailed pennant pieces positioned behind our “Remember when” title at the top of the page, and behind the journaling at the bottom. Rounding out the monochrome theming in this page is a simple layering of black and white cardstock with a border drawn in metallic silver paint marker for an added sparkly touch. This emphasis on a grayscale palette at the foundation of this page sets up a dramatic effect when vibrant colors are added into the center of the page.
The page comes into full color with a rainbow selection of patterned mix-in papers cut into dovetailed pennants and spaced evenly across the width of the page. Each pennant has been given a “shadow effect” by distressing the edges with Black ink to help them stand out even more against the white background.
After putting a few fun photos on the page, the final touches were added using the scrapbooking embellishments, stickers, and stamps, plus black twine, and a couple of Black & White Dots, which were first colored silver with a metallic paint marker. We’ve even given a silver coating to the “LOVE” title stickers for some extra shine. This gorgeous combination of a black and white color scheme at the page’s foundation and the brightly colored pennants and silver sections as accent pieces give you a minimalist effect while still embracing a flurry of bright colors!
Our next layout, “Enjoy the Little Moments”, embraces a greater emphasis on color right from the start, as the base page has been sponged with soft swathes of orange ink as an initial step.
After applying the ink, we attached various pieces of patterned paper from our trusty mix-in pack. This is an excellent example of how the 6″ x 6″ papers can be used to great effect in full-size 12″ x 12″ scrapbooking. Because of their smaller size, the patterned papers used in this layout did not require cutting, making it quick and easy to add them to the page!
Once the patterned paper was attached, we cut ½” strips of black cardstock and attached them along the top and bottom edges of the patterned papers, creating a sharp cutoff and further accentuating the contrast between the patterned sections and the stark white base page. To finish off the foundation of this scrapbook layout, we stamped a black ink border on the base page alongside the black cardstock strips.
After adding photos—attached to patterned paper mats—and a journaling piece, it’s embellishment time! This page is festooned with scrapbooking punch-out die-cuts, stamped die-cuts, and stickers from the It’s the Little Things Scrapbooking Workshop Kit. And once again, we turned to our trusty silver paint marker to add a metallic finish to the enamel dots
While the previous pages we’ve looked at today have all featured a horizontal flow of pattern and color, this next layout takes that approach in a 90° turn with some fun vertical stripes! Similar to our previous layout, the colorful sections on this pair of pages were created by cutting the rainbow stripe 6″ x 6″ patterned paper in half and then attaching them at the top and bottom of the white base page in the center. Thanks to the proportions of these papers, it was then a cinch to attach a single piece of 6″ x 6″ black and white patterned paper in the middle, capping it off at both the top and bottom edges with ½” paper strips trimmed from another black and white patterned piece.
Along the edges of these striped sections, we used a silver paint marker to create a simple, hand-drawn border, running the length of the pages.
With these papers in place, we had a great foundation that we topped with a handful of matted photos, stickers, die-cuts, and a unique sticker title on the right page using the “perfect” letter stickers from the It’s the Little Things scrapbooking selection.
With the vertical orientation of the stripes, this layout stands apart, although the techniques used to create it are easy to replicate. This makes it a great example of how a little bit of out-of-the-box thinking can help you to expand your creative output!
Our last layout on display from the It’s the Little Things Scrapbooking Workshop Kit is this adorable “Shine Bright” layout. These beautiful pages are graced with a spectrum of vibrant rectangular patterned pieces, all edged with black ink for an additional “shadow effect” against the white base pages.
For an additional accent effect, small dotted circles have been stamped so they peek out from behind the rectangular pieces, and each dotted section has been sponged with yellow ink. Clustered around these sections, we’ve also included some small dots, applied with a silver paint marker.
Photos, stickers, stamped die-cuts, and black punch-out die-cuts serve to create focal points, embellished accents, and title sections, all layered on top of and around the aforementioned rectangular pieces.
To finish out this layout, we added a few simple lines of journaling at the bottom of each page, stamped our trusty border in black ink on ¼” pieces of white cardstock, edged them in black ink, attached them above the colorful rectangular pieces, and applied black bow die-cuts and white dots in the center of the stamped pieces. As a final touch, we’ve added a simple silver border with the paint marker, as well as a few distressed elements that take this technique to the next level.
As you can see in the close-up above, a few sections of our white cardstock base pages have been torn slightly, crumpled and worked to achieve a distressed look. These sections were then curled down, and sponged lightly with yellow ink. Behind these sections, we’ve placed a small piece of patterned paper, edged in black ink, to serve as a sort of patch. This effect, when taken all together, results in a unique aged look.
As you can see, there’s a TON of creative potential available through the It’s the Little Things Scrapbooking Workshop Kit, and we can’t wait to hear about all the amazing memories you’ll preserve in your own pages! Comment below and let us know what stories you can’t wait to tell with this scrapbook kit, and stay tuned for even more fun with It’s the Little Things!
